Epilogue
Kangwoo looked at the wide-eyed Heewoon. He had spent most of his time in bed, his hair looked a bit messy. Observing the disheveled hair standing on the round back of Heewoon’s head made Kangwoo want to mess it up even more.
“I ordered them because you haven’t bought anything, Sunbae”
“But I bought some… ”
Heewoon threw a bewildered look from beneath the bed. Various-sized packages crowded the spacious bedroom. It seemed that the items that he had ordered online did not quite match Seo Kangwoo’s tastes.
“I can only wear comfortable clothes because of the cast anyway.”
“Ah.”
Kangwoo nodded with raised eyebrows. Then he said,
“I didn’t know you were going to wear a cast for the rest of your life.”
“…No! I don’t like to wear a cast.”
Heewoon, realizing Kangwoo had misunderstood too late, gasped and waved his hands.
“T-Thanks. I’ll wear them well since my leg will heal soon.”
Kangwoo tilted his head slightly, looking like he might do something scary. It made Heewoon anxious. However, Kangwoo was actually thinking something else—thoughts about Heewoon’s slightly puffed fair face, how good it looked, and how well it complemented the dried Sinensis on the bedside table.
Kangwoo’s gaze, which had been focused on the flowers, turned back to Heewoon’s face.
“I should have put him here earlier on.”
“Huh?”
“It’s nothing.”
Kangwoo, with lowered head, sat on the edge of the bed and hugged Heewoon. He gently pressed his lips against Heewoon’s warm cheek, rested his cheek on his neck, and he looked at the casted leg supported by a pillow.
“Are you taking your medicine timely?”
“Yeah.”
Kangwoo praised Heewoon as he caressed the cheek.
“It doesn’t hurt, right?”
It was a soft voice. Saying that after breaking Heewoon’s leg himself was truly Seo Kangwoo-like.
“It doesn’t hurt much anymore.”
Three more weeks until the cast was removed. In other words, three weeks had passed. During that time, Heewoon had not seen his mother even once.
The emotion he felt about not meeting his mother was not sadness or longing. It was just a little strange that his mother, whom he used to see every day, was not around.
These days, Heewoon actually felt…
Content. And stable. Although there were times when Kangwoo’s jokes got scary, he didn’t get scared or anxious unreasonably.
“What kind of food does your mother like?”
“Hmmm… I don’t know.”
His mother was coming here in a few days. During the past three weeks, he had been in a very stable state, but after deciding to have dinner with his mother, he started to get worried a lot. What should he say when his mother comes? What if his mother is sad when she sees the injured leg? What if she asks about Kangwoo?
As Heewoon got lost in his thoughts, Kangwoo’s finger touched his cheek.
“What about you, Sunbae?”
“I want fried chicken.”
Fried chicken from delivery, Heewoon added. Since he had been eating only healthy and good food, he had been craving something salty and greasy for a few days.
“But I can’t welcome your mother with fried chicken from delivery.”
For a moment, a wrinkle formed on Kangwoo’s forehead, but soon, a smile appeared on his face. He checked the time on the watch and said,
“Do you want to have a late-night snack?”
At Kangwoo’s unexpected words, Heewoon turned to look at him, and Kangwoo kissed his cheek.
Forty minutes later, the fried chicken arrived.
Since all the employees had left work, Kangwoo went outside to receive the chicken. This house was large, so it would take a few minutes for him to come back.
Heewoon stared blankly at the table right next to the bed. There was a laptop, a few books, and a water bottle. It looked messy. If they were eating here, he thought he should clear it all away. Heewoon placed a leg beneath the floor.
He felt a twinge of pain and furrowed his nose. He then piled everything on the table into his arms and, with wobbly steps, tried to move.
“What are you doing?”
When he turned his head, Kangwoo was standing in front of the door holding a white plastic bag. Heewoon’s eyes widened, feelingas if he was caught doing something wrong.
“I’m trying to clear this…”
Kangwoo, who had been silently observing, placed the fried chicken on the table. He then wrapped his arm around Heewoon’s waist, who was standing on one foot, lifting him effortlessly onto the bed. As Heewoon sat on the bed, he absentmindedly touched the blanket, feeling a bit awkward for no reason.
At that moment, something cold touched his cheek. Kangwoo had gently brushed Heewoon’s cheek with the back of his hand. Heewoon looked up, and Kangwoo’s hand lightly grazed his cheek and went away. The distant hand then grabbed the items on the bed.
While watching Kangwoo head to the sofa to put down the items, Heewoon glanced at the fried chicken. A delicious aroma wafted through the air. It had been a long time since he last ate this, and he reached out his hand.
Soon, his nose wrinkled. The plastic bag was tightly knotted, making it difficult to open. Heewoon struggled to untie the knot with his fingernails, but eventually, he tore the bag open with a snap.
Heewoon pulled out the box, opened it, and tore the pickled radish and sauce. It was then that he remembered Kangwoo.
“…”
Heewoon raised his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. Kangwoo, who was standing a few steps away, was silently watching him.
“…Aren’t you eating?”
Kangwoo’s lowered eyes blinked. His gaze slowly rose, and a soft voice emerged.
“You should eat.”
Heewoon thought it was a bit unexpected for Kangwoo to be eating fried chicken. He thought Kangwoo wouldn’t eat something he deemed as cheap. Kangwoo continued to hold the chopsticks until Heewoon finished eating. It was strange to order delivery food and eat it with Seo Kangwoo in this spacious house.
It felt strange, however, it wasn’t unpleasant.
“What to do about those items?”
Suddenly, Heewoon’s gaze went to the numerous parcels on the floor. Kangwoo followed Heewoon’s gesture and looked at the piles of packages.
“I’ll tell the house helpers to clean them up tomorrow.”
It might take a long time to tidy them all up, and that would make him seem annoying. But Heewoon nodded because there was nothing else he could do.
The next day, people were busy moving from early morning.
Since there wasn’t much space left in Kangwoo’s own dressing room, Heewoon ended up using the entire adjacent room as his dressing room. People came in and out all day to make it functional as a dressing room.
It wasn’t until the evening that everything was finally organized.
Heewoon, using crutches, walked down the corridor. He stopped in front of the room next to the bedroom, opened the door with one hand, and supported himself with the crutches.
Originally empty, the room was now filled to the brim.
Hangers and shelves were on both sides of the wall, and in the center, there was a glass display shelf. It was the same as Kangwoo’s dressing room. Inside, several watches were neatly arranged.
When Heewoon looked closely, all of them were the same as Kangwoo’s watches. Perhaps these are couple watches.
Thinking about it, Heewoon furrowed his brow and turned to look away. On the shelves, there were layers of shoes. There were two pairs of sports shoes, sneakers, slippers, sandals, and even summer shoes that he wouldn’t wear immediately. Heewoon picked up a pair of shoes that looked similar to the ones he used to wear, bought with Kangwoo’s card.
He casually threw them on the floor and raised his uncasted foot.
“Ouch…”
Standing on the casted foot, a painful sound escaped. Heewoon looked around and then sat on the small, round chair, holding his crutches. He arranged them properly and put on the shoes, feeling they fit perfectly.
Heewoon fumbled around and discovered a mirror at the innermost part of the room. With one crutch, he hopped towards it. Although he almost tilted and fell due to the uneven balance, he stood straight again and looked into the mirror. They seemed alright.
The walk-in closet, filled with clothes for all seasons, contained both the comfortable style Heewoon usually wore and a more neat and tidy style. As he scanned through the hung clothes, Heewoon noticed the thin jacket closest to him. It was a different style than what he usually wore, but it looked great.
While inspecting the jacket, Heewoon realized he was wearing a luxurious item. He recognized it from the pattern inside the clothes. It must be very expensive. Could he really afford to wear such clothes?
Knowing it was expensive, he felt awkward looking in the mirror, like he was wearing something that didn’t fit him. Heewoon carefully took off the jacket, dusted it off gently, and hung it back on the hanger. Focusing on the clothes, he frowned as pain shot through his casted foot as he stepped on it.
“Umm…”
Heewoon tried on a few other clothes, and as he looked in the mirror several times, his thoughts changed. The awkwardness he felt with the previous outfit might have been because it wasn’t his usual style.
Except for that one, Kangwoo seemed to have chosen the clothes well. The clothes matched his skin tone and fit his body perfectly.
After organizing the clothes he had tried on, Heewoon lowered his head and looked down at his feet. The doctor had said that walking a little each day would speed up his recovery. Although he had been using crutches due to pain, now he decided to try walking.
Heewoon limped through the clothes he hadn’t even tried on. He reached the chair where he had left the crutches, took off his shoes, and placed them on the earlier shelf. Then, he picked up the crutches.
Holding the crutches, he took a few steps. When the crutches just touched the floor outside the door, Heewoon turned around. He could see the first dressing room he ever had.
He hoped his leg would heal quickly.
***
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