# Chapter 63
Hwayeon’s body temperature was higher than most people’s. At first, Jeongyun thought he was sick because he was so hot, like he was boiling with fever, but the researcher explained it was because his ability was fire-based.
During Guiding, Hwayeon liked to interlock their fingers tightly. When their hands touched without any gap between them, Jeongyun felt like he was getting hot too, following Hwayeon’s body temperature.
What had once felt strange was now becoming familiar, which meant many days of providing Guiding to Hwayeon had passed. Jeongyun suddenly felt the passage of time.
“I was really sad when they said you couldn’t come today…”
Hwayeon mumbled, almost talking to himself.
He raised his eyes from their joined hands to look at Jeongyun and smiled brightly. According to the researcher, Hwayeon had been depressed all day after hearing the news. Even though it was past quitting time, Jeongyun was glad he came.
‘He didn’t even put on his shoes properly.’
Hwayeon’s shoes didn’t match – one was a sneaker he wore for training, and the other was a comfortable slipper. He must have rushed out in a hurry. But Hwayeon didn’t seem to notice they were uncomfortable.
“Did your examination go well?”
“Well, it was the same as always. Nothing special.”
“So does that mean there won’t be any more days you can’t come?”
“Maybe?”
Hwayeon became gloomy at Jeongyun’s vague answer.
But Jeongyun couldn’t give a definite answer because you never know what might happen. If things went wrong, he would end up breaking his promise.
‘I think we’re done now.’
When Jeongyun tried to pull his hand away as the Guiding seemed to be finished, Hwayeon gripped it even tighter. Hwayeon let out a deep sigh, bent down, and rested his forehead on Jeongyun’s shoulder.
He had told Hwayeon many times that an Esper shouldn’t touch a Guide without permission, and Hwayeon usually followed this rule well, but sometimes he went astray like this.
Of course, all he did was lean his body against Jeongyun, but allowing one thing could quickly lead to crossing the line. It was an Esper’s instinct to want to touch their Guide.
“Hwayeon, move away.”
If it had been any other time, Hwayeon would have gotten up right away, but he didn’t budge at all. Even when Jeongyun pushed his drooping shoulders, nothing changed. Despite his childish behavior and way of speaking, Hwayeon’s body was already close to an adult’s. He would actually be an adult in a few months.
“Min Hwayeon.”
When Jeongyun called his name firmly, Hwayeon finally raised his body slowly. His eyes were red as if he’d been crying. It showed clearly because his skin was so pale.
Hwayeon finally let go of Jeongyun’s hand that he had been stubbornly holding and lowered his eyes. He looked like an abandoned puppy, making Jeongyun’s determination to correct this bad habit waver.
‘I shouldn’t keep being so soft on him.’
Hwayeon was about to be assigned to the Gray team. He needed to fix this bad habit of touching without permission before joining the team, so he wouldn’t have problems when receiving Guiding from other Guides.
After thinking it over, Jeongyun slowly opened his arms. Once again, he couldn’t be firm with Hwayeon today. Hwayeon looked up, hunched his broad shoulders, and wriggled into Jeongyun’s embrace.
“I want to stay close to Jeongyun hyung. I don’t want to be apart.”
Jeongyun deliberately ignored Hwayeon’s mumbling. He could have said something comforting, but even that might become a deception later, so he was careful.
Being realistic seemed better than giving false hope. Instead of words of comfort, he was patting Hwayeon’s broad back when the pager in his pocket rang. It was probably from Domin, as expected.
“Just a moment, Hwayeon.”
He moved Hwayeon’s arms from around his waist and reached into his pocket. When he took out the pager, sure enough, Domin’s name was on the screen.
If he were alone, he would have just let the noisy alert continue until it stopped, but since he was with Hwayeon, he needed to turn off the sound first.
So Jeongyun pressed the reject button. The noise ringing in his ears stopped.
“…What is that?”
“Want to see?”
Hwayeon nodded slowly.
When Jeongyun handed him the pager, Hwayeon released one arm from around Jeongyun’s waist to take it. He looked at the small device, about the size of his palm, turning it this way and that, then his gaze lingered on the screen for a long time.
“You’ll get one too when you join a team soon.”
Jeongyun thought Hwayeon might want a pager, but when their eyes met again, that didn’t seem to be the case. Jeongyun took back the pager, avoiding Hwayeon’s eyes which seemed to be asking who Choi Domin was.
“Guiding is over.”
Jeongyun pushed away Hwayeon’s arms and smoothed out his wrinkled clothes with his hands. Hwayeon, who had been standing still as if in a daze, only reached out to grab Jeongyun’s collar when he saw him putting on his bag.
“Are you leaving?”
Jeongyun was speechless looking at those teary eyes. But it was already getting late, and he couldn’t stay with Hwayeon forever.
Jeongyun carefully pushed Hwayeon’s hand away and said:
“I need to go home too.”
At the mention of going home, Hwayeon couldn’t hold Jeongyun back anymore. With a final goodbye saying he’d see him tomorrow, Jeongyun left the Center with Hwayeon behind him.
Unlike other times when Hwayeon would follow him all the way to the main entrance, he just let Jeongyun go. To be precise, he couldn’t follow because he was too busy crying with shaking shoulders.
‘No, don’t get soft-hearted.’
Jeongyun forced his gaze forward even though he kept wanting to look back, and hurried his steps.
Even if Hwayeon’s behavior was difficult due to the side effects of manifestation pain, he wasn’t really a small child. So Jeongyun needed to be stricter with him.
To avoid being disrespected when he joined the team, Hwayeon needed to learn how to act his age. Besides, Jeongyun would come tomorrow anyway. Right now, it was important to leave before it got any later.
Beep beep—
As he was just passing through the lobby, the pager rang again. Jeongyun stopped walking and pressed the reject button without hesitation this time. Missed calls had piled up to twenty just today.
‘He must be really angry.’
At this point, Domin might come looking for him once – or was that asking for too much? After putting the pager back in his pocket, Jeongyun turned his attention to the screen attached to the lobby wall.
[Government-affiliated Espers are guardians who protect you, our citizens.]
Jeongyun followed Domin’s lips moving on the screen, reciting the line he had heard countless times. The emotions he had been trying to suppress surged strongly at the sight of Domin on the screen.
The lobby was quiet during this after-work hour. People passed by occasionally, but right now Jeongyun was alone. After standing there for a while, he raised his hand to wipe his eyes.
As he turned away from the advertisement and left the building, the sky grew dark and it began to pour.
It was winter rain.
* * *
Even after Jeongyun left, Hwayeon didn’t move for a long time. Sensing something was wrong, a security guard asked if he should return to his dormitory, but Hwayeon didn’t answer.
He wondered where he had heard the name “Choi Domin” that appeared on the pager, then remembered a conversation Jeongyun had with a researcher.
He couldn’t hear much since he was training at the time, but he clearly remembered how brightly Jeongyun’s face lit up when talking about that person. It was an expression he’d never shown to Hwayeon.
‘Was he called a dedicated Esper?’
According to the Center Director, the reason Jeongyun refused his Contact Guiding was because he was someone else’s Dedicated Guide. Only recently did Hwayeon learn that person was Choi Domin.
Life at the Center was colorless. Wake up at set times, eat meals, train. The gray monotony was only painted with bright colors during those few hours when Jeongyun came.
Those hours were precious to Hwayeon. Since Jeongyun was the only one clearly remaining in his mind, which was otherwise emptied by manifestation pain, it was natural for Hwayeon to respond only to him.
So when he heard that Jeongyun couldn’t come today because of a regular checkup, it felt like his world was falling apart. He had been waiting for Jeongyun since last night.
While sulking in his room, he received a call from security. When he ran out without even putting on his shoes properly and saw Jeongyun really waiting for him, he almost cried. Because he was so happy, so overjoyed. That’s what Jeongyun meant to Hwayeon.
But just now, their precious time together was interrupted because of that call. When he saw the name on the pager, Jeongyun’s expression wasn’t good either.
‘It’s annoying.’
Sparks flew from his fingertips in response to his emotions. Though he had become more familiar with handling fire than before, it was still unstable.
He needed consistent Guiding for his ability to stabilize faster, but since Jeongyun refused Contact Guiding, there was no way.
‘Why can’t he be my Dedicated Guide too?’
Hwayeon lightly shook his hand to extinguish the spark.
If Jeongyun became his Dedicated Guide, wouldn’t they be able to meet more often than now? Once he joined a team soon, they wouldn’t be able to meet at the Center like this anymore. And when he started going out in the field, there would be days they couldn’t meet at all.
‘I should ask that person.’
Hwayeon’s eyes lit up as he thought of someone.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
