TGMND 139
by Springlila“Good work, get home safely.”
“You too, Assistant Lee.”
Yeo-woon turned off the office lights and came out after finishing overtime work with the remaining coworkers. The night air was too chilly to endure with just a coat. The fatigue of the day settled on his shoulders, making his muscles ache. Yeo-woon let out a heavy sigh mixed with fatigue. His white breath blurred hazily.
“Phew, but it’s good we finished before the weekend!”
“Yeah, indeed.”
“But Assistant Lee, aren’t you dating anyone tomorrow?”
“…?”
As they walked side by side toward the bus stop, his coworker asked the question. The sudden shift in topic made Ye-woon tilt his head in confusion.
“Christmas is the day after tomorrow, you know.”
“Ah…”
“Don’t tell me you forgot?”
“No, I remembered…”
He hadn’t forgotten that Christmas was on a weekend this year, and that today was the 23rd. It was just hard to believe that the date had already come.
“Assistant Lee, I need to stop by the bakery for a moment! My sister asked me to buy something on the way.”
“Sure, let’s go in together then.”
“Brr, it’s cold.”
Yeo-woon followed his colleague into the bakery, which was filled with a sweet smell from the entrance. As he was looking at the few remaining breads without much thought, Yeo-woon suddenly thought when he saw the last cream cake left in the display case. Even if it’s just Christmas, shouldn’t he at least blow out a candle with his boyfriend?
And a moment later, when he came to his senses, Yeo-woon found himself holding a cake box. A man who seemed to be just returning home rushed in, breathing heavily, and belatedly asked if there were any cakes left. The bakery employee pointed to the cake Yeo-woon had bought and said with an apologetic expression, ‘That’s the last one.’ Hearing that made him feel strangely proud.
“Did you buy it for Christmas?”
“Yes. To eat with my lover…”
“That’s nice. So Assistant Lee does have a lover…”
Yeo-woon smiled shyly at the voice tinged with envy. After buying the cake, he wanted to rush home to see his handsome boyfriend’s face. Would he pout, asking why he came home so late again? Or would he offer a warm embrace, saying “Good work today”? Either way, he just wanted to see him soon.
Lee Yeo-woon hyung♥: Where are you?
At the bus stop, he took out his phone while waiting for the bus to arrive. Yeo-woon sent a message to Yoon Ji-gu while warming his frozen hands with his breath. However, unlike usual, the reply that would have come immediately didn’t arrive even after a few minutes.
‘Is he already asleep? Is he not answering because he’s playing games? Or is he at the cafe…?’
Feeling inexplicably uneasy, he tried calling. The dial tone was longer than usual.
“He must be asleep…”
Just as he was about to hang up thinking Ji-gu wouldn’t answer, someone picked up the phone, and faint background noise could be heard on the other end.
“Ji-gu, where are you?”
-Hello?
But why does Yoon Ji-gu’s voice sound like this? It suddenly sounds like a different person.
-…Yeo-woon-ssi?
“Yes?”
-Is this really the Yeo-woon-ssi I know?
“…?”
Who was this person that knows him?
“Um, I’m sorry, but who is this?”
-Ah. This is Yoon Ji-hyeok, Ji-gu’s older brother. Don’t you remember me?
“…Oh! Yes, hello.”
Yeo-woon remembered. He was acquainted with him. They had even eaten together once before. Yeo-woon straightened his posture abruptly and politely answered the phone. However, he couldn’t understand the situation. He had definitely called Yoon Ji-gu, so why was his older brother answering the phone?
“Um… Is Ji-gu not there?”
-Ji-gu can’t come to the phone right now. But why…
Unfamiliar sounds could be heard through the receiver. It seemed there were many people around, as other voices could be heard mixing in, and someone’s crying could also be heard.
-Yeo-woon-ssi, let’s talk later. We’re in the emergency room, and my kid is crying, it’s chaotic here.
“Emergency room?!”
Yeo-woon’s heart sank as he unconsciously shouted.
“Why the emergency room? Who’s hurt?”
-Ji-gu had a traffic accident in front of the house. …Yes, are you sleepy? Our Yeong, let’s sleep now. It’s okay. Grandma will be here soon.
Yeo-woon never expected to hear that someone he thought would be at home or at the cafe was suddenly in the emergency room. And on a day like this… Yeo-woon’s mind went blank with shock for a moment.
“Assistant Lee, what’s wrong? Emergency room? Who?”
His vision blurred and his hands trembled. The fact that the person who should be resting comfortably at home was suddenly in the emergency room felt completely unreal.
“Wh-which hospital? Which emergency room is it?”
-It’s XX Hospital… Are you coming?
“I, I’ll be there right away.”
Yeo-woon hung up the phone in a daze. At the words ‘emergency room’ and Yeo-woon’s flustered attitude, the people standing at the bus stop glanced at Yeo-woon with worried faces. His coworker also expressed concern with a serious face. Yeo-woon muttered into the air with a bewildered attitude.
“Hospital… He said there was a traffic accident…”
“Assistant Lee!”
“…”
Yeo-woon blinked, looking down at the hand firmly gripping his shoulder. He seemed to be coming to his senses a bit.
“First, calm down. It probably isn’t anything serious.”
“…Yes.”
“Get your bearings first. What can be solved by you being like this here?”
“Thank you. I’ll… take a taxi and go first.”
A traffic accident on a day like this of all days. Yeo-woon spotted an empty taxi passing in front of the stop and immediately raised his hand to hail it.
“XX Hospital Emergency Room, please.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Please hurry.”
The taxi smelled of cheap air freshener, and Christmas carols played on the radio, announcing that tomorrow was Christmas Eve. The cheerful bell sounds and golden melodies celebrated the holiday. Perhaps because it was Friday night, the traffic was heavily congested with no signs of clearing. Yeo-woon closed his eyes tightly and prayed for Ji-gu’s well-being to gods he didn’t even believe in. Just until a moment ago, he had felt relieved and excited that work was over, but now every minute and second felt urgent.
***
As soon as he got out of the taxi, Yeo-woon rushed in and opened the emergency room door. A faint smell of medicine lingered at the entrance. There were too many beds and people, making it very difficult to find one person. To make matters worse, his phone battery had died from fiddling with it throughout the journey. It would be easier to find if he could make a call… Yeo-woon looked around and grabbed a passing doctor to ask.
“Is there someone who came in earlier due to a traffic accident?”
“Traffic accident? There’s only one traffic accident patient right now. He’s over there.”
Yeo-woon turned his head to look where the doctor was pointing. He could see the silhouette of a patient lying on an uncomfortable-looking bed, covered with a white sheet.
“…”
It felt like time had stopped. The chaotic surroundings that had been so noisy just moments ago didn’t register at all. He wished this was all just a dream. That the person lying there wasn’t Yoon Ji-gu. Praying for this internally, he forced his reluctant feet to move.
As he approached, Yeo-woon stopped in his tracks with a blank expression. The white sheet covered Yoon Ji-gu up to the top of his head.
‘Death declaration.’
His heart dropped to his feet. Yeo-woon’s day had been no different from usual. As always, he woke up at 6:30 to prepare for work, spent half the day at the company, and left work as usual, but he couldn’t understand why he was standing here now.
“…”
His stumbling steps approached the bed. He weakly dropped his hand that had been reaching for the sheet. After a long silence, Yeo-woon muttered in a voice so small only he could hear.
“Ji-gu, let’s go home.”
Why did you go out and have an accident on a day like this? Why…
“I bought a cake. You like sweet things, don’t you? I’ll let you eat it all.”
Of course, there was no response. Yeo-woon collapsed on the spot, tightly gripping the bed sheet. He crouched down and buried his face in his knees. This time felt like hell. Now he regrets everything. Losing the couple ring that held their memories, reducing the time spent with him using work as an excuse…
“Hyung… came to pick you up. Get up quickly.”
If he had known things would end like this, would he still have chosen to meet Yoon Ji-gu? Struggling to breathe through his choked sobs, he shook his head.
No, that’s not possible. Even if he had known this outcome from the start, he would have inevitably fallen in love with Yoon Ji-gu. Just like how Ji-gu had melted his heart that he had pushed away countless times. Yoon Ji-gu had approached him like a spring breeze, melting into his daily life, and he couldn’t help but love him.
Still. If he had known in advance, he could have been more true to his feelings. He could have given him a few more happy memories to take with him. He should have loved him much more. Hugged him more. He would have been less stern when Ji-gu asked for something. Be more honest… His vision blurred as heat gathered in his eyes. Thinking that he would never again see the face that had smiled so prettily at him just yesterday made Yeo-woon’s heart ache.
Yeo-woon held tightly onto the hand sticking out from beside the white sheet, repeating countless regrets. But no matter how much he regretted it now, what had passed couldn’t be undone. He closed his eyes tightly and prayed desperately. If there is a God, please let Ji-gu come back to life. Let him breathe again. I can’t eat all this cake alone…
That’s when it happened.
“Mmm.”
“…!”
Miraculously, Yoon Ji-gu, who had been a corpse, came back to life with a breath. Good heavens, this isn’t right. He had asked for Ji-gu to be saved, but he didn’t really expect him to come back to life!
Yeo-woon, who had been internally lamenting with all sorts of good words like regret, love, and happiness, suddenly threw away the hand he had been holding and backed away quickly, as if he had never done such a thing. His face, which had been red from holding back tears, turned as white as a sheet. The man who appeared, pulling back the sheet that had covered even his head…
“Ah, shit. They told me to wait and they’d stitch me up soon. Why are you only showing up now?”
“…Who are you?”
“What?”
“What?”
“What?”
“Whaat?”
The two repeated “What?” like a broken record before realizing something was off and simultaneously closing their mouths.
“What the hell are you?”
“…”
“What are you staring at? Never seen someone with a busted leg before? Aaaargh! Get me a doctor!”
“Do-doctor!”
“Yes?”
“Ah, how long are you going to make me wait? My leg will rot at this rate!”
“It won’t rot.”
“Ack, I’m dying here! Blood is pouring out!”
The man who had been sleeping soundly with even his face covered until now started acting up, feigning innocence. To think he had mistaken this guy for Yoon Ji-gu. Yeo-woon, who had been crouching with a dazed face at the noisy sounds, shook his head vigorously and looked around.
No, this wasn’t the right place…?
“Then where’s Yoon Ji-gu…?”
“…Hyung?”
At that moment, the voice Yeo-woon had been longing for so much came from beside him. Yeo-woon, who had been crouching on the floor lamenting, raised his head. Yoon Ji-gu… was alive!
“You really…!”
Yeo-woon stopped mid-sentence. If there was an accident, you should have told me. You should have… The words he couldn’t say due to his choked-up throat lingered on the tip of his tongue. Yeo-woon was about to stand up and approach Ji-gu.
“Who’s that?”
Yoon Ji-gu strode over and tightly embraced Yeo-woon’s shoulders while glaring at the unfamiliar man whose hand Yeo-woon had been holding until just moments ago. The man was shouting loudly, pointing at his broken knee and demanding a doctor be brought quickly.
“Aargh, I’m dying!”
“Tell me quickly. Who is that?”
“…I don’t know?”
Looking again, it was absurd. How could he have thought that was Yoon Ji-gu? Watching his antics made Yeo-woon’s tears completely dried up.
“Are, are you okay?”
Yeo-woon belatedly turned to look at Ji-gu. Apart from Ji-gu’s still anxious expression, probably from being very shocked, and the cast fixing his injured arm, he looked perfectly fine. Ji-gu was still in his familiar cafe uniform, suggesting he had the accident while at the cafe.
“Thank goodness…”
“…Why are you here, hyung?”
“Huh?”
“Did you come because of that person?”
“Huh?”
“Who is that? I’ve never seen him before. Hyung, you’re not putting effort into that bastard like you did when you seduced me, right? Who is he that you’re holding his hand? Have you been with him this whole time? All that talk about working overtime was a lie, right? Wh-what’s so great about that bastard compared to me? Were you trying to replace me with someone like that? No, I can’t bear to see that even if I d1e. Hyung, I…”
Yoon Ji-gu’s shoulders shook as his eyes reddened. Yeo-woon, not understanding what was going on but seeing that Ji-gu seemed very upset, raised his hand to pat Ji-gu’s shoulder.
“Let’s go home, Ji-gu.”
“…What’s this! Don’t give this to him, give it to me!”
“Ah!”
Yoon Ji-gu snatched the cake box from Yeo-woon’s hand. Then, as if afraid Yeo-woon might take back his possession, he hurriedly walked away with large strides, quickly escaping outside. Yeo-woon, who had encountered a lovely thief in the middle of the night, belatedly came to his senses and followed him out of the building.
“Why are you in such a rush?”
Yoon Ji-gu was already fast, but now his steps had become even quicker. Yeo-woon barely caught up with Ji-gu and gripped his shoulder firmly. Forcibly turned around by that touch, Ji-gu tightly hugged the stolen cake box to his chest and looked at Yeo-woon with reproachful, teary eyes.
“What now?!”
“…”
Feeling sorry for his lover who was wearing only a thin shirt without an overcoat, Yeo-woon unwrapped the scarf from his own neck and put it around Ji-gu’s neck. The navy checkered scarf hung on his straight neck. After wrapping the long scarf around his neck twice and tying it loosely, he looked much better.
“Hic…”
After barely managing to tie the scarf with trembling hands, Yeo-woon saw that Ji-gu was silently shedding tears. Surprised by this, Yeo-woon cupped Ji-gu’s cheeks with both hands and wiped away the tears with his thumbs. As if reassured by that touch, the tears showed no signs of stopping and began to fall even more heavily. Yeo-woon asked in confusion:
“Why, why? …Why are you suddenly crying? Does it still hurt a lot?”
“Hyung, I, hic, really. I really like you.”
“Yeo-woon-ssi?”
That’s when it happened. A familiar voice was heard from behind Yeo-woon.
“…!”
“I knew this would happen.”
Yoon Ji-hyeok, who had belatedly come out of the hospital, muttered. He looked at them with a blank face while holding his sleeping child in his arms. Next to him stood the woman who was the owner of Cafe Earth and Yoon Ji-gu’s mother. She also looked very surprised.
…Oh my God. Feeling the blood in his whole body run cold, Yeo-woon gently pushed Ji-gu away and bowed his head to greet them. It had certainly started as an ordinary day, but he couldn’t understand why it had become so spectacular by evening.
“Ma’am, this is…”
His mouth felt parched. Yeo-woon opened his mouth, trying to explain before hearing any unnecessary comments, while slightly blocking Ji-gu.
“Could it be that our Ji-gu…”
Ji-gu’s mother muttered with a flustered face. Yes, it was understandable that she didn’t want to believe it. Yeo-woon took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. He had always known that one day he would have to talk to both families about this. But he had never imagined it would happen under such terrible circumstances.
“…I’m sorry.”
“Are you forcing your feelings on Yeo-woon-ssi?”
“I should have told you earlier… What?”
“How can I apologize for this!”
“Pardon…?”
“He’s been so pampered since he was young… Yoon Ji-gu! Let go of him quickly. What are you doing, grabbing a stranger and embarrassing us in front of the neighbors?”
“…?”
I’m not really a stranger though. Yeo-woon missed the timing to correct the facts and kept his mouth shut. Yoon Ji-gu, who was tightly hugging him from behind, shook his head and shouted.
“No! I’m not letting go! Never!”
“Wow!”
“What! I won’t go! Disown me if you want! Ah, do it! Do it! Mom, do whatever you want!”
“Hey, Yoon Ji-gu!”
“I don’t care! If you tell me to break up, I’ll just die!”
“You, little brat! You’re just like your father—talking back like this as if your life depends on it…!”
At that moment, Yoon Ji-hyeok awkwardly smiled as he slipped between his mother and Ji-gu.
“Yoon Ji-gu, won’t you come here?”
“Mom, stop it. Yeong is finally asleep, he’ll wake up.”
“Ah…”
“Ji-gu should keep living too.”
“…”
Unlike their mother who saw this situation as Ji-gu forcing his feelings, Ji-hyeok’s expression suggested he knew everything. Come to think of it, it was Ji-hyeok who answered the phone earlier when he called. Yeo-woon faced Ji-hyeok with a calm expression. It felt a bit strange to have this unexpected meeting in front of the emergency room two days before Christmas, but he didn’t have a bad feeling about it. Ji-hyeok even chuckled when he looked at him.
“Yeo-woon-ssi.”
“…Yes.”
“It’s late, so let’s go home quickly. And let’s have a meal together again sometime.”
“Hey! Who are you to ask my hyung to eat… mmph?”
Yeo-woon covered Ji-gu’s mouth as he suddenly lashed out, calling him ‘my hyung’ in front of his own older brother, and whispered quietly so only he could hear.
“Shut up for a bit…”
At those words, Ji-gu’s mouth clamped shut. And then his eyes started to well up with tears again.
“Um, we’ll go first then.”
“Yes, go home safely.”
Yoon Ji-hyeok gently waved Yeong’s sleeping hand. When the child whined in his sleep and twitched his tiny hand, even Ji-gu’s mother, who had been ready to pull Ji-gu’s hair out, couldn’t help but smile. Yeo-woon grabbed Ji-gu’s wrist and quickly ran away before he could burst into tears again. Ji-gu’s tears sparkled as they scattered in the air.