SS 8(2) Part 4

“…I’ll disconnect the cart at the back.”

Bomin whispered in a voice only Song Jaeho could hear. The man who had been driving the motorcycle had gotten up and joined his companions with a frustrated look.

Their glares at Song Jaeho were menacing. Song Jaeho hadn’t awakened as an Esper yet. Bomin briefly tried to recall when Song Jaeho became an Esper, but he hadn’t asked in detail since Song Jaeho didn’t seem to like talking about his past.

Unless Song Jaeho miraculously awakened as an Esper right now…

It was realistically impossible to win a fight against this many people. Even Bomin could probably handle up to two people, but more than that was impossible.

The number of men surrounding them now exceeded several dozen.

It was ridiculous that they brought so many people just for some money. It was embarrassing that these grown men were so eager to steal a child’s pocket money.

“Bring that bastard to me.”

The man who seemed to be the leader of the group ordered those wielding their weapons dangerously.

“Waaaaah!“

The men all raised their weapons and charged towards Song Jaeho and Bomin. Bomin immediately struck the connecting part between the cart and the motorcycle.

Perhaps thanks to Bomin putting all his strength into it, the connecting part thankfully showed signs of breaking.

“Get on first.”

Song Jaeho grabbed the collar of the man charging at the front and used him as a shield, gesturing to Bomin with his eyes. Bomin climbed onto the back seat of the motorcycle and repeatedly struck with the metal pipe.

“He’s quite strong for his looks.”

Men also approached the side where Bomin was sitting. Perhaps thinking that Bomin wasn’t a threat, the men were just casually swinging their weapons.

Thwack!

“Ugh, son of a bitch…”

Bomin changed the direction of the metal pipe and struck the groin of the man closest to him. A sickening feeling was transmitted from the end of the pipe.

The man collapsed to the floor, clutching his groin with both hands, his face crimson. The two men who approached next grimaced.

It was the moment they were about to rush at Bomin, looking down at the fallen man as if he were the most pitiful creature in the world.

“Song Jaeho, it’s done!”

Finally, the connection between the cart and the motorcycle broke. At Bomin’s shout, Song Jaeho, who had been swinging the metal pipe with all his might, cracking the men’s heads, nimbly jumped onto the front of the motorcycle.

Bomin quickly grabbed Song Jaeho’s waist. Fortunately, the motorcycle was already started, allowing them to quickly escape the scene of the brawl.

“Those bastards.”

Song Jaeho cursed under his breath. He knew there was no one to trust in this world, but he hadn’t expected the broker to betray him so readily. He was angrier at himself for being so naive.

He increased the motorcycle’s speed. Since those guys wouldn’t have walked to their hiding place, they would definitely be chasing after them on some kind of vehicle soon.

“Lee Bomin, are you okay?”

Song Jaeho called out Bomin’s name, who was unusually quiet. Song Jaeho had started speaking informally to Bomin and calling him by his name ever since Bomin stroked his hair.

Strangely, he didn’t want to call Bomin “hyung” (older brother). On the contrary, whenever Bomin looked at him with a cute expression, a strange feeling welled up inside him, and he had to control himself.

The person who should be chattering away was strangely silent. When Bomin didn’t answer his question, Song Jaeho turned his head back.

“…Lee Bomin?”

Bomin had his forehead against Song Jaeho’s back, his head bowed. But below his slender neck, a stream of blood flowed like a small river.

His light gray shirt was quickly stained red. Song Jaeho gritted his teeth and kept his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

He wanted to check on Bomin, but if he stopped the motorcycle now, they would be caught by the men chasing them. And if that happened, they would surely suffer worse than they had just now.

Since those guys had clearly seen Bomin’s face, he couldn’t leave Bomin alone somewhere else either.

“Just hold on a little longer, please…”

For the first time, he had met someone he wanted to protect.

Someone who had miraculously appeared in his life, where he had no family, friends, or anyone he could trust.

Song Jaeho was glad that Bomin didn’t remember anything but his name. When he thought that he was the only person Bomin knew in this world, he felt as if he had the whole world.

Surely, somewhere in this world, there would be someone who loved Bomin. Perhaps they were desperately searching for the missing Bomin.

Song Jaeho deliberately avoided looking at the pictures posted in places with missing person lists. Because he was afraid that Bomin might be among them.

Even if there was someone looking for Bomin, he had no intention of returning him.

Screeech—

After riding the motorcycle for a long time, Song Jaeho stopped in front of a shabby-looking three-story building with a hospital.

Even though the men who had been tailing them seemed to have disappeared, he circled the area several times. It would be better to go further away, but if he delayed any longer, something might happen to Bomin.

“Where’s the doctor?”

Song Jaeho shouted loudly as he entered the hospital on the second floor, carrying Bomin on his back. The elderly woman sitting at the reception desk jumped up in surprise.

“Come this way, please.”

Instead of chasing them away, the woman led Song Jaeho and Bomin into an empty treatment room.

Song Jaeho carefully laid Bomin down on the bed. The white pillow was stained with red.

“I’ll call the doctor. It’s not good for him to keep bleeding, so use this to stop the bleeding.”

The nurse handed Song Jaeho a clean towel. With trembling hands, Song Jaeho took the towel and applied pressure to the side of Bomin’s head.

He must have been hit by a weapon someone swung when they were escaping on the motorcycle. A long gash stretched from Bomin’s right temple to above his ear.

It was a painful-looking wound. The person who used to cry in pain even when he cut his foot on glass had now suffered a head injury.

“…Come on, wake up, okay?”

Bomin only took shallow breaths with his eyes tightly closed. His already pale face was even more ashen from the blood loss.

Song Jaeho lifted Bomin’s limp hand and rubbed it against his cheek. His hand was cold, as if all the warmth had drained out of it.

He was still breathing, but Song Jaeho was afraid that Bomin might never open his eyes again. His first friend. The person he cared for so much that he worried his heart might break every time Bomin smiled at him.

“Hyung…”

His voice calling Bomin “hyung” was choked with tears. Tears that fell from his eyes wet Bomin’s cold hand and flowed down his slender wrist.

“Please move aside so I can examine the patient.”

The doctor, who had rushed into the treatment room after hearing about the emergency patient, pushed Song Jaeho aside.

“Do you have money for the treatment?”

After examining Bomin’s wound and deciding it needed stitches, the doctor subtly inquired about Song Jaeho’s financial situation. This was because the clothes both Song Jaeho and Bomin were wearing were no better than rags.

“I have money, so treat him quickly. Right now.”

Song Jaeho took out a wad of cash from his pocket and placed it on the bed. At a glance, it was a sufficient amount for the treatment. Only then did the doctor bring antiseptic, surgical thread, and a needle to stitch up Bomin’s wound.

The wound would have healed instantly with a healing potion, but that was far beyond Song Jaeho’s means.

“Give him an antibiotic shot.”

Fortunately, the doctor was skilled. He quickly stitched up Bomin’s wound, gave instructions to the nurse, and left the treatment room. While the nurse administered the antibiotic shot to Bomin’s arm, Song Jaeho roughly rubbed his eyelids.

The blood was wiped away and the wound was closed, but the image of Bomin lying limply kept replaying in his mind. Song Jaeho calmed his erratic breathing, knelt down in front of the bed where Bomin lay, and took Bomin’s hands in his own, resting his forehead on them.

What should he do?

He wanted to get a safer place to live with the money he had. He wanted to become a reliable guardian so that Bomin could freely roam outside.

Even though Bomin was older, Song Jaeho had no intention of being protected by him. He only wanted to become an adult quickly and become someone worthy of Bomin.

“…I’m sorry.”

His life was miserable. He didn’t even know his biological parents, so he had no way of knowing where his roots began.

‘You unlucky bastard.’
‘This is why you shouldn’t use parentless bastards.’

It wasn’t his choice to be without parents. He was simply thrown into the world alone from the moment he opened his eyes.

The employers who had exploited him always blamed Song Jaeho. Every time he heard those words, Song Jaeho was grateful that those people weren’t his parents.

But… seeing Bomin suffer like this just because he was by his side made him wonder for the first time if his life was truly hopeless.

“So please, wake up…”