"I called my aunt and told her the situation. She's already set an appointment with a doctor, so you don't have to wait for long," Jin Goo explained as he pulled out of the neighbourhood.
Yeo Ri's brows furrowed worriedly, "Jin Goo-oppa, you didn't have to go all the way—"
"Save it, Yeo Ri-ah. I wanted to help. It's not like I'm an outsider, right?" He glanced at the girl through the rearview mirror, smiling. "Since your brother is so undependable, I'm glad you decided to rely on me," he added humorously.
"Who's undependable, you motherf*cker." Hyuk glared at him in irritation.
"Oi, I'm saving your *ss, *sshole. Be grateful," Jin Goo shot back.
"Did you tell In Guk about this?"
"Of course I did. Who the hell do you think is subbing for you today at work?"
"Sh*t," Hyuk cursed, rubbing his face roughly. "I forgot about work... I'll treat him to something good later."
"What about me?"
"What about you, you motherf*cker?"
The two bantered back and forth. Meanwhile, in the back seat, Yeo Ri and Gun were looking outside the window, simply watching the scenery as they listened in on the two's banter.
Yeo Ri smiled at their interaction. She was happy that Hyuk had a good friend like Jin Goo and In Guk whom they had mentioned earlier.
Gun glanced at Yeo Ri. He nudged the girl, "Yeo Ri, put your head on my shoulder and get some rest." He noticed that the rims of her eyes were red. She hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.
Yeo Ri shook her head. She whispered back to him, "No need, Oppa. You're hurt."
Gun smiled at the girl, "don't worry. It wasn't that bad. Besides, how heavy can that little head of yours be?"
Yeo Ri pouted at his teasing, "Then don't complain when you feel pain!" she harrumphed, making a show of slamming her head on his shoulder. Despite that, she abruptly stopped a few centimetres away and gently laid her head down.
Seeing her actions, Gun couldn't help but smile. He patted the girl's head, as if appeasing the girl.
The interaction did not go unnoticed by the front passenger and the driver. Soon, their conversation died down and all that accompanied them was the sound of the radio.
The silence did not last for very long. Soon enough, the hospital came into view.
"We're here," Jin Goo announced their arrival just as they pulled into the parking.
Very quickly, they made their way to the appointed doctor's office for the treatment. Since Jin Goo had asked his aunt, who was the director of the hospital, for a favour, the two received special treatment and got patched up instantly.
Luckily, neither of them had any terrible injuries; only some abrasions and cuts. Though, the doctor warned them that the injuries would have been more serious if they hadn't protected themselves well.
The doctor prescribed them some painkillers and a supply of bandages and ointment, and with that, they were done.
The group left the hospital at around noon, so it was the perfect time to get lunch.
"Are you guys hungry? The Chinese restaurant that we usually go to is just around the corner," Jin Goo smoothly invited them to lunch.
Yeo Ri's eyes lit up. It had been so long since she last ate at a restaurant. She turned to look at Gun and Hyuk, "Oppa, can we?"
"Sure," Hyuk didn't see a problem with it. The food at the restaurant was good and affordable. He often ate there after work and it was one of his favourite hangout spots back in his high school days.
"It's fine with me." Since Yeo Ri wanted to go, Gun had no objections either.
Just like that, the four went over to the restaurant.
The place was ran by an old lady and her husband, and it had been in operation for over ten years already.
"Granny, can we get four bowls of black bean noodles over here!" Hyuk and Jin Goo slipped into one of the empty seats with familiarity and immediately shouted out their order. "And two portions of sweet and sour pork, too!"
"Comin' right up!" The old woman was still as energetic as a woman thirty years younger. She registered the order and in record time the lunch was served.
"Lee Hyuk, you little hooligan, what have you been up to to get so hurt like that?" The woman initiated a conversation as she laid out the dishes. She clicked her tongue in disapproval as she took in his battle wounds. She turned to look at Gun and smiled wryly, "What, did you to get into a fight or something? Kids these days sure are violent."
"Something like that," Hyuk replied noncommittally to the woman, his attention on mixing his noodles. The lady did not know their home life, so he did not get angry over her assumption.
Gun bobbed his head in a show of polite manners towards the woman, murmuring a small greeting. He had just realised that he hadn't eaten anything since the day before, and his hunger peaked as he took in the delectable smell of the food.
"Oh, and look who we have here! Yeo Ri, I haven't seen you in a while. How have you been?" The woman smiled amiably at Yeo Ri. The more she looked at the young girl, the prettier she became, the old woman thought. Her smile deepened as she appreciated Yeo Ri's looks.
"I'm doing fine, granny." Yeo Ri smiled up to the old lady.
"Hyuk, you should bring her around more often. Having Yeo Ri around helps increase my business," the woman says half-jokingly. Whenever Yeo Ri came to dine, there were always people who were originally just passing by but ended up entering the restaurant just to get a glimpse of the pretty girl.
Hyuk glowered at the grandma who seem to have a severe case of lookism, but did not say anything as he downed his bowl of noodles.
Yeo Ri responded with a light blush. Though, she wasn't sure if that was a compliment, or a comment hinting about exploiting her for profit. She smiled at the granny, replying perfunctorily, "I'll come by more often in the future then, granny."
"That's good, that's good!" the old woman smiled widely until her eyes turned into crescents. "I'll add an order of sweet and sour pork for you for free the next time you come," she added.
"Thank you very much, granny!" Hearing that, Yeo Ri was really tempted to come again. Sweet and sour pork was one of her favourite foods, but she rarely got to eat it. She smiled genuinely for the first time in a while.
"Granny, we'd like to order!" Further from them, a customer raised their hand to call for the old woman.
The store bustled with customers, and after a light chat, the old woman was whisked away by her duties. She bade goodbye to the group and after making Yeo Ri promise to come back soon, she left.
After the woman left, Gun touched Yeo Ri's arm, "Just tell me when you want to eat here, okay? I'll bring you anytime." he cracked a smile. He was in a good mood since Yeo Ri was too.
"Thank you, Oppa!"
"Do you even have time to go out? Just stick to your books, sh*thead," Hyuk unhappily commented.
Hearing the remark, Yeo Ri wilted. "Oh, that's right..." Gun was already so busy, so how could she steal his precious time away?
Gun glared at Hyuk, then softened his expression as he patted Yeo Ri's head, "it's fine. I need to eat too, remember? We can go together next weekend."
"Mm!"
"If your brother doesn't have time, you can also call me. I'll take you here," Jin Goo nonchalantly offered. He could feel Hyuk's death glare on him, but he couldn't care less.
"Really?! Jin Goo-oppa, thank you!" Another smile blossomed on Yeo Ri's face, lighting up her features. It was so stunning that a customer who had coincidentally looked her way at that exact time almost dropped his chopsticks.
"Why go through all the trouble? Just order some takeouts! This place does deliveries too," Hyuk sullenly said. He did not like the idea of Yeo Ri becoming something like a display to attract all those flies. At the same moment, he glared at the dazed customer who had been staring at Yeo Ri, baring his teeth as if saying, 'I'm gonna kill you.' "Just stay at home!" he hotheadedly said.
"Fine," Yeo Ri pouted at his words. Underneath the table, her fists curled tightly. She had begun enjoying the little outing, but Hyuk's words felt as if a bucket of ice water was dropped on her. She sobered up. The thought of going back to that house terrified her. But, sooner or later, she would still need to confront the monster that lived in that place. She felt slightly mad and hurt at his insensitive words, but since didn't want him to know, she held it in.
"Don't listen to that brute. I can spare some time to take you out to eat, at least." Seeing Yeo Ri's hurt look, Gun immediately comforted her.
"It's alright. I know how busy you are. Later, when you graduate, will you buy me food?"
"Yeah, of course! I'll take you out to eat every day. And when I start working, I'll bring you to eat steak everyday."
Though Yeo Ri's heart was twisting painfully, she still gave him a sparkling smile, "Wow, everyday?! I'll be looking forward to it, Oppa."
She didn't even know whether she would still be around in that future.
Hyuk seemed to have had enough with his younger siblings' sweetness. He slammed his empty bowl on the table, "Hurry up and finish eating! I'm dog tired and I want to get some f*ckin' rest already!"
Yeo Ri jumped at his voice and immediately furrowed her eyebrows apologetically, "Sorry, Oppa. I'll finish it quickly." She hastily picked up her chopsticks and ate as fast as she could.
"Slowly, slowly." Gun who had already finished his food a while ago patted her back, worrying that she would choke.
Meanwhile, Jin Goo observed their interaction silently. 'These two have such a strong sister-complex,' he noted wryly.