Chapter 14.2
When she returned home after a short hospital stay, she was overwhelmed with disappointment.
Instead of saving more money, she had to spend the precious savings she had wanted to keep. The extreme despair left her bedridden for days. After struggling to climb up to her second-floor room with unfamiliar crutches, she could do nothing but lie there all day.
She had finally let go of the last thread she had been desperately holding onto. What was the point of taking her medicine, or going to college? Could she even go? She couldn’t work, and the money in her passbook would run out soon enough.
She was getting tired of being alone.
For three days, she didn’t step outside. The school had marked her absence as sick leave, and she spent her time in a cycle of sleeping and waking. The only things she consumed were water and some bread she didn’t even remember buying. She lacked the energy to cook, and her swollen and painful foot made it impossible to sleep properly.
One night, driven by sudden hunger, she rummaged through the fridge at dawn, feeling a mix of determination and frustration. Despite the difficulties, she was pushing through.
***
It wasn’t until the fourth day after being discharged that Yeon-ha finally left the house.
She had to go to the hospital for a check-up. She should have gone the day before, but she had postponed it. As she closed the front door and looked at the stairs leading down, she took a deep breath.
With crutches under both arms, she leaned against the peeling paint of the wall for a moment. The stairs she once dashed down now seemed daunting. But she knew she had to keep going.
The idea of descending the stairs, hailing a taxi, going to the hospital, getting a check-up, and returning home seemed overwhelming. But she steeled herself and began the process.
The sudden screech of a door snapped her out of her thoughts. She quickly turned her head. A man, stepping out from a blue-painted storage room door a few steps away, also paused.
For a moment, they both froze. Yeon-ha had completely forgotten about his existence, living as if she were the only one in this two-story house.
Unlike her thickly padded outfit, he was dressed in thin-looking tracksuits. His pale face briefly took in the sight of her crutches and bandaged foot before his eyes returned to hers, wide and round.
Their eyes locked for a moment before he started walking towards her without any expression. Yeon-ha’s heart skipped a beat.
She gripped her crutches tighter and stood up straighter as she waited for him to descend but what she didn’t expect was his deep voice filling the narrow space and him stopping right in front of her.
“What are you doing?”
“…Excuse me?”
His abrupt, casual question startled her, and an involuntary gasp escaped her lips. It was the first time she’d heard his voice.
“Why are you just standing here? Why aren’t you going down?”
He didn’t look surprised at all. Watching Yeon-ha’s lips twitch as she struggled to find words, he added lightly, “I heard your door open a while ago. I didn’t think you’d still be here.”
Yeon-ha’s eyes widened. Did that mean he had heard her leaving from inside the storage room? It was possible, of course, but the thought made her uncomfortable. The man, noticing her unsettled expression, tilted his head slightly, looking almost curious. But Yeon-ha was too flustered to discern his exact mood.
Standing there in a daze, Yeon-ha finally noticed the thick wooden stick he was holding. It was long and sturdy, like something you’d see at a construction site, matching the intimidating aura he exuded. A sudden wave of fear washed over her, causing her to shrink back slightly. It never crossed her mind that it could simply be a piece of material for yard repairs.
“I even waited for you…”
His mumbled words barely registered in her ears. All she could think about was that she needed to go, but her feet felt glued to the ground. Sensing her obvious tension, he clicked his tongue in mild irritation.
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