Chapter 4

When I return, I sit on the spacious couch with everyone. Hyun-Suk still takes a few seconds to look at us but gives us space, walking with Hajun to the kitchen island, chatting between themselves.

"Did you really plan to fuck at nine in the morning, you naughty boy?" Jackson asks, giving me a light pat on the shoulder, and I just smile.

"Hajun and I fucked this morning, I don't see a problem with it," Taeshin says, shrugging.

"I don't see the need for you to tell us that, Taeshin! Nobody wants to know!" Yejun laughs, pulling Minah between his legs.

"The subject here is different," Rini says. "What happened to your grandmother?"

I sigh, leaning against her and noticing how everyone watches me cautiously.

"Su-ji had abandoned Grandma to die in an ill-prepared hospital. She was extorting me... Every month I sent her money to take care of Grandma, but she didn't take care."

"What did she do with the money?"

I shrug again. "I have no idea."

"But she'll have to pay it back, won't she?" Yejun asks.

"Yes, Hyun-Suk said he and Hajun will make her pay it back, or she'll be arrested for extortion or something... I didn't want that, but she has to pay, right? That's the right thing to do, isn't it?"

"Of course it is," Taeshin says. "She stole from you; it's a crime, and she didn't take care of the person who gave her life."

"In fact, Grandma isn't her biological mother, just as she's not mine... I don't know if her hatred comes from that, but she doesn't love either me or Grandma."

"She's just a damn unloved bitch, that's what she is!" Jackson growls. "Sorry, Jaejun, but it's the truth. How can someone do that to their own mother? Even if she's not her biological daughter, she's still her mother! If I could, I'd break her legs!"

I shouldn't, but I laugh at his words, seeing Hyun-Suk walk to the bedroom we slept in together with Hajun.

"And this place, is it his house?" Rini asks, watching them too.

"In fact, this apartment is mine now," I say, still getting used to the idea.

All my friends look at me, surprised.

"I plan to take Grandma out of the hospital as soon as I can, and Hyun said it would be good to have a comfortable place... this apartment is now in my name, so I think I'll bring her to live with me. If she can't, I'll look for a good elderly care facility. I want to provide her with comfort."

"You're right to think like that," Rini says.

"Did the blondie really give it to you?" Jack still seems surprised.

I nod, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"But he has so many apartments..."

"But he really shows it, Jae. You can see it in his gaze, in how he talks to you, and even in how he takes care of you."

"Is this because of Hajun?" Minah asks, looking sad.

"What's with Hajun?" I ask, curious.

"In short: Taeshin fell in love, and now he's fucked up because he still loves JiHo."

"That's not it," Tae says. "It's just that I'm enjoying being with Hajun and I really want this to go on, you know? He's good in bed, rough and affectionate the way I like it, but I can't get that damn JiHo out of my head. This feeling is bigger than me... And to make it worse, a few days ago, I saw him at the college, and he was covered in bruises on his neck... he's definitely with someone else now, and it pisses me off for no reason, you know? Because I also have someone else..."

I look at him without knowing what to do because I'm sure I know who left the bruises on JiHo.

"You should get the two of them together and have a threesome, imagine how fun that would be," Jack says, trying to break the tension, but he grumbles when Taeshin slaps his arm.

"Stop being a dumbass, I'm serious. I'm fucked..."

"I'm serious too, hey. I agree with Yejun," Taeshin says, looking at me. "He really shows it, Jae. You can see it in his gaze, in how he talks to you, and even in how he takes care of you."

"But does he really care about you?" Minah asks, concerned.

"Yes, he cares. I can see it," I reply.

"But it's hard for me to believe that someone like him, who has everything, would care about someone like you," Yejun says.

I don't reply, just shrug, and let the subject go.

I watched my friends laugh as Hyun-Suk and Hajun tried to get along with them, and I had fun as the hours passed, and I was able to have lunch with everyone in what would be my new home.

And it was in the comfort of it that I managed to feel good as the days went by. In the first week, everyone always came in the afternoons and stayed with me for a long time.

In the second week, we decided to bring my few belongings from home to organize them in the apartment. I even laughed when I put my clothes in the closet and barely occupied more than a third of the space.

"You still haven't used this?" Hyun-Suk grabs my pink dildo, lifting it in the air as if it were a toy.

Well, it kind of was. But I almost choked when I saw him with it and had to run to get it and put it away.

"Don't be nosy, Hyun," I said, placing the pink dildo in a box on the top shelf of the closet.

"You haven't used it?"

"No, I've never used it..." I say quickly, hearing his loud laughter.

"But can we use it?"

I look at Hyun-Suk, feeling embarrassed, but I nod, smiling shyly.

"Maybe someday."

"Alright."

At the end of that week, I received the call that nearly stopped my heart.

My grandmother had finally woken up. She had been breathing on her own for a few days, but she remained weak. Her name was at the top of the transplant list, and that was our only hope. But knowing that she had finally awakened and asked for me and Su-ji was invigorating, even though I wished that Grandma would no longer remember the ungrateful daughter she unfortunately raised.

"Are you okay?" Hyun-Suk asked, intertwining our hands.

We were walking through the hospital corridors, my heart racing faster than ever.

I nodded, too nervous to contain the anxiety that permeated my skin.

"It's here," Hyun-Suk said as we stopped in front of room 613.

I gathered a bit more courage before touching the doorknob and opening the door.

Unlike the previous room where I found my grandmother in a dire state, this one was spacious and well-organized. The decor wasn't as bleak as before; it was in a soothing shade of mild yellow, with some small delicate flowers on the wallpaper.

A couch filled one side of the room, along with a white wooden table. The bathroom door was open, revealing the grab bars and a faint scent of lavender wafting from there.

My eyes wandered everywhere, but it was in the center of the room, on the hospital bed, that they landed, filling with tears as I saw the small eyes open.

The nurse beside my grandmother's small body was talking softly to her, giving her some medications through the IV, and the calm and weak voice responded slowly. My heart raced when I heard her speak.

"Come closer," Hyun-Suk whispered when my feet instinctively stopped a few feet away from her.

The nurse smiled at me and gestured with her hand, beckoning me.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and approached with uncertain steps. My eyes were clouded with countless tears that were about to flow aimlessly, and my hands were trembling and sweaty.

The woman in white stepped aside, touching my arm to give me space, and when I finally stood next to my grandmother's frail body, I could see her eyes calmly fixed on me, and her mouth uttered minutes later as she observed me.

"Jaejun, is it... you, my grandson?"