Double Junk - 166

As Ajin opened the door, wondering if the TV had turned on by itself, he found it completely dark. He looked around the room and quickly identified the source of the sound. A cordless phone—common in this world—was blinking brightly on the nightstand beside the bed.

“…….”

Feeling an inexplicable fear, Ajin didn’t dare to approach the phone. Instead, he stopped two steps away and cautiously craned his neck forward. At that moment, the music abruptly stopped, and the screen changed.

At the top of the screen, today’s date and time were displayed, followed by a list of small texts scrolling down. Ajin squinted to read them.

[Mommy (✿◖◡◗)❤ – Missed Call (2)]
[Big Bro ✧⁺⸜(･ᗜ･)⸝⁺✧ – Missed Call (3)]
[Auntie ᕕ(✿°᷄д°᷅)ᕗ – Missed Call (2)]
[Juhyuk – Missed Call]
[Noonoonana ٩(｡•‿•｡)۶ – Missed Call (3)]

The texts were so chaotic that even though they were in Korean, Ajin couldn’t make sense of them.

“I have no idea what this means….”

Standing still, Ajin turned around without hesitation, deciding he would ask Seokju later when he returned.

“It’s so hot… so hot….”

Sipping water continuously, Ajin left the room. To get to the study, he had to cross the spacious living room. While the distance was significant, it didn’t feel far since his legs were fine. As he walked, focusing on the sensation of his bare feet touching the floor, something caught his attention. It was a glass cabinet filled with framed photographs.

Ajin stopped as if spellbound. The frames were full of pictures of him. Of course, there were unfamiliar faces as well, but their eyes bore a peculiar familiarity that made it easy for him to recognize them as the older brother and sister Seokju had mentioned.

In one photo, a younger-looking Ajin was riding a horse with a tense expression, while someone who appeared to be his brother stood beside him, holding the reins.

Another photo showed Ajin wearing a graduation cap, holding a large bouquet of flowers, surrounded by Seonhwa and other family members.

There was also a picture of young Ajin, laughing with cream smeared on his nose, being teased by his sister pointing at him. Another photo depicted Ajin and his sister with their arms around each other in an exotic landscape. Ajin was also seen flashing a V-sign against the backdrop of blue water, goggles perched on his head.

Other photos included Ajin and his brother each holding one claw of a cooked red lobster, Ajin lounging on a sunbed in sunglasses, solo portraits of his brother and sister, a candid shot of him cheek-to-cheek with Seonhwa, and one of him sitting on a fancy car’s hood. There were also family portraits, everyone dressed in elegant gowns and suits. The number of photos was countless.

Although they were all unfamiliar pictures, Ajin couldn’t tear his eyes away from them. He even put down his glass of water to examine them more closely.

As he was engrossed in the photos for quite some time, a gentle voice broke the silence.

“Do you want to see the pictures?”

Ajin quickly turned his head. Seonhwa stood there in a muted purple women’s suit. Behind her, her secretary was also visible.

“…Mother.”

Ajin bowed slightly. Though he had seen her earlier at breakfast, he had never had parents—let alone such distinguished ones—so he wasn’t sure how to act.

“Indeed. Showing you photos would’ve been perfect for helping you regain your memories. I didn’t think of it until now,” Seonhwa said with a soft smile. Then, she turned to her secretary and said, “You can leave now.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the secretary replied, gathering his briefcase and leaving. Watching him walk away, Ajin asked, “Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes, I’ve got work piled up. But I’ll be back early. Unless you don’t want me to go, Ajin?”

“No, it’s work….”

“…Alright, it’s work. But I have a moment. Come here.”

Seonhwa suddenly sat down cross-legged below the cabinet. The pose didn’t suit her neatly dressed appearance at all. Hesitating, Ajin sat down beside her. Seonhwa rummaged through the cabinet drawer and pulled out several photo albums. Their sizes ranged from small, book-like ones to some as large as Ajin’s torso.

She expertly sorted the albums in order and opened the oldest-looking one.

“Look at this.”

“Who is this?”

“Who else? It’s you, just after you were born.”

“…….”

Ajin leaned closer to inspect the photo. The tiny, red, scrunched-up creature didn’t look pretty at all. Feeling uneasy, he licked his lips as Seonhwa chuckled like a child and flipped to the next page.

“This is when you were 100 days old, and this is your first birthday. Starting from here, your face looks more defined. Oh, you were so adorable. Your brother and sister were very cute as kids too, but you? You were really adorable. Really.”

“…….”

“My father, your grandfather, was very stern. He rarely smiled, even for your brother and sister. But with you? He doted on you endlessly.”

“…….”

“You had a knack for recognizing who loved you, even as a child. You’d always give your grandfather angelic smiles. Once you started walking, you’d run to him and cling to him, calling him ‘Grandpa, Grandpa.’ He loved it so much he practically fainted from happiness.”

“…….”

“This is from when you were in kindergarten. This is from a talent show. This is the first time you rode a plane. See here? The one holding you is your brother, and the one holding your shoes is your sister. When I was busy with work, they raised you. They taught you to read, fed you, and looked after you. You adored them and always listened to them. Such a good boy.”

Seonhwa spoke without pause, recounting every moment captured in the albums. Ajin’s growth was meticulously documented, not a single moment missed. Even after he grew up, the photos continued—shedding his school uniform, becoming a college student, and up to more recent times.

It seemed Seonhwa remembered every single one of those moments. She smiled constantly as she talked.

Ajin followed along, looking at the photos but eventually found himself watching Seonhwa’s profile. His mother’s face, lit with joy as she reminisced about him, was so… comforting.

“I guess I was loved a lot.”

“Of course. I raised you with all the love, care, and resources you could ever need.”

“Thank you, Mother.”

Ajin smiled warmly, his eyes curving into a crescent shape. In his previous life, he had neither love, companionship, nor wealth. Here, he had more than enough of all three. It felt like a miracle.

“……”

Seonhwa stared at Ajin intently. The soft smile on her face gradually faded.

“Don’t grow up.”

“Pardon?”

“Don’t grow up, Ajin.”

“……”

“You can live off your mother’s hard work for the rest of your life. It’s fine, just stay the way you are.”

Seonhwa abruptly closed the photo album and put her arm around Ajin’s shoulder. Ajin blinked, unsure of what to make of her words. Stay immature? But adults were supposed to mature, weren’t they? Especially at the age of twenty-seven. Wasn’t it strange to remain childish? He couldn’t understand why Seonhwa looked so sad.

I should ask Seokju about this too.

Ajin kept his mouth shut, blinking as Seonhwa turned to him with a question.

“Since we’re talking about it, how about moving back home?”

“I’m already at home, aren’t I?”

“This is just temporary while you’re recovering. You’ve moved out already, remember? With Seokju. You insisted on living on your own the moment you got into college. You pushed and pushed, and by your junior year, you’d left.”

Ajin blinked repeatedly in steady rhythm. Moved out. With Seokju. Left home. It took him a while to process the words and make sense of them. Then his shoulders trembled slightly as his eyes widened in disbelief.

“I live with Kang Sajang—I mean, Kang Biseo?”

“Yes.”

“You never mentioned that to me!”

“Why would I? You’ve been living together for five years now. Isn’t it a little late to bring it up?”

“……”

Ajin swallowed hard. The dryness in his throat didn’t go away, so he downed the rest of his ice water in one gulp. Wiping his reddened lips with the back of his hand, he questioned Seonhwa with a demanding tone.

“So, I live with Kang Biseo, work with him, and spend all my time with him?”

“Yes.”

“That means we’re together all day, every day?”

“That’s right.”

Seonhwa nodded nonchalantly. Ajin turned his whole body toward her, his voice becoming earnest.

“But, Mother, aren’t you… concerned about this?”

“About what? You being with Seokju all the time?”

“Yes.”

“I like it. Seokju’s good at his job, he puts up with your temper, and he’s kind. Most importantly, you and Seokju are a perfect match.”

“A perfect match? How so?”

Ajin’s endless questions made Seonhwa exhale a long sigh through her nose. She thought about how Seokju had been coming and going from this house for ten years. Explaining everything that had happened during that time seemed overwhelming. After a moment of hesitation, she began speaking gently.

“Ajin, your fortune is filled with peach blossom spirits. Overflowing with them, really.”

“…Pardon? My fortune? You believe in that? You’re the chairwoman of a corporation.”

Ajin couldn’t hide his shock as he asked again. Seonhwa chuckled knowingly and nodded.

“I know it might sound far-fetched. It’s superstition and lacks scientific evidence. As someone in business, I shouldn’t be swayed by such things.”

“……”

“But when your child is sick, when the doctors say there’s nothing wrong, and yet your child cries in pain, saying they feel like they’re dying—what can a mother do? That was all I could rely on.”

“I was sick? Me?”

“Yes. When you were seven, you fell terribly ill. You couldn’t breathe properly, had a high fever, and complained of numbness. The hospital couldn’t find any reason for it. Desperate, your aunt and I visited a shaman.”

“……”

“The shaman said that your life would face a major disaster at the age of seven, but because the world had changed, the disaster couldn’t manifest externally. Instead, you were experiencing it physically.”

“……”

“The shaman recommended an exorcism. What else could I do when my child was crying out in pain, saying they were dying? I went through with it. Miraculously, you got better.”

“……”

“And when you were ten, it happened again. You said your knees hurt, your legs felt numb, and you couldn’t stand up. We went to the hospital, but again, they said there was nothing wrong. So, I had another exorcism performed, and once again, you recovered. By then, the shaman seemed like a god to me.”

Seonhwa laughed, finding her own thoughts amusing.