Eighteen's Bed-Chapter 23.4

I didn’t mention how his head was puffing up too. My eyes, which had been half-closed from sleep, slowly opened at my words.

“......Why?”

“My parents are coming tomorrow. So I’ll probably be home until the weekend.”

It wasn’t anything special. They always come back to Korea around this time for work. I glanced at the calendar and thought, oh, it’s about time. My parents usually stay for a few days without much notice before heading back.

But Go Yohan, who had no idea about such a normal schedule, looked serious. Totally out of place.

“Then I.”

“You what?”

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“What do you want me to do in this big house alone?”

“Big house?”

It was such an absurd statement. I didn’t even think about putting the cup down and lightly looked around the house. ……Big house? I looked again, but my opinion didn’t change. I shook my head, looking at Go Yohan, who was clearly pretending to feel sorry for himself.

“Isn’t it about the same size as your room?”

He’s the one who lived in a room the size of this house. What is he even talking about? Fed up with the way Go Yohan always talks however he likes, I shook my head, and Go Yohan, who was looking at my expression disgustedly, gave me an answer that went beyond my expectations.

“Uh, my room’s bigger.”

Sure. It is bigger. I couldn’t exactly say it wasn’t. With that, I was speechless. If he said it like that, there really wasn’t anything else to say.

“And if they come tomorrow, they’ll come tomorrow, why go today?”

“I need to check something, and there’s something I need to get from the lady.”

“What do you need to get?”

At that, I quietly pointed to the fridge. Go Yohan, following my finger, let out an “Ah,” as if it just hit him.

“She didn’t come last week, so I just said I’d pick it up for you.”

“Well, I guess there’s no helping it then.”

"So I’ll go first and..."

"Yeah, let’s go get it."

Huh? The conversation felt weird. I tilted my head and looked at Go Yohan. I could still see his hair sticking up. He had a serious expression on his face, nodding with an air of determination. His sharp jawline moved up and down lightly, making his floating hair flap.

“You want to go get it?”

“Yeah, since you asked like this, what else can I do? I’ll go and get it for you.”

“No, I’m shipping it.”

I couldn’t understand why he was even thinking of bringing it back himself. But Go Yohan’s voice was so low that it almost seemed threatening.

“Hey.”

Go Yohan, who always brought such a heavy atmosphere, was a bit too much. His appearance was so flashy and intimidating. But he also looked gloomy, so when a stranger saw him smiling, they would feel uncomfortable. And when Go Yohan got serious, honestly, it was a bit scary.

“......What? What is it?”

“Are you ignoring the lady’s efforts? How can you do that?”

The tension suddenly loosened. But seriously, how can he be acting like this? His serious tone was almost ridiculous.

“And am I someone who’s supposed to just stay at home like you said?”

“No, the lady doesn’t know that I’m living with you.”

“What does she not know? Are the people living with you ghosts?”

“No, I just said I’m living with a classmate from school. You don’t know. If you suddenly show up with a dish and take some side dishes, the situation would be weird. You’ve already had so many weird things happen.”

“Then I’ll use this opportunity to tell her. And I’ll be friends with her.”

Go Yohan, arrogantly lifting his chin, continued.

“She’ll say that the radish kimchi was delicious.”

“......”

I really wonder why I’m living with this guy.

Feeling defeated, I placed the cup on the table. My life was getting more and more complicated in a strange way. Of course, it wasn’t in the same sense as high school. The only thing that was the same was that Go Yohan was at the center of it all. The problem was always Go Yohan.

Feeling a headache coming on, I stepped aside from Go Yohan and entered my room. I quietly tidied up my bed and got ready to take a shower. Then, suddenly, I heard Go Yohan’s voice outside the room. “Hello.” I thought nothing of it and turned on the water in the bathroom. No more sound came after that.

When I finished showering and came out, the house was unusually quiet. I didn’t think anything of it as I dried my hair and changed clothes, but when I left the room, the absence of any presence sharply struck me, grabbing at my ankles. Even the sunlight coming through the veranda seemed to hold its breath in this quiet time.

“Go Yohan?”

I called out to him in the unidentifiable unease. But the silence, deep as if submerged in water, swallowed my discomfort. It was as if I had hidden a beautiful canary in my hands and, after returning home, felt like there were only a few feathers left in my palm when I opened my hands. Was this what it felt like?

The house was still well-maintained. Of course, my parents probably had their secretary or staff check on it, but the subtle, intricate scent that only someone who has lived here for a long time would recognize hadn’t changed. Even now, the house still smelled like last winter.

“Mother said...”

The footsteps following mine were still quiet, like those of a person who belonged here. The footsteps matched its owner perfectly.

“Yes.”

“She said she really likes your boiled pork and kimchi.”

“Really?”

“Yes, she said she likes them.”

This was said as we were climbing the thin carpeted stairs. In truth, it was a lie. My mother hadn’t exactly said she liked it. She had said:

"I’ve been wanting to eat some boiled food lately. As I get older, my stomach feels heavy."

The comment about my mother liking her boiled pork was entirely my lie, born out of kindness. A kindness that narrowed down the options for the lady, and a kindness that let my parents have the food they were craving. And then:

“Also, the dried radish strips.”

An utterly unidentifiable kindness. When I mentioned the last dish, there was a slight hesitation, so small that it was hard to distinguish. I absentmindedly tapped the railing I had been holding, lightly with my finger.

“She said it was delicious.”

“Then I’ll prepare it in advance.”

As expected, she was still indifferent. There wasn’t even a trace of reproach in her tone, but I felt awkward.

“Thank you for thinking of it.”

“Yes.”

Not having an opinion means, conversely, that it's hard to understand what they’re actually thinking. I glanced back and saw her staring blankly at the floor before I continued up the stairs.

“Oh, what about dinner?”

The lady, who had been following me, suddenly asked.

“......I’m fine.”

I had no appetite. My mind had been glued to my phone screen. By now, had Go Yohan returned home? Why did he leave the house without saying anything? He acted like he would follow me, but disappeared like a ghost. What was his mindset?

“I think I’ll just lie down in my room. I’ll take a nap.”

“Yes.”

In the past, the lady would nag me about not gaining weight whenever I said something like that. She was still as cold as ever. Her footsteps, which had been following me the whole time, went back down to the first floor once she confirmed I had entered my room.

The bed, which I hadn’t laid on for a while, felt unfamiliar. It was a bed I had slept in for my entire life, but after just a few months of not using it, it felt awkward. An awkward comfort that made me uncomfortable. I turned on my side. The sound of the sheets rustling filled the room like thunder. My mind was still on the phone screen. Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore and turned the phone around, gripping the corner of it to reverse it.

“Go Yohan, you...”

That damn bastard. I muttered curses under my breath, too ashamed to say them out loud.

Like a habit, I avoided checking any unwanted messages. I didn’t want to make excuses. Maybe I was the one who created the most indefinite replies. Ignoring messages and coming up with lies about delayed notifications was my specialty.

But when I was on the receiving end, I felt frustrated. Sleep wouldn’t come. I realized just how bad I had been. I couldn’t fall asleep, so I pulled the blanket and laid down on the living room couch. Lying in the uncomfortable position, I closed my eyes and waited for sleep that wouldn’t come. I stared at the dim orange light shining through the curtains and was overwhelmed with a strange emotion I couldn’t explain. My chest tightened, and I turned over, burying my nose in the couch.

“Damn bastard.”

****

The plan was ruined. There was no message from Go Yohan or from my parents, not yesterday or today. I went into the dining room and smelled the scent of meat boiling. The slightly musty smell made me feel guilty.

I should’ve just kept my mouth shut. I lightly clenched my fist and tapped my forehead. Then, looking around, I hesitated before gathering my resolve and taking a step forward. The sound of boiling water and the stainless steel ladle clanging in the pot echoed.

“Excuse me...”

“Yes?”

The lady responded without even turning around.

“Did you hear from my parents?”

Usually, even if they were late, I’d have heard from them by now. It was strange, so I asked.

“Yes, I did.”

As she silently boiled the meat and something like porridge, her tone was surprisingly even.

“They said they won’t be coming until the day after tomorrow.”

“......That’s strange. I haven’t received any message.”

“Jun, student.”

The back of her head, neatly tied, was so still that it gave me chills. As the lady picked up the stainless steel ladle, the white porridge in the pot spilled down with a soft rustle.

“The phone seems to be broken.”

Hearing that, I raised the phone I was holding to check. The screen was turning on fine, and the sound was working well too.

“It doesn’t seem like it's broken.”

“Did you turn on the data?”

“Huh?”

Data? I turned the screen back on and checked; the signal was working fine.

“Yeah.”

With a rattling sound, a ladle was placed over a pot. After calmly organizing things, the woman tied her apron again, turned around, and looked at me as she spoke.

“The boss said you weren’t answering your phone, Jun.”

“...Then, excuse me, but could I use your phone for a moment?”

“Sure.”

The woman took her phone out of the pocket of her apron and handed it to me. I reached out across the table and took the phone, turned on the unlocked screen, and dialed my own number. When I held it up to my ear, there was no signal tone, only a familiar voice left behind.

‘The person you are trying to reach is not available. Please call again later...’

“Huh?”

“Is it not working?”

“Why isn’t it connecting?”

“I don’t know.”

The woman seemed to ponder for a moment with a slightly serious expression before turning her attention back to the pot. The water suddenly began boiling over, about to spill out. I watched for a second, then asked again in a slightly louder voice than before.

“Could I try again?”

“Sure.”

She didn’t even look at me this time. I didn’t really mind either. I slowly pressed redial and tried calling again, but the same automated message was all I could hear. I checked the internet, but it turned on, only to abruptly stop in the middle, failing to load anything.

“...”

This is strange. Unable to figure it out, I decided to open the search bar on the woman’s phone. It worked perfectly. The cause appeared quickly. It was right there, in the real-time search terms.

“It’s a problem with the base station. The calls and internet aren’t working.”

“Oh, they said they’re doing a major overhaul of the communication network. Looks like it’s causing problems.”

“Ah, that. But your phone...”

“I think mine works a little better because it’s an older plan. I’m not using the new network.”

It wasn’t a technical issue, then? Or maybe it was because I didn’t want to understand, or couldn’t explain it, but deep down I had an inkling of what the cause was—an emotion I could vaguely recognize, though I didn’t want to admit it. I felt the pain squeezing in my stomach slowly fade away.

“Why don’t you try turning it off and on again?”

“Ah, okay.”

For some reason, I felt strangely light. The heavy weight pressing down on my chest disappeared. I turned the screen off and, as I turned it back on, a sense of hope swelled up inside me, lifting me slightly. When the phone’s screen lit up, a few incoming messages made me even happier.

“Is it working?”

I didn’t answer the woman’s question but quickly checked. However, the recipient of the messages wasn’t who I had expected. ‘Kang Suhyeon.’ My stomach tightened painfully again.

“...Yeah.”

There were no missed calls. I wasn’t sure if it was an error or if the phone calls had disappeared because of the base station’s mistake, or if it was really just that no one had called for me. Since there were no calls from my parents either, I vaguely hoped for the former.

I read the alarm messages with a strange feeling. The shortened content struck my heart hard.

「Yeah ㅊgu」

「Your friend is weird」

What is this? There’s only one person Kang Suhyeon would call “your friend.” A suspicious thought suddenly struck me.

“...I’ll be right back.”

“Sure.”

Without looking at the screen, I hurriedly ran out of the dining room. As I left the house, I quickly pressed the call button and dialed Kang Suhyeon. As soon as the long ringing tone was cut off, I immediately shouted without waiting.

“Hey, where are you?”

Jun, Jun... I’m so scared. Your friend is so scary.

“Where are you?”

At the, at the school...

The voice was trembling with fear, transmitting through the receiver. I ran out to the corner of the neighborhood, raised my hand, and searched for a taxi along the nearby road.

The new engineering building, third floor...

She whispered quietly as if she was hiding. Could it be that Kang Suhyeon is hiding? What on earth is happening? I was dying of curiosity, but without asking further, I spoke briefly.

“Send me the full address in a text. I’ll be there soon.”

Hurry up and come get your friend... Ah, I’m so, so scared...

I didn’t want to listen to Kang Suhyeon’s whining, so I just hung up and stretched my hand out again to wave for a taxi. A small one turned around in the distance and slowly made its way toward me. I put the phone in my pocket and splashed my face with cold water.

What the hell is this mad bastard Go Yohan up to now?

****

I arrived at the address and found a lecture room with the lights off, completely empty. I exhaled and took in a deep breath, exhausted from running up from the first floor to the third. I scanned the surroundings, but there was nothing in sight. I fumbled around for the light switch, but due to the unfamiliar layout, I couldn’t find it. As dizziness lightly crept in, I leaned my shoulder against the wall to steady myself and then softly called out.

“Go Yohan?”

But it was a large cabinet at the far end of the classroom that answered. With a thud, the palm of a hand cautiously tapped the cabinet, and through the gap, I heard a familiar voice.

“…Is that you, Jun?”

“Kang Suhyeon?”

“It’s you, Jun!”

With a sob, the cabinet swung open suddenly. Isn’t that the kind of cabinet used to store documents? In the small, barely opened space, Kang Suhyeon, who could be considered large by some standards, was crammed inside. My brows instinctively furrowed. What is she doing in there? I couldn’t understand, so I squinted through the darkness and slowly walked closer.

“What are you doing in there?”

“I’m hiding because of your friend.”

“…Did Go Yohan put you in there?”

No way. No matter how out of his mind he was, he couldn’t have done that. As I expected, Kang Suhyeon shook her head.

“No.”

“Then why are you in there?”

“I was too scared, so I hid here.”