Chapter 5
The alarm rang at 6 o’clock.
Only then did I slowly raise my stiff body.
I heard the sound of a thin blanket sliding down my body, and I turned my head without holding my cell phone to look at the bed where Jin Eun-sol was lying.
The bed didn’t move even when the alarm went off loudly.
It felt like he wasn’t the same person who had been right behind me an hour ago and then left.
I blankly stared at Jin Sol, then picked up my phone and turned off the alarm.
And then I started going through my phone too.
What did he see?
I went into the call list.
My call list without a lot of friends only included Kim Eun-ah, and a driver.
I didn’t text Jin Eun-sol much.
The texts I received were mostly spam and a few from Kim Eun-ah.
A few friends I occasionally contact about studying.
I looked at my phone with a serious face and dropped my hands to my lap.
What was he doing?
I stopped looking at my phone, got up completely from the bed, and put the cot back in its original place.
I put my cell phone on the table where my bag was.
I glanced at Jin Eun-sol again.
A pale-faced man was making a strange noise with his eyes closed.
“Eunsol, it’s morning.”
I said as I raised the blinds that was down, but Jin Sol still didn’t move an inch.
The room became a little brighter as the blinds went up.
“Eunsol-ah.”
I raised the blinds and shook the guy.
At the slight shaking, Jin Sol narrowed his eyes and frowned.
His eyes, long and slanted like his father’s, blinked several times as he looked at me.
His deep double eyelids blinked a few times.
“What?”
What the heck?
I checked Jin Eun-sol’s palm sticking out of the blanket.
Even before sleeping, I checked his gauze, but it was dyed dark red now, as if it was bleeding.
I have to change it before I eat breakfast later.
“It’s morning.”
At my words, Jin Sol closed his eyes again as if he had fainted.
“Okay.”
Jin Eun-sol muttered in a deep, sleepy voice as if he was annoyed.
Then, as if he was irritated by his hand being held by me, he quickly pulled away and turned his back to me.
You shameless little bastard.
I turned around and glared at his back.
Anyways, I washed up and went out into the hallway with the towel and uniform that I had hung on the chair.
The bathroom attached to the single room was not available for my use.
That guy didn’t even give me the permission to use it in the first place.
That was because the neat-and-tidier Eun Sol could clearly see how much of a fuss I would make if I used the bathroom.
I wanted to avoid a war of nerves with the guy as much as possible.
I went into the public restroom.
It was early in the morning so the bathroom was empty.
I went into the bathroom stall first, changed into my school uniform, and came out.
I put a towel over my shoulders and went to the sink right next to me to wash my face.
I quickly came to my senses as the cold water from the public bathroom with the boiler not running hit me.
I had to splash cold water on my face a few times before I raised my head.
A pitiful, timid face.
The already pitiful face looked even more pitiful with the droopy eyes.
My lips were bloodless and white.
That’s why Jin Eun-sol and other people kept looking down on me.
I was annoyed and splashed the water towards the mirror.
My face was strangely smudged with water droplets splashed on the mirror.
“Fool.”
I muttered a curse and quickly ran out of the bathroom.
I went back to Jin Eun-sol’s hospital room and woke him up once more.
The guy who didn’t seem to have any intention of going to school grimaced a few more times and told me not to bother him.
I pulled up a chair and sat down next to him, while changing the blood-stained gauze.
Jin Eun-sol’s palm had four ugly holes in it.
It looked like a corpse with all four eyes of the four-eyed devil child.
The inside of the empty, crimson hole was eerie.
I immediately wiped his palms with a cotton pad soaked in ethanol.
Jin Eun-sol didn’t move a finger, as if he wasn’t in pain.
After rubbing the wound with cotton several times as the doctor had instructed, I cut the gauze with scissors and attached it to fit Jin Eun-sol’s palm.
After everything was put on, my eyes naturally turned to Jin Eun-sol.
It was my habit to watch Jin Sol’s expression.
Ah oh.
As soon as the first aid was done, my eyes met with Jin Eun-sol’s, who was leaning his face towards me.
“Are you done?”
Jin Eun-sol, who had been looking at me with his face buried in the pillow, took my hand that was resting on his palm at my nodding action.
Then, as if it were a lie, he turned his back on me again.
It’s obvious that he won’t be going to school since he doesn’t seem to be getting up.
“Are you sick?”
I pretended to be worried and asked behind the guy’s back.
There was no answer.
Whenever he was admitted to the hospital, he always followed this pattern.
I didn’t ask Jin Eun-sol any more questions.
“I’ll go then.”
I spoke in a voice that was crawling like a sinner, and I left the hospital room, carrying my bag.
I closed the hospital room door silently and walked towards the elevator.
As I got further away from Jin Eun-sol’s hospital room, I quickly ran to the elevator.
Then I felt like I was getting away from him to avoid further trouble.
I felt a little guilty.
* * *
As soon as I finished school and went out of the main gate, a familiar car was parked there.
It was Jin Eun-sol’s car.
Usually, I take the bus to home after school, but seeing a car waiting for me like this meant that Jin Eun-sol was still at the hospital.
I opened the back seat door as usual and got inside.
“Hello.”
I briefly greeted the new driver.
The driver just nodded and started the car.
In the passing scenery, I saw children leaving the school alley in groups of three or five.
Since they were on their way downtown, it was clear that they were either going out to play or going to study together.
After passing a few groups of girls, I entered the road that led to the hospital.
The children of my age were no longer visible.
It just continued on for a long time.
I turned my gaze straight towards the window.
I was embarrassed by the fact that I had been looking out the window so intently, so I scratched my temple with my fingernail for no reason.
I took my cell phone out of my pocket and opened it.
Since I had nothing to do on the way to the hospital, I turned on a game that was installed for free on my phone.
It was a game about getting rid of all the meaningless bombs.
The bombs that followed exploded one after another with a loud crackling sound.
I soon got tired of it and quit.
Still, thanks to playing the game, I waited for a few signals and arrived at the hospital.
The gentleman silently handed me the shopping bag he had brought from Eun sol’s house.
It was clear that it contained Jin Eun-sol’s clothes that he had to wear.
It didn’t matter to me since I had the clothes I was wearing yesterday anyway, but Jin Eun-sol would definitely throw a tantrum if I told him to wear the clothes that he wore yesterday.
“Thank you.”
The silent old man nodded again.
I closed the car door and went into the hospital.
I found an elevator that only staff members can use and pressed the button for the top floor of the hospital where Jin Eun-sol was.
“……I’m tired.”
I rubbed my eyes with the hand that wasn’t holding the shopping bag.
Ding, the elevator door opened.
I hurried out and stood in front of the hospital room where Jin Eun-sol was and knocked on the door.
“Eunsol, it’s me.”
I don’t really need to hear his reply.
I opened the door and entered the room.
I immediately turned my head towards the bed where Jin Eun-sol was sitting or lying.
But Jin Sol wasn’t there.
Did he went out somewhere… … .
“Close the door.”
Ah.
I turned my head straight towards the sound.
Jin Eun-sol was sitting at the table where I was doing my homework.
He’s never sat there before.
When I saw Jin Eun-sol in a place I had never even looked at, my neck grew long like a turtle’s and I looked at him.
What is he doing over there?
“……What are you doing?”
“Studying.”
Studying?
I opened my eyes wide and looked at Jin Eun-sol.
In fact, there were workbooks and writing utensils on the table where the guy was sitting.
“I told you to close the door.”
“Ahh… … I’m sorry.”
Only then did I reach behind me and closed the door.
As the door closed quietly, Jin Eun-sol absentmindedly glanced at the shopping bag that I had brought, then turned his head back to his workbook.
His long eyelashes fluttered as he quietly looked at the table.
Seeing Jin Eun-sol, whom I rarely see studying, I quietly placed the shopping bag I had brought near the bed.
The bag I brought was supposed to be left there, but since Jin Eun-sol was there, I had no choice but to place it on the small sofa facing the bed.
As far as I have lived with him, I’ve never seen him study like that.
It was definitely a sign that the world was going to end.
Jin Eun-sol secretly crumpled his face with an expression as if he had seen something absolutely unbearable.
“Are you done?”
“Oh, what?”
“Staring.”
“Oh, staring…huh?”
I kept making stupid noises and got up from where I was sitting next to my school bag to go over towards him.
Oh, I should wash my hands.
But as soon as I went in towards the washroom, I heard a loud sound.
I ran towards Jin Eun-sol in a hurry, but then stopped and turned back toward the door again.
“Where are you going?”
Immediately the guy’s voice was heard.
“I’m going to go wash my hands.”
Jin Eun-sol frowned.
It was as if he was asking why was I troubling him so much.
Then, leaning back onto his chair, he opened his mouth.
“Just don’t.”
“I have to wash my hands… … .”
“Why?”
“huh……?”
Why?
Jin Eun-sol looked at me quietly.
It wasn’t even an annoyed face.
It was a mysterious and incomprehensible expression.
But the gaze directed straight at me was so persistent that it was burdensome.
Naturally, my gaze shifted away from the guy and dropped to the floor.
I felt like he was squeezing my windpipe even though I wasn’t doing anything.
“You like it to be clean.”
The pupils rolled back up again.
Jin Eun-sol took off the gauze stained with blood.
Perhaps because he had been working on his workbook with his wounded hand, there was a lot more blood soaked into it than in the morning.
The fork cut holes were still not healed.
Rather, it became even darker and felt like his flesh was rotting away.
It was so absurd that I thought, “Is this really the place where they heal the patient’s wounds?”
But why was it not healing?
