NOTICE: Please, PLEASE. If you happen to come across an error (whether it's spelling, grammar, etc...) or if there is something you don't understand (whether it's the plot or character POVs) please let me know. I will gladly be making corrections and clarifying any mishaps. Ofc, I am only human, so I can't truly see every little mistake I make, so I would appreciate it if you did point it out, thanks!
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Hyeonjin woke up early the following day. He was busy putting on his clothes when he looked up and noticed the sleeping socks placed in the corner of the room. They were childish rainbow-colored pastel socks. What was Jaewoo thinking when he gave him the socks?
Hyeonjin, who was awkwardly touching the socks, immediately stood up. Today, as a promise to his younger siblings, he was thinking of buying some meat. He had checked the money he had in advance right before going to bed. It was an unexpected expense, but he should be fine.
'I'm sure they'll like it.'
Hyeonjin should have paid more attention to his siblings, but he made that mistake himself. He looked at his sleeping siblings and cautiously opened the door to the cool morning air.
He was just passing through the yard, slightly slouching, when he saw someone leaning on the wall. It was Jaewoo who was sleeping with a blanket tightly wrapped around him.
Hyeonjin unknowingly moved closer to Jaewoo. He started noticing the small details on his face. A fairly sharp jawline, a high nose bridge, and slim cheeks all caught his eye. He had said he wanted to be an aspiring idol once when he was young, but he was good just for his looks. Their first impression had been bad, though. At that time, he would not have come here had it not been a real financial urgency.
Hyeonjin's eyes darkened as he got lost in thoughts of the past. It was then that Jaewoo suddenly spoke up in his sleep.
"Stir-fried pork!"
Jaewoo shouted the meal out of nowhere and hugged the thing he was holding in his arms tighter. Jaewoo, who had been sitting still for a while, opened his eyes as if he was surprised by something. Then, slightly pigmented brown eyes looked up. Those same eyes stared blankly at Hyeonjin for a few seconds before they cleared up as if he had come to his senses. Then he hurriedly tried to get up from where he was sitting.
"Hold on, hold on!"
Jaewoo felt that Hyeonjin was in a hurry; he was afraid that he would just leave. In fact, Hyeonjin tried to leave as soon as he saw Jaewoo running his way. He would have escaped if it were not for Jaewoo, who had tripped and fallen on top of him in his hurry.
Even as he fell, he hugged the one in his arms. Jaewoo realized he never hit his head on the hard ground because Hyeonjin had caught the staggering Jaewoo.
"Thank you."
Jaewoo bowed his head apologetically. He must have been someone Hyeonjin didn't want to touch, yet he still caught him.
Hyeonjin didn't respond. He just awkwardly handed over what Jaewoo was holding. "This is yours, " he said.
It looked like he had been holding Jaewoo the entire time. Jaewoo laughed out loud at his thoughts. 'I meant to give that to you.' Hyeonjin tried to return what he had received, but Jaewoo avoided his hold.
Bang!
Hyeonjin heard the door close with a loud noise after seeing Jaewoo quickly scurry away. He looked down at the heavy object in his arms. It was a warm lunch box.
'Why are you giving this to me?'
His heart felt tight. Hyeonjin hesitated, then gently placed the lunchbox in his arms in front of Jaewoo's door. It was then that the door burst open again.
"Be sure to take it! Or I swear I'll throw it away!" Jaewoo shrieked and shut the door again.
'What if I throw it away?'
Why does that matter to him? Hyeonjin set the warm lunch box down in front of the door. However, when he put down the lunchbox and took one step, two steps, his steps suddenly felt heavy.
'He's going to throw it away.'
Is that really worth it? Hyeonjin stopped on the spot. Once again walked one step, two steps, then stopped. At this rate, he won't be able to leave this yard until the sun rose.
Hyeonjin bit his lip and turned around to pick up the lunchbox again. What was inside was heavy. The weight was burdensome so he put it down again. This was unfamiliar to Hyeonjin as his parents never bothered to give him anything like this or care for him.
'I'll be late for my part-time job like this.'
He hesitated a couple more times before finally leaving the gate. As a result of his hasty steps, he was barely able to make it on time.
"You're here?" The part-timer in the previous shift took off his vest with the convenience store logo on it and said with a gruff voice, "Then I'm going."
"Alright."
Hyeonjin checked his items, cleaned up, and settled down inside the counter. This job wasn't so bad. The pay wasn't the best, but food leftovers came from time to time, and the boss wasn't the kind of person to intentionally pick up a few pieces of food leftovers.
On a day when almost no leftovers were produced, Hyeonjin had to work without eating anything. But it wasn't particularly difficult for him because it has always been like this.
'I brought it.' Hyeonjin thought, feeling shameful, and buried his face in his hands.
'Why would I bring it.'
On top of the small desk inside the counter, there sat a warm lunch. The one Jaewoo had packed for him.
He swore he didn't intend to bring Jaewoo's lunch box. However, the lunch box on the desk kept bothering him back at the house, so he couldn't leave it as it was. Is he going to throw away this precious food? That was unacceptable. That's what he always told his younger siblings (t/n: to not throw food away). What if he violated it himself? His conscience would not allow it.
So he ended up taking the lunch box to his next part-time job at the restaurant. Hyeonjin went into a small staff room, put his lunch box aside, and changed into his uniform.
"What is that?" Right after changing, a co-worker of his glanced at the lunch box curiously and asked.
"It's nothing," Hyeonjin dismissed as he tried to cut off the conversation, but to no avail because the girl, Sooyeon, had her eyes shining with curiosity already.
"No, what is it? Tell me. Is it a lunch box? Who packed it? The lunch looks heavy. Was it a girlfriend? Did your girlfriend pack it for you? Come on, tell this noona*. (t/n: a honorific term used by males to describe older females; this girl is just talking about herself in 3rd person).
Sooyeon is a very nice person, but a bit talkative. Curious, too.
"I don't have a girlfriend."
"Then what is it? Did you pack it yourself?"
"I didn't."
"Then what about your parents?"
"...No, not them."
Would my parents ever pack lunch for me? I don't even know where they are now. Hyeonjin swallowed a deep sigh.
"So was it a girlfriend?"
"Please stop it."
"Hyeonjin always tells me to stop."
Even though Hyeonjin asked her to stop, he was a good and hard-working person, so Sooyeon only grumbled and didn't get angry.
She couldn't deny that Hyeonjin was handsome, but his aura was so heavy that it made it seem that he was unapproachable. It was because Sooyeon had a bright personality that she was able to come this far in talking to him.
She turned to him and said, "Oh, my aunt cooked for me. Do you want some?"
Normally, he would have agreed. It was hard to eat a proper meal while going to and from work. Besides, it was free food. But Hyeonjin didn't answer right away this time. It felt like the lunch box inside the locker was staring at him.
"Oh that's right, don't you have that packed lunch today? Let's eat together. Take it and come out," Sooyeon said casually and went outside. Now it was just Hyeonjin and the lunch box.
"What else am I supposed to do?" Hyeonjin muttered helplessly. No matter how warm the lunch box was, it was clear that the food would go bad if left unattended all day. That said, it looked like a lot to eat. As he hesitated in front of the lunch box, Sooyeon came back and looked at him suspiciously.
"What are you doing? Aren't you eating?"
"I have to eat."
"Then let's go. Why are you just standing there staring?"
Sooyeon quickly took his lunch box and went to go outside. Hyeonjin panicked and followed, but Sooyeon was slightly faster. She set the lunch box down on the table and dismantled it in an instant.
"Wow, stir-fried pork? It looks delicious. Can I try some too?"
Then, he desperately ran and grabbed what she was trying to put in her mouth. Hyeonjin said, exasperated, "You can't eat it."
"Okay, okay, I won't eat it. Is it because your girlfriend gave it to you?" Sooyeon removed her hand and sat down at the table. She then patted the seat next to her and it was then that Hyeonjin's lunch box was fully revealed.
There were two bowls of side dishes on white rice that were still piping hot. The one separate seemed to be a soup barrel. When he opened the lid, it looked like it had been made with soybean paste stew. It smelled familiar. As for the side dishes, one container has stir-fried pork, and the other contained stir-fried anchovies and seasoned spinach.
"Um, would a girlfriend really do this? It looks more like your parents packed it for you," Sooyeon said. She looked at the plenty of steamed rice, side dishes, and soybean paste stew that was served separately. It clearly looked more like something given to someone by their parents or grandmother rather than a girlfriend.
Hyeonjin smiled faintly and didn't answer. Hyeonjin had always distanced himself from the people at work. She doesn't know he doesn't have parents, or that he is poor. Hyeonjin felt like that could be a weakness, so Sooyeon's remarks came from knowing nothing.
Soon after, Sooyeon and the other co-workers began eating. Hyeonjin bit his lip and picked up the chopsticks that came with the lunch box. After hesitating for a while, he picked up the pork stir fry and took a bite.
The sweet yet spicy taste of fire that he could feel between his teeth while biting into it quickly sharpened his appetite. The sir-fried anchovies were crispy and salty, and even the seasoned spinach was delicious. When Hyeonjin became thirsty, he drank the miso soup. As if it was made with that purpose, the taste was a lot milder than the stew he ate the other day.
As Hyeonjin mindlessly ate, he felt multiple eyes on him. When he looked up, his co-workers were looking straight at him.
"Oh, you must be very hungry," the restaurant cook said and served him another bowl of rice.
"I know, right? This is the first time I've seen you eat so much," Sooyeon said surprised and opened her eyes wide to look at Hyeonjin. Only then did he realize he had emptied the entire rice bowl.
"Come on, eat more."
Hyeonjin accepted the rice bowl his co-worker handed over. When he came to his senses again, he suddenly felt ashamed. However, he thought he should eat everything he had already, so he ate the new rice serving along with the leftover side dishes.
"Can I try some too?" Sooyeon asked again. Hyeonjin didn't know what to answer. He guessed he should share some with her, but he didn't want to.
"Why are you bothering a kid who's eating well?" Another person stopped Sooyeon with a smile.
Sooyeon quickly retaliated, "But you're probably curious too if he's eating like this! I bet the taste must be fantastic."
"Is that so? Then can we eat a little bit too?"
He couldn't deny them any longer. One took a small amount to show that she was being considerate towards everyone, but the dishes quickly ran out.
"Wow, how is this so delicious?"
"I know right? Who the hell made this?"
"Can you bring them to work here? If someone like this cooks for us, we would hit the jackpot!"
Voices of admiration drifted through Hyeonjin's ears.
"So who made this?" Sooeyon asked again. What should he say? Jaewoo, the one who made the dish, was his landlord. Isn't it strange for landlords to pack lunches for their tenants? What would he say if he dared to name him in front of his co-workers? If he thought of the Jaewoo from the past, that will definitely be the basis for a consequence committed in the future.
But what about the current Jaewoo?
He doesn't know what came over Jaewoo or how to name his actions. He cares for his siblings, but not in an uncomfortable way. There was only one word closely related to his actions.
'Sympathy.'
That was what he once wished from others. That seemed like the most reasonable explanation. Hyeonjin stopped thinking too far in. He didn't have any other way to explain Jaewoo's actions, but he knew how sympathy looked. He learned to never expect sympathy from anyone. That was the one truth Hyeonjin stuck to after having lived by himself, taking care of his siblings.
He finished his meal, cleaned out the lunchbox, and immersed himself in his work. After his shift, he had to go buy some meat before running to his evening part-time job. It seemed like the right time to quickly stir fry pork, feed his siblings, and leave.
As soon as Hyeonjin finished his part-time job at the restaurant, he immediately headed to a nearby butcher shop.
"A pound of pork, please. I'm going to stir-fry the meat."
The owner of the butcher shop recognized Hyeonjn because of the restaurant in frot and added special service to him, serving him a full serving of pork instead. After accepting the generous action, he felt like his busy day was rewarded. Now he just needs to buy some vegetables at the mart on the way home.
Just imagining how his younger siblings would react to the meat side dish made him feel better. So he rushed towards the market, but someone suddenly stopped right in front of him. He looked up and heard a familiar voice.
"Hey, it's been a while, sir."
***
End of Chapter 1 (Part 4)
Note: We're reaching the end of Chapter 1 already! Who might've been the one to stop him? The debt collectors? One of his parents? The main top? Jaewoo? I guess you'll never know...
Just kidding, I'll try making more time for this novel as I am finally out on vacation and have a lot more free time (I'm gonna do nothing all day for the rest of vacation probably) so I deeply appreciate everyone who is patiently awaiting a new update! Thank you so much!