8.1

She had been staying in the hospital for several days.  

One afternoon, the police came to the hospital to take her victim statement. With the lawyer Juhan had arranged accompanying her, she made it clear that she had no intention of reaching a settlement.  

It turned out that the stalker wasn’t a first-time offender and had a long history of vile crimes, so it was unlikely he would avoid a prison sentence.  

After that, she felt a little more at ease in the hospital.  

Hyunho and Juhan took turns taking leave from work and, after finishing their shifts, came to the hospital room, staying by her side day and night. With her leg in a cast, elevated above her heart, she had to rely on them for everything—from going to the bathroom to washing.  

In the comfortable private room, they watched movies together and played board games. She even went on walks in a wheelchair, exploring the hospital’s underground shopping mall or nearby gardens. Though she found ways to entertain herself, being in the hospital grew increasingly stifling.  

“I want to go home…!”  

Unable to hold back, she shouted loudly.  

“Oh dear.”  

Hyunho gave a wry smile.  

“You’ll be able to go soon.”  

“A homebody going through all this trouble, huh.”  

Juhan chuckled as he patted her stomach.  

“Ugh.” 

She groaned, stretching her free arms above her head to loosen up.  

“Stretch, stretch.”  

Hyunho grabbed her arms above her armpits and gently pulled them upward. He also helped her bend and straighten her uninjured left leg for some stretching.  

“I miss Chapssal, too….”  

Since no one was home most of the time, Chapssal was currently staying at Hyunho’s hospital. While Hyunho checked on him during breaks and the hospital technicians and staff doted on him, she still missed Chapssal terribly.  

“I haven’t seen him in a while either.”  

“When Yebom gets discharged, we should bring Chapssal home too.”  

“You’ll be staying at home for a while.”  

“She already stays home all the time.”  

“…….”  

That was true.  

Unable to deny it, she remained silent. Then, she remembered something she had meant to say earlier. She had thought about it while walking in the park, but the chaos with the stalker and the hospital had made her forget. Now seemed like the right time to bring it up.  

“I really like living at home with you two and Chapssal. I want to keep living like this.”  

“Oh….”  

Hyunho let out a soft exclamation, his face lighting up with joy.  

“Thank you so much for saying that, Yebom. Let’s live together forever, the four of us.”  

“Mm.”  

“Yeah, you little rascal.”  

Juhan called her a “little rascal.” 

Why was I a rascal….  

“I can’t leave you alone anymore because I’m worried about you. It’s safer to live together.”  

He was right. While the stalker incident had been resolved, she had developed a bit of anxiety… the thought of living alone was daunting. She didn’t even want to imagine what might have happened if the two of them hadn’t been there. Living with them was safer and gave her peace of mind.  

“That’s true….”  

“And you, do you want to get married and have kids, right?”  

“What?”  

Her eyes widened at the unexpected question.  

“Now that I think about it, that’s a potential issue. But honestly, I don’t care. I can step aside, so you can marry Cha Hyunho and have kids. I’ll just be the godfather and help raise them.”  

“What?”  

Startled, she let out a strange noise and asked again.  

“Even raising a dog is easier with three people; imagine raising a child. I was raised by my parents and my aunt, so it’s practically the same. Two people aren’t enough; you need at least three.”  

“Yebom, do you know about Emperor Tamarins? They’re primates.”  

She had never heard of them.  

“No….”  

“Emperor Tamarins usually form families with one female and two males. The males take care of the offspring. There are quite a few animals that follow this kind of polyandrous system.”  

But we’re humans…. 

She wanted to say it but held back, not wanting to ruin the mood.  

“Oh, I see….”  

“It’ll be easier for the three of us to raise a child. And I’d love a child from you and Juhan. Imagine how adorable they’d be.”  

As if just the thought made him happy, Hyunho smiled brightly.  

“So, you can marry Cha Hyunho and have a baby with me, or marry me and have a baby with him. If you want two kids, we can each have one. I don’t care either way; I’ll love them no matter whose they are. You can decide.”  

Ahhhh, her head felt like it was going to explode from the complexity. She slowly processed their unconventional suggestions and replied.  

“I’ve never seriously thought about marriage or kids. We’re still young, and I like the way things are now….”  

The way they lived now felt natural and comfortable.  

“I agree. Raising Chapssal and living like this is nice.”  

“Yeah. If I ever feel like it later, we can decide then. If not, that’s fine too. I’ll love any child, no matter whose it is.”  

“Alright, Yebom. If you ever feel like it, we’ll figure out the details then. Just let us know anytime.”  

“Mm.”  

She thought she could consider marriage or children when she developed an interest in them later. For now, she loved living together in their home and couldn’t wait to be discharged.  

* * *  

“Can you take leave that day?”  

“Yeah, I could. I still have plenty of leave left.”  

“I’ll take the next day since the hospital is closed.”  

“Got it.”  

Late at night, while Yebom was asleep, the two lowered their voices to coordinate their schedules.  

“It’s getting colder. We should bring Yebom’s coat.”  

“Just buy one. There’s a clothing store in the basement. Or let her pick one online.”  

“Alright.”  

“She’s sleeping well tonight.”  

Juhan gazed at Yebom’s sleeping face. Her small face, with her eyes gently closed and her slightly parted lips, was beautiful.  

Why is she so small?  

Her tiny body, with one leg wrapped in white bandages, looked so fragile. Sometimes, Yebom seemed larger than life, but most of the time, she felt small. Lately, it was clearly the latter.  

When he saw her bare chest or hips, he’d think, “Why is she so big and plump?” But when she was in his arms or sleeping peacefully, she felt petite. Now, in her loose hospital gown, she looked even smaller.  

Still, the doctor had said her ankle was healing well, which was a relief.  

Juhan carefully held Yebom’s hand. Her warm, soft hand felt comforting as he reflected on her words.  

‘I really like living at home with you two and Chapssal. I want to keep living like this.’ 

To him, societal norms meant nothing. Why should he follow rules made by people long before he existed? What mattered to him was something else entirely.  

At one point, he had avoided both Yebom and Hyunho. He had known that Hyunho liked Yebom and had thought Yebom liked Hyunho too.  

For a long time, he had suppressed his feelings out of respect for his friendship with Hyunho. When Yebom smiled brightly at Hyunho, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was an obstacle between them.  

During his sensitive teenage years, he had intentionally distanced himself from them. Yebom, ever oblivious, believed his excuse that he was busy without question.  

‘Are you really busy? I hope you’re free soon!’ 

Carefree as always, she said things that only made him feel worse.  

But Cha Hyunho hadn’t been fooled by his lies.  

‘Don’t do that, Juhan. Let’s stick together, just like always.’ 

‘…….’  

He glanced at Hyunho. Perhaps Hyunho had always been the most sincere about their trio. His words made Juhan stop avoiding them and return to their usual routine.  

He had only tried to step back to avoid ruining their friendship or interfering with Yebom and Hyunho’s relationship.  

‘But I really like both of you.’  

If Yebom liked both him and Hyunho and wanted to live with them, there was no problem.  

‘I really like living at home with you two and Chapssal. I want to keep living like this.’ 

As he replayed her words, he felt a sense of relief and contentment.  

“Mm….”  

Yebom furrowed her brows and whimpered as if she was about to cry.  

“Oh dear.”  

Hyunho gently patted her over the blanket. “It’s okay, it’s okay,” he whispered softly, and her expression relaxed.

“It seems she’s not sleeping well.”  

“She must still be feeling anxious.”  

“That damn stalker. I should’ve beaten him up more.”  

“Exactly.”  

Hyunho let out a bitter laugh.  

Though he didn’t show it, he was somewhat worried that Yebom’s sleep disorder might relapse.  

‘I’ve had insomnia for a long time, so I’ve tried a lot of ways to sleep better.’  

Juhan had teased Yebom, asking how she could possibly have insomnia, but he knew her words were true.