Lee Haru unconsciously nodded at the voice tinged with grievance, only to be struck by a sudden question.
No matter how he looked at it, it really did seem like Yu Je-hyun liked him—but since he hadn’t expressed it outright, it left him confused.
He wanted to ask, Do you like me?—the question was right at the tip of his tongue.
When their eyes met and Haru quickly looked away, biting his lower lip, Yu Je-hyun reached out and took Haru’s hand.
“We need to talk.”
“…Alright.”
A conversation was exactly what Haru had been hoping for. If they stayed stuck in this ambiguous state, it felt like misunderstandings would just pile up until they drifted apart.
Yu Je-hyun led Haru to a place few people visited. It was a floor reserved solely for VIP rooms, with multiple lounges scattered throughout.
As expected, the innermost lounge, being the smallest, was empty.
They sat across from each other with a round table between them. Yu Je-hyun saw Haru run his tongue over his lower lip and stood up.
“Want something to drink?”
He headed toward the vending machine and asked Haru what he wanted. Though his throat was parched, Haru felt like even water might upset his stomach in this state, so he shook his head.
Yu Je-hyun hadn’t really wanted anything either, so he returned empty-handed.
Haru nervously fiddled with the ring on his index finger, then quickly pulled his hand back.
He remembered being told not to touch it because it felt weird when the body’s original owner did.
Fearing he might unconsciously reach for it again, he clasped both hands tightly together.
Yu Je-hyun was just as tense. Even when he first awakened as an Esper and faced a monster for the first time, he hadn’t been this nervous.
Back then, he had been more excited, itching to unleash his overflowing magical energy.
Their eyes met—and immediately, Haru’s gaze darted away in surprise.
It was time to gather real courage.
If they wasted time like this, who knew what kind of interference might come next.
“You asked earlier, right? If it bothers me that you and Ji Yeon-woo are sharing a room.”
He steadied his nerves and opened his mouth. Haru gave a small nod instead of a verbal reply.
“Yeah. It bothers me a lot. It drives me crazy thinking that you might fall for him just because you’re spending time together.”
The more Yu Je-hyun spoke, the more a glimmer of hope stirred in Haru.
He recalled a time he’d had an awkward conversation with the body’s original owner.
Maybe it was because he had never dated before, but to Haru, a relationship meant expressing your feelings, having a conversation about dating, and then seriously beginning from there.
Even if they didn’t go as far as officially dating, at the very least there needed to be a confession of feelings before thinking about what came next.
But things with Yu Je-hyun had stalled the moment he realized his own feelings.
They had been through too much. Multiple kidnappings, a rushed reunion—and even then, it had been hard to find time to really talk.
He suspected Yu Je-hyun had feelings for him too, but he didn’t know exactly what kind.
Maybe he was just curious about how Haru had changed.
“Why does it bother you…? Is it just that you don’t like the idea of me liking someone else? Or is it because Esper Yu Je-hyun… likes me?”
He could’ve just asked: Do you like me?
It was such a simple question, and yet his lips refused to move.
It was fear—fear that the answer wouldn’t match his expectations.
When you truly liked someone, it turned you into a coward.
Unable to bring himself to speak further, Haru bowed his head deeply.
That was when he felt warmth radiating from above.
A heavy yet refreshing scent brushed past his nose.
When he cautiously looked up, Yu Je-hyun was gazing at him with a faint smile.
Their eyes locked in the air.
Yu Je-hyun’s gaze was more serious than ever. Haru’s eyes drifted naturally to his softly moving lips.
“I like you.”
It was the very thing Haru had longed to hear.
But now that he’d heard it, his mind went completely blank.
“I’m bothered because I like you. I know it’s shameless of me to say this. I know I’ve done things to you that I shouldn’t have.”
His eyes twisted in pain as he recalled the past.
Sure, he had acted that way because he disliked Haru at the time—but Haru had still been hurt every single time.
Even though he knew it, he had chosen to look away.
But once his feelings changed, he regretted everything he had done before.
Even if he didn’t like him back then, he could’ve at least treated him with more kindness.
“I’ll be different from now on. Just give me one chance. So… date me, Lee Haru.”
Despite his difficult confession, Haru gave no reply. Yu Je-hyun felt his vision reel.
Was he already too late?
Maybe Haru’s heart, which had slowly started to open, had already shut again—possibly turned toward someone else.
Maybe he still liked Kang Min.
A flood of thoughts clouded his chest.
It felt like being trapped in a sealed room filled with poisonous gas—he couldn’t breathe.
Each second stretched on endlessly.
Not knowing what Haru would say, all he could do was replay every one of his mistakes in his head.
Even though he knew the past couldn’t be changed, he still wished he could go back.
“I…”
Finally, Haru parted his lips.
Yu Je-hyun held his breath.
Every nerve in his body focused solely on Haru.
Haru paused mid-sentence to take a breath.
His thin chest, wrapped in fabric, rose and fell rapidly.
“I like you too, Esper Yu Je-hyun.”
Yu Je-hyun blinked slowly, unable to believe what he had just heard.
He was elated at the positive reply, but the moment was fleeting.
Haru’s expression was dark, as if he had just committed a crime.
Yu Je-hyun felt a sinking dread as he looked at Haru’s expression—like someone who had been coerced into confessing under duress.
“But I…”
It felt like waking up from a dream.
As Yu Je-hyun confessed, Lee Haru recalled the truth he had been trying so hard to forget.
That he was not the real Lee Haru.
He had entered Lee Haru’s body and lived his life; at some point, being called “Lee Haru” had become more natural than hearing his original name.
But that didn’t make him the real Lee Haru.
He had no memories of the past between the original Haru and Yu Je-hyun—proof enough.
Even when Yu Je-hyun apologized for his past actions, Haru couldn’t accept it.
The one who deserved that apology wasn’t him, but the body’s rightful owner.
He should’ve been happy to receive the confession, but his heart was in turmoil.
The body’s owner had told him to take revenge and then live a happy life with Yu Je-hyun in this body.
But the problem was—he wasn’t sure if he was truly the person Yu Je-hyun liked.
It should’ve been a simple matter, the kind of thing a person could take at face value.
Yu Je-hyun liked him, and he liked Yu Je-hyun.
But he understood now how difficult it was for feelings to align.
Wasn’t that what the body’s original life had shown?
If Kang Min had liked the original Lee Haru, then this story could’ve ended with him as the main character in a happy ending.
And even though Hong Seong-jun was trash, maybe the story would’ve changed if Haru had liked him instead of Kang Min.
That was how rare it was—this moment, where he and Yu Je-hyun had confirmed their feelings for each other.
It was nothing short of a miracle.
And yet Yu Je-hyun, instead of falling for Ji Yeon-woo like in the original novel, had confessed to him.
It should’ve been enough to bring tears of joy.
But a corner of his heart felt uneasy, because he hadn’t been able to tell Yu Je-hyun his secret.
It was a secret that no one would ever know, unless he chose to reveal it himself.
Who could even imagine it—that the person inside this body had come from a world where Espers and Guides didn’t exist at all?
He should’ve just closed his eyes and accepted the confession.
But his face only contorted, like he was on the verge of tears, instead of smiling.
“If it’s hard to say, you don’t have to tell me right now. I’ll stay by your side, no matter what.”
Yu Je-hyun reached out and gently wiped the still-dry corners of Haru’s eyes, looking into their increasingly glossy depths.
Haru was overwhelmed.
Yu Je-hyun’s actions were so different now, he could hardly remember how things had been when they first met.
He felt thankful—and guilty—for Yu Je-hyun’s patience, for not pressing him even though he had every reason to wonder about these words.
He realized how foolish he had been, thinking that everything would be resolved the moment they confirmed each other’s feelings.
It was a story he had never shared with anyone.
The story of how he came to be inside this body.
And maybe—if he hadn’t fallen for Yu Je-hyun—he would never have wanted to tell him in the first place.
