Chapter 277: Chapter 277

.

Eun Jiho and Yoo Chun Young left the country to stay abroad during the break but a little later than usual; our library meetings, therefore, naturally came to an end.

Ban Yeo Ryung and I became slightly busier because some psychological assessments suddenly stepped into our daily schedule. Eun Jiho almost begged me to take those exams since Hanwool Group was paying for all the expenses. I told him I was totally fine, but he wouldn’t listen. He was worrying that aftereffects from the kidnapping might occur later; however, so many types of tests were conducted that I had to waste over half of my day in the hospital.

Every time I came back from the clinics, I fetched a deep sigh. My precious time! I wasn’t the kind of person like you guys who were nationwide top rankers in test scores just by studying a few major subjects with textbooks only.

Other than that, life was, however, utterly the same as the time before getting kidnapped. Ban Yeo Ryung, still, continued her part-time job, and I sometimes went to the library with Jooin. Of course, it was to catch up on my studying, but there was also a slight intention to see if I could meet Yi Ruda there.

As if the day when Yi Ruda saw me at the library was, however, just a coincidence, I couldn’t see her at that place at all. Well, books weren’t an object that went along with Yi Ruda. Having that thought, I just concentrated on studying during the daytime.

And at night, I called Eun Jiho on a regular basis.

Since Eun Jiho was staying in the States, there was a big time-difference, so having a phone call wasn’t that easy, but the reason why I called him every night was to treat his injury.

Honestly speaking, after having a few conversations, Ban Yeo Ryung and I agreed that Eun Jiho was apparently more shocked than us, those who got kidnapped. Why was he feeling more hurt and damaged when it was us who were the actual victims? Wondering about it, I wrinkled my nose.

A question then came over the phone just in time.

[You’re having the check-up regularly, right?]

“Geez, yes, but do you mind if I can just stop now? No matter how many times I think, I reach the conclusion that I’m totally fine.”

[That’s up to the doctor, not you, isn’t it?]

His nonchalant voice made me have a fit of anger for a second.

‘You know what? In my point of view, you’re the one who really needs the treatment!’

However, I couldn’t utter that on the phone to this bastard who was working hard abroad. Swallowing those words that welled up from the depths within me, I tried to drop my remark composedly.

“Anyway, we are able to figure that out by intuition. I took all the tests, and the results will come out after about three days… Gosh, do you know how time-consuming this is? You should compensate for this when you return to Korea.”

His response was unexpectedly submissive.

[Yes, yes. You’ve done a great job taking the tests regularly. How should I reward you?]

Hmm, well… As he reacted meekly saying that he would give me a compensation, I became speechless.

Rolling my eyes, I replied, “Maybe having you as my private tutor? I wasn’t able to study because of those tests.”

[That sounds nice, but you know that I take the study-till-you-drop method of teaching because that’s how I’ve learned.]

“Oh, hold on. Let’s do something else.”

[Go ahead.]

Eun Jiho giggled. When he was in Korea, he called me anytime for no reason; however, when I started to call him every day, he was quite bewildered. Eun Jiho, however, soon got used to it and babbled all kinds of things.

Now I surely could know why he, at first, felt strange about our phone calls. Looking down at the sleeping city while leaning on the apartment railing, talking to Eun Jiho over the phone, who was on the other side of the globe, was a more unfamiliar experience than I thought.

I was caught up in such sentiment while dropping my gaze at the apartment complex subsided in the streetlights. What Eun Jiho suddenly brought up then made me frown.

[Come to think of it, did you decide your career?]

“Oh…”

How could Eun Jiho bring up the career survey first that even I forgot?

Yes, I completely forgot about it. While I gaped blankly at his question, Eun Jiho replied yet with a less enthusiastic voice.

[Just fill it up. Why are you so serious when we aren’t always following what we’ve written down?]

‘Geez, do you think that helps?’ With a frown, I lowered my head to bring my mouth closer to the phone.

“Dude, you won’t understand, but a person whose future is as uncertain as me must be careful writing even just a single letter since we’re afraid of things coming true as we say.”

His response, however, still sounded easygoing.

[Then just apply to more selective schools like the top universities, or you can set your sights on medical school.]

“I’m not good at math.”

[Then a lawyer?]

“You’ve been blurting out whatever you want from earlier, huh?]

Replying to Eun Jiho like that way, I couldn’t even remember where I put that survey, so I furrowed my brows. The paper should be submitted on the first day of school after the break. Now there were only a few days left until the end of summer vacation.

Let’s see… Did I put it inside the front pocket of my bag? No, my mom washed the bag and was drying it at the balcony, wasn’t she?

Wondering about where it was, I soon grumbled, ‘Gosh, this is happening because I had to go back and forth between hospitals for taking those complicated tests almost every day. Going to see the doctor seems like nothing, but it really wastes my time and energy.’ It was, however, thankful that Ban Yeo Ryung and I didn’t have any hidden terminal disease.

Suddenly, something entered my head.

“Hey, Eun Jiho?”

[Huh?]

“What did you write down?”

Even though I asked like that, I thought I already knew the answer.

And yes, indeed he replied what I had expected.

[I told you I don’t have any choice? You know, I just wrote down business management.]

Resting my chin on the elbow that I put on the railing, I flung another question.

“Still, there must be something you want to do no matter what. Don’t you have any?”

[…]

“Haven’t you even thought about it?”

A heavy silence prevailed in between us. It was such a long pause that I wondered if someone had called us and, therefore, we both stopped talking on the phone while leaving the cell phones down.

That was when I tried to detach my lips, at last, while feeling unbearable of the long wait.

[You always make me think about something that I must not.]

I quietly tilted my head then soon asked him with a slight grimace.

“Are you even not allowed to think of what you like?”

[Thinking about it will cause desire. I’ll then wish and try to have it.]

“Why not?”

[Don’t you know something like incompatible?]

His voice didn’t sound subsided anymore. That heaviness was suddenly gone like a lie.

Eun Jiho, who utterly returned to his usual tone, blurted out his words.

[I can’t stop doing what I must do because of the things I want.]

“Why are you so complicated?”

[It isn’t me who’s complicated; it’s my situation and surroundings.]

Well, in my point of view, the way you deal with those complicated situations and surroundings was also too strict and intricate.

In fact, whether it was Ban Yeo Ryung or the rest of the Four Heavenly Kings, everyone had their own expected or suggested way of life. For instance, Eun Hyung living his life with too much gravity or Jooin showing kindness to every people was also coming up to other’s expectations.

However, even those kids didn’t try to live up to every expectation on them since they knew it was more than just difficult but almost impossible.

Only Eun Jiho didn’t try to give up all those expectations.

He was about to walk along the path given to him rigidly without any compromise. Cutting off hundreds and thousands of all his branches stretching to the future, Eun Jiho was only taking a single road.

Heading for the future, he might be discarding the present too.

I wanted to ask him again.

‘In your ideal future that you are shaping and drawing, am I still there?’

* * *

It was time to hang up the phone. Meanwhile, the night air quickly cooled down when autumn was just around the corner. Shoving my hands inside both pockets on my thin pants, I entered the passcode on the door and tried to step into the house, but my mom was there still not asleep.

After nodding at her, I moved my steps to my room. My mom then called me.

“Donnie, you were only in touch with Jiho today as well.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you keep in touch with Chun Young?”

“Oh…”

Rolling my eyes for a moment, I replied, “He’s abroad.”

“Isn’t Jiho too?”

“Haha…”

I just smiled awkwardly then quickly came into my room.