TPLTW Chapter 7

Chapter 7

“Soo-cheol, something came up at his home.”

It was the first thing the woman who had been standing awkwardly at the doorway managed to say.

Taegeon’s face, tilted sadly towards her, as he was completely soaked in fatigue. After serving guests all day with his body that was not even in shape, he was completely exhausted. It was not easy to just sit still and open his mouth.

The woman, who had been hesitating in place for a while, awkwardly took a step back. Taegeon, who had been staring at her, tilted his lips and asked.

“Can you do it?”

It was a place with absolutely no soundproofing. Thanks to this, he had already heard the conversation between the two people in the yard.

The woman, who had been slowly closing the distance of only a few steps, asked quietly.

“If it’s okay with you… could I just disinfect it for you?”

It wasn’t her duty in the first place. She doesn’t have to do it if she doesn’t want to, so why is she asking him so politely?

Anyway, I didn’t want to put myself in the hands of a woman. But as I stood there, looking at her small hands fiddling with the towel, why did I suddenly feel mischievous? I guess I’m quite bored, having been stuck in the corner of the room all day.

Taegeon straightened his tilted head and slowly leaned the back of his head against the wall.

“It’s not okay.”

“… … .”

“I can’t stand feeling uncomfortable.”

He was looking up, but his gaze seemed strangely downcast as he stared at the mask covering the woman’s face.

It wasn’t much fun to tease her since I couldn’t see her expression at all, but the woman’s panicked feelings were clearly conveyed just by looking at her hands that was tightly clutching the towel.

The woman who had been hesitating let out a small sigh and bent her knees. The hand holding the towel was floating in the air, unable to do anything. She looked troubled, wondering whether she should really do this or not.

Taegeon laughed and stopped his silly joke.

“Okay.”

The woman’s head rose as if asking a question. He looked at the black orb that was reflecting on his face and added.

“It’s okay, just disinfect it.”

The woman, who seemed to have been waiting for this, quickly let go of the towel. Then she pulled out the bottle of medicine that had been pushed behind her and spoke.

“Soo-cheol will come again tomorrow morning.”

So, what I meant was to just endure it for one day. Even if you can’t, you’ll have to wipe it twice to feel better.

“Do you know how to disinfect?”

The woman snorted softly as she took out the necessary items from the medicine cabinet. As if to say, “What’s the big deal in that?”

Looking at her laughing heartily and then flinching, it seemed like he let out a breath without even realizing it.

The woman who had been coughing for no reason was waving her hands busily.

“I’ve done it a lot.”

Judging by the way she quickly takes out only the necessary tools, it seems like she has not done it once or twice.

But then again, her hands were floating in the air, as if she was wondering where to start. Well, it’s not like there had to be just one or two wounds.

Taegeon kindly lifted his left arm a little. He motioned to the wound on his forearm, saying, “Start from here.” Only then did the woman, who had finished buffering, carefully remove the gauze that had been attached to his forearm. Then, a cotton ball soaked in disinfectant came towards the wound, rattling.

Taegeon, who was quietly looking down at the cotton vibrating at the tip of the tongs, said with a laugh.

“I heard you’ve done it a lot.”

“… … .”

“Why are you shaking like this? Does it make you anxious?”

The hand that had been trembling and approaching was withdrawn again. The small shoulders covered by the white knit cardigan rose and fell sharply.

The woman, who had taken a deep breath over such a small matter, moved the cotton tweezers to her left hand and shook her hands thoroughly. It seemed that her palms were already sweaty.

“It’s been so long since I’ve done this….”

The woman who had been mumbling excuses awkwardly clenched her fists again. However, the cotton, which had been moving forward again with a change of heart, began to vibrate even more frantically.

“Ah, why is it like this, this is….”

She was embarrassed, and the voice muttering behind the mask was full of embarrassment.

Taegeon looked at the woman’s small, pale hands that were trembling without any reason and smiled.

Didn’t you yourself asked politely if it’s okay to just disinfect? ​​Didn’t you laugh without realizing it and look around so you don’t get scolded? Even worse, you are trembling because you can’t even disinfect properly.

“Are you scared?”

A big pause. It felt like she looked straight into my eyes.

“Yes?”

“Are you scared of me?”

The woman, her chin pulled in sadly, shook her head slightly.

“No. … No, that kind of thing.”

No, it wasn’t the case at all. There was chaos after that question as she was frozen.

Of course, it would be impossible for her to not to be wary of a strange man who appeared in the middle of the night with a blood clot. Moreover, if she had heard anything about him from the townspeople, this reaction would not have been strange.

Taegeon, who was still snickering while looking at the woman’s shaking hand, took the tweezers out of her hand. The cotton ball that had been drying in the air finally settled roughly on the wound.

“No, I will… .”

“If you’re not planning to stay here all night, then help me out.”

“… … .”

The woman reluctantly dropped her hand and waited quietly, holding the ointment. It was quite funny to see her waiting so cautiously, without making a sound, in such a strange way.

The dressing bands covering both arms and abdomen were quickly replaced with new ones. He was able to handle the areas he could reach with his own skill, but the problem was the long wound that stretched from his side to his lower back. Because of the wounds all over the place, he couldn’t move his body easily, so he groaned involuntarily.