If they were to live a new life, what would people look forward to the most. Abundant wealth? Proper relationships with others? Or perhaps a warm and affectionate family, or a definite and secure future.
Well, since what each person considers lacking and what they feel disappointed about are different, the answers would vary greatly, but at least what I wanted was a comfortable life.
As for money, it did not have to be a lot, as long as it was enough for me to eat and live. Even if my relationships were nothing special, one friend with whom I could sincerely open my heart was enough. Family? It would be nice if we were harmonious, but it did not matter even if we were not.
They say luck comes when you let go of greed, and thanks to that, I obtained everything necessary for a comfortable life.
Wealth that would allow me to spend my entire life eating and playing without working, and even a family who treasured me as though I might fly away if they blew on me and disappear if they held me too tightly.
Of course, since nothing in this world is perfect, there was one drawback.
“Let’s take your morning medicine.”
“Now? Can’t I take it later? I ate too much, so I’m full.”
“It has been exactly 30 minutes since you ate. If you put it off, you will forget again.”
“All right.”
When I answered with a soft sigh, my eldest brother came over with a gentle smile and placed a glass of water and my morning medicine in my hands.
They were only pills the size of a fingernail, but there were so many of them that they felt fairly heavy. One, two, three…… I was certain there had only been 12 pills until last week, but before I knew it, the number had increased to 14. When I looked up at my eldest brother to ask what had happened, he merely tilted his head as though telling me not to worry about it and hurry up and take them.
I knew that when my eldest brother was like this, no matter what I said, he would not give me the answer I wanted, so I obediently poured the medicine into my mouth.
“Good job. Do not forget to go to the hospital this afternoon.”
“Okay.”
“Contact me if anything happens, you know that, right?”
“I know. Hurry up and go to work. At this rate, you will get stuck in traffic.”
“Why are you trying so hard to send your brother away. Are you hiding something?”
“Hiding what. Look at the time, it is 7:30.”
My eldest brother worries too much.
When I complained lightly, he laughed, messed up my hair, and went into his room. Right, the only drawback of this life was this terribly weak body that could not properly endure even a single day without taking medicine.
Running was out of the question, and walking for a long time was impossible as well. Because of that, despite being born into a good family, rather than traveling, I was stuck going back and forth only between home and the hospital. Naturally, I could not even attend school and was homeschooled at home.
Even so, I had no complaints. As long as I did not overdo it, I would not become seriously bedridden, and there were always people staying here to take care of me, along with brothers who were like friends and would do anything I said. On top of that, when the weather was nice, I could take short walks. Compared to my previous life, it was a very free life, so I was nothing but happy.
“Your brother will be back, okay? Even if you miss me, hold it in.”
“That is what I want to say to you. Stop making video calls over and over while you are working.”
“But that is because you do not check my messages on time.”
“Hold it in for about 5 minutes.”
“Haa……. How am I supposed to go to work while leaving our youngest behind……. Hm?”
I waved my hand to tell him to hurry up and go, but my eldest brother drooped his eyebrows and made a pitiful expression, then suddenly pulled me into a tight embrace and whined. Here he goes again. I let out an exaggerated deep sigh and stroked the back of his head.
My eldest brother’s fine and soft hair became tangled here and there beneath my hand. Even though the hair he had carefully styled was completely ruined, he rubbed his cheek all over the nape of my neck as though he did not care in the slightest.
If I left him like this, he really would end up being late. I quietly looked around and checked where my twin brothers were. Fortunately, it seemed neither of them had come out of their rooms yet.
“……I will give you a kiss, so hurry up and go to work.”
“Really?”
The moment the words left my mouth, my eldest brother’s eyes sparkled, and he quickly stepped back, lowered his head, and slightly offered one cheek. He had clearly been stalling from the very beginning because this was what he wanted.
Perhaps because of the large age difference, or because he had raised his younger brothers alone after our parents died, my eldest brother seemed to think of me as something closer to a son than a younger brother. Since our parents died when I was 6, I really was not that different from a son.
When I raised my head and pressed my lips to his cheek with a smacking sound, my eldest brother…… that is, Baek Hyeonwoo, smiled softly as though he had gained the entire world. Deep dimples formed, and the mole beneath his eye was slightly hidden beneath the fullness under it. Even though I had seen this face every day for 15 years, I felt as though my mind might go blank. What kind of man was this pretty.
“I will be back.”
As though it were only natural, Baek Hyeonwoo also pressed his lips to my cheek. Rather than feeling soft, the cool sensation brushed over my cheek to the point that I worried he might be sick. I knew his body was unusually cold compared to other people, but sometimes it startled me.
“Okay, have a safe trip.”
As I gently waved my hand, Baek Hyeonwoo went to work with the hem of his coat fluttering. Good, I sent one person off first, and now if I sent the remaining two…….
“……!”
I turned around with a smile, only to find my second brother standing like a shadow where he definitely had not been a moment ago. I was so startled that I could not even scream and stepped back several times, but perhaps thinking I would fall, he hurriedly wrapped an arm around my waist.
“……Hyung! I told you to make some noise when you walk around!”
I was so frightened that it felt as though all the blood in my body had drained downward, and my back was damp with cold sweat.
“Sorry.”
My second brother, Baek Beomho, lowered his gaze slightly and apologized in a tone that did not sound very sorry. He had the largest build among the brothers and a stern impression, so others could easily feel as though he were ignoring them, but in truth, he was the most softhearted and sensitive person among the four of us.
“It is okay.”
Of course, the apology he had just given was probably filled with sincerity as well. When I lightly patted his arm to show that I was fine now, he slowly released me, but instead of going toward the entrance, he stared down at me.
“You are going to work now too, right? Be careful and come back safely.”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
“Why?”
Even though I greeted him, he neither answered nor moved in the slightest. If anything, the way his lips were pressed more tightly together than usual made it seem as though he was upset about something. My second brother was unexpectedly timid and was not good at speaking honestly, so most of the time I was the one who had to notice things on my own, and this time was no exception.
“I am an adult now. Do you not find it disgusting?”
“There will never be a time when you feel that way to me.”
Should I say thank you for that…….
Unable to say that he wanted a kiss and merely standing there stiffly, Baek Beomho waited while I slightly rose onto my heels and pressed my lips to his cheek before lowering them again. It was nothing more than lightly touching and pulling away, to the point that it was embarrassing to even use the cute word kiss, but my second brother seemed satisfied, and his rigid eyes softened gently.
Then, instead of lowering his head, he gripped my waist with his large hand, lifted me up, and stamped his lips near my eye. Something like this had only hurt my pride when I first experienced it. Now it was no different from an everyday occurrence, so I did not care.
“I will come back as quickly as possible.”
“Just be careful and come back safely. Do not come back with another wound like last time.”
“Okay.”
He answers well, at least.
Instead of nodding, I pressed my finger firmly against the scar on his face. The dark scar that crossed from beneath his left eye to his lips upset me every time I saw it. He had been born with such a handsome face, so why did he refuse to get treatment.
Even if it could not be removed completely, it would be nice if it could at least be made lighter. Just what kind of work did he do to keep coming back with scars like this.
“……Um, when will it be my turn?”
While I was thinking that, a hand with unusually prominent knuckles suddenly pushed between the two of us. At that, Baek Beomho, who had been quietly holding his face there, stepped back and headed toward the entrance. Only after waving to him as well did I turn my gaze toward the last person leaving for work.
“Do not tell me you want me to do it too?”
“Are you only not going to do it for me? That is a little hurtful…….”
The man who said that while drooping his shoulders was my third brother, Baek Itae, who had been born together with Baek Beomho. Perhaps because they were fraternal twins, not only their faces but even their personalities were completely different, to the point that sometimes it was difficult to believe he was Baek Beomho’s twin.
He did not even trim the hair he had grown down to his shoulders, yet he had bleached it white. Starting with his eyebrows, he pierced his ears, lips, and cheeks, and later, he eventually came back with his tongue split in half.
It would have been nice if it ended there, but perhaps he became bored after getting all the piercings he could, because he turned his own body into a canvas and covered it with drawings. His features were already sharp to the point of looking fierce, and with his body covered in tattoos on top of that, he looked exactly like a delinquent.
“If you do not do it, I will not go to work…….”
“I know the café runs perfectly well even if you do not go to work.”
But his personality was completely different. I had thought dozens of times that if the word ‘sloth’ were turned into a person, it would probably be my third brother. That was how lazy, slow, and even sleepy Baek Itae was. In terms of how different his appearance and personality were, I suppose it did make sense that he was Baek Beomho’s twin.