“Ah, that? The ceiling lights are too dim right now, so I just took that out temporarily. They kept saying they’d fix it, and now, of all times, they’re actually doing it. So we can’t use the small auditorium for now.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah, remember how I was running around like crazy last week trying to find a practice room? I told you about this before.”
Did he? Sa-yoon was sure he must have missed it while paying too much attention to Sa Shin-jae.
“Must’ve slipped my mind.”
There was a scene where one of the roles had to spin in the middle of the stage, but the actor suddenly stumbled. Looking down at the floor, Sa-yoon saw thick lighting cables sprawled out messily.
“Why are the cables just lying around like that? That’s dangerous.”
Taking the lights out was fine, but the placement was a problem. The wall outlets were positioned in a way that forced the cables to stretch across the stage.
“It’s just temporary for today, so we kind of set it up haphazardly. We’ll have to move everything tomorrow anyway.”
The thick cables were long enough to be coiled up like a hose at one side of the stage. As Sa-yoon scanned the floor, he unconsciously bit his lower lip. The scene looked exactly like the one where he’d injured his knee. The only difference was that back then, his view had been obstructed by stacked props.
“This is still pretty dangerous. Can you clean it up after this practice?”
“We’re only running through it a couple more times. Should I just remind everyone to be careful? I already warned them before practice.”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll just take care of it myself when we take a break after this run-through.”
Sa-yoon, who had been tapping his opposite arm with folded arms, eventually stepped onto the stage. Up close, the thick cables stretched across the floor like snakes.
Someone’s going to trip over these and get hurt.
Even if it’s just for today, they should’ve at least tidied it up. This country really has no sense of safety. Clicking his tongue, Sa-yoon was staring at the stage floor when Shin-jae quietly stepped in and disappeared backstage.
As familiar lines were spoken, Sa-yoon instinctively looked up. Wait—wasn’t Shin-jae supposed to be late?
Normally, when an actor was missing, the others would either say their lines for them or skip over them. Shin-jae didn’t have many lines, so someone else would probably just cover for him. With that thought, Sa-yoon lowered his gaze back to the floor.
But then, he noticed a pair of white sneakers standing at the edge of the stage—where they shouldn’t be.
As if drawn by some invisible force, Sa-yoon lifted his head. The owner of the shoes was staring straight at him, his face twisted in a deep scowl.
When did he get here?
Sa-yoon had once thought Shin-jae had an endlessly handsome face. But right now, with that expression? He just looked infuriating.
As soon as their eyes met, Sa-yoon raised his left hand, folding down all his fingers except for one.
“Eat shit, you bastard.”
Shin-jae scoffed when he saw Sa-yoon’s hand gesture. He said something in response, but Sa-yoon couldn’t hear it.
Hope you fall on your ass and embarrass yourself. Sa-yoon mouthed back silently. Whether Shin-jae caught that or not was anyone’s guess.
Then came Shin-jae’s cue to enter. His character was supposed to walk in with his head held high, exuding confidence. Taking a bold step forward, he suddenly stumbled over the cables.
He clearly hadn’t even considered the possibility that something might be on the floor.
Of course he didn’t. He had come in late—he had no idea the wires were there. The stage lights had a top-heavy design, with their bases thin and unsteady. The massive light fixture immediately tilted toward Shin-jae.
Oh, fuck.
Maybe I shouldn’t have wished for him to fall.
“Shin-jae!”
Sa-yoon’s body moved faster than his thoughts.
“Ugh!”
There was never an option to catch the light itself. Instead, he lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Shin-jae’s head just as they both hit the ground. The heavy fixture slammed against his back, knocking the breath out of him with a searing pain that froze his entire body.
“You okay?!”
“Sunbae!”
“What the hell just happened?”
“Shit, why did the light fall all of a sudden?”
Panicked club members rushed over, surrounding Sa-yoon and Shin-jae on the floor. Even though it felt like someone had smacked him across the back with a bat, Sa-yoon immediately looked up to check on Shin-jae. The dumbass looked dazed but otherwise unharmed. Small mercies.
“Sunbae! Are you okay? Oh my god, what do we do?”
“Uh… aside from getting slammed in the back, I’m fine.”
Lying. He was not fine. But saying so would just make Ha-rim, who already looked like she was drowning in guilt, feel even worse. That wouldn’t help anything.
Sa-yoon forced a smile and pressed his palm against the floor to push himself up—only to wince and drop back down.
“Shit! Did you hurt your wrist?”
Myung-woo, flustered, slipped into full dialect as he checked Sa-yoon’s condition. It was only then that Sa-yoon realized his wrist throbbed where he had caught himself.
As Myung-woo anxiously grabbed his wrist to examine it, Sa-yoon let out a sharp hiss. The problem wasn’t just the impact—it was the burn. His injured hand had gotten scraped.
A massive figure jerked away instinctively. As Sa-yoon cradled his wrist, a bright light shone down on him. Looking up, he saw Ha-rim holding up her phone flashlight.
Under the harsh light, his wrist—already swelling—was now clearly visible. Someone gasped.
“Shit, this—what the hell—your hand is red as hell!”
Myung-woo, still holding Sa-yoon’s wrist, looked like he was about to cry.
“Ah… this… I spilled coffee on it earlier. Didn’t get around to treating it properly…”
The atmosphere grew heavier.
“……You need to go to a hospital.”
Sa-yoon deliberately kept his voice steady and even patted Myung-woo’s shoulder, trying to calm him down. The guy had gone completely pale.
“I’ll go to the hospital with you.”
Someone tugged at his arm from behind. When he turned, Shin-jae was standing there.
Me? With him? But as soon as Shin-jae spoke, everyone else nodded along like they were a single entity.
“Hey, why are you going this way? If you want a taxi, you have to head outside. They don’t come in here.”
Was he bad with directions? Or just so shaken up that he lost his sense of direction? The moment they left the auditorium, Shin-jae headed deeper into the school grounds. Sa-yoon hadn’t actually planned on following him, but he decided to point out the obvious out of sheer courtesy.
“I’m taking my car.”
Shin-jae didn’t even turn around as he spoke. His tone was short, clipped. Sa-yoon narrowed his eyes.
Figures. No way someone like him would actually be considerate.
For a second, he’d thought maybe Shin-jae was showing some decency by offering to go to the hospital with him. Guess not. What the hell was he expecting?
“Hey.”
“……”
He definitely heard that, but the bastard didn’t even turn his head. At that, whatever patience Sa-yoon had left instantly evaporated.
“Hey, you take your car to the hospital. I’ll go on my own.”
No fucking way was he getting in that car.
Only then did Shin-jae finally stop. When he turned around, his face was rigid—completely different from the dazed look he had earlier.
Huh. So he can make that kind of expression.
Sa-yoon dryly noted the contrast before shrugging and stepping back. At that, Shin-jae started walking toward him.
“What are you talking about?”
His voice was even, almost too flat, making it sound vaguely intimidating. But Sa-yoon had already spent the afternoon having a full-blown fight with him in someone else’s department building. He wasn’t scared in the slightest.
Was there a hospital around here that did late-night consultations? Sa-yoon ignored the question and pulled out his phone to check.
A pale, slender hand shot out and blocked his screen.
“I asked, what are you talking about?”
“I mean, I’m not gonna use this as some excuse to ‘bond’ with you over a hospital trip, so let’s just go our separate ways.”
Why was he blocking the screen like that? Annoyed, Sa-yoon shifted his phone to the side and kept scrolling. This time, Shin-jae didn’t try to stop him.
“Just answer me one thing.”
“Oh wow, what an honor to have a question from you, you fucking bastard.”
“When did I ever call you a ‘fucking bastard’?”
“Oh, was it shitty bastard instead?”
“……”
“Fine, let’s go with stalker bastard then. Not much of a difference anyway.”
“Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? Is this about what happened earlier?”
“Yes~ I have absolutely zero interest in going to the hospital with you, so fuck off.”
There wasn’t one near the north gate, but there was an orthopedic clinic by the main gate that stayed open until 8 PM. Sa-yoon fidgeted with his hand, getting ready to call a taxi.
