UAI Chapter 42

 Episode 42

Sejin, holding Bbokdol close at Hajin's side, quietly listened to the uncles' conversation.

Jiwon was someone Sejin recognized. Among the trainees he had always been especially lively and unfazed by strangers, so Jiwon had been friendly to Sejin and they'd often talked. The Jiwon he'd just seen in the foyer looked completely different from the past, which surprised Sejin even more.

The mood had been so serious that Sejin had deliberately teased the uncles to break the tension. Thankfully, Jiwon seemed a little better now, and Sejin felt relieved.

"Uncles."

"Hmm?"

All the members looked up when Sejin called.

"Can I go up there real quick??"

Sejin pointed at the second floor. Hajin asked, puzzled.

"The second floor? Why?"

"Mmm. That hyung looked really worn out earlier, so I want to give him my teddy bear."

Everyone smiled at that.

"You're going to lend your teddy to hyung? Our Sejin is so sweet."

"Right? That teddy's the one Sejin cherishes the most, isn't it?"

"Can I come too?"

Hajin met Sejin's eyes and asked.

"Hmm. Hyung looks like he needs to rest a bit now, how about you go up later, Sejin?"

"I'll just bring the teddy and come back. I won't disturb hyung while he's sleeping."

"Then promise to uncle: you'll just give the teddy and come right back, okay?"

"Okay! I promise!"

At Sejin's pledge, Hajin stood up. Joomin also rose and said.

"Hajin, while you go up, can you bring Jiwon something simple to eat? There are water and drinks in the guest room fridge, but nothing that'll fill him up."

"Is that so? Then please pack something. I'll bring it up."

"Okay. Wait a moment."

Joomin went into the kitchen and asked the auntie to prepare something to eat. A little later, the auntie brought out a tray with some snacks and a warm glass of milk and set it down in the living room.

Taking the tray, Hajin looked down at Sejin and asked.

"Sejin. Uncle's holding the tray and can't carry the teddy, can you take it up yourself?"

"Yeah!"

Sejin nodded emphatically. Holding the teddy to his chest, he went to stand at the bottom of the stairs leading to the second floor.

"Sejin, you go up first. Uncle will follow right behind you."

"Okay!"

Answering loudly, Sejin hugged the teddy bear with both arms and tried to climb the stairs, but quickly realized the bear blocked his view and his little body didn't have the strength for it.

With no other choice, he grabbed the teddy bear by one arm and began climbing step by step, slowly and clumsily.

Watching Sejin's tiny butt wobble as he climbed, Hajin, following behind, barely held back his laughter.

After struggling for quite a while, Sejin finally reached the second floor and wiped the sweat off his forehead with one hand.

He hadn't realized it when he was an adult, but now that he had a child's body, everything felt big and tall.

Stairs he would have climbed easily before now felt like hiking up a mountain.

While Sejin paused to catch his breath, Hajin, who had reached him, asked,

"Sejin, was it hard?"

"Mmm. It's okay."

"Then shall we go to hyung?"

Sejin nodded and followed Hajin toward the guest room.

Standing in front of the guest room, Hajin knocked.

Knock knock.

"Yes."

Hearing Jiwon's answer, Hajin opened the door slightly and asked cautiously,

"Jiwon, I brought you something to eat. Can I come in for a moment?"

"Yes, come in."

When Hajin and Sejin stepped inside, Jiwon, who had just come out of the shower and was towel-drying his hair, stood up from his seat.

Setting the tray on the table beside the bed, Hajin said.

"You probably didn't get to eat lunch, so I brought something simple. Eat a little, then get some sleep. I'll wake you when it's time for dinner."

Those warm words made Jiwon's throat tighten.

"Y-yes… thank you."

Watching him from below, Sejin immediately held out his teddy bear toward him.

"Hyung! Here!"

Jiwon blinked at the teddy bear suddenly pushed toward him.

"Huh? What's this?"

"This is the one I really treasure! I'll lend it to you."

"Uh? Hyung will be fine even without a doll."

"No! Hyung's heart hurts right now, so you need this! If you hug it when you sleep, your heart gets soft and warm!"

Even this little kid could see how worn out he looked, the thought made Jiwon let out a bitter smile.

In the end, he hesitated but accepted the teddy bear.

"Th… thank you. I'll use it well and give it back."

"Okay!"

Sejin beamed proudly.

Seeing that smile, Jiwon unconsciously reached out and gently patted Sejin's head.

"Alright then, we'll go now. Just relax like you're at home. If you need anything, don't hesitate to say so."

"Yes."

"Hyung, sleep well~!"

Sejin waved as he left the room with Hajin.

When they stood at the top of the stairs and Sejin tried to go down step by step again, struggling, Hajin quickly lifted him up.

"Stairs are still hard for you. Uncle will carry you down. You struggled enough when we came up."

"Okaaay. Thank you, uncle."

When they reached the living room, the members greeted them.

"Did Jiwon wash up?"

"Yeah. He was drying his hair. I told him to sleep a bit and that we'll wake him for dinner."

"Good. Nice job."

Already worried about Kang Seunghwan, the members were even more troubled now that Jiwon had an issue too.

Noticing the worried expressions around him, Jaewon spoke up.

"Right now we won't figure anything out even if we stress over it, so let's all rest first. After dinner, once Jiwon has calmed down a bit, we'll ask what happened. As for Kang Seunghwan… let's handle Jiwon's situation first, then think about that again."

Everyone nodded at his words.

"Yeah."

"Got it."

The members dispersed to their rooms, and Sejin also went to his room with Bbokdol.

Even while he played, Sejin couldn't help worrying about Jiwon upstairs but like his uncles said, there was nothing he could do but wait.

After drying his hair in the second-floor guest room, Jiwon sat on the bed and looked at the food Hajin had brought.

He had known his parents were worried, but he simply hadn't been able to eat anything. Nothing went down.

But now, for the first time in a long while, he actually felt hungry.

The moment he took a single bite of the sandwich on the plate, tears began to fall from his eyes.

"It's… good."

Before, whenever he tried to eat, everything tasted like sand. But now he could truly taste the food.

Crying silently, Jiwon finished everything on the plate.

With a full stomach for the first time in ages and a tired body, he lay down on the bed.

As soon as he lay on the fluffy mattress, the sweet scent of fabric softener made his eyelids grow heavy. When he reached for the blanket, he noticed the teddy bear beside him.

Staring at it for a long moment, Jiwon finally picked it up and hugged it.

The bear was practically the size of a child, and when it filled his arms, he felt a strange sense of peace wash over him.

Burying his face into the plush fur, curling his body around it, it wasn't long before his breathing evened out and he fell asleep.

Two hours later, the auntie called everyone, saying dinner was ready.

Roy and Hwan, entering the kitchen, gasped at the spread on the table.

"Wow. Auntie! You made so much food?"

"If someone saw this, they'd think it was a birthday feast."

"Hehehe! I just wanted to show off a little. That student earlier looked so thin."

Hajin walked into the kitchen and laughed.

"As expected of our auntie! She absolutely can't stand seeing anyone skipping meals."

"Aigoo. Hajin, you need to eat a lot too!"

"Yes, ma'am."

Hajin seated Sejin next to him and took his own seat.

A little later, Jaewon entered the kitchen with Jiwon.

Seeing his expression noticeably more relaxed than earlier, everyone quietly let out a breath of relief.

"Did you sleep well, Jiwon?"

"Yes. I slept deeply for the first time in a while."

"I wanted to let you sleep longer, but you still need to eat. And look, Auntie made a mountain of food just for you."

At Joomin's words, Jiwon quickly lowered his head and bowed politely.

"Thank you so much. I'm sorry you had to cook so much because of me."

The auntie walked over and gently patted his back.

"No need to feel sorry. I like cooking. If you really feel bad, then make it up to me by eating a lot, deliciously! Got it? Now sit down."

"Yes. Thank you."

Jiwon sat in the chair Joomin pulled out for him.

A bowl of rice and soup was placed before him, and everyone began to eat.

Seeing Jiwon carefully start to take small bites, both Joomin and Jaewon quietly added various side dishes to his plate.

Feeling like he might cry again, Jiwon hurriedly scooped up some rice to occupy his mouth, when a tiny fork with a sausage on it appeared in front of him.

He looked up to see Sejin standing on his chair and stretching his arm out as far as he could.

"Hyung! This is yummy! Don't just eat rice, eat this too!"

"Hahaha. Looks like Sejin really likes you. He's even giving you food."

"Seriously. Our Sejin doesn't open his heart easily…."

"For Sejin to give you something to eat is a huge deal. Hurry, take it."

Pressed by the members, a bewildered Jiwon opened his mouth and accepted the sausage.

The sweet and tangy sauce, the juicy snap of the sausage, it all spread warmly in his mouth.

"Tasty, right?"

When Sejin asked with a bright grin, Jiwon slowly nodded.

"Yeah. It's good. Thank you, Sejin."

"Hehe~"

Sejin sat back down and stuck a piece of fish, deboned by Hajin, onto his fork and popped it into his mouth.

Seeing Sejin's cheeks puff out as he chewed with his mouth full, Jiwon finally picked up his chopsticks and began eating the side dishes placed on his plate.

The members, watching warmly, soon began their own meal as well.

With the food so delicious, everyone asked for more rice, and the auntie happily scooped extra for them.

After a long, satisfying meal, when they started to gather the dishes, the auntie quickly waved her hands.

"Leave it! All of you, out. I have to organize and clean in a certain order, and with all you big boys walking around, it'll just get chaotic."

The members looked apologetic.

"Aw, Auntie, at least let us help with this. You must be tired after cooking so much."

"Yeah, there's gotta be a lot of dishes to wash."

"Aigoo! The dishwasher handles the washing, so stop worrying!"

In the end, the auntie shooed them all out into the living room.

They gathered around the sofa and chatted casually for a while until Jaewon gently opened a heavier topic.

"Jiwon… are you feeling a bit better now?"

"Yes. I'm alright now. Thank you."

"Good. I'm glad. But… is it okay if I ask what happened? If you don't want to talk about it, we won't force you. It's just… we've known you for years, and suddenly hearing that you're quitting training, we really couldn't understand."

Joomin added kindly from beside him.

"Yeah. And why did you get so thin like this? A few months ago you were nothing like this. If there's anything we can help with, we will. So even if it's hard... wouldn't it be better to tell us?"

Jiwon, who had been pressing his lips together tightly, finally let out a long sigh.

"…Haa. To be honest, I don't even know how things ended up like this."

Seeing how hard it was for him to speak, everyone fell silent and let him take his time.

"I don't know where to start, but… my everyday life just fell apart, all at once. Before I could do anything about it."

"It's okay. Just say it however it comes to mind."

Jiwon struggled to find the right words for a long moment before finally continuing.

"About three months ago… a new trainee hyung joined the company."

At that, everyone's eyes widened and they exchanged glances.

A trainee who joined three months ago, there was only one.

Kang Seunghwan.

'…So this is how it connects.'

Jaewon swallowed a sigh internally and waited for Jiwon to continue.