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“Geonho hyung?”
Seojun didn’t stop the door from swinging open. He let his guard down, sensing Geonho’s energy from beyond the door.
Indeed, it was Geonho who opened the door. But there was no reason for him to bump into it.
Seojun stood with a puzzled expression, trying to look behind the half-opened door. However, before he could, Geonho entered and closed the door behind him.
“What was that sound? Did you fall?”
As soon as Siwoo saw Geonho, he rushed to the door. He thought Geonho had fallen in front of the door due to the loud noise.
“Oh, the ground was slippery. Be careful when you go out too.”
Geonho approached Siwoo, who was welcoming him, with a grin. He kept one hand hidden behind his back.
“What’s that? Why are you hiding it?”
Since he was so obviously hiding his arm, it was impossible to ignore. Siwoo grabbed Geonho’s thick arm and pulled it in front of him. Geonho willingly extended his hand.
“…”
Siwoo blinked his round eyes upon seeing Geonho’s hand. He had been wondering what he was hiding. He was holding flowers that didn’t match his thick hands. Two white clover blossoms were clutched in his large hand, not even a full bouquet.
When Siwoo asked with his eyes why he was holding them, Geonho grinned, showing his even teeth.
“Your bracelet.”
He sat Siwoo on the sofa and wrapped the clover around his slender wrist. Very gently. With a touch that didn’t match his large build at all, he carefully crossed the clover stems and tied them.
Where did he get these from, Siwoo wondered.
Siwoo quietly watched Geonho as he hunched over, fiddling with the clover. The two white flowers blooming on the blue stems became a pretty bracelet on Siwoo’s wrist.
Seeing this, Siwoo bit his lip and chuckled. He couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of Geonho’s rough hands delicately handling the flowers.
Hearing the tickling laughter, Geonho looked up and lightly tapped the white flower.
“This one’s wild-grown.”
His playful voice suggested it was more precious than their bracelets. At this, Siwoo’s smile, which had bloomed like a flower, grew even wider. Geonho gently pressed the thin corner of Siwoo’s mouth with his fingertip, as if touching a flower.
“When it wilts, I’ll make you another one.”
Siwoo nodded casually. He quite liked how the flower filled his wrist that had felt oddly empty before. Moreover, the term “wild-grown” was so funny that he couldn’t help but laugh just looking at it.
To him, his flower bracelet looked much cooler than their expensive metal bracelets. As Geonho watched Siwoo smiling contentedly, he suddenly lifted the sofa with his psychic power.
“Rest. Don’t worry about anything.”
He moved the sofa to the window area that Siwoo liked. As far away from the door as possible.
“Hey, take good care of Han Siwoo.”
Geonho said to Seojun with a nod. Even without him saying so, Seojun was going to do that. Seojun cared for Siwoo just as much.
He wouldn’t let anyone hurt him. Even if it meant risking everything.
“Don’t worry, you guys either.”
Siwoo, carefully cradling the clover, looked at Geonho and Seojun in turn.
“Even if an outbreak happens, don’t be scared. I’ll save you.”
Siwoo showed well-founded confidence. His life, which had been unlucky forever, was finally turning around after meeting the Baekya guys. And quite extraordinarily at that.
“Even if all of you go berserk, I’ll save you. So don’t stress.”
He believed that as an SS-rank guide, he could show this much confidence. It wasn’t a declaration that anyone would think was excessive. Even if they did think so, it didn’t matter.
I’m really going to save all of those guys. Every single one of them, without exception.
“I love you, Han Siwoo.”
Geonho, who had hugged Siwoo tightly as he wore a determined expression, suddenly confessed his love.
“I fucking love you.”
He poured out his whole heart while putting Siwoo’s small ear in his mouth as if he was going to chew it. He really felt like he wanted to keep Siwoo in his mouth.
“Really, so much.”
Even seeing and touching wasn’t enough. Even when he was inside this small body.
“Let go, you fool! Hurry up and go do your work!”
“I love you. I’m saying I love you.”
“What am I supposed to do about that!”
I want to like you all by myself. I want to be the only one to consume your feelings. But this guy’s existence was too big for him to covet alone.
“Geonho hyung, please stop now. You’re busy, aren’t you?”
“Fuck, I love you! I love you, Han Siwoo!”
“Has he really gone crazy?”
Siwoo pushed Geonho away, flailing his arms and legs like a fresh fish. Seojun firmly grasped Geonho’s thick chest and personally escorted him to the door.
“Get out quickly!”
Siwoo, who had been yelling, glanced at Geonho when he heard the door opening. Geonho was making a large heart shape with his arms towards Siwoo.
“I’m really going now!”
“If you get hurt, you’re dead!”
Geonho nodded vigorously with a bright smile. Then he kicked the youngest’s behind hard with his foot as he stood like a doorkeeper. It meant both to take good care of Han Siwoo and to keep his wits about him.
Siwoo bit his lower lip, glaring at Geonho who had hit Seojun again before leaving. Why did he hit the behind of a grown man? Vowing to say something when he returned, Siwoo looked up at Seojun approaching him.
As expected, his expression wasn’t good at all. The rude expression he only showed when alone with Siwoo appeared after quite a while.
“Don’t be too upset. I’ll tell him not to hit you.”
“I’m not upset.”
Yeah, right. His face is all sour.
Seojun sat down heavily next to Siwoo and turned his body towards him. He sat close to Siwoo with one knee up on the sofa.
Then, before Siwoo could dodge, he touched his ear. The ear that Geonho had bitten was slightly red.
“I also… -ve you.”
He murmured faintly as he touched the ear with Geonho’s faint teeth marks. Not only was the sound low, but the pronunciation was so slurred it was barely audible. Siwoo didn’t hear it at all as he was shaking his head due to the ticklish sensation of his ear being touched.
Before Siwoo could ask again, Seojun abruptly stood up from the sofa. He ran his hands through his face and hair busily before going to continue cooking.
“Is stew okay for dinner?”
“Oh, make a lot.”
We’ll eat together when Kang Geonho and Yoo Jihan come. Siwoo sat calmly on the sofa, looking out the window. He had wanted to see Kang Geonho leaving, but it seemed he had already gone. Even his diminishing figure was nowhere to be seen.
“Get some sleep.”
Seojun prepared plenty of food, calculating enough for the hyungs to eat too. The sight of him preparing meals even after being hit by Geonho made him seem like a real younger brother.
Come to think of it, the Baekya Guild is really like a family.
Although he didn’t know exactly what a family was like, he felt it would be something like these guys. Baekya had a different atmosphere from other guilds. They understood each other like blood relatives and accepted whatever actions they took.
Just as Kang Geonho liked Kang Taebeom who treated him coldly, the youngest unconditionally followed his hyungs. Yoo Jihan also loved his dongsaengs very much, and Kang Taebeom also…
Siwoo’s expression sank as he thought of Taebeom. Since that day, he still hadn’t received a single message from him. He didn’t even come to see Siwoo in person after he started field guiding.
Instead, Siwoo asked the secretary to take good care of Taebeom’s condition. He told him to let him know immediately if he seemed to need guiding. Because that guy would never come for guiding on his own.
“Is he eating properly…”
“Pardon?”
Siwoo, who had unconsciously spoken his thoughts aloud, waved his hand at Seojun, saying it was nothing.
Is it because he’s not in sight? He found himself thinking about Kang Taebeom more often. Whenever he had a moment, he would recall him and worry about all sorts of things.
Whether he was eating well. Whether he was sick again. And… whether he was worried about me at all.
His heart felt bitter as the face of someone who wasn’t curious about him kept lingering in his mind. How could he not contact him even once? Although he understood given Kang Taebeom’s personality, it didn’t make his heart any easier.
He felt disappointed, and gradually angry. The fact that the reason wasn’t clear made him feel even more uncomfortable.
Ruminating on the feeling of growing more distant from him, Siwoo leaned his forehead against the cool window frame. With his head bowed, he carefully fiddled with the clover bracelet Geonho had left behind.
* * *
“What conversation takes so long? Makes me jealous.”
Yoo Jihan playfully rolled his eyes at Geonho, who had just closed the barracks door and come out. He was about ten steps away from the barracks building. With a man tied up.
The man, whose lips were pressed shut by Geonho’s psychic power, was an Esper. He was lying face down on the ground with his hands and feet tied. Jihan had been sitting on top of him, waiting for Geonho.
The man, who could use invisibility ability, had been lurking around the Baekya Guild’s barracks for the past few days. Because he had completely suppressed his waves, Jihan and Seojun hadn’t noticed him, but Geonho was different.
He had been watching the man to figure out his purpose. However, the man hadn’t shown any particular behavior and had only stood in front of the barracks door, eavesdropping on conversations. For a whole week. Every single day.
Geonho’s smile disappeared the moment he left the barracks. His expression was sharper than ever. The Esper’s Adam’s apple bobbed greatly as he met Geonho’s chilling gaze.
“Shall we move locations first?”
Jihan asked Geonho in a soft voice as he stood up. The Esper’s purpose was obvious.
He must be after our precious Guide-nim. How dare he, without any fear.
“Now, let’s go, Mr. Esper.”
Jihan gripped the man’s hair roughly, as if he was going to rip it out. It was a rough touch, but the man should consider himself lucky not to have been caught by Geonho. If that had happened, his neck would have been torn off before he could even be interrogated.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
