Heewoon’s mother was discharged from the hospital a week later. Compared to most people, it was a long hospital stay. However, his mother seemed a bit more lively than before. Occasionally, she worried about the hospital bills, but overall, she seemed to enjoy her days in the hospital.
Heewoon couldn’t quite understand her. He disliked the hospital. More precisely, he disliked the sight of his mother lying in the hospital bed and wearing a patient’s gown. When he saw his mother looking used to lying in the white bed and hospital gown, it sent a shiver down his spine.
“Did you finish paying the bills? It must have been a lot.”
“Not at all. Look, it wasn’t as much as you thought.”
His mother continued to look worried, so Heewoon deliberately changed the subject of their conversation.
“Now that we’re going home, why does it seem like you’re unhappy, mom?”
He playfully raised an eyebrow. His mother smiled and shook her head.
“I’m happy. Why wouldn’t I be happy? Hospitals are where sick people are.”
Heewoon nodded.
“And I’m not sick. I should go home.”
His mother mumbled to herself.
Heewoon couldn’t understand the faint melancholy that briefly crossed her face.
***
Lately, Heewoon had a well-rested sleep. His mother’s test results showed no issues, which eased his worries, and she also had gained some weight, perhaps from eating her meals properly. Although he often spent his time with Seo Kangwoo, his life was much more relaxed than before. He didn’t feel rushed when working on assignments, and he visited cafes often.
Sitting in a café, opening his laptop, and calmly working on assignments, sometimes Heewoon felt like all the misfortunes he had experienced were like dreams. He didn’t feel all that different from the other university students sitting nearby.
“Excuse me…”
Someone tapped his shoulder, startling Heewoon. He then removed his earphones.
Heewoon was currently at a café near the school that he frequented lately. He had come to work on his assignment, but he hadn’t written a single line and was just idling. He had intended to gather research materials, but he had ended up watching a completely unrelated video for over an hour now.
“Please have this.”
A familiar part-time worker placed a plate on Heewoon’s table. It was honey bread with an abundance of whipped cream on top. Heewoon looked at it blankly and then raised his head, puzzled.
“Why?”
“Oh… this, uh, was made wrong, so… I’m giving it to you. Because you come here often!”
The girl blushed as she stammered, and Heewoon’s eyes widened.
“Oh, thank you!”
His habit of liking free things hadn’t gone anywhere. A small smile appeared on Heewoon’s face. The girl’s lips parted slightly. She had thought he was originally pretty and fair-skinned, but now…
“Tomorrow too! I’ll give you another one tomorrow.”
Seeing the part-time worker speaking urgently, Heewoon made a confused expression. But then she corrected herself, her face showing embarrassment.
“I mean… if I accidentally make it wrong.”
“Yes, but if you make another mistake tomorrow, please give it to others.”
“Oh…”
“There’s CCTV over there, what if the café owner sees it?”
Heewoon briefly glanced at the CCTV in the corner of the café, his face showing cautiousness. The part-timer clamped her mouth shut to prevent a groan from coming out, thinking that she needed to go back quickly and tell the others how adorable this person was.
“It’s alright. That’s a fake CCTV.”
“Sorry?”
“Enjoy the bread!”
The part-time worker quickly disappeared behind the counter. Heewoon watched her stomp her feet as she hugged her co-worker, and then Heewoon’s gaze fell on the CCTV on the ceiling. So it’s a fake. To think that people still put up fakes these days.
Heewoon thought that it was interesting, then he pushed his laptop back a little and pulled the plate closer. After finishing the bread, I should really start on my assignment. Heewoon thought as he put on his earphones.
Long story short, Heewoon had barely written a single paragraph by the time Kangwoo arrived. Nevertheless, since there was still a week left before the deadline, Heewoon closed his laptop without regret.
“Have you finished everything?”
“I’ll do more later.”
Sitting across from him, Kangwoo nodded. His gaze fell on the empty coffee cup and the two crumpled plates.
“Why did you eat so much before we’re going to a meal?”
“Ah. One of them was given to me by the part-timer because she made it wrong.”
Kangwoo raised an eyebrow as Heewoon added an explanation. He straightforwardly conveyed that it was made wrong and given to him because he was a regular customer.
“So, you just happily accepted it?”
“Huh? Yeah…”
Kangwoo’s tone suddenly turned sharp, making Heewoon blink his eyes awkwardly.
Kangwoo abruptly turned his head towards the counter. Coincidentally, his gaze met the girl who had been looking in this direction. Kangwoo’s lips twitched slightly. After briefly observing her for a moment longer, Kangwoo turned his head.
He then spoke calmly.
“Starting tomorrow, I hope you won’t come here anymore.”
Kangwoo was about to continue, but Heewoon beat him to it.
“Okay, I won’t come here.”
Heewoon answered without asking for a reason, his face remained expressionless. The way he looked at Kangwoo, blinking gently, made him seem docile.
“This was a café that you often visit. Are you sure it’s okay?”
Kangwoo asked in a quiet voice.
“It’s okay.”
As Heewoon nodded, Kangwoo’s lips curled upwards. He reached out and ruffled Heewoon’s hair.
Heewoon packed his laptop into his bag and put on his outerwear. First, he wore a thick hoodie and then layered it with a loose-fitting jacket.
The padded coat he had taken out last night had flattened, so it didn’t provide much warmth. That’s why he ended up wearing two autumn outfits. The padded jacket was still wearable until last year. That was a shame.
Heewoon glanced briefly at Kangwoo. He, on the other hand, wore a thin turtleneck and a beige knit sweater layered over it. He looked comfortable and neat in his attire. The jacket that Kangwoo held in his hand wasn’t particularly thick either. Unlike Heewoon, who piled on layers because he disliked the cold, Kangwoo was quite different.
People in their major had said that Seo Kangwoo liked luxury brands. That’s why Heewoon had been so delighted when he found out about Kangwoo’s grand mansion. Unlike people who were speculating if Seo Kangwoo’s branded wallet and watch were just for show or a sign of his genuine wealth, Heewoon was the only one who knew the truth.
Knowing something that others didn’t was such a great feeling.
Now, Heewoon also knew another truth. When Seo Kangwoo came to school, he tried to make himself less conspicuous.
Instead of a chauffeured foreign car, he drove in a domestic car. The watch that he wore was different as well. He had seen that the watches in Kangwoo’s dressing room were divided into two categories, probably for school use and the rest. So, the watches that the people in their major had talked about as luxury items were likely the cheapest ones Kangwoo owned.
Heewoon tied his scarf as he glanced at Kangwoo’s wrist with the brown leather watch. He watched as Heewoon tied the scarf loosely so it wouldn’t slip off in front of him, and he gave a small laugh.
“Are you cold?”
“It seems like it will get cold.”
Heewoon replied softly. He had gained a bit of confidence after seeing a few people wearing scarves on the bus in the morning. In reality, though, except for the elderly, no one else was wearing scarves since the weather had suddenly warmed up again yesterday.
“Let’s go.”
Heewoon quickly left the space between the tables with long strides. However, because of the bundled-up clothes he was wearing, he accidentally knocked over a glass.
“Ah…”
Fortunately, only a few drops fell since there was only a sip left in the glass. Heewoon wiped the table with a napkin and also cleaned the floor. Then, he placed the empty cup and plates on the self-cleaning tray.
Kangwoo watched Heewoon’s back and then glanced at the part-time worker. She was still looking at Heewoon. Hmmm… Kangwoo cleared his throat and rubbed his chin.
“It’s all because of Sunbae.”
Kangwoo, who was still staring blatantly at the part-time worker, suddenly said to Heewoon as she approached.
“What, what is?”
“You make me want to do unnecessary things. Even though it’s not worth it.”
“Y-Yeah…”
Seeing Heewoon innocently nodding his head without knowing what Kangwoo meant, Kangwoo chuckled slightly.
After blinking his eyes in response to the unintelligible words, Heewoon noticed that he had coffee on his shoes. It hadn’t been long since he washed these shoes. It annoyed him a little. His white sneakers, even after cleaning, still showed signs of wear and got dirty again. He should have worn darker-colored shoes.
Following Heewoon’s gaze, Kangwoo also looked at Heewoon’s shoes, tilting his head slightly.
“Sunbae.”
“Yeah?”
“Since I told you to buy yummies, did you really only buy yummies?”
With an indifferent look on his face, Heewoon answered.
“No, I bought other stuff too.”
“Oh, really? I didn’t know that.”
“….”
Heewoon watched Kangwoo walking ahead, and then looked down at his own sneakers.
When did I buy these again…
***
The next day, Heewoon went to the department store, of course with permission.
He went to the department store to buy sneakers. He liked a pair that cost nearly 100,000 won, so he hesitated a bit, but eventually decided to go for it.
There were two colors, white and black, so Heewoon tried on one of each and looked in the mirror. White seemed to suit this design better. Plus, these were not made of cloth, so if they got stained, he could just wipe them with a wet tissue… White was also prettier. His heart was fully leaning towards the white sneakers, and reasons to justify buying them kept popping into his head.
In the end, he bought the white sneakers. It was the biggest purchase he had ever made except for his mother’s hospital bill.
As Heewoon wandered around the department store, he kept checking his phone. The payment notification should have been sent. Well, to Seo Kangwoo, this amount of money probably wasn’t that significant. He hadn’t said anything when Heewoon paid the hospital bills. Heewoon felt a little relieved after thinking about it.
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