Chapter 146
Chapter 146
Filicide (4)
“Hmm?”
“This...”
Hwang Min-jae, getting ready for school, held out a box to his grandfather. Hwang Dae-sik was bewildered, but seeing the eager anticipation in his grandson’s eyes, he reluctantly opened it.
“Wear them.”
Hwang Min-jae had been bothered by his grandfather’s worn-out shoes. He felt a sense of debt watching the old man collect scrap paper without complaint, even after he had shown up unannounced and added another mouth to feed. So, he had used the money he’d saved from his part-time job to buy Hwang Dae-sik a pair of sneakers.
He should have bought something for himself...
How long had it been since he’d received such a gift? Hwang Dae-sik grumbled under his breath as he slowly touched the tip of the shoe. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
“Why did you buy something like this? You should’ve bought something for yourself.”
“They were just bothering me. I’m leaving now.”
Hwang Dae-sik stopped his grandson.
“Wait, here... wear this.”
“You should’ve bought something for yourself instead of this.”
From the paper bag he held out came a long padded coat. Hwang Min-jae fought to keep the corners of his mouth from turning up. A spasm ran through his lips. The grandfather and grandson, trying to hide their happiness, looked quite alike.
“But winter’s already over.”
“You can wear it this coming winter and the next. If you don’t need it, just throw it away...”
“No, thank you.”
Hurriedly dodging Hwang Dae-sik’s attempt to take it back, Hwang Min-jae put on the out-of-season coat and ran off. He ran quite fast, yet he didn’t seem tired, a smile gradually spreading across his face. It was the first time his grandfather had spoken of the future.
“Why is he wearing that when it’s so warm...”
Hwang Dae-sik chuckled.
Just as the grandfather and grandson were growing closer, Hwang Dae-sik collapsed on the street from an unknown pain.
And when he went to the hospital with the help of a passerby to get tested and hear the results, he received unexpected news.
“Cancer... you say?”
“Yes, you should be admitted immediately.”
Ignoring the doctor’s recommendation for treatment, Hwang Dae-sik left the hospital. He had no money for admission anyway. He’d been too busy just trying to make ends meet to get insurance, and there was a limit to what government support could cover.
Wandering the streets aimlessly, Hwang Dae-sik suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Death. Just a few months ago, it was all he had wished for. But now that it was upon him, he felt unsettled.
Has my life become precious to me now?
So why was it different now? Because of the grandson he’d only lived with for a few months?
That line of thought led to the conclusion that he had abandoned his son for not being normal, and a wave of self-loathing washed over him. He could hear his son’s last words, which had long been silent.
(Cough... Father...)
“...When you get old, you should just die.”
Even thinking was a chore now. He decided that simply disappearing would be the best choice for his dead child and for his grandson.
Why did I buy this...
It was only after buying it and returning home that he realized his thinking was flawed. Hwang Dae-sik had shoved it deep inside the house.
But that didn’t last long. While searching for an ID to be added to his grandfather’s family register, Hwang Min-jae found it.
Our house doesn’t need something like this...
Though it was a shabby neighborhood, it had the basics. They already had a boiler. Besides, why would they need charcoal briquettes in the middle of summer? They didn’t even have a coal stove... Just then, the words of his friend, Park Ji-woo, came back to him like an afterimage.
(Hey, it wasn’t a joint suicide, you idiot.)
(What?)
(He was going to kill him and then commit suicide.)
(It’s not like that... He seemed to regret it a lot...)
He remembered the first time he saw his grandfather. The rope hanging from the ceiling, which he had dismissed as insignificant in his joy of meeting his grandfather for the first time, was definitely not there for fixing a light fixture.
(If, as you say, your grandfather misses your dad...)
(Wouldn’t he try to finish what he couldn’t do back then?)
Even then, he had tried to deny it, but the moment he saw the hidden charcoal briquettes, the suspicion that had been building up came crashing down.
“You’re back? Sit down. I’ll make you something to eat.”
“What is this?”
“...”
Hwang Dae-sik froze at the sight of the object in his grandson’s hand. He knew he’d made a mistake buying it, but he’d kept putting off returning it, thinking, I’ll return it tonight. I’ll definitely do it tomorrow...
And when he belatedly realized that this was a lingering attachment, a faint smile spread across Hwang Dae-sik’s lips. His expression seemed to say he had made a decision. Hwang Min-jae, in a panic, shouted.
“I asked what this is!”
“So you know how to shout.”
It was much more childlike than him always watching his every move, begging not to be abandoned.
“What... what is that supposed to...”
Yu Yeon-seo revisited the emotions Park Seung-hwan had drawn out of him. The feelings from his childhood, before he knew the culprit’s identity.
The ‘mother’ he couldn’t hold onto. He had tried desperately, but he wasn’t strong enough to bring her down. But now, another chance had come. ‘Grandfather’ was a compassionate person, so if he held on with all his might, maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t give up on life for his sake.
“I bought it by mistake... I was going to return it.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
The weary, sighing reply wasn’t convincing. Hwang Min-jae suddenly dropped to his knees and crawled over, grabbing the hem of Hwang Dae-sik’s pants. This wasn’t something Director Kim had instructed either. His body simply moved on its own.
“Don’t.”
“I won’t.”
“Don’t go...”
Just holding on wasn’t enough; he wrapped his arms tightly around Hwang Dae-sik’s calf. These feet have to stay firmly on the ground. Otherwise...
[Yeon-seo.]
He briefly glanced up, then lowered his head. Huh? Has Mom ever been this close? Yes, this had happened before.
The surroundings changed. It was no longer the shabby house in a hillside shantytown that the assistant director had painstakingly scouted, but the elegant and spacious annex of Chairman Yu’s mansion.
[Mom...]
Why wasn’t she answering? Maybe if he brought her down now, she would be okay. Startled, he crawled over and hugged Lee Hui-seo’s ankles.
[Mom... you can’t be there...]
Grunting, he stood on his tiptoes. Ah, he was too short. He dragged a heavy chair from nearby. Lacking the strength, he fell halfway but got up again and climbed onto the chair. He hugged her calves, but it still wasn’t enough. At this rate, Mom would die. So he had to keep holding on.
[Yeon-seo!]
[Don’t come! Don’t look!]
No one should see this.
Something felt strange. The calves he was hugging should have been warm, but they were as cold as ice. Tears streamed down his face.
[Mom... don’t go...]
But who was he holding onto right now? It was Grandpa, right? No? Grandpa was outside. Ah, right. It was Mom.
<Master.>
<The synchronization rate has exceeded 60%, and it seems memories I cannot control are leaking out.>
<Attempting memory control.>
[Ma’am, I was holding on... Mom, Mom is strange...]
“Don’t leave me, don’t go...”
At that desperate plea, Hwang Dae-sik—no, Park Seung-hwan—felt a lump in his throat. Yu Yeon-seo was in such a precarious state that he couldn’t distinguish between past and present, but ironically, this had the effect of heightening his co-star’s emotions.
Hwang Dae-sik wet his dry lips with his tongue.
“...Alright. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t go... Don’t die...”
“But, you see... I won’t live long anyway.”
Hiding it like this would be cruel to his grandson. Hwang Dae-sik calmly confessed that he had terminal cancer, that treatment was expensive and useless. All the while, Hwang Min-jae sobbed, begging him not to go, not to die.
“Cut! That was great!”
Director Kim Jae-ho, sensing the birth of a masterpiece, shouted with joy. Some of the staff, who had been watching with bated breath, clapped, while others wiped away tears with their sleeves.
“That was good.”
Having returned from being Hwang Dae-sik to Park Seung-hwan, he extended a hand to Yu Yeon-seo, who was collapsed on the floor. Normally, Yu Yeon-seo would have taken his hand and jumped up, but he remained still.
“Yeon-seo?”
“Sob, sob...”
“Hey, he must’ve gotten too immersed. Yeon-seo. Look at me.”
Flustered, Park Seung-hwan knelt on one knee and grabbed his shoulders.
“...Mom.”
“...Yeon-seo.”
“Don’t go...”
Seeing his lifeless eyes and devastated expression, Park Seung-hwan urgently shook his shoulders. A few staff members started murmuring.
“What do we do?”
“Where is Yeon-seo’s manager...”
“Coming through.”
Lee Tae-gyeom and Im Seung-hyeon pushed past them and stepped in front of the camera. On Director Kim Jae-ho’s signal, the camera operator belatedly whipped the camera away.
[If... if something seems off while I’m acting, you have to wake me up.]
[Uh, how?]
[Figure it out. Do a good job. You too, Mr. Im Seung-hyeon.]
Pushing Park Seung-hwan back, Lee Tae-gyeom and Im Seung-hyeon knelt on the floor and gently shook him. They now understood why he had said that.
“Hey, Yu Yeon-seo.”
“Young Master.”
Im Seung-hyeon lightly slapped Yu Yeon-seo’s cheek. But he kept murmuring for his mom not to go.
What should I do?
Even the reliable Im Seung-hyeon’s efforts were futile. Lee Tae-gyeom chewed on his fingernails, lost in thought for a moment.
Come to think of it... there was that one incident that got the better of the always-perfect Yu Yeon-seo. It was the first time he’d seen him act so stubborn and indignant.
Lee Tae-gyeom whispered softly into Yu Yeon-seo’s ear.
“You’re a total noob, Yu Yeon-seo. Got completely owned by your manager in that game, didn’t you?”
“Lee Tae-gyeom, what are you saying at a time like this...”
“Just wait, hyung. Hey, you gotta get your revenge. Though you’ll just get owned by me again.”
Im Seung-hyeon stared at Lee Tae-gyeom in disbelief at his out-of-the-blue comment. However, the effect was tremendous. Focus returned to Yu Yeon-seo’s eyes as he looked at Lee Tae-gyeom and gritted his teeth.
“This bastard...”
“You awake?”
Thanks to him, he was awake. But he felt like crap. He couldn’t tell if it was because of the past memories or Lee Tae-gyeom’s infuriating words. Something warm trickled from his nose.
I’m screwed.
I can’t collapse here.
“Huh? Whoa, whoa, whoa?!”
“Young Master!”
“Yeon-seo!”
Was I always this weak? That was Yu Yeon-seo’s first thought upon waking. As he blinked and stared at the ceiling, the murmuring around him grew louder.
“...How long has it been?”
“Five hours.”
“That’s pretty fast today. I thought it would take a few days.”
“...Hey, do you hear yourself?”
Ah, he was in a room near the filming location. Thankfully, they hadn’t taken him to a hospital. Im Seung-hyeon must have handled it well. Yu Yeon-seo groaned and sat up. His mind was what hurt, so he didn’t understand why his muscles were aching.
“Yeon-seo.”
“Oh, you’re here?”
He scratched his cheek as Park Seung-hwan and Director Kim Jae-ho approached him.
“I think I was wrong.”
“About what?”
“I shouldn’t have told you that story...”
Park Seung-hwan’s expression was grim. Yu Yeon-seo forced a smile. This was just a chronic problem of his.
“It’s not your fault, hyung.”
“What do you mean, it’s not?”
“What happened with the shoot?”
Director Kim Jae-ho smiled as if to tell him not to worry.
“We’ve halted it for now.”
“Because of me... Can we start again tomorrow?”
“It’s fine, we have a large production budget anyway.”
And that money came from Yu Yeon-seo’s wallet. However, just because he was funding it didn’t mean everything was fine. Due to the sudden change in schedule, the managers from the actors’ agencies were busy rescheduling things behind the scenes.
This will be a problem if it keeps happening...
Yu Yeon-seo let out a small sigh.