The Eunuch Misunderstanding

Right in front of the bed where Tae-woong lay was a massive 60-inch TV hanging on the wall like a giant door. On the screen, a famous shopping host—anyone who watched late-night home shopping would recognize him—was hoisting two arm-thick bottles of liquor, one in each hand.

He bellowed in a booming voice about "that stuff" that's so good for men. Specifically, a two-bottle set of yakgwanmunju and bokbunjaju.

"Our hardworking dads out there! Office workers in your 30s and 40s! All that overtime wearing you down lately, and things getting even tougher at night, right? No more worries from now on!"

"Check this out! The products I'm introducing to you today are this yakgwanmunju and bokbunjaju. They're amazing for guys! I shouldn't go into too much detail, though..."

"Tae-woong, why the sudden interest in yakgwanmunju and bokbunjaju...?"

Given the prior mix-up where he'd already been mistaken for a eunuch once, it was no wonder. Anyone seeing a patient—especially one whose lower body was still wrecked—watching an ad for stamina boosters would jump to conclusions.

"No, Seung-min hyung, it's not like that... Ah, where the hell's the remote?"

Tae-woong twisted around searching for it, accidentally pressing the remote buried under his waist. And unluckily, it was the volume-up button.

"This stuff that's so damn good for men—yakgwanmunju and bokbunjaju! Today, at a super special price of just 99,900 won! Plus, interest-free installments up to three months to make it easy. Order now via auto ARS or the app for an extra 3,000-won discount!"

The host's thunderous voice echoed from the room down the hallway, piercing the late-night quiet.

"Damn it, where is it?!"

He squirmed more, but the remote seemed lodged somewhere in the bedding, impossible to fish out easily.

"This price! These terms! It's now or never! I tried it myself—oh man, it's incredible! Best part? Mornings! It just... pops right up! But broadcast standards, you know the rest. Don't miss this chance...!"

Tae-woong, still too unsteady to walk without crutches, gave up on the remote and tried to stand and shut off the TV manually. He froze in panic as Noh Seung-min, who'd paused at the door with Tae-woong's bags, strode over, killed the power, and fixed him with a stare.

Silence blanketed the spacious double room for a few seconds. Noh Seung-min broke it first.

"Uh, Tae-woong, bit awkward asking while you're injured, but... you wouldn't actually be... y'know, that..."

"Seung-min hyung, no! I swear! It was an AC ad a second ago! I zoned out!"

"Hey! I'm a guy too. I get it. But watching this stuff so openly in public? Kinda much. Not illegal or anything, but think of the team image. You know the GM and parent company said zero tolerance for even minor screw-ups? Be careful. If you cause a scene here, I'm getting disciplined too. Please?"

"Hyung, I didn't mean to. Total misunderstanding."

"Then why were you watching it? If you need some, just tell me. My brother-in-law's expanding his yakgwanmun farm—top-shelf stuff, I can hook you up!"

"No, that's not..."

It took quite a while for Tae-woong to stammer through his non-excuse excuses.

* * *

"You could've just said so earlier. No need for the long story. Must be exhausting."

"I wanted to, but you kept misunderstanding..."

"Whatever. Tae-woong, I'm beat—gonna crash. Wake me if anything. I'll jump up."

"Seung-min hyung, thanks for today. Tomorrow's an off-day, and you're stuck here because of me..."

"Nah. No girlfriend anyway—just solo PUBG at home. Team lead's covering overtime pay too. Night."

With the unintended mix-up resolved and bags sorted, Noh, drained from the sudden crisis, flopped onto the empty bed without even washing up.

"Krrraaahhh..."

Less than 30 seconds later, his snores rumbled through the two-bed room.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Hyung must've been wiped..."

No matter how deep the sleep, chatting with Ace right next to him risked more weird labels—like a lunatic talking to ghosts after the eunuch fiasco.

'Can't have that.'

Unable to watch TV ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with the guy sleeping, Tae-woong's hand drifted to his smartphone instead. The screen lit up to dozens, hundreds of missed calls and KakaoTalk messages from acquaintances.

"Heh heh heh."

The mix of concern and memes drew involuntary chuckles. Notably, zero messages from family.

'All guys... But why no word from family? Son almost got neutered.'

'Oh right. They flew out last night.'

He recalled strong-arming his never-traveled-abroad family into a Southeast Asia trip for his parents' anniversary, sister included. They'd picked a remote island with spotty internet—blessing in disguise.

'Short 5-night, 6-day thing. If they'd known today, they'd fly back after one day.'

They'd learn at the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠airport on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the last day.

'No need to buzz them now. Won't pick up anyway.'

Danger past, he didn't want to ruin their first overseas vacation. Replying to friends, he opened the portal site next. No searching needed—his name dominated the main page.

'These assholes. Groin fine, but straight-up eunuch? Can't complain to the portal.'

Curious about #5 Shim Young, he clicked. The top post's old, grainy short video sparked memories of that punk Ace.

'How the hell did Ace know about this and mimic it?'

No more; he checked baseball news. He knew the outcome but wondered post-collapse details.

"Such cruel bastards. Three-cushion drip guy got billiard balls for brains? How do they even think that up?"

Pfft. Ace, who'd snuck up behind to scroll comments unbeknownst to Tae-woong, tried holding it in but burst out laughing.

"Gotta sprinkle salt when you get discharged."