CH 126

He stared at her face—the same face that he had always been cherished like a breathtaking view before…

The silly girl who had always cried underneath the shade of a tree. She’d rais her knees and bury her face in her arms thinking that no one was watching her.

However, when she heard the sound of the cello floating on the wind, she’d raise her head to look at the ground around her and the sky above her, placing her hands by her waist and tilting her head at the sweet melody. The way she looked when she was crying, laughing, napping, or humming along as he played, was so much more vibrant and fuller of life than that gloomy person she’d been when they first met.

When he was unable to go to elementary school, watching Lee-yeon under the hill through his shabby window had been Chae-woo’s only hobby. With a mother who hid herself in those remote mountains and refused to interact with others, the world of that 13-year-old was helplessly small.

And so, this mystery girl became the boy’s first audience, in another world, in four seasons.

When the world was green with new life, when the autumn leaves changed color, when the snow piled up on the branches, and when pink buds popped out again, she was always there.

“Mom, what is something that always stays in the same place?”

“Hmm, a tree?”

“Something much smaller and prettier than a tree.”

“Aha, it must be a flower.”

Everyday, Chae-woo wiped the window and waited for her. As he gazed at her, his small palm on the window, his warm breath fogged up the glass. The old, rattling window frame was like a picture frame holding the tree and the girl prisoner-

“—woo, Chae-woo!”

That picture was all he had.

“Chae-woo, are you okay?” He was brought back to the present by Lee-yeon’s worried voice.

He grabbed her arm and raised his head sharply as she shook him roughly. Sure enough, Lee-yeon was looking at him anxiously. Without realizing what he was doing, Chae-woo moved to smooth back her hair, but paused, clenched his fist and withdrew his hand.

“It’s nothing, I was just thinking about something.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“Just, about when we first met.”

“….”

Startled, Lee-yeon awkwardly averted her eyes.

Liar.

Chae-woo reminded himself of what she is.

He shook off his meaningless feelings, still feeling a bit drowsy. He plated the food and casually approached the table. It was the first time in a long time they’d spent the morning together. Taking a fork from Chae-woo, Lee-yeon took a bite of the sausage.

“…by the way, are your fingers hurting you?” She asked him as he ate.

“No, why?”

“Uhh-”

He was calmly eating, his mouth open, but something was different. Lee-yeon looked at his hands and paused.

“-it’s the first time I’ve seen you use chopsticks with your left hand.”

At this, Chae-woo hesitated slightly before calmly reaching for a piece of the vegetable stir-fry.

“You didn’t know?”

“What?”

“It’s not uncomfortable, so I must have always been ambidextrous.”

“Oh, that….”

Chae-woo clenched his jaw and glanced sideways at her as he chewed. The sharp look put Lee-yeon on edge.

“I always saw you use your right hand.”

“Is that so?”

Lee-yeon nodded her head lamely and put down her fork. She sat there, just twiddling her thumbs and forgetting to eat, when Chae-woo suddenly stole her sausage.

He took a sip of water as he stared at Lee-yeon who had picked up her fork again in the confusion of the moment. As he gulped the water down, she looked at him and their eyes met. In that moment, Chae-woo suddenly felt parched and ended up finishing off the whole cup.

***

“Sigh…”

Lee-yeon swept the back of her hand across her forehead as she pounded the soil with a seedling shovel. She was crouching down on her knees and tending the flower beds she’d left unattended for the past month.

Just a few hours ago, Choo-ja and Dong-mi had stopped by the house after hearing that Chae-woo had woken up. The doctor also came by to check on Chae-woo. The visit had gone smoothly, the two women left, and now it was just the doctor and Chae-woo having a private talk inside. They were occasionally exchanging glances here and there.

“No–! isn’t”

Just in time, the doctor’s gestures grew larger.

Lee-yeon stretched out her head out the window of the molding door to try and get a closer look at the two people’s lips as they spoke to each other.

‘―If…… can……!’

She nervously looked back and forth between the doctor who was speaking with his voice raised and Chae-woo who sat with his arms crossed.

Just then, the man turned his head sharply in her direction like a ghost and jerked the curtains shut.

“Ah……!” Without noticing, Lee-yon let out a sigh. She was holding her small garden shovel so hard her hands hurt. Lee-yeon mechanically pulled weeds as her mouth watered hungrily.

Someone peeked out from behind the gate. Seeing who it was, she smiled and stood up straight.

“Gyu-baek, what are you doing here?”

He ran to her, looking around frantically, buried his face in his hands and stamped his feet anxiously. Lee-yeon’s expression stiffened at his unusual behavior.

“Gyu-baek, what’s wrong?”

“Uhhhh…….”

Gyu-baek pulled Lee-yeon’s sleeve, groaning painfully.

“Director. Director.”

“Gyu-baek, are you feeling sick?”

“Male spiders feed their legs to females when they mate.”

“What?”

Lee-yeon frowned at his creepy comment, but Gyu-baek was expressionless as he spoke. However, there was an urgency in his tone which was usually quite monotonous. Lee-yeon tilted her head curiously.

“Don’t eat his legs.”

“Gyu-baek, what are you talking about?”

“It’s a strategy to appease the female. No matter how delicious it looks, you should never eat it, even if you feel like you have to. From now on, don’t accept anything he gives you. Promise me. Quickly, promise me!”

Gyu-baek stuck out his pinky and was waving it at her, when–

“What are you doing, Lee-yeon?”

Chae-woo opened the front door and strolled out. Gyu-baek’s shoulders tensed at the sight of him and he quickly hid behind Lee-yeon. Concerned by his fearful reaction, she lowered her voice to a whisper so only Gyu-baek could hear.

“Gyu-baek, Chae-woo is fine now. Don’t you want to go play with him?”

“No, no.”

“What? Why not?”

“Director. Director, it’s really bad… Ugh!” Gyu-baek pinched his lips and groaned in nervousness. Lee-yeon had become very serious and was trying to calm him down, but Chae-woo had already reached them.

Gyu-baek put his hands over his ears and started reciting the encyclopedia.

“The jucunda is a rare beetle that appears in the middle of summer. During the day, they stick their heads into flowers and drink the nectar. They also nibble on petals and pistils. They are often found in wild roses and honeysuckles as well as in flowers on fruit trees.”

“Chae-woo” Lee-yeon looked at him strongly, gesturing to him to go wait inside. At this, Chae-woo tucked his chin in a slight nod as he stared at her change in attitude. Her voice was authoritative—her stance protective over the child.

“….”

“….”

Lee-yeon suddenly became stubbornly insistent and stared at this man who had no intention of moving. They stood there locked in a battle of stubborn endurance when Lee-yeon’s cell phone started to ring. She answered the phone, her eyes still on Chae-woo, and he snorted, “Ha….”

―Director……! I’m so sorry to bother you, but are you busy now?

Dong-mi’s voice rang out valiantly as though she had just discovered a newfound hope despite being exhausted.

“I’m at home. Is something wrong?”

―I could really use your help right now. Could you come over here?

“What?”

―Well……, It’s about the national monument gingko tree with the snake living in it!”

Lee-yeon’s eyes, still glued to Chae-woo, grew wide. Meanwhile, he was laughing insidiously.