Chapter 42
Seoyul was greatly embarrassed.
It was needless to say about that day, but even afterward, his face would often turn red.
‘Aah. Really…’
He couldn’t lift his head due to shame at his own ignorance.
Among everything, what embarrassed him the most was that his feelings had been exposed. To think that between an Esper and Guide with built trust, emotions could be faintly read.
‘Then all this time…’
Whoosh.
Seoyul’s face turned red once again. Of course, he had expressed his gratitude in words too, but he couldn’t help feeling embarrassed.
On top of that, he only learned for the first time now that such things came as a strong stimulus to Espers.
‘Haah…’
He didn’t know how to face Dowoon from now on. Could he Guide normally? Could he even speak properly?
‘I need to get used to Guiding quickly.’
This was all happening due to his lack of experience. It also meant that with enough experience accumulated, he would be able to control it.
It was an issue that could be resolved by practicing a lot and filling in with experience. But the biggest problem here was the practice partner.
‘I want to practice without causing trouble for Esper-nim, but I can’t ask Esper-nim…’
Seoyul sighed deeply again and felt discouraged.
Ding.
Just then, a message notification sound came from his phone. Looking at the content, it was a notice sent only to successful applicants.
It contained the internship start date, along with the orientation schedule for the first day and necessary documents.
“Huh?”
While carefully reading through the content, he tilted his head upon discovering a puzzling phrase.
“Guiding… consent form…?”
He thought it would naturally be a necessary document since he was a Guide, but it was strange that it wasn’t a basic document but an optional one.
‘As a Guide, can one choose not to Guide?’
Seoyul tilted his head and decided to call Sunjeong first. Since she had told him to contact her anytime if there was something he didn’t know, she would probably be able to provide an answer.
Seoyul immediately made the call.
* * *
‘Ah, he was really cute.’
Recalling Seoyul with his face turned bright red in embarrassment, Dowoon couldn’t control his facial muscles that were trying to relax completely.
It was because Seoyul had been fatally cute that day.
‘Is it that embarrassing?’
It seemed that Seoyul thought his thoughts and feelings had been exposed, and because of that, he was troubling Dowoon.
How very like Seoyul. Unlike himself who only had impure thoughts, Seoyul was truly ‘purity’ itself.
‘Haah. But it’s a shame that he’s avoiding me.’
Now that he knew the reason, it seemed difficult to Guide like before.
Dowoon too had mixed feelings, as it would be troublesome if Seoyul poured out Guiding with his face turned red.
He felt both relieved and regretful at the same time.
‘But he’ll need to practice until he gets used to it, so I’ll get to see him a bit more, right?’
He grinned as he imagined Seoyul being embarrassed and restless. His thinking was that since smart Seoyul would quickly master the skill, he should enjoy the sight while he could.
‘Good!’
Dowoon firmly strengthened his resolve. But perhaps because of his wicked thoughts, a bolt from the blue occurred for Dowoon.
“What… is this?”
He trembled as he looked at the document in front of him. The content written inside leaked out as his brain refused to properly process the input.
But Sunjeong seemed to have anticipated this situation sufficiently, as she gave a half-hearted answer with an annoyed expression.
“Can’t you see? It’s a Pair Guide Guiding consent form.”
“No… that’s not what I’m asking…”
Pair Guide Guiding consent form.
Since he was someone who could read Korean, he wasn’t asking about the content of the document. It was about why this document was in front of him and why it was asking for his signature.
“Tsk, tsk. That’s a face I’ve never seen you make before.”
Sunjeong clicked her tongue and shook her head. Then, as if doing him a great favor, she enlightened him about reality.
“Interns obviously have to be called around to learn the job. That’s no exception even for Guides with pairs.”
“…What?!”
This was truly the first time Dowoon had heard such a thing.
No, he knew that interns would move between teams to learn the job and choose which team to work with. But he thought it was irrelevant to Guides who already had pairs.
This was because even after the internship ended, they wouldn’t join a team but would Guide their pair Espers.
So these words sounded incredibly absurd to him.
“No, why?!”
Dowoon shouted loudly in protest. But Sunjeong just scolded him while picking her ear as if annoyed.
“Ah, why? Why else? That’s just the center’s regulation. Even with a pair, shouldn’t you know how the center operates?”
“…”
For a moment, he was at a loss for words. Because her words were absolutely right. The quickest way to learn how the center operates and what work is done was indeed to physically experience it.
That was no exception even for Guides with pairs, and they too needed to know the situation to more efficiently support their pair Espers.
Moreover, Seoyul was a capable talent. He was someone who could skillfully do his part in any team, not just Guiding Dowoon.
So everyone would desire…
“No!! Absolutely not!! I object!!”
Seoyul Guiding other Espers? That was nonsense. Dowoon couldn’t easily accept this fact.
“What about Seoyul? Does he agree to it?”
Yes. Seoyul’s will was the most important, wasn’t it? Dowoon anxiously waited for the answer with a small hope.
“Seoyul? He likes it.”
“Likes… it…?”
Dowoon felt like he had been hit hard on the back of his head. Why did he like it?
Wasn’t he the Guide who just a few days ago was sending affectionate Guiding towards him!
And now he liked Guiding other Guides?
“He said he thinks his skills will improve quickly, so he likes it. He was a bit worried whether you would permit it, but I boldly assured him that you would.”
Sunjeong patted his shoulder with a teasing smile.
“…”
Her face looked very annoying, but he couldn’t say anything. He could only glare at her fiercely. But she added one more thing that turned Dowoon’s insides upside down.
“What on earth did you do to make that good kid want to practice with someone else?”
“…”
“You should have been moderate. Moderate. This is what happens when your greed is excessive, you stupid Esper.”
S-stupid…?
Dowoon trembled without being able to deny it. Because as she said, things might have gone differently if he had been less greedy.
At least, Seoyul wouldn’t have been avoiding him and actively seeking to Guide other Espers.
If that hadn’t happened, he could have coaxed him gently and achieved a different result…
“Aaargh!!”
Dowoon screamed and tore at his hair. Images of Seoyul Guiding other Guides began to flicker in his mind. Just imagining it made his mood plummet, and rage boiled up inside him. His head grew hot with an intense jealousy toward that Esper who didn’t even exist yet.
Dowoon anxiously bit his lips and his hands and feet trembled.
“Damn it. I can’t just sit still like this.”
Right. He had to do something. Like this… like this…
“And what will you do if you don’t sit still? Stop the chatter and just sign it. You know as well as I do that the signature is just a formality, right? Even if you don’t sign, it’s a necessary process to work here?”
“…”
Dowoon emitted a menacing aura towards Sunjeong without saying anything. But this too didn’t work on Sunjeong, so she just waved her hand as if annoyed.
“Think about what to do later and sign it quickly. I’m the one doing this because I knew you would make a fuss like this.”
Sunjeong kindly placed a pen in Dowoon’s hand and forced him to sign.
But he had to admit that her choice was wise. If Seoyul, not Sunjeong, had brought this, he would have witnessed this outrageous behavior.
That was absolutely impossible and should never happen.
“You should be grateful to me, you know?”
“Damn it. Shut up.”
Dowoon ground his teeth and completed the signature with his trembling hand until the end.
Having to share Seoyul’s Guiding during the internship period, a time that was both short and long…
Everything went dark before his eyes.
‘Somehow… somehow I have to fix this.’
There must be a way. He just didn’t know it yet.
Dowoon burned with determination to find a solution by any means necessary.
* * *
Seoyul breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that all documents had been submitted without any problems.
Since Sunjeong had said she would get permission on his behalf, he had worried it might be difficult, but it didn’t seem to be the case.
While thinking he had worried unnecessarily, he also wondered if Dowoon had given permission because the Guiding was very uncomfortable for him, which made him think a lot.
‘Haah…’
Seoyul let out a small sigh.
In fact, this was all just an excuse. What he was most worried about was whether it would really be okay to Guide Espers other than Dowoon.
He was just looking for excuses, but in reality, it was just that he disliked it. That is, Guiding someone other than Dowoon.
‘Even though he said I don’t need to worry…’
Dowoon had ended his life in a rampage. It felt like he needed to Guide him even a little more to move away from that future.
Of course, during the internship period, he would be working as a C-class so there shouldn’t be any major problems, but honestly, he wanted to Guide him as well as possible.
‘No. I’m just being a burden right now anyway.’
How uncomfortable must he have been all this time?
Seoyul nodded his head as he regained his composure. He would definitely practice during this opportunity and give plenty of comfortable Guiding, he thought.
Looking at it that way, this was a good opportunity. By Guiding many people and learning from skilled Guides, his skills would improve quickly.
‘Good! Let’s work hard!’
Then he would be able to stand proudly beside Dowoon as his official pair Guide, right?
Seoyul moved his steps with an excited heart.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
