TWELVE 81

Am I really dying? Just like this, so vainly? It didn’t feel real, so I simply stared at the tip of the knife aimed at me with my eyes wide open.

It was then.

With a loud noise, the door swung open as if it had been kicked. Then, unfamiliar men rushed in.

“What the?”

“Who are you!”

Mr. Taksu, Skinny, and Fatty stepped back hesitantly while looking at the open door.

“What the… fuck.”

Jeon Juseok looked around blankly before dropping his knife and panicking.

One of the men who had thrown everyone into a state of confusion shouted.

“Police! Put your hands over your heads and lie down.”

At the single word ‘police,’ Mr. Taksu’s group hesitated and exchanged glances.

The first one to express surrender by putting his hands over his head was Mr. Taksu. Seeing that, Skinny and Fatty followed suit while muttering curses. Jeon Juseok also seemed to finally grasp the situation and lay flat on the floor.

Plainclothes police officers attached themselves to the bastards one by one and immediately handcuffed them. They even recited the Miranda rights just like in the movies.

As I watched this whole scene dazed, like a third party, one person approached me as well.

“Are you all right?”

“Ah… yes.”

“Your arm… can you get up? I’ll hold you, so let’s try to stand up on the count of three. One, two, three.”

I raised my body with the support of the officer.

“Over here! If there’s a knife, bring it over.”

My bound wrists were soon freed as well. The parts where the cable ties had tightened were stinging.

“Is there anywhere that needs first aid?”

“…No. I don’t think so.”

I shook my head, thinking that first aid would be useless for my wrists, the side where I was kicked, and my shoulder, which had already become a chronic problem. The officer who brought the knife came back and handed me a blanket and water.

“If you wish, you can go to the hospital right away, or if you’re okay, would you come to the station with us and give a statement?”

“I’ll do the statement first.”

It was something I had planned to do anyway after leaving Hoje Village. I watched the back of Jeon Juseok as he was dragged away by the police. Above all, the words the bastard had said at the end lingered in my ears.

‘That money, your friend already paid it all back.’

‘…What?’

‘Gi Seoin paid it all back.’

I probably couldn’t go and ask him right now.

For now, I kept my mouth shut and moved my steps while being supported by the officer. For no reason, I looked back inside the container once. Everything felt surreal. Just when I thought I lived, I was kidnapped again, and the moment I believed I was dead, I lived again.

“This way…”

I had just left the container that could have easily become my grave, and it was when the officer led me toward the police car.

“Detective Park! The person who reported it is here.”

The officer who had brought me water and the blanket ran over and spoke, then pointed toward the back. Since he mentioned the reporter, I had no choice but to shift my gaze as well.

The moment I saw that person’s face, the sense of reality that had been eluding me all this time returned in an instant.

“Gi Seoin…”

“Woo Seungkyung.”

Gi Seoin, who looked as if he had lost weight over the past few days, hugged me with a distraught face.

∞ ∞ ∞

“For now, we are going to transfer the case to Seoul. However, since you might have to come in again to give a statement before the transfer is processed, please take good care of your health in the meantime. If you have any difficulties or questions, you can contact us here.”

I accepted the business card handed to me by Detective Park Junsu and nodded. Following that, the first statement ended after the detective and Gi Seoin exchanged a few more words.

Gi Seoin wrapped one arm tightly around my shoulder as if he were afraid I might disappear.

“Are you okay? Do you want me to carry you on my back?”

“Here?”

I thought it was a joke, but the expression of the guy I glanced up at was nothing but serious.

“…It’s just that my mental state is a mess, but my body is fine.”

It would be a lie to say I was perfectly fine, but I wasn’t at a point where I couldn’t walk.

“I parked the car right in front, anyway.”

“Should we stop by a hospital?”

I shook my head.

“I just… want to rest for now.”

“Let’s do that. Let’s go home.”

Gi Seoin stroked my shoulder. For a moment, I regretted it. Should I have just asked him to carry me? I guess I really was exhausted. I wanted to act like a spoiled child to him.

As soon as I got into the familiar car, even though I wasn’t home yet, the strength left my entire body. Noticing me like that, Gi Seoin reclined the seat for me.

“It’ll take three hours. Sleep if you’re drowsy.”

“Yeah.”

“Tell me if you want to stop by a rest area.”

“Yeah, I will.”

Even while driving, he held my hand tightly with one hand.

While staying at the elderly person’s house and keeping in touch with Gi Seoin, I hadn’t told him what had happened until now. Even if Gi Seoin asked, I had planned to tell him after meeting in person, but for some reason, he didn’t ask anything. It seemed he might even believe that I had truly left him of my own will.

The misunderstanding was cleared up while giving the statement at the police station. Gi Seoin sat next to me and heard the whole situation. Perhaps because he accompanied me as a lawyer, he didn’t show his emotions, but I discovered a slight trembling in his hardened face.

After seeing him tremble, I kept checking the side profile of Gi Seoin as he drove.

In the few days I was gone, he had noticeably become unkempt. To others, he might have looked the same. However, since I had watched him steadily since childhood, and because he himself was the type to not have many ups and downs, even minor changes felt significant to my eyes.

“Gi Seoin. You lost weight, didn’t you?”

He glanced at me for a split second. He seemed hesitant to answer.

“Probably.”

“Probably? You weigh yourself every time you go to work out.”

“I didn’t work out.”

“While I was gone?”

Gi Seoin nodded.

“Then, what about meals?”

“I ate.”

“I’m sure you ate. Roughly.”

“…”

“What am I supposed to do if you don’t eat properly and don’t work out just because I’m not there?”

“Then…”

Gi Seoin bit his lip, let go, and said.

“You disappeared, and you thought I’d be able to live like usual?”

“…Seoin.”

His voice was deeply submerged. Although I knew I wasn’t at fault in this matter, I felt as sorry as if I had committed a sin toward Gi Seoin that I could never repay in a lifetime.

He was unchanged. Just like when we were young, he still needed me. If I disappeared, he looked for me, and if he couldn’t find me, he blamed himself and ruined himself.

I stroked his now-sharper jawline and then leaned my head on his shoulder. I also linked my arm firmly with his. Because right now, for Gi Seoin, making him realize the fact that I am by his side would be a greater comfort than any words.

“I’m really glad we met again.”

“…”

Gi Seoin quietly squeezed the hand he was holding even tighter. I decided to give him enough time to swallow his tears.

The mountains stretching out beside the highway gradually shed their white clothes, and we drew closer to our nest once again.

∞ ∞ ∞

It was not long after we entered Seoul. I realized that Gi Seoin’s car was heading in a different direction than the path we usually took.

“Do you have somewhere to stop by?”

“No. We decided not to go to the hospital. We have to go home.”

“But why are you going this way?”

Gi Seoin said nonchalantly as he turned the steering wheel.

“I moved.”

“What?”

In terms of how it felt, no matter how long the time we were apart seemed, in reality, it was only a few days. I couldn’t believe he had moved in that interval.

Before I was kidnapped, after Gi Seoin’s mother had visited the house, he did mention that we should move.

But I never imagined that he would have finished moving while I was away.

“I was going to tell you at home that I signed a contract for a new place, but you weren’t there.”

“Is that so…? Then did you do all the moving by yourself?”

“No. I left it to a moving center.”

“Well, I suppose you did…”

It was an answer that felt silly, so a hollow laugh came out. I also laughed more on purpose because I thought Gi Seoin would be upset if I showed signs of feeling sorry.

“Still, you must have worked hard. How is the new house?”

“It was good when I signed the contract, but it wasn’t great once I actually stayed there. Because you weren’t there.”

It was Gi Seoin’s way of acting like a spoiled child. I guess he’s finally feeling relieved now.

“Is that what our Seoin did? It’ll get better now that we’re going together. Right?”

“Yeah.”

When I stroked his cheek, Gi Seoin pressed his face further into my palm.

“I only put the bed in. I wanted to choose the rest of the furniture together.”

“Really? If you pick it according to your taste, I’ll like it too.”

“I want to choose together.”

“Okay, let’s do that. Let’s go look at furniture on your day off.”

Thinking about Gi Seoin, who would have stayed alone in a new house because I had suddenly disappeared, made my heart ache. How lonely he must have been.

The apartment we lived in before was in Gangnam, and the house we moved to was in Gangbuk. I had vaguely imagined an apartment, but the place we arrived at was a villa. It wasn’t an ordinary villa; it had a security guard like an apartment and even a main gate at the entrance like a fortress. He said he would find a house with better security, and it was exactly that kind of place.

“Wow…”

As soon as I entered the new house, an exclamation burst from my mouth.

It wasn’t in a positive sense.

“It’s spacious.”

It’s extremely empty.

Since he said he only put the bed in, the living room was empty, perhaps because he left the sofa behind as well. The living room was much wider than the previous house, so it looked even more desolate.

Since there was nothing, there was nothing more to look at. I went straight to the bedroom where he said he had at least put the bed.

The bed was the same one we used to use.

“You brought this just as it was?”

“I thought something familiar would be better. We can change it if you want.”

“No, I like this too.”

I felt sorry toward the tidy Gi Seoin, but I jumped onto the bed without even changing my clothes.

Ah… it feels like my body is melting. It wouldn’t be strange if I fainted like this. The scent of the guy came from the blanket.

“Smells good.”

“Do you like it?”

Gi Seoin sits next to me as I lie spread-eagled and strokes my hair. His touch and his gaze were both sweet.

“Come here. Let’s lie down together.”

When I opened my arms, he lay down with his face on my chest as if he had been waiting. I hugged his head, and he hugged my waist. Only now could I breathe properly.

I should tell him, as he might still be feeling anxious. That when the knife came to my throat, the longing to see him just one more time made me endure, more than the instinct to live.