« This is awkward. »
Until now, whenever I got sick, the one taking care of me had always been Choo Seomok.
But now that Seomok was the one who was sick, I had no idea what I was supposed to do.
« Hey, want to go to the hospital? »
« I'm not going. »
« Why? Too weak? Should I call an ambulance? »
« Definitely not an ambulance. »
Seomok frowned and shook his head.
The fact that someone who always spoke stiffly was using a slightly loosened tone made it obvious that he really was sick.
'I can't exactly drag someone there against his will.'
Scratching my head, I stood up and placed a cool towel on his burning forehead before rummaging through the medicine box.
'Come to think of it…'
I'd never taken care of anyone in my life.
Even the guys in the organization looked after each other when they were sick. They never came to me for help.
It struck me again how many things I was experiencing for the first time after ending up in Yoo Seulho's body.
« I brought your medicine. Take it. »
I'd been wondering if he'd stubbornly refuse and whether I'd have to pry his mouth open, but thankfully he obediently sat up.
« Thank you… »
His voice sounded like he was on the verge of death.
Completely unlike his usual self.
« But shouldn't you eat something first? Every time I was sick, you kept nagging me that I shouldn't take medicine on an empty stomach. »
« If I eat anything right now, I think I'll throw up. »
Seomok said he'd already taken his medicine and just wanted to sleep.
He told me to stop worrying about him and go do my own thing, which left me speechless.
'Does this guy think I'm some kind of psychopath?'
Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, I didn't have any schedules today.
Normally, I would've gone to the gym, but I wasn't so desperate to build my body that I'd leave my sick manager behind.
'I'll let him sleep and feed him something when he wakes up.'
There wasn't any porridge shop nearby, so I ordered delivery.
Three hours later, I forcibly woke him up and made him eat. I also found some syrup-like medicine in the medicine box and made him take that too.
Repeating the process two more times made the entire day disappear in the blink of an eye.
'Time really flies.'
Seeing someone like Choo Seomok, who looked like you could shove rocks into his eyes and he'd still be fine, getting sick…
At first, I was surprised.
But after spending the day taking care of him, it turned out to be nothing much.
A peaceful day passed by.
'It's not as big a deal as I thought.'
Then the next day came.
And…
« Why aren't you getting better? »
Seomok's condition was actually worse than yesterday.
He looked like he was burning up, and I couldn't even laugh anymore.
'Oh, right. The thermometer.'
Only then did I remember how Seomok would occasionally press a thermometer against my forehead.
I searched his room and finally found it next to piles of notes and memos.
Beep.
The number on the display made my eyes widen.
Holy shit.
« Hey, you're at 39.4°C. Get up. »
« Hm…? »
« No, this won't do. Let's go to the hospital. »
The moment I said that, the limp Seomok reacted immediately.
« I don't want to. »
Like someone had pressed a panic button, he weakly repeated that he absolutely didn't want to go to the hospital.
« If you don't want to, then what? Come on, get up. »
« I said no. »
Frowning, Seomok waved his hand as if trying to shoo me out.
« Just don't worry about me. »
« What do you mean, don't worry? If you die, I'm going to prison. »
« I'm not dying. Just go. You have filming tonight. What if I infect you… Ah, you're wearing a mask. »
Only then did he open his eyes and stare at me.
« Yeah. Been wearing one since yesterday. Don't worry. It'd be a disaster if I caught it from you. »
« …… »
There was something strange in Seomok's silent gaze.
I could sense a trace of disappointment, but pretended not to notice and pulled him upright.
« You choose. Either walk to the hospital yourself, or get carried into the ER. One way or another, we're going. »
« Haa… »
Realizing I wasn't joking, Seomok sat up.
He knew arguing with me would be more exhausting than just going.
« Why are you wobbling like that? Hey, just lean on me. »
« No. »
« I hate it more, you idiot. »
Supporting the annoying bastard whose answer to everything was "No," I felt how hot his body was.
'I should've just called 119.'
He was heavy as hell too.
Grinding my teeth, I dragged him all the way to the clinic near our apartment.
« Please write the patient's name and phone number here. We'll take his temperature. »
The staff greeted us with professional indifference.
But the employee who held the thermometer to Seomok's forehead suddenly gasped.
« Oh my goodness, it's 39.9°C! What do we do? »
« Move him up the priority list. Tell the director immediately. »
Everyone suddenly sprang into action.
There were plenty of patients waiting, but thankfully we were inside the examination room within minutes.
« My goodness, with a fever this high, how did you walk in? Most people call an ambulance. »
The doctor quickly checked Seomok and began treatment.
He gave him a fever-reducing injection and hooked him up to an IV.
After dragging Seomok around since leaving home, all I could do was sigh.
« Haa… He insisted he didn't want to go to the ER. Please scold him, doctor. Give him lots of injections too. »
The doctor Chuckled lightly.
He must've thought I was joking.
« There don't seem to be any symptoms besides the fever, so you don't need to worry too much. »
« Don't we need more tests? »
« If the fever goes down normally, we'll prescribe medicine and send him home. If it doesn't improve after an hour or two, then we'll run tests. »
« Just do them now. »
What if we went home and his fever spiked again?
Better to get everything checked at once.
But ever since entering the hospital, Seomok, who had barely been breathing, suddenly opened his eyes.
« No. »
For a second, I nearly smacked him right there in front of everyone.
Seriously, was he possessed by the spirit of "No"? What the hell was wrong with him?
« There's no need. Don't do it. »
Staring at him muttering rapidly like a rapper, I glared.
« Are you the doctor? What do you mean there's no need? Doctor, please do it. »
« I won't. I'm not doing it. »
« …… »
Even for Choo Seomok, this was ridiculous.
My hands trembled from the strain of holding back.
Oblivious, or perhaps aware, of my patience wearing thin, Seomok kept shaking his head until he got dizzy.
« What's wrong with you since yesterday? Do you have some trauma related to hospitals? »
I spoke as gently as possible.
But his answer remained the same.
Just "No."
As I stared at him, something suddenly crossed my mind.
« Are you doing this because of money? »
« …… »
Only then did Seomok fall silent.
'Ha, so that's why he kept stubbornly refusing the ER.'
A sigh escaped me.
I tease him for being young all the time, but…
He didn't need to act like an actual child.
'I understand being sensitive about money, but this is too stupid.'
Sighing, I covered his eyes with my hand.
« Sleep. Stop pissing me off. »
« You really don't need the tes– »
« I said sleep. I'm the one who's about to collapse. Unless you plan to pay my hospital bills, just go to sleep. »
How could someone this obsessed with money have bought me so many health supplements?
Sure, it wasn't his own money, but I still couldn't understand.
After a few minutes, he fell asleep.
I quietly asked the medical staff for the tests.
« We'll just do an influenza test and a blood test. I don't think anything else is necessary. »
« Understood. »
Thirty minutes later, the results came back.
« Guardian, could you come into the consultation room? »
« Yes. »
« The flu test came back negative. However, the blood test shows elevated inflammation markers. It looks like acute tonsillitis. It's not highly contagious. »
The doctor said he should recover within a week.
« There's no need to worry too much. Once the IV finishes, we'll prescribe antibiotics. When he wakes up, you can take him home. »
« Thank you. I'll pay first. »
Before Seomok woke up, I hurriedly paid with my personal card.
By the time the IV bag was nearly empty, Seomok finally opened his eyes.
The fever had gone down considerably thanks to the injection.
« How much was– »
« Yeah, yeah. I'm tired, okay? Let's just go home quietly. »
I safely brought the still-drowsy Seomok home.
The moment I laid him on the bed, he fell asleep again.
'He really is sick.'
Seeing someone who usually looked like he wouldn't bleed even if you stabbed him like this made it hard to scold him.
Sure, his stubbornness about money had pissed me off…
But what could I do?
'This is the guy who lived at the company for over half a year just to save rent.'
There's no point criticizing a born cheapskate for trying to save money.
Might as well yell at a wall.
'At least his fever's down.'
So what do I do with him?
I had filming tonight and would have to leave soon.
But leaving a sick guy alone worried me.
Still, I couldn't exactly say, "My manager's sick, can we film another day?"
After thinking it over, I called someone.
[ Hello? ]
« Team Leader Ahn, can you talk right now? »
[ Ah, hold on. I'll step outside. Excuse me, I need to take this call. ]
His voice sounded strangely excited.
There was something off about him.
[ Seulho, go ahead. I'm outside now. ]
« Where are you? »
[ I took a vacation day today. I'm out taking care of something. ]
« Ah… »
Damn.
I couldn't ask someone on vacation to work.
Just as I was about to hang up…
[ Who else do you even know at the company besides Seomok and me? Why? Did something happen to Seomok? ]
As expected of someone sharp.
There was no hiding it.
After explaining the situation, he immediately answered.
[ I'll head over. Don't worry and focus on your work. ]
« Are you sure? You took a vacation day. »
[ Vacation days don't mean much in this industry. Especially at my level. ]
He chuckled softly.
[ By the way, what will you do without Seomok? Should I assign a backup? I'll look for someone free today. ]
« It's fine. It's only one day. No matter how late it gets, filming will end before dawn. »
Back at Star Actors, I'd managed just fine without a manager.
Whenever Hyun Jingae followed Director Shin out of town, I'd just take taxis by myself.
Seeing my firm stance, Team Leader Ahn agreed.
« Then I'll see you later. »
[ Okay. Ah, Seulho. ]
« Yes? »
He hesitated briefly before asking:
[ Would it be okay if someone else came with me too? ]
« Who? »
[ The actor came back to Korea today after several months, and I just saw him. He was supposed to arrive tomorrow, but he secretly came early because he wanted to spend time with me… ]
His explanation became longer, sounding oddly embarrassed.
'The actor?'
For a moment, I wondered who he meant.
Then a name surfaced in my mind.