You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 457

>##458

“Lawyer, didn’t you sleep well?”

I came out of the bathroom attached to the bedroom after washing my face, and Sang-gil, who was watching TV, spoke to me.

“Why?”

“Your eyes look a little swollen.”

“I didn’t get a good night’s sleep.”

I’m a light sleeper, so last night I heard Kang Min-jae dragging his carrier into our house and woke up vaguely.

It sounded like he was having a conversation with Sang-gil, but I couldn’t hear what they were saying, just a muffled sound.

But I had a very tiring day, so I just checked the time and went back to sleep.

I vaguely remember being annoyed because it took me a while to fall back asleep.

I take medicine for insomnia, so I don’t remember it clearly now.

Still, the fact that I felt a headache as soon as I woke up makes it clear that I didn’t sleep deeply.

Is this the kind of pain Son Oh-gong [Sun Wukong, the Monkey King from *Journey to the West*] felt when the golden band tightened his head?

“Are you skipping your workout today?”

On weekdays, I would wake up a little early to exercise before going to work, but on weekends, I would do whatever I felt like.

I have a headache today, so I shouldn’t go.

“Did Lawyer Kang come at 1 AM yesterday?”

“Ah, yes. Did you hear us? We were talking very quietly.”

“Yeah. Did you come all the way to the front of the bedroom?”

“No. I was a little further away… You have very sharp ears. Should we not watch movies in the future? I think if I wear headphones, I won’t be able to react to the sounds outside.”

“No. I can’t hear you watching movies. Is Lawyer Kang still sleeping?”

“Probably?”

Sang-gil followed me into the kitchen as I went to get a glass of water.

I poured a glass of water and rummaged through the drawer.

I wonder if there are any painkillers left.

I think I took them all last time.

“What are you looking for?”

“Painkillers.”

“Why? Do you have a headache again?”

“A little.”

“Should I ask Hyung-nim [older brother or close male friend] to buy some on his way here?”

“Yeah. Does he know what kind of medicine I take?”

“He probably does.”

There was about an hour left until Tae-shik and Sang-gil switched shifts, so it was too awkward to wait until then, so I swallowed the morning medicine prescribed by the psychiatrist first.

Then Sang-gil looked at me with worried eyes.

“But you take medicine every day, can I ask what kind of medicine it is? Are you sick somewhere?”

Ah, now that I think about it, Tae-shik was always with me when I went to the psychiatrist, so Sang-gil wouldn’t know.

I was newly impressed by how tight-lipped Tae-shik was.

“It’s nothing much, just a medicine to make me feel better.”

“Eh? Is it drugs?!”

“Would it be drugs?”

“What else is there besides drugs that makes you feel better?”

“It’s a medicine that raises your mood from a minus state to 0. It doesn’t raise it to a plus.”

“Ah.”

I was originally going to sleep a little more, but since I’m awake, I should leave for my parents’ house early.

Rather than waiting for Kang Min-jae to wake up, it would be better to wake him up in the middle and make him tired, then let him fall asleep in the car.

“Where is Lawyer Kang sleeping?”

“In this room.”

I lightly knocked on the door that Sang-gil pointed to.

Of course, I didn’t think he would wake up with just that, so I waited for a moment and opened the door.

Kang Min-jae was sleeping soundly, hugging the bedding between his legs.

“Lawyer Kang. Wake up.”

“Ugh…”

Then he started groaning, waving his arms in the air.

“If you don’t get up in three seconds, I’m leaving you behind. One, two.”

“I’m up!”

Does he hate being left behind that much?

Kang Min-jae literally sprang up like a spring.

“Wash up. Tae-shik will be here soon to leave.”

“Already? You said we were leaving at 11.”

“I woke up early.”

“Why? You should have slept more on the weekend.”

“I guess you couldn’t sleep well last night. You even knew what time you came, Lawyer Kang.”

As Sang-gil added, Kang Min-jae’s eyes widened as if he had committed a terrible crime.

“Oh, I should have come in quietly. I didn’t think you would hear me… I’m really sorry.”

“It was annoying, but you don’t have to be that sorry.”

“Still, you couldn’t sleep well because of me…”

I wanted to tell him that the problem wasn’t the conversation with Sang-gil, but the carrier he dragged in, but I thought it was fine, so I left it alone.

“Anyway, get ready.”

“Yes.”

As I was about to leave the room, I noticed the carrier standing against one wall.

We’re only staying for one night, so why did he pack a whole carrier?

If he needs clothes to sleep in, I can lend him my training clothes at my parents’ house.

He can buy a toothbrush nearby.

I think he brought a suitcase like an immigrant bag when he went on a business trip to Liechtenstein before, he’s really overdoing it.

By the time Kang Min-jae finished washing up and getting ready to go out, Tae-shik opened the front door and came in.

Tae-shik really seemed determined to make a good impression on my parents; he was dressed so neatly that he could go for a job interview.

The tie, which he usually loosened because it was stuffy, was also tightly fastened.

“Is this the right painkiller?”

As he handed me the painkiller and tried to take off his shoes, I shook my head.

“Don’t take off your shoes. We’re leaving right away.”

“Are we leaving already?”

“Let’s just go.”

I was taking out my shoes from the shoe rack when Kang Min-jae came next to me and put the carrier down in the hallway.

Then Tae-shik tapped the carrier and asked.

“Why the carrier?”

“Didn’t you bring a carrier, Tae-shik?”

“Why would I bring a carrier? I can just wear underwear when I sleep.”

“One set to wear when meeting your parents for the first time so they have a good impression. One set to wear comfortably in case there’s a drinking party. One set to sleep in. And one set to wear tomorrow. You need four sets like this.”

“Are you going to a fashion show? You can just borrow clothes from the lawyer. Doesn’t the lawyer have any clothes at his parents’ house?”

“I do.”

“But he probably won’t lend them to you. Last time when you came to his house drunk, he gave you a new t-shirt that wasn’t even unwrapped.”

“I was going to lend it to him, but since he brought his own, he can just wear that. Anyway, let’s go.”

The reason I gave him a t-shirt that wasn’t even unwrapped was because I thought Kang Min-jae might feel uncomfortable wearing something I had worn.

Even though I like things clean, I’m not the kind of person who can’t wear clothes that someone else has worn.

I can just wash them.

“I’m going to sleep. Don’t talk to me.”

While Kang Min-jae was loading the carrier into the trunk, I got into the back seat and said.

“Don’t play music either?”

“Don’t play it. Let’s go quietly.”

“Ah, I wanted to try connecting to Bluetooth. My car doesn’t have a Bluetooth connection.”

Tae-shik has been driving my car for a long time, but I always listen to the news on the radio, so I’ve never played music.

But Tae-shik’s car didn’t have a Bluetooth connection?

In 2018, connecting to Bluetooth in a car was so common that I didn’t really think about that feature.

How did we do it originally?

Did we have to replace the car audio?

“Anyway, let’s go quietly.”

I swallowed the painkiller with bottled water, sent a text message to my mother saying that I was leaving now, and closed my eyes.

Kang Min-jae, knowing that he was the reason I couldn’t sleep deeply, didn’t make a peep, as if he was truly sorry.

I think I slept pretty deeply…

“Lawyer.”

I opened my eyes to the sound of someone calling me, and the car was stopped.

Looking around, it seemed to be a rest stop.

Checking the time, about an hour had passed.

“How far have we come?”

“I think this is Hanseong Rest Stop.”

“We don’t have much left, why did we stop at the rest stop?”

“Tae-shik said he wanted to go to the bathroom. Do you need to go?”

I was going to keep sleeping, but I thought I should have a cigarette, so I got out of the car.

While I’m out, I should go to the bathroom and have a cup of coffee.

“I went to the bathroom right before we left. If you’re going to eat something, I’ll buy it for you.”

“We’re going to eat as soon as we get home, why bother? I’ll just have coffee.”

“What about Tae-shik?”

“I’ll have coffee and… Ah, just one piece of gum.”

“What kind of gum?”

“I really need to go to the bathroom. Just buy anything.”

Kang Min-jae disappeared inside the rest stop, and Tae-shik and I headed to the bathroom.

I thought he wanted to pee because he said he wanted to go to the bathroom, but he ran into a stall.

He must have been really urgent…

“…”

I was washing my hands in front of the row of sinks when I felt a strange gaze from the side.

Looking in the mirror, I saw a middle-aged man washing his hands next to me, glancing at me.

I’ve never seen him before, why is he staring at me like that?

Could it be someone Wooshin sent?

No.

If Wooshin sent someone, they wouldn’t be staring so obviously.

“Excuse me.”

I was about to dry my hands with a paper towel without paying attention when he suddenly spoke to me.

“Yes.”

“Are you a talent [celebrity]?”

What is this?

Is it a cult?

“No, I’m not.”

“Then are you a model?”

“No.”

“A singer?”

“…No.”

“Then what are you?”

What am I?

Is he asking about my job?

“Are you curious about my job?”

“No, you’re not a talent, not a model, not a singer, but you’re so handsome?”

What should I say?

I can ignore one or two compliments, but I don’t know what to say when someone asks me like this.

“You don’t look like you had plastic surgery. I can tell that right away.”

“…That’s not it.”

“You’re really handsome… There are a lot of celebrities living in my neighborhood, so I see them often, but you’re the most handsome person I’ve ever seen. If you’re not a celebrity, you should become one. I think you’d be successful.”

“I don’t have the talent for that.”

“There are tons of guys who can’t act these days, so what does it matter? You’d make a fortune. It’s a waste not to be a celebrity with that face.”

[Truth]

I used my ability because I thought he might be from a cult, but he seemed to be genuinely regretting it.

It’s overwhelming.

I should just say thank you and leave.

“Thank you.”

“No, really think about it. I’m saying this because I think it’s a waste.”

“I’m too old to become a celebrity now.”

“What do you mean you’re old? Thirty is not old these days.”

I’m closer to forty than thirty.

“Lawyer!”

Just then, Tae-shik, who had finished his business, came towards me.

Tae-shik recognized that I was talking to a stranger and started washing his hands near me, guarding him.

“Do you know him?”

“No, I’ve never met him before, but he started talking to me.”

“You’re a lawyer?”

The middle-aged man asked, widening his eyes.

“Yes.”

“Are you successful?”

What’s the standard for a successful lawyer?

As I hesitated to answer, he said.

“You’d make more money as a celebrity than as a lawyer. Try being a celebrity.”

“Mister.”

Then Tae-shik stepped between me and the man, making a threatening expression.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. Our lawyer makes more money than most celebrities. So don’t say anything that will cut off my livelihood. If he suddenly becomes a celebrity, all my kids will starve to death. Let’s go, Lawyer.”

Tae-shik grabbed me and left the bathroom.

“Did that guy just hit on you because you’re handsome?”

“I guess so.”

“You always freeze up when you hear you’re handsome. You can just say thank you, I know, and leave.”

“I did say thank you.”

“Have you ever received business cards from agencies on the street?”

“I have.”

“How many?”

“I don’t remember.”

“You must have received a lot. I can’t even imagine that life.”

Tae-shik looked at his face in the glass of the building and sighed.

“Where’s Lawyer Kang? I can’t see him.”

“He’s probably buying gum.”

“Where is he? I should call him.”

“I’ll be smoking, so find him and come over there.”

“Okay.”

I moved to the smoking area.

There were already people gathered in groups of twos and threes, smoking.

I found a spot in the corner and lit a cigarette.

I checked my phone and saw a text message from my mother asking where I was.

There was also a missed call, but I didn’t receive it because I had it on silent.

[I’m at Hanseong Rest Stop now and will be leaving soon. It will take about 40 minutes. Lawyer Kang is coming with us, but I forgot to tell you.]

I sent a reply, and soon another text message came.

[It’s okay. You’ve done a lot. I’ll see Min-jae after a long time~]

[I don’t know how much you’ve done, but one of them eats more than you think.]

[Hehehe I bought 1kg of LA ribs…]

[How many servings is 1kg?]

[Four or five.]

[I think it will be not enough.]

[I also made japchae [Korean glass noodles stir-fry] and will grill croaker. I need to cook more rice…]

[Then it should be okay.]

[How much does that friend eat? hehe]

I don’t know either, but I think he’ll eat as much as you give him.

I put my phone in my pocket and was glancing to see if Tae-shik and Kang Min-jae were coming when someone suddenly approached me.

“Hello.”

It was a young woman.

I can’t really guess her job from her clothes.

Judging by the fact that she’s suddenly talking to me like this, she might be a reporter who recognized me.

“Hello.”

I nodded and greeted her, and the young woman cautiously opened her mouth.

“Um, do you have a girlfriend?”

“A girlfriend?”

“Yes. I saw you from over there and thought I would regret it if I didn’t get your number, so I followed you…”

“Who are you to ask for my number?”

“Oh, I’m sorry if I startled you. I’m just an ordinary office worker, but I just like you. If you’re uncomfortable with my number, how about a Facebook friend request?”

“Are you saying you’re interested in me romantically?”

“Haha… Yes. If you have a girlfriend, I’d still like to get to know you…”

What day is it today?

People used to ask for my number occasionally, but it hasn’t happened in a while.

“I’m sorry.”

“Yes, excuse me…”

She left the smoking area with her shoulders slumped, waving her hand nervously in the air full of cigarette smoke.

“What, someone got the lawyer’s number.”

And as soon as she disappeared, Kang Min-jae and Tae-shik appeared from behind me.

They were both smiling slyly.

“I didn’t give her my number.”

“You always wear suits, but when you wear casual clothes, it’s a complete mess. Well, if I were a woman, I’d want to get your number too.”

Tae-shik chuckled and nudged my shoulder.

I didn’t need to wear a suit to go to my parents’ house, and I didn’t need to dress up, so I just wore whatever I had.

“Ah, I want to get hit on too. Lawyer Kang, have you ever been hit on?”

“Hit on? I have.”

“How many times?”

“Do I have to remember all of them?”

“…You must have been hit on a lot. I’m the only one who hasn’t.”

“Wouldn’t people approach you if you reduced your muscle mass a little?”

Kang Min-jae gave accurate advice for the first time in a while.

Then Tae-shik huffed and said.

“No, if your face isn’t good, your body has to be good.”

“That’s because your body is too good… And maybe people are scared because you have too many tattoos.”

“I can’t erase all of these now. They say it leaves scars even if you erase them.”

“That’s true.”

“And they say it’s really painful. I hate pain.”

He hates pain, but how did he get tattoos?

Tae-shik is really an unknowable guy.

“Is this the right way?”

About 30 minutes after leaving Hanseong Rest Stop, we got off the highway and entered the neighborhood where my parents live.

It looks like we’re on the right track, seeing the familiar scenery.

I haven’t been here in a long time, and the neighborhood has developed a bit in the meantime, so it’s a bit hazy.

“This is the right way.”

On the other hand, Kang Min-jae said with a confident voice.

“How come Lawyer Kang knows better than you?”

“This is the right way. I remember that bakery. Turn right there.”

We moved according to Kang Min-jae’s claim, and we really saw the detached house area where my parents live.

Could it be that Kang Min-jae secretly came to see my parents alone?

Anyway, thanks to him, we were able to arrive in front of my parents’ house without getting lost.

As always, my father was out at the alleyway, and since I hadn’t contacted him since texting my mother at the rest stop, he seemed to have been out there since the time he thought we would arrive.

“It’s Father!”

“Oh, is that your father?”

“That’s right.”

“You look like your father.”

“You also look subtly like your mother.”

I don’t know why Kang Min-jae is more excited to talk about it.

Anyway, I parked the car roughly, and Kang Min-jae took the carrier out of the trunk.

“Have you been well, Father?”

Kang Min-jae grabbed my father’s hands.

Then my father smiled brightly and patted Kang Min-jae’s back.

“It’s been a while, Min-jae.”

“Yes, I should have visited more often, but I’ve been busy with work. You seem to be getting younger and younger.”

Why does Kang Min-jae have to visit my father more often?

“Thank you for saying that. Ah, is this the friend who eats a lot?”

My father turned his gaze to Tae-shik, who was standing awkwardly.

Then Tae-shik started bowing deeply to my father on the spot.

“Hello, Father! Please accept my bow!”

“Oh, oh, why is this friend suddenly bowing…?”

My father seemed noticeably embarrassed.

I nudged Tae-shik’s butt with my foot, and Tae-shik stood up abruptly and bent over in half.

“My name is Jang Tae-shik! I’m greatly indebted to the lawyer!”

“Yes, yes. Nice to meet you. But why are you bowing on this floor…? Your clothes will get dirty.”

“It’s okay!”

“Haha. You’re full of energy, that’s good. Let’s go in quickly. Ju-han, Min-jae. Let’s go in quickly. Mom is waiting.”

“Father, please speak comfortably to me too!”

“…I’ll do that when I get comfortable.”

My father’s gaze was strangely directed towards Tae-shik’s nape.

He seems a little surprised to see the tattoo after all.

Tae-shik didn’t seem to know.

If Tae-shik hadn’t bowed, my father wouldn’t have noticed the tattoo covering his nape…”