Jung Hwanhui stared blankly up at the ceiling.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d lain down like this and truly rested.
His father—the boss of the Cheonryong faction—and his mother, an ordinary housewife, had both been killed when Jung Hwanhui was twenty, caught in the crossfire of an inter-organizational war.
After the funeral, Jung Hwanhui had naturally inherited his father’s position.
His father had always told him that as the eldest, it was his duty to protect his three younger brothers. Jung Hwanhui had never once doubted that.
So unlike his siblings, who still knew nothing and ran around playing, he had followed his father from a young age, learning one thing at a time—everything a successor would need.
That was why, even when his father died, though it was painful and devastating, Jung Hwanhui believed he could lead the organization just as well as his father had.
But that—
That had been a massive illusion.
Handling gangsters who were twice his age was anything but easy. The older snakes constantly looked for ways to drag him down, while outside, enemies lay in wait, sharpening their knives to devour the Cheonryong faction whole.
Every single day felt like living in hell.
The only reason he’d managed to endure was because his remaining family was still there.
And just when he’d finally thought things had stabilized, he’d fallen straight into another organization’s trap.
By now, everyone was probably frantic, tearing the place apart looking for him.
Jung Hwanhui slowly sat up.
His abdomen throbbed, but compared to the beginning, it was much better.
All of it was thanks to a man named Kim Hanyul.
It was a first.
A man who treated him this roughly.
Up until now, people around him had either feared him—or despised him. There was never an in-between.
At first, he’d suspected Kim Hanyul might be an enemy spy.
But that didn’t quite fit.
The way he treated him was too plain. Too… detached.
As if he were a salaried worker following a strict routine—feeding him, changing his bandages, checking for anything unusual, then leaving without a shred of attachment.
On the first day, worried he might have been locked in or imprisoned, Jung Hwanhui had crawled across the floor to check the door.
It hadn’t been locked.
Not once.
From that day until now, the door had never been locked even a single time.
There were no suspicious figures lurking nearby, no signs of surveillance.
From everything he’d observed, the man was most likely an ordinary civilian.
‘…Maybe I really did meet my lifesaver.’
After doing this kind of work for so long, he’d forgotten how to accept goodwill from others.
The moment he reinterpreted everything he’d been wary of as nothing more than kindness, he felt the ice around his heart begin to melt.
And once he recognized it as kindness, Jung Hwanhui slowly began to lower his guard as well.
He ate the food he was given without protest.
He helped by positioning himself so the bandages could be wrapped comfortably.
He took the medicine that was prepared for him, every single time.
At first, it felt awkward—being taken care of like this.
But after a day or two…
‘This isn’t bad. It’s actually…’
Kind of nice.
To go even further—he found himself subtly waiting for the times Kim Hanyul would come.
And the moments he liked the most were when his bandages were changed.
Those were the only times Kim Hanyul would approach him first, instead of keeping his usual distance.
His eyesight was bad, so he couldn’t see his face clearly.
But whenever Kim Hanyul came close, he loved that distinct scent of his.
The scent made his heart race.
It was so good that at first, he’d wondered if Kim Hanyul might be an omega—but even when he subtly released his own pheromones, there was no abnormal reaction.
So he probably wasn’t.
That scent that made his chest pound.
The more days passed, the more curious he became.
Just who was Kim Hanyul?
What did he look like?
What kind of work did he do?
Did he really have so much free time that he could help someone like this?
What did he like?
With each passing day, his questions only multiplied—but whenever they actually met, Jung Hwanhui couldn’t bring himself to say anything.
He’d just nod foolishly, answering question after question with nothing but “yes.”
It was the first time he’d ever been curious about someone outside his family, and he didn’t know how to express it.
‘…I want to know more.’
Convincing himself it was only natural curiosity toward the man who’d saved his life, Jung Hwanhui carefully stood up and put on his outerwear.
At this point, moving around like this was no problem.
Today, he planned to go out and use a public phone to call the organization.
He’d explain the situation—
And start preparing to return.
He couldn’t keep lying around like this forever.
And the moment he thought about returning, the thought of parting with Kim Hanyul surfaced naturally.
A faint sense of regret welled up.
So this is how it ends….
If they parted like this, he’d probably never see him again.
Aside from his name, he knew nothing about him.
‘…Wait. Do we really have to part?’
He could just take him with him.
Right?
After some deliberation, Jung Hwanhui shifted his thinking.
There was no need to overcomplicate it.
He was his lifesaver—so he could just keep him by his side until the debt was fully repaid.
The moment he decided that, the heaviness in his chest lifted noticeably.
Right.
I’ll take him with me.
With his thoughts settled, Jung Hwanhui stepped outside.
‘Bright…’
The sunlight he hadn’t faced in a long time was blinding.
Staying as alert as possible, he headed toward the public phone.
His vision still wasn’t great, but since this was near home, he knew the layout well.
Public phones had mostly disappeared by now, but according to his memory, there was still exactly one left in this area.
It was old—but it should still work.
[“Hello?”]
“Dragonfly. It’s me.”
[…“Boss? Is that you? Boss—are you really the boss?! Boss! You’re alive!”]
“Yeah.”
[“Where have you been all this time?! That day, I thought something had happened to you for sure! Do you have any idea how worried we were?!”]
As soon as he called his right-hand man, a deep, booming voice came roaring through the receiver.
True to someone who’d been by his side for years, the man recognized his voice instantly and began firing off questions, sounding like he might break down in tears at any moment.
Jung Hwanhui calmly explained his situation.
[“Yes! I’ll come get you right away!”]
“Night. Come at night. For now, bring my glasses first. I can’t see a damn thing—this is driving me crazy.”
[“Understood. I’ll depart immediately!”]
“Good.”
The call ended with Dragonfly’s crisp reply.
With that, all preparations for returning were complete.
Now all that remained was to go back to the motel and wait for Kim Hanyul to arrive.
‘So today, I’ll finally see Kim Hanyul’s face.’
What did he look like?
His voice sounded young—but what about in person?
Was he young?
No… the way he casually used informal speech from the start, maybe he was older than him.
Either way—it didn’t matter.
He was his lifesaver.
He could keep him close until the debt was fully repaid.
Jung Hwanhui smiled, satisfied—like a well-fed beast.
* * *
“What should I make for dinner today….”
These days, my biggest concern—having gone from gangster boss to near full-time homemaker—was meal planning.
I’d always cooked whatever I felt like at the time, or whatever Jung Hwangyu asked for, but even that was starting to wear thin.
Besides, Jung Hwangyu usually ate dinner out, and Jung Hwangseo didn’t eat here at all.
That meant dinner was only for young Jung Hwangyeong and the patient, Jung Hwanhui.
And since neither of them talked much, planning the menu was even harder.
‘Since this feels like the last day….’
…Should I grill some meat?
Checking the fridge, I spotted what was clearly expensive beef.
Given how well Jung Hwangyeong had been eating lately, it seemed worth trying.
When it comes to meat, beef is king.
Once I made up my mind, I took out the beef and started grilling.
The aroma rising from the meat as it browned was incredible.
First, Jung Hwangyeong.
I cut the meat into bite-sized pieces and headed to his room.
Knock, knock, knock.
As usual, there was no response—but when I opened the door, Jung Hwangyeong was already seated at the table, waiting.
He’d been eating well lately; his cheeks had plumped up nicely.
That’s how kids should look.
“Today we’re having delicious beef. Make sure you chew well.”
Jung Hwangyeong’s eyes sparkled.
Looks like he liked meat.
He still didn’t talk much, but compared to before, his wariness had faded a lot.
Looking at him like this, he really did resemble Jung Hwanhui.
One was like a wary cat.
The other, a wary wolf.
After closing the door so Jung Hwangyeong could eat comfortably, I started preparing Jung Hwanhui’s food.
Once the container was filled to the brim with meat, I put on my mask as usual and headed outside.
By now, Jung Hwanhui’s wounds had mostly healed, and he could move on his own.
If I took care of him just for today, he’d be able to manage on his own after that.
I looked down at the carefully packed lunchbox.
‘He eats just about anything—so he’ll probably eat meat too.’
Since it was the last time, I put in extra effort.
For Kim Hanyul, this was the last.
But for Park Gyumin the housekeeper—
This would soon be the first meeting.
Worried the meat might cool, I hurried toward the motel.