## Chapter 51
Heerim came out of the building about 10 minutes later. He had brought everyone, including the client, out of the building and laid them on the grass. When our eyes met, Heerim gave me an awkward smile. His bleached silver hair fluttered softly over that clumsy smile.
Even though it wasn’t my first time seeing Heerim’s shimmering hair, I couldn’t take my eyes off it—finding it fascinating and beautiful every time I saw it.
“I-I’ll check everyone’s condition.”
Seeming conscious of my gaze, Heerim moved with an uncharacteristic stiffness. He must have been quite embarrassed about crying when I confessed my feelings. For a moment, I wanted to tease him, but with a generous heart, I pretended not to notice.
The people who had lost consciousness were still unconscious. Thanks to Heerim’s abilities, there were no visible external injuries, and their breathing seemed normal, which was somewhat fortunate.
“They’ll all be okay, right?”
“Yes. We’ll need to go to the hospital to be sure, but they were all gathered in rooms where smoke hadn’t entered, so their lives don’t seem to be in danger.”
“That’s a relief.”
“But it could have been serious if we’d been any later. Are you really okay, hyung?”
After checking everyone’s condition one by one, Heerim tapped the soot-blackened hem of my pants and asked. I nodded with an embarrassed smile. Until just a little while ago, I had been so scared and anxious that I was in a panic, but after Heerim arrived, everything seemed okay.
The fire had burned through about two-thirds of the small orphanage before being extinguished. Seeing the building, which had once been a warm beige color, now charred black, made the reality of the situation sink in. We really could have all died if it hadn’t been for Heerim.
“How did you know, by the way?”
“Know what?”
“That there was a fire at the client’s orphanage.”
I hadn’t specifically told Heerim the location of the orphanage, so how did he know I was in danger and come here?
Wondering if this was another Esper power, I asked. But Heerim gave me a strange look in response.
“You called me for help, didn’t you?”
“What? When did I do that?”
“About an hour ago. Jeongmun and I were on our way back to Seoul when I got your call. I was so shocked that I rushed over by myself.”
I called Heerim?
I had no memory of it. Could I have unconsciously called Heerim when I lost consciousness? But the phone service wasn’t working at that time, so it would have been impossible to make a call.
“You must not remember clearly because you were shocked.”
“…I guess so.”
I didn’t remember it, but if Heerim said so, then it must be true. I felt somewhat uneasy, but it no longer mattered how Heerim had come to be here when I had nearly died.
“Heerim, could you call 119 for me? My phone is off.”
“Ah, yes. Just a moment.”
Heerim strode over to where the client was lying and suddenly started searching through the client’s pants pockets.
“Heerim! What are you doing?!”
I exclaimed loudly in surprise before I could stop myself. Heerim shrugged, holding up the phone he had taken from the client’s pants pocket.
“I’m going to call 119.”
“What about your phone?”
“If I report it from my phone, they’ll be able to identify me.”
I was momentarily taken aback by this unexpected answer.
Come to think of it, Heerim always covered his face with things like hats and masks when he was outside. Heerim had explained it was due to allergies, so I hadn’t thought much of it, but hearing him now, it seemed like he didn’t want to reveal his face to people.
Although he must have known about my questioning gaze, Heerim didn’t elaborate further. This seemed to be a “secret” that he couldn’t tell me.
“You’ll explain why you need to do this later, right?”
“…Yes.”
Heerim hesitated for a moment, then nodded. In the past, I would have been very hurt and angry at Heerim for not telling me everything right away, but now, while still feeling a bit hurt, I could let it go more easily.
“Give me the phone. I’ll make the report.”
I took the client’s phone from Heerim. I was worried that the service might still not be working, but as if the earlier problems had been a lie, I was able to easily connect with the 119 emergency services.
“Yes. No one seems to be seriously injured. Yes. Please come quickly.”
After finishing the call with the emergency personnel, I handed the phone back to Heerim. Just as Heerim was carefully trying to put the phone back into the client’s pants pocket—
“Huh…!”
Suddenly, the client opened his eyes with a startled breath.
“Director? Are you conscious?”
“W-what is going… W-why is the building like that?”
The client, who hadn’t yet grasped the situation, raised his upper body and anxiously looked around. I tried to organize my thoughts on how to explain the situation to him.
Then, the client’s gaze fixed on Heerim. After carefully examining Heerim’s face, the client suddenly jumped up as if struck by lightning. He looked like he had seen a ghost.
“Y-you! You did it! Our orphanage! H-huh. Our orphanage! Fire!”
The client pointed accusingly at Heerim and had a fit. At these incomprehensible words, Heerim frowned and looked at the client. Then the client banged his head on the ground and began pleading, rubbing his hands together.
“P-please, spare my life! I was wrong! I’ll pretend I didn’t see anything. Just please spare my life!”
“What’s wrong with you! Director!”
“Oh my goodness. Please, please spare my life. Please.”
The client, who had fallen into an inexplicable panic at the sight of Heerim, writhed a few more times before losing strength and falling unconscious again.
“W-why is he suddenly acting like this?”
It seemed the client had mistaken Heerim for the arsonist. I fidgeted, watching Heerim’s reaction. How could he hear such nonsensical accusations after bravely rushing into the dangerous fire to save everyone?
“He’s probably still in shock and not in his right mind. Don’t worry too much about what he just said.”
As I tried to make excuses, Heerim sighed and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I could smell Heerim’s scent amidst the acrid smell of burning.
“Why are you worrying about me? You’re the one who nearly had a serious accident. I’ll go now, so you stay here and go to the hospital with the orphanage people.”
“I’m really fine. I was a bit shocked, but I survived falling into a rift last time, remember? So I wasn’t that scared. I’m surprisingly mentally strong.”
I deeply inhaled Heerim’s scent while examining his expression. Whether due to what the client had just said or because he had used a lot of energy, he seemed quite on edge. He looked momentarily angry. Feeling that I couldn’t leave things like this, I turned to face Heerim directly. As I moved closer, Heerim looked at me with a startled expression.
“I’ll give you Guiding.”
I rose slightly on my tiptoes and lightly kissed Heerim’s lips. Surprised by the unexpected kiss, Heerim’s body stiffened. I licked his tightly closed lips a few times with my tongue, then looked up at him with a face flushed with heat.
“Won’t you… open your lips?”
No sooner had I spoken than Heerim firmly grasped my lower back and pulled me close. With that force, my waist arched slightly backward, and simultaneously, Heerim’s tongue parted the gap between my lips and entered.
When Heerim’s tongue touched the soft mucous membrane inside my mouth, a strange and thrilling pleasure washed over me. I tightly embraced Heerim’s neck and poured my ki into him as much as I could.
“Because of me…”
After what could have been either a kiss or Guiding, Heerim mumbled in a small voice. Dazed from the shallow pleasure, I didn’t quite catch his words.
By the time we arrived at my home, it was approaching 2 AM. While escorting me home, Heerim didn’t ask about anything.
He could have asked what kind of request I had received while he was away and what had happened at the orphanage, but he only worried about my physical condition.
“Are you sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?”
“I’m fine, just shocked. I didn’t inhale much smoke, and I’m not injured anywhere.”
“If you feel unwell at all, go to the hospital right away, okay? Or call me.”
“I will.”
Despite my assurances, Heerim worried about me for a long time before leaving. I watched until he disappeared down the hill before entering my house.
Since it was late, Jaeyeon was already asleep. I tiptoed into my room quietly and quickly so as not to wake her.
“Ugh. Burning smell.”
I hadn’t noticed it outside, but once indoors, I realized I reeked of burning. At this rate, I probably couldn’t wear these clothes again even after washing them. It would be best to throw them away before the observant Jaeyeon noticed what had happened today.
Since it was late, I took off my T-shirt and pants and threw them in the corner of the room. Then I connected my turned-off phone to the charging cable. As the screen lit up, I remembered what Heerim had said earlier.
“You called me for help, didn’t you.”
Since I had no memory of doing so, I checked my call history. If I had called Heerim while unconscious, there would be a trace of it on my phone.
Standing naked in place, I scanned through my sparse call history.
“I didn’t call him…”
No matter how many times I checked, there was no record of me calling Heerim during the time I was at the orphanage.
Then how did Heerim know about the fire at the orphanage and come to rescue me?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
