Nursing Games
During his long illness, Cha Jun-jae had turned me into his personal maid. When I first put on that apron, it had been my own choice. There was a lot to think about, after all. Even the beverage commercial proved it. I’d assumed he’d been street-cast for the photoshoot, but apparently he’d gone all the way to Seoul for an audition just to be chosen as the model.
I turned off the gas when the egg porridge had simmered just right. I took out some kimchi from the fridge and placed it on a small plate. On the tray I arranged one pair of chopsticks, one spoon, and the bowl of porridge, then carried it upstairs.
After a knock that held no real meaning, I opened the door. Cha Jun-jae, who had long since forgotten shame, lay in bed waiting for me. The fever had refused to break for three full days now, so he was relying on me for almost everything. His stubborn refusal to go to the hospital no matter what annoyed me to no end, but since I felt partly responsible for the fever, I kept my mouth shut and continued bringing him porridge and medicine. Cha Jun-jae was an openly high-maintenance patient. If I weren’t around, he wouldn’t even think about feeding himself.
I sat down in the now-familiar spot beside the bed. As if he already knew the routine, Cha Jun-jae accepted the tray. The only porridge I could make was egg porridge. Yet he never seemed tired of eating the same thing for three days straight; he emptied the bowl each time as if it were brand new. On the other hand, the person cooking it was sick to death of the repetition.
“It’s delicious.”
He’d take one bite, flash me a bright smile, take another bite, and offer a gentle eye-smile as a bonus. Having become a nursing expert strictly limited to Cha Jun-jae, I moved on to the next step: checking his temperature. It was 38 degrees. Cha stared at the thermometer with grave eyes. The sound of his spoon scraping the bowl had grown quieter. The way he was eating so slowly made my brows furrow.
“Aren’t you going to do it today?”
I was now certain that Cha Jun-jae had either already gone insane or was well on his way. On the first day, he had looked so sick he could barely hold chopsticks, so I had placed kimchi on his spoon for him. I did the same on the second day. Today he seemed well enough, so I hadn’t picked up the chopsticks. In response, he lifted his spoon in protest, as if demanding side-dish service.
“Again? You can do it yourself.”
“My hand’s numb.”
“If your hand’s numb, we should go to the hospital.”
I was the crazy one for having spoiled the patient so badly. Still, I couldn’t let him starve, so I picked up the chopsticks. The fact that I could never be truly harsh with him might have been the beginning of my misfortune. The sliced kimchi sold on the island was overly sweet. But it was better than nothing, so I had bought it. I picked up a piece of the expensive, tasteless kimchi and placed it on his spoon. Cha Jun-jae, seemingly oblivious to my sour expression, obediently put the spoon in his mouth.
With his cheeks puffed out, he immediately scooped up more porridge. Like a machine, I picked up the next piece of kimchi and laid it on his spoon. Before I knew it, I was caring for him like a mother bird tending to her chick.
“Have you heard anything from Aunt Su-young? Did she get back to Korea safely?”
Cha Jun-jae always grew awkward whenever the topic turned to his mother. He didn’t seem to want to talk about it; he merely nodded. Then he quickly finished half the porridge before suddenly thumping his chest as if it felt heavy.
“Did you get indigestion? Are you dizzy?”
My nursing, which lacked any medical knowledge, consisted only of taking his temperature, boiling porridge, and wiping his forehead all night. Even calling it “all night” was generous; by two in the morning I would start dozing off. When the morning alarm woke me, I would find myself on Cha Jun-jae’s bed. His feverish body was warm and cozy, so I must have unconsciously crawled into his arms. Fortunately, Cha Jun-jae was too out of it from fever and medicine to notice.
“Why won’t this fever go down?”
I wondered if he had been bitten by some strange mosquito or bug. But the bold Cha Jun-jae claimed he was perfectly satisfied with this little nursing game. Maybe because my palm felt cool when I checked his temperature, his forehead kept subtly rubbing against it. Feeling sorry for him, I was about to get a cold damp towel when he spoke as I moved the tray aside, as if telling me not to.
“Don’t clear it. I want more.”
“Ah, yes, Your Highness.”
When I answered like a slave from a historical drama, Cha Jun-jae let out a small laugh and picked up his spoon. I devoted myself to caring for the finicky prince. I was just about to stand up after watching Prince Cha Jun-jae finish every last drop of porridge. He had been quietly wiping his mouth with a tissue when he suddenly grabbed me.
“You’ll come back, right?”
“……Me?”
“Yeah.”
I glared at him as he now openly demanded things from me. The sly Cha Jun-jae rubbed his cheek against the pillow.
“My head feels like it’s going to split open……”
“This isn’t one of your fake illnesses, is it?”
“You can tell by taking my temperature.”
“If it doesn’t get better by the end of this week, it’s going to be a real problem. We have to go to the hospital, okay?”
He didn’t answer. He simply closed his eyes. I gripped the tray tightly so I wouldn’t drop it by mistake. If it came down to it, I would contact Aunt Su-young and force the idiot into a hospital. I had no intention of ever reading a headline like Actor Cha Jun-jae Dies from Mysterious Fever on Dalos Island.
With that secret, meticulous plan in mind, I left the room and went downstairs. The dishes had piled up enormously after days of looking after Cha Jun-jae. I put on rubber gloves and turned on the water. Suddenly the top of my head tingled. Feeling a gaze on me, I tilted my head back. The culprit was Cha Jun-jae, leaning against the upstairs railing and looking down at me.
“Why did you come out? Do you need something?”
I ran the water, squeezed detergent onto the sponge, and worked up a lather. I caught the slippery dishes and scrubbed them. The lucky Cha Jun-jae hung over the railing like laundry, watching from above. We occasionally exchanged glances while I did the dishes and he watched as if visiting a zoo.
It felt uncomfortable when he simply stared without answering my questions. But the feeling passed quickly. After nearly dropping a few dishes, I focused on the task. Only after washing the last spoon did I look back upstairs. Cha Jun-jae was still sprawled there, his smile now faint. I yanked off the rubber gloves roughly and snapped at him.
“What?”
Even then, he had no proper answer. He just kept smiling in that unknowable way, eyes fixed on me. Growing frustrated, I hurried to get back to my room. I planned to bring my laptop. The mermaid prince who had lost his voice finally acknowledged me.
“Where are you going?”
I stopped mid-step, turned back, and met his eyes. The prince whose smile had vanished was demanding an answer.
“To my room.”
“You’ll come back up here, right?”
“Ah.”
I just wanted to get some work done. The words stuck in my throat wouldn’t come out smoothly. As I bit my lip, the corners of Cha Jun-jae’s eyes drooped in an unpleasant way.
“I don’t want to be alone. Because I’m sick.”
His voice sank so low it seemed to burrow into the ground. I composed my expression. Forcing myself to remember that this was consideration for a patient, I smiled.
“I’ll bring my laptop up.”
“Okay.”
With a relieved smile, Cha Jun-jae went back to his room. I went to my own room, grabbed my laptop, and stretched. I couldn’t help thinking, What kind of slave labor is this? Yet whether I had grown used to being tied to him over the years, or whether I had simply gone crazy with him here on Dalos Island, I inevitably packed some snacks and the laptop before heading to his room.
The moment I opened the door, I caught the scent of lemon shampoo. In that short time, Cha Jun-jae’s effort in washing his hair felt almost touching.
“Did you shower?”
“Just my hair.”
“You’ll catch a cold if you don’t dry it.”
“It’s annoying.”
After that answer, Cha Jun-jae wriggled over to the side. He made a gesture that clearly invited me under the blanket. I tilted my head in confusion.
“I’m going to sit here and work.”
“Can’t we watch a movie together?”
He was being unusually demanding today. I set the laptop down and placed my hands on my hips.