Kim Yeonwoo and Lee Minho, the cause of Jaeyoon’s recent lie, were standing side by side in front of him. As he stared blankly at the two of them, his expression gradually crumpled.
‘If you two are together, you’ll find out I lied!’
“Ah, I forgot to mention one more thing…”
And just then, as if on cue, the student council room door opened and Han Doyoon came out.
In an instant, Jaeyoon pushed Minho aside and grabbed the door handle of the student council room to prevent Han Doyoon from coming out.
“…What are you doing?”
“Um, well… C-coffee!”
“Coffee…?”
Jaeyoon urgently pushed Han Doyoon back into the student council room, entered himself, and closed the door.
“Coffee! I wanted to ask what brand of coffee maker it is!”
When Han Doyoon stared at him intently, Jaeyoon added in a flustered manner:
“It was so delicious! The most delicious coffee I’ve ever had in my life! Can’t I ask about that?! I’m already embarrassed asking, so can’t you just tell me?”
Jaeyoon shouted without even knowing what he was saying. Thinking that he looked like a hissing cat, Han Doyoon smiled slightly and then brought over the coffee container and handed it to him.
“I’m honored you liked it so much. Here, take it.”
“No… I wasn’t asking you to give it to me…?”
“After hearing it’s the most delicious coffee you’ve ever had in your life, how could I not give it to you?”
“Ugh…!”
‘I don’t know if it’s the most delicious coffee I’ve ever had in my life, but I do know this is the most embarrassing I’ve ever been in my life.’
With his ears turning completely red, Jaeyoon accepted the coffee container and quickly left the room.
Fortunately, neither Kim Yeonwoo nor Lee Minho was outside when he came out.
He leaned his back against the wall, let out a big sigh, and laughed emptily.
“What am I even doing now…”
‘Why do I have to get caught up in someone else’s romance?! Why am I the shrimp getting crushed in a whale fight?!’
“I want to go home…”
***
“So sleepy…”
Having not slept a wink until all the school classes ended, Jaeyoon dragged his heavy body like a stone into his dormitory room.
“Haah…”
After throwing his uniform jacket onto the chair, he loosened the necktie that had been tightly fastened up to his neck. He felt like he could finally breathe.
Jaeyoon took a deep breath and then dove straight onto the bed. The soft mattress received his body, gently bouncing up and down.
‘Today, I might be able to sleep soundly no matter what noise comes from next door…’
The last time he had reached such a limit was during his university graduation project. He had resolved never to do something like that again after experiencing it once…
He never dreamed he would end up like this in a game world he suddenly possessed.
“Still, just to be safe…”
Jaeyoon took out his AirPods from the pocket of his uniform jacket hanging on the chair next to the bed and firmly inserted them into his ears. He then turned up the volume on his phone as much as possible and closed his eyes.
Today had been a really tiring day. From morning until lunchtime. The game characters he had been avoiding well had appeared in succession, leaving him mentally and physically exhausted.
All he had eaten since morning was banana milk, coffee, and cookies, but fortunately, he wasn’t hungry. Even if his stomach was completely empty, he would choose deep sleep first…
Jaeyoon gradually sank into the swamp of sleep while listening to the music coming from his AirPods.
***
[Ring ring]
[Riiiing riiiiing]
Jaeyoon barely lifted his heavy eyelids at the loud ringing sound in his ears. When he checked his phone with blurry vision, he saw clear letters appearing on the rectangular screen.
‘Why is he…?’
Jaeyoon’s expression crumpled instantly. He rolled his eyes to check what time it was.
2:30 AM.
‘He’s calling at this hour?’
Barely suppressing the anger rising from within, he glared at the phone screen. Should he answer or not? After contemplating for a moment, Jaeyoon pressed the green button on the screen.
He removed his AirPods and put the phone to his ear, and a voice with a gentle tone came through.
[Are you sleeping…?]
Grit.
His teeth ground together involuntarily. Calling at this hour and asking if I’m sleeping? What else would I be doing? If you thought I was sleeping, shouldn’t you not call? Is he saying ex-boyfriend-like lines while calling me in the middle of the night?
Jaeyoon suppressed his rising anger once more and struggled to open his mouth.
“What’s going on at this hour?”
[Hearing your voice, I can tell you were sleeping.]
Jaeyoon closed his eyes. And quickly imagined cute animals in succession in his mind. If he didn’t do this, he felt like he would go to Lee Minho’s room right now and grab him by the collar.
‘I’m an adult. I’m an adult… He’s still a high school student whose head isn’t even dry yet, and I’m an adult…!’
“So, what’s the matter? I’d like to go back to sleep before I’m fully awake.”
After rolling his eyes slightly to check the room next door and then refocusing on the call, he heard the sound of someone taking a breath on the other end of the phone.
As if nervous, the sound of deep breathing several times made Jaeyoon’s eyebrows furrow. He checked the caller on the screen once more.
[Lee Minho]
Lee Minho, who was Lee Jaeyoon’s brother in this BL game and one of Kim Yeonwoo’s romance options, was what his friend would describe as a “gentle type” character.
He wasn’t a two-faced person like Kim Doha, who was only kind to Kim Yeonwoo and terrible to others; he was genuinely kind to everyone else and was a model student loved by teachers.
‘…Does a kind person abandon his brother because of love…?’
I don’t understand people’s standards.
Jaeyoon brushed back his bangs and let out a small sigh when no voice came through even after a long time. It seemed like he had something important to say to call at this late hour, but Lee Minho kept hesitating and couldn’t speak up, as if he wasn’t ready yet.
‘Once I’m fully awake, I won’t be able to sleep again…’
“If you have nothing to say, then later…”
[I’m in front of your room right now.]
“What…?”
Jaeyoon unconsciously looked at his dormitory door. He’s on the other side? As his expression was naturally furrowing, Lee Minho’s voice came—not from the phone, but from beyond the door.
“Can we talk for a moment?”
Huh…?
Jaeyoon was so dumbfounded that he couldn’t speak.
‘Suddenly visiting your estranged brother’s room in the middle of the night? Is that even normally possible…?’
He involuntarily sighed and touched his forehead.
‘I want to sleep. I’m tired. And now I’m hungry too…’
After tapping his fingers on his thigh for a moment while looking at the door, Jaeyoon eventually unbuttoned the top two buttons of his uniform shirt and got up. He slowly approached the door and let out another sigh.
‘This is frustrating.’
After briefly running his hand down his now cooler neck, Jaeyoon unlocked the door and turned the handle. Through the door that opened with a creaking sound, Lee Minho’s neat face appeared.
‘Is this the first time I’m seeing him properly except for briefly passing by during lunch?’
Recalling the illustration his friend had shown him, Jaeyoon gestured with his chin to invite Lee Minho into the room.
Thinking that turning on the main light would chase away his sleep, Jaeyoon turned on the mood light next to the bed and sat on the bed, looking at Lee Minho.
Lee Minho curiously looked around Jaeyoon’s room for a moment. His curious eyes, which had been exploring here and there, met Jaeyoon’s gaze and awkwardly smiled. With an embarrassed smile, Lee Minho sat down on the chair near the bed.
“So?”
“Huh…?”
“Why are you here at this hour?”
At Jaeyoon’s direct approach, Lee Minho seemed momentarily flustered, blinking his dark green eyes before slightly biting his lip.
‘Please, can’t you just say what you want and leave?’
Whether or not he knew about Jaeyoon’s worry about when noisy sounds might come from the next room, Lee Minho, like during the phone call, hesitated for a moment and couldn’t speak.
Five minutes passed as his eyes wandered and he fidgeted with his fingers. Finally, as if he had made up his mind, his firmly closed mouth opened.
“…Because of what happened at lunch time.”
“You came at this hour just to ask about that…!”
In his surge of irritation, Jaeyoon unintentionally let his true feelings slip out, quickly regained his composure, and squeezed his eyes shut.
‘Can’t you ask about that through text or a call, or even by coming in the morning? Is this something you need to come ask about at 2:30 in the morning?’
“Perhaps…”
As Lee Minho opened his mouth again, Jaeyoon raised his hand to stop him. He didn’t know what else would come out of that mouth, but it probably wouldn’t be anything that would help him find his peace of mind.
‘Ah, this is really tough…’
Jaeyoon covered his face with both hands. He felt fatigue and stress rushing in all at once. As Jaeyoon was trying to calm himself by imagining cute animals in his mind, suddenly Lee Minho jumped up from his seat and grabbed both of his wrists.
“What…?”
Startled, Jaeyoon looked at Lee Minho with wide eyes, and Lee Minho examined his face with an anxious expression.
‘What’s wrong with him…?’
While watching Lee Minho’s actions in confusion, Jaeyoon was startled when Lee Minho’s hand touched his forehead, and he backed away.
Lee Minho opened his mouth, still examining Jaeyoon’s face with a worried expression.
“You don’t look good. Are you sick?”
“No…?”
“…You were in the infirmary at lunch too.”
“That was just to get some sleep… Wait, you saw me in the infirmary?”
At Jaeyoon’s question, Lee Minho hesitated for a moment and then nodded.
‘Oh no…!’
Jaeyoon touched his forehead. Is that why he came? I thought he came to ask about me being with Han Doyoon…
Of course it would be urgent enough to visit in the middle of the night. He must have been extremely curious whether his younger brother had seen him kissing the person he liked.
It would be awkward to ask via text, and embarrassing to ask over the phone…
Jaeyoon decided to forgive Lee Minho for coming over uninvited in the middle of the night. If the situation were reversed, Jaeyoon would have been so embarrassed he’d want to crawl into a mouse hole if one existed.
“I didn’t see what you were doing in the infirmary, so don’t worry.”
“Are you not feeling well?”
“No, nothing like that. Just sleep deprivation.”
“Are you physically okay? You jumped out of the infirmary.”
“Oh, I’m fine. I happened to fall on top of the student council president who was passing by below.”
Despite the explanation, Lee Minho’s stern face didn’t improve; if anything, it grew darker.
‘Didn’t you cut ties with your brother?’
Jaeyoon couldn’t figure out how to handle this situation and just rolled his eyes back and forth. Lee Minho, who had been quietly observing Jaeyoon, seemed to hesitate for a moment before carefully taking out a pristine white pill bottle from his cardigan pocket and placing it in Jaeyoon’s hand.
“It’s a supplement. You’ve been looking quite pale lately…”
“Ah, thank you…”
‘Are you sure you’re not on good terms?’
Whether or not he noticed the questions filling Jaeyoon’s mind, Lee Minho took off the cardigan he was wearing and carefully draped it over Jaeyoon’s shoulders.
“It’s still cold at night, so wear this to stay warm. If you don’t feel well, immediately… don’t hold back.”
After hesitantly stroking Jaeyoon’s hair for a moment, Lee Minho smiled gently and got up from his seat.
“Sleep well.”
With those words, Lee Minho closed the dormitory door and disappeared. Jaeyoon stared blankly at the gray door. After a few seconds passed like that, Jaeyoon suddenly came to his senses and tried to understand what this situation was all about, but he couldn’t grasp it at all.
‘They said they were at odds because of Kim Yeonwoo, but for that to be the case…’
Lee Minho’s face was that of an older brother worried about his younger sibling. Moreover, he had seen his physically weak brother in the infirmary and even brought him supplements.
Jaeyoon quietly stared at the pill bottle in his hand for a moment, then got up from the bed. As he did, the cardigan that Lee Minho had draped over his shoulders slipped onto the bed.
‘It’s too cold to go back wearing just a T-shirt…?’
Recalling Lee Minho’s attire, he picked up the sky-blue cardigan that still retained some warmth and put it on.
‘By the way… it’s quiet today?’
At this hour, the next room was usually filled with noisy sounds, but today it was as quiet as if no one was there. Feeling relieved about this, Jaeyoon was about to dive back into bed when he quickly spun his body around and headed to the bathroom.
‘I should wash up before sleeping.’
Feeling that it would somehow remain quiet until morning today, Jaeyoon decided to indulge himself a little.
After washing up and diligently taking the supplements, he felt the softness of the bed and fell into a deep sleep in a quiet space without noise or music for the first time in a while.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
