“Why are you standing? Sit down.”
While I was thinking one thing after another, the door slid open with a rattle, and Baek Hyeonwoo returned to the hospital room. In his hands was a tray that had clearly been used in the hospital, and on it were appetizing portions of grilled pork belly, mushrooms, leafy vegetables for wraps, and rice.
“Come here, let’s eat first.”
Where on earth did he get that? Even if finding it was just good luck, how did he cook it? Separate from the fact that the number of things I wanted to ask had increased dramatically, the moment this body smelled the food, it obediently began clamoring for me to hurry up and devour it.
“I don’t want to feed you meat first thing in the morning…… but you barely ate anything for lunch yesterday, and you skipped dinner because you were asleep.”
“……Was I asleep for that long?”
“You moved around a lot. It makes sense that you were tired.”
Baek Hyeonwoo placed the tray on a small round table, beckoned me over, and continued speaking.
“We’ll eat kimbap for lunch, and should I make something our Sihyeon likes for dinner? Is there anything you want to eat?”
“You can make anything I ask for?”
“Of course.”
Naturally, I thought he was joking and was about to laugh it off, but my eldest brother nodded, and the voice he answered with was quite serious.
“Just because the world ended doesn’t mean I won’t get you what you want to eat. So no matter what it is, if there’s something you want, tell me everything. All right?”
“Ah, mm-hm.”
My eldest brother’s voice was so firm as he said it that, without realizing it, I had no choice but to nod in agreement. However, as if Baek Hyeonwoo had no intention of simply letting the matter pass like this, even after sitting across from me and placing a spoon in my hand, he did not stop speaking.
“Sihyeon, taking care of you is the joy of my life.”
“…….”
“If you hold back because you feel sorry, or because you think this isn’t the kind of situation for it, there’s nothing more terrible than that for me.”
“But if you end up dying or getting hurt because of that, then I-”
“Baek Sihyeon.”
Because the voice calling my name had sunk low, I obediently closed my mouth and cautiously watched his expression. Baek Hyeonwoo furrowed his brow as if angry, but the moment our eyes met, the corners of his eyes softened as though he could not help it.
“I will never die or get hurt, so you don’t need to worry about anything. All right?”
“…….”
“You have to answer.”
“……Yes.”
“Good boy.”
The hand stroking my head was gentle, but cold. The meaning that I was not to bring up anything like this again in the future was too clear, so I silently let out a long sigh.
I knew myself far too well to ask why he was trying to handle everything alone. Setting aside whether my body was weak or not, I was easily frightened and not particularly quick-witted either. Honestly, even I would see myself as someone who needed to be taken care of, not as someone who could be relied on.
“Now, eat.”
Normally, after something like this, the meat should have tasted bland or awkward, but instead of losing my appetite, it was simply delicious.
Damn it, at this rate I could not even say that I was too bothered to do anything. At my brother’s urging, I even made a wrap and stuffed my mouth full, then glanced at him.
“It’s good, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
Seeing that he was not forcing a smile but was genuinely beaming with happiness, I even began wondering whether the things I had seen at home had actually been my misunderstanding.
“If there’s nothing else you want to eat, let’s have sushi for dinner. I already got fresh ingredients, so don’t worry.”
……It really seemed like it had been a misunderstanding.
Or perhaps my brother had adapted with astonishing speed.
The world really is ending right now, isn’t it?
Even while eating, I looked out the window several times, and by about the fifth time I alternated between the dead city and the brightly smiling Baek Hyeonwoo, I made up my mind.
“You finished everything? Let’s have dessert. Wait here for a moment.”
Right, let’s just stop thinking altogether!
Was it said that all anguish and hardship came from within? It was true. Once I stopped thinking, I could not have felt more at ease.
“When I came to this town, there was no one here. There were a few zombies…… but like I said earlier, they were all cut apart, so all they could do was twitch.”
“I see.”
The dessert was apple gelato, though I had no idea where he had gotten it. As I diligently scooped it into my mouth and nodded, Baek Hyeonwoo took out a handkerchief, wiped around my mouth, and continued explaining gently.
“And I found the medicine you take too.”
“It was here?”
“Yes, we were lucky. You won’t have to worry for at least two months.”
This really was good news. When I silently relaxed in relief, he gave me a look that seemed to say, ‘I told you not to worry.’ Feeling unnecessarily awkward, I put down my spoon and asked.
“Didn’t you see anything else?”
“Anything else? Like what?”
“There were a lot of things outside that looked like spiderwebs…… so I wondered if there might be something other than zombies.”
At my words, Baek Hyeonwoo frowned slightly and tilted his head.
“Hmm, I don’t really know about that either. Considering how quiet it’s been until now, it probably isn’t that dangerous. Don’t worry.”
“All right.”
“Now take your medicine.”
Only the place had changed. The flow of things was really not much different from how we lived at home. Being like this, I even began to feel as though we really were traveling, just as my eldest brother had said.
“Good job.”
All I had done was take medicine, yet the hand stroking my head as if I had accomplished something truly remarkable was unchanged.
“We’re leaving tomorrow morning, so rest well until then. Don’t come out unless you absolutely have to.”
“What about you?”
“I should look around a little. There might be survivors, or there might be other useful things.”
He was going to wander around this eerie town alone? I looked out the window with a displeased expression. Dark clouds covered the sky, and the weather looked as though heavy rain would pour down at any moment.
“It looks like it’s going to rain…… will you be all right?”
“It’s actually better if it rains.”
“Why?”
“It covers the sound, and the smell is weaker too.”
It seemed the zombies here had sharp hearing and a keen sense of smell. Hmm, then again, weren’t zombies usually like that? In any case, Baek Hyeonwoo was acting as casually as though he were going out for a walk, so I also said something no different from ordinary life.
“What if you catch a cold? It’s gotten a little chilly at night lately.”
“Have you ever seen me get sick?”
“……I haven’t.”
Come to think of it, my brothers had never even caught something as common as a cold. Beomho had not so much as frowned even when he came back with his face slashed open. Unable to find anything to argue with, I scratched the back of my neck, and Baek Hyeonwoo spoke while putting on a raincoat.
“I’ll say it again, but do not come outside. If you’re bored, read a book.”
“Do you think I’m a child?”
“No matter how old you get, you’re still a child in my eyes.”
Unable to say anything in the face of that firmness, I glared at him resentfully, and he shrugged with a shameless expression. He knew I hated being treated like a child, yet he always did this, so he either had a nasty personality or had become addicted to teasing me. Or both.
“Even if you hear something strange, don’t look outside.”
“I said I understand.”
“Even if I call you, it’s the same.”
That last warning sounded a little strange.
When I raised an eyebrow in a demand for an explanation, he answered as though it were nothing while tightening his shoelaces.
“Just in case.”
“You might call because you need help.”
“Me? You?”
“……You never know.”
I knew that he was the type who would resolve things alone even if his arm were cut off rather than ask for help, but the way he reacted made me return the exact words he had used.
“That will absolutely never happen, so don’t worry and rest.”
As he said that, he roughly tousled my hair, looking as though he could not have been more proud of me.
“Just be careful and come back.”
“You have to give me a kiss.”
“What?”
When I grumbled and pushed his hand away, Baek Hyeonwoo tapped his own cheek and lowered his head. Was I really his younger brother or his child? If I had not lacked memories from before I was adopted, I might genuinely have suspected at least once that I was a child Baek Hyeonwoo had accidentally fathered when he was young.
“Hurry.”
“All right.”
But that was a separate matter. In a situation like this, I could not coldly send him out just because I was embarrassed, so I obediently pressed my lips to his cheek. Unlike usual, when I only brushed my lips against him, I pressed them down firmly as though stamping a seal, and Baek Hyeonwoo’s mouth spread into such a huge grin that it looked as though his lips might split.
“What day is it today? Hm? Is it my birthday?”
“If you say something weird, I won’t do it next time.”
“I’m just that happy.”
Then he firmly held my face in both hands and poured affection over me like a sudden shower. Kiss, kiss, kiss, embarrassing sounds burst out over my forehead, cheeks, and everywhere else, and although I had been desperately enduring it, the moment that warmth touched my lips, I could no longer hold back and struck him hard in the chest.
“Ah, seriously! That’s enough!”
“It’s because our youngest is so pretty.”
“Even so, who kisses someone on the lips?!”
“I can, can’t I? Hm? I’m doting on my younger brother, and I can’t even give him one kiss?”
“No! I said I don’t like it!”
“Why don’t you like it? You don’t like my kisses?”
“Ah!”
However, despite my fierce resistance, Baek Hyeonwoo stubbornly kissed me on the lips two more times.
“I’ll be back! Thanks to our Sihyeon, I feel energized!”
Even though I wanted to get angry, he said that while smiling as though he were the happiest person in the world, so I could not say anything. Right, what was the big deal about a few kisses?
Click, the moment the door closed, all the strength drained from me and I sprawled out on the bed. “What kind of family has grown brothers kissing each other?” I complained aloud for no reason, while still thinking that I hoped he would come back quickly.
‘I hate waiting…….’
I was sick and tired of being trapped inside and endlessly staring outside. Especially when I was alone. Come back before sunrise, or else from next time on I’m following you no matter what. While making a threat Baek Hyeonwoo could not possibly hear, I burrowed under the blanket.