Side Story 2: Threat
Heewoon opened the worn-out front door. The peeling paint on the door made a rustling noise, revealing a yard covered in cement and a small flower bed at one glance. Nothing had changed.
The entrance door, adjacent to the neighbor’s, was wide open.
“Did my son come?”
His cheerful-faced mother suddenly stuck her head out. “Come in quickly, feeling hot, huh?” She led Heewoon inside, patting his back warmly. The house was filled with the aroma of food.
“Why have you cooked so much?”
“It’s not that much. The kitchen is very hot. Heewoon, go to your room.”
“I’ll help you.”
Heewoon moved the stir-fried pork, which had been placed on top of the sink, onto the table. He took a taxi here, so he hadn’t sweated a drop until he entered the house. Helping his mother set the table made sweats bead on his forehead. The small kitchen was filled with the heat from the gas stove, and the open front door didn’t make much of a difference as outside was also as hot as an oven.
“Ah, I told you to go inside.”
His mother’s cheeks were flushed, and sweat clung to the bridge of her nose.
“Let’s go inside. Is everything ready?”
“Yeah.”
As they opened the sliding door, a relatively cool air flowed in. An old air conditioner mounted on the wall above was making a loud noise as it operated.
Heewoon and his mother entered the room with a hearty meal. She closed the sliding door and turned on the fan.
“Ah, it feels refreshing.”
“Yeah, I feel alive now.”
Heewoon echoed his mother’s words. The slightly stuffy smell in the room might be due to the air conditioner. Somehow, it felt quite unfamiliar to Heewoon. The house where he and Kangwoo lived together was incredibly spacious, always maintaining a comfortable temperature, and the air was consistently pleasant. Unless he stepped outside, he wouldn’t even know what the weather was like.
Heewoon stared at the sweat on his mother’s face, then picked up his chopsticks. Looking up at the air conditioner, he began to speak.
“Um, Mom.”
“Yeah? Why aren’t you eating? Oh right, there’s potato salad. I made it last night, but I forgot to bring it out.”
His mother clapped her hands and got up, opening the door to go out. Heewoon also tried to get up, lifting his body up, but the door closed with a creak. She must have closed it to prevent the air from the air conditioner from leaking out even for just a moment.
Heewoon had many things he wanted to do for his mother. He wanted to replace the air conditioner, send her a substantial amount of money each month, and move her to an apartment. However, the problem was that the money wasn’t Heewoon’s.
Heewoon would often use Kangwoo’s money. However, his mother might feel reluctant about it. If Heewoon did everything he wanted to do for her, she might become more depressed.
It was challenging; doing things for his mother could make her feel sorrowful.
“Mom, when I get a job, I’ll buy you an apartment.”
Holding a plate with round potato salad, Heewoon said to his mother. She widened her eyes for a moment, then smiled brightly.
“When did my son grow up so much?”
Feeling proud, his mother patted his back, and Heewoon realized he had said the right thing. And he made up his mind. After finishing the midterms, he would join a job seeking study group immediately. He wanted to work and earn money in the first half of next year. Half of it would go to his mother, and he hoped to save the other half to buy an apartment someday. He needed to get his mother out of this cramped house as soon as possible.
He, himself, wouldn’t need an apartment himself since he was going to live with Kangwoo anyway.
“Wow, it’s delicious.”
“Really? Want some to take home?”
Nodding appreciatively, Heewoon watched his mother get up again, saying she would pack some dried pollack side dishes and others. He managed to grab her and sit her down.
“Later. You can pack some when I’m about to go home.”
Heewoon chuckled, his nose wrinkling. His mother, fixing her hair, picked up her chopsticks. They filled their time with chatter, not turning on the TV. Heewoon observed his mother’s expressions as she talked about what happened at her workplace. He couldn’t be sure if her depression had disappeared or if it was just kept hidden.
But there was undoubtedly a positive change. his mother gained some weight, and her complexion looked better than before.
Positive change. It wasn’t only in his mother.
Heewoon felt most of the changes happening to himself. Not getting angry when thinking about his mother, being able to accept his mother’s depression, and constantly envisioning a happy future.
“How about Hyung?”
“He’ll come around dinner time. He’s been learning something these days, and he’s working hard, earning a bit of salary.”
His mother praised his brother as if he were so admirable. Heewoon’s chopstick movement paused briefly at the mention of his brother, then continued. His heart clenched very slightly, but it quickly calmed.
“Despite his health not being good, seeing him working so hard…”
When his mother trailed off with pity for his visually impaired brother, Heewoon didn’t say anything.
Heewoon and his mother cleaned up after lunch together. They ate fruit and watched a rerun of a TV drama. Unlike the past when his mother wouldn’t even feel interested towards dramas, his mother was excitedly explaining the plot.
Heewoon found everything amazing all of a sudden. He had expected his mother to become more depressed since he decided to stay at Kangwoo’s house.
However, his mother’s depression seemed to have eased. Whether it was due to her effective treatment, her active job, his brother being around, or maybe because Heewoon wasn’t there.
Whatever the reason, it was a good thing.
Before it reached 6 pm, Heewoon got up. He didn’t want to run into his brother. His mother packed several side dishes into a large shopping bag.
“If you want more, let me know.”
“Yeah. I’ll go now.”
“Sure. Take care on your way back.”
“Mom, go inside. I’ll call you.”
His mother stood at the entrance until Heewoon left. He closed the entrance door and turned around, about to take out his phone to call a taxi when a call came in from Kangwoo.
“Yeah?”
– I’m nearby, so wait for me.
“Are you coming to pick me up?”
– Yes. I’m already here.
“Okay, I’ll wait. Kangwoo.”
Heewoon hung up. Despite the sun setting, it was still warm, and his T-shirt fluttered.
“Hey.”
A blunt voice called out to him.
“You, gay shit.”
Heewoon narrowed his eyes and turned around. Heehyun was standing next to the entrance. Heewoon didn’t know how long he had been there, but there were several cigarette butts under his feet. His brother wouldn’t be cleaning those up. Heewoon glared at the cigarette butts, then looked up.
“Fuck. I didn’t even know my brother was gay.”
Heehyun spat on the ground. Heewoon didn’t reply, but kept his gaze on the alley. He could see Kangwoo’s car pulling in. He took a step forward, but his arm was grabbed roughly.
“Ah, why!”
“You punk, you’re really something. Are you happy that you’re living and eating well alone while Mom is stuck in that shitty one-room all?”
“Do you even have the right to say that? You left Mom when things were at its worst.”
“What do you mean I left…”
“Hyung, you knew from the beginning that those people were thinking of taking out our organs. Are you even human?”
“This kid, really!”
Heehyun raised his hand, but Heewoon didn’t flinch. Heehyun laughed as if finding it ridiculous. He took out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, and lit it.
“If you got a rich guy for yourself, you should have brought something home. Do you think only you can eat and live well alone?”
The reason he waited for Heewoon outside on this hot day became evident with the smoke of the cigarette. It was bitter and had a strong smell. Heewoon wrinkled his face and glared at Heehyun.
“If I give you money, you’ll just run away with it.”
“Fuck, just what do you see me as? If I was going to run away, I would have left a long time ago. Why would I be here in this shitty place with Mom?”
“It’s because you didn’t have money to run away. You haven’t changed a bit, even after almost dying and coming back to life.”
“…How dare you talk down to your older brother?”
Heehyun, who was at a loss for words for a moment, shouted loudly. Heewoon glanced at Heehyun and turned away.
“What older brother? You’re just trash.”
“This gay bastard!”
It happened in an instant. His arm was roughly grabbed, his body was turned around, and a dull pain hit his cheek. Heewoon touched his bruised cheek with his hand and looked back at Heehyun. His lips were torn, blood dripping.
“Who do you think saved you, hyung?”
Heewoon said through gritted teeth
“Damn it. You had been alive and well for three years because of me, you stupid bastard.”
Just then, there was a click and the sound of a car door closing. Heewoon and Heehyun both turned their attention.
“Hello.”
Kangwoo was approaching. Heewoon bit his lip. Kangwoo must have seen everything, from the confrontation with his brother to him getting slapped.
“What’s this?”
Heehyun squinted his eyes, and when he made eye contact with Kangwoo, he coughed awkwardly. Kangwoo stared at Heehyun for a moment and then handed him a business card.
“I’ll make a place for you soon.”
“…If you would.”
Heehyun muttered while looking at the business card. His brother seemed to have recognized him as that junior of Heewoon right away.
With tightly sealed lips, Heewoon pulled Kangwoo’s hand. Heehyun glanced at it briefly, making a disgusted expression. Heewoon took a deep breath.
Kangwoo greeted Heehyun slightly and then turned away. Heewoon kept holding onto his hand. Heehyun, clicking his tongue, opened the entrance door. It creaked, opened with a sound, and then closed with a loud noise.
To suppress his anger, Heewoon lowered his gaze. He had expected his brother to act like this. However, he just found out that his brother was openly more of a trash than he expected.
“Sunbae’s brother is nothing like Sunbae.”
Kangwoo said, holding Heewoon’s chin. A cold gaze touched Heewoon’s cheek. His fair cheek had a slight red mark.
“People say we look alike.”
“No. Not at all.”
Kangwoo responded in a low voice. Kangwoo’s cold hand gently wiped away the blood under his lips. Kangwoo looked into Heewoon’s eyes and asked.
“What should I do with that damned bastard?”
“….”
Heewoon swallowed dry saliva. Kangwoo seemed like he could kill Heehyun any moment now. Heewoon held Kangwoo’s hand and said.
“No, if Mom finds out, it’ll be a big problem.”
Heewoon hesitated before expressing that out. Kangwoo stared at Heewoon intently. The way he looked down seemed lost in thought. After a while, Kangwoo nodded.
“Alright. What’s that in your hand?”
“Oh, this. My mom packed some side dishes. Potato salad, dried anchovies, and soy-braised beef….”
“Sounds delicious.”
Kangwoo closed his eyes and smiled.
Heewoon, holding the shopping bag, went to the car. Kangwoo opened the driver’s side door, glancing at the peeling entrance door of the house. His eyes emitted a cold gaze.
***
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