VDN Ch 98

“Waaaah…”

Nam-woon soothed Se-han, who was crying with his mouth wide open, saying, “It’s okay, it’s okay.” He refrained from mentioning that his brother could have beaten him up even more, fearing it would scare him.

Se-han, who had drenched Nam-woon’s neck and shirt with tears, lifted his head and murmured in a broken voice, “Hyung’s face…” He sobbed, his words slurred.

“Hyung, did you fight?”

Seo-oh approached Se-han but didn’t answer, gently patting his small back. Nam-woon, noticing the red wounds on Seo-oh’s hand, spoke up from the side.

“He fought ten gangsters and won. Don’t worry.”

Se-han’s eyes widened in shock, then gradually returned to their normal size. His straight eyebrows drooped down.

“Sniff… My brother isn’t even a gangster….what if they come for revenge, hic, and come to our house?”

“That’s not going to happen, Se-han.”

Seo-oh’s soothing words were overshadowed by Nam-woon, who boldly raised his voice in response.

“If that happens, you and I will fight them off. That’s why your brother sent you to Taekwondo.”

“…Oh.”

Se-han looked at his brother with a look of realization. Seo-oh shook his head as if to say that wasn’t the case. But before he could speak again, Se-han shouted brightly.

“I can fight with what I learned today!”

The child kicked his dangling legs in the air, signaling to Nam-woon that he wanted to be put down.

“There you go.”

When Nam-woon set the small body he had been holding down on the ground, Se-han, with his eyebrows raised like an angry bird, clenched his fists tightly. Though his fists were small and round like little balls of cotton, they looked firm and determined.

“Watch me, Hyung!”

Se-han shouted loudly as he thrust his fists forward. The Taekwondo uniform wrapped around his small arms fluttered slightly.

“Taekwondo! The national martial art, Taekwondo!”

Se-han put all his strength into the final punch, and as a result, he stumbled a bit. However, he quickly regained his balance and followed up with two kicks. His short legs sliced through the air at a very low height.

But once again, his enthusiasm got the best of him, and he couldn’t control his strength, causing him to fall hard on his backside in the dirt. Se-han let out a short cry as he landed. Seo-oh, startled, rushed over, but Se-han was already back on his feet as if he hadn’t fallen at all. Then came his brave shout.

“Hyung, I’m good with my fists, right?”

Nam-woon, who had been watching from the side, couldn’t hold back his laughter. Seo-oh, with an awkward expression, not knowing whether to laugh or not, gently held his younger brother’s hand.

“Yes. You’re good, but try not to use your fists.”

“What if someone bullies me?”

“At that time, you have to use it.”

A very different answer came out of Nam-woon’s mouth compared to what he had said to Seo-oh earlier. Seo-oh quietly looked at him with a silent glare. Nam-woon quickly shut his mouth.

“If someone bothers Se-han, there might be times when you have no choice but to use it… But try not to use it if you can.”

“Hmm, but why did you use your fist, Hyung? Who bullied you?”

Se-han, who had been examining Seo-oh’s face, clenched his fists tightly and shouted.

“Who bullied my hyung! We will have a spar!”

I’m really good at sparring. Se-han said, dirt from his earlier fall still clinging to his bottom. Nam-woon suddenly lifted the child and sat down on the porch, placing Se-han on his lap.

“Why is Se-han so good at everything? When did you grow up so much, huh?”

As Nam-woon placed his big hand on Se-han’s belly and playfully shook and rubbed it, Se-han’s voice wobbled along with the movement, sounding like a vibrating voice in front of a spinning fan.

Nam-woon’s intense show of affection caused the white belt tied around Se-han’s waist to loosen a bit.

“Hyung, stop it.”

Seo-oh approached the table and sat next to Nam-woon and Se-han. Meanwhile, Se-han, who had completely untied the white belt from his waist, began folding it with his small hands. After fiddling with his mouth like a duck’s beak for a while, Se-han handed what he was holding to Seo-oh, saying,

“It’s done!”

“What is it?”

“A rose.”

Se-han explained, his voice cracking.

“It’s white, so it’s a white rose.”

Covering his mouth with both hands, Se-han squinted his eyes and let out a small, amused laugh, ‘huhu.’ Seo-oh looked down at the white rose Se-han had made and quietly thanked him.

“Thank you, Se-han-ah.”

For the first time that day, a small smile appeared on Seo-oh’s face. Nam-woon couldn’t take his eyes off Seo-oh.

At that moment, Se-han suddenly spoke in a loud voice.

“When I become a red belt, I’ll make a red one for you.”

“What about me?”

Nam-woon, who had finally taken his eyes off Seo-oh, asked playfully. Se-han, who had been pondering, said, ‘But there’s no pink belt…’ After considering the lack of a pink belt, Se-han promised to make a yellow flower for Nam-woon when he earned his yellow belt. Then, he stared intently at his brother’s face.

Whatever he was thinking this time, Se-han got down from the porch with a determined expression.

“Hyung, I’ll show you how I can do a side flip. Watch carefully.”

Se-han quickly squatted down and placed his hands on the dirt, then hopped sideways. His dirt-covered bottom wiggled cutely in front of them. After repeating the side flip about five times, Se-han stood up, his face flushed bright red. He then stretched his arms out horizontally, then lowered them as he collapsed to the ground. The mysterious act was finished.

It seemed like Se-han was trying to show off his own version of a side flip. Nam-woon, who realized what Se-han intended, exclaimed in admiration.

“Kwon Se-han, amazing!”

Nam-woon clapped his hand against Seo-oh’s good hand, and they did a two-person high-five. Se-han, with a shy expression, wobbled his legs as he approached his brother.

“Pant, pant.”

Like a little puppy, Se-han panted lightly with his tongue slightly sticking out and then buried his flushed face into his brother’s thigh. Watching the embarrassed child, Nam-woon continued to shower him with praise.

“When did you get so good at side flips? You look like you have a black belt, not a white one.”

At those words, Se-han’s chubby lips twitched as if he were about to smile. When he rubbed his sweaty cheek against Seo-oh’s thigh, his neatly tied apple hair got a little messy. Wanting to see Se-han’s hidden face, Nam-woon quickly dug through his pocket. He pulled out his familiar old black wallet and checked inside.

Damn it.

He was hoping to find a ten-thousand-won bill or two, but again, there were only five-thousand-won bills. Nam-woon took out one of the two five thousand-won bills and handed it to Se-han.

“Taekwondo master, you were awesome.”

Se-han turned his big eyes sideways and glanced at what Nam-woon had handed him, then slowly straightened up, looking embarrassed. Then he held out his hands to receive the allowance and bowed his head.

“Thank, huff, you.”

His pronunciation was unclear because he was still out of breath. Nam-woon looked at Se-han with a satisfied smile, then took out another 5,000 won bill and handed it to Seo-oh.

“Here, you too.”

Seo-oh looked puzzled as he saw the money. In response to his unspoken question, ‘Why me?’ Nam-woon explained.

“Your exams are over, right? You worked hard studying all semester.”

He deliberately avoided bringing up the fight from earlier. There was no need to dampen the mood that had finally improved thanks to Se-han’s cheerful antics. However, Seo-oh averted his gaze and declined the money.

“…It’s okay.”

“If your Hyung gives it to you, you take it.”

Nam-woon glared at him until Seo-oh reluctantly accepted the 5,000 won. He then stared at it for a while. Noticing this, Se-han asked curiously,

“Hyung, why didn’t you say thank you?”

“…Thank you.”

Seo-oh thanked Nam-woon, even giving a slight nod.

Ah, this is driving me crazy. Despite everything, having these two adorable kids around was not just healing his heart but melting it completely. Their cuteness was beyond words.

Nam-woon resisted the urge to grab his heart and instead roughly ruffled Seo-oh’s soft hair. Though knowing his hair would get messy, Seo-oh quietly let him do it while he fiddled with the edge of the 5,000 won bill for a bit before speaking up.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten an allowance.”

“I’m the only one who gives it to you, right?”

Seo-oh answered seriously to Nam-woon’s playful question.

“Yeah. When I get a job and start earning a salary, I’ll give it all to you, Hyung.”

Nam-woon’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he burst out laughing.

“Why would you give me your salary? You and Se-han should use it.”

Nam-woon’s eyes were filled with unmistakable affection as he looked at Seo-oh. Seo-oh glanced up at Nam-woon’s face, then gently lowered his eyes, fluttering his long eyelashes. It was a desperate attempt to appear cute because he wanted Nam-woon to find him adorable.

“Let’s have chicken when I get my salary later!”

“Sure. Let’s practice by eating it today.”

The three of them ordered chicken for the first time in a while, washed up, and laid out their bedding.

“Today, you sleep in the middle since you’re hurt,”

At his younger brother firm instructions. Seo-oh lay down in the middle spot. After the lights were turned off, the room soon filled with the sound of soft breathing.

Nam-woon blinked his eyes, which showed no signs of sleepiness, trying to sense Seo-oh’s presence next to him. Is he asleep? Seo-oh was such a quiet sleeper that even his breathing was barely audible.

He must be very tired from today.

Nam-woon slowly turned his body towards Seo-oh. Coincidentally, Seo-oh was also facing him, and their faces met. After a moment of surprise, Nam-woon quietly observed the sleeping man. Seo-oh’s face, covered with gauze and bandages, looked pitiful. It hadn’t been long since Seo-oh lost Kwon Sang-moon and was filled with guilt, and now he was seriously injured.

Feelings of distress, pity, and regret washed over Nam-woon as he looked at Seo-oh.

Was this sympathy? Nam-woon shook his head at the thought. It was ridiculous for someone in his situation to pity anyone. Besides, Kwon Seo-oh wasn’t pitiful enough to need anyone’s pity. He shone brightly like a protagonist in a novel, even without doing anything.

Nam-woon quietly reached out and gently pressed down a loose bandage on Seo-oh’s chin, recalling Jin Hae-geon’s question,

“What’s your relationship with him?”