Good Night, Brother! - Chapter 7.11

“Jeong Yi-hyeon, what… what’s with all the money you just sent me?”

“It’s money.”

“Do you think I don’t know that? I’m asking where it came from!”

“It’s my entire savings.”

“Stop dodging the question. Where did you get this money?”

“I’ll tell you when you get home.”

“What? Tell me now.”

“I’ve got class starting soon. I have to go. Bye.”

“Wait, Yi-hyeon! Don’t hang up—”

Beep. The call ended, leaving Eun-hyun staring at the phone in frustration. He tried calling back several times and even sent ten messages, but Yi-hyeon didn’t respond.

As lunchtime ended and his colleagues began trickling back into the office, Eun-hyun forced himself to suppress the gnawing sense of unease and resume work. But no matter how hard he tried, his mind kept circling back to two things: the 2 billion won and Jeong Yi-hyeon.

Throughout the afternoon, Eun-hyun found himself checking the clock after every keystroke. By 5:59 PM, he was packed and ready to leave. The moment his phone’s clock flipped to 6:00, he bolted out of the office.

The commute home felt endless, with every stop on the subway stretching into eternity.

When he finally arrived home, the sight of Yi-hyeon’s favorite sneakers by the door confirmed his brother was home.

“Jeong Yi-hyeon! Where are you?”

Bursting into his brother’s room, he found it empty. That’s when he noticed the sound of running water coming from the bathroom.

“Damn it. He’s in the shower.”

Left with no choice, Eun-hyun sat on the sofa, anxiously bouncing his leg while waiting. The sound of the showerhead was almost maddening. His nerves were so frayed that he began biting his nails until they clicked against his teeth.

Finally, the bathroom door opened, and Yi-hyeon emerged, casually toweling his damp hair. Spotting Eun-hyun on the sofa, he smiled brightly.

“Oh? Hyung! When did you get home? You’re early today.”

The innocent smile on his brother’s face clashed starkly with the fact that he was completely naked.

“Wha—what are you doing?! Why are you naked?!”

“Well, I didn’t expect you to be home this early. Why bother getting dressed when I’m alone?”

“…”

Eun-hyun, who had often wandered around naked when he was alone, couldn’t argue and fell silent. But his eyes couldn’t help drifting to the most prominent feature on Yi-hyeon’s bare body. To his horror, it began to stir and rise.

“Why is that—why is it getting bigger?!”

“It’s a biological reaction to you looking.”

“…”

“Well, as long as we’re here…”

“Shut up! Go put some clothes on!”

“…Fine.”

It felt like an eternity as Eun-hyun waited for Yi-hyeon to dress and dry his hair. Though it only took a few minutes, the time dragged unbearably. So much so that Eun-hyun ended up drinking two glasses of water to calm his nerves.

When Yi-hyeon finally emerged from his room, Eun-hyun grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him to the kitchen.

“Sit.”

They sat across from each other at the kitchen table.

“Explain. Where did that money come from?”

Staring at him with inscrutable dark eyes, Yi-hyeon sighed softly before answering.

“It’s from my late parents’ insurance and the house. I liquidated everything.”

Though one of the possibilities Eun-hyun had considered, hearing it confirmed hit him like a punch to the gut. His jaw slackened, and he stared at his brother in disbelief. It felt like his brain was short-circuiting.

“They handed it all over to me when I turned 20.”

“…”

“And I’ve grown it a lot by investing in stocks earlier this year…”

Eun-hyun blinked repeatedly, his mouth dry. He finally managed to stammer out a response, his words stumbling over themselves.

“…You’re insane. Completely insane. And you’re telling me to spend that money?”

“Why not?”

“Why not? Are you serious? Jeong Yi-hyeon… You’re… you’re unbelievable…”

“Why?”

Blinking innocently, Yi-hyeon’s wide, beautiful eyes showed no hint of malice or mischief—just pure sincerity. The sight made Eun-hyun’s head throb.

“Why, you ask…? That money… It’s too precious to spend.”

“I value you more than money, Hyung.”

Yi-hyeon spoke with a seriousness that made it feel like a confession. Eun-hyun froze, unable to respond as if a thorn was lodged in his throat. The unwavering gaze from his usually cheerful brother, devoid of any hint of a smile, left him at a loss for words. After a long pause, he finally managed to speak, his voice heavy with emotion.

“…Yi-hyeon. Your parents… they wouldn’t have wanted the money to be used like this.”

“How would you know that?”

“Hey, don’t be ridiculous…”

“They’re important to me. My parents are important, and so is the money. But… my biological parents are gone, Hyung. They passed away a long time ago. This is the inheritance they left behind. That’s why I’m giving it to the person who’s most important to me now—what’s wrong with that?”

“…”

“My only family, my biological parents, are gone. I’m an orphan.”

“You’re not an orphan…”

The abrupt turn in the conversation caught Eun-hyun off guard, leaving him flustered. But Yi-hyeon pressed on calmly.

“Sure, Aunt Ji-min and Uncle Chae-hyeon raised me, but they didn’t give birth to me, did they?”

The words felt strange coming from Yi-hyeon, who had never used such distant terms for his adoptive parents before. Eun-hyun looked at him in shock, but Yi-hyeon continued, his tone steady.

“Of course, I know I can never repay them for what they’ve done for me. I’m endlessly grateful and sorry to them for taking me in when I was alone. I even refused the money at first, telling them to use it for their retirement. But you know as well as I do—they’d never touch that money.”

Eun-hyun nodded slightly. It wasn’t hard to imagine how difficult it must have been for them to use money that came from the tragic loss of close friends.

With his fingers intertwined on the table, Yi-hyeon lowered his gaze, his expression clouded. The pendant light above the table cast long shadows from his eyelashes onto his cheeks. He looked as though he was picking his words carefully, his lips parting and closing a few times before he spoke again.

“…This might sound ungrateful, but I’ve always been more thankful—and more sorry—to you than to anyone else. It felt like I was intruding on a place that was entirely yours.”

His words mirrored thoughts Eun-hyun had once had as a child, filling him with a tumult of guilt and regret. While he had been preoccupied with the small pricks of his own discomfort, he had failed to notice the gaping wounds Yi-hyeon bore.

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