# Chapter 61
Returning home, Jeongyun collapsed at the entrance without even taking off his shoes. He had no energy and, above all, felt so weak that he couldn’t possibly move.
The motion-sensor light that had briefly turned on went off again, plunging the house into pitch-black darkness.
Lost in thought, Jeongyun suddenly realized he was fortunate that tomorrow was the weekend. Otherwise, he would surely have had to use a vacation day.
After a long while, Jeongyun finally managed to stand up by leaning against the wall. As he took off his shoes and staggered forward, the sensor light flickered on again.
Upon reaching the sofa, his body, having used its last bit of strength, collapsed weakly. Sighing deeply, Jeongyun turned his head and spotted the dried flowers hanging upside down.
It was the bouquet Domin had given him when he first came to this house.
When he received those flowers, he had been as happy as if he were flying in the sky, but now everything was so different. It felt like he had not only hit rock bottom but was being dragged through the mud.
A few hours ago, Jeongyun had requested to terminate his dedicated partner contract with Domin. When he said it, he thought it was an impulsive decision, but in reality, it was the result of all the time he’d endured, piling up.
Being with Domin brought as much frustration as happiness, and just as much pain. Until now, he had endured with the sole desire to stay by Domin’s side, but he couldn’t bear to see Domin with Saeon anymore.
After hearing Jeongyun’s words, Domin remained silent for a long time. The wine that had seeped from the crushed box dampened his feet, but Domin didn’t move even slightly, which was frightening. The bright red wine looked like blood.
‘I’ll look into the contract termination procedure on Monday.’
In the end, unable to bear the uncomfortable atmosphere, Jeongyun spoke first.
Since Domin had already terminated a dedicated contract with Saeon once, he would know the procedure, but since he rarely came to headquarters, Jeongyun thought it would be better if he looked into it himself.
‘I’ll contact you later.’
Jeongyun bowed his head slightly, then turned away from Domin. This would be the last time they would meet face to face, except when Domin came to sign the papers.
Thinking this way made it hard for him to take a step, but remembering that Saeon had been here just moments ago made him want to leave this place as quickly as possible.
Just as he reached out to open the bedroom door, an invisible strong force slammed the door shut with a bang! With wide eyes, Jeongyun belatedly realized that Domin had used his ability.
‘I haven’t said anything yet.’
Domin, who had approached with large strides, said.
Was it because of his voice, lower than usual? Goosebumps rose on Jeongyun’s skin, and he couldn’t bring himself to turn around.
He knew he should open the door and leave immediately, but his hand was frozen and wouldn’t move. The footsteps approaching steadily grew closer.
While Jeongyun hesitated, Domin was right behind him.
Domin’s hand overlapped Jeongyun’s, which hadn’t reached the doorknob. Then in an instant, his body was turned around to face Domin.
‘Who says you can terminate the dedicated contract?’
A hand that had traveled up Jeongyun’s arm lightly gripped his neck. Unable to say anything, Jeongyun swallowed hard.
Then Domin asked again.
‘I asked who says you can terminate the dedicated contract. Hmm?’
‘I can’t continue with Choi Domin anymore… ugh.’
Not getting the answer he wanted, Domin gradually increased the pressure on Jeongyun’s neck. Due to the choking sensation, Jeongyun had to stop mid-sentence.
‘I have no intention of removing the imprint.’
‘Hnngh.’
‘You started this, so it’s only fair that I end it. That’s fair, right?’
Jeongyun couldn’t understand why Domin was so angry about terminating the dedicated contract. From the beginning, it would be beneficial for Domin to find another Guide rather than keep a C-class like him.
‘Let, let me go.’
When Jeongyun pleaded, the grip on his neck loosened slightly. But Domin’s gaze remained the same. It shone menacingly, as if he would twist Jeongyun’s neck at any moment if he said something disagreeable.
This wasn’t the first time Domin had been scary, but it was different from other times. He wasn’t just threatening; he seemed angry enough to actually kill if provoked.
Jeongyun subtly reached out to find the doorknob. But no matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn’t move, as if something invisible had tied it down.
‘Fuck.’
Domin suddenly cursed harshly and pressed his body even closer. Trapped between the door and Domin with no escape, Jeongyun’s eyes trembled precariously.
Tilting his head, Domin whispered through gritted teeth.
‘I’m going to kiss you, so open your mouth.’
‘Hngh.’
Jeongyun refused, but Domin didn’t stop. A tongue forcibly entered, caught Jeongyun’s tongue that had fled far away, and wrapped around it strongly.
Due to the anxious state, the Guiding efficiency was terrible, and because of that, no matter how deep the kiss, proper Guiding couldn’t happen. Yet Domin didn’t give up and kept pressing his body closer.
‘P-please stop!’
Only when Jeongyun shouted, not missing the brief moment when their lips parted, did Domin stop.
Jeongyun’s shoulders, exposed through his parted collar, trembled. For a brief moment, Domin’s face seemed to contort, but it quickly turned away and wasn’t visible. Jeongyun thought he had seen an illusion.
‘Get out.’
‘…’
‘If you don’t leave right now, I don’t know what I’ll do to you, so get the hell out like you want.’
With that final warning, Domin went into the bathroom. Only then did the firmly closed door slowly open. Jeongyun fled from Domin’s house without looking back.
Only after catching a taxi on the street did he belatedly see how much of a mess he looked. He couldn’t help but laugh bitterly as he saw his reflection in the window.
‘I decided to end it now.’
Getting up from the sofa, Jeongyun crumpled the bouquet Domin had given him and stuffed it into the trash can. As the carefully dried petals fell, the living room floor became a mess.
“Bastard…”
Pushing down the flowers that had sprung out of the trash can, he finally uttered the harsh words he had been holding back. Bastard, jerk. But still milder than the curses Domin casually threw around.
His vision rippled, and tears fell in drops. Sitting on the floor dirtied with broken petals, Jeongyun cried loudly.
Many things had hurt Jeongyun over time, but more than anything, it was devastating that his years of unrequited love had ended so miserably.
* * *
Something was rippling at the end of a dark alley. It sometimes looked like a person and sometimes transformed into an unrecognizable form.
Something that had lingered there for a long time writhed out of the alley. Then the street lamp, which had been fine, flickered violently before completely losing its light.
“Not… here.”
A crackling voice echoed through the quiet alley. The path it had passed through was stained with pitch-black darkness.
As it looked back with satisfaction, a boy appeared before it.
“Not here either?”
When the boy asked, it moved with a wriggle as if nodding. Though it should have been badly injured and couldn’t have gone far, no trace could be found despite searching the surroundings thoroughly. It was as if it had disappeared into the sky.
If he had known this would happen, he should have attached one of these to it. It hadn’t shown any signs of running away, so he hadn’t attached anything, but he didn’t expect to be betrayed like this.
“Why are you playing around instead of working?”
Looking up at the cheerful voice, the boy discovered a girl perched in a tree.
Click. As the girl lit a lighter, the boy frowned. When the light appeared, his thing began to ripple greatly.
“You still haven’t found it?”
“How about you?”
“Of course I couldn’t find it. If you can’t find it, how could I?”
The girl, pouting her lips, gracefully descended from the tree. As the flickering flame came closer, the thing completely collapsed whatever form it had been maintaining.
Seeing it hide in the darkness, the girl looked at the boy with an “oops” expression.
“Sorry, I didn’t know it was this weak.”
“…If you know now, turn off the light immediately.”
When the girl extinguished the flame of the lighter, the things that had hidden in the darkness began to ripple and emerge again. Then when the boy extended his hand, it rose up elongating its body.
“It says there’s nothing around here.”
“Really? Then it’s not here. We’ll have to go somewhere else.”
The girl, who had stepped lightly, was suddenly up in the sky. Despite being told not to do anything conspicuous, she never knew how to behave.
Sighing deeply, the boy sent the thing in his hand elsewhere. While it roamed the city, the boy planned to revisit the place that person had mentioned.
“All the annoying work gets dumped on me.”
The boy muttered, rubbing his bare nape with his hand.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
