A few hours ago, with no guiding requests coming in, Yu-won found himself with time to spare, sitting alone in the guiding room—thinking about Rion.
To be more precise, not Rion himself, but what had happened with him.
“Man, if you actually get powers like that, it’ll just piss you off. Didn’t you say you don’t even like being paired with Rion sunbae?”
Min-hyeon’s teasing words had echoed in Yu-won’s head all day long.
Truth be told, he was already aware of how he overreacted every time Rion got close to him or reached out to touch him, even slightly.
The first time he’d pulled away from that hand—it had probably been out of surprise, and because the whole situation felt unfamiliar.
Just the fact that he’d ended up as Rion’s teammate inside a Gate—someone he thought he’d never run into again—had been enough to keep him on edge and make everything feel unreal. Then, for the very person who was the reason for all that tension to touch him… he’d been so startled that his body reacted before his mind could catch up.
Yu-won knew Rion had been upset at the time. But by the time he’d gotten over the shock and gathered his thoughts, Rion had already stormed off.
And after that, there hadn’t been a good opportunity to approach him again. Right before leaving the Gate, he’d even said something harsh to Rion.
Since then, he’d kept avoiding Rion’s casual touches. Because Rion had become someone he couldn’t help but be affected by.
After deciding that he’d rather be the annoying junior than keep quiet, Yu-won had given up on the idea of getting close to Rion.
He hadn’t entered the Center to get friendly with him in the first place. All he’d wanted, even just once, was to be of help. So petty things like getting along didn’t really matter.
Of course, it wasn’t like he’d managed to become that competent rookie he’d hoped to be either.
After leaving that S-rank Gate, Yu-won had felt just as much self-loathing as he imagined Rion had.
He’d hoped that, at the very least, his blunt words might’ve held Rion back from doing something reckless once or twice. But it seemed like it had all been meaningless.
Ironically though, it was only after he started to let go a little that Rion began to change. He didn’t know why, but seeing Rion genuinely trying to improve their relationship had made Yu-won happy.
When he’d been clueless, or when he’d already given up, it hadn’t bothered him. But once he got used to being around Rion, he didn’t want to go back to how things were before.
Pretending to be mature, nagging—none of it meant anything. He started wanting to just drop everything and become someone who could say things that made Rion feel good.
Then, when Rion came a little closer, Yu-won found himself afraid. Afraid that if they got any closer, his desires would grow. That if Rion touched him again, his heart—which already skipped beats now and then—might just break for good.
So when Rion came near, it made him tense. Because he didn’t want to want more. Because he was afraid the feelings he’d worked so hard to hide might show.
It was admiration. I was sure it wasn’t love.
But now, just being near Rion brought out the selfish parts of him. Once he recognized that, he started wanting the next step—and the one after that. That’s why he’d kept avoiding any physical contact.
But from Rion’s perspective, things must’ve looked completely different.
“Seriously? That childish crap? What’s the point of messing with someone over that? It’s even more annoying when people act all immature like that.”
“……You think he was upset?”
“You don’t seem like the type to do stuff like that with sunbaes all the time.”
“I’m not.”
Min-hyeon fell silent for a moment, like he was mulling it over, then spoke with certainty.
“If that’s how you acted, I bet he was totally pissed.”
“Why?”
“He’s been going around talking like he and you have gotten pretty close. Then you go acting like you don’t even want to touch him, but mess around with someone else? Of course that’d piss him off.”
“He’s… been saying that?”
Yu-won asked, stunned. Rion had acted totally normal around him—nothing out of the ordinary.
“Yeah. He was actually pretty happy about it, saying he thought you two were getting close. Then you go off avoiding his touch, while casually doing it with someone else? That’d definitely hurt.”
“But you were the one who—”
“Ah, come on. That guy acts like that with everyone. It’s different when someone doesn’t usually act like that suddenly does.”
You’re actually really childish, huh? Min-hyeon had clicked his tongue, muttering that he felt bad for Rion.
Of course, Min-hyeon had already forgotten all about the conversation by the time he reached the training center.
But Yu-won had replayed every word in his head all the way until he got off work.
Was he hurt…?
He was used to Rion getting mad at him. After all, he’d said plenty of annoying things. He didn’t think he’d been wrong, but he knew that, from Rion’s point of view, it probably came off as nothing but frustrating nagging.
But this time was different.
Touching Min-hyeon’s shoulder right in front of Rion—that had been impulsive. He hadn’t paused to think about right or wrong.
Someone could say it was just selfish jealousy, that he didn’t want to share. But it wasn’t that simple.
He hadn’t avoided Rion because he disliked him.
He just found himself obsessing over every little thing—while Rion stayed close to someone he couldn’t stand, acting like it was nothing. Watching that, he felt irritated for some reason.
So he’d lashed out, shown he could do the same. Just a little mischief. But Rion had taken it to heart.
It left him uncomfortable—and at the same time, a little happy. Because it meant Rion cared about him.
Still, just because Rion cared didn’t mean things could go on like this. Even Yu-won knew his own behavior had been kind of childish.
He’s probably pissed when I get home… But he still would’ve come back, since we promised.
Yu-won knew that lately, Rion had been putting in effort to build their relationship. So this time, he wanted to be the one to take the first step.
He spent the entire workday lost in thought, trying to figure out how.
But no good ideas came.
I’ll think about it at home, he told himself, and left the guiding room to head back.
“……”
Sure enough, when he arrived, Rion was sitting there with his lips sealed, completely ignoring him.
Yu-won tried to start a conversation, but one look at Rion’s expression told him it wasn’t going to work.
Normally, if their schedules lined up, they’d head home together. But today, with no message from Rion, Yu-won had already guessed what kind of mood he’d be in. Seeing him now, arms crossed and face sulky, it was clear—this wouldn’t be an easy fix.
“You got home early.”
He tried to play it cool and offer a light greeting, but Rion said nothing. Might as well go inside and think.
Yu-won passed him quietly and stepped into the house.
But even facing him, he had no idea what to say. Especially with Rion’s lips pressed into a firm, angry line—it only made it harder.
Trying to buy a little time, he headed to the bathroom, turned on the water, and stared into the mirror, thinking.
He was happy about getting close… but then I went and avoided him while touching someone else. Yeah, that would suck.
It wasn’t because he disliked Rion, but from Rion’s view, it probably felt that way.
He’d never meant to hurt Rion’s feelings, but Rion had no way of knowing that.
With the sound of running water behind him, Yu-won finally made up his mind and turned off the tap.
“Come on. It’s not a big deal. I’m the one making a fuss over nothing.”
After Rion said he didn’t like people pretending to act mature, Yu-won had let go of that notion too.
He finished his shower and came out, cautiously watching Rion.
His expression hadn’t changed one bit.
Yu-won sat beside him. In his own awkward way, it was a peace offering.
He didn’t need to look to know Rion was flustered. Of course he’d be surprised—Yu-won never initiated physical contact unless it was for guiding.
Still, seeing him visibly startled was strangely… satisfying.
I wasn’t exactly avoiding him. But was this really that surprising? I just sat next to him.
Yu-won hadn’t expected just sitting near Rion would shock him this much.
Feeling unexpectedly bold, he gently leaned his head against Rion’s shoulder.
There was something nice about knowing Rion was aware of him. And it made him want to be braver.
This time, he could really feel Rion stiffen.
Yu-won didn’t know if his pounding heart was from acting on impulse, or simply from touching Rion.
“Gah… ow.”
Rion had apparently been so startled, he bit his tongue trying to speak.
And just like that, the tension broke.
Without hesitation, Yu-won checked on him and brought him an ice cube to stop the bleeding. Then waited silently as Rion let it melt in his mouth.
Not long after, Rion mumbled—his voice free of irritation for the first time:
“See, this is why you shouldn’t go doing stuff you’re not used to.”
To Yu-won’s surprise, there was no argument. No yelling. Neither of them exploded.
I never imagined we’d end up like this…
No matter how he looked at it, the person who kept making him want more… was Rion.
In this moment, even Rion’s straightforward, sometimes frustrating personality had completely faded from his mind.
