Chapter 37

Sniff. Sniffle.

Naru, crouched in the corner of a vacant lot strewn with trash, sniffed. Fortunately there was an old tarp overhead that kept off the rain. The puppy next to him, shaking itself, kept licking his hand as if worried about him.

After crying for two hours straight, Naru, exhausted, stopped shedding tears. He was hungry, and had drained his energy from crying, so he had no strength left in his body.

The puppy that had become her friend by now brought a hidden bone and placed it in front of Naru. It seemed like it could stave off his hunger for a little while. The bone, left over from someone else’s meal, still had bits of meat clinging to it.

As Naru unconsciously reached out, he remembered Gyu-yeon’s words and shook his head. He’d been scolded for eating cereal like a dog; if he started picking up things like this to eat, he didn’t know what he’d say.

“No, it’s okay. I’ll get scolded by Gyu-yeon…”

“Kiiing?”

“Ah, I was abandoned, really…”

Realizing again that he had been abandoned, Naru made a bitter face. Now there was no one left to scold him for eating cereal like a dog or for eating filthy food.

“How am I supposed to live now? Wandering around scares me.”

Wandering around was truly frightening. Back when he was very young—specifically when he witnessed his mother and youngest sibling get hit by a car—Naru, who was moving for a house relocation, endured all sorts of hardships.

He’d been pecked by ducks while crossing a stream, and when he was too tired from moving and tried to rest, other stray dogs would rush in and pick fights. Of course, he couldn’t revert to a puppy state now, so he didn’t have to worry about that anymore.

Woof woof!

‘The owners who abandoned us won’t regret it. So we have to live well on our own.’

It was practical advice. The dog who had befriended him, also abandoned by its owner, said it had been living as a stray for two years. In short, it was like a senior in Naru’s social life.

“They won’t regret it…?”

Burying his face between his knees, Naru squeezed his eyes shut. Thinking of Gyu-yeon’s angry face, that wasn’t entirely untrue—the claim that he wouldn’t regret it.

Trembling, Naru drifted off while recalling what had happened with Gyu-yeon. He had always fallen asleep under a blanket on a warm sofa, so sleeping on this cold road made him shiver to his core.

For the first time since coming here, Naru had a nightmare: a dream in which Gyu-yeon kept shouting for him to get out of his house immediately.

Chirp. Cheep. As soon as the morning sun rose, the birds cried loudly. Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Naru hunched his body against the incoming chill.

“Oh…”

Habitually scanning his surroundings, Naru made a miserable face. He had hoped it was all a dream, but yesterday’s events had been real, and he had woken up in a filthy vacant lot.

What should I do first? Scratching his cheek, Naru looked for the puppy he had seen yesterday. But in the short time since, the puppy was gone. A couple of bones were stacked beside Naru.

Did it leave on its own? Or did it just go somewhere briefly?

After waiting blankly for the puppy for an hour, Naru finally hung his head low. Seeing the stacked bones and no sign of it, he figured it had left this place for good.

Bzzzz. Bzzz.

Flies had gathered around the bones. Overcome with the thought of losing even that friend, Naru slapped the fly sitting on the ground and killed it.

“First, let’s go out.”

Resolving herself firmly, Naru stood up and left the alley. The city morning looked very busy. It was crowded with people heading to work, and students were preoccupied with going to school. Among them, the only idle person was Naru.

Having been kidnapped by Gyu-yeon as soon as he crossed into this world, Naru still didn’t really know what this place was like. In other words, aside from a few people, he had only ever met kind people and didn’t know the world’s dangers.

They’re all kind, so someone will help me.

Thinking positively, Naru decided to try talking to a man who looked pleasant. The man standing at the traffic light listening to music looked to be in his late twenties.

“Excuse me…”

“Ah shit, what is it.”

“Please help me just once,”

“I won’t buy it.”

Huh? I wasn’t trying to sell anything?

Naru was completely ignored. Even when he peeked to the side, the man only gave him a disgusted look and showed no friendliness. This was an outcome he hadn’t expected.

What the—he looks nicer than Gyu-yeon, so why is he like that?

Pulling himself together, Naru then spoke to several people—a woman taking a child to school, students on their way to class, office workers heading to work—but none of them were friendly.

Thunk.

He was doomed. Naru realized the harshness of reality. Having been confined to a basement, he had never worked before. It was the same when he lived with Gyu-yeon. Since he’d never worked, he had no grasp of how to make a living.

“Oh my, what are you doing here? Come here for a moment.”

“Huh? Yes…”

“You look like you have a pleasant face. May I talk with you for a bit?”

Just as he was despairing, a savior appeared before Naru. The first person to speak kindly to him was a woman who looked to be in her early thirties. Touched by the warm tone, Naru nodded and listened attentively to the woman.

The woman, having led Naru to a corner away from the crowd, repeated words that were hard to understand and then suggested they move. There happened to be a fast-food place nearby, and after going in and finishing her order, the woman stared at Naru.

“Wh-what?”

“I’m sorry, but could you spare a drink?”

“I’m really sorry. I actually don’t have any money; could you help me first? I’m hungry.”

The woman, wearing a pitiful expression, tilted her head as if bewildered. Naru tried to look even more pitiful to earn sympathy. For a moment, silence hung between them.

“Hey, look over there. That person is weird. Fake embarrassment.”

“Oh this is hilarious, kek. Hey don’t stare!”

College students buying drinks laughed at the two as they left. Naru, oblivious to what they were saying, stared quietly at the woman. Her gentle eyes held no particular emotion.

Flustered, the woman began to stammer. Naru watched her complexion and even showed concern.

“Are you okay? You don’t look well.”

“Ah, well, um, I’m a student so I can’t give much,”

“Sorry, you spoke softly so I couldn’t hear what you said…”

The woman even began to avert her eyes from Naru. Her tone was harmless, but the lack of malice made her feel unnervingly unhinged.

‘If time runs out, the order list will be reset. 10, 9, 8…’

At that moment, an announcement came from the kiosk: if you don’t complete payment, the order list will be reset. Panic-stricken, Naru grabbed the woman’s hands and made her eyes sparkle.

“What do we do? It says we have to pay quickly. Please, help me.”

“Ah, well, um, hold on to this for now.”

“Yes?”

“Ah, I’ll pay.”

The woman, lured into the situation by Naru, finished the payment with her card. Naru, who had ordered a burger set neatly, sat down and stuffed a french fry into his mouth first. The woman, who had been staring at Naru as if her soul had been sucked out, finally pulled herself together and began to speak.

“Do you believe in Do?”

“Do? Like the ‘do’ in do-re-mi-fa-sol?”

“…”

The woman’s speech halted at the absurd answer. Naru, unconcerned, unwrapped his burger and bit generously into the appetizing bun and meat patty. All the while, his eyes remained fixed on the woman.

The woman, continually flustered by this type she had never seen, continued her script-like speech. Even when Naru interjected with unintelligible questions, she ignored them and kept talking.

Thanks to that, Naru didn’t have a lonely mealtime. After finishing with a refreshing swig of cola, he left without looking back, having said thank you for the meal.

It was such a relief to meet a kind person. Now what should I do…?

Vrrr.

Wandering the streets aimlessly, his phone buzzed. He realized he hadn’t even thought to take it out until now.

<Battery at 3%. Please complete charging.>

Thinking it might be a message from Gyu-yeon, he checked his phone in a hurry, but it was only a low battery notification. Of all times to have no battery. Plunged into despair, Naru stamped his feet and stared blankly at the screen.

Should I send a text to Gyu-yeon? Would he come find me again?

Suddenly he remembered the advice the puppy had given last night.

‘The owners who abandoned us won’t regret it. So we have to live well on our own.’

The owners won’t regret it—did Gyu-yeon really feel no regret? Naru couldn’t shake his lingering feelings. He had run out of the house in hurt, but he hoped Gyu-yeon would definitely come find him. If he didn’t, he wanted him to regret it.

<Battery at 2%. Please complete charging.>

Because he had left the screen on, the battery quickly dropped to 1%. Without hesitation, Naru opened his messenger app. In the sparse friend list were Gyu-yeon and Seo-yeon. Naru, accustomed to it, tapped Gyu-yeon’s name, left a single message, and put his phone away.

[Yu Gyu-yeon, regret]

It was a message full of venom. After sending the message with a trace of resentment, his heart felt heavier. Walking with no destination, Naru found a bench in front of a building and decided to rest. Though old, it was quite comfortable once he sat down.

After sitting there for about thirty minutes, Naru watched the shops across the way. Employees at a donut shop, about his age, were busy at work. Likewise, the florist next door and the clothing store owner were doing their best in their respective roles.

I need to work and earn money too.

Yes, money was necessary to live. Naru didn’t know how to find work. He needed to think about it more.

“What is this young person doing, with such sturdy legs why are they sitting here?”

“Huh?”

“Move along, this is the senior center’s bench.”

The area near the building grew noisy as elderly people gathered. Looking closely, the wooden sign at the building’s front read ‘Sunshine Senior Center.’ Startled, Naru moved from the bench and stood blankly among the grandmothers.

The grandmothers, seated in a row of chairs as if by appointment, stared intently at Naru. They seemed curious about where this young person had come from.

“Why is he just standing there?”

“Who knows, I’m not sure either. Oh dear, he looks all neat but kind of shabby.”

“That, that, what is it. Isn’t he a young man heading to the farm? That truck picks people up right in front here.”

“Is that so. I heard they even pick up young people these days.”

The grandmothers, discussing Naru, brought up the topic of the farm. ‘Our Farm’ was a large farm on the edge of Incheon that would take young people on short-term work when it was short-staffed. One of its pickup points was in front of this senior center.

Naru tilted his head at the mention of a farm.

What farm? Am I going to a farm?

While puzzling over it, a grandmother sitting nearby called out to Naru.