I may be a sick Sparrow, but I am still the Landlord chapter 22

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A few days later, Jinho visited Saewoo at home.

He’d heard that the building contract issue wasn’t resolving smoothly, so he came over under the guise of a housewarming visit.

At first, Saewoo had declined, saying it was dangerous because there were many wild beasts around.

However, since the original main character Ye Taekwon was a gangster and would bring along some muscle-bound men, Saewoo agreed to invite him over.

The patchwork in his hair could be hidden well enough with a carefully parted hairstyle as long as Jinho didn’t look too closely.

“Wow… you’ve set this place up nicely. The veranda’s huge too. Here, take this.”

“Oh, thank you. You didn’t have to bring anything….”

As a housewarming gift, Jinho brought a whole bunch of self-defense items.

Pepper spray, a baton, a taser, and even a whistle—things Saewoo had never seen before.

Saewoo declined Jinho’s offer to explain how to use each item, instead giving him a tour of the house.

Thankfully, Jinho seemed impressed as he looked around.

“This veranda is big enough; you could make a flower bed over here. The sunlight’s great too. This place faces south, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Of course—south-facing is the best for a house!”

Saewoo felt proud at Jinho’s praise.

One of the reasons he’d chosen this fourth-floor unit was because of its spacious veranda.

The clean air and great view, with a low mountain visible outside the window, were major bonuses too.

‘Sigh… I should’ve been more suspicious. There’s no way such a nice place would go on sale for this price. Foolish sparrow….’

Saewoo sighed to himself, feeling a pang of regret.

“You’re good with your hands, Saewoo. You could make a garden here, decorate it like a cozy café—it’d be such a nice place to relax.”

Jinho, oblivious to Saewoo’s inner thoughts, continued to praise the veranda, adding hopeful suggestions.

“Yeah, I’m actually considering decorating it a bit if I have time.”

“Great, great! Let me know if you need any help—I’ll pitch in.”

Saewoo, who had grown close to Jinho since embodying the character, knew his friend meant it and was touched by his warm words.

“Can I check out your bedroom too?”

“Sure, but… I only moved the mattress there in a hurry, so there’s not much to see.”

“I’ll just take a quick look.”

Saewoo led him to the bedroom, also south-facing like the veranda.

As he’d mentioned, there was just a mattress, a pillow, and a blanket in the room.

“Is this a new blanket?”

“Uh….”

Jinho gestured at the duvet, which looked particularly fluffy and clean under the sunlight streaming through the window.

It was the down comforter Jibeom had given him.

“It’s not new… just a gift….”

“A gift?”

‘A gift? Well, I guess it is, though it could also just be something he lent me….’

But then again, Jibeom hadn’t said anything about it since, and Saewoo had been too busy to think much of it.

“It looks so cozy. I should ask Taekwon about one like it later. I haven’t been sleeping well lately, maybe because it’s winter.”

“Yeah, it’s true, winter makes it harder to sleep….”

As a sparrow-shifter, he instinctively sought cozy, nest-like spaces.

While he didn’t need extreme warmth, he placed a lot of importance on the comfort of his sleeping environment, like the mattress, pillow, and duvet.

And that’s precisely why he’d envied Jibeom’s down comforter.

“Could you send me the details for the comforter later if it’s okay?”

“Sure, will do. Are you hungry? Anything in particular you’d like?”

After wrapping up the tour, Saewoo led Jinho to the kitchen.

When Jinho said he was fine with anything, Saewoo decided to make a simple spinach pasta.

“Oh, right, Saewoo. The lady from the food stall was worried about you.”

“Oh….”

Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t gone back to see her since that sudden visit.

She must’ve been shocked when the wild animal ransacked her dumpling container… He’d completely forgotten.

“I reassured her that you’re doing well, so don’t worry.”

“Thanks, Jinho….”

He’d have to visit her soon.

Sizzle, pop…!

As Saewoo sautéed the seafood with sauce in the pan, Jinho, who had been chatting from the counter, suddenly slipped on his coat.

“…It’s a bit chilly.”

Jinho chuckled softly, zipping his thick parka all the way up to his neck.

“Ah… right? Should I bring over the electric heater?”

“No, I’m fine. Ooh, it smells delicious. I can’t wait to dig in…!”

“Just hang on a bit—it’ll be ready soon.”

Saewoo focused on the pasta, but his mind was uneasy.

He hadn’t applied for the city gas line yet, so there was no central heating.

Cooking was inconvenient too, as he was using a mini-induction cooktop he’d had stored away.

‘I figured it’d be warm enough since it’s south-facing and it’s daytime….’

It seemed Jinho, who was used to a large, well-heated home, was more sensitive to the cold.

‘I really do need to apply for city gas soon….’

It wasn’t that he’d been too busy to apply, but rather that he was hesitant.

The manager of the previous territory had refused to make a house call, claiming they didn’t serve wild beast zones.

Wild beasts… The constant issue was these wild beasts.

The nearby landlords he’d briefly spoken to seemed nice enough.

But was that enough to feel reassured?

It was overwhelming.

If such a small task left him feeling this anxious, how would he handle things in the future…?

“Saewoo.”

“…Huh?”

At that moment, Jinho, who had started eating the spinach pasta, called out to him.

“You’re dealing with a lot, aren’t you? You have so much on your plate.”

“Oh, no, I’m… it’s not that bad…”

“Saewoo.”

As he tried to brush it off, Jinho called his name again, with a calm tone that suggested he wanted him to listen.

“You don’t need to force yourself to say you’re okay or pretend there’s no problem. If it’s hard, if you need help, being honest about it… I’d be really grateful if you could do that.”

“…Ah.”

Jinho must have felt that way all along.

He’d known Jinho was a sensitive person, but he didn’t realize just how much he cared.

“To be honest… I was happy when you said you’d become a building owner. It felt like you were planning to settle down here. It might sound strange, but… I always worried that one day, you’d just up and leave…”

Saewoo felt a pang at Jinho’s confession.

‘Oh… Did he notice, even though I tried to hide it?’

In truth, Saewoo had thought he’d be able to return to his original world once he got through the ending of this novel safely.

To keep himself from getting too attached and feeling heartbroken when he left, he’d purposely kept some distance from the other people here, avoiding deep relationships.

In the end, though, he hadn’t been able to return to his original world after the ending, so he’d decided to settle down.

“That’s why, if you’ve decided to stay here, it’s okay to lean on others once in a while. It’s okay to ask for help.”

Jinho met Saewoo’s gaze with eyes that sparkled, speaking earnestly.

“That’s what it means to get to know each other.”

When Jinho gave him that sincere advice with a broad smile, Saewoo couldn’t help but smile back and nod along.

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“So, you called me here just because of that big bear?”

The next day, after putting in a request for city gas service, Saewoo contacted Jibeom to see if he could come at the time the technician was scheduled to arrive.

When Jibeom saw the bear-like gas technician installing the kitchen hose, he said that right away.

“…?”

The technician turned to look at them with a puzzled expression.

Saewoo, feeling awkward, led Jibeom toward the bedroom.

“Can you not say things like that?”

Saewoo whispered, scolding Jibeom, who narrowed his eyes.

“Am I wrong? You were scared of being alone with that bear, so you called me, right?”

Ouch. It stung to realize he hadn’t been able to hide his nervousness after all.

“Well… yes, sort of…”

“Ha… And here I thought you were asking me out on a date or something. I even bought new clothes.”

“D-Date? Wait, you bought new clothes?”

Saewoo’s eyes widened in surprise.

He’d barely messaged Jibeom that morning, and somehow, he’d managed to buy a new outfit in that time.

“Yeah, how am I supposed to know what our picky little sparrow likes? So, what do you think? Like it?”

“Oh…”

Now that he looked, Jibeom’s outfit was indeed different.

Normally, he wore loose, flashy shirts with jackets, but today he was in a tailored suit with a crisp white dress shirt.

“A… a salaryman?”

“Oh, come on, a salaryman? Can’t you say I look more like a hotshot CEO?”

“…”

Well… if he had to put a label on it, he looked more like a spoiled third-generation chaebol who’d been handed a CEO position as a cushy favor.

But Saewoo held his tongue, sensing that if he said that out loud, Jibeom might throw a fit.

“It wasn’t that I was asking you out… just to be clear.”

“See? I knew it.”

“Let’s get something to eat, though. Together.”

“What?”

Jibeom’s eyes widened at Saewoo’s suggestion.

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