BLB Chapter 21

The shrimp wanja cheese tteokbokki was delicious.

I ended up staying the night at Yoon’s house. The Commander-in-Chief didn’t come home. Amy showed me to the guest room next to the front door and brought out the tteokbokki in a green bowl dotted with white patterns.

I ate the tteokbokki wearing the t-shirt and jogger pants Yoon had given me – Just take them. – while missing my demolished shack.

Ricardo didn’t even eat the tteokbokki and left. When I apologized again before he left, he waved his hand dismissively without even looking back and disappeared.

His main point was that he wanted to get as far away from his superior’s house as possible.

“I’ll buy replacements for the things that flew away.”

Amy, the light and salt of my life, said that while eating the tteokbokki.

“We have a lot of money, so don’t worry about it. Look at oppa, he’s choosing his next car like he’s picking delivery food.”

“Even though he’s not allowed to drive for a month.”

Yoon grumbled with a slight frown.

“I’ll have to quickly buy a different brand for now.”

I decided to accept what was given, even though it was shameless.

I spent a heavy night. The truth the seniors had confirmed for me weighed on my mind. I desperately tried to recall my past.

It was an arduous process. The more I tried to remember the past, the blurrier it became.

I kept groping for the fragments of memory that popped up. Who was the one who spoke to me in my memory when the butterfly approached? It was a different voice from the one that had spoken to me on the rooftop. But it wasn’t unfamiliar.

Will there come a time when I remember everything?

When I opened my eyes after pondering without answers, it was morning.

***

It was almost 3 pm when I finally arrived at the Badgers’ dormitory.

I went shopping with Amy in the morning. Amy is the light and salt of the world. After buying essentials with her at the outlet, we had lunch. A rice bowl topped with deep-fried eel.

After finishing lunch, we had coffee, and I headed to the dormitory in Amy’s car.

She said it was the dormitory where the Badgers lived. I would be living on the same floor as new recruits like me who hadn’t yet been out in the field.

The blue car entered Zone 1. The passenger car stopped on a street with few people, a little distance from the headquarters.

A plain ivory-colored building came into view.

“The old building.”

Amy said brightly as she got out of the car and closed the door.

“A total of 9 floors. Hilde, your room is on the 3rd floor!”

“Thank you for bringing me.”

“It’s nothing. Let’s go up together.”

The luggage all fit in two large duffel bags. I snatched the duffel bag Amy picked up and entered the building.

I get off on the 3rd floor with Amy.

A quiet corridor stretched out. Plain ivory walls. Aged and stained with ocher in places.

“Here it is.”

Amy, who had skipped ahead, stopped in front of Room 304.

“It should have everything except a bathtub.”

She swung the door open.

I followed her and peeked into the room.

The scent of clear wind coming through the open window.

It was a less cramped space than I thought. The bathroom attached next to the front door. A plain bed placed under the window. Taking off my shoes and stepping inside, I saw a sink and a small refrigerator. There was also a drawer next to the refrigerator.

As Amy said, it had everything necessary.

“Right. The washing machine and dryer are in the laundry room next to the elevator.”

“This is nice?”

I surveyed the room as I set down the duffel bag.

“It’s much better than I expected. Thank you, as always.”

“What for? Let’s unpack.”

Amy plopped down next to the duffel bag and swiftly unzipped it.

She began vigorously taking things out from inside. I also sat on the floor and unzipped the other duffel bag. Toilet paper, tableware, sleepwear, toiletries. I took out whatever I could grab.

We diligently laid out the items on the floor of the room.

As we were halfway through unpacking, I sensed a presence near the open front door.

“Um…”

Amy and I turned our heads.

A red-haired man came into view. A man with pale skin and light freckles. Blue eyes that gave a meek and gentle impression. Long eyelashes.

He stood in front of the open front door with a cautious expression. Wearing gray sweatpants and a white t-shirt.

Amy’s eyes widened with delight.

“Tom! Hi!”

“Senior Amy.”

The face of the man, who had been standing with a tense expression as if he were shy, gradually relaxed.

He smiled down at Amy with a look as if seeing a young sibling.

“Long time no see.”

“Yeah. Have you been well?”

Amy rose from her spot.

“This is perfect timing. I was going to introduce you later. Tom, this is Hilde. Hildebert Talev. Hilde, this is Tom Hudson. He’s a new recruit like you. Tom, you heard about Hilde from Angela, right?”

“Yes. I heard he was coming today, so…”

The man called Tom glanced at me.

I quickly stood up and bowed my head slightly.

“Hello, senior.”

“Oh, no. You don’t have to call me senior.”

Tom spoke in a slightly flustered voice.

“Um… I heard you received your enhanced body earlier than us. So you’ve already finished the adaptation training? Strictly speaking, we would be your juniors. But I was told that Badgers identify seniority based on field deployment, so we’re essentially fellow recruits.”

But for me to be so recent…

“That’s right.”

Amy lightly trampled on my internal mumbling.

She stood between Tom and me and clarified the situation.

“You two are indeed fellow recruits. So address each other casually and be comfortable with each other. It’s best to be close with your fellow recruits. And Tom. Heshey lives here too, right?”

“Yes. He’s out in the city visiting his family right now.”

“I see. When he comes back later, can you introduce him to Hilde?”

Tom looked at Amy and nodded with a smile.

Then, as he raised his head and our eyes met, he slightly averted his gaze.

He seemed to be quite shy. I rubbed my neck, looking at the curly red-haired man who was gazing at some spot on the floor. It’s a bit awkward to speak first. If I treat him politely, he might feel embarrassed.

We stood awkwardly with Amy between us.

Amy turned her head back and forth, alternately looking at us as we felt embarrassed.

Then she looked at me.

“Hilde.”

“Yes.”

“Say, ‘Looking forward to working with you, Tom.'”

Ah, like this?

I spoke with a subtle smile, fumbling my words.

“Looking forward to working with you, Tom.”

“Oh? Oh, yeah… Me too.”

“Shake hands!”

Amy reached out her arm and grasped my hand and Tom’s right hand.

She pulled them together, urging us to shake hands.

“Shake hands with each other!”

“Handshake.”

“…Nice to meet you.”

As I smiled slightly and held out my hand, saying “Handshake,” Tom also clasped my hand. We shook hands under Amy’s guidance like elementary school students.

We sat in the room for a while, chatting amidst the scattered items. We talked about the outlet we visited in the morning and the nearby restaurants. Restaurants, cafes, and shops near the headquarters and the dormitory.

Amy left only after our conversation became a bit more comfortable.

***

Tom, still a bit shy, showed me around the dormitory.

“Here are the vending machines and ATM. The ATM is open 24 hours, but the fees are a bit high.”

“Aha.”

“There’s no one on the 3rd floor except us, so you can use the washing machines and dryers whenever it’s convenient.”

I nodded, indicating that I understood.

My fellow recruit, who had been standing in front of the vending machine, turned his head to look at me. Tom gazed at my yellow eyes with his blue ones, then said softly, “That’s about it for the general introduction.”

I smiled faintly and expressed my gratitude.

“What’s your room number?”

I asked, trying to dispel the awkwardness.

Tom readily answered.

“Room 307.”

“Close by. Um… Does our fellow recruit Heshey also live on this floor?”

“Yeah. Heshey is in Room 301. He should be back soon…”

He raised his head to check the clock above the vending machine.

It was a little past 6 pm.

“I told him we should order pizza and eat together with you.”

“Me?”

I questioned, slightly raising my voice at the end.

Why did he say that? I haven’t even met the person named Heshey.

Tom, noticing my puzzlement, provided further explanation.

“We already knew you were coming today because we each heard from our supervisors.”

“Ah. Oh. I see.”

“Heshey is a kid who really loves people… He said we should order pizza and get to know each other. He said he’d be here around 6, so if he doesn’t show up after waiting a bit more, I’ll give him a call.”

“Okay.”

I nodded as I watched Tom take out his phone.

“We can wait until 20 minutes past and then call, right?”

Tom nodded.

Then, an awkward silence descended like a formula.

How should I fill this silence? I racked my brain, trying to come up with something to say. The silence Yoon created wasn’t uncomfortable, but this silence stemming from awkwardness felt suffocating.

I also took out my phone, thinking I should check it.

Huh? There’s a text message.

Who could it be? It can’t be Amy since we just parted. I don’t even want to imagine it being from the Commander-in-Chief… Is it from my supervisor? But he said he wouldn’t bother me at least on weekends.

I nervously tapped on the mail icon.

The message appeared on the screen.

It was a message from an unknown number.

[Congrats on coming back! Today is my birthday :D]

What the hell is this?

I stood there, looking down at my phone.

Suddenly, I felt a strange feeling. An emotion I couldn’t precisely identify the reason or nature of.

Who sent this? Is it spam? Or a message sent to the wrong number?

The latter is more likely.

I stared at the smiley emoticon and replied.

[I think you sent this to the wrong person.]

[Won’t you wish me a happy birthday?]

What is this person doing?

I looked down at the screen with an incredulous feeling and moved my fingers.

[Happy birthday. Though I don’t know who you are.]

[Let’s meet the day after Christmas.]

An incomprehensible reply comes back.

[I’m planning to have a grand birthday party then!]

Didn’t you say your birthday is today?

Christmas is still far away. Is this person crazy? Feeling stupid for responding to an unknown message, I closed the message window.

At the same time, I heard Tom’s voice.

“Heshey!”

“Tom.”

As I turned my head, I saw a man with short brown hair, giving the impression of a soldier.

He narrowed the distance with large strides, walking briskly.

“Sorry I’m late. Is this the rumored Hildebert?”

“That’s right.”

“Ah, nice to meet you. I’m Hildebert Talev.”

“Speak comfortably. I’m Heshey Ryle.”

The man held out his firm hand and greeted me.

“Since there aren’t many of us fellow recruits, let’s get along well.”

What a handsome fellow.

I nodded as I grasped his calloused hand. As I exchanged simple greetings with him, I shook off thoughts about the strange text message. I nodded my head at the suggestion to order pizza and eat in my room, and we started walking.

***

“Why did you apply to become a Badger?”

Heshey suddenly threw out a question while eating pizza.

I, who was catching the long stretching cheese, raised my head with a caught-off-guard expression.

“Huh?”

In fact, I hadn’t applied to become a Badger.

I had no choice. Moreover, I was in a state of anguish over my identity. The Commander-in-Chief said I would do well in the end, but can I really do well when I’m full of factors that will be a burden to others?

Anyway, I couldn’t answer truthfully and ramble on.

“Well, you know…”

I racked my brain and stretched out my words.

“I’ve always lived an unstable life. Then I happened to learn about the recruitment…”

But how do Black Badgers normally recruit people?