I Became the Lousy Side Top - Chap 91
Jaewoo wasn’t sure how he felt about this. On the one hand, it was good to see the kids, who had always seemed so trusting, finally learning to be cautious. On the other hand, to have that caution pointed in his direction was heartbreaking.
‘I really am a stranger to them now.’
Jaewoo crouched down, trying to hide his bitterness. He’d wanted to meet the kids on their level to try and appear more friendly, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. Woohee and Hyeonu moved even further away from him.
“Do you know wh–”
‘Do you know where your older brother is?’ Jaewoo was in the middle of asking that when he was suddenly yanked backwards by a hand on his collar.
“What are you doing.”
A voice growled out from behind him as Jaewoo was knocked violently to the floor. He could tell who that voice belonged to without even looking.
‘Hyunjin.’
Jaewoo slowly tilted his head back and gazed up at him. The first thing he noticed was Hyunjin’s razor-sharp jawline and sunken cheeks. Hyunjin had always been naturally handsome, so even though he had become skinnier it still wasn’t enough to ruin his good looks, but seeing him like that made Jaewoo’s heart sink.
‘I just wanted him to be happy.’
But he didn’t look like he was. Jaewoo clenched his teeth as he stared at Hyunjin’s emaciated body and glaring eyes.
Back then, he’d had no choice. Even though he knew that, he still felt sad when he considered what had happened.
“Well?”
Hyunjin’s voice became fiercer as time went by without Jaewoo answering. What on earth had happened while he’d been gone? Jaewoo had no way of knowing.
The most important thing now was to defuse the current situation. Jaewoo carefully removed Hyunjin’s hand from the back of his shirt collar. Fortunately, although Hyunjin watched Jaewoo’s motions carefully, he didn’t make any further moves against him.
After freeing himself, Jaewoo stood up, brushing the dirt from his backside as he did. After adjusting his clothes, Jaewoo took a deep breath and turned to meet Hyunjin’s suspicious gaze.
“Don’t you recognize me?”
Hyunjin glanced over Jaewoo’s face.
“I don’t know you.”
Jaewoo hadn’t really expected that to work, but he’d needed to at least try. It seemed that only in fairy tales could star-crossed lovers recognize each other at first glance, even though their appearances had changed. Jaewoo had prepared himself for that, but he hadn’t realized how much the disappointment would sting.
‘I shouldn’t be here.’
What right did he have to feel sad when he was the one who’d left? Jaewoo clenched his fists. Considering the life he’d led, it was only natural for Hyunjin to be suspicious of a stranger that suddenly appeared one day.
There was so much he wanted to say. Jaewoo opened his mouth, then hesitated.
‘Should I tell him who I am?’
That was what Jaewoo was trying to decide. There were plenty of secrets that were only known by Hyunjin and himself. If he told him one of those, maybe Hyunjin would believe him.
But would that be right? Hyunjin had clearly suffered after his death; was it okay for Jaewoo to bring up those feelings again now that Hyunjin seemed to finally be doing better? He couldn’t help but hesitate. There were still so many obstacles in the way before they could possibly be together.
“Oh, Hyunjin?”
Jaewoo’s doubts became deeper as a woman suddenly appeared from behind them and called out to Hyunjin. She seemed to be around Hyunjin’s age with neat, short hair. She approached the two of them with brisk steps, waving her hand. Hyunjin responded in kind.
“Hey.”
It was the first time Jaewoo had seen Hyunjin talk to a woman his age. It was a situation that had never occurred in front of him before, and yet their interaction seemed so natural. For a moment his head felt dizzy, and he took a step back without realizing it.
“What are you doing here?”
“Ah, I was…”
Before Hyunjin could finish his sentence, Jaewoo turned and began running down the hill. He almost tripped over his own feet, but he was able to hold on somehow.
Jaewoo stumbled his way down the slope, only stopping once he’d reached level ground. In his head, his thoughts whirled chaotically. A year had passed in this world. Over that year, Hyunjin must naturally have changed as well. A part of him knew that, but he’d still given in to his feelings and run away.
“Yeah, that’s right…”
Jaewoo mumbled to himself under his breath and started walking again. The fact was, seeing Hyunjin had only reinforced that Jaewoo didn’t belong in this world anymore. He had no identification, no home, nothing. All he had was the cash from Eunah’s wallet, her ring, and the jacket he had just bought.
Even with the jacket, the tip of his nose was still numb from the cold wind. In a daze, Jaewoo walked and walked until he eventually found himself standing in the center of the market area. A warm smoke was billowing out from somewhere nearby. When he turned to look, he saw a soup restaurant1 that he’d passed by several times before.
Jaewoo pushed open the worn glass door and found a seat. An old woman bustled over to him and laid out some side dishes in front of him. The only options seemed to be pickled radishes and kimchi, that was all.
“Oh my, you’re freezing.”
Saying that, the grandmotherly woman ladled out a heaping bowl of soup and placed it in front of Jaewoo. Her movements were so quick and steady that it took only moments.
“Eat up, eat up.”
Her voice was warm and kind. Tears welled up in Jaewoo’s eyes and he had to force them back as he took a spoonful of soup. It was the perfect temperature: hot, but not enough to burn his mouth. The warmth from the soup settled in his stomach.
After that first bite, he ate without any hesitation, until the bowl was half-empty. The comfort from the soup spread throughout his body. He had been so sad and distressed earlier, but something as basic as eating soup had been able to cheer him up. Had he always been such a simple person?
Jaewoo laughed helplessly. As he looked around the restaurant, his attention was caught by a paper stuck to the front door.
When he saw that, he turned to the old woman.
“Are you looking for workers?”
“Oh, that? A little bit. The person that used to work here quit – they wanted to spend more time with their grandchildren. But the restaurant is so old that it seems no one is interested in working here.”
“Then can I do it?”
“A young man like yourself?”
The woman’s eyes widened, as if she was surprised.
“Yes, I’m an excellent worker.”
“…Oh my. You’ll need to get your hands dirty here. Are you sure you’re up to that?”
“I can handle it.”
“I might seem kind now, but I expect a lot from my workers.”
The old woman’s gaze turned sharp. She couldn’t help but feel suspicious about this nicely-dressed young man that had suddenly appeared in her restaurant, looking for work.
“If you have any doubts, I can work for a few days without pay. If I do a good job, you can hire me after that.”
Jaewoo took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. It only took a short while for the old woman to realize he hadn’t been exaggerating and give him the okay to work full-time. Within hours of his return, Jaewoo had secured a job.
The small soup restaurant was surprisingly busy. There was a television on one wall for the guests that was always turned on. Thanks to that, Jaewoo found out some information.
First, he discovered that Director Yoon of Yoram Construction, the grandson of a business magnate, had been missing for a year. Even though he’d been missing for so long, the story was still shown briefly on the news. It was said that his grandfather was actively looking for him, but Jaewoo knew he would never be found.
Director Yoon had left this world, and would never come back to it again. Jaewoo shrugged his shoulders and continued cleaning the countertops.
Jaewoo didn’t hear anything about Choi Mujin. It was only natural – Mujin wasn’t someone who would appear in the news. Jaewoo was curious, but he had no intention of seeking out information anytime soon. Mujin was too dangerous to go messing with.
Lastly, Yoo Hyunjin…
‘Hyunjin.’
Jaewoo was torn. The desire to know more about him and the desire to remain ignorant were warring inside of him. When he was younger, he’d always thought that he’d get braver as he got older, but it seems that wasn’t the case. Jaewoo was terrified that Hyunjin might have forgotten him or found someone else while he was gone. Even worse, he was afraid that Hyunjin wouldn’t believe him if he reached out.
His mind in a daze, Jaewoo suddenly found himself sitting down without knowing how he got there. As he sat there, the old woman approached him and slapped him on the back.
“You’re spacing out again! If you keep doing that, you’re going to get hurt. You need to focus.”
“Yes.”
Jaewoo smiled slightly as he answered. The old woman really was protective of him. As soon as she’d realized that he had nowhere to go, she’d told him that he could stay in a storage room after work. The room was only just large enough for him to sleep in, but it wasn’t bad.
“Anyway, you do seem to be a hard worker.”
“I told you I was.”
“What about cooking? Do you know how to cook?”
“I’m an excellent cook.”
Even without using any special techniques, Jaewoo had never heard anyone claim that his cooking wasn’t delicious, which was why he answered so confidently. The old woman looked at him doubtfully, but Jaewoo didn’t mind. He knew he could prove himself quickly.
After making dinner for the other employees a few times, the old woman recognized Jaewoo’s cooking skills.
“I didn’t see you do anything special, so how is it so tasty?”
“It’s not a secret. The best meal is a home-cooked meal.”
Jaewoo shrugged his shoulders. The day had passed, and evening had arrived. It was the time of day when a lot of older customers arrived to enjoy the soup and a drink. It was also the time when Hyunjin got off work.
He could see Hyunjin making his way through the marketplace, when suddenly he changed direction and headed towards the restaurant. Jaewoo hunched his shoulders, wondering if Hyunjin had caught a glimpse of him through the windows.
“Three servings of soup to go, please.”
Hyunjin didn’t act any differently compared to the other customers. Jaewoo glanced back at the old woman, but she was busy dealing with other customers. Eventually, Jaewoo was forced to approach Hyunjin, his body as tense as a coiled spring.
Hyunjin looked up at Jaewoo and frowned.
“What are you doing here?”
“I work here.”
They’d only spoken a few words to each other, but Jaewoo’s cheeks felt hot. As expected, he still loved Hyunjin.
“Please wait a moment. I’ll get it ready for you quickly.”
Jaewoo moved quickly. It didn’t take long to pack three servings of soup – all he had to do was add kimchi and pickled radishes to the soup and rice already in the bag. Hyunjin openly stared at him, his gaze suspicious, but that was all. He didn’t try to do anything else.
Once his order was ready, Hyunjin left the store.
‘It would be nice to eat a delicious meal together again…’
Jaewoo saw him off with regretful eyes.
Footnotes
국밥집- gukbapjib – Soup restaurant. A type of traditional Korean restaurant that specializes in serving soup and rice, along with side dishes. The rice will generally be mixed in with the soup