Chapter 24: The Easy Way

After Hyuk left, silence took over the gym.

Even if Do-Yun’s mood returned to normal, Eun-Young had no idea what to say.

However, Do-yun didn’t plan on making things harder for his team.

“He didn’t belong to the Association, so don’t worry about the deal.” His flat words made it seem like that wouldn’t have mattered. But, she decided to look past it for now.

“Well, that’s fine. Do you feel hungry? I am about to order something.” Trying to clear up the air Eun-Young waved the restaurant menu she found on the counter.

“Your treat?” And he already tried to take advantage of her.

“Sure.” Eun-Young nodded. She did walk into that one.

“Don’t worry I’ll treat you to some food tonight.” Those words did make it easier on her.

Three different people came to deliver the order. The delivery guys thought that the food was ordered for a party because of the sheer amount. Their jaws hung wide when Eun-Young took the delivery.

‘She must be hosting a birthday party!’ These guys put on their best smile and tried to help set the food inside. With her looks alone, Eun-young made the old clothes she wore look like branded ones.

If she would smile a little it would make their day. But, she had this straight face till the end. Although they didn’t complain.

“Aren’t you popular Eun-Young-Ah?” Do-Yun didn’t stop teasing her throughout the meal. The guys didn’t even see him sitting inside, and watching them try and appeal seemed fun. One of them even tried to get Eun-Young’s number.

“It’s useless noise.” She said sauce around her lips.

It didn’t take her long to understand how useless that attention was. And she had no time for it in her life now.

“You are cool like that, huh?” Do-Yun chuckled. The food meant to serve at least twenty people was finished by two people who didn’t even burp after the meal.

After Awakening their food intake had risen many times over. Because of their superhuman physiques, they needed more food to compensate for that energy. That hunger persisted like a whiny child.

Eun-Young had to suffer because of this. She had awakened a little before the Break incident and had to keep that hunger in check. If she went along with it and ate like her body demanded. The money she saved up would’ve finished in two days flat. That is why she passed her days with the bare minimum food and sometimes didn’t have anything at all. But, now she didn’t have to worry about that.

‘But, it feels weird to eat this much at once.’ The weird sensation threw her off last night too. She almost ate the grill at the pork belly shop. Being hungry for a days did contribute to that, it didn’t make it any less embarrassing.

After cleaning up alone, Eun-Young went to the second floor to practice again. If she had a partner to spar with, it would be more beneficial, but Do-Yun fell asleep after eating and she couldn’t leave the place with no one around.

So, she trained alone. Correcting her kicks, punches, and, takedowns like she used to back in the day some progress was made. However, she had to control her strength well. If not she could bring this whole place down by accident.

‘Somehow I do not want to continue.’ This place belonged to Byung-ho, and she didn’t want to pay for the damages. She only made some money, losing it all scared her.

Returning to the first floor, Eun-Young turned on the T.V. The recently launched Awakened news channel came up as that was the last thing Do-Yun watched. When she was about to change channels, the current news grabbed her attention like a lightning rod.

Is it really safe for Unstable Awakened to be living around civilians? I know this sounds like an insensitive question. But, the incident that happened today in Pennsylvania does worry many people. An entire Elementary and Middle school building was reduced to embers alongside the students and teachers inside, the families of the victims are in tears. Following this incident, serious concerns have risen among civilians about the risks that come with living around people with such powers. What do you think Mr. Calligan? The anchor’s eyebrows knitted together at the end. After a small pause, the guest on the show leaned forward to speak.

A well-dressed man with slicked-back blonde hair and sharp blue eyes. His introduction said that he worked for the Awakened Association in the USA. And he came out to make a public statement.

That is a loaded question if you withhold facts like that, Mr. Yoo. Although this loss has been tragic Mr. Paul has since come back to his senses. After an interrogation, in which he cooperated in full capacity, it has been found that the cause of this incident was his skill rather than his own. He has also volunteered to stay under confinement till it is under control and we are working with the best Awakened in the country to make sure this does not happen again. The man’s grave tone emphasized how serious this situation was for them.

The first Anchor didn’t look too happy with that answer. No matter what they say, people have died.

Still Mr. Calligan rather than letting Mr. Paul out after it is confirmed that his powers can go out of control why not stop him from his powers altogether? Not for the civilian's sake alone, but also for his future teammates. It isn’t a secret how a mistake can get everyone killed inside the Gate. So if he loses control in a dire situation he could cause more deaths. Yoo said.

Well, as you may know, this wasn’t the first time an Awakened had hurt a civilian by accident. But we want to make it the last time it happens. There is a lot we do not know about Awakened and how their bodies change, so we plan to use this as a study on how we reduce such incidents in the future. Remorseful by his acts, Mr. Paul has agreed to help us in this endeavor. And we’d be sure to share any results that we acquire. Calligan did show remorse for this incident, and the American Association seemed to be working hard to make up for this incident too.

You are already handling it better than Japan did. They have stayed silent about those two serial murders in Tokyo for a while now. Even threw out one of our reporters back for asking questions. The second man in the studio, a Korean Awakened Expert(?) said in passing, but the two men there showed a different reaction. Calligan cleared his throat at that obvious jab.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Please do not stray from the subject Mr. Na. Yoo said and tried to lead the conversation away from that malicious comment.

Eun-Young turned the T.V. off in deep thought. Her eyes went to her hand, clenching a few times she couldn’t feel anything different. Picking up a metal plate from the rack a little faster she saw her fingers make dents in it. She held it between her index finger and thumb like it was a sheet of paper. It was solid steel, but it folded like paper in her hands and soon crumpled into a ball between her palms. It took little to no effort.

Her power, her strength, it was a recipe for disaster. And it was growing before she could get used to it.

‘I need to be more careful… or I might end up hurting her.’ With steps slower than usual, she sat down in the corner and tried to get used to her increasing strength.

The hours passed and soon the sun started to set. Eun-Young stood up ready to leave after waking Do-Yun up. But, Byung-Ho arrived before that.

“Ms. Kim?” He didn’t expect her to be there, leaving his backpack near the counter in a hurry he turned with a plastic bag in his hand, “I’ll get another ice cream cone please wait for a bit!”

“What?” Stunned, Eun-Young watched him run away.

“Did someone say ice cream?” Do-Yun woke up at the word Ice Cream.

“…” No words could explain her feelings at the moment.

However, shortly after Byung-Ho returned with another Ice cream cone for her. She took it in silence, after finishing his ice cream much faster than them. Do-Yun looked at them with a radiant smile.

“Let’s go for dinner, my treat.” Sudden as it was, Eun-Young agreed and Byung-Ho showed no rejection either.

With how slumped his shoulders were a meal outside would be better than cooking himself. However, she planned on eating her fill no matter what. Even after a day where she did no physically demanding tasks, her stomach demanded food. A lot of food.

It didn’t take long for them to reach the place they’d eat at. The flatness on Eun-Young’s face turned into slight twitches when they reached the destination.

“Granny I brought friends!” Do-Yun entered the house brimming with energy.

“Yes yes, no need to shout.” Seol-Hwa got to her feet with a huff.

“Hmm? I thought you liked some noise in the house from time to time?” He said.

“You are noisy enough as it is. Also, let me welcome these kids.” Pushed aside Do-Yun’s shoulders slumped as he trudged towards the dining area.

“No need to be shy you two, come on in. I prepared enough food for you all.” Seol-Hwa showed them a gentle smile. He did tell her about them beforehand.

“Yes, I’ll be in your care.” Byung-Ho walked like an unoiled machine and reached the table.

“Is something to matter kid?” Eun-young snapped out of her daze and turned to look at Seol-Hwa’s wrinkled face.

“I-It has been a while since I went to someone’s house for dinner. So, I am a little nervous.” A strained smile appeared on Eun-Young’s lips.

“You are too young to be worrying about such things. Come on in.” Taking her hand, Seol-hwa led her inside.

But, Eun-Young eyes caught another glimpse of the photos in the living room. There a much younger Seol-hwa and the man she saw today morning appeared together. They had earnest smiles, whether they were in a festival, working in the kitchen, or what seemed like a school visit.

The vibrant atmosphere in those photos could make anyone smile, but what she saw today seemed so far off from what she imagined.

Both Seol-Hwa and Park Hyuk didn’t even have the shadow of what she saw in those pictures. At that moment, Eun-Young understood why Do-Yun brought them here.

“Why are you two so slow? I nearly died waiting.” Do-Yun snapped.

“If you are hungry you should’ve started eating.” He ignored Seol-Hwa’s words and urged her to sit down with his eyes.

After Seol-hwa had the first bite. Eun-Young picked up the chopsticks and the spoon, but she couldn’t bring them to her mouth after what she saw. Her stomach twisted in protest, and the aroma of Kimchi stew reached her nose. And her stomach won thanks to the nose.

One spoon started it all, and the second spoonful held her in a chokehold. She nearly inhaled the stew on the third. By the time her mind gained clarity, everyone at the table had their eyes on her. Heat spread across her face.

“Don’t worry, you ate with a lot of elegance compared to this barbarian.” Seol-hwa pointed at Do-Yun with her chin. His lips covered in black bean sauce as he ate the fried chicken with his hands.

“I am practicing my control, you know? Also, the reason I eat fast is ‘cause your food tastes good.” He smacked his lips, And Eun-Young had to agree.

Nothing extravagant lined up on the table, but the food gave had the comfort of home. The fuzziness that she used to have as a child waiting for dinner returned to her chest. Although the most important part of the equation was the woman in front of her.

“Good food isn’t an excuse for forgetting your manners.” She chided him with the same smile on her face.

That smile dripped with happiness, but the eyes above didn’t have much light left.

‘Just like Eun-Sook…’ Eun-Young turned back to the food, maybe it was this resemblance or the food, or both of them combined that she didn’t feel like eating at first. Her sister hid her pain behind a smile, just like this.

It always got to her, it angered to no end. But, she understood why her sister was like that.

The dinner came to an end. Eun-Young helped Byung-Ho move the plates to the kitchen. Soon Do-Yun entered the place and started to organize the dishes she had washed at a pace slower than a turtle.

“What happened between them?” She asked. Her voice low enough to not reach the living room.

“She worked hard to gather money for his university dreams, But fell ill as a result and had to be hospitalized, he stole the money, ran off, and entered the University on his own. After that, he married some rich woman and didn't come back. I can never not hate his guts.” Although he said that like nothing, Eun-Young could feel that he meant it.

Now she too, hated that man’s guts.

“You not gonna try to understand his reasons?” Do-Yun asked curious.

“He did what he did, no amount of Excuses can cover that up. No trouble is big enough to leave if you have strong enough resolve to go through it.” She said. He chose the easy route when he could’ve stayed.

“That’s a nice saying. I am gonna steal that for later.” Do-Yun cackled on his way out.

Shaking her head Eun-Young continued to wash the plates at a slow pace, she didn’t mind as it wasn’t her who came up with it.

Standing there Byung-Ho seemed confused, but when she told what happened with Park Hyuk today morning.

“Oh, Hyung rejected it? It is fine then.” He didn’t even know what Park Hyuk did, matter of fact he didn’t make the connection between Seol-Hwa and that guy.

But he agreed it to without questions. Was that just blind trust? No, to Eun-Young there appeared to be a case of understanding. Do-Yun didn’t want them to trust him. The very first thing he thought her was to expect betrayal even from the people you trusted to have your back.

He wanted their team to operate on understanding while still having their own opinions instead of following him. If he makes a decision, they should understand why he made it. If they didn’t understand they could ask, and if they didn’t like it they could change it.

Today he made the correct decision, although she didn’t know the full story then. But now she knew. Nothing good would come out of dealing with Park Hyuk. So, she supported that decision yet some doubts about the future rose in her mind.

Would making decisions like that work?

Though now, Eun-Young didn’t linger on it.

“Moving there might not be a bad choice after all.” She muttered on her way home.

***

Late into the night, Do-Yun’s phone rang. Ryu Ji-Hu had called him.

I have some news about the Tower. His voice had a grave tone.

“Go on.” He got Do-Yun’s attention.

Three days ago, The Chinese government forced a team of Twenty Awakened at the Tower in Beijing. Today, their deaths have been confirmed. Ji-Hu sounded tired but it was natural.

“They made a big mistake.” Do-Yun yawned.

I agree. So, I’ll arrange a meeting for you with the Item Creator tomorrow morning. Please drop by the Association around 9 A.M.

“That I will.” The phone call ended and Do-Yun sunk back into the confines of his bed.

“It seems like the future me will have to hurry.” He closed his eyes and went to sleep.