Chapter 34
Chapter 34
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: The Ownerless Fierce Gaze (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Seeing Uncle Kang up close, his expression was indescribable. His pupils were unfocused, and his lips trembled faintly.
A pungent cigarette stench wafted from his body.
Pushing through that once, as we stepped closer, the smell of alcohol assaulted our noses on top of it.
Yoon-seul seemed to sense something was off too, hiding behind my legs.
"Yoon-seul."
"Yeah? What's up?"
"Let's stop by the shop for a bit."
"Hm..?"
"Uncle, we're heading to our shop for a moment."
It didn't feel right to leave him alone in the middle of the street like this.
If Uncle Kang was crumbling this badly mentally, I could guess why.
He looked back and forth between us, let out a deep sigh, and stood up.
Then, he silently followed behind us.
The shop wasn't far, so I locked the bike to a nearby streetlamp.
Yoon-seul, with her child's heart worried about Uncle Kang, walked side by side with me but kept glancing back.
Hm-
Hm-
With her signature little sounds mixed in.
I gently stroked Yoon-seul's head.
We opened the door to the closed shop and went inside.
Uncle Kang took a seat at the table with listless steps.
"Yoon-seul, bring a can of cider, please."
"Yeah, got it."
I poured the cider Yoon-seul quickly fetched into a glass and placed one in front of Uncle Kang.
"Thanks, Joo-hyun."
"It's payment for the books."
"Hm?"
"For all the books you've lent me so far. It's nothing much, but think of it that way. No need to thank me."
A wry chuckle finally brought a smile to Uncle Kang's face. I felt a bit relieved.
But my mind grew complicated again right away.
How should I broach the subject?
Or should I wait for him to speak first?
Amid such worries.
"My wife got readmitted."
My worries turned pointless as Uncle Kang opened the conversation.
"Ah... again?"
"Yeah, again. It's relapsed. Cancer."
A sigh escaped me naturally.
I'd met Uncle Kang's wife a few times.
After her surgery succeeded and she finished light rehab, she'd stopped by the bookstore.
She was a wonderful person.
Especially hard to believe she'd gone through cancer treatment once—she was so healthy. She even arm-wrestled Uncle Kang for fun, full of energy.
They'd do it several times a day, excusing it as skinship to keep their marriage smooth.
Sadly, the results were always one-sided.
And calling him not "honey" or "darling," but "Hey, Kang Pil-jung!"—that stuck with me.
With those memories, even though she wasn't family, my heart ached.
Especially since she was Uncle Kang's wife.
"You fought again, didn't you?"
"Yeah, well."
"You always drink or smoke after fighting with her, even though you quit a while back."
"Yeah, well."
The second "yeah, well" sounded a bit softer, more fragile.
It wasn't just because her cancer had relapsed that he was breaking down like this.
While I wondered what they'd fought about, Yoon-seul grunted and climbed onto the seat next to Uncle Kang.
It looked tough for her, so he lifted her up with his hands.
"Choco Uncle."
"Yeah? What's wrong, Yoon-seul."
"Hug."
She spread her arms wide, asking for a hug.
Besides me, the only one she'd do that with so far was Uncle Kang.
"Uncle smells right now, so no. Next time."
"Hug now."
Yoon-seul stomped her feet unusually stubbornly, making Uncle Kang click his tongue.
Then he shrugged off his jacket, thick with cigarette smell, and sat her on his lap.
A compromise like that—Yoon-seul nodded slightly. Then, one line.
"Uncle, no fighting."
"Sorry, Yoon-seul."
Anyway, Yoon-seul had this knack for sensing others' moods like a ghost. Especially now, Uncle Kang looked deathly pale, unlike usual.
Even at five, the situation made her feel something.
She probably thought Uncle Kang was this depressed because he'd fought with his wife.
With Yoon-seul on his lap, he took a small deep breath.
"I apologized to my wife."
"After the fight?"
"No, we fought because I apologized."
What kind of incomprehensible talk was that?
He chewed his lips several times, as if sorting out the situation himself.
"So... actually, I opened the bookstore to take care of my wife."
"Yeah, I know that."
"But I wonder if I didn't do it right."
"It's not your fault it relapsed."
"No, that's not it. There was a lump."
"A lump?"
"Yeah, thyroid cancer is different from others. It bulges out around the neck.
It was like that last time too. We brushed it off as nothing, and it ended up needing major surgery."
"There was a lump this time too?"
"Yeah, much smaller than before, so it wasn't noticeable. She didn't know either. And that it would relapse in the same spot... neither of us imagined it. After all these years."
Only then did it start making sense.
Uncle Kang might look rough, but he's a sensitive person.
No matter how small the lump, seeing it on his wife's neck—maybe he thought he should've spotted it first for quicker treatment.
That seemed plausible, especially considering why he quit his job.
"So you apologized to her? For not noticing?"
"Yeah, and she got mad. Really mad. Told me not to say stupid things, that it wasn't my fault, her body, her responsibility."
He swallowed and continued.
In a much more pained voice.
"But you know, that stuff doesn't matter. She yelled at me like usual, hit me playfully but hard. But...
But...
No bruises. No handprints. It didn't hurt at all. No strength behind it. Never like that before.
Up till now, even one hit hurt so bad I'd think she really wanted to fight. But not this time.
She must be in a lot of pain.
Yeong-hyeon must be in a lot of pain..."
His voice grew choked with sobs.
Uncle Kang was choking up.
Yoon-seul touched his cheek with worried eyes. Soon, overcome with emotion, he gently hugged her.
I wanted to help.
But there was nothing I could do alone. I'm not superhuman; I can't cure diseases.
Comforting him might be the best.
Maybe that's exactly what the used bookstore couple needed most right now.
Still, it wasn't like there was no way to help at all.
Fortunately, a miraculous being was connected to my smartphone.
I quietly, naturally slipped into the kitchen.
[Dal-nim: Do you need our help?]
[Me: You saw everything. I have a favor—can you somehow help Uncle Kang?]
[Dal-nim: It's certainly heartbreaking, but that's impossible.]
[Me: Because it's not about us siblings?]
[Dal-nim: Yes. Harsh as it sounds, fixing that couple's fate doesn't benefit us. Totally different case from you Joo-hyun and Yoon-seul siblings.]
A cruel argument.
But logical too.
Uncle Kang was a close acquaintance of mine, but practically a stranger to Dal-nim.
Even for favors, they'd need justification.
[Me: What if helping those two benefited you?]
[Dal-nim: Doesn't seem likely.]
[Me: No, it's pretty likely. Show me Uncle Kang's trigger food.]
[Dal-nim: How'd you even know about trigger food?]
A grandiose name for a simple concept.
Food that evokes memories.
Food laden with nostalgia.
Everyone has at least one, right?
The siblings just fancy-named it "trigger food."
The memories just revive more intensely.
Like when I ate soy sauce noodles.
Like when I thought of Dad and my birth mom.
Like when tears fell without me knowing.
[Me: Found it digging through the app.]
[Dal-nim: That was in the secret folder. Figured no need to tell you.]
[Me: What's the point of a secret folder if it's just named 'secret folder' without hiding it properly?]
[Dal-nim: Peeking at secrets? Naughty side to you.]
[Me: Not the time for jokes.]
[Dal-nim: Understood. As you command, then.]
Bzzz-
Another vibration, and Uncle Kang's info appeared.
[Sibling Tycoon!]
[Used Bookstore Owner Kang Pil-jung]
[Trigger Food: Egg Fried Rice]
[Satisfaction: 30%]
"Egg fried rice... perfect, ingredients are ready. Lucky."
[Dal-nim: But no idea what cooking the trigger food will do.]
[Me: Just wait a sec.]
[Dal-nim: Eek, curious.]
I stepped out of the kitchen again.
Uncle Kang hugged Yoon-seul and seemed somewhat calmed.
"Uncle, aren't you hungry?"
"Hungry..? Haha, stomach's a bit empty, but not in the mood to eat."
Must've been hard liquor.
Tough guy.
"Then have a meal before you go."
"What're you making? Nah, it's late."
"You've never been to our shop, Uncle. You said you would someday, but never kept the promise. Eat before you go."
"Wait, Joo-hyun."
Ignoring his reply, I dashed back into the kitchen.
He's not the type to refuse food once served. Yoon-seul chimed in too.
"Fried rice best today. Uncle eat go."
Finally, he gave in with an "Aigoo, fine."
I'd stocked up on eggs planning to add them to shrimp fried rice.
But shrimp ran out first.
Hard to buy exact ratios of eggs and shrimp.
"Worked out fine."
Cracked three eggs into a pan slick with oil.
Sizzle sizzle sizzle-
Garlic, eggs frying in oil.
Stirred vigorously before they fully set.
Poured in rice saved for tomorrow. Fluffy—perfect for frying.
Done in no time.
Egg fried rice is simple enough: remember the order, five minutes tops.
"A bit unexpected as trigger food."
Not that I'm one to talk.
Mine was soy sauce noodles.
Both dead simple to make.
Placed it in front of Uncle Kang—reaction hit his face first.
His pursed lips quivered faintly.
"Egg fried rice."
"Yeah, not much left in stock. That okay?"
"I'll eat whatever's given."
He wet his lips, gulped some cider, picked up chopsticks, scooped a bite.
Put it in his mouth.
Uncle Kang closed his eyes gently.
Like an elder rummaging through memories.
That's what trigger food does.
Revives food-related memories.
Vividly, tangibly real.