TGT 7

It wasn’t his palm, but would Seo Jeong-won’s other parts be this soft too? The thought suddenly crossed his mind.

“Take care on your way home.”

“…Yes.”

Seo Jeong-won nodded slightly and slowly stepped back. The hand that had been caressing his face finally fell away.

Kwon Tae-hee stared intently at the moisture on his palm, then moved only his eyes to meet Seo Jeong-won’s gaze. Then, he smiled gently. Politely and handsomely.

“You should take that with you.”

Kwon Tae-hee gestured with his chin towards the wad of cash and the card. Seo Jeong-won turned around and went back to where he had been standing.

The small hand hesitated before picking up the bills and card from the table and putting them in his bag. He could have shoved them in roughly to show his displeasure, but his gentle nature wouldn’t even allow him to consider it.

“I’ll, I’ll be going now.”

His words didn’t flow smoothly as he sniffled with a flushed face. Even that appearance seemed cute, which was quite troublesome.

As Kwon Tae-hee nodded, Seo Jeong-won crossed the office. His worn-out sneakers caught his eye.

Kwon Tae-hee decided he should buy Seo Jeong-won, who looked so pathetic and shabby, a new pair of shoes first.

***

Back at the flower shop, Seo Jeong-won took his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the rusty table. It was quiet.

He wondered why he hadn’t received a barrage of text messages filled with insults for not sending the money.

Just as he was leaning back weakly in his chair, his phone vibrated.

It wasn’t a personal number from the loan shark, but a message from the Hope Capital’s main number. It was a confirmation that the loan had been fully repaid.

He rubbed his eyes and read it again several times, then a new message arrived. It was a notification that the bank loan had also been repaid.

“…Ah.”

Seo Jeong-won stared blankly into space for a moment, then found the number and dialed it. The ringing tone didn’t last long.

—Yes.

“Hello? This is… Jeong-won.”

—I know.

“The message, I got a message.”

He could hear laughter over the phone. His own stammering voice sounded ridiculous even to his own ears, so it must have been the same for the other person.

—I know that too.

“…Thank you.”

—Has the caregiver contacted you yet?

“Not yet…”

—I’ll send you their contact information, so call them first if you’re curious.

Seo Jeong-won paused for a moment, then nodded. What had been so difficult for him was easily resolved as soon as he received Kwon Tae-hee’s help.

The debt that had been strangling him, and his Hyung, who was driving him into deeper guilt every day.

“Thank you.”

—If you’re so grateful, read the copy of the contract I gave you carefully and come. I’ll pick you up the day after tomorrow.

“The day after tomorrow?”

—Friday.

This time, his tone was a little annoyed. Seo Jeong-won quickly apologized.

“Is there anything I need to bring separately? Anything I need to prepare…?”

—Just prepare yourself mentally.

Seo Jeong-won smiled a little at Kwon Tae-hee’s words. He liked the relaxed atmosphere. The man who had been so scary and cold was now a little kinder, like when they first met.

—I should hang up now.

“Ah, ah. Yes. Then, goodbye.”

Seo Jeong-won bowed and greeted the person on the other end of the line, even though he couldn’t see him. No answer came back. Only after he took the phone away from his ear did he realize that the call had ended.

He took out the contract and the wad of cash from his bag. And the black card. The top of the card, engraved with luxurious patterns on each rounded corner, had numbers written on it. What could this mean?

He rubbed the smooth surface and examined the card for a long time before opening the inner zipper of his bag.

He didn’t think he would have much use for it, so he was planning to take it home. He folded the bills neatly, except for two 50,000 won notes, and put them in the bag with the card.

Then, he took out the contract that he had been told to read again. Without changing his posture, he read it carefully from the first line to the last.

Actually, he wondered if it would be of any use to look at it in detail now. There was nothing he could change anyway.

He was a little worried. He had never done anything like that before. What if Kwon Tae-hee didn’t like it because he was clumsy…?

Would that be a good thing? If the contract was terminated because he didn’t like it, he would get the penalty.

Seo Jeong-won seriously continued his absurd thoughts before closing his eyes. His relaxed body quickly pulled him into a deep sleep.

***

Time passed quickly. Just taking care of the flower shop, which had been neglected and was now almost a ruin, took two days.

He decided to put nutrient solutions into the dried-up fruit trees, saplings, and flowers and watch them for another week. He decided to discard anything that didn’t show signs of recovery.

Sweat beaded on his forehead as he scurried around cleaning up the flower shop.

Was the weather too hot? Even though he was diligently watering them, the plants seemed to be dying from the heat, so he moved the pots that were outside. After repeating this several times, his whole body was soaked with sweat.

Seo Jeong-won wiped his forehead with the back of his gloved hand, then locked the flower shop door and went into the bathroom.

It was old and shabby, but it was fine for a quick wash. He took off all his clothes and quickly washed his body with cold water.

The water was so cold that it chilled him to the bone. His teeth chattered involuntarily. Shivering, he washed his hair with soap from a plastic container and washed his face again.

He dried himself with a towel and put on the new clothes he had brought from home. His hair was stiff.

Before the dry clothes could absorb the moisture, he quickly opened the door and went outside, where the humid air hit him.

“It’s hot again…”

He felt like he would start sweating again if he moved any more. He was about to sit in front of the rattling fan to dry off when he heard a loud banging on the locked entrance. He jumped up. He wasn’t expecting anyone.

“Just a moment!”

He tripped over a flower pot stand as he rushed out. Crash—! With a loud noise, he landed on his knees on the floor.

The flower pot stand flew away, and the leaves of the withered tree fluttered down. His calves were covered in dirt, making his shower pointless.

“Ah…”

Blood quickly welled up on his scraped knee. He sighed deeply, then limped towards the door and unlocked it when he heard the banging again.

“We’re not open today…”

“I know. But I heard a loud noise inside.”

Seo Jeong-won’s eyes widened in surprise as he recognized who was knocking.

Why did he come in person? Kwon Tae-hee had said he would pick him up, but he had taken that to mean he would send a car. He was flustered because he hadn’t expected him to actually come.

Kwon Tae-hee, who had only poked his head inside to look around, lowered his gaze and saw the mess he was in.

“I thought you were hiding someone, but it looks like you fell.”

“…Ah, that.”

He must have just showered, judging by his wet hair, but his knees were a mess.

Kwon Tae-hee scanned him with a cool gaze, then turned his head and instructed someone standing behind him to buy bandages, disinfectant, and ointment.

“I’m… I’m okay.”

“It looks like we’ll have to wait a bit, so let’s go inside.”

He felt like he was being scolded even though he hadn’t done anything wrong. Seo Jeong-won followed Kwon Tae-hee, who was leading the way.

He pulled out a rusty and dirty steel table chair that was almost too embarrassing to sit on.

Just as he was regretting not putting a cushion on it, a large hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him.

“Sit down.”

“I really…”

“I think it was when I was eight years old that I saw my cousin’s knee like this after he fell.”

Wasn’t that a little too long ago? Seo Jeong-won swallowed the question that was rising in his throat, along with his embarrassment.

Kwon Tae-hee knelt down and carefully examined the bloodied area. With a sigh, he took a handkerchief from his jacket pocket and pressed it firmly on the wound.

“Ah…!”

“Does it hurt?”

“Ah, no.”

It sounded like he was in pain no matter how you heard it, but Seo Jeong-won shook his head vigorously. Kwon Tae-hee didn’t ask any more questions and pressed down hard on the reddened area.

How long did they wait in that awkward and uncomfortable silence? The sound of the door opening broke the tension. Seo Jeong-won’s eyes widened in surprise, then he lowered them.

The man who quickly approached placed the things he had bought on the steel table. Seo Jeong-won, who had been staring at the pharmacy bag with a gloomy look, bowed his head towards him. He even offered his thanks.

“You’re welcome. Then, I’ll go out and wait.”

The man bowed his head towards Kwon Tae-hee and turned around and left the flower shop. As soon as the door closed with a thud, Kwon Tae-hee raised his head.

“Jeong-won.”

He called his name in a low voice. Seo Jeong-won’s gaze, which had been directed slightly upwards, lowered to meet his handsome face.

His deep eyes checked the injured area, and his fingers, softer than flower petals, caressed the surrounding skin.

After cleaning the dirty areas, he took out the disinfectant and sprayed it on the exposed flesh. The breath he blew on it was warm and ticklish.

“I told him to buy all of this. That friend bought it because I told him to. So, who do you think you should be thanking?”