Chapter 71 (1/2)

“…Good, you’ve done well.”

“I know! I’ve never gotten such great grades before!”

“Oh, I was afraid you might not like them.”

Yuja’s lips curled up in contentment only after some time. He was complimenting, but for some reason, Chookjae, who was watching the test papers over his shoulder, shut his mouth and went away quietly.

“But…”

Yuja was still smiling. Myohan got to his back and took a glance at the test papers. He sighed. What Yuja was looking at was question No.1, which was always the easiest question, but Sinsul had failed to get it right.

“Why is there an X here?”

“Oh, I made a mistake…”

“A mistake?”

Chookjae pulled Myohan’s arm. It clearly meant he’d better back off before he was caught in the rage, so he didn’t resist. O Shin grinned while on the sofa.

“Making a mistake is even worse than not knowing, you idiot!”

“Jagyeom, look, I also got better grades than last time.”

“Really? Let me see. Oh, yes, you’ve done great.”

“Yuja, Yuja, forgive me!”

“Hey, hey, shit, stop!”

“Cheong, please don’t hide behind me.”

“How about you, pig friend? How are your grades?”

“…You know what they say, kids born in the pig year will always manage to make a living no matter what.”

Myohan sat down on the sofa, crossed his legs, and rested his head on O Shin’s shoulder. Chookjae was sitting on the floor and leaning against the sofa, watching the chaos unfold. He knew trying to stop them wouldn’t work, the best thing he could do was to wait for Yuja’s rage to fade.

Yuja kept scolding Sinsul and Myo Cheong. He said they couldn’t make such mistakes at the University Entrance Exam and getting one question wrong could make a huge difference. The two didn’t dare to argue with him and just cowered in fear. Myohan shook his head to see them turn pale and grey. He thought Yuja would feel quite thirsty after yelling like that. Chookjae must have thought the same thing, as he got up to bring some water. Myohan advised him,

“There’s a huge water jug in the cupboard.”

Yuja was going to need at least a bucket of water.

He tilted his head, his legs still crossed. He had been having dreams every night, probably because his weak fever had been going on for a few days. His dreams were mostly similar to one another. He saw that man, talked to that man, or heard that man’s voice.

“You seem to be having a lot of thoughts.”

A gentle hand caressed his cheek. The large hand went to his forehead to check if he had a fever. Myohan frowned and nodded. The cat freed itself from Jino and quickly found its way to his lap.

“Do you really think I would be able to find them all?”

When he glanced at Myo Cheong, he was still busy being scolded by Yuja. He didn’t seem to hear their conversation as all he could hear was Yuja’s nagging. O Shin looked at the cat, and then at Myohan, and he smiled.

“I don’t know.”

The cat glared at him as it rubbed its face on Myohan’s belly. Myohan picked it up and looked into its eyes. Its yellow eyes blinked slowly.

“The moon and the sun…”

He muttered what he had heard in his dream. O Shin’s smile faded.

“Let me tell you something.”

The cat’s long tail moved gently in the air. Myohan tickled its chin, making it purr softly. O Shin was still serious.

“Time isn’t the only thing god presented.”

“Meow—.”

“In that perspective, the cat got lucky.”

The cat’s eyes flashed fiercely for a second. Myohan stroked its back to soothe it. It calmed down in no time and yawned lazily in his arms. Myohan laughed and kissed its head. Then he replied to O Shin.

“You’re pretending to be unconcerned…”

He asked if he thought he would be able to find them all, but he received a different answer in return. No doubt it had to be helpful, but that couldn’t be O Shin’s real answer. Myohan narrowed his eyes and smiled. O Shin couldn’t say yes to his question, and it meant he was nervous, too.

That was why he asked again, his eyes on the cat and his question to O Shin.

“We’ll be able to get the monkey, right?”

“Of course.”

The cat’s tail stood up angrily, but it didn’t try to free itself from Myohan’s hands. It seemed to like the gentle stroking. From head to neck, to its back, and then to its tail. It purred each time his thin fingers touched it. After stroking it for a long time, Yuja finally raised his glasses and said.