Things That Deserve To Die

Translated by Springlila

Il-hyun had no idea how many times he had done it. Ja-kyung looked at himself in the mirror and had a disapproving expression on his face the entire time. Kang Il-hyun switched from a red tie to a cobalt blue tie. When Ja-kyung asked if this was better, he nodded roughly. Ja-kyung’s hair was styled with pomade, but it appeared to be similar to Kang Il-hyun’s at first glance. He looked so damn old.

“Your forehead is handsome, so it looks good even with it uncovered.”

“I don’t like this hairstyle.”

“Why? It looks cool.”

“Now I understand why you, CEO Kang, look old. The hair is the problem.”

Il-hyun clicked his tongue and loosened his tie again as Ja-kyung messed up his hair. Then he compared it with different colors. Il-hyun smirked as Ja-kyung grumbled that he wasn’t sure if he was going on a genetic test or a blind date.

“Do you want to go on a blind date?”

“No.”

“If you want to, just say it.”

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“Really?”

“I know someone who would be perfect for you.”

“…”

“He’s handsome, rich, has a big dick, and is a little presbyopic, but he still loves you the most.”

Il-hyun laughed in amusement, then adjusted the newly worn tie and fixed the front of Ja-kyung’s hair, and finally turned him so he could see himself in the mirror. Ja-kyung nodded when he looked at his reflection in the mirror. It’s okay. Kang Il-hyun’s hand slid down his arm and hugged him around the waist. He sighed and whined, nuzzling his face between Ja-kyung’s shoulder and neck.

“Ah, I want to go with you rather than go to work.”

Ja-kyung gently pulled Kang Il-hyun away. Even though he had declined Il-hyun’s insistence to go together, it seemed like he was having a hard time letting go of lingering feelings.

“It’s nothing, no need to worry.”

“Why are you so nonchalant?”

He shrugged. His mood felt strange, but it was distant from sentimentality. Although the results were uncertain, nothing would change. I am Ja-kyung, and I’m already too far from being Jang Kyung-joon. Il-hyun, who had been quietly watching, grabbed his cheek and kissed his lips.

“Take care and come back safely.”

He nodded and then smiled. There was a knock on the door and Park Tae-soo entered. He had decided to accompany him instead of Kang Il-hyun. After adjusting his wristwatch, they stepped outside, where the Wang brothers, who had been waiting, came over and hugged him.

“Wei, you can’t go and cry.”

“Yeah.”

Wang Lun, who had been patting his back, suddenly made a strange sound and turned to look at the ceiling. His large body bounced up and down. Perplexed, Ja-kyung asked if he was crying, but Wang Han told him not to worry about it and patted his back.

They were on their way to meet Jang Tae-ho, and as they started off, a few raindrops fell from the heavily clouded sky, which soon turned into a downpour. When they reached their destination and the car stopped, Park Tae-soo held a large black umbrella over them to shield them from the rain.

When he was escorted inside the genetic forensics center, he spotted Jang Tae-ho, who had arrived first. He was sitting in a chair and looking straight ahead. Ja-kyung approached him and awkwardly greeted him.

“Hello…”

As Jang Tae-ho returned his gaze, Ja-kyung could see tension and nervousness on his face. He rose from his seat and smiled softly.

“Welcome. It’s raining a lot outside, isn’t it?”

“Yes…”

“Did you encounter any traffic jams on the way?”

“Yes…”

Ja-kyung didn’t know what else to say, so he just answered. After that, neither of them spoke. They found seats a little apart from each other and waited. After a while, a staff member came over and used a cotton swab to collect a sample from their mouths. The staff member seemed to have some familiarity with Jang Tae-ho.

They said it would take about 3 hours for the results to come out, and Ja-kyung tried to go home and wait. At that time, Jang Tae-ho called Ja-kyung and stopped him.

“If you’re okay with it, would you like to wait at my place? It doesn’t seem like the rain will stop easily… and my place is nearby.”

Ah… Ja-kyung looked at Park Tae-soo, but he didn’t respond. Should I do it? He hesitated, then nodded. They got out and went to their respective cars.

As Jang Tae-ho said, the house was not far away. And it was different from what Ja-kyung had seen at night. It felt familiar as if he had been here before. He left Park Tae-soo to wait in the car and followed Tae-ho into the house. As they pushed open the front door, they were greeted by overgrown dead trees and weeds in the yard.

Jang Tae-ho, who had gone inside first, rushed to clear the cluttered items and looked embarrassed.

“It’s not usually this messy…”

Ja-kyung smiled awkwardly. Lie. The last time he came, it was messier. He couldn’t say that he had come secretly once. Only belatedly did he remember the hidden microphones and cameras he had placed all around the house. He would need to remove them discreetly. They were expensive too.

“Do you want something to drink? Tea?”

Jang Tae-ho asked, and Ja-kyung shook his head. However, Jang Tae-ho still brought a bottle of orange juice and handed it to Ja-kyung. Ja-kyung took the juice and looked around the living room. A family photo he had seen before was hanging on one wall. Jang Tae-ho’s gaze seemed to be fixed on Ja-kyung’s face as he stared at the photo intently. Jang Tae-ho made a conscious effort to smile nonchalantly when their gazes met as Ja-kyung turned.

“I didn’t think so when I saw it in the photo, but seeing it in person…”

His words were slurred and muffled, so Ja-kyung couldn’t quite understand them. Perhaps he wanted to say that Ja-kyung resembled someone. Ja-kyung had a guess from the photos of who that might be. Especially the face of the woman who seemed to be his mother, her eyes were remarkably similar to Ja-kyung’s.

Neither of them spoke, and the three hours felt like three days. Jang Tae-ho made calls intermittently for work, which allowed him to leave his seats, a fortunate distraction; otherwise, Ja-kyung might have felt too suffocated and wanted to run out. And so, time passed until a message came from Kang Il-hyun. He asked if the results were out, and Ja-kyung sent a reply. Just as he did, Jang Tae-ho’s phone rang.

After checking the number, he answered the call with a tense expression, then looked at Ja-kyung. Ja-kyung focused only on Jang Tae-ho’s face. His expression changed gradually. How should he explain it? Kang Il-hyun’s face flashed through his mind. A year ago, Kang Il-hyun, who had died and then come back, seemed to have made a similar expression while looking at Ja-kyung.

After ending the call, Jang Tae-ho seemed to be in a complex mood. He took a deep breath, and his eyes quickly turned red. He pulled away his hands from his face, then pressed them against his face again, seemingly overwhelmed. Ja-kyung also held his phone, unable to move.

***

He returned home late. He couldn’t concentrate on work all day because his mind was preoccupied with Ja-kyung. The journey back home felt unusually long today. He could hear lively laughter from the second floor as he climbed the stairs. Intrigued, he headed toward the source of the sound. Wang Han and Wang Lun were drinking and laughing while spreading something out.

Wang Lun turned around as Il-hyun entered the room.

“CEO Kang, come and see this. You have no idea how cute Wei was when he was a baby.”

What they were looking at was an album. Getting closer, he noticed that someone’s handwriting was next to the album. It contained records like a diary, noting the date of the child’s birth, the child’s actions, and small incidents that happened when the photos were taken. Our beautiful Kyung-joon. Our adorable Kyung-joon. Our…

Il-hyun smiled. She was a good mother. The person who gave birth to Lee Ja-kyung.

“But where did he go? I didn’t see him.”

Wang Han pointed toward the bedroom with his hand. He went to sleep. He said he felt upset and let us know in advance. Il-hyun stood up and went into the bedroom. The room was dark with the lights off, but the light coming in from the window revealed that Ja-kyung was lying on the bed.

As he approached, Ja-kyung tossed and turned before lying on his back.

“You’re late.”

Il-hyun sat on the bed and gently stroked Ja-kyung’s cheek.

“Congratulations. You have a brother now.”

Ja-kyung smiled silently.

“How do you feel?”

“I don’t know. Just…”

Ja-kyung’s words trailed off, and Il-hyun did not urge him.

“He’s sorry, to me. Saying he lost me… If he had just held my hand properly… None of this would have happened.”

Once they heard the result that they were biologically related, Jang Tae-ho had cried silently for a long time without saying anything. He didn’t know how many times Jang Tae-ho apologized. He thought it was his fault, that he couldn’t even properly look at his parents’ faces. He felt responsible for their early departure. He lived with guilt all his life. Now he was relieved to find him, to know he was alive. He was grateful for him to finally appear, just being alive was enough.

“And.”

“Our parents… He said they died. He said they couldn’t sleep comfortably all day because they were looking for me. He said that they were sure I was to be alive somewhere, that they only worried about me until they died…”

Il-hyun climbed onto the bed and pulled Ja-kyung into his arms. He gently stroked his back as if to soothe him. You can cry if you want to cry. Ja-kyung exhaled a long sighing breath in response to his words. His eyes were stinging, and the back of his neck hurt. He gritted his teeth harder to suppress his emotions.

“Sorry… I thought I’d be fine…”

He had thought it would be fine. Even after hearing the results, he had remained composed. However, looking at the childhood photos and videos that Jang Tae-ho showed him, he realized he wasn’t fine at all.

“It’s unfair… and frustrating…”

“Fuck… A child with parents… how… fuck…”

Uncontrollable anger surged. If he could, he wanted to go find the kidnappers and ask them why, why did they do this to him, why did they treat him like this. Ja-kyung trembled, sobbing against Kang Il-hyun’s shoulder as his emotions erupted like boiling water. Kang Il-hyun tightened his arms around Ja-kyung even more as he cry more.

“It’s okay. Everything’s okay. If you want to cry, cry.”