CHAPTER 17
When Aidan woke up early in the morning, he was disoriented, uncomfortable, and thought his head would explode every second. The feeling was sickening, and Aidan shifted onto his side with a groan, but that wasn’t helping him much.
He didn’t have the strength to get up, so he changed positions, trying to feel less pain.
“Ah!” Aidan groaned once more as the pain mixed with nausea washed through his body. He pushed himself into a sitting position and looked around. It was still semi-dark in the room, but at that point he realized he was lying on the floor in his office.
What happened? He didn’t remember much and did his best to get to his feet. He reached for his chair and doing this he knocked an empty bottle that lay on the floor.
“Fuck!” Aidan groaned; it felt like he was climbing up a mountain. He released a sigh of relief when his body sank into the comfiness of the chair.
What time is it?
The clock showed 07:25. Aidan knew that Elena should already be up, so he called her.
“Aidan?”
“Bring me some aspirin.”
“What for?”
“My head.”
***
If he didn’t have to, Min-Jun wouldn’t even leave the apartment. Unfortunately, he had his responsibilities, and life doesn’t stop; it mercilessly goes on.
He tried again to return to his old tracks of life, but this time that was even more difficult to achieve. Again, he thought about simply returning home and finishing his studies there.
Why did I have to complicate my life like this?
The idea seemed more and more tempting every passing hour.
***
For two weeks straight Aidan drowned his sorrow in a bottle.
“Where’s the liquor, Elena?” he asked when he couldn’t find alcohol anywhere in the house.
Elena replied with a sigh, “It’s gone.”
“Gone?” Aidan raised his voice, irritated.
“I threw it in the trash.”
“All the bottles?”
“Yes. All of it.”
Aidan rolled his eyes and added, “I’m going out.”
“No, sir. You aren’t going anywhere.”
“Watch me.” He stormed into the hallway.
A few moments later Aidan returned into the kitchen where Elena still sat at the table reading newspapers.
“Where are my car keys?”
She looked up at him. “Care to explain what’s going on?”
Aidan ran his hand through his messy hair and sighed. “No.”
“Okay then.” Elena returned her focus on the papers.
“I can still walk.”
Elena narrowed her eyes and spoke with an authoritative tone, “No, you will not go out in that condition.”
“Bye!”
Aidan headed for the door, but Elena added, “Fine! There’s still one bottle. It is in the cabinet. Down on the left.”
Aidan looked into the said cabinet and pulled out a still unopened bottle of whiskey.
“Thanks,” he said and disappeared from her sight.
***
Min-Jun was making dinner for himself when he heard the doorbell. He tensed and hoped it was not the person he least wanted to see. It was quite late and he wasn’t expecting any visits. The only person who used to come unannounced like this was Ha-Joon.
Min-Jun wiped his hands before heading into the hall. His heart pounded behind his ribs as he peered through a peephole. His breath caught in his throat when he saw who it was.
There on the other side of the door stood Elena, ringing the bell one more time.
What is she doing there?
He was convinced that things had been resolved between them and that he would not see the woman ever again.
Min-Jun wanted to leave her waiting until she gave up and left. But curiosity, as well as creeping concern, did not allow him to do that. He unlocked the door and opened it.
“Good evening, Mrs. Glover. What brings you here?”
“Good evening, Min-Jun. Can I come in? I wouldn’t want to discuss this matter in the hallway,” Elena spoke, polite as usual.
“Yeah. Come in.” Min-Jun stepped aside to give Elena room to enter.
“Thank you.” She left her shoes by the door and continued deeper into the apartment.
Right behind the wall of the entrance hall, they found themselves in the tiny living room. Min-Jun offered her a seat.
“No, I’m fine like this. I won’t keep you long. But thanks.” She gave him a smile.
“So, how to begin…?” Elena added and looked around. “First, I want to apologize for coming unannounced like this. But I wouldn’t even come here to bother you if I didn’t have a good reason.” She fixed her glasses and took another breath. “And it’s... not a small problem, I’m afraid.”
“A problem? What is it about?” Min-Jun asked and felt his body become tense.
“It’s about Aidan. He... he is in a very bad condition.”
Min-Jun bit the inside of his cheek and clenched his fists. “Mrs. Elena, I’m afraid that’s not my concern.” But he was desperate to know what it was about and feared some bad news.
Elena nodded, and explained, “I know. But I really don’t know how to help him anymore, and I think I might know what’s bothering him. This is why I came here first.”
“Why do you think I can help him?”
Elena took a heavy sigh. “Aidan... He started to drink. He is refusing to talk to me about it. And it’s getting worse each day. I don’t recognize him anymore.”
Min-Jun’s eyes widened, but he didn’t reply so Elena continued, “I thought it had something to do with you.”
“Why me?”
“Because since you left, Aidan has completely changed. He’s never been like this. I’m afraid that it’s only in your power to bring him back to normal.”
“I don’t know. I sincerely doubt it.”
“You were having sex, weren’t you?”
“W-what?” Min-Jun’s face instantly became red.
Elena added, “No need to worry about that. I will not judge you. I know about Aidan’s orientation, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he took advantage of the… opportunity.”
Min-Jun bit his lip and looked away.
“My concern is - whether it was voluntary on both sides.”
Min-Jun still couldn’t look her in the face. “It was.”
Elena breathed a sigh of relief. “Good.”
Min-Jun stayed silent and crossed his arms.
“Would you come with me and try to convince him to stop drinking? I think you would be successful in that,” Elena gave him a small smile, and her eyes were full of hope. “Or do you have some plans tonight?”
“I... To come with you now?” Min-Jun looked at her and felt his face was on fire. He didn’t have plans for the night, but to go there again? He wasn’t sure if it was a good idea. In a way, he thought that Aidan deserved to suffer, but on the other hand, he was sad about it.
“Yeah, why not? We know each other more or less. No?”
“Y-yes... but-”
“I would like you to come with me. Better to try all possibilities before we seek professional help. And I really hope it will not come to that.”
“Yes, of course, but-”
“Okay. I don’t want to put pressure on you, but Aidan really needs help. He is not aggressive or anything like that even when he’s drunk. He’s just drowning in alcohol, ruining his career and his health.”
Min-Jun’s eyes saddened, and he looked down, thinking. It was all too much and all of a sudden, but Min-Jun wanted to see Aidan and try to help him.
Elena waited patiently and after a while Min-Jun spoke, “Okay. I’ll go with you.” Min-Jun decided to go and give it a chance. What will happen will happen.
“Thank you.” Elena seemed as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She smiled slightly and added, “Can you come right away or are you busy?”
***
They parked in the garage and Min-Jun took out his backpack. They entered the house and headed up the stairs.
“He was in his room when I left. Hope we find him there,” Elena commented when they climbed up. “It’s best you stay in his room, so you talk to him as soon as he sobers up.”
When she opened the door, they saw Aidan lying face down across the bed. Elena went straight to the nightstand and grabbed an almost empty bottle.
“H-hey...! I-... I’m nodone with that yet!” Aidan raised his head.
“You’re not sleeping?” Elena asked and looked at him.
Min-Jun stood frozen between the doors.
“It was enough, Aidan,” Elena said, but Aidan protested and reached out to grab the bottle. “N-no! Givit back!”
Min-Jun watched the scene before him when Elena added, “Someone came to see you.” She smiled and nodded to him.
Aidan turned his head towards Min-Jun, and his eyes went wide. His face was flushed, and his eyes had trouble focusing, but he smiled anyway. Min-Jun was sure Aidan recognized him after all.
“Mi-Jun?” Aidan said and clumsily pushed himself into a sitting position.
“Yeah. Min-Jun came to talk. I know you’re not in a good shape to have a normal conversation; that’s why I’m taking this bottle with me.”
Aidan’s eyes were still glued on him, and he hiccupped while trying to keep his balance.
“Min-Jun will be here to watch over you tonight.”
Aidan grinned and almost fell to the side.
Min-Jun couldn’t resist and smiled. It all seemed comical, but also sad at the same time. His heart tightened seeing this man in such a state. He wanted to come closer and give him a hug.
“Well, settle comfortably,” Elena turned to Min-Jun. “If he begins causing trouble, just call me.”
“Yeah, of course.” Min-Jun nervously shifted from foot to foot.
“If you need anything, don’t hesitate to tell me,” Elena said and looked one last time at Aidan. “And you. Behave.”