BCGWR Chapter 43 Part 1

When Han Ji-su came to, the window outside was already dark, and he was lying on the sofa. Ji-su chuckled softly as he looked at the thick blanket covering him and Toto asleep on his stomach. Unlike before, Toto’s cheeks were sunken, and he looked around, but his phone was nowhere to be seen.

‘He must have hidden it.’

Relaxing his body and lying comfortably, Ji-su recalled the day’s events in sequence to check if there were any gaps in his memory.

He remembered waking from a dream, having a final consultation with Professor Choi Seong-hun just before discharge, and getting into the car Jung Ha-jin had brought. He even thought he might have made a trivial joke about being disappointed not to fly back to the Guild Dormitory, but he had no memory of any conversation after that.

Fortunately, his memory hadn’t been abruptly cut out in chunks but had faded gradually, suggesting he probably fell asleep in the car, stuck in traffic during rush hour.

Ji-su surmised that Jung Ha-jin must have carried him to the sofa and covered him with the blanket after he fell asleep. He stirred slightly and looked around.

Jung Ha-jin was not in the living room. Since he wasn’t in the kitchen either, he was probably in his room. And that was correct. A short while later, Jung Ha-jin, his hair slightly damp as if he had just showered, opened his door and emerged.

Ji-su nearly made a strange sound involuntarily when he saw Jung Ha-jin in black athletic pants and a form-fitting white short-sleeved t-shirt. He already knew Jung Ha-jin was well-built, but with such tight clothing, every muscle line was visible, and Ji-su’s eyes darted away, unable to find a place to rest his gaze.

“You’re awake. I’ve made some thin gruel. Would you like it now?”

“……Ah, before that, I’d like to wash. I haven’t been able to wash since I was hospitalized…”

Despite that, his entire body felt clean and refreshed, but he still wanted to shower. Jung Ha-jin looked as if he was about to say something but then clamped his mouth shut and nodded. He then approached Ji-su, picked up Toto, who was asleep on the blanket, and put him in his pants pocket. It was a perfectly natural gesture.

‘The two of them must have gotten really close over the past few days…’

It was quite a heartwarming sight. So much so that Ji-su thought it might be fine to leave Toto with Jung Ha-jin if they became closer over time.

Originally, if anything happened to him, Kim Hyun-ah was supposed to take care of Toto, but the more candidates there were, the better it would be for Toto. As he was idly imagining a positive future for his companion monster, Jung Ha-jin, saying “Excuse me,” removed the blanket and picked up Ji-su’s body.

“……!?”

“I’ll wash you.”

Had Han Ji-su heard that correctly? He stared, mouth agape, with a face that clearly conveyed this exact thought, and Jung Ha-jin, sensing his explanation was insufficient, added in a serious voice,

“You haven’t moved your body for over five days, so your muscles might be surprised. If you suddenly experience a spasm while washing, you could fall…”

“What?! No, it’s fine! I’ll wash myself!”

“Still, if you were to fall in the bathroom, even by a one in a million chance, it could lead to a serious accident…”

“No!!! It’s really fine! That… that, ah! The bathtub! I’ll sit on the edge of the bathtub and wash…!”

“……”

Despite his words, Jung Ha-jin carried Ji-su to the bathroom in his room. Then, as Ji-su had suggested, he seated him in the bathtub, opened the bathroom cabinet, and took something out.

Ji-su realized it was a collapsible patient shower chair and said he didn’t need it, but Jung Ha-jin was resolute.

When given the choice between sitting quietly on this chair and washing alone OR being washed by Jung Ha-jin, Ji-su naturally chose the former.

Jung Ha-jin swiftly assembled the chair with clanking sounds, placed it, and then turned to Ji-su as he left the bathroom. Ji-su couldn’t hide his embarrassment at Jung Ha-jin’s visibly worried expression.

“I’ll wash myself just fine…”

“Yes. Just in case, may I leave the bathroom door slightly ajar?”

“…Yes, please do.”

“I’ll put your pajamas in front of the bathroom door.”

“…No, I can just go out and get them myself…”

“……”

“…Yes… please bring them.”

“Yes.”

Jung Ha-jin indeed left the bathroom door not fully closed, but slightly ajar by about 5cm. Less than 30 seconds later, he announced he had left the pajamas in front of the bathroom door and then left the room.

Ji-su, who had been sitting on the edge of the bathtub, narrowed his eyes as he looked at the well-assembled patient shower chair.

He knew from having lived in a Guild Dormitory before that this patient shower chair was not an item provided as standard. It was something you had to request specifically, and it certainly wasn’t Toto who requested it, so it was clear who had.

“Haa…”

He really didn’t want to admit it, but Jung Ha-jin definitely seemed to think of him as a critically ill patient. Of course, his brain might be in that state, but his body was absolutely not. At this rate, Jung Ha-jin might even try to spoon-feed him his thin gruel after he finished washing and came out.

‘First, I’ll wash… and then I’ll have to show him that my body, at least, is perfectly fine. Anyway, the hospital must have put a muscle loss prevention crystal on me…’

Ji-su slowly took off his clothes and threw them outside the bathroom. He unconsciously reached to close the door with a click but left it slightly open. Then he stood in front of the mirror and ran his hands over his body. It was clean and refreshed, without any greasiness. Despite not having washed for over five days, there was no musty smell at all. His hair was also clean and fluffy, not matted.

Although he was clean as if he had received a care service while sleeping, he still wanted to wash himself, so he immediately turned on the water. As he showered with hot water, the bathroom quickly became hazy with steam.

Ji-su, who was washing without much thought, saw the chair in his line of sight and, out of curiosity, tentatively sat on it. He expected his bottom to hurt because it was plastic, but it was surprisingly comfortable.

He even rested his arms on the armrests and, lowering his head, blankly let the water spray over him. This chair… it was more comfortable than he had imagined.

“……”

He absolutely didn’t want to admit it, but it was the perfect item for someone like him, who found moving a bother.

Except for when he dried himself, Ji-su made good use of the chair throughout his shower, just as Jung Ha-jin had suggested. He emerged from the bathroom feeling refreshed.