…I never thought I'd get scolded for sleeping in a bed at this age. I even slept in a bed in the army.
Lying down next to my brother, I took a few deep breaths and quickly fell asleep.
I was still hugging the blanket, sleeping soundly… until my eldest aunt came in to plug in the charger.
I woke up to the sound of my brother and the elders talking about what they were doing while everyone else was sleeping in the restaurant.
…It must have been my uncle's eldest son who slept in the bed before my brother and me.
He said he went home to sleep, but still…
I was so sleepy I thought I might die, but when I got scolded, my high school temper almost flared up instantly.
I held it in because Mom and my aunts covered for me… Even now, thinking about it makes me angry.
Do I really have to blush with shame until the funeral is over?
Thanks to that, I've been labeled as the one who stole my sister's blanket and hogged it for myself.
Aside from that, the funeral went smoothly.
After paying our respects to Grandma, who was laid to rest next to Grandpa, we had dinner at my great aunt's house. Then, we called a cab and went home.
The three of us collapsed as soon as we got back, and after sleeping for over fifteen hours, the sun was already high in the sky.
As I reached for my vibrating phone, I saw it was a call from Mom.
"Oh, Mom."
"Are you awake now?"
"Yeah. Where are you?"
"I'm at school. I missed three days, but I can't skip work."
It's amazing how someone who cried and laughed so much yesterday could return to normal after just a few hours of sleep.
"Is Winter still sleeping?"
"…I don't know. Didn't you call him?"
"He always puts his phone on silent, so he won't pick up."
"Is that so?"
Other than that, he usually answers the phone just fine when I call.
Still half-asleep, I knocked on the door to his room, but there was no answer.
"Looks like he's still sleeping."
"Then wake him up and make some food."
"…Okay."
"I'll be home late today, so make sure you two have dinner."
"Got it."
…It seems like I'm gradually turning into my brother's babysitter.
I cautiously turned the doorknob and went into his room, where I found a lump under the blankets.
Seeing my little brother sleeping soundly, hugging a dolphin-shaped cushion, made me feel bad about waking him up.
I poked his cheek, but there was no sign of him stirring, so I pulled the half-rolled blanket over him and left the room.
I'd have to either cook or order something.
After a quick shower, I opened the fridge.
It was pretty bare, probably because it had been neglected for three days.
There were plenty of side dishes, but… no matter how much I like home-cooked meals, I needed something more substantial.
I remembered steaming eggs the other day.
I was about to order something when my phone rang again.
It was a high school friend.
When I was in the army, they didn't call even once, but now that I'm out, they're calling right away.
"Is this Kim Ga-eul's phone?"
"Who else would it be?"
"You're discharged now, so why are you ghosting us? Are you avoiding us?"
"What ghosting? I've just been busy and haven't had time to check my phone."
"What are you so busy with after being discharged?"
"What… I've been packing and stuff."
I wasn't in a situation where anyone other than relatives could come to pay their condolences, so I hadn't bothered telling my friends about my grandmother's passing.
We weren't close enough for that.
"Are you coming to Hongdae? I heard Man-shik and Jeong-hyeon are coming."
"What time?"
"1:00 p.m. We'll grab lunch and then hit the board game cafe."
Hmm… Right now, my stomach is growling.
It would be hard to wait here for over an hour.
I'm so tired. Going out sounds exhausting.
"Sorry, I can't make it today. I've got something else going on."
"Even if it's an excuse, at least make it believable."
"Seriously. I have to get food for my brother."
"You have a brother?"
"Yeah."
"If it's a promise to you, you can break it."
"No, my sister's the only one who checked on me while you guys were busy chatting on KakaoTalk. Should I just ignore her?"
"Okay, okay, sorry about that."
"Anyway, I can't go today. Let's catch up another time."
"Alright, how about next Friday or Saturday?"
"Sure."
…I didn't technically lie.
It might sound cocky, but whatever. I hung up and went back to my brother's room.
He was still asleep.
I needed to ask him what he wanted to eat, so I shook him awake.
"Hey, Kim Winter, wake up."
"…Huh…"
My brother buried his face in the cushion and scratched his neck, barely opening his eyes.
The back of his neck was swollen in places, as if he'd been bitten by mosquitoes.
"Ah, brother…"
"It's noon. Wake up."
"Huh…"
"What do you want for lunch?"
"Anything…"
"No, 'anything' isn't an option. Korean, Western, Chinese, Japanese—pick something to order."
"Porridge…"
"Porridge?"
What's with the sudden change?
Are you feeling sick?
"I want porridge…"
"What kind?"
"Anything…"
Talking to my brother, whose ability to form coherent sentences had significantly declined, felt strange.
A kid who's usually so sharp is now like this… Hmm.
I guess I'm feeling the age gap a bit.
I can't quite put it into words.
"Alright, I'll order porridge. Wash up first and get your act together."
"Okay…"
I sent my groggy brother off and ordered abalone porridge and beef vegetable porridge.
While boiling water for coffee, I heard my brother calling from the bathroom.
"…Brother, turn on the hot water."
My brother, soaked and shivering, poked his head out and asked.
I'd turned off the boiler earlier after washing up. Seriously.
The cold water must have shocked him awake.
"Oh, hold on."
"Wait, bro… Can you grab me some clothes?"
"Clothes?"
"Yeah…"
Come to think of it, he'd gone straight to the shower after waking up, so he didn't have any clothes with him.
I could bring him a T-shirt and pants…
"…Just wrap yourself in a towel and go to your room to change."
"Ah… Okay."
…Still, I felt weird about going through his closet to get his underwear.
It's not like we're ten years apart.
"Why did you suddenly want porridge?"
"I don't feel well."
"You were just sleepy. How did you know you weren't feeling well?"
"…What would you say if I told you I stole your blanket while you were drunk?"
After finishing a bowl of porridge, I was about to sit on the couch, but my brother, already lying there, hit me with that comment.
My aunts had teased me so much about it that the story got twisted.
I didn't steal the blanket—I just ended up with it.
That's all.
"I was going to kick you off, but shouldn't you be grateful I let you sleep on the bed?"
"…Is it normal for us to sleep next to each other?"
"You couldn't sleep on the floor. My back was killing me."
"You woke me up for no reason because of you."
"Is that my fault? And I'm the one who got scolded, not you."
I'd rather people just say I hogged the blanket.
Is it so wrong to sleep in a bed for a while to keep the incense burning? It's unfair when I think about it.
"I didn't get scolded, but the atmosphere was tense."
"What do you mean?"
"…You don't know this, but you looked really scary when you opened your eyes."
"Me?"
"I thought you were going to say something to our uncle if Mom and I hadn't stopped you."
Wow, that's embarrassing.
How many people like me are out there, trying not to cause trouble?
I guess I just have one of those faces.
"Do I really look like that?"
"Not now."
"…So, I used to be like that?"
"You think you weren't?"
"Hey, I wasn't stingy with school lunches. I took care of you, didn't I? But you're saying I was like that too?"
"No, it's just… You get really intense when you're stressed."
"I don't cause trouble just because I'm stressed."
"See? You're getting worked up again."
"Hey, really… No, forget it."
Where did he learn to push my buttons like that?
I thought we didn't communicate well, but he's surprisingly good at it.
"…Are you mad?"
"I'm not mad."
"Then why are you acting like this?"
"I'm not acting like anything. Stop saying weird things."
"You're mad."
I was annoyed when my brother, lying on the couch, started poking my leg with his foot.
Lying there and prodding me with his toes was just irritating.
"Hey, stop touching me."
"Why? Are you upset?"
"I mean it, stop."
"Oh, don't be like that!"
Fed up with my brother's antics, I grabbed the foot he was poking me with.
As the saying goes, if someone slaps your right cheek, offer the left. But if they attack first, you have to counterattack.
"Ah, stop! Seriously, don't!"
"I didn't even do anything, and you're already like this."
"I got bitten by a mosquito there!"
"Oh, really?"
Upon closer inspection, there was a red, swollen mark on the sole of his left foot.
Oh, this must be a sensitive spot.
I held his foot with one hand and gently tickled it with the other. He twisted his whole body, trying to push me away.
"Stop it! Brother, seriously!"
"You started it."
"I said stop!"
"Hey, that hurts!"
"Let go!"
He kicked me with his free foot, so I stopped tickling for a moment and grabbed both his feet.
I barely managed to restrain him as he struggled, and I continued tickling him gently with my thumb. He screamed and thrashed, trying to get away.
Holding him with just my arms wasn't enough, so I pinned his legs down and kept tickling.
"Haa… Ha… Brother, stop…"
"Why did you poke me first?"
"I'm sorry, stop…"
"Surrender?"
"I surrender, I surrender. Please…"
He was sweating and couldn't scream anymore, so I accepted his surrender, thinking I'd gone far enough.
When I let go, he covered his face with his arms and exhaled heavily. I felt a little bad for being so harsh.
"…Are you okay?"
"…I'm not okay. Help me up. I can't move."
I grabbed his hand and pulled him up, but he suddenly headbutted me.
I was about to apologize for going too far, but the pain stopped me.
"Ow!"
"Serves you right!"
"What the hell? That hurt!"
"I was in pain too, you know!"
He'd seriously bitten me.
How did he manage to bite my neck so hard?
If he'd put a little more force into it, he might have broken the skin.
I was about to lose my temper.
"Ah, there are teeth marks."
"What?"
"Sorry."
Considering how much it hurt, it's surprising there wasn't more damage… What if he'd bitten me in the middle of summer?
It would've been a real problem if it bruised.
"…Does it look bad?"
"…It's not bleeding."
"Okay, good."
I wanted to say something, but I couldn't exactly blame him, so I just sighed.
…I hope it's just a bit of swelling.
"…Sorry."
"No, it's… fine. I was wrong too."
"…Why did we even fight?"
"…I don't know."
The cause was my brother teasing me.
If we'd kept arguing, it would've turned into another lecture about how I got scolded for sleeping in the bed yesterday.
…Something feels off.
"…I need to study soon."
"Yeah."
"If you need ointment, it's in the drawer under the TV."
"If you need mosquito repellent, it's on my desk."
"Okay."
My brother headed back to his room.
Just in case, I rummaged through the drawer, found the ointment, and applied it.
…It stings.
It's nice to be close with my brother, but I think I went too far today.
…I'll have to tone it down next time.