After wrapping up work, Kang Chi-yu returned to the dorm with Yoon Do-jae. Sitting side by side on the living room sofa, Chi-yu held Do-jae’s hand for Guiding as they listened to the main camera director recount what had happened to Beom Do-il.
“So Esper Beom Do-il told us to evacuate first, so we crossed over. I just got word that he’s at the hospital with Guide Min Yu-hyun now.”
“Was Do-il seriously hurt?”
“They stitched up his shoulder, but thankfully, there don’t seem to be any major injuries beyond that.”
“Wait, can a mutant beast even show up in a general zone like that?”
Min Yu-hyun’s camera director, face still pale, turned to Chi-yu and asked. He looked like he hadn’t fully recovered from the shock of seeing a mutant beast for the first time.
“Normally, no. The area Esper Beom Do-il was in is a Tier 2 exclusive zone—there aren’t any active gates, and the beasts there don’t mutate.”
Yoon Do-jae answered in Chi-yu’s stead.
“There’s been a rise in mutant appearances lately. Any idea why?”
Chi-yu glanced at Do-jae and asked.
“Not sure. People are definitely uneasy. Gates have been opening at irregular intervals, and beasts are showing up in places they shouldn’t be—like today. On top of that, there’s been an increase in newly mutated species that aren’t listed in the Beast Codex. The First Division’s been getting frequent emergency calls because of it.”
“Hm… what the hell is going on?”
“I heard the higher-ups put together an investigation team. We’re doing our part too. Things should settle down soon, so try not to worry too much.”
At Do-jae’s calm reassurance, Chi-yu and the camera staff all nodded instinctively.
That’s just how much weight his words carried.
Maybe it was because he had that grounded, reliable air about him. If the Central Bureau’s FM said it was under control, then maybe it really was. That was the unspoken consensus.
“Still, I hope Do-il’s treatment is going okay…”
Chi-yu looked at his phone on the table. He figured calling now might interfere with the treatment, so he decided to send a text later once the Guiding session was done.
Moments later, Hyun Tae-oh and Lee Jun-hyung arrived after finishing their shift.
Jun-hyung let go of Tae-oh’s jacket the moment they landed and shook his head to clear the lingering dizziness from teleportation.
For Guides, teleportation-induced nausea and disorientation could be eased with more physical contact with an Esper.
But Hyun Tae-oh hated being touched so much it bordered on pathological, which made him entirely useless in that regard.
So for the past week, Jun-hyung had no choice but to suffer through the nausea every time he teleported with Tae-oh.
Tae-oh scowled the instant he saw Chi-yu and Do-jae sitting together on the sofa, hands clasped.
Chi-yu looked back, wary that Tae-oh might start cursing or causing a scene again.
But to his surprise, Tae-oh said nothing. He walked over, dropped down right next to Chi-yu, and casually slung his arm across the back of the sofa behind him.
Sprawled out with legs wide and a cocky smirk, his posture practically screamed alpha male challenge toward Yoon Do-jae.
Chi-yu turned his head to glare, but his gaze caught on something peeking out from Tae-oh’s breast pocket—a familiar plushie. His eyes widened.
“Why are you carrying that around?”
He gestured to the plushie sticking out of Tae-oh’s uniform.
After the plushie scavenger hunt, everyone had kept the ones they found. Jun-hyung had given Tae-oh’s plushies to Chi-yu, so Chi-yu had three of them. But even he didn’t go around flaunting them like this.
“Seriously, why would you… Did you wear that to work?”
“Yeah.”
Tae-oh answered like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Why?!”
“Because it’s my second most precious treasure.”
Chi-yu’s face instantly flushed crimson.
Jun-hyung, realizing Tae-oh was making a scene on purpose even with cameras rolling, shook his head and headed to the kitchen.
As he drank a bottle of water, he couldn’t help thinking, I told them to just go for it, but watching this unfold is way too much.
Chi-yu, red-faced, looked at Tae-oh with a mix of disbelief and frustration. But of all places for his eyes to land—Tae-oh’s lips.
His throat tightened.
He couldn’t help but think of how those lips and tongue had teased him relentlessly the night before. His throat caught, and a sharp tension spread low in his belly.
But not wanting any of that to show, Chi-yu furrowed his brows and muttered under his breath.
“What are you doing…?”
Tae-oh didn’t answer. Instead, he jerked his chin toward their clasped hands—Get on with the Guiding already.
“What?!”
Just then, Jun-hyung suddenly shouted.
He had spotted Do-il’s camera operator and was asking where Do-il was—only to hear that he’d gotten his shoulder ripped open by a mutant beast mid-mission. His face went pale.
Without hesitation, he called Do-il.
—“Hey, Jun-hyung…”
“What the hell?! I heard you got hurt! Where are you?! What happened?! Is it serious?!”
—“Calm down. I’m still alive.”
Do-il chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.
“You bastard, now’s not the time for jokes! Just tell me—how bad is it?!”
—“It’s nothing. Just some stitches in the shoulder. I’ll be back soon.”
“Haa…”
—“I’m teleporting now. The call’s gonna cut.”
And just like that, the line went dead.
A moment later, Do-il and Yu-hyun appeared by the front door in a flash.
Jun-hyung rushed over, and Chi-yu straightened up to look at Do-il.
“You okay? What happened?”
Jun-hyung’s eyes went straight to the bandages wrapped around Do-il’s shoulder.
Do-il forced a smile. “It’s nothing.”
Min Yu-hyun, who had been helping him stand, let go of his arm and answered instead.
“A mutant beast appeared out of nowhere.”
Then he looked at Hyun Tae-oh and continued.
“A new mutation. A type we’ve never seen before.”
“Again?”
Tae-oh frowned.
“It’s weird. We’ve never had this many new types showing up this often.”
Tae-oh fell silent, clearly deep in thought.
“You should shower first. Guide Min, you’re a mess.”
Jun-hyung pointed to the blood—likely Do-il’s—smeared across Yu-hyun’s pale cheek and neck.
“Ah, yeah. I should. He probably can’t shower alone.”
Yu-hyun glanced at Do-il’s injured shoulder.
“Want me to help?” Jun-hyung offered.
Do-il turned beet red and frantically shook his head.
“N-no, I’m fine! I can manage!”
And he bolted toward his room, practically tripping over himself.
Jun-hyung and Yu-hyun stood watching his retreating back, an odd silence falling between them.
“…That’s unexpected. I heard you hate being dirty during missions.”
Jun-hyung was the first to break the silence.
He thought to himself that there was something strangely seductive about the blood on Yu-hyun’s face.
“I do hate it. But… Esper Beom Do-il got hurt protecting me. Anyone with a conscience would put up with a little discomfort for that.”
With that, Yu-hyun headed upstairs.
Jun-hyung raised an eyebrow at the idea that Do-il had gotten hurt saving Yu-hyun, but he quickly masked his reaction and turned back to the living room.
***
Dinner was lively with talk about Beom Do-il’s injury—how he got hurt shielding Min Yu-hyun from a mutant beast.
Yu-hyun enthusiastically took the lead in telling the story, while Do-il blushed and kept sneaking glances at Jun-hyung.
Jun-hyung, impressed, gave Do-il a thumbs-up.
Do-il puffed out his chest and raised his chin, hamming it up.
“Of course an Esper should protect their Partner Guide. Ahem!”
Chi-yu, Jun-hyung, and Yu-hyun all responded in unison with a dramatic, “Ooooooh~”
Tae-oh smirked, and Do-jae let out the faintest of smiles.
After wrapping up the story of Do-il’s heroic injury, the conversation somehow shifted to dessert—and then to fruit.
Jun-hyung wanted melon. Chi-yu said peach. Yu-hyun claimed shine muscat was the only proper dessert fruit.
Tae-oh, having finished eating first, grabbed a water bottle and headed upstairs, pretending to ignore the chatter.
But the fruit talk kept going, eventually turning into genuine cravings.
While the Guides debated their dessert options, Yoon Do-jae and Beom Do-il slipped off to their rooms—both teleporting out at the same time.
They reappeared together in front of a large supermarket, surprised to see each other.
“Huh?”
Do-il pointed at Do-jae, startled.
“What are you doing here?”
“Jun-hyung said he wanted melon. What about you, Esper Yoon?”
“…Chi-yu said he wanted peach.”
Do-il blinked slowly, then gave Do-jae a stunned look—Why the hell are YOU out here buying fruit for Chi-yu?
“You like Chi-yu??”
“Do you like Lee Jun-hyung?”
“Yup! Long-time crush. It’s been ages!”
“Mine’s been a while too.”
“Wait, seriously?”
“Yes.”
“But how… when did you even meet Chi-yu…?”
“Guide Lee Jun-hyung’s impressively discreet.”
“Eh?”
“I received Guiding from Guide Kang quite a while ago. I told Guide Lee.”
“Ah… right… haha… yeah, Jun-hyung really is tight-lipped… huh… so you like Chi-yu… wow…”
Do-il muttered, clearly processing, then looked straight at Do-jae.
“Well, good luck. You’ve got your work cut out for you—Chi-yu’s got this OCD-riddled maniac stuck to him who won’t even let his friends get near. But hey, I’m rooting for you. Fighting.”
“…Thank you.”
Do-jae gave a faint smile as Do-il raised his uninjured hand in a clenched fist, cheering him on.
As they walked into the store to find peaches and melons, they asked each other what they liked about Chi-yu and Jun-hyung.
And somewhere along the way, they naturally dropped honorifics.
“Oh wait, you’re the Esper who nearly drained all of Chi-yu’s energy that time?”
Do-il asked, eyes wide. Do-jae nodded once.
“I tried thanking him a few times in person, but I couldn’t even get close because of Hyun Tae-oh…”
“Yeah, he’s always like that. It’s a condition, honestly. That guy’s only friend is Chi-yu, and he’s so OCD that he picks fights with anyone who gets close.”
Do-jae nodded again.
“Right? It’s damn near impossible to get close to Chi-yu with him around. Jun-hyung and I only manage because we’ve known him since Esper Academy. Even then, the guy throws a fit if I so much as talk to Chi-yu.”
“….”
“Well, hang in there. If I can help, I will.”
Do-il stopped in front of the melon display.
Do-jae looked at him, eyes gleaming like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
