# Chapter 72
Hwayeon’s house was empty except for basic furniture. Looking around the vast, empty space that reminded him of an open field, Jeongyun took out his phone to check the time.
Seven in the evening.
The days were getting shorter, so it was already completely dark, but it wasn’t too late to go out. Besides, he didn’t want to be alone with his gloomy mood, so going out for a change of scenery didn’t seem like a bad idea.
‘It should be fine since Hwayeon is with me.’
Having made a quick decision, Jeongyun took out his pager. The procedure for sudden outings was quite complicated, but fortunately, their destination, the supermarket, was close to home.
“Hyung, what are you doing?” Hwayeon asked as he approached Jeongyun, who was focused on the small screen.
At the same time, Jeongyun finished submitting his outing request, looked up at Hwayeon, and said with a bright smile, “Let’s go to the supermarket.”
“Supermarket? Where’s that?” Hwayeon asked, tilting his head.
Having lived at the Center ever since he lost his memories due to the manifestation pain, Hwayeon wouldn’t know what a supermarket was.
Instead of explaining, Jeongyun took Hwayeon’s hand and said, “You’ll know when we get there.”
Taking Hwayeon’s hand, Jeongyun headed outside toward the nearest large supermarket. The supermarket, just after rush hour, was bustling with people doing their shopping.
“Hwayeon, just a moment.”
Before entering the supermarket, Jeongyun stopped Hwayeon and put the hood from his hoodie over his head. It was better to be careful in case any Esper-phobic people might cause trouble if they saw the choker on Hwayeon’s neck.
“Do I really have to wear the hood?” Hwayeon asked with a frown.
Jeongyun held Hwayeon’s hands as he kept trying to remove the hood, patting him and telling him to bear with it just a little longer. Hwayeon pouted his lips but nodded, saying he understood.
When they entered the supermarket, Hwayeon’s eyes sparkled at the unfamiliar scene. When Jeongyun brought a shopping cart, Hwayeon insisted on pushing it himself, stomping his feet eagerly, so Jeongyun eventually handed over the handle.
Excited like a child given a new toy, Hwayeon pushed the cart into the supermarket. Jeongyun followed behind, quickly glancing around.
‘It seems okay for now.’
Thanks to the deeply pulled hood, no one in the supermarket noticed that Hwayeon was an Esper. Since Jeongyun wanted Hwayeon’s first outing to remain a good memory, he paid extra attention to make sure the hood stayed on.
But when the cart was about half full, Hwayeon suddenly stopped walking. Jeongyun, who had stopped along with him, asked what was wrong, but Hwayeon was staring blankly at something. It was the toy section.
“I want this,” Hwayeon said, pointing at something.
Following the direction of his outstretched finger, Jeongyun saw a hamster plushie with puffy cheeks.
“You want it?” Jeongyun asked, and Hwayeon nodded quickly with wide eyes. Then he quickly reached out to grab the hamster plushie from its high shelf and hugged it to his chest.
It was both funny and incredibly cute to see this big guy hugging a plushie much smaller than himself. Well, even though he had improved thanks to training, his mind was still that of a young child, so it was natural that he would like plushies.
“Hyuuung…”Â
Hwayeon drew out the word, looking at Jeongyun with pleading eyes, and Jeongyun had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender. Once he got permission to buy it, Hwayeon couldn’t contain his joy and started hopping up and down right there.
Even as they walked around the supermarket to buy other things, Hwayeon kept hugging the hamster plushie tightly. Even when asked to put it in the cart temporarily, he shook his head and refused. He was just like a stubborn child.
“Do you need anything else?”Â
“This is all I need,” Hwayeon said, showing off the hamster plushie.
There must be plenty of other things he needed, but there was no rush to get everything at once. It was getting late, so they should head back soon.
“Shall we go home now?”
“Already?”Â
Hwayeon seemed to like the supermarket quite a bit and didn’t want to leave. But when Jeongyun mentioned he had to go to work tomorrow, Hwayeon reluctantly pushed the heavy cart toward the checkout counter.
While Jeongyun was paying, Hwayeon waited outside, looking around the supermarket with regret. He believed Jeongyun’s promise that they could come again, but he didn’t know when that would be, so he had to wait without any certainty.
‘…I wish we could stay longer.’
As he was tapping the floor in disappointment, a chilling sensation passed by the back of his neck. Startled, Hwayeon looked up and glanced around, but nothing unusual caught his eye.
‘It wasn’t my imagination.’
Hwayeon turned toward where he felt the gaze. Among the many people passing by, he thought he saw a familiar yet strange look.
—Found you.
As the voice echoed in his ears, small sparks instinctively began to fly from Hwayeon’s fingertips.
Just as he was about to remove the stuffy hood blocking his view, Jeongyun, who had finished paying, grabbed Hwayeon’s hand.
“Don’t take it off.”
When Jeongyun spoke firmly, Hwayeon calmed his excitement and nodded.
After steadying his rough breathing, Hwayeon’s face had turned pale. Jeongyun examined Hwayeon with concerned eyes and carefully asked, “Did something happen?”
“…I don’t know.”
It was a vague answer.
Hwayeon briefly glanced at the empty space, then said it was nothing and took the shopping bag from Jeongyun’s hand. The heavy bag was filled with items they had chosen together over the past few hours.
“Are you really okay?”
“Yes, I’m really fine. Don’t worry.”
Hwayeon brightened his expression so Jeongyun wouldn’t worry. However, contrary to his words, he kept looking around several times while leaving the supermarket holding Jeongyun’s hand.
As expected, nothing suspicious was in sight.
* * *
Placing the items they bought from the supermarket one by one around the house made it feel less empty than before. Though there were still many things needed, it felt more like a home where people lived compared to earlier.
By the time they finished organizing everything, it was nearly midnight. To go to work without problems tomorrow, Jeongyun needed to return home, shower, and sleep.
“If you need anything, write it down in advance. We’ll buy it next time.”
“Yes, I will.”
Hwayeon still had the hamster plushie in his arms. On the way back from the supermarket, when asked why he wanted that plushie, Hwayeon had answered with a shy smile.
‘Because it looks like you, Jeongyun hyung.’
Hearing that, Jeongyun stared at the hamster plushie but couldn’t find any resemblance to himself.
When Jeongyun tilted his head in confusion, Hwayeon carefully explained the similarities between him and the hamster plushie. Even after hearing the explanation, Jeongyun still didn’t see it, but he nodded pretending to understand.
‘At least he likes it, so that’s good.’
Feeling satisfied, Jeongyun patted Hwayeon’s shoulder and then headed to the entrance to return home. Hwayeon, who had been happily hugging his hamster plushie, was surprised when he saw Jeongyun putting on his shoes and ran over.
“Where are you going?”
“Where am I going…?”
Jeongyun was about to say he was obviously going home when he noticed Hwayeon’s eyes trembling widely. He was so shocked that he had even thrown the precious plushie he’d been holding onto the floor.
His face, which had been full of smiles just moments ago, was now pale. After hesitating in confusion, Jeongyun calmly explained why he needed to leave.
“I need to go home to get ready for work tomorrow.”
“Home?”
“Yes, my home.”
Jeongyun pointed beyond the front door. Hwayeon glanced at it and shook his head. Though he didn’t say it, he clearly meant ‘don’t go.’
“This is home too.”
“It’s your home, not mine.”
“…It’s the same home.”
Hwayeon repeated his nonsensical claim while grabbing Jeongyun’s hand firmly.
Hwayeon was unnecessarily frightened right now. He looked like he was afraid of something, similar to how he had appeared at the supermarket earlier.
“Just today… can’t you stay just for today?”
Hwayeon’s voice trembled precariously. Jeongyun should firmly push Hwayeon’s hand away, but seeing that tearful face made him soft-hearted.
After thinking it over, Jeongyun surrendered to Hwayeon once again.
“Alright, just for tonight, I’ll sleep here.”
“…Really?”
Hwayeon’s eyes widened with joy.
Since it was his first day out of the Center, it was natural that he would feel unfamiliar with his new home. So staying together for one day to help Hwayeon get comfortable didn’t seem like a bad idea.
‘He may look grown up on the outside, but he’s still a child inside.’
Jeongyun took off his shoes and went back into Hwayeon’s house. When he picked up the plushie from the floor, Hwayeon tucked it under one arm but still didn’t let go of Jeongyun’s hand.
Jeongyun had warned about not making contact without permission, but in situations like this, Hwayeon kept subtly holding his hand at every opportunity. When Jeongyun tried to scold him, Hwayeon would give him that soft look that weakened his resolve. He had clearly been spoiled.
“Just for today.”
“Yes, just for today,” Hwayeon answered cheerfully.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
