Two weeks ago, Ri Jeong-Hyeok was in his home listening to his brother, Ri Mu-Hyeok, talk animatedly.
Mu-Hyeok told several stories about his position in the NIS and one investigation that he was leading about a man who was probably a spy from the north. He talked about so many things and the only thing Ri Jeong-Hyeok paid much attention to, was his nephews' part.
"You're going to be a good father, you know?" Mu-Hyeok commented. Jeong-Hyeok smiled dreamily. "You know that I would like to adopt a child one day" He answered.
"And you know that eomma would kill you if you did it without getting married."
"Which is nonsense. There is a lot of single fathers around there" he snorted.
"I know that you disagree with me, but in my opinion, it seems like you are feeling pretty lonely these days... I know you really love children and I know that you would love to have your own, but eomeoni is a little bit right. You should meet some people and start to date someone" Mu-Hyeok naturally advises, trying to convince his little brother to hang out and have some fun, since Jeong-Hyeok is working all the time and not having time for himself. "And I think you should ask your new neighbor out. She is very pretty..." He suggests.
"I haven't had a single conversation with her, I won't scare her by asking her out!" Jeong-Hyeok speaks, feeling like a teenager afraid to talk to the most popular girl in school.
Ri Mu-Hyeok sights in defeat, giving up trying to convince his brother to date.
"Ok. Anyway, if you are feeling lonely, adopt a dog."
"I'm not adopting a dog!" Ri Jeong-Hyeok said defensively.
"Oh yes, I forgot you're afraid of dogs." Mu-Hyeok laughed.
"I'm not afraid of dogs, I just... don't get along with them. They bark, piss anywhere, have no control and are completely persuasive" He argued.
"Yes. You are not afraid of dogs" Mu-Hyeok mocked.
The truth is that Ri Jeong-Hyeok didn't like dogs very much because as a teenager, when he was hanging out with a girl and her dog, walking in a park, the completely out of control animal threw him into the lake.
Apparently, this humiliation (in Jeong-Hyeok's view) had become a trauma. Because of the dog, everyone in the park laughed at him, and the girl completely ignored him for the rest of high school.
This was just one of the stories. A pinscher had already bitten him, a labrador had chased him when he was running down the street, and even a stray dog had stolen his sandwich once.
"But it's ok. Get a hamster then."
"I'm not buying a hamster either, hyung. And I'm not lonely."
"Of course, you're not."
And here was Ri Jeong-Hyeok: With the neighbor at the door asking (or begging) him to look after her dog.
"Well... I..." He scratched the back of his neck.
"Please, I'm kind of desperate." She wiped the sweat off her forehead with her coat sleeve, grimacing in the process, her hand on her abdomen as if she were massaging it. "I don't have anybody, and I know I'm asking a lot." She smiled briefly, as if laughing at her own boldness. It made something inside Ri Jeong-Hyeok melt. "But I swear I wouldn't be here asking you if it weren't for an emergency." He blinked, slowly digesting her words. "And I'm Yoon Se-ri, by the way."
"Emergency?"
"Yeah... yesterday I found out that I have appendicitis and they had to schedule the surgery for today... Since I don't have anyone to take care of her, I thought that you could..." Se-ri smiled a little shyly, not being able to finish her sentence and wincing slightly in pain.
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The Caring Neighbor
قصص الهواة"I think you should ask your new neighbor out. She is very pretty..." He suggests. "I haven't had a single conversation with her, I won't scare her by asking her out!" Jeong-Hyeok speaks, feeling like a teenager afraid to talk to the most popular gi...
