PAHO 50

At the unexpected face, Nam Gyeonhwa doubted his own eyes. No matter how small Nakdo was, he had never even thought he would run into him in a place like this. Does he live around here? Considering the scale of the residential area, which was lined up like merchandise not far away, it was certainly possible, but it was also clear that he hadn’t seen a single soul, day or night, during the few days he had spent here.

They had recognized each other, but an uncomfortable silence continued with neither of them saying a word of greeting. In any case, to buy bottled water, he had to go to the beverage section where Gil Useong was standing. Nam Gyeonhwa walked over and nonchalantly opened the refrigerator. He could feel a silent gaze slowly following his movements.

“Fancy seeing you here so early in the morning.”

Nam Gyeonhwa, who slowly turned to face Gil Useong, offered a conventional greeting. In place of a reply, he greeted him with a nod of his head. In his hands were a hangover remedy and a bottle of sports drink. His complexion was fine and he didn’t smell of alcohol at all, so it was unlikely that he had drunk enough to need a hangover remedy. Just as he was inwardly wondering if he had company, the door leading to the inside of the building rattled open. The one who stepped inside was Yeo Eunjae.

“Oh? Who is this, Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa?”

Yeo Eunjae, who blinked his half-closed eyes, soon clapped his hands together and smiled brightly.

“Wow, Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa, wow, it’s really, really nice to see you.”

Yeo Eunjae suddenly threw his arms around Nam Gyeonhwa and rested his face on his shoulder. He had thought his gait was unnatural, and now, as he clung to him, the smell of alcohol was overwhelming.

“It’s so, so nice to see you here. Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa.”

Yeo Eunjae, who had his arms wrapped around Nam Gyeonhwa, repeated what he had just said. Nam Gyeonhwa, who awkwardly hugged him back, patted his back.

“Dr. Yeo, are you all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine. I’m not drunk at all. I’m just so happy to see you.”

Just from his rambling voice, it was clear that his condition was the complete opposite of fine. Nam Gyeonhwa pulled him away just enough so that he wouldn’t be uncomfortable and checked his complexion. It was unlike the usually neat him, no matter how much he had drunk. His collar was damp, as if he had just rinsed his mouth with water, and his hair, which smelled of wax, was a mess like an unfinished bird’s nest.

“Dr. Yeo Eunjae. That’s not the way.”

Gil Useong, who let out a sigh, called him and pulled him towards him, but Yeo Eunjae didn’t budge, as if he were a baby koala clinging to its mother. He even swung his arm at Gil Useong, almost causing him to fall. Nam Gyeonhwa, who managed to catch the staggering body, swept his chest in relief.

“I’ll help Dr. Yeo to that table over there, so Mr. Gil Useong, you should pay for what you’re holding first.”

Nam Gyeonhwa put Yeo Eunjae’s arm around his shoulder and held him firmly by the waist. Nam Gyeonhwa, who had half-carried the limp man to a chair at the eating table inside, grabbed Yeo Eunjae’s shoulders and shook him gently.

“Doctor, Dr. Yeo, please get a hold of yourself.”

Yeo Eunjae, who was lying face down, just mumbled and giggled repeatedly, unable to sit up straight. Talk about being dead drunk. How much does one have to drink to get this wasted? When he turned his head, Gil Useong, who had finished paying in the meantime, was coming this way. Crack. Gil Useong, who opened the hangover remedy, held out the bottle to Yeo Eunjae, who was dozing off with his head resting on the table.

“…Drink it.”

“Huh?”

“Drink it. And don’t throw up again.”

His tone was commanding, yet mixed with concern. Yeo Eunjae, who unsteadily sat up, blankly took the bottle with both hands and gulped it down. His relaxed expression crumpled.

“Why did you give me something that tastes so bad. Do you have a grudge against me?”

Gil Useong, who paid no heed to Yeo Eunjae’s complaint as he stuck out his tongue and shook his head, suddenly grabbed his chin. The way he opened his mouth and checked to see if he had finished the hangover remedy was just like taking care of a child. As if he had just remembered, he took out a bottle of water from the plastic bag.

“I bought this instead of the one you picked out earlier. You were going to buy water, right?”

“Ah, yes, thank you.”

Nam Gyeonhwa, who took the bottle of water, stared blankly at Gil Useong. It seemed to be the first time they had spoken since he had been dragged to Wieyeonggwan and interrogated by him. Was this what his voice sounded like? Unlike his dry impression, his low and mellow tone was like that of a well-spoken actor.

“…It seems you had a drink with Dr. Yeo.”

Nam Gyeonhwa gestured with his eyes towards Yeo Eunjae, who was resting his chin on the table. It was a guess that they must have had a drink together, as it was unlikely that the two of them would have run into each other at the same time and place out of the blue. Gil Useong’s quiet mouth opened.

“It wasn’t a drink, Dr. Yeo Eunjae just called me because there were no taxis going underground, so I went to pick him up.”

In other words, it seemed Yeo Eunjae had gotten himself thoroughly drunk somewhere alone. Since Yeo Eunjae was a citizen of Seoul, it wasn’t particularly strange for him to be anywhere at any time, but seeing him this drunk was something new.

“And you, Mr. Nam Gyeonhwa, what are you doing at this hour.”

“I was jogging.”

Gil Useong’s eyes quickly scanned him up and down. His stiff expression relaxed a little at his attire, which left no room for suspicion. At that moment, Yeo Eunjae, who had been lying face down, thwack, grabbed Nam Gyeonhwa’s hand. As he leaned in to listen to what seemed to be a mumble, the word “noona” caught his ear. If he wasn’t mistaken, he was crying. No, it wasn’t a mistake. It was because the tears that were trickling down his nose were also flowing onto the back of Nam Gyeonhwa’s hand.

“I will take Dr. Yeo Eunjae home, so you should get going.”

Gil Useong, who uttered the words like a notification, helped Yeo Eunjae up as if Nam Gyeonhwa’s reaction didn’t matter. Nam Gyeonhwa, who watched Gil Useong leave the convenience store, half-carrying the hunched-over Yeo Eunjae, soon drank his water calmly as if nothing had happened.

As he entered the doctor’s office, Yeo Eunjae, who had been holding his head, looked up.

“Ah, you’re here.”

His face, which tried to greet him with a bright smile, was haggard and weary with fatigue.

“Haejin’s examination went well. There’s nothing particularly alarming about his pulse or blood pressure, and most importantly, his prognosis after the last seizure looks good, so today he’ll just receive about an hour of hyperbaric oxygen therapy in the oxygen room. I’ll give you the medicine later when Haejin comes out.”

“Okay.”

Nam Gyeonhwa, who nodded his head, waited silently for the next words. It was a Monday holiday, so he had brought Haejin to the medical center. He had intended to just get a regular check-up and a prescription for extra medicine, but after the examination, he had come to the doctor’s office because Haejin told him that Yeo Eunjae was looking for him. Hearing it so far, it didn’t seem like anything important, so he wondered why he had asked to see him. After hesitating, Yeo Eunjae continued with a completely sheepish expression.

“I, uh, wanted to say that I’m sorry for being so rude in the morning.”

Nam Gyeonhwa easily recalled the scene from the morning. It seemed that he hadn’t forgotten it due to the alcohol and remembered it all.

“It was nothing. You don’t need to apologize.”

“Still. Ha, really, I didn’t mean to drink that much, and I’m so embarrassed about why I did that. I didn’t, by any chance, say anything I shouldn’t have, did I?”

The word “noona” that Yeo Eunjae had been looking for between his dream and drunkenness suddenly came to mind, but Nam Gyeonhwa shook his head.

“I think the guard captain had a harder time than I did.”

“Pardon? Guard, captain, you mean the Special Guard’s Captain General Gil Useong?”

“He said that you called him, so he went to pick you up by car.”

Seeing his bewildered expression, it was clear that he had no idea. Yeo Eunjae, who cleared his throat awkwardly, quickly changed the subject.

“Anyway, I really, really wanted to say I’m sorry. I was worried you might have been startled by my drunken behavior.”

“May I ask why you drank so much?”

“Well… there was a family gathering. It was my grandfather’s birthday, and I felt bad about not attending by using my on-duty shift as an excuse. I had a glass or two of wine since I was at my parents’ house, and I guess I drank without realizing I had exceeded my limit.”

Yeo Eunjae, who scratched his head, let out a hollow laugh. Since it was a family gathering, he could somewhat understand why he had been out so late. He had mentioned in passing before that his biological mother was serving as the director of the National Medical Center.

“Come to think of it, have you heard anything from the National Medical Center?”

Yeo Eunjae had previously said that he would try to get Nam Haejin on the list of children with incurable diseases at the National Medical Center, even if he had to use his mother’s connections. Yeo Eunjae’s complexion darkened.

“Well, I’ve been applying every time there’s a notice, but there’s no word. The number of people they select each month is very small, and it’s just, it’s difficult.”

Even if one owned several apartments worth billions of won in the metropolitan area, there were countless cases where they couldn’t get into a large hospital due to being pushed back by wealth and connections, so for Nam Gyeonhwa, who was an unregistered guardian without even a single house in Seoul, it was only natural that his turn would be pushed back, but it was a bitter reality in many ways.

“It seems like today is just full of things to apologize for.”

“Not at all. I’m grateful that you’re even considering our situation.”

Nam Gyeonhwa, who shook his head as if to say it was nothing, stood up. Just as he was about to leave the doctor’s office, a piece of clothing hanging by the door caught his eye. It was a black sports jersey that was too big for the slender Yeo Eunjae to wear, and the design was particularly familiar. Nam Gyeonhwa, who recognized the Chinese characters scrawled on the back, held up the hem of the shirt and said.

“Isn’t this a Wieyeonggwan uniform?”

“Ah, that’s right, I need to return that to the director.”

He had wondered, seeing the large size that would easily be an XXL, and it was even the sports jersey that Na Taebeom used to wear.

“Did he leave it behind?”

“Yes, this morning, he suddenly came and asked for an X-ray. He doesn’t usually come to the medical center for minor injuries, so I was honestly a little surprised.”

He came for an X-ray. The conversation they had in the car suddenly flashed through his mind. He had said he didn’t need it then, so did it start to hurt later? Yeo Eunjae, who had stood up, rummaged through a drawer and took out an envelope.

“Uh, I’m really sorry, but Mr. Gyeonhwa, do you happen to have any plans to stop by Wieyeonggwan today? This is the director’s medicine, but he left it behind, saying it was a hassle. I called him, but he must be busy because he’s not answering. If you’re okay with it, could you deliver it for me?”