Woken by the sound of his alarm, Yieum stretched languidly before stepping out of his room. After putting Youngsik to bed the night before, he had apparently fallen asleep at his desk while working, and now every inch of his body felt stiff.
He rolled his shoulders and stretched out the tension in his muscles, only then noticing how quiet the apartment was.
Still asleep?
Yieum headed to the bedroom and carefully pushed the door open, but the room was empty. The bathroom was the same.
A strange sense of unease crept over him.
He crossed to the veranda and looked down below, but there was no sign of anyone.
“Youngsik? Youngsik!”
No answer came back.
Did he leave on his own?
Youngsik might have had the body of an adult, but mentally he was still little more than a child. Yieum hurriedly reached for his coat, only to stop short.
A memo sat neatly on the dining table.
[I’m going back. Thank you for everything. I took some money from your wallet. I’ll pay you back later.]
The handwriting was clean and composed—nothing like a child’s.
Had his memory come back?
But when?
Just last night, he’d clung to him like a child, asking to be held.
Still holding the note, Yieum pulled out the wallet from inside his coat pocket and checked it.
Every last bill was gone.
Letting out a quiet breath, he sank onto the sofa with the empty wallet in hand.
Did he make it home safely? Why didn’t he wake me up?
He could’ve at least said goodbye properly.
Relief settled over him first, followed by an inexplicable sting of disappointment.
Truthfully, Yieum wasn’t the kind of person who could comfortably live with someone else. That was why he had moved out early, and even with close acquaintances, he rarely let anyone stay over.
“This is for the best. Yeah. For the best. He probably made it home safely.”
He tossed the wallet aside and opened the refrigerator for a bottle of water just as the doorbell rang.
Without thinking, Yieum rushed to the door and flung it open.
“Youngsik—”
But it was Seongyu.
“What’s with you? Why’d you open the door so fast?”
Yieum turned around without answering and walked back inside. Seongyu followed after him, glanced around the apartment once, then called out loudly.
“Youngsik! Hyung’s here!”
When no one answered, he started peeking into the rooms one by one until Yieum finally spoke.
“He left.”
“What? Left where?”
“I think his memory came back. He was already gone when I woke up. He left this behind.”
“You mean he just disappeared?”
“No. He also very thoroughly emptied out my wallet.”
Come to think of it, the guy had some nerve. Stealing money despite knowing full well Yieum was a police officer.
Still, he had no intention of reporting him or confronting him about it if they ever crossed paths again. He only hoped Youngsik had made it home safely and reunited with his family.
And that he had a good family waiting for him.
Seongyu stared down at the memo before letting out a long sigh.
“Man…”
He had gone through all the trouble of planning a trip to the amusement park for today, only for Youngsik to disappear overnight. It was disappointing enough that the kid was gone, but losing his lucrative part-time gig stung too.
“If he was gonna leave, he could’ve at least said goodbye. Or left some contact info. This is why they say you can’t tame a black-haired beast. I practically broke my back playing with him at the playground, and he just leaves without a word?”
While Seongyu continued grumbling, Yieum grabbed his car keys and told him to head home.
Seongyu stayed firmly planted on the sofa.
“Can’t I at least play some PlayStation before I go?”
“No.”
“You heartless bastard. You’ll show kindness to some random stranger, but letting your friend of twenty years play a little PlayStation is too much for you? Is this what our friendship’s worth?”
Knowing Seongyu would milk this for days if he gave in, Yieum made it clear this was a one-time exception.
Still, while Yieum got ready for work, Seongyu barely touched the game and instead spent the entire time ranting about the fight he’d had with his girlfriend the night before.
“Be honest. Who was in the wrong?”
“You.”
“You didn’t even listen yet, asshole.”
“Mhm. Still you.”
“Son of a bitch. And I call this guy my friend.”
“Get out. I need to change.”
“What are you getting shy for? We’re both guys.”
Yieum finally kicked Seongyu out of the room and stood in front of the mirror.
As he changed clothes, Youngsik’s voice suddenly resurfaced in his mind.
[You smell nice, Mister. Sweet.]
Yieum lifted the back of his arm to his nose and sniffed, but he couldn’t smell anything.
His gaze drifted absently toward the desk calendar nearby before he quietly opened a drawer and took out a small bottle of medicine hidden all the way in the back.
He slipped it into his pocket and stepped outside.
Seongyu was still completely absorbed in his game.
“I’m leaving. Lock up when you go.”
Without even looking away from the screen, Seongyu waved him off lazily.
“Bring home the cash, honey.”
“Fuck off.”
Down in the parking lot, Yieum glanced around one last time.
He probably got home safely.
Let’s stop thinking about it.
Once the car started moving, Yieum rolled down the window. For once, there was no fine dust in the air, and the sky was brilliantly blue. An upbeat song played from the radio, lifting his mood even further.
The disappointment faded quickly, replaced by relief at the thought that, starting today, he could finally relax in his own home again.
Yieum hummed along to the music, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel in rhythm.
“Oh my goodness… your face has gotten so thin. You must’ve suffered so much…”
“Our Madam Lee must’ve missed me terribly too. Your beautiful face looks half the size it used to be. It breaks my heart.”
Despite her son’s playful teasing, Madam Lee swallowed back tears as she cupped his face over and over again.
Apparently, in his mother’s eyes, the fact that he had actually filled out after eating and sleeping properly for several days straight simply didn’t exist.
The moment Choi Wonjoon left Kim Yieum’s house, he contacted Manager Lee. When he told him to come pick him up, the man arrived in thirty minutes despite it normally being an hour-long drive.
It wasn’t hard to imagine how frantic he must’ve been.
Wonjoon had just stepped out of the shower and was drying his hair when his older brothers suddenly burst into the room.
“Choi Wonjoon!”
Though they were technically siblings, the age gap between them was over ten years. Born late into the family, Wonjoon had been treasured by his brothers almost as much as by their mother.
Chairman Choi watched the scene from a distance, his expression dark with displeasure as the three of them crowded around Wonjoon and fussed over him.
“I heard everything from Manager Lee. Memory loss or not, becoming indebted to a police officer’s family? It’s disgraceful.”
Wonjoon smiled lazily, deliberately provoking his father.
“He was very good to me. Even held me while I slept.”
Chairman Choi’s face twisted instantly.
“What? You did what? With a beta?”
Before the situation could escalate, his mother and brothers quickly stepped in.
“That’s enough, Father. Wonjoon must’ve had his reasons.”
“He lost his memory. He was basically like a child, what else was he supposed to do? You remember how terrified Wonjoon used to be of sleeping alone when he was younger. I don’t like the police either, but your attitude is too much.”
“Exactly, Father. We should just be grateful Wonjoon came home safely.”
Chairman Choi shouted back in frustration.
“Do you even know what kind of family that is?!”
All three of them turned to stare at him.
Unable to reveal the truth, Chairman Choi abruptly turned his head away.
Of course he was relieved that his son had returned safely. But of all people, for him to be helped by that man’s son—
He wanted no further connection with them whatsoever.
Amid the tense atmosphere, Wonjoon clapped his hands once to draw everyone’s attention.
“Alright, I know everyone’s happy to see me, but could you all please go home now? I’ve got a mountain of work waiting for me.”
“You can rest for one day, can’t you?”
“You should go to the hospital first. What if you fractured something when you fell?”
“Mother, please get him some restorative medicine too. Look how gaunt he’s become.”
A headache pulsing behind his eyes, Wonjoon pushed all three of them toward the door by their backs.
“That’s enough. Please go. I’m begging you.”
His mother looked especially reluctant to leave, regret written all over her face.
“Please, Mother. Manager Lee’s already crying enough over me as it is.”
At that, she finally smiled through her tears.
“Alright. I understand. It’s enough that you came back safely. But if anything happens, call me immediately. Understood?”
“Yes. I will.”
“I think I’ll finally be able to sleep tonight.”
She cupped his cheeks one last time before picking up her handbag and turning away.
His brothers were just as reluctant to leave, but Chairman Choi was already walking ahead alone in the distance.
The door opened, then shut again.
Finally left alone, Wonjoon let out a low sigh and shook his head.
The rest of the day passed in complete chaos.
He checked the mountain of accumulated emails, then spent a long time on the phone with Manager Lee discussing work matters. Without even realizing it, he worked straight through the day until evening arrived.
Closing his laptop, Wonjoon rose from his seat and walked over to the bar.
He filled a glass with ice, poured whiskey over it, then swallowed it down in one shot.
The burn scraping down his throat made him frown.
Afterward, he wandered into the bedroom, stripped off his shirt, and collapsed onto the bed wearing nothing but his slacks.
Staring blankly at the ceiling, he closed his eyes.
He was exhausted.
But strangely enough, sleep refused to come.
After tossing and turning for a while, he finally pulled something from his pocket.
The business card he’d taken from Kim Yieum’s wallet along with the cash.
“Kim. Yi. Eum.”
Who gave him that name? What did it mean?
Is he thinking about me right now?
No.
He’s probably relieved.
A faint smile tugged at Wonjoon’s lips.
Reaching up, he switched off the light.
Darkness swallowed the room whole, but instead of growing sleepy, his thoughts only became sharper.
He turned over restlessly before finally swearing under his breath.
“Fuck… not again.”