SATURDAY 64

The time is now 11:45 AM; since it was an early morning departure, Mr. Taeseon must still be on the plane. All sorts of nonsensical possibilities began to drift through my head. A plane crash, a mid-air hijacking, or perhaps an accident had occurred in a remote area before he even boarded the plane, and no one knew about it….

‘…I must be going crazy.’

What am I thinking, I thought, as I slapped both of my cheeks with my palms.

With a slap, Lili jumped up in surprise and let out a “Screeech!” as if shouting, “What are you doing!” Do cats also know that humans perform the act of “hitting”?

In any case, the anxious feeling did not fade. I once saw somewhere that submerging your face in cold water helps subside anxiety. I went to the bathroom, filled the sink with water, took a deep breath, and plunged my face in with a splash.

Lili was moving busily back and forth by my ankles. Lili likes water, but it seemed my behavior was strange since it differed from usual.

I kept my face submerged for quite a while with my eyes squeezed shut until bubbles went glug glug upward, but all I got in return were cheeks glowing red from the heat following the reaction to the cold.

The anxiety, of course, did not go away. I only felt a slight sense of self-loathing.

I pulled out a towel hanging next to the sink, wiped my face, and let the water drain. Water droplets were splashed everywhere around the sink. As I roughly wiped the moisture with the towel I had just used and lowered my head, only then did I notice Lili circling around me, crying out with a meow, mew, and shriek.

“It’s nothing, Lili…. I just washed up a bit.”

“Meow. Meow. Merrow.”

Lili continued to flick her tail thump thump and cry as if scolding me for something, then she suddenly tucked her claws in and clung tightly to my leg. She clung there, hopping her back feet as if trying to climb up. It was a sign asking to be held.

Even though Mr. Taeseon told me not to hold her because she was heavy, Lili was still a weight that wasn’t difficult for me to carry. Mr. Taeseon sometimes has a tendency to see me as too weak….

Recalling him… it kept weighing on my mind that I hadn’t been able to see him off this morning. Holding Lili, I swept back my wet bangs—which were dripping water—with my hand and stepped out into the bedroom. It felt as though anxiety was still pressing down on my entire body. It seemed it wouldn’t settle until I took some medicine.

‘Then, even that medicine….’

It is the medicine to treat anxiety prescribed by Professor Jang. The name was exactly the same as the one I received at the new hospital. If the ingredients were the same but the name was different, I might have hesitated, but right now, calming this restlessness was more urgent.

Then, suddenly, my hand stopped.

This is not medicine received from the hospital pharmacy. Professor Jang pulled it out and gave it to me himself. Is such a thing even possible at a university hospital? I hadn’t had any suspicions until now, but suddenly… the medicines I had taken without a single thought became extremely unsettling.

‘…Ah.’

And there, something suddenly occurred to me. The suppressants. Back then, my body had turned strange after taking a blue pill. I rummaged through the medicine drawer and found the container holding the blue suppressants. I was glad I hadn’t thrown it away yet.

Holding the medicine, I took a photo so the name was clearly visible and searched for the image. The search results were shocking.

[Developed as a suppressant, but fatal side effects…]

[Sales banned for inducing adverse effects…]

[…Currently being traded secretly as an aphrodisiac in some circles; possession alone is illegal…]

I felt the blood drain from my face. Aghast, I looked down at the medicine bottle I was holding. Professor Jang prescribed this kind of medicine to me? And while lying that it was a strong suppressant?

At that time, the relationship between Mr. Taeseon and me was not good. What kind of result was the Professor hoping for by doing this?

Feeling a chill, I set the medicine bottle down as if throwing it. Lili rolled the bottle with her front paw as it went roll roll across the desk and fell with a clack.

“You can’t touch that!”

As I snatched the container away, shouting without realizing it, Lili looked at me with a small sound, appearing puzzled.

“Sorry…. This is dangerous, so you mustn’t touch it, okay?”

“Me-o-ow.”

It was a cry that sounded as if she were saying “Okay.” While I was standing there unable to do this or that with the medicine in my hand, my phone rang. I headed toward the bedside with a start. I was still clutching the medicine bottle in my hand.

Upon checking the caller, it is my uncle.

“…Hello?”

― Haven’t you woken up yet?

“No, I’m up.”

― You must have been tired.

I suppose so. I fell asleep thinking I should see Mr. Taeseon off in the morning, yet I didn’t even know he was leaving. My uncle continued speaking immediately.

― Nothing’s wrong? I called because I was worried since the General Manager said he was on a business trip starting today.

“Ah, uncle, I….”

Normally, I would have just lied and said I was fine. But I couldn’t do that today. Anxiety to the point of nausea was enveloping my whole body.

“I’m feeling a bit off….”

― Why, does something hurt? A headache?

“No…. It’s just, I’m anxious.”

― Wait a bit, uncle will be there soon.

“Wh, what?”

I didn’t expect such a quick, immediate answer. I had only mentioned it to him with the feeling of grasping at straws.

However, busy sounds could be heard from over the phone, as if my uncle had already begun preparing to come here. When I called out “Uncle?”, a somewhat abrupt—if one were to call it abrupt—answer came back.

― I’ll arrive in thirty minutes. You get ready too, Inyoung.

“No, so suddenly…. Where are we going?”

― We have to go to the hospital. You said you were anxious.

“We go to the hospital just because I’m anxious?”

― When you’re anxious, it’s not just regular anxiety. You know that, right? Get ready to head out and wait. Or, should we stay on the phone while I’m on my way?

I quickly shook my head.

“No, you’re driving, uncle.”

My uncle let out a chuckle. Then, he hung up after only leaving the words, “See you in a bit.”

I suddenly became busy. Fumbling while holding the medicine bottle, I placed it on the top shelf of the bookcase—high enough that Lili couldn’t jump up to it—and cautioned Lili again.

“Lili, that is very dangerous, so you mustn’t touch it. Understand?”

“Yes.”

“…?”

“Ye-es.”

“A-answer me again.”

“Aung.”

Did I hear wrong? But I’m sure she said “Yes” twice…. No, this wasn’t the time for this. There was no time with only thirty minutes. Besides, knowing my uncle’s personality, he would try to come as fast as possible, so he might arrive even earlier. I hurried to take off my clothes, threw them in the laundry bin, and entered the bathroom.

Fortunately, no thoughts came to mind while I soaped my hair and body and washed. Unlike yesterday, when I had to keep my eyes open while washing them out because I was anxious during the shower. Perhaps it was because of the thought that I could go to the hospital and take medicine soon.

When I finished washing in a rush, dried my hair, and was picking out clothes, Lili approached and circled my legs, crying in a dissatisfied voice. She seemed to have realized I was trying to head out.

After getting fully dressed, I picked Lili up and soothed her while kissing her face.

“Me-ew…. Shriek, purr-r-r….”

Lili opened her eyes prettily and acted cute as if trying to prevent me from leaving. The thought that I would have taken her with me if she were a puppy naturally occurred to me.

“I’m sorry. I’ll be back soon.”

Then Lili let out a “Kyoo-ook,” curled her body small in my arms, and then jumped down as if pouting and went down to the first floor. After hesitating for a moment, I grabbed the medicine bottle, put it in my bag, and followed her down; Lili had climbed to the highest point of the cat tower—where my height couldn’t reach—and was turning her head away.

“I’m really sorry…. Just stay alone for a little bit, okay?”

“Eee-ing.”

“I’ll be back soon so… Ah.”

While I was soothing Lili, the phone rang again. It was my uncle this time as well. As soon as I answered, my uncle asked.

― Are you finished preparing?

“Yeah, all done.”

― Then come out in front of the gate.

“You’ve arrived already?”

I waved my hand at Lili and hurriedly turned away. As I looked back once while leaving the entrance, Lili was making a face full of dissatisfaction while watching me. I left the house with a sorry heart.

My uncle was waiting for me with the car parked in front of the gate. When I opened the door, my uncle put the coffee he was drinking into the cup holder and tilted his head as if examining my face.

“Why…?”

“Your face is swollen. Your complexion is bad, too.”

“Really? I thought I looked okay.”

I quickly opened the sun visor and checked my face. To my eyes, I couldn’t really tell if my face was swollen or not.

Before starting, I held out the medicine bottle I had brought to my uncle.

“Uncle, do you happen to know this medicine?”

“…What is this?”

“Professor Jang prescribed this along with the suppressants before. He said it was stronger than regular suppressants.”

At that, my uncle immediately frowned.

“Prescription suppressants themselves are already stronger than regular suppressants, so what does that mean? Give it here.”

“Yeah, so I looked it up anyway and…. Well, that.”

Now that I was about to say it, I felt a bit embarrassed. Since he was my uncle but actually like an older brother to me, it was awkward to bring this up. Fortunately, as I was hesitating, my uncle asked.

“Why, is it an aphrodisiac or something?”

“….”

When I couldn’t give any answer, my uncle’s face gradually stiffened.