#74
After breaking through the rush hour traffic, they drove for 20 minutes and arrived in front of Lee Seung-woo’s studio apartment. When they arrived in front of the common studio apartment building, Seung-woo quickly unbuckled his seatbelt.
“Um, you can just drop me off here!”
Do-hyeok nodded and stopped the car. Seung-woo gathered his belongings hurriedly and bowed to Do-hyeok and Ha-seong several times.
“Thank you so much for giving me a ride.”
“If you know that, get out quickly.”
At Do-hyeok’s blunt words, Seung-woo just giggled happily for some reason. Unlike when he saw him in front of the training room earlier, his expression had brightened considerably. Indeed, when someone is depressed, not leaving them alone is the top priority. Ha-seong’s method seemed to have worked well.
Seung-woo gave Ha-seong one more meaningful look before getting out of the car. Ha-seong rolled down the window until the end to see Seung-woo off. And he quickly scanned the area around the studio apartment building where he lived.
“…”
After Seung-woo entered the building, silence briefly flowed inside the car. He thought they would leave right away, but Cha Do-hyeok somehow wasn’t moving, keeping the car parked in the alley. Well, thinking he might be using his phone or something, Ha-seong stretched his neck out to look ahead, but at that moment Do-hyeok suddenly turned his head.
“Shit, you scared me.”
Their faces almost collided. They were that close. Ha-seong slightly pulled his body back and sat his butt back down in the rear seat.
“Come to the front.”
“Don’t use informal speech just because you think this is your chance.”
“…Come to the front, please.”
Do-hyeok made a disappointed face and gestured for Ha-seong to move to the passenger seat. Did that guy smear honey on the back seat or something, or hide money somewhere here? He kept restlessly telling him to come sit next to him.
“Why bother moving? Just start driving quickly.”
Ha-seong yawned loudly and leaned his body fully against the car seat. Maybe because he went to work after a long time, his eyelids felt strangely heavy. This is why getting older is so sad. In the old days, he could stay up for several nights and days without any problem.
But the car still showed no signs of moving. And Do-hyeok was still staring intently at Ha-seong.
“Hyung.”
“Ugh, fine, fine. I’ll go, won’t that work?”
Ha-seong got out of the car with an expression of being fed up and moved to the front seat. Whether he sat in front or back, what difference did it make? But from that one action that made no real difference, Cha Do-hyeok’s expression seemed to contain a strange satisfaction.
“So, what is it?”
Cha Do-hyeok asked while releasing the side brake.
“What do you mean?”
“Why did you suddenly suggest giving Seung-woo a ride?”
“Just. No particular reason. The young guy trying hard seemed admirable.”
To be honest, Ha-seong didn’t really know Seung-woo’s skills. But above all, Ha-seong didn’t dislike those who worked hard to become stronger or to achieve their desired goals. Moreover, being a hunter was, in a way, a profession that saved people.
They fight dozens of monsters inside gates, kill the boss, and destroy dungeons. That’s how the current world is kept intact. If doctors are professionals who save people with scalpels, hunters could be seen as those who maintain the original form of this world in such a way. So it was natural that Lee Seung-woo, who worked so hard to become stronger as a hunter, looked admirable.
“And there was something I wanted to check, just in case.”
Ha-seong slightly rolled down the window and looked at the studio apartment building and its surroundings that were getting farther away. Unaware that Do-hyeok’s expression was gradually becoming sullen at words like “admirable” and such, Ha-seong closed the window again.
“But Seung-woo is apparently your fan. He seems to really like you, so why don’t you speak to him a bit more kindly?”
“You’re really taking care of him after seeing him just a few times.”
Do-hyeok sharply turned the steering wheel without even looking toward Ha-seong.
“That’s not what I mean. He’s Nameless’s youngest, right? As the Guild Leader, wouldn’t it be great if you stepped up to give him advice and encourage him?”
Of course, Ha-seong knew that Cha Do-hyeok was never the type of person to do such things.
“If he wants to become stronger, he should do it on his own.”
As expected, merciless words came from Cha Do-hyeok’s mouth.
“If I give him advice and encouragement just because I’m his idol, wouldn’t that hurt his pride even more from his perspective?”
Ah, come to think of it, was that so? In a way, that wasn’t wrong either. Thinking about it, if a role model-like figure noticed his current inadequate state and tried to pay more attention and comfort him, it could actually be embarrassing or damage his pride.
Ha-seong glanced at Do-hyeok as if surprised. Then he just answered bluntly, “What?”
It was still rush hour, so the roads were packed with cars. Ha-seong stared blankly at the constantly changing traffic light colors. He felt even more sleepy somehow. Even trying not to close his eyes, his reason had already fled somewhere to dreamland.
“We’re here.”
It took twice as long as usual to get through the rush hour traffic. As he parked the car in the garage and unbuckled his seatbelt, Do-hyeok’s eyes caught sight of Ha-seong’s face sleeping soundly. No wonder there was no response.
“…”
Do-hyeok quietly unbuckled his belt first. And he fell into thought, feeling a bit at a loss. Should he wake Ha-seong like this? Of course, he couldn’t let him continue sleeping here, so he had to wake him up. But he was sleeping so soundly that he could hear faint breathing sounds.
Moreover, he felt an impulse to watch the quietly sleeping Ha-seong a little longer. Do-hyeok was currently conflicted between reason and emotion. Since he had almost never had anyone ride in his car before, this situation was also a first for him.
But his head, full of conflicting thoughts, felt completely empty as he looked at Ha-seong’s sleeping face. Do-hyeok’s deep, dark pupils slowly examined each of Ha-seong’s facial features as he carefully studied his face. His eyelashes were longer than expected and his skin was very good. And his lips were plump and pretty.
As if they would taste like cherries if he sucked on them…
“…”
Do-hyeok was thinking such thoughts blankly when it happened. He made eye contact with Ha-seong, who slowly opened his eyes.
“…What are you doing?”
Ha-seong asked in a sleepy voice. Well, it was understandable to ask when the first thing you see upon opening your eyes is Cha Do-hyeok’s face. Do-hyeok had unconsciously moved his body close to the passenger seat side without realizing it.
“What are you doing? What were you thinking while stealing glances at my face?”
Ha-seong slowly raised his body that had been leaning back. Hadn’t there been a similar incident before? When he first met Cha Do-hyeok, and even in that dungeon where he encountered the pig, hadn’t he examined the fallen Ha-seong from various angles and suddenly said he was strange?
Nothing was more unpleasant than a handsome guy evaluating someone else’s face. He was definitely evaluating his face right now too.
“Won’t you answer?”
“…Cherry.”
“What? I can’t hear you.”
Why are you speaking so quietly, Ha-seong leaned toward the driver’s seat.
“Cherry.”
“Huh? Cherry?”
He asked back thinking he had misheard, but Do-hyeok slowly nodded as if he had heard correctly.
Wait, cherry… Ha-seong touched his chin and fell into thought. It was definitely some kind of metaphorical expression, but he couldn’t figure out what he meant at all. It couldn’t be that he was small and tiny like a cherry. Cha Do-hyeok was just stupidly tall, but Ha-seong wasn’t that short either.
While Ha-seong was getting worked up over useless thoughts, Do-hyeok seemed to think this was his chance and opened the car door to get out. Ha-seong, who reacted a beat late, quickly followed behind him.
“Hey, what does cherry mean? Is it slang that kids use these days?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why don’t you know when you’re the one who said it?”
“Hyung, you’re really persistent. It’s not like you’re a leech.”
“Leech? Are you saying I look like a leech right now?”
“No, what are you talking about?”
It was when the two were bickering thoroughly as they went up from the garage to the house. Just as they were about to open the door, it opened from inside first.
“Stop it already…”
Do-hyeok was trying to get Ha-seong, who kept interrogating him persistently, to let go when he made eye contact with Dal-pyeong, who had opened the door from inside.
“Oh, you’re just getting back. I thought I might leave without seeing you.”
Ha-seong, who had been behind Do-hyeok, stuck his head out.
“Huh? Grandfather, where are you going?”
That’s because Dal-pyeong was exactly as he was when he first came – carrying an extremely heavy bag and fully dressed.
“That’s right. I can’t stay here forever. I have business to do too. Hey, Cha Do-hyeok. The founding is all complete, so go in and look at it or don’t.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Ha-seong was a bit flustered by Dal-pyeong’s sudden departure, but Do-hyeok was actually calm. As if he was someone who knew Dal-pyeong would leave… No, Do-hyeok knew that it wouldn’t be strange for him to leave anytime.
“Ha-seong, you take good care of yourself and eat well too. That way wounds heal faster. Come visit my shop later. I’ll treat you properly.”
“Oh, I eat really well. You should be prepared.”
Dal-pyeong and Ha-seong looked at each other and smiled.
“Well then, I’m going. Eat well and live well.”
Do-hyeok still just nodded. That’s when it happened. Ha-seong poked Do-hyeok’s side hard.
“That hurts. Think about your own strength, please.”
Regardless, Ha-seong whispered quietly to Do-hyeok.
“At least see him off, you ungrateful bastard.”
Leaving those words, Ha-seong exchanged greetings with Dal-pyeong once more before going inside. Do-hyeok sighed. It wasn’t like he and Dal-pyeong were the type to exchange tearful farewells or regretful goodbyes anyway.
But if he went in like this now, he would definitely receive Ha-seong’s contemptuous gaze. He would obviously get scolded for being a brat who doesn’t know how to respect elders.
“Let’s go out. I’ll see you off to the front.”
“The word ‘see off’ is coming out of your mouth too. Living long is indeed good.”
Dal-pyeong laughed heartily and led the way first. Do-hyeok slowly walked out of the house with Dal-pyeong. He was thinking of seeing him off only to where the main road appeared.
“Do-hyeok.”
“Yes.”
“That Ha-seong guy, he’s a really good guy. I can tell just from spending a few days with him.”
“I think so too.”
Dal-pyeong chuckled. Since he had no interest in others, Do-hyeok naturally wasn’t the type to easily speak evaluations or impressions of people like “so-and-so is like this” or “that guy is like that.”
“You smile quite often when you’re with Ha-seong. You said there was nothing to smile about with me.”
“Did I smile?”
“Look at this guy.”
Dal-pyeong laughed heartily at Do-hyeok’s attitude, who couldn’t even realize it himself, finding something so enjoyable about it.
“Yes. You smiled, you fool. It was so nice to see. So Do-hyeok.”
Dal-pyeong slowly raised his head and gazed at the faintly risen moon.
“Forget all about revenge and old dreams, and live getting attached to Ha-seong.”
I hope you live like that, Dal-pyeong added with a bitter smile. Do-hyeok, who had been listening silently to those words, showed a complex expression as if thinking about something. During the walk to the main road, there were no words exchanged between the two.
“I’m going to walk to the express bus terminal. Maybe because I’ve been cooped up inside the house, my body doesn’t feel loose at all.”
“Do that.”
Dal-pyeong left a brief greeting to Do-hyeok and turned around.
“Grandfather.”
Do-hyeok called out to Dal-pyeong, who was walking away. In the evening sky where darkness was faintly settling, the moon’s form was still dim.
“I can’t do that.”
With those words, Do-hyeok slightly bowed in greeting and turned around. Dal-pyeong watched the lonely retreating figure gradually getting farther away before eventually leaving on his journey.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
