#80
With a small sigh, Yoon Joo-ho’s blank gaze returned to clarity. He made eye contact with Oh-yul, who was standing dazedly as if he had just arrived, and leaned down to meet his eyes in a friendly manner.
“So you’re the culprit who caused this commotion?”
“……”
“Looks like you’re a cold energy type ability user. Impressive for such a young age.”
Yoon Joo-ho quickly surveyed the room, completely frozen with ice, and the ice statue of a woman who seemed to have been hugging something, then grinned.
“Come with us. We’ll find a place for you.”
He extended his hand, but Oh-yul didn’t take it. Unfazed by the cold rejection, Yoon Joo-ho casually withdrew his hand and took the small child, who seemed to have expelled all expressions along with his ability, back to the training center.
***
Twenty-one years since then.
It had been an incredibly long time. Of course, during that time, Oh-yul had grown sufficiently and removed all hindrances. Though the time wasn’t wasted, he felt regret.
If they had been together since childhood, he could have more clearly engraved Ho-woo’s growth in his memory. Although Ho-woo didn’t remember, they had met and talked a few times. He didn’t even expect Ho-woo to remember. After all, he was the one who made it that way.
Oh-yul checked the time that had passed and opened the balcony window. He had things to do while Ho-woo was away from home.
The lifted blackout curtains swayed heavily in the gusting wind. Oh-yul stepped lightly on gathered water and rose into the sky, kicking off from water he gathered moment by moment to cross the sky. The darkness that settled thickly over the city lit with brilliant lights wrapped around him like an excellent blackout curtain. The tails of his black coat flapped violently like crow’s feathers.
Without hesitation, he crossed half the city and landed silently in a residential area on the outskirts of the opposite side of the city. The residential area surrounded by silence was peaceful. The flickering orange streetlights illuminated the leisurely Esper’s feet.
Walking slowly as if savoring the leisure, Oh-yul stopped in front of a shabby gate firmly closed and looked up at the building. Bright light flowed from the windows of the old multi-family house. All sorts of sounds mixed and came through the thin, old walls without soundproofing.
Among them, Yul looked at the house using the top floor alone, opened the gate, and climbed the stairs. The Esper, who had been tracing the crumbling marble stairs with his fingertips while staring into the distance, reached the end and knocked on the firmly closed door with eyes turned icy blue.
Once.
Twice.
Slowly.
Feeling the presence behind the door freeze with tension at the heavy knocking sound, Oh-yul knocked again. As if waiting for the other person to open the door, the beast wearing a mask of cultured politeness smiled as the door opened with a small sound of rusty hinges scraping.
“I’ve come to pick you up as promised.”
His voice was low and sweet, but the wrinkled face of the man holding the door turned pale.
***
Ho-woo closed his eyes tightly, suppressing his churning stomach. His insides were terribly bitter from pouring strong alcohol after a long time. His head was spinning and churning, his stomach was completely upside down, making him feel like he was about to die.
Ho-woo checked the time as he put on his clothes. There was a faint smell of alcohol on his clothes. No, it might be the smell coming from Ho-woo himself.
“Do you have any deodorizer at home?”
To remove the smell as much as possible, Ho-woo asked Do-hyun, who was completely sprawled on the sofa with a tired face.
“Deodorizer? It should be in the shoe cabinet there.”
“Can I use some?”
“You can use the whole can if you want.”
“I don’t need that much.”
Since it was enough to just cover the smell, Ho-woo sprayed the deodorizer on himself a few times and smelled again. The smell wasn’t completely gone, but it wouldn’t be noticeable unless someone put their nose right on his clothes.
This should be fine.
Drinking with a friend wasn’t a bad thing, but he felt unnecessarily worried. Was it because he snuck out?
Ho-woo made final preparations to leave the house, checking the time one last time. Actually, it was a bit tight until the time he promised to meet Oh-yul, but if he hurried, he didn’t think he would be too late.
“I’ll drive you.”
Do-hyun approached lazily and picked up his car keys. Seeing Do-hyun about to follow him out, Ho-woo waved his hands.
“Huh? No. I can take the bus directly, no need to drive me.”
“You kept checking the time, so I thought you were late.”
Sharp guy.
Ho-woo shrugged as Do-hyun, who had been observing his behavior pretending not to, asked, “No?” The time was tight, so getting help would mean he wouldn’t be late. But still, he felt a bit sorry.
As Ho-woo hesitated, Do-hyun didn’t say anything more and crumpled his sneakers as he put them on. Yawning widely and scratching his head, he went out the front door first.
“Hurry up, I’d rather quickly drop you off and get some more sleep than argue.”
“Is there no option to rest now?”
“Nope, there isn’t.”
Answering firmly, Do-hyun went down to the parking lot, put Ho-woo in the passenger seat, and started the car. Judging by his constant yawning, he was clearly tired, but Do-hyun’s stubbornness was not to be underestimated. Having fallen asleep at dawn while drinking, it was impossible not to be tired. Ho-woo also desperately pushed up his heavy eyelids as his eyes started to close if he let his guard down.
“If you’re sleepy, sleep a bit more.”
“I have to wake up soon anyway, so sleeping now will just make my head hurt more.”
“True.”
It was about a 20-minute drive, so even if he fell asleep now, he’d have to wake up soon. Ho-woo drank the bottled water in the car and checked the messages he received on his phone overnight.
Most were advertising notifications sent from apps. Ho-woo opened the message box and opened the chat with Oh-yul. The last conversation had stopped at Oh-yul’s advice not to stay up late.
Seeing how Oh-yul had rushed after him to his appointments with other S-rank Espers, Ho-woo thought he would follow him the same way. So he deliberately left his pager at home, but Oh-yul’s reaction was more indifferent than expected. Rather, even though he knew Ho-woo was going out, he only expressed normal concern and didn’t show any particular signs.
It felt as if Oh-yul wasn’t very pleased with Ho-woo entering deeply into his world.
Should he feel hurt by this, or should he find it strange?
Ho-woo looked at the last message for a long time with a subtle expression, then prepared to get out as the familiar apartment landscape came into view. When the car came to a complete stop, Ho-woo opened the car door and put one foot outside.
“Thanks for the ride.”
“Good luck to you too.”
Do-hyun looked at Ho-woo with pitying eyes, as he had to go exercise, straining his body while dying from a hangover. Only after giving the not-so-helpful advice, “If you feel like you’re going to die, let it out cleanly once,” did he start the car.
Standing there for a moment watching Do-hyun’s car drive away, Ho-woo took a deep breath. Filling his lungs with the cool morning air, his churning stomach settled considerably. His foggy head also cleared up refreshingly, naturally bringing a smile to his face.
Having arrived much earlier than expected, Ho-woo had time to change clothes and hurried to go home. Then, unconsciously looking up at the floor where his home was located, he made a small questioning sound.
“Huh?”
A human figure wearing a black coat with the collar turned up was leaning diagonally against the corridor railing, looking down. The distance was too far to see the face clearly, but there was only one man in this apartment who would wear all black in this summer.
Oh-yul.
Ho-woo rolled the now familiar name in his mouth as he stood below, looking up at him. Oh-yul’s expression wasn’t visible to Ho-woo, but being an Esper, he might be clearly seeing Ho-woo.
With each step closer, the blurred face became clearer in his eyes. Ho-woo, who had come right below the apartment without averting his gaze, only then realized that Oh-yul was smiling.
His eyes mixed with blue sparkled like jewels in the sunlight, and the gentle eye smile and cat-like upturned corners of his mouth were beautiful. It was unfair for someone whose appearance already sparkled even with a blank expression to smile so charmingly.
As Ho-woo approached, he lightly jumped over the railing he had been leaning on and leaped down.
“Gasp!”
Ho-woo reflexively swallowed a breath as his heart sank. The sight of a person falling from an apartment seemed difficult to get used to no matter how many times one saw it. Especially from below.
Oh-yul landed lightly on the ground without a sound, unlike someone who had jumped from a high place. As he tidied his slightly disheveled clothes, Oh-yul took another step towards Ho-woo, who looked quite disturbed.
“Why such an expression?”
“Ah… I was a bit surprised.”
Ho-woo tried to calm his pounding heart. Even knowing that the other was a being beyond human, it seemed impossible not to be startled by such a sight. Or maybe it would take more time to get used to it. Having seen him jump twice now but still not getting used to it, it seemed like it would take quite a while.
Even knowing he wouldn’t get hurt, actually seeing it had a different impact. When they first met, Ho-woo had asked why he used the elevator, and Oh-yul had replied that he used it because it was made to be used, right? Reality was certainly different from imagination, so Ho-woo thought he should tell Oh-yul to use the elevator as much as possible.
