# Chapter 48
After finishing Hwayeon’s Guiding, Jeongyun had to spend time without anything to do. Before, he would just endlessly stare at the door while holding his pager, but for the past few days, Jeongyun had started finding things to occupy his time.
Reading books, doing light exercise, or watching delayed dramas or movies on his laptop.
After spending time like that, when the hour hand approached six o’clock, he would put on his bag and grab his pager and phone. He left the center access card on the desk and exited the Guiding room.
Another day had ended like this.
“Sorry, looks like I’ll have to work overtime again today…”
When he visited Wooyeon, he showed him the list that was still far from finished. Jeongyun comforted the struggling Wooyeon and reluctantly headed home alone.
‘It’s gotten cold.’
As the sun tilted far down, a chilly wind began to blow.
Jeongyun crossed his arms and quickened his pace toward the subway station. It was less windy and cold underground, but he worried about when he would have to go outside again.
‘I hope I don’t catch a cold.’
That thought stayed with him throughout the rattling subway ride. He deliberately tried to fill his mind with simple thoughts, since complicated ones would only make him depressed.
Jeongyun fiddled with the pager in his pocket. Even though he had already left headquarters and gone home, so it wouldn’t ring.
When he got off the subway and came back up to the surface, the sun had completely set, making it dark everywhere. The wind was much colder than before.
‘I need to walk quickly.’
He hunched his shoulders and quickened his steps.
“…?”
Just as he was passing the convenience store in the alley, Jeongyun heard someone’s footsteps. He stopped abruptly and turned around, but there was no one there.
‘Was it my imagination?’
Jeongyun stared at the empty alley before continuing on his way. But once his nerves were on edge, he kept hearing things that weren’t there. Jeongyun turned around several more times.
Finally, Jeongyun uncrossed his arms and ran toward his home. As he was about to turn the corner where he had found Hwayeon and enter the alley, his vision was unusually dark.
Looking up, he saw that the street lights that had been fine just yesterday were all broken. As if someone had deliberately broken them in an unnatural way.
‘Could it be…’
Sensing something was wrong, Jeongyun first moved to a place with light. Hiding behind a wall and scanning beyond the alley, he couldn’t feel any presence.
‘Is it Wooyeon?’
Jeongyun examined the broken street lights carefully. But no matter how many times he looked, these were clearly traces of someone deliberately breaking them. It was also strange that only the street lights were like this while everything else was fine.
‘First, let me send a call and then think.’
When he pressed the button, a yellow light flashed. Now he just had to wait for the Espers to arrive, but being alone in the dark alley was eerie.
After moving under a properly lit street light and waiting for a while, an investigation team from headquarters arrived.
“Guide Yeo Jeongyun, correct?”
“Ah, yes, that’s right.”
“Why did you call us?”
“The street lights over there are broken.”
The investigation team briefly scanned the street lights Jeongyun mentioned and concluded that it wasn’t a sign of terrorism, just someone venting by vandalizing public property.
Still, seeing Jeongyun’s anxiety, they promised to send patrols to this area for a while before leaving. Checking the time, it hadn’t even been 5 minutes since the investigation team arrived.
‘This is a mess.’
He hadn’t sent the call just to hear this answer.
Sighing deeply, Jeongyun entered the alley that the investigation team had looked around. Since they said nothing would happen, he had no choice but to believe them.
Blinking his tired eyes, Jeongyun stood in front of the common entrance and entered the passcode. As the automatic door opened and he was about to enter, someone pressed close to his back.
A chill ran down his spine.
‘…Could it be an unregistered Esper?’
Unregistered Espers following Guides from headquarters and killing them happened more often than one might think.
If the investigation team had been more thorough, they would have found the hiding Esper, but because they weren’t, this moment had come.
‘I should have brought self-defense tools.’
He remembered the gun he’d left in his Guiding room drawer. Since he didn’t usually take it out except in special situations, he left it behind, but if he had known this would happen, he should have carried it in his bag at least for intimidation.
“Excuse me…”
At that moment, the person spoke. Jeongyun quickly turned around to push them away, but his hand was caught too easily.
Just as he thought he was about to die helplessly, the sensor light turned on, revealing a face he hadn’t expected.
“…Choi Domin?”
“Damn it, I called you several times, why didn’t you answer!”
Domin shouted loudly.
Jeongyun was so surprised that he thought he was seeing things, but the body heat on his wrist was clear. The sound of angry, harsh breathing also seemed real.
“Why are you here… hic.”
He was so startled that he began to hiccup.
Domin, who had released Jeongyun’s wrist, messed up his own hair roughly. Then he bent down to pick up something that had fallen.
“…Damn it. It’s all ruined.”
What Domin picked up was a large bouquet. A bouquet even bigger and more elaborate than the one Saeon had received last time.
He didn’t know why Domin was here with this, but a rich floral scent spread from the bouquet Domin had picked up.
“Are we going to stay out here?”
“What? …Hic.”
“…Let’s go inside first. It’s cold.”
Domin said as he wrapped his arm around Jeongyun’s shoulder.
Domin’s hand was cold enough to feel through the clothes. Looking closely, the tip of his nose was also slightly red. As if he had been standing outside for quite some time.
Jeongyun, who had inadvertently entered his home with Domin, still couldn’t tell if this was reality or a dream. It was unbelievable that Choi Domin had come to his house.
Unlike the confused Jeongyun, Domin took off his shoes, went inside, and briefly looked around the small house. Just as the Guiding room was small, this place wasn’t much different.
Domin sat on the cheap sofa and put down the damaged bouquet. He had brought it carefully, but when Jeongyun suddenly turned around, he was startled and dropped it.
“It’s all crushed.”
Although he tried to straighten the flowers that had tilted to one side, they had already lost their strength, so it was useless. After carefully examining the bouquet, Domin finally gave up with irritation.
“How did you get here?”
Jeongyun, who had stopped hiccupping, asked.
Domin, who was leaning deeply against the sofa, rolled his eyes to look at Jeongyun. Seeing Domin sitting on his home sofa was really strange.
“I saw the contract.”
Domin answered bluntly.
Jeongyun was about to mention the rule that Espers shouldn’t visit a Guide’s home for personal reasons, but he quietly closed his mouth.
“Actually, I came because I have something to give you.”
“…Something to give me?”
Domin sighed deeply, stood up, and handed the damaged bouquet to Jeongyun. Some flowers had lost their petals, and some even had broken stems, but they were still vibrant and beautiful.
Domin sighed and said:
“It would have been fine if I hadn’t dropped it. But since I bought it for you, take it even if you don’t like it.”
“What? Oh, yes…”
Jeongyun, who had received the bouquet in a daze, was astonished. It was strange enough that Domin had suddenly visited, but he couldn’t understand why he was giving him this.
“And—”
Domin seemed to want to say something. But even after waiting, all that came from his moving lips was a groaning sound.
‘This isn’t right.’
Given the situation, he needed to speak, but it wasn’t easy. It had been quite some time already, so he could just let it go.
But thinking that the strange change in Jeongyun’s attitude might be because of this, it seemed better to clarify things than to leave them ambiguous. Well, anyway, he had nothing to lose.
“And I know it’s a bit late, but the delivery was wrong.”
“What—”
“The bouquet that went to Ju Saeon. That wasn’t originally for Ju Saeon, but for you.”
“……”
Jeongyun’s mind went blank at Domin’s unexpected words. And as time passed, the sadness, betrayal, and anger he had felt then came back one by one.
From the beginning, the bouquet was meant to come to Jeongyun, not Saeon, and misunderstandings had built up due to a delivery error. The truth was truly empty.
“…Is that true?”
“Why would I lie?”
At Domin’s blunt answer, Jeongyun could finally smile. Holding the bouquet that filled both arms, Jeongyun smiled shyly with tears in his eyes.
“Then, did you come here just to give me this?”
“Not exactly…”
Domin, who had vaguely trailed off, reached out and brushed Jeongyun’s hair. Their eyes met, and Jeongyun carefully put down the bouquet he was holding.
Domin naturally took it and carefully placed it on the table to prevent the flowers from being damaged further. Then, without anyone taking the lead, their lips met.
“Do you need Guiding?”
When their lips parted for a moment, Jeongyun asked, panting.
Domin, who was unbuttoning Jeongyun’s shirt and rubbing his lips against the white neck, exhaled hotly. Then he whispered in a deep voice:
“Yes, I need it.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
