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Brother (2)
Rattling.
“Ouch, hot!”
Despite his consideration for placing a paper cup on the table, Kang Tae-woo tried to stand up at my words but ended up hitting his knee on the table. The impact caused the paper cup to fall over.
I should have warned you not to be surprised. But you would have been surprised anyway… . I should have just finished the story. Usually, people try to calm their minds with a cup of warm tea, so I did that.
I sighed.
“Are you hurt?”
“What are you… talking about?! Are you talking about Sohee? Are you talking about Sohee!”
If you do it right, he’ll probably hit me.
Kang Tae-woo still wears the bracelet his younger sister made. Sometimes, he is seen touching the beads of the bracelet as if he is praying.
But… well. Yeah. It’s strange that I don’t turn a blind eye to the fact that my sister, whom I thought was dead and even had a funeral for, is alive.
“Please sit down and calm down so I can explain.”
“Sohee…!”
“sit down.”
He said, holding Kang Tae-woo’s shoulder tightly.
For a moment, I felt a strong backlash that made me feel like I was being pushed. But I couldn’t continue the conversation while I was this excited.
“sit down.”
I said it again strongly.
My shoulders, which had been tense with tension, relaxed. But my breathing was getting more and more rapid.
I realized belatedly that he was still seventeen. Oh, damn it. He usually acts so mature, so I never thought he would be this surprised.
“Now, follow me and breathe.”
I suppressed my body from bouncing back and deliberately took deep breaths. Slowly. Inhale and exhale.
Little by little, Kang Tae-woo’s breathing calms down.
Still, I checked it calmly.
“Do you remember who I am?”
“… You are Mr. Woo.”
“Okay. How many are these?”
He spread his fingers.
“… … three outlines.”
“What color is the sofa?”
“It’s black.”
“What about the legs? The water must have been hot.”
“I’m an Awakened One. I don’t get hurt by things like that.”
Kang Tae-woo said in a sharp voice. You’ve calmed down.
I let go of the hand that was holding my shoulder and pointed to the sofa. Kang Tae-woo sat down and glared at me.
“So. What do you mean?”
“Your sister, who I thought was dead. Kim So-hee. Right? She’s alive.”
“… … .”
Kang Tae-woo’s breathing quickens again.
I snapped my fingers in front of Kang Tae-woo and brought him back to his senses.
“If you do that, I can’t explain it to you. Come to your senses.”
“…yes.”
“First of all… As you know, the situation is very complicated right now.”
There were differing opinions about how much to tell Kang Tae-woo.
Yim Ji-seon and Kim Chae-min said that no matter what, they had to hide what they had to hide. This wasn’t related to anything good, and even if they looked into it in detail, it would only be dangerous and wouldn’t be of any help.
But Hong Seok-young and I said that Kang Tae-woo is not an innocent child who doesn’t know anything, so he should know what he needs to know. The child who was thought to be dead is alive, so if you don’t even explain the situation, will you just let it go? The No. 3 I know is not like that.
Well, it’s not that I didn’t understand what Im Ji-seon and Kim Chae-min were saying. It was obvious that a story about a crazy wizard who wanted to release monsters into the world wasn’t good for mental health.
Ultimately, some compromise was necessary.
Kang Tae-woo has already told us all the information he knows honestly. Maybe it’s because he’s been working in the lab for a long time, but sometimes he knows sensitive information that I’m surprised by. Like the contact information that the director of the daycare center hid, or the name of the company that the researchers were hiding.
“…Is it because of that person? The person who attacked me?”
Kang Tae-woo’s eyes change.
“That guy killed Sohee.”
“That’s why I said the situation is complicated.”
I sighed.
“Listen carefully. The research lab you were in originally. Do you know why it was disbanded so hastily?”
“… … .”
“It’s a total mess going back now.”
The green tea that had spilled on the table dripped onto the floor.
I have to clean that up.
“To put it simply, it is an internal strife.”
“It’s me.”
“Yes. They are divided into several groups inside the ark, fighting and beating each other. The guy you saw is the same.”
“… … .”
“There’s family at stake there too.”
Kang Tae-woo’s expression still didn’t seem to let up.
Yeah. If you’re in your right mind, you shouldn’t go around killing other people’s family members just because they’re being held hostage.
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“Recently… he contacted us.”
“… Pension. That’s when. Teacher Chaemin took us.”
“He made a few suggestions while pretending to attack us. He couldn’t handle the captain of the ark on his own, so he wanted to ask for our help.”
Kang Tae-woo opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something. I ignored him and continued talking.
“One of the things he suggested was the children from the orphanage, including your brother.”
“then….”
“They said he pretended to kill her and then ran away.”
Kang Tae-woo was still, like a broken robot. He was mumbling softly, but he couldn’t form proper sentences. If you listened closely, you could hear what he was saying… but what could he do?
“I originally wanted to tell you sooner, but… I had to check if the children were really alive, and if so, if they were safe. Besides, if I made any hasty contact with them, they could be in danger…”
“Okay, okay. Okay, that’s what you said, sir.”
It was a desperate gesture, like a drowning person struggling to grab a life jacket.
Kang Tae-woo barely managed to grab my arm. His hands were strong. He might be more talented than he looks. I’m not sure if he wants to be a hunter though.
I spoke to Kang Tae-woo one more time.
“Your sister is alive.”
* * *
She is a small girl. Smaller than her peers.
Her hair was neatly tied. The red strawberry decoration on her hair band swayed with her awkward, fidgety movements.
‘Hey, can I look here?’
‘Speak comfortably.’
A soft female voice was heard from outside the camera. It was a familiar voice. Kang Tae-woo immediately recognized the voice as Lee Mi-seon, Lee Seung-yeon’s aunt and the school principal.
‘Uh, umm… .’
Despite the gentle encouragement, the girl rolled her eyes and became troubled. The woman offered her help once more.
‘I should tell my brother that I’m doing well. Or how I’m doing?’
‘Ah! That’s right. Oppa, I’m doing well. It was scary at first, but… . Research, ah. Can I say this?’
‘It’s okay. Feel free to talk.’
The girl glanced at the woman outside the camera for a moment, then pursed her lips.
‘… I heard it’s dangerous because of the lab work. A monster just came into the daycare! Do you know, Oppa? Sal… Sal.’
‘Salamander.’
‘Yeah, they came into the orphanage and were running away. That’s when that older brother saved them. That pretty older brother. I heard you met that older brother too.’
Should I say I met that?
‘I said I would bring my brother to America too… . Auntie… .’
‘Sister, no, can’t you call me aunt?’
‘According to what my aunt said, my brother is in Korea? Sister, I can meet him later, right?’
‘Then. Didn’t my sister explain it to you earlier? It’s hard to do it right away… .’
‘Once it’s safe!’
The initial awkwardness in front of the camera quickly disappeared. The child was very excited and started talking about what had happened to him.
‘Hey, you went to the amusement park with Anna and Brad last week? Oh, Anna and Brad, they’re people I live with… Guardians? Auntie, do you know what that’s called?’
‘Just one of your aunts or older sisters… No. They say it’s a foster home.’
‘That’s right! A foster home. There’s another one besides me. His name is Ian. He’s always making this grumpy face. It’s funny because it’s like having a little brother.’
‘Sohee. I heard you’re learning English too?’
‘Anna teaches me. Anna is a high school teacher.’
The child burst into laughter.
‘There’s a picture too. Just a moment!’
The child disappeared off the screen.
The camera shot an empty space for a long time. The video continued without stopping. After waiting for a few more minutes, the child returned with a bright face.
‘braided!’
The child held out several photos.
The photo was taken against the backdrop of an amusement park, with an Asian woman, a Western man, and a child. There was also a small boy present.
‘This is a picture I took at the amusement park. Anna, Brad. This is Ian.’
The four people wearing character headbands looked like a family: mom, dad, older sister, and younger brother.
The child spoke with a regretful face.
‘I wish you had gone with me.’
‘You can come with me next time.’
‘Right? Can we go together?’
‘Okay. Even though it might be difficult right now, I’ll make sure you can go together.’
The child smiled brightly. After showing off the photos and telling stories about playing at the amusement park for a while, the child suddenly stopped talking and opened his eyes wide.
‘Yeah, oppa, you’re wearing the bracelet I made!’
Kang Tae-woo touched his wrist without realizing it.
‘Isn’t that small? It would be really small for you. That’s why I made you a new bracelet. Wait a minute…’
The child disappeared off the screen again, but this time he returned immediately.
‘This! My aunt told me to give it to you! Wear this all the time.’
Bracelet made with sky blue beads.
The child was chattering away while holding it tightly in his hand.
‘Oh my, Sohee. Say hello to Oppa now. It’s been too long.’
‘Ugh… Can’t we do more? I haven’t even told Anna everything I learned yet.’
‘You can do it again next time.’
‘Can I do it again?!’
‘Okay. I’m thinking about what to say to you. Auntie will be back soon.’
‘yes!’
The child looked at the camera and greeted her older brother across the sea.
‘Yes, Oppa. I’m doing well, so don’t worry too much. You have to be doing well, too. Okay?’
My younger brother, who I thought was dead, smiles brightly and waves.
How much is this….
Kang Tae-woo bit his lip. No. It would have been better to have remained unaware of anything. It would have been much better to have smiled brightly without knowing anything than to have cried over the death of his brother.
‘See you later, oppa!’
The video ended with the child’s smiling face.
“… … .”
Kang Tae-woo stood still, looking at the off screen. All sorts of emotions were swirling around him. It felt like everything would come out if he opened his mouth.
Woo Hee-jae quietly watched Kang Tae-woo like that.
“Kang Tae-woo.”
“… … .”
“Kang Tae-woo?”
No matter how many times he called, Kang Tae-woo didn’t move at all, as if he didn’t hear him at all. Woo Hee-jae shrugged.
“Taewoo.”
Low voice.
Kang Tae-woo raised his head a beat late because Woo Hee-jae’s call of his name sounded unfamiliar.
“ruler.”
Woo Hee-jae took out a small paper envelope from his bosom. There was an adorable sticker stuck on it that didn’t suit Woo Hee-jae.
“It’s a gift.”
“… A gift?”
Kang Tae-woo received the paper package with a blank expression. The sticker attached to the envelope had the same character as the headband the child was wearing in the photo that So-hee had shown him earlier.
Kang Tae-woo quickly tore off the sticker. Inside the envelope was….
“ah.”
“Yeah. Ah.”
Tears are welling up in my eyes.
Woo Hee-jae quietly got up and filled the cup with still warm water. After he put the green tea bag in, there was a child who was crying while holding onto a sky blue bead bracelet.
Fantasy, contemporary,