I Became the Lousy Side Top - Chap 73
Jaewoo’s heart was pounding. For the first time in a while, he felt like he was going to vomit up all the food he’d just eaten.
‘I can’t.’
Jaewoo pulled his hand away from the chocolate and tried to control his mind.
“Aren’t you going to eat any more?”
“I ate so much my stomach hurts. You guys can finish them all.”
At his words, the kids’ eyes lit up and they reached for the remaining snacks.
“I’m going to go make a quick phone call.”
“Okay!”
Jaewoo went onto the patio, cell phone in his hand. Winter wasn’t over yet, and the patio floor was still cold, but Jaewoo didn’t care – he sat down on the floor and turned on his phone. It didn’t take long to find Jiheon’s number.
Even though it was early in the morning, Jaewoo pressed the call button without hesitation.
After the ring tone, a sleepy, subdued voice came through the line. The sun was already up, but it seemed like he’d still been asleep.
─ I thought it would take a bit longer, but you’re already calling me? Have you remembered so soon?
Jiheon sounded amused. Jaewoo took a deep breath and called his best friend’s name.
“Eunjoon.”
When he said that name, Jiheon’s laughter stopped. A moment of silence passed while Jaewoo waited in unbearable suspense, before a deeper, friendlier voice was heard.
Jiheon’s lively, sarcastic tone had changed. But this new manner of speaking was familiar to Jaewoo.
─ Yes, Jaewoo. It’s me, Eunjoon.
Emotions welled up inside of him. For a moment, tears welled up at the sound of that familiar voice. But now wasn’t the time to cry, so Jaewoo clenched his teeth and held back his tears.
Jaewoo’s memories still weren’t complete, and he could only remember bits and pieces. He had so many things he wanted to ask Eunjoon.
‘Why are you here? How did we transmigrate into this novel? When did you remember your name? Why did you pretend not to know me when we first met?’ Hundreds of questions came to mind, but there was one thing that he wanted to say the most.
“Help me. Please help me, Eunjoon.”
Help Hyunjin. Please help that poor, kind kid, who’d thrown himself into hell for Jaewoo’s sake. The tears that he’d been holding back began to flow down his cheeks.
─ Don’t cry, Jaewoo.
“Please. Help me.”
─ Yoo Hyunjin. That’s who you’re asking me to help?
“Yes.”
─You have a crush on him.
A crush. Was that really all it was? Jaewoo’s lips curled in a bitter smile. How wonderful would it be if it was just a crush. What he felt couldn’t be explained so simply.
Something that was so intense, so heart-wrenching, that he felt like he’d die if he lost it could never be summed up as just a ‘crush’.
─ Alright. Let’s meet up before we decide anything, Jaewoo. We’ll talk in person. Should I go to you? Or do you want to come to me?
“I’ll go to you.”
Jiheon– no, Eunjoon gave him an address. Jaewoo, who was still trying to adjust to the change, hung up the phone and stood. Finally, there was hope.
“Kids, I’m going to go out for a little bit.”
First things first. Jaewoo told the kids his plan as they nodded along silently.
“Bye.”
Even though the kids were anxious, they didn’t cling to him. They knew why Jaewoo was doing this.
“I’ll be back quickly.”
After saying that, Jaewoo hurriedly threw on a new set of clothes and headed out the front door. The cold winter wind made his cheeks sting, but he didn’t even think about going back for a scarf. He hurried down the hill, wanting to get to Eunjoon as quickly as possible.
He hailed a taxi and asked the driver to go as fast as he could. The address Jiheon had given him was for a luxury villa. The security guard seemed to be expecting him, since he let him through without a second look.
‘Room 601.’
He stopped in front of it and rang the bell. Before the chime had faded, the door was open and Eunjoon was there.
“You really hurried.”
The relaxed posture and the look in his round, smiling eyes were familiar. His body may have changed, but the person inside was definitely Eunjoon.
“Come in.”
Once they were inside, Eunjoon brought out some warm citron tea.
“Drink some tea before we start.”
Jaewoo obeyed him, sipping his tea slowly. His mind was overwhelmed with too much information, and he needed time to sort it out.
Jaewoo put down his half-drunk cup and gazed at Eunjoon intently.
“So you finally remembered.”
“There’s still a lot of things I want to ask.”
“I bet there are.”
Jaewoo immediately got down to business.
“But before that, Eunjoon, please. Please help Hyunjin.”
“You mean Yoo Hyunjin, the protagonist of the novel?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
Eunjoon stroked his chin with his finger.
“Sure, I can help him.”
Jaewoo’s expression instantly brightened, but Eunjoon wasn’t done talking.
“I can help him, but Jaewoo. You know the original plot, right? Hyunjin was always meant to suffer under Director Choi. That’s the natural progression of the story. Is there really a need to grind it to a halt right in the middle?”
He wasn’t wrong. In the past, Jaewoo had thought the same.
“In the end, Hyunjin needs to end up with Director Choi. Things have gone a bit off the rails, but if I work at it, I can get things back on track. If that happened, wouldn’t it be a happy ending?”
“Are we really going to follow the plot of the novel?”
“That’s the best way.”
Jaewoo bit his lip.
“If the story gets back on track, then doesn’t that mean I’ll have to die as well?”
“You’re meant to die, Jaewoo.”
Eunjoon’s tone as he spoke was casual, as if he didn’t care either way. Jaewoo felt a sense of discomfort as he spoke about his death so easily.
“It’s not your real body, remember?”
At those words, Jaewoo stared at Eunjoon blankly, his mind whirling. What had he just said? He gripped his trembling hands together as he tried to make sense of what he’d just heard.
“Are you saying… that when you die, you’ll return to your original world?”
Eunjoon smiled slightly at Jaewoo’s words.
“Well, to be more precise, you’ll return to your original world after you’ve fulfilled your role. And Seo Jaewoo’s role is to die, isn’t it?”
Right. Seo Jaewoo was obsessed with Hyunjin to the point of madness and was eventually murdered because of it. So in order to fulfill his role in the story, he’d have to die. But…
“H-How do you know that?”
Jaewoo couldn’t help but doubt. He’d lost his memory when he’d transmigrated, and the only thing he’d remembered was the contents of the book. But Eunjoon? Unlike Jaewoo, he seemed to know everything.
Eunjoon answered Jaewoo’s question.
“How do I know? The answer’s a bit complicated. Can’t you just trust me for now?”
“Why should I trust you?”
“Jaewoo, it’s me, Eunjoon. Your best friend, Eunjoon.”
“But now that I really think about it, how can I tell whether you’re Eunjoon or not?”
“Hah, that’s just like you.”
Eunjoon shrugged his shoulders calmly.
“Then ask. I’ll tell you anything. Your birthday, your favorite book, what you like to eat – I know it all. Or maybe you’d prefer to reminisce together?”
“When’s my birthday?”
“Christmas Day! That’s why every year, I was the only one with the spare time to visit you. You’d always complain, ‘Why do you keep pestering me? Don’t you have a girlfriend yet?’ but you’d always treat me to a wonderful meal. I still remember them – the best grilled chicken, gratin, cake, and wine.”
“What’s my favorite book?”
“[Tasha’s Cooking Recipes]. You said there were so many amazing dishes inside that you couldn’t wait to make them all yourself.”
Was that right? That was something Jaewoo hadn’t remembered yet.
“Should I go on?”
“No, it’s alright.”
Jaewoo tried to calm down. A suspicion had begun to grow deep in his heart, but in the end, there was no sign that he wasn’t Eunjoon.
“Then do you believe me now?”
“I believe you.”
“So you’ll do as I say?”
“I can’t.”
Jaewoo shook his head.
“Why?”
Why? Jaewoo rubbed both hands over his face.
“You said that Yoo Hyunjin is just a character in a story.”
That might be true for Eunjoon, but it wasn’t for Jaewoo.
“That’s right. All of his misfortunes are just words written on a piece of paper, nothing more.”
Just words written on a piece of paper? No. The misfortunes that Hyunjin had suffered couldn’t be dismissed so simply. Jaewoo had lived with him for so long; he knew him. He knew how cruel and unending his torture had been, and he knew the beauty of seeing Hyunjin begin to overcome that pain and somehow find the will to live again.
“No. I’m not satisfied with that.”
Jaewoo looked at Eunjoon, his expression pained. Eunjoon stood up and walked closer to Jaewoo, whose eyes were beginning to well up with tears.
“You’ve gotten too immersed in the story.”
“Hyunjin.”
Jaewoo gasped, the emotion clear in his voice.
“He’s a person. He laughs when he’s happy, and cries when he’s in pain.”
“Maybe this is for the best.”
Eunjoon smiled bitterly.
“Help me.”
Jaewoo clutched at Eunjoon’s arm tightly.
“Alright, alright. I’ll help you.”
To his surprise, Eunjoon gave in right away.
“But I have a condition.”
“What is it?”
“Once Hyunjin appears stable and happy…”
“What then?”
“Then you’ll need to die. We’ll return back to the real world together.”
Jaewoo’s heart sank.
“Everything is waiting for you back in reality. As long as you keep that in mind, I’ll help you as much as I can. Now, Hyunjin has been working as a small-time gangster outside of the city.”
“A small-time gangster?”
“Right. The life of a gangster is a hard one, and it’s going to get even worse soon. Mujin is determined to destroy him. You need to decide before it’s too late.”
Jaewoo slowly lowered his head. He’d wanted to live happily together with Hyunjin. He’d dreamed about confessing, but even if he hadn’t, it would have been okay. All that mattered was being able to see Hyunjin’s smiling face every day.
His lips were trembling.
‘If I die, I won’t be able to see him again.’
He hated that. But if he ignored Eunjoon’s suggestion, Hyunjin would continue to suffer. Jaewoo raised his head and looked at Eunjoon with sorrow in his eyes, but Eunjoon was unmoved.
“There are no other options. You need to decide.”
Jaewoo closed his eyes, his whole body beginning to tremble as he fought back the urge to scream. A long time passed.
When Jaewoo opened his eyes again, they were blank, looking almost dead inside.
“Help Hyunjin.”
In the end, Jaewoo couldn’t bring himself to ignore Hyunjin’s misfortunes. Even if he never saw him again in this life, he wanted Hyunjin to be happy.
That was what he’d decided.
