SAV Chapter 24

I stopped behind a pillar slightly separated from the hall, facing Choi Jeha. His face… oh my, it was truly in terrible shape.

 

“I’ll clean up the hall, so you should rest…”

 

“Please just leave me alone. I’m begging you.”

 

I genuinely wanted to help. But I was coldly rejected.

 

“How can I ignore you when you look so awful?”

 

With his pale complexion, Choi Jeha frowned and peeled something off my right cheek, then stuck it on my chest.

 

“The one who looks awful is you.”

 

It was a pink sticker with pretty lips drawn on it. Plus, the speech bubble had colorful writing saying “You’re my cutie.” I wondered why this was stuck on my cheek, then remembered Kim Juyoung poking my cheek earlier. He must have put it on then.

 

“Oh come on, Kim Juyoung, that jerk…”

 

“Move.”

 

Choi Jeha tried to push past me to go out to the hall. I don’t understand why he’s being so stubborn when he can barely walk properly-what if he spills a pot of stew?

 

“Hey.”

 

Worried, I grabbed Choi Jeha again.

 

“I can clean and move things too. Just tell me which table gets what food, okay?”

 

“Why would you do that for me?”

 

Because we’re friends.

 

Saying that wouldn’t help-the current Choi Jeha wouldn’t believe me. He suspects me of being the main instigator of his bullying, and he probably thinks I tricked him with the bet recently. It’s only natural not to want help from someone you don’t trust.

 

So what if I changed my approach?

 

Not help, but something with fair compensation.

 

“Let’s do this then. From now on, I’ll work in your place, and when you get your paycheck, you can pay me hourly for the time I worked.”

 

Choi Jeha’s expression seemed hesitant. I thought I shouldn’t leave the decision in his hands. Saying “contract sealed” like slipping past a snake, I grabbed Choi Jeha’s wrist and pushed him into the kitchen area behind the curtain.

 

“Go in and rest. Just tell me which table when the food comes out.”

 

He must really be sick, because normally Choi Jeha would have stubbornly insisted until the end, but he let himself be pushed in easily. Though it was momentary, the scent emanating from Choi Jeha’s body felt overwhelmingly strong.

 

‘Pheromones…’

 

I recalled what Kim Juyoung had said at the bookstore while sniffing my neck.

 

All this time, I thought the scent from Choi Jeha’s body was fabric softener. But what if it was pheromones? Then there would be a reason why his scent felt particularly strong today.

 

Maybe it intensifies when he’s unwell, or perhaps it’s a precursor to manifestation. Wanting to ask him directly, I lifted the pink floral curtain and poked my head into the kitchen.

 

There was no owner or cook. Only Choi Jeha was slumped over the counter, looking half-dead.

 

“What’s this? Where’s the cook?”

 

“There isn’t one.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“At night, it’s just me.”

 

Choi Jeha muttered quietly, holding his forehead as if dizzy.

 

“Then who makes the food?”

 

“I do.”

 

“You? Since when?”

 

So does that mean the amazing kimchi stew I ate that day was made by Choi Jeha too?

 

“From the beginning. Can you stop making me talk and just leave? I told you to rest.”

 

No wonder he would go into the kitchen whenever an order came in and not come out for a while. I thought he was deliberately avoiding me because he didn’t want to see me, but I’m relieved that wasn’t the case.

 

Anyway, that’s that.

 

‘At this rate, even if I help, he won’t be able to rest properly.’

 

I possessed the remarkable ability to turn even my mom’s kimchi stew into a biochemical weapon. It was a talent that could clear out all the customers who had gathered for Choi Jeha’s cooking skills in one go, but it could also earn his hatred, so I confessed honestly.

 

“I… can’t cook.”

 

I said in an uncertain voice.

 

I watched Choi Jeha’s reaction, afraid he might tell me I was useless and to leave. He waved his hand dismissively while still slumped over, as if he couldn’t be bothered to talk to me. Even when sick, he was still prickly toward me.

 

“I’ll do the cooking, just go out and clean the tables.”

 

Seeing him ask me for something despite disliking me, he must really be quite ill.

 

“Are you sure you’ll be okay cooking? If you spill something hot…”

 

I added one more concerned comment, but…

 

“Just.”

 

He expressed his meaning with one heavy, firm word that meant “get out.” It conveyed his intent more clearly than any other words could have. I pulled my head out from between the curtains and headed to the hall with an empty tray.

 

It finally quieted down after 2 AM.

 

Looking around at the mostly cleaned tables, only two remained occupied. Even those customers seemed about to leave after finishing their meals.

 

Feeling somewhat relieved, I tapped my stiff back and glanced toward the kitchen. Worried about how Choi Jeha was doing, I slightly opened the curtain.

 

He was slumped over the messy counter, sitting on a narrow chair. His firm, broad back rose and fell laboriously. He probably didn’t even have the energy to clean up.

 

“Are you okay? Only two tables left.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Choi Jeha turned his head slightly toward me, his face drenched in sweat.

 

“You don’t look okay at all.”

 

I walked to the water dispenser and filled a cup with cold water. Then I handed it to Choi Jeha, whose uniform was soaked with sweat.

 

He stared at the cup suspiciously, questioning my kindness.

 

“Drink.”

 

“I’m fine.”

 

“Every time you open your mouth it’s ‘I’m fine.’ You’re on the verge of dehydration. If you don’t have the strength to drink, should I feed you mouth to mouth?”

 

“What are you saying, you crazy bastard.”

 

Choi Jeha finally reached for the cup, lifting his head with difficulty. Watching the clear water disappearing down his throat without pause, I slowly opened my mouth.

 

“Is it a cold?”

 

After emptying the cup completely, he shook his head as he put it down. He seemed to know the reason for his symptoms. Then, as if feeling dizzy, he held his forehead and collapsed onto the counter.

 

“Then what’s wrong with you?”

 

Choi Jeha kept his mouth firmly shut.

 

It was frustrating dealing with someone so difficult to converse with, but wanting to open up his heart, I asked once more.

 

 

“I need to know what’s wrong so I can buy you medicine.”

 

“There are no pharmacies open at this hour.”

 

He said firmly.

 

“Convenience stores sell emergency medicine too, you know?”

 

I countered, not backing down.

 

“Can’t buy it at a convenience store.”

 

“Why not? They have painkillers and cold medicine.”

 

“It’s not medicine you can buy there. Stop making me talk. I’m dying here.”

 

“I’m trying to worry about you and you’re still being difficult. Then stop suffering in front of me.”

 

My voice came out twisted with annoyance because I was worried sick but he kept being stubborn. I didn’t really mean it.

 

A bead of sweat rolled down Choi Jeha’s sharp facial contours as he sat silently. I was about to argue one more time but my heart softened again. I relaxed my glaring eyes and reached out to wipe the sweat from his cheek, then quickly pulled my hand away in surprise.

 

‘Why am I wiping with my hand? What are tissues for?’

 

He seemed startled by my sudden action too, looking at me with widened eyes.

 

“I’ll get you some tissues.”

 

I said, turning away awkwardly.

 

“Forget the tissues.”

 

He grabbed the hem of my clothes firmly as I turned. Looking into his eyes, black as go stones, they were honest enough that I’d tell him my bank PIN if he asked.

 

“Can I ask you for one favor?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“Let me borrow your name.”

 

Name?

 

Does he mean using my identity?

 

They say you shouldn’t lend your identity even between parent and child. But faced with Choi Jeha’s straightforward gaze, my head nodded automatically.

 

‘Mom, I think I’m the perfect type to get scammed.’

 

While I was wondering if I needed to co-sign something, Choi Jeha pulled out his phone, not a contract, from his pocket.

 

I silently watched as he dialed someone. It was an old model, so broken in various places that I wonder

 

ed if it even worked properly, with a screen that flickered on and off.

 

“Have you eaten, Grandmother?”

 

I quietly looked down at Choi Jeha standing beside me as he talked on the phone. Though he tried to speak normally to avoid worrying his grandmother, his body had a slight tremor.

 

He really knows how to tug at someone’s heartstrings.

 

“Me? No, I’m fine. Really. Ah, there were just a lot of customers today, so I’m a bit tired.”

 

I felt sorry for Choi Jeha as he forced a smile and told clumsy lies to prevent his grandmother from worrying.

 

“But Grandmother, I don’t think I can come home tonight. I promised to study with some friends after work.”

 

Choi Jeha lived with his grandmother in a single-room apartment. No matter how much he tried to hide his illness, what grandmother wouldn’t notice her grandson suffering after living together for over a decade? That’s why he was making up an excuse about staying at a friend’s house to avoid facing her.

 

And that’s where my name was needed.

 

“Yes, yes, his name is Cha Eunseong, a classmate. What? Oh, no, not those kids I met at the bank.”

 

If he’s referring to kids met at the bank, that must be Lee Gyuseong’s group.

 

Choi Jeha probably never told his grandmother that they weren’t his friends but actually his bullies, so she still seems to be under a misunderstanding. I wasn’t thrilled about being mistaken for one of those punks.

 

“Give it to me.”

 

I extended my hand to Choi Jeha, wanting to help. He stared at my outstretched hand for a moment before lifting his head to look at me.