I Became the Lousy Side Top - Chap 71
The medicine was nothing special, just painkillers and cold medicine. Hyunjin put the plastic bag he’d been carrying down and took out the bottles from inside. It was the same as what Jaewoo had already taken; since that was the case, he probably wouldn’t get better if he took more.
Hyunjin hesitantly reached out a hand, brushing it against Jaewoo’s forehead. Despite being wet with sweat, the skin was still hot. He felt like Jaewoo needed a hospital.
He placed his hand beneath the sleeping Jaewoo’s back and lifted him up. Jaewoo never even shifted, his eyes still closed.
“What are you doing?”
Hyunjin calmly explained to Woohee.
“I think Jaewoo is very sick.”
“So you’re taking him to the hospital?”
“Uh huh.”
Woohee fell silent for a moment, then asked Hyunjin another question.
“Can I come with you too?”
At those words, Hyunjin hesitated. He’d gone out while the other gangsters were sleeping, and he needed to be back before dawn. In order to do that, he’d barely have enough time to drop Jaewoo off at the hospital and then leave immediately. He couldn’t take Woohee with him.
Woohee instantly saw the look on Hyunjin’s face and knew what it meant.
“Nevermind. I’ll stay with Hyeonu.”
He blurted out the words with a face full of regret.
“Hurry, take him to the hospital.”
It’s okay. It wasn’t scary. Woohee muttered those words to himself several times. Hyunjin and his uncle would both come back; they wouldn’t disappear like his mom and dad did. He couldn’t delay them any more.
Woohee had been forced to grow up too early, and had already learned how to suppress his emotions.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
Even seeing the expression on Woohee’s face, all Hyunjin could do was apologize.
“I’m so sorry, Woohee.”
Woohee responded to his brother’s repeated apologies.
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
Hyunjin’s expression twisted. It wasn’t okay. Woohee was just a kid, he was still at an age where he should be terrified of being left alone without any adults.
When his mother disappeared and his father fell into gambling, Hyunjin had made a vow. He’d promised that he’d stay by his brothers’ sides; that he’d watch over them. His heart felt like it was being torn apart by the cruelty of reality.
“It’s really okay, brother.”
Woohee looked almost noble as he forced the corners of his mouth up into a smile. Then he approached the sleeping Hyeonu and quickly woke him up. He wanted to make sure that he had a chance to see Hyunjin too.
“Hyeonu. Hyeonu.”
As Woohee’s tiny hands shook him, Hyeonu’s eyes opened. He looked around the room blankly before spotting Hyunjin.
“Brother?”
“Hyeonu.”
Hyeonu quickly got up and approached Hyunjin. As he got closer, he saw that Hyunjin was carrying Jaewoo on his back and froze in place.
“Jaewoo’s really sick. Hyunjin is going to take him to the hospital.”
Woohee explained. Hearing that, Hyeonu looked conflicted. He hadn’t seen Hyunjin in so long, and he wanted to spend time with him. Even though Jaewoo took good care of him and Woohee, the person who had stayed by their side the longest was Hyunjin. Of course he’d missed him terribly.
‘But he’s sick.’
They couldn’t afford to waste time. Hyeonu wanted to go to the hospital with them, but he knew that having a kid underfoot would just be a distraction. Resisting the urge to hug his brother tightly, Hyeonu said.
“Then hurry up and go to the hospital, why are you waiting?”
At their urging, Hyunjin moved forward with a heavy heart. He wasn’t sure how many slow, hesitant steps he’d taken before he heard the door closing behind him. The kids had shut it because they were afraid their brother would turn back.
Hyunjin clenched his teeth and picked up the pace, the hot breath on his neck urging him on. He thought about calling 119, but considering how long it would take for an ambulance to arrive, he thought it was faster to take Jaewoo himself. He went down the hill and caught a taxi.
“The nearest hospital emergency room.”
“Oh jeeze, he looks like he’s really sick.”
The taxi driver sped off and got them to the nearest emergency room quickly. After paying the fare, Hyunjin picked up Jaewoo again and went inside to sign him in. However, an issue arose.
“Since this is his first visit, we’ll need his resident registration number1.”
26 years old. He knew Jaewoo’s age, but he didn’t know his birthday. Hyunjin laid Jaewoo down on a chair in the waiting room and searched his pocket, looking for his resident registration card, but couldn’t find it.
‘Is it at home?’
Hyunjin bit his lip. He didn’t have time to return to the house and then come back again. There was only one thing he could do.
“Jaewoo. Jaewoo-hyung.”
He gently tried to wake Jaewoo up, wiping the sweat from his forehead. After calling his name several times, Jaewoo opened his eyes. He stared at Hyunjin blankly for a few seconds before blinking slowly.
“Hyunjin?”
Jaewoo lifted his limp hand and caressed Hyunjin’s cheek.
“Is this a dream?”
The feel of Jaewoo’s hand made Hyunjin catch his breath. Dewy eyes, flushed cheeks, and soft, curved lips – he couldn’t look away. Longing welled up inside of him. Even though he knew this wasn’t the time, he couldn’t bring himself to move.
Bang!
Just then, the sound of a door slamming open was heard nearby. It seemed as though a new patient had just arrived. The noise was enough to bring Hyunjin back to his senses.
“Jaewoo, please tell me your birthday.”
“My birthday?”
Jaewoo groaned and spat out a date.
“It’s December 25th.”
Christmas Day. Even his birthday suited Jaewoo. Hyunjin stood up and went up to the counter again. However, when he told them the number, the staff member looked troubled.
“I’m sorry, but that number doesn’t match Seo Jaewoo’s information.”
Had he gotten Jaewoo’s age wrong? Hyunjin tried a different number, but the employee shook their head. Embarrassed, Hyunjin returned to Jaewoo’s side. Fortunately, Jaewoo was still awake.
“Jaewoo, what’s your resident registration number?”
“My resident registration number?”
Jaewoo repeated the same, wrong number. Was it because the fever was confusing his brain? Hyunjin had no choice but to call Hyeonu. Luckily, he picked up the phone right away.
─ Brother!
Hyeonu’s voice was thick and watery, probably because he’d been crying. Hearing him try to speak as bravely as possible made Hyunjin want to cry too.
“… … Hyeonu, I’m sorry, but can you find Jaewoo’s resident registration card? Once you’ve found it, read me the numbers on the front.”
─ Yes!
He went quiet for a moment, then gasped and said.
─ I found it!
Hyeonu called out the numbers clearly and calmly. But it was really strange – Jaewoo’s birthday didn’t match.
“0505? His birthday is May 5th?”
Hyeonu had seen Hyunjin’s resident registration card before, and knew what the numbers on the card meant. He answered quickly.
─ Yes, May 5th. His birthday is on Children’s Day2, how cool.
The date Jaewoo had given him was definitely not May 5th. Jaewoo had said he was born on Christmas Day, but that didn’t match the number on his card. Hyunjin was disconcerted by this difference, but decided not to think about it too much.
He knew there were times when a person’s date of birth might not match the date they were registered under. It was weird that the difference would be as large as seven months, but it wasn’t completely unheard of.
He was able to easily complete the registration using the number that Hyeonu had told him, and Jaewoo was soon resting in a bed. Fortunately, there were only a few other patients in the emergency room, so Jaewoo’s turn came quickly. A doctor examined him and had a nurse administer an IV.
“It seems like a cold combined with exhaustion. He should feel much better after receiving IV fluids.”
Hyunjin stood next to Jaewoo’s bed and looked down at him. What had he been doing on such a freezing cold day to make himself so exhausted? He glanced away from Jaewoo’s face, which was already looking much better, and towards the clock on the wall. His time was up. If he left now, he could arrive back at the dorm just before dawn.
‘I have to go.’
He couldn’t stay there forever. His younger siblings and Jaewoo were having a hard time right now, but they’d soon adjust to him being gone. Hyunjin took a deep breath.
‘I hate this.’
Even though he knew it was for the best, he was terrified that they’d forget him. The rest of his life was looming in front of him.
“See yo–”
Hyunjin swallowed back a lump in his throat.
“See you next time.”
Hyunjin turned around, making an irrevocable promise to himself. He paid the treatment fee, then left the hospital. A pitch-black hell was awaiting him, but although his steps forward were painful, he never faltered.
Jaewoo woke to an unfamiliar ceiling. He blinked up at the white tiles, then turned his head to the side. He spotted a row of beds, and an IV with liquid dripping through it.
‘It’s a hospital.’
Jaewoo searched through his memories. The last thing he recalled was Hyeonu bringing him medicine. He vaguely remembered falling asleep after taking it. How had he ended up in the hospital? The only thing he could think of was that the kids had called 119
‘They must have been terrified.’
How scary must it have been for the only adult to be that sick? He should have taken better care of his health, but he’d only been thinking in the short term. Now that he was feeling better, he needed to find out what had happened to the children.
Jaewoo stopped a nurse who was passing by and asked.
“How did I get here?”
“Your guardian3 brought you.”
“Guardian?”
Jaewoo’s lips trembled. There wasn’t anyone that he could call a guardian.
“By any chance, do you remember what he looked like?”
“Of course. He was about this tall and had a good looking face. Age… Maybe early to mid twenties? That’s what he looked like.”
It wasn’t Mujin or Jiheon. Right, what would they be doing in the slums that late at night? Since that was the case, there was only one person he could think of. Hyunjin fit the nurse’s description.
‘Hyunjin!’
It could only be him. Jaewoo immediately tried to stand up, the IV tube trembling as his body swayed.
“Sir? Please sit down! That’s dangerous!”
Nervously, the nurse rushed over to Jaewoo’s side, pressing him back down with a hand on his chest.
“The person that brought me in, is he still here?”
“I’m not sure what’s going on, but he left earlier. So please lie back down.”
The nurse said that, but Jaewoo couldn’t bear to stay still.
Footnotes
주민등록번호 – jumin deungnok beonho – Resident registration number. A 13 digit number given to all residents of South Korea and used as a means of identification, similar to a social security number in the United States. The number is derived based partially on the person’s date and place of birth. Wikipedia
어린이날 – eolin inal – Children’s Day. A holiday that aims to promote the welfare of children, it’s celebrated in various countries around the world. In South Korea, it’s a public holiday, and is celebrated on May 5th. Parents will give presents to their children and spend time with them. Wikipedia
보호자 – bohoja – Guardian, protector, caretaker, someone who watches out for you. I couldn’t think of a good equivalent in English, although the term ‘guardian angel’ might come close.
