#104
It wasn’t that he was shocked by Gam Seonghan’s words. Gam Seonghan wasn’t the type to mince words from the beginning, and he had raised his voice with veins bulging in his neck to defend Yoo Sanho numerous times.
However, what bothered Lee Chan was that Gam Seonghan had poured out his anger while getting worked up. Why was that? He began to replay their past conversation, feeling that unfamiliar and unpleasant sense of alienation.
What was it? Exactly which part of what Gam Seonghan had said in anger bothered him?
Was it because he said he would cut ties? No. Lee Chan just felt like what was meant to come had come.
Then, was it because Gam Seonghan had told him about dating An Lei and even preparing a shopping mall? That wasn’t it either. Even if he hadn’t specifically talked about it, it wasn’t such a secret he desperately wanted to hide. He probably thought, what would Yoo Sanho do even if he found out?
It didn’t take long for him to realize the identity of the thorn stuck in his heart.
‘Don’t bother that kid who’s already sick and has been groaning for days.’
“Yoo Sanho is sick?”
Looking back, Yoo Sanho had always had a weak body. Not only did he often drag his leg due to accident aftereffects, but he was generally prone to minor illnesses. Was that all? He bruised easily due to his tender constitution, and it was common for him to wither whenever the seasons changed.
Yoo Sanho was always like that. He got hurt easily and healed slowly. Not only his body but also his heart was soft, so he would struggle for ten years just to heal one scar.
Sometimes his frail and weak appearance was annoying, and sometimes Lee Chan quite liked it because it was pitiful and endearing.
But at some point, Yoo Sanho had stopped getting sick.
It was strange. Nature and birth couldn’t be changed. He had become somewhat more spirited and diligent after completely setting his career direction toward cooking, but that didn’t mean he had suddenly become tough.
That wasn’t all.
‘Is Yoo Sanho still living in that officetel?’
He definitely seemed to always be by his side, but the more recent it got, the more his presence felt faint. Even the fact that he had come to work together at an acquaintance’s restaurant wasn’t something Yoo Sanho had told him directly—it seemed to be a story that came up naturally while the three of them were eating together.
Was his heart distant? No. It wasn’t something to be proud of, but Lee Chan had never desperately pursued Yoo Sanho. Because Yoo Sanho was someone who always stayed by his side without him having to use such energy.
He had just started being silent from some point. Even if he wasn’t okay, even if he was by his side, even if he still loved him. Even now that he didn’t love him anymore, there was no longer any reason left to open that mouth that used to chatter about everything.
In that complete silence, Lee Chan surprisingly felt anxiety.
* * *
The next night, Lee Chan ended up going to find Yoo Sanho.
‘This controversy won’t stop at this level. Even now it’s at a troublesome level, but agreement is necessary to prevent it from spreading further. As I mentioned earlier, the aspect of the incident will change completely depending on how those whom people perceive as victims speak up.’
‘It’s already in the past anyway.’
‘The past isn’t the kind that can be cut off and thrown away cleanly. There’s also the concept of continuity of time, isn’t there? So, you still can’t contact Yoo Sanho?’
‘He won’t answer the phone. I think someone said he was sick.’
‘For public opinion’s sake, please contact him once. Didn’t you say he was an old friend? If that doesn’t work, at least try visiting him… You do know where he lives, right?’
In the end, pushed by the words to at least go for a sick visit, he had come all the way here.
He didn’t like the lawyer’s attitude of treating him like a troublemaker, but strictly speaking, the words weren’t wrong. One of the big reasons the public found him offensive was precisely that he had deceived them and pretended not to know Yoo Sanho, whom he had known his whole life.
‘Originally, you would have stepped forward first.’
Yoo Sanho was always like that. He never just stood by and watched when something happened that might trouble Lee Chan. He would step forward first and solve it by bustling around before Lee Chan could even feel like he was missing something.
In an awkward mood, Lee Chan wandered around a neighborhood that felt quite unfamiliar. He didn’t know why it took so long just to find a porridge shop and pack something appropriate.
What should he say when he met Yoo Sanho? Should he question why he wasn’t answering his calls? Should he ask what he thought about this controversy? Since the situation wasn’t good, would it be better to first bring up asking him to defend him…
None of his many thoughts could become reality. It was because of the person he encountered at the entrance to the officetel.
“What?”
It was Jin Woohyeon. His clear figure in comfortable clothes, just leaving the building, came into Lee Chan’s view distinctly. He too immediately spotted Lee Chan and stopped in his tracks.
“What business do you have?”
Lee Chan frowned at the tone that didn’t hide displeasure.
“Would I have come to see you? What’s your business here?”
“I’m asking because you didn’t come to see me. For me, coming and going here is daily routine even without any business.”
He had heard from An Lei and knew. Even after finishing the program filming as the final couple, the two seemed to be consistently visiting each other.
Words that had sounded somewhat unrealistic, which he had heard with one ear and let flow out the other at the time.
“Even if you have business, it means you should go back. It’s unpleasant for the two of us to meet.”
“Why are you interfering with me meeting Yoo Sanho?”
“I’m interfering because I have something to do with it.”
Jin Woohyeon crossed his arms and tilted his head to the side. His expressionless face felt not just cold but even aggressive.
Lee Chan clicked his tongue inwardly at that sight. When they were staying at the dorms, he had followed behind saying ‘Sanho hyung, Sanho hyung’ like that. The appearance of pretending to be so harmless had looked disgusting.
“Why? Did you come to ask for help with damage control?”
Jin Woohyeon looked at the shopping bag Lee Chan was holding for a moment and then laughed briefly.
“Where did you pick up that he’s sick? You’re shameless but even thoughtful.”
“What, you bastard?”
“Why, you bastard.”
Jin Woohyeon irritably ruffled his own hair. Lee Chan, seeing that, narrowed his eyes. Now he noticed there was moisture remaining in his hair.
“It would be convenient for both of us if you disappeared while I’m being nice, but why can’t you understand and make people’s mouths hurt? Since you’re also saying ‘this bastard, that bastard’—whatever comes out of your mouth—there’s no reason for me to be polite either.”
Clear hostility rose in Jin Woohyeon’s black eyes.
“You seem to be pretending to make a sick visit that you never did before because you’re desperate, but it’s unnecessary, so get lost. He’s not ignoring your calls because he’s sick.”
“You…”
“What do I know?”
His mouth corner rose crookedly.
“You’re not an idiot, so why don’t you know that? I’m the one who told him to block you.”
“…”
“I told him exactly like this: ‘When your business goes wrong and you’re about to fall, you’ll try to grab onto hyung first, so don’t accept it.'”
Jin Woohyeon continued in a slow tone.
“You should be grateful that I didn’t grab the mic and speak up directly. If it were up to me, I’d want to at least slap your face, but I’m letting it pass because even that strength is too precious to waste.”
“…”
“Who would be happy next to you when you’re like this, Lee Chan?”
Lee Chan, staring at Jin Woohyeon, recalled what An Lei had said about him before.
‘He’s a decent person. But cold. Honestly, if I think about it, I wonder if he’s ever seriously liked anyone. I probably wasn’t that sincere either… Anyway, there’s kind of a wall. He’s not the type to cry and make a fuss over one relationship, right? He feels different from Sanho hyung.’
Was it because that came to mind? Lee Chan impulsively asked,
“Are you serious about Yoo Sanho?”
“…Ah.”
At his question, Jin Woohyeon burst into a small laugh.
“We had this conversation before too, didn’t we? I told you not to act superior just by being nice for a moment when you felt like it, asking if that was fondness.”
“It wasn’t wrong though.”
“I thought it might be better to cut you off like that at the beginning, and I spoke carelessly because I didn’t care how I was misunderstood.”
He shrugged and added,
“Now I want to correct it because I don’t like being misunderstood.”
“…”
“Yeah. I’m serious. Our relationship has become certain. It’s not fondness, and it’s definitely not competitiveness—it’s love.”
“Love, you say.”
“So now it’s your turn to worry, Lee Chan.”
Jin Woohyeon’s question fell.
“Is what you’re doing love?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
