Chatting away with the children, evening came around quickly.
After having a proper meal for the first time in a while, I left for a hospital visit with a bag full of porridge in my left hand and a smartphone in my right, displaying the address sent by Haehyuk. Before entering the building, I called Haehyuk, and he, sounding bewildered at the news that all seven of us would come, instructed us not to cause too much commotion.
"Can we sleep here and go tomorrow?"
We had already decided to stay the night with the kids. All that was needed was Haehyuk's approval, so I asked in a voice softer than usual. It was to demonstrate how well-behaved we could be.
After a moment of hesitation, Haehyuk sighed. Accepting our request over the phone, I shared a smile with the children and entered the building where Haewoon was resting.
Opening the door to room 1708, I saw Haewoon alone on a large bed, an IV needle inserted into the back of his hand.
"...To see Kang Haewoon this quiet, it's a first."
Haewoon, among the A-class kids, was known for his rough sleeping habits, often rolling around and waking others in his sleep. Yet, there he was, lying still as if dead, which felt unfamiliar to Hamin and the others.
The three boys who had known Haewoon the longest looked at the bed with slightly heavier eyes, while Sihyun placed the porridge on the table and sat on the bed.
Reaching out a hand that was previously resting on the sheet, I checked Haewoon's breathing. It was a peculiar habit that formed after Haewoon had fainted.
"He's breathing."
"Of course, he should be breathing, not… ouch!"
Hamin, who was in the middle of a remark, was kicked in the shin by Daun and fell. The girl scolded him for unnecessarily inviting trouble with his sharp tongue and then shooed him away as if chasing off a beggar.
Cradling his shin, Hamin gasped in surprise, but Daun paid him no attention, focusing solely on Sihyun.
"Ignore what he said."
"I was planning to."
"What are you doing in front of people?"
The banter between them made Hamin even more exasperated. He tried to lighten the mood with a joke, explaining it away, but no one paid him any mind. His grumbling continued until Jihye intervened to prevent further disturbance.
Thanks to Jihye, Hamin stood facing the wall, mumbling to himself, while Haru took on the role of monitoring him. The rest of us checked on Haewoon's condition.
Both his breathing and pulse were normal. He didn't look to be in any discomfort, which made Sihyun glance at the porridge he brought.
He must be hungry.
Haewoon had a good appetite. It was worrying to think he hadn't eaten for so long, so when I sent him a concerned look, Seowoo stroked my hair.
"He'll eat when he wakes up. It's Haewoon, after all."
It's Haewoon, after all.
Those words felt strangely comforting, and I found myself nodding without realizing it. It felt like Haewoon was one of those people who wouldn't die even if left on a deserted island. After checking his breathing one last time, I organized the items I had brought.
I took off my windbreaker, gathered it with other belongings, and looked around the bed and floor to decide where to sleep.
With Haewoon taking up one bed, the remaining two beds were insufficient for all seven of us. At least three of us would need to sleep on the floor for everyone to rest comfortably, so we exchanged glances. Given that Jihye had recently returned from Egypt, it naturally fell to her to take one of the beds, and due to the discomfort of sharing beds across genders, Daun was given free use of another bed.
For the same reason, Sihyun claimed another bed, leaving one available.
"Should we play rock-paper-scissors?"
It seemed like we were resorting to this solution more often these days. Seowoo was the first to propose the game, and the other children agreed, stretching out their hands to play.
As everyone shouted "Rock-paper-scissors!" and revealed their hands, Seowoo and Hamin showed scissors, while Geonu and Haru showed paper. A brief silence followed.
"……."
No sooner had the results been determined than Sihyun noticed Haru's shoulders droop about 10cm. He beckoned Haru over, tapping the spot next to him on the bed. Hamin, as if he had witnessed some foul play, squinted his eyes.
"He lost, you know?"
"I know. But this isn't about deciding where to
sleep, it's about where to rest until we sleep. We're all just resting here together until then."
Saying this, Sihyun also called Geonu over to the bed. Hamin, looking slightly aggrieved, was about to complain when Seowoo's warning of possibly being left out spurred him into action, and they started another round of rock-paper-scissors.
This time, to everyone's surprise, Hamin won.
"Wow."
He almost shouted but remembered Haewoon was sleeping and lowered his voice, clenching his fist in victory. It was the fist that had triumphed over Seowoo, who had again chosen scissors.
Sihyun watched Hamin, who was overly excited about winning a simple game of rock-paper-scissors, and then casually remarked as he approached.
"You won, for once."
"About time I did."
"Fair enough."
Hamin had been the first to be eliminated in such bets recently. If luck was indeed fair, it was about time he won, so Sihyun nodded in agreement. Seowoo, increasing his pace, passed Hamin and claimed a spot on the bed before him.
"Hey, you...!"
"Shh, Haewoon is sleeping."
Seowoo, having sneakily taken a spot, smugly cautioned him. Sihyun looked at the bed now occupied by four boys. With three not-so-small boys sitting on it, there was hardly any space left. It was unfortunate for Hamin, but if he wanted to sit on the bed, he would have to perch precariously on the very edge.
"Huh."
Realizing the situation, Hamin made an incredulous face at the four boys sitting in a row on the bed. Sihyun, feeling generous, called him over.
"Do you want to sit on my lap?"
Hamin scowled at the jest, and the sight was so amusing that Sihyun chuckled. Then, Hamin walked over to Sihyun.
"……?"
As Hamin approached, Sihyun's eyes momentarily wavered. Hamin actually seemed like he would sit on Sihyun's lap, despite the joke.
"Hey…."
It was just a joke. Before Sihyun could say anything, Hamin plopped down right in front of him. So, on the floor in front of the bed.
Sitting directly on the floor, Hamin leaned back against Sihyun's knees and looked up, their eyes meeting. Sihyun's startled gaze met Hamin's purple eyes.
"What were you thinking that made you so surprised?"
"Ah…."
"Did you really think I'd sit on your lap? Where do you think I could sit?"
It would all fall apart.
Hamin glanced at Sihyun's thin legs as he spoke, then suddenly grabbed Sihyun's ankle. Sihyun flinched at the unexpected touch, and Hamin scolded him to eat properly.
Instead of responding, Sihyun kicked him lightly with the tip of his foot, then suffered the consequences when Hamin bit his calf in annoyance.
"When will Haewoon wake up?"
"Who knows, he seems fine, so probably soon."
Whispers.
After all the noise and play, Sihyun lowered his voice to talk with the children, looking over the silver-haired boy who showed no signs of waking.
"I'm glad we didn't all go to Egypt this time."
"What?"
"Kang Haewoon got hurt like that. If we had all gone, imagine how many of us might have been injured. I thought about it while we were in Egypt, and it was terrifying."
I couldn't breathe.
Though spoken in a calm tone, I believed the message was clearly conveyed. Sihyun spoke serenely, meeting the gaze of the children drawn to him.
It wasn't something they could rely on.
If someone had to be hurt, it should be the fewest number possible, and that group had to include himself, who couldn't avoid being involved, rather than other children taking his place.
That's when it happened.
"We're still going together, right?"
"...What?"
"We're going together, right?"
Seowoo, sitting next to Sihyun, combed through his tousled black hair and asked. His voice was so calm, it seemed as if he was asking about something trivial, causing Sihyun to frown.
He wondered what part of his statement could have been interpreted as agreeing to go together.
He was about to say that wasn't what he meant, but strangely, he couldn't speak. Memories of navigating the pyramid alone came to mind. Dodging perilous traps, running from collapsing ceilings, wandering through an unknowable maze alone. Those memories were etched in his body, making him twitch, when suddenly a hand reached up from below.
Hamin reached out, avoiding Sihyun's gaze, and grabbed his cheek.
"Are you digging a hole for yourself again?"
He asked, suggesting it was time for Sihyun to stop isolating himself. Feeling cornered, Sihyun hesitated, and then a light-hearted comment diffused the tension.
"I liked being with you in Egypt, Sihyun."
"……."
"I would have been too scared alone. And if you were alone, I would have been too worried."
If alone, there would really be no way to communicate. We couldn't have looked out for each other like this time.
His calm voice filled the room with strength, making it hard to argue. Then, the boy who had first spoken nonsense smiled and tousled Sihyun's hair, seemingly getting a taste for playing with it.
"Let's go together next time, Sihyun."
"You should at least try going around once before deciding to go alone. We need to gain some experience too, right?"
"Right. Don't try to lead by yourself."
Seowoo spoke, Hamin added, and Jihye hammered it home. As Sihyun was stunned by the successive comments, Daun suddenly flicked his forehead right in front of him.
Snap!
A clear sound accompanied the pain on his forehead.
"Ugh…."
Sihyun clutched his reddened forehead, furrowing his brows, and Daun, watching him, met his gaze.
"If you're in danger, we'll save you. So if we're in danger, you save us."
"……."
"Just like you did for Kang Haewoon this time. There's no one-sided relationship or one-sided sacrifice, got it?"
Daun spoke sternly, as if she were a strict teacher, her fierceness causing Sihyun to nod unwittingly. Only after receiving his affirmation did she smile, and Sihyun, seeing her smile, blankly looked at the A-class kids.
Going together?
Really?
He wondered why they would voluntarily invite such hardship. Even after Haewoon's incident, which should have raised their awareness of the dangers, they were still stubborn. They could be comfortably protected somewhere nice, and he wanted them to stay safe and protected.
Though he responded, he was still confused, looking at the children with a complex gaze when a clear voice wrapped around his ear.
"Just trust us a bit, Sihyun. It's better to be together than alone."
"……."
"There are more things we can do together than alone. We'll be able to bear more sorrow and, of course, overcome more difficulties. Even if we face hard times like this, we can support each other so we don't give up or break."
"……."
"There's no rule saying you have to handle everything alone. And don't force that on us. We'll do what we want to do. You've seen how stubborn we all are. And…."
Gently. Seowoo spoke in a soothing tone, then lightly rested his chin on Sihyun's head and muttered.
"We agreed to go together."
His muffled voice seemed to penetrate Sihyun's ears, reaching deep into his thoughts. Seowoo leaned in closer, locking eyes with him. The children's gazes pierced him, and the weight of their expectation thickened the air.
Sihyun glanced back and forth between the lying Haewoon and the children, then sighed reluctantly under Seowoo's persistent touch.
It was hard to argue when the most logical of them concluded the discussion.
In the end, Sihyun had no choice but to fold the stubbornness he had built since the pyramid.
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