It was a long drive, but Eunju insisted. “We need to know the layout and how big it is, so we can figure out what to bring.”
“There’s nothing to figure out,” Hyonsu protested. Her reasoning didn’t make any sense to him. “It’s the same size as this place.”
But she would not relent. “Houses in the woods are usually smaller than they say they are. And the floor plan can be different.”
As he put on his shoes, he asked, “So all you want me to do is go there and check it out?”
“Not just that. Didn’t you say there’s a young man who’s already living there? You have to talk to him, okay? Figure out the bedroom situation and how we’re going to share the bathroom and the kitchen, that kind of thing. We have to be clear from the beginning so it doesn’t get awkward.”
“So you want me to sit him down and go over whether we’re going to share the washing machine and how we’re going to split the water bill, that kind of thing?”
“Maybe you can convince him to move to the house next door. It’s got to be uncomfortable for him to live with his boss’s family, too.”
Hyonsu stared at Eunju. How brazen she was. Was this inborn or consciously honed? He didn’t have the skills to convince his new coworker to move next door. And he didn’t really care much either way.
In any case, he called and told his new colleague, a man named Ahn Sunghwan, that he would stop by around eight o’clock. He figured he might as well pay Ganghyon’s bar a visit along the way as a reward to himself for doing Eunju’s bidding, especially since he was already heading toward Gwangju.
He arrived around six. He had planned to hand his old friend a small gift he’d brought, stay for one drink, and leave, but then he spotted three buddies from his high school team. None of them was still playing; they were all frittering away their time with meaningless jobs. They drank, ordered food, and then drank some more. They talked about the training camp where they had made a pact to be the best in the world and dreamed of stardom; they reminisced about how the handsome Ganghyon used to have legions of female high school fans. They recounted Hyonsu’s famous three-run homer at the semifinals of the nationwide high school competition. One bottle quickly became two and then eight, Hyonsu responsible for most of the consumption. Hours passed before the call came from Kim Hyongtae, catapulting him out of the bar.
Hyonsu’s cell started ringing again as he reached the tollgate to merge onto the highway. Eunju. She was going to call until he answered. Hyonsu turned off his phone. The highway was choked with cars, maybe because it was Friday night. But when he passed through the tollgate, he spotted a pack of police cars. The back of his neck prickled. If this was a checkpoint, he was in trouble: his license had been revoked ninety-three days before for a drunk driving violation.
That day had not been so different from this one. He drank with friends at a soju bar and watched a game on TV, and Eunju had reached him by calling Hyongtae. He felt nice and buzzed when Hyongtae handed him his phone, smirking. Hyonsu felt his face flush. Eunju reacted almost pathologically when he drank. Hyonsu was the only guy who got a call every hour badgering him to return home. After a certain point, he’d started ignoring her calls when he was out, but he couldn’t wave Hyongtae’s phone away. “Yeah?” he answered.
“Where are you? What are you doing? Are you drinking again?”
“I’m at dinner. I’m not drinking.”
“Then why didn’t you pick up?”
“I didn’t hear it. You can’t call Hyongtae, okay?”
“Then pick up your phone!”
Hyonsu could tell they were about to descend into a circular argument. He quickly retreated. “What’s up?”
“Sowon’s sick. He’s throwing up and he has a fever. A little while ago, he wanted me to help him get dressed. He said you promised to take him skiing.”
Hyonsu’s heart did a free fall. “Go to the hospital. I’ll meet you there.”
Hyonsu lurched out of the bar. He wasn’t even aware that he was driving under the influence; he had forgotten he’d gone out drinking entirely until he was pulled over. He pleaded with the cop, explaining that his son was sick.
“I’m sure,” came the reply.
He couldn’t avoid blowing into the Breathalyzer; the machine screeched. Of course it did. Hyonsu suppressed the urge to speed away. His blood alcohol level was 0.09 percent, three times the legal limit. He was turned over to a local police station. Invoking his son’s illness didn’t work there, either. He was writing his statement when Eunju called again.
“Where are you?” Her voice was shrill.
“I’m on my way. I’m almost there. What did the doctor say?” Hyonsu whispered.
“He thinks it’s encephalomeningitis. We need to go to a bigger hospital.”
“So go!” Hyonsu shouted.
“What the hell? Of course I’m going! We’re in a cab on our way to Donga Hospital right now. I called to tell you to meet us there!”
Having overheard their conversation, the cop became more sympathetic and sped through the process. As soon as it was over, Hyonsu hailed a cab and rushed to the hospital.
When he arrived, he found Sowon lying in a bed at the far end of the emergency room. Eunju was holding his hand. Sowon spotted Hyonsu first. “Dad.”
“So you weren’t drinking, huh?” Eunju sniped.
“What’s going on?” Hyonsu asked, his eyes meeting Sowon’s. He wanted to hold him, but he couldn’t; the space between the beds was too narrow for a six-foot-three, 243-pound man. His hulking size was useless outside of a baseball diamond.
“Why are you so late?” Eunju asked.
“What’s going on?” Hyonsu repeated.
“They say they have to do a spinal tap.”
“A spinal tap?”
“They take . . .” Eunju glanced at Sowon and swallowed what she was about to say. “They tell me it’s not dangerous, but they want me to sign a release saying they won’t be liable if something happens to him. I was waiting for you. How can I make that decision all alone?”
Hyonsu wanted to shout, “Why can’t you, when you always do whatever you want?” but stopped himself. “Where’s the doctor?”
Eunju pointed at a man standing by the nurses’ station in the middle of the ER. Hyonsu went up to the doctor, tempering his rage. The pediatric specialist said they had managed to control the symptoms with steroids for the moment but that he needed to perform the spinal tap. He would stick a long needle into Sowon’s vertebrae to drain some fluid, thereby alleviating the pressure in his brain. They would use the sample for tests to figure out whether the infection was bacterial or viral.