Chapter 29: Getting to Know You

“Is there anything you want to eat?”

“I’ll cook for you today.”

“Let’s just order in.”

“You can’t eat it anyway, Hyung.”

Hyung had been trying to cook since yesterday.

Even though he himself could still only manage porridge.

Even when I told him not to until his cold was completely gone, he would hover in front of the fridge whenever he had a chance.

“No.”

“I think I can eat now, too.”

Yeong-u-hyung took off the cooling patch on his forehead and resolutely opened the refrigerator door.

“Then I’ll do it.”

“I know how to cook.”

“Later.”

“When your legs get better.”

There it was again.

Yeong-u-hyung tried to do everything by himself, from cleaning and cooking to even feeding the cats.

Whenever I tried to help with even the smallest thing, he would bring up my legs and dissuade me.

He wouldn’t stop treating me like a patient, even after seeing my forearms, which were twice as thick as his.

“Bend down for a second.”

I grabbed the arm of Hyung, who was rummaging through the vegetable drawer, and turned him to face me.

Hyung, holding an onion and eggs in his hands, bent his upper body without asking why.

“I’m okay.”

“I’m not even coughing anymore.”

Hyung smiled as he saw me place my hand on his forehead, where the cooling patch had been, to check his temperature.

I also touched his cheek to check his temperature more closely.

It was a little warm, but his fever had dropped a lot.

“But why is it red…”

I mumbled as I touched his slightly flushed cheek, and Hyung blamed me.

“It’s because you suddenly touched me.”

“You said you’ve been dating for eight years.”

He said we were a long-time couple, but Yeong-u-hyung would often blush whenever I stared at him or made eye contact while he was sleeping.

For an eight-year-long lover, it was an overly fresh reaction.

“It hasn’t been long with you.”

Yeong-u-hyung rubbed his reddened cheeks with an embarrassed expression and quickly added.

“I mean, it hasn’t been long since we got to know each other.”

“Not that we’re dating.”

Like this, Hyung would constantly emphasize that the current me and he were just in a hyung-dongsaeng relationship.

In the beginning, he seemed to be attempting something akin to seduction, even revealing his deeply indented collarbones.

But after I started calling him Hyung, he began treating me like a younger brother.

I could see he was trying to accommodate me.

“Does it taste bad?”

Hyung, who had prepared an early lunch for me, asked as he stirred his own bowl of porridge.

Using the ingredients at home, Hyung had made kimchi fried rice and fried a whole bag of mini pork cutlets.

I had only seen his sluggish side, so I was surprised to see how fast his hands were when he cooked.

“No.”

“It’s delicious.”

“Then why are you eating so slowly?”

“I was trying to copy how you eat.”

Yeong-u-hyung would chew and swallow his porridge, not even rice, for a long time.

What on earth was there to chew in porridge?

I would understand if it were meat, but slowly chewing even porridge was a bit much.

“You said you thought you could eat solid food.”

“Why is it porridge again?”

It bothered me that while I was eating the meal Hyung had prepared himself, he was only eating instant porridge he had heated up.

If this was the case, we should have just ordered delivery.

There were a surprisingly large number of delicious porridge places these days.

“I got tired of the smell while I was making it.”

“You eat a lot.”

“How can you get tired of a smell?”

I put on a serious face as I skewered the mini pork cutlets onto my metal chopsticks.

Yeong-u-hyung ate just enough to not die.

I couldn’t even encourage him to try the food, afraid he might throw up again like at the hospital.

“I eat well when I eat.”

“Look.”

“Just like this.”

Hyung roughly picked up a mini pork cutlet and bit off half of the tiny thing.

He must have really not wanted to eat it, as he couldn’t even put the whole thing in his mouth at once.

And after that, he lifted his chin as if to ask if he wasn’t eating well.

I put the four mini pork cutlets skewered on my chopsticks into my mouth at once and clapped half-heartedly.

Yeong-u-hyung chuckled and pushed the cutlet he had bitten into toward me, telling me to eat this too.

I didn’t know if it was a joke or a habit, but when I actually took it with my mouth, he seemed a little flustered.

He had a look on his face that said, ‘You gave it to me, but why are you eating it?’

“You’re the one who gave it to me, Hyung.”

“Oh, no.”

“Keep eating.”

Hyung, shaking off his flustered expression, took a large spoonful of porridge and looked somewhat dazed.

‘Did I do something wrong?’

It wasn’t really a mistake; all I did was naturally accept the pork cutlet.

“You said you were going to the hospital today, right?”

Yeong-u-hyung, who had finally managed to finish a bowl of porridge, asked as he brought out some fruit.

A few of them must have gone bad, as he only brought out two of the five apples on a plate.

“Yes.”

“I’m going to start rehabilitation therapy again.”

“What time do you have to be there?”

“Two o’clock.”

“You’re not doing it alone, are you?”

I nodded vaguely as I picked up an apple and took a bite.

There was actually something I hadn’t told Yeong-u-hyung.

It was true that I was going to the hospital for rehabilitation therapy, but therapy wasn’t the only purpose.

“What time will you be back?”

“Um, eight o’clock today?”

“What, for six hours?”

“Does it usually take that long?”

“There are people who do it for ten hours.”

Yeong-u-hyung let out a gasp and shook his head, saying he couldn’t understand an Esper’s stamina.

I agreed with him, so I shook my head and laughed along.

“Aran-noona said she’d come see me and give me a ride.”

“You don’t have to come out, Hyung, so just stay home.”

“Be careful.”

“Don’t overdo it.”

Although his complexion had brightened, Yeong-u-hyung, who had eaten nothing but porridge for almost a week, still had no energy.

The fact that he didn’t even say he would come with me to the hospital showed that his stamina hadn’t recovered.

“What will you be doing, Hyung?”

“Huh?”

We moved from the dining table to the living room and watched Baekseol and Shiru wrestling.

I thought Hyung, who was holding and waving a long fishing rod toy for the cats, hadn’t heard me, so I asked again.

“What are you going to do today?”

“While I’m gone.”

“Uh….”

“Cleaning and laundry.”

“There’s a lot of grocery shopping to do, too.”

“You’re going out to shop?”

“Can you carry it all by yourself?”

“No, delivery.”

Hyung pointed with the fishing rod to his phone, which he had tossed onto the distant dining table, and told me to let him know if there was anything I wanted to eat.

“Anything’s fine.”

“I eat everything.”

“I know.”

Yeong-u-hyung, who knew everything about me, went to get his phone, seriously contemplating tonight’s dinner menu.

“You’re coming back at eight, right?”

“I’ll have the food ready right on time, so don’t be late.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll call you before I leave.”

I tried to take my phone out of my pants pocket, but rummaged through an empty space.

I thought I had put it in here.

“Here it is.”

As if he knew I was looking for my phone, Yeong-u-hyung brought it to me like a ghost.

“Where was it?”

“Next to the water purifier.”

“Wow, yesterday I left it in the bathroom and couldn’t find it.”

“Why do I keep forgetting?”

I lightly scratched my forehead and looked down resentfully at my phone, which seemed to have grown legs.

Ever since I got the new phone, I had been losing it frequently.

I thought I was someone who took good care of my things, but I guess I developed forgetfulness after getting hurt, as I kept misplacing it.

“It’s okay.”

“I’ll take care of it for you.”

Yeong-u-hyung, who took my hand that was scratching my forehead, said something dependable.

“Even if you lose it, I’ll find it all for you.”

“Don’t worry.”

When Hyung’s warm hand touched mine, I felt like something was being filled inside me.

I think it might have been because of Hyung’s words.

‘Oh, that’s reassuring.’

I deliberately reacted playfully and gave a thumbs-up on the back of his hand.

“Want to watch a movie tonight after dinner?”

Yeong-u-hyung smiled brightly at my gesture and then blushed again.

I thought his fever might not have completely gone down, so even as I said that sounded good, I checked his complexion.

Just as I was wondering if I should take him to the hospital with me.

“Or you can receive Guiding.”

Hyung, who was tidying my bangs, continued in a voice that trailed off.

“You’ll be tired after your treatment.”

I took in Hyung’s gradually reddening face and slowly nodded.

The ‘yes’ that slipped out was even quieter than Hyung’s voice.

“What did you two do for your level to drop this much?”

As soon as I got into the passenger seat, Aran-noona checked my wrist watch.

She brought up the wavelength level on the small screen and stared intently at the number, which had dropped to 48%.

“I ate well, rested well, and played well.”

“What did you do for fun?”

Aran-noona, who started the car and gripped the steering wheel, showed deep interest despite her indifferent face.

I replied that I had watched dramas about people with abilities and played with the cats, living comfortably.

Now that I said it, I realized I hadn’t really done anything special, yet my level had dropped quickly.

The first digit, which hadn’t changed even with a Guiding Machine attached all day, had finally changed.

And this was despite not having received any Guiding since the first day I came home.

“It’s usually like that.”

“Why else do you think people get imprinted?”

When I expressed my surprise at the changed first digit, Aran-noona told me to keep living like that and gave me her own version of a smile.

“Are there still a lot of Gates?”

Aran-noona, who had stopped the car at a red light, briefly looked at me.

She stared at me with a surprised expression, as it was the first time I had asked about Gates since the accident.

Actually, she had no expression, so I was just interpreting it however I wanted.

“You said you agreed to take the test.”

“Without even knowing what it is.”

Instead of answering, Aran-noona brought up the test first.

“He said it wasn’t dangerous, and even if it is, everyone is risking their lives working right now anyway.”

“I have to do something.”

I shrugged and habitually massaged my knees.

I was supposed to start walking practice today.

And after rehabilitation therapy, I would also start the training I hadn’t told Yeong-u-hyung about.

“It’s been pretty quiet lately.”

“Maybe they got scared because the Attack-type guys were let off their leashes and are flying around.”

“That’s a relief.”

“So don’t overdo it and take the test.”

“It’s not just increasing, after all.”

“Okay.”

Perhaps my answer sounded half-hearted, as I avoided Aran-noona’s sharp gaze and pointed out the green light.

“How’s the house?”

“It’s good.”

“Though I don’t remember anything specific.”

I preemptively revealed my lack of memory progress before Aran-noona could ask.

Though it was my house, there wasn’t a single familiar corner.

Still, thanks to Yeong-u-hyung and the cats, it was much more comfortable than the hospital room.

I felt that if I kept living like this, my memories would naturally return one by one.

I was still not curious about my older self, but I wanted to know the memories related to Yeong-u-hyung.

“Noona.”

“…Yes.”

“Go on.”

Yeong-u-hyung had explained when and where he and I first met, when we started dating, and even when we brought the cats home, but he had omitted the really important story.

“Why did Yeong-u-hyung leave the team?”