TIN 27

“Oh, let me try.”

I was going to refuse, but Joo Do-hwa had already picked up the spoon himself.

Not only was his action surprising, but it was also clear he had never taken care of anyone before. Wondering if he wanted me to eat lying down, I simply stared at him, and Joo Do-hwa belatedly put the bowl down.

“Just kidding. I’ll help you sit up.”

Saying that, he completely turned toward me and reached out to help me up. Slipping his hand behind my back, he carefully lifted me up. His touch was so familiar that it was almost embarrassing.

“Now open your mouth.”

Without even realizing it, I did what he said and opened my mouth. Joo Do-hwa, holding the spoon, neatly scooped up the thin porridge and put it in my mouth. Since it had already cooled, it wasn’t too difficult to swallow.

“Is it edible?”

Instead of answering, I just nodded slightly. Joo Do-hwa then said to let him know if I wanted water, and fed me another half-spoonful of porridge. The portion size was just right, not too much for me to handle.

“You’re eating well.”

A similar situation had occurred in my childhood. When was it? The day I caught a cold after going to the seaside villa.

‘…Brother, what’s wrong?’

There had been no problem at all until we returned from playing in the water. But as the accumulated fatigue caught up with me, the fever started rising that night. The child was flustered, anxiously calling out to Logan for help.

‘What should I do?’

Perhaps because the child had never been sick before. The child seemed to have no concept of caring for a sick person. Without knowing how to handle a fever or what a sick person should eat, the child just kept pestering Logan for answers.

In the end, Logan took care of the nursing all night. Just as the child had said, I was very sick, and Logan seemed experienced in handling a sick child. Taking the temperature, wiping the body, and even feeding the porridge.

“There are two spoonfuls left.”

And the one who begged and pleaded to take the spoon away from Logan was Joo Do-hwa. I vividly remember the child diligently blowing on the tiny spoonful and feeding me.

And now, that same Joo Do-hwa was tenderly caring for me, as if nursing me back to health.

“Okay, the last one.”

It didn’t take long to finish half a bowl of porridge. Back then, it would have taken at least an hour, but now Joo Do-hwa had become quite skilled. After cleaning the bowl, he asked about the medicine.

“The medicine is in the drawer…”

Speaking made my throat feel tight again, causing my voice to tremble like a goat’s. Joo Do-hwa, after briefly swallowing a chuckle, brought the water glass that had been placed next to the porridge. I didn’t really need him to feed me the water, but I decided to simply accept it as he held it to my lips.

“Take a nap. That’s how you’ll recover faster.”

After making me take all the medicine, Joo Do-hwa finally got up from his seat. He didn’t forget to have a staff member come and clear the dishes, just in case I got bored. He even drank the remaining water in my glass, not hesitating to put his lips on the same cup I used.

“…”

And yet, he still didn’t catch my cold.

I was once again certain that his claim of coming to recuperate was a lie. Aside from my exceptional physique, Joo Do-hwa’s immunity was beyond ordinary people’s standards. It wasn’t worth mentioning in this type of situation, but if it was about health, I wasn’t exactly weak either.

“…It’s quiet.”

After Joo Do-hwa left, I stared blankly at the closed door. The room, freshly vacated by his presence, was filled with an eerily strange silence. Since he told me to take a nap, no one would likely come to the room until evening.

‘I want to be with my brother.’

In my childhood, the child had kept watch by my side all night. But now, neither Joo Do-hwa nor I were the type to indulge in such childishness. Since we weren’t helpless children anymore, it was natural for the caregiver not to stay glued to my side. And I wasn’t the type to feel lonely just because I was sick.

“…”

I sighed deeply and quietly closed my eyes. My limp body felt as heavy as a water-soaked cotton ball. Drifting off to sleep, I hoped that my condition would improve when I woke up next.

* * *

The cold didn’t recover as easily as I had expected. I remained sick for a long time afterward, and even after the pain subsided, I continued to have persistent coughs. By the time I started suspecting that I might have even cracked a rib, I was finally able to get up from the bed and move around.

Perhaps thanks to the long rest, while I lacked strength, my condition had improved enough that I could finish the meals brought to me without anyone’s help. After taking a warm shower, I even felt as refreshed as being reborn.

That was why, after a very long time, I came out of the room and headed downstairs. I didn’t have a particular destination in mind, I just wanted to walk around a bit instead of just lying in bed all the time. Joo Do-hwa would only come by for lunch, so I had nothing to do until then.

No…To be honest, I did have somewhere I wanted to be. It was something I had been passing by and seeing every time during my stay in his house. The one thing that had been like a decoration at Oceans, the only thing that had been giving me a breath of fresh air.

“…”

The sea breeze was blowing. The faint sunset glow, the golden sheen scattered across the calm sea, the majestic expanse of the horizon, and the clouds embroidered upon it.

The sheer scale of the painting was overwhelming, creating the illusion of standing in the middle of the seaside. It was incomparable to the waves painted at Oceans, and it even seemed to be pulsing with vitality. The delicate brushstrokes and the unique oil painting colors were sometimes more dynamic than that of photographs.

“The real thing is more beautiful, but…”

I had lived by the sea since I was very young. Though I never told anyone, I had a past where I could dare to claim the sea as my own. Countless memories of losing myself in contemplation spent by the seaside, alone or with the child, unaware of the setting sun trapping us in darkness.

But I didn’t think I could never return to that place. With a little time, a little more effort, and after finding that person, I might have a chance. And then, maybe I could put an end to this dreary life.

Of course, the occasional pangs of longing were unavoidable.

‘And the sea is only here.’

That was why I couldn’t leave Oceans. While Theo, the informant, was valuable, the fact that I could only see the sea there was the main reason. And now, the painting in front of me was taking over that role.

“…Maybe I should ask for it.”

Didn’t he say he wouldn’t like this kind of thing? If he was going to hang up a painting he had no interest in, he might as well just give it to me.

But Joo Do-hwa’s promise to buy me anything didn’t mean he was referring to something you couldn’t just buy at a department store. A place like the 4HAE Group wouldn’t have hired just any painter, and if there was an image of the “sea” of this scale, it must cost at least hundreds of millions. Of course, even if he really did give it to me, I wouldn’t be able to take it with me.

“Do you want it?”

“…!”

I flinched, my shoulders jerking up. He had walked up to me so silently, I hadn’t heard him. Calming my racing heart, I turned my head to see Joo Do-hwa standing there beside me.

“You really love the sea.”

His tone was as devoid of emotion as the look in his eyes gazing at the painting. For someone with eyes that sparkle like the sheen on the water, how could his expression be so dull? Even his long eyelashes seemed bored.

“But this one isn’t for sale. It already has an owner.”

“…I wasn’t really planning to ask for it.”

So it wasn’t Joo Do-hwa’s painting after all. Leaving aside why there was someone else’s painting in Joo Do-hwa’s house, I never truly intended to seriously ask for it. What I wanted was not just an imitation of the sea, but the sea itself.

“How are you feeling? Why did you come out here instead of resting?”

Instead of asking more about the painting, Joo Do-hwa turned his attention to me. He then brought a hand to my forehead, as if checking my temperature. It was the same gesture as the past few days, and his gentle manner was as if he had never been aggressive toward me.

“…”

Yet, I instinctively tensed up, slightly shrinking my neck. The movement was small enough to go unnoticed, but the hand momentarily pausing on my forehead suggested that Joo Do-hwa might have sensed my reaction to his touch.

“…The fever is gone too.”

He quickly withdrew his hand with a faint smile. The warmth from where his hand had touched lingered on my skin. As I felt the urge to rub that spot, he tilted his head slightly.

“Can you sit and eat?”

“I’m fine now.”

It hadn’t been that long since I was too sick to even sit up, and during that time I had lacked the energy to even lift a finger, staying in bed as a default. To eat, I’d have to go down to the first floor, and I didn’t have the stamina to make that trip three times a day.

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Joo Do-hwa gave a faint smile and checked the watch on his wrist. Dressed in a suit with a tie, it was unclear whether he had just returned from work in the morning or was planning to go out in the afternoon. I thought he was saying he was glad I had recovered, but he casually brushed his wrist and added, “Someone will come for lunch.”

“Who?”

“You don’t need to know in advance.”

I didn’t expect him to tell me, but it still felt rather brash of him. However, the cheerful way he added the next line was rather charming.

“I need my brother.”