AR Epilogue

PR by textbook & neji

Two years later.

Whoosh. The man swung his knife, and terror was already etched onto his face. Seokju approached him. The moment the man swung his knife again, Seokju twisted the man’s wrist with a sharp movement, and a popping sound rang in the air. The knife clanged onto the floor as it dropped, and Seokju promptly kicked it away. When the knife sank into the villa’s pool, the man decided to try and make his escape.

The sweltering heat of Bangkok made Seokju’s patience wear thin. He chased after the man and kicked him down. Then he dragged him by the hair and pushed his face into the pool water. This house was the headquarters of a voice phishing operation as well as a dorm for the workers to stay. And the man that Seokju had caught was the man in charge.

Gurgle, gurgle. Bubbles rose up onto the surface of the water. Seokju watched him for a while longer before pulling his head out. The man gasped for air.

“Save me…!”

As humans continued to evolve, their methods became more clever. More than a couple of people had died due to this case already. These insects made a profit by filling people with terror and dread. Seokju didn’t feel any sense of guilt towards them at all.

“Let’s go.”

The agent who came with him spoke up from behind. A line of people were coming out of the building with their hands up. They were the other culprits of this voice phishing operation. Another agent placed handcuffs on the man sputtering on the ground.

“Good work.”

Seokju greeted the rest of his colleagues as he left. When one of them asked where he was going, he answered back.

“If we’re done with our work here, then it’s time to go home.”

Because their work had finished earlier than planned, the rest of the team planned on relaxing and enjoying a short vacation. However, Seokju hurriedly began making plans to return home. The phishing criminal had scratched his forearm with his knife, and it was covered in blood. Seokju ripped off the white shirt he had been wearing and wrapped it around his wound. He could just get it treated quickly at an emergency clinic near the airport.

“Hello?”

— You’re having fun eating lots of good food in the southeast, aren’t you, Seokju?

When Seokju heard Jiwon’s voice on the phone, he automatically smiled.

“I just got stabbed at work, and that’s all you have to say?”

— What? Are you hurt?

When he heard Jiwon’s shocked voice, Seokju walked out of the resort and answered in a soft voice.

“Did you seriously believe that, you idiot?”

It looked like he’d have to buy a new shirt before returning home.

— Ah, seriously. If EunSuk wasn’t here right now, I would have cursed at you.

Judging from the way she was whispering, Seokju guessed that their son was sleeping by her side right now. He could imagine how her nose would have scrunched up as she scowled. He wanted to see it for real. He brought the phone closer to his ear, and when he heard her whispering voice, it almost felt as if she were physically closer to him as well. While it felt a little better, it was not enough.

— While I’m stuck in a team without any action, it looks like you’re having a great time enjoying the fresh air outside.

After giving birth to their child, instead of returning to the special-ops team, Jiwon was promoted and moved to the police administrative division. She acted as the liaison between the citizens and the police. She was a perfect fit, but it seemed that she herself didn’t realize it.

“I’ll bring back some souvenirs. What should I buy?”

— Liquor!

Seokju laughed and got into the car that was waiting for him. He wanted to return even an hour sooner if he could. The reason why he decided to become a police officer, the reason why he left the police academy, the reason why he entered a criminal organization and went to prison. And also the reason why he accepted becoming an agent. This idiot didn’t know that she was it, and she was waiting for him. So he went home.

* * *

When Seokju opened the door and entered inside, Lucky was the first one who noticed he was home. His dry nose went up in the air as he sniffed Seokju’s pants to see where he had been. Then he excitedly laid on his back and showed Seokju his belly. After rubbing Lucky’s belly, Seokju began to head towards the kitchen. Jungsook was busily moving around, and when she saw him, she called out.

“Seokju, you’re here! Come in! Come in!”

The red rice cooker rattled, and a delicious aroma filled his nose. He saw that various fry pans and pots were on the stove. The dinner table that Seokju had missed so much while he was away. It was the same warm picture that greeted him when he first entered that old house all those years ago. When Jungsook saw the various bags and packages that filled Seokju’s arms, her eyes widened.

“What is all that?”

“I bought some souvenirs. To give to you and Jiwon.”

“But it’s expensive!”

“And I have a lot of money.”

Seokju’s earnest answer caused Jungsook to burst into laughter.

“Is it true that designer bags in Bangkok are famous?”

“I’ve brought other things as well.”

“Thank you. Thanks to my talented son-in-law, I’m able to live in comfort in the later years of my life.”

Although it was no longer an unfamiliar title, he still felt awkward hearing it. When Jungsook saw him again, she didn’t ask him anything. She merely said, ‘Let’s eat, Seokju.’

She said the words she hadn’t been able to say to him when they all went to the memorial. Jungsook told her late husband that their daughter had brought her groom with her. That our Seokju had caught the criminals that you couldn’t catch. And that he was now going to be a part of the most elite police team in the country. She said all this in a proud voice as she wiped away her tears.

“I shouldn’t have bought you shoes¹. That’s probably why you left us for such a long time. I’m sorry, Seokju.

Inside the car ride back from the memorial, Jungsook said these words in a soft voice. Seokju’s throat choked up at the memory, so he cleared it.

“It’ll still take a while for me to finish cooking. Can you wait a little longer?”

“We could have just gone out to eat, so why did you work so hard?”

“I’m the best when it comes to cooking, so why go out and spend money on food? Mother’s food is better than the food outside.”

Jungsook softly cut him off and gestured for him to come closer.

“Taste this for me. I feel like it’s a bit too salty.”

Jungsook used her hands to feed Seokju some glass noodles. The slightly salty noodles filled his mouth.

“It is too salty, isn’t it? Now that I’m old, it’s getting harder to properly season the food.”

The food was a bit salty just as she said.

“It is a bit saltier than usual.”

‘Right?’ Jungsook looked disappointed as she frowned. When Seokju saw this, he continued.

“But it’s delicious.”

“You said it was salty.”

Jungsook seemed a bit let down, so Seokju thought it would be best to reassure her.

“I sweat a lot these past few days, so I needed to take in a bit more sodium. This is perfect.”

When she heard this, Jungsook’s face brightened.

“Did you work that hard? When your stamina is a bit down, boiled chicken is the best.”

Jungsook opened another large pot and flipped a large piece of chicken. Back when Seokju first began living with them, he had learned a lot. And one of the things he learned was that on the hottest days of the year, the entire family gathered around the table and ate some ginseng chicken soup. That’s when he realized that normal people enjoyed small moments like these and piled memories on top of the other. He recalled the way he felt when he departed from the old house for the last time and his present reality now. He suddenly felt anxious that this was all a dream.

“I heard that it’s going to rain this evening. Maybe that’s why it’s so humid. When I took Lucky out for a walk earlier today, I thought I was going to die.”

The day they brought a dog back from the animal shelter, Jungsook was very against it. But now, she was the one who cared for him the most. Seokju hid his smile and rolled up his sleeves. The most surprising thing about humans was the fact that emotions always seemed to win over logic and reason.

“Let me help.”

“No, I’m almost done. Just go and wash up and come down when I call.”

“Is Jiwon upstairs?”

He didn’t hear anything in the playroom on the first floor. But seeing as how it was quiet upstairs, Seokju wondered if Jiwon was putting the baby to sleep. He wanted to see her.

“No. EunSuk was getting fussy, so she took him for a walk out front.”

When Jiwon went into labor, she gave birth so bravely that the doctor could hardly believe that this was her first child. After giving birth to their healthy son, she flashed him a tired smile and said, ‘You saw that, right? This is how amazing I am.’ When he heard this, Seokju couldn’t hold back his emotions. He had already become aware of this at some point. He was not the one who saved her. She had saved him.

The child grew every single day. Whenever he woke up in the morning, he seemed bigger than the night before. Jiwon gazed at their son with loving eyes. For Seokju, the child was precious, but he didn’t think anyone else would be able to take Jiwon’s spot in his life. If he told this to Jiwon, he was certain that she would get angry and claim he was being too cold. This was because she did not know that as his first love, she had taken all his love.

“Omo, I wonder if she took an umbrella with her.”

“I’ll go out and see.”

“Will you? It’ll take a while before the food’s done anyway.”

Seokju walked to the shoe closet and pulled out a large umbrella. Lucky sat in front of the air conditioner with his tongue out as he smiled. It didn’t look like he planned on going out with him. Seokju gave Lucky a few pats before he went outside.

The sky darkened in an instant, and the clouds gathered. Soon, a few drops of rain began to fall. A wet fog spread out through the green trees, and the world became blurry like a watercolor painting. There was barely anyone on the path that circled the park. Although there weren’t many people who came out due to the unpleasant weather, Seokju knew that his wife was here.

The small drops of rain grew bigger, and a rumble of thunder began to sound in the sky. Seokju opened the large umbrella as his steps grew faster. He wondered if she was completely drenched and was trying to find shelter in some stranger’s house. However, knowing her, she’d probably knock on the door of a familiar neighbor. Either way, Seokju hoped that she had managed to avoid the fierce rainfall.

Seokju passed by a bicyclist, but he did not see Jiwon anywhere. Puddles of water began to form on the path, and the hem of his pants were now wet. Suddenly, he heard someone singing up ahead.

“Mommy shark! Doo roo roo doo roo! So pretty! Doo roo roo doo roo! Mommy shark!”

Rather than a children’s song, the sonorous voice sounded like it was singing a military march.

“Grandma shark! Doo roo roo doo roo! So caring! Doo roo roo doo roo! Grandma shark!”

Seokju finally found Jiwon as she ran, pushing the stroller while loudly singing the song. After she got to Grandpa shark, she raised her hand up to her eye. It looked like she’d finally discovered him. She paused for a moment before sprinting towards him with the stroller.

“Ah…”

Seokju clicked his tongue as his pace quickened. He was worried Jiwon would trip and roll along with the stroller. Her haphazardly tied hair was completely drenched and was sticking to her pale forehead. Her loose t-shirt was dripping with rain, but Jiwon’s face was as bright as the moon.

“Look, it’s Daddy shark.”

Jiwon’s bright smile was the same one that made him fall in love with her all those years ago.

“Even if you speed in a stroller, you may end up losing your license.”

“You must not know. My client here loves speed.”

Jiwon slipped underneath Seokju’s umbrella and folded back the stroller’s cover to show him the child inside. A dry, soft baby appeared. When the child saw Seokju, his hands and feet wriggled. The rattle in his hand began to shake. Seokju wanted to bring the child into his arms, but it was raining too hard to do that.

Seokju closed the cover so that the child wouldn’t get hit by the rain. Then he wrapped his arm around Jiwon’s wet hips. When he brought her into his arms, he finally felt like he’d come home.

“If you’re doing too well when I’m not here, it makes me angry.”

Jiwon looked into his eyes and nodded.

“Okay. I love you, too, Seokju.”

Seokju gazed at his wife’s mischievous smile before pressing his lips to hers. The kiss lasted a long time. The sound of the pattering rain on the umbrella made his heart race.

Whenever it rained when he was young, he’d often sit by the old door of his house and think about her. And when this happened, his heart would start racing and he’d feel like crying, just like now. What made him feel so emotional was not the rain pouring from the sky. It was the memory of a young girl who grabbed him in the rain, crying as she asked him to go with her. And when he met her again, he came to a realization.

He had always wanted something so badly, but he never really knew what it was. This was before he had been reunited with her. The moment she appeared, he felt like a warm light had suddenly switched on in the midst of the black waters of the sea. As long as he followed that light, no matter how fiercely the waves crashed against him, he felt that he’d be okay. As long as the destination of this rough voyage was that light.