* * *
Beom Sinje naturally guided Doyoung to the checkout.
After paying, he took the bags and claimed the driver’s seat this time.
“Hyung.”
“Hm?”
“Is there anything you want to do besides hunter work?”
As they left the department store and drove through the city, Beom Sinje asked.
“Originally, my plan was to be a wealthy retiree.”
He glanced at the passenger seat in response to the teasing comment.
Doyoung was smiling. Looking at his cheerful expression, Beom Sinje remembered something he’d long forgotten— ‘Ah, that did happen once, didn’t it?’
“Like becoming a singer or an actor?”
“What? Hey, what are you talking about? There’s no way I could do something like that.”
“Why not? I think you’d be good at it.”
Wasn’t this the same Doyoung who had tricked him completely and acted so naturally all that time?
In a way, it felt like it would really suit him.
Then again, the idea that so many people might see that Doyoung left a faint unpleasant feeling in his chest.
“Nah, not for me. I just like living an ordinary life.”
Even though his life was already far from ordinary, hearing him say that made Beom Sinje laugh softly.
Come to think of it, there probably weren’t many people as unaware of who they really were as Doyoung.
‘And hopefully he’ll keep not knowing.’
That way, it’d be easier to protect him from the things Beom Sinje got involved in.
Whether Doyoung knew what he was thinking or not, he continued gazing out the window, lost in thought.
“Are you that nervous?”
“Ah, well… I can’t exactly say I’m not.”
“Doesn’t sound like the same guy who used to take on the government without flinching.”
“That and this are different. Back then, I could just charge in. I didn’t have to care what they thought of me.”
As he spoke calmly, Beom Sinje gently tapped the back of Doyoung’s pale, slender hand.
“How is this any different?”
“I want to make a good impression. It’s your mother, after all.”
This time his tone was firmer.
Beom Sinje smiled helplessly and stroked his hand gently.
Then he interlaced their fingers.
Doyoung quietly let him.
He used to ask if it was uncomfortable, but after hearing Beom Sinje say he liked it, he found that just letting it be made him feel at ease, too.
“I’m sure she’ll like you no matter what.”
“I doubt that.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m the one who put her in the hospital.”
Even if it was for Beom Sinje’s sake.
Even if he had explained the situation to her at the time.
“I told you—she was actually grateful. She’s been doing better and enjoying herself more. That wasn’t just polite talk.”
“Yeah. I know.”
She always seemed genuinely happy to see them, looked at ease.
Still, sometimes Doyoung couldn’t help but wonder if he’d been too forceful with her under the guise of doing it for Beom Sinje.
“Well, if you’re not sure, you can ask her yourself.”
“Don’t even start.”
What kind of line is that supposed to be?
Just trying to put him on the spot?
Doyoung looked back, startled—and that’s when Beom Sinje leaned in and kissed him with a loud smack.
Doyoung stared at him in disbelief.
And then came another kiss.
One after the other, in the brief moment they’d stopped the car.
In the end, Doyoung couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
◇◆◇◆◇
“Doyoung-nim, welcome.”
Mrs. Jo Wonhee greeted Doyoung warmly and with her usual grace.
Ever since he told her not to call him “Hunter,” she had stubbornly switched to “-nim,” which was just as awkward.
It was one of those quirks he couldn’t win against.
But for some reason, hearing it today felt particularly hard to endure.
‘Next time, I have to tell her to just use my name.’
He was no longer just Beom Sinje’s comrade or savior.
So how she addressed him had to change too.
“Hello, Mother. Have you been well?”
“Of course. Thanks to you, I’ve been doing very well.”
Just as she insisted on using “-nim,” Doyoung insisted on calling her “Mother.”
In Beom Sinje’s eyes, the two were quite alike.
Even if they themselves didn’t see it that way.
“But what did you bring that looks so heavy?”
Mrs. Jo Wonhee had been eyeing the bags since the moment they entered.
“Ah, this is…”
Doyoung started to explain, but Beom Sinje spoke up first.
“Hyung here practically cleared out the food section of the department store for you. There’s fruit, cake, cookies, tea, drinks—you name it.”
“You really didn’t have to go through all that. You could’ve just come empty-handed…”
She smiled, grateful yet apologetic.
While the three exchanged greetings, she motioned to the caregiver standing by to start putting things away.
“We should try some of this now. With such good stuff, it’d be a waste not to.”
Doyoung studied her carefully. Her complexion looked good.
She seemed cheerful. It appeared her condition was stable.
‘I guess… this might be a good time for the big announcement?’
Naturally, his eyes turned to Beom Sinje.
Sensing the silent question, Sinje’s gaze softened with a smile.
Then, as if nothing was going on, he casually shifted the conversation.
“How’s your health been lately?”
“The weather’s nice these days, so I’ve been going for walks—an hour a day.”
“No discomfort anywhere?”
Somehow, that sounded an awful lot like what Beom Sinje asked him every day.
Then again, Sinje was unusually attentive when it came to health.
Maybe it was because neither Doyoung nor his mother had particularly strong constitutions.
Feeling a bit guilty, Doyoung offered a slightly awkward smile—just in time to meet Mrs. Jo Wonhee’s eyes.
She returned his look with a gentle, knowing smile, as if to say she understood everything.
“None at all. In fact, I was thinking it might be time for me to get discharged.”
Then she dropped an unexpected bomb.
“You’re getting discharged?”
Beom Sinje asked, clearly surprised.
Mrs. Jo Wonhee nodded, as if wondering why he’d even ask.
Doyoung thought her expression looked just like Sinje’s when he was being stubborn.
“Is the hospital uncomfortable for you?”
“Oh, no. Not at all. It’s been wonderful.”
“Then have you been feeling cooped up because you can’t go out often?”
If that was the case, he was prepared to call in a favor immediately—but Mrs. Jo Wonhee shook her head again.
“I’m not really the type to go out a lot anyway. And whenever I want fresh air, the hospital provides a car for me.”
That was something Doyoung had specially arranged with the hospital.
Even so, just as she said, there really wasn’t anything to complain about.
“But I’m healthy now, aren’t I? I can’t stay in a hospital forever. It’s about time I got back out and started working again.”
At those words, Doyoung turned again to Beom Sinje.
Honestly, from her perspective, it wasn’t an unreasonable thought.
‘But… her illness isn’t something that can be fully cured…’
* * *
