Chapter 41. Carelessness

Chapter 41. Carelessness

“How is it? Does it match the one at home?”

“Yes, I think we can take this one. Maybe it’s because it’s the same chain store…”

“That’s a relief. Alright, let’s clear the ones on the Display Shelf and take them. I think we can put them down in this corner.”

“Yep. Mister, but we can’t take two at once, can we?”

“Hmm… I’d have to try to know for sure. I might be able to manage if I balance one on each shoulder, one in each hand. Let’s take two out first, and if it doesn’t work, we can always come back for another.”

I wasn’t sure if Minsu didn’t know we were here, or if he simply wasn’t inside the building right now.

Even as I entered the Convenience Store and took down the few remaining items from the Display Shelf, it remained eerily quiet, with no sign of him.

“Gayoung, let’s start by taking out the ones near the door. Do you think two will be enough?”

“Yes, for now. Actually, one more would be enough for the immediate future, but I figured our supplies might increase, so one is just a spare.”

“Ah, so that’s it? Hold this Baseball Bat for a moment.”

I moved the Display Shelf by myself, with Gayoung trailing along beside me. Feeling as if I’d acquired a pet, I crossed the road, placed the Display Shelf on the sidewalk, and re-entered the Convenience Store.

Clunk, clunk, clunk! Rattle!

As Gayoung and I stepped back into the Convenience Store, an empty plastic bottle suddenly rolled down. Had Minsu drunk it and not put it away? Well, he wouldn’t be separating recyclables in a situation like this, would he? Maybe he’d recycle the plastic bottle later.

“Eek! You scared me… Oh, I was really startled. Why did that suddenly fall?”

“I know, maybe it’s because the door was open. I was startled too.”

I carried out another empty Convenience Store Display Shelf. I tried to lift two Display Shelves at once, but I couldn’t quite get the right posture. It wasn’t due to the weight, but their size made it impossible to find the center of gravity, and the Display Shelves kept tilting.

“Gayoung. It looks like we’ll have to take them one at a time.”

“I guess so. It’s not urgent anyway, so we can just take one for now and come back for more if we need it later.”

“Alright then. Let’s just take one for now, and we’ll prop this one up here.”

I propped one Display Shelf in a corner by the roadside, then went back into the Convenience Store to retrieve my Backpack, which I had set down earlier.

Coming back outside, I handed the Baseball Bat to Gayoung and was just about to hoist the Display Shelf onto my back. That’s when Minsu walked out of the building entrance and spoke.

“Team Leader. When did you arrive?”

“Ah, Minsu. It’s been a while. We got here about 20 minutes ago.”

“Yes, but why the Display Shelf…?”

“Ah, I needed it for something. I’ve stacked the other items in a corner of the Convenience Store. It’s alright if I take this Display Shelf, isn’t it?”

“Yes, well, I don’t really have any use for a Display Shelf.”

As Minsu spoke, he glanced at Gayoung behind me. He probably wondered what was going on, seeing a stranger with me instead of Seonyoung. And who she was, of course.

“Nothing out of the ordinary, I hope, Minsu?”

“No, nothing major happened. It’s just… hmm, food supplies are a bit scarcer than I expected. So, Team Leader, would you happen to be busy right now?”

“Yes, I do have people waiting, and my schedule is quite packed. To survive, we have to keep moving diligently.”

“Ah… I understand. Please take care on your way.”

Minsu seemed to have more to say, but upon hearing that I was busy, he turned around without hesitation and went back into the building. Despite all his glancing, he didn’t even greet Gayoung or ask about her. I wanted to probe a little more and ask, but seeing him turn and walk away so abruptly, I just gave up.

Had the increase in people led to a greater consumption of food? It was a bit absurd how he just stated his piece and walked off, almost like a pouting child. He was so polite when he needed something.

“Gayoung, let’s go. Help me carry this.”

I handed the Baseball Bat, which I had taken back when Minsu appeared, back to Gayoung. Then, we walked faster than we had on the way here, heading home.

“Mister. Is that Minsu?”

“Yeah, that’s him.”

“Just like Unnie said, he kept glancing around a lot while we were talking, didn’t he? It was almost strangely frequent… And it wasn’t like he was looking directly at me either.”

“He did, didn’t he? Maybe it’s because you’re a new face. He knows I usually go around with Seonyoung, so he might have been curious who you were. I don’t really know either.”

“Unnie said that even though she’s seen him a few times, he does that every time they meet. She said it’s not like he’s rudely looking you up and down, but he glances so often that it feels strange. Now that I’ve met him today, I understand what she means.”

The reason Gayoung and Seonyoung said such things was because Minsu’s glancing was far more frequent than usual. When talking to me face-to-face, it wasn’t just an occasional glance behind me; his eyes darted around almost every ten seconds. When people are focused on a conversation or speaking themselves, their gaze usually stays fixed on the other person. But Minsu’s eyes kept moving even when he was talking. So, at first, I even wondered if he had some kind of tic.

On the way home, I listened to Gayoung’s story and tried to guess the reason again, but I couldn’t get a grasp on it. I decided it was a pointless worry since I wasn’t the one being stared at, and I dismissed it from my mind as I returned home.

“Mister, you worked so hard. Here, have some water. You must be tired, right?”

“Oh, thanks. I’m really fine, no exaggeration. This isn’t hard work at all.”

Back at the Apartment, I set the Display Shelf down in the hallway for a moment and went inside. Since I hadn’t been in a fight, I just put down my Backpack, told Gayoung to rest for a bit, and came back out to smoke a cigarette. Gayoung must have been very tense during our short outing, as she collapsed onto the sofa.

Entering the house, the cool air from the air conditioner wrapped around me pleasantly. I wasn’t tired, but the heat was the problem. Even though we went out early in the morning, it was hot enough to make us sweat. It’s only May, yet I find myself wondering several times a day how we’ll cope if it’s already this hot.

I carefully opened the Master Bedroom door, and Seonyoung was still asleep. I changed her wet towel once and quietly left again.

“Gayoung, are you very tired?”

“No, I’m fine. My shoulders are just stiff from all the tension.”

“It’s like that, isn’t it? Shall we move the Display Shelf and go organize the Apartment 501 once you’ve cooled down a bit?”

“Yep. But there isn’t that much to organize. Oh, right. Would you like some Ice Cream?”

“Oh, let’s go together. I need to see what flavors there are.”

Gayoung and I each picked an Ice Cream from the freezer and took a short break. Gayoung must have similar tastes to Seonyoung. She briefly looked at the ones I had picked out, then immediately reached for the fancy Ice Cream.

After finishing our Ice Cream, we started organizing the storage apartment. Apartment 501 was just as hot, so we worked luxuriously with the air conditioner on. While Gayoung gathered the items she’d organized on the Display Shelves onto the floor, making sure not to mix them up, I wiped down the newly brought Display Shelves. There were some bloodstains, so I brought out a scourer and cleaned them with baking soda. By the time I finished cleaning, refilling the basin with water several times, Gayoung had also finished organizing.

“Mister. Put this one on top of this one, and then match this one with this one.”

“Okay, could you step back for a moment? I’ll do it myself.”

Following Gayoung’s instructions, I loosened the bolts and assembled the Display Shelves to match the ceiling height. With the new Display Shelves brought in, the spacious Living Room was almost completely filled. Since all the furniture in the storage apartment’s Living Room, except for the air conditioner, had been removed, the feeling of a normal home had truly vanished.

Helping Gayoung reorganize the stored supplies onto the Display Shelves, quite a few empty slots remained. I felt an urge to work like an ant and fill them all up.

“Good job!”

“Oh, Gayoung, you worked hard. Are you tired?”

“No, I’m fine! Actually, I feel a bit relieved. It had been bothering me for a while. Now it’s all neatly organized.”

“It was already well-organized, though. Still, the space efficiency definitely improved.”

“Right? Phew, it was so much easier with your help, Mister. I really couldn’t have done it alone.”

“I’m tired, I wish I could order delivery. Can’t even order delivery anymore…”

“Tell me about it, sigh… We have Naengmyeon broth. Would you like Naengmyeon for lunch?”

“Let’s do that. What about Seonyoung? Can she eat Naengmyeon with us?”

“Unnie should eat porridge. Anyway, the Naengmyeon is practically a meal kit, so it’ll be quick to make. Come on, Mister. I’m hungry now.”

After finishing the organization and cleaning of the storage apartment, it was already almost lunchtime. Having gone out and returned, and now looking around the neatly organized Living Room, the busy morning felt incredibly rewarding. I zoned out for a moment, lost in thought, then, prompted by a hungry Gayoung, I returned home for lunch.

Back home, Seonyoung was preparing lunch in the Kitchen. Had she rested a bit this morning and felt better?

“Unnie! What are you doing? I’ll do it.”

“No, I’ve been lying down so long I’m stiff, so I need to move a bit. Unnie will make you food, just rest for a moment.”

“Seonyoung, how are you feeling? Do you feel better?”

“Hmm… I feel much better than I did at dawn. Still feeling a bit weak, though? By the way, what have you two been up to?”

“This morning, after you fell asleep, I took Gayoung out. We went to the Convenience Store where Minsu is and picked up a Display Shelf, and then spent the whole morning organizing the storage apartment.”

“Oh! Gayoung, how was it, going out?”

“Ugh… at first, I was so scared…”

Since Seonyoung was already preparing lunch, it looked like Naengmyeon would have to wait for another time. While I checked on Seonyoung, Gayoung, who had apparently washed her hands, clung to Seonyoung’s side. The two stood side-by-side, preparing the meal, and a lively conversation began.

Today, Gayoung, who had gone out, was doing almost all the talking. She seemed ready to recount every single impression from the moment she stepped out the Entrance Door until she returned home. Seonyoung listened to Gayoung’s story with a somewhat motherly smile, laughing along.

There’s an eight-year age gap between them, but Gayoung is so small that she gives off a very childlike vibe. Seonyoung also looks very young for her age, so just by looking at them, they seem like sisters only a few years apart.

“Oh, really? Oppa, you worked hard, didn’t you? I’ll have to go see it myself after lunch. So they can be assembled together?”

“Uh-huh. I always wanted to do it this way, but Mister told me to say everything, *chuckles*. So I just got it done.”

“Well done. I thought you’d rest a bit, but you both worked so hard. You must be hungry, let’s eat quickly.”

After the meal preparations were finished, the three of us sat around and ate lunch. It was amazing how Gayoung, despite only having gone out for a short while, still had so much to talk about. I diligently ate my meal while listening to the now familiar chatter…

No, actually, sometimes I still feel like my ears are bleeding. I wonder if I’ll ever truly get used to it.