“Today, I’m going to settle this once and for all.”
“Why are you so combative all of a sudden?”
As soon as class ended, Lim Haeyul shoved his textbook into his bag and muttered under his breath, prompting an immediate reaction from Kim Geon-ung.
He was sick of it. The moment he caught sight of that laid-back bastard next to him moving at a leisurely pace, that thought naturally crossed his mind. Not only had they grown up in the same neighborhood since they were kids, but they had also been in the same class for six of their middle and high school years—except for once. On top of that, they were even in the same department at university, with synchronized schedules, meaning they ran into each other far too often.
“None of your business.”
Haeyul slung his bag over his shoulder, radiating annoyance. By now, Cha Jae-woo was probably not home, but he still felt he needed to go back, meditate, and calm himself down. After that, he could finally face him and say what needed to be said, clearly and firmly.
Over the past few days, Haeyul had been trembling too much. He had thought that once he acknowledged his feelings—admitted that he liked Cha Jae-woo—and laid it bare that all of this stemmed from the side effects of Guiding, he would be able to face him more confidently.
But reality was different. Instead, he had been dragged around by Cha Jae-woo’s whims, completely helpless.
Not today. If he kept going like this, he might really never be able to break free.
“Don’t tell me… you’re planning that, are you?”
“Ugh, what? Why are you muttering to yourself? Tell me too!”
Kim Geon-ung immediately reacted to Haeyul’s murmuring. The guy really had nothing better to do. But Haeyul knew the difference between things that could be said and things that couldn’t.
How could he possibly tell him that ever since that day, he had been clinging to Cha Jae-woo’s chest, getting guided while being hugged tight? How was he supposed to explain that, although the Guiding had improved significantly, the side effects had only intensified to the point that Cha Jae-woo occupied every corner of his mind all day long? How could he say that to Kim Geon-ung?
“Mind your own business. Stop being clingy.”
“Who’s being clingy, huh? You’re the one making it sound suspicious! What is it? Tto-yul, what did you do this time?”
“I told you not to call me that nickname!”
“Ow! You’re ruining my hair!”
Already seething with anger, Haeyul finally snapped and grabbed Kim Geon-ung’s hair. It was so stiff from all the styling he had done that morning that it seemed like it might crumble to pieces.
“Ugh.”
Haeyul recoiled in disgust, immediately pulling his hand away. Whatever wax or product Kim Geon-ung had used left a greasy, unpleasant feeling between his fingers.
“Ugh, it took me thirty minutes to style this! Why are you taking your anger out on my hair?”
“I wasn’t taking it out on you! I told you not to call me Tto-yul!”
“Yeah, well, you’ve been in a shitty mood lately, haven’t you? You totally took it out on me just now!”
Kim Geon-ung started whining again. Haeyul opened his mouth to argue but gave up halfway. Technically, Kim Geon-ung wasn’t wrong. Lately, Haeyul’s mood had been in the dumps.
“Haah… yeah, you’re right.”
“…Hey. If you admit it that easily, what am I supposed to say?”
Ignoring Kim Geon-ung’s flustered voice, Haeyul pulled out his phone. News was already up on the portal sites—another small-scale Gate had opened in the southern Gyeonggi Province, and Cha Jae-woo had been dispatched there.
“I just don’t get it.”
He really didn’t. Not even the tiniest bit. Why? Why was Cha Jae-woo so hellbent on running into every Gate that opened?
Espers were, of course, supposed to deal with Gates. But that only applied to Espers who had a good matching rate and received proper Guiding from a compatible Guide—those whose stability had been secured.
But Cha Jae-woo wasn’t like that.
He was still dangerously unstable. Their… rather shameful method of Guiding had produced meaningful results. Holding hands was nothing compared to what they were doing now; their Guiding had improved significantly.
“So why the hell is he charging into every damn Gate? What’s the point of me Guiding him for days on end if he’s just—mmph!”
“Whoa, Tto-yul. Are you trying to brag to the whole world that you’re his Guide now?”
Fueled by anger, Lim Haeyul’s voice rose without him even realizing it. If Kim Geon-ung hadn’t clamped a hand over his mouth, he would’ve ended up screaming that he was a Guide for all the world to hear—but that didn’t mean he was thankful. Especially because Kim Geon-ung didn’t just cover his mouth; he even went so far as to block his nostrils.
“Man, you two are always so full of energy. Always fighting, huh?”
“We’re not fighting. Just messing around.”
“Yeah, but it looks like Haeyul’s about to suffocate?”
“Don’t worry about it. Haha.”
A senior from the year above them, passing by, playfully chimed in. It was nice that he noticed Haeyul was genuinely about to pass out, but instead of helping, he simply laughed and joked around with Kim Geon-ung. Clearly, Haeyul was just a convenient conversation topic for them.
“Paah!”
But this wasn’t anything new. Haeyul freed himself from Kim Geon-ung’s grip with practiced ease. He gasped heavily for air, breathing raggedly. Was that bastard really trying to kill him? Remembering how Geon-ung had once joked about putting a price on his head, Haeyul thought the possibility wasn’t all that far-fetched.
“You were trying to kill me, weren’t you?”
“As if.”
The blatant lie only made him even more pissed off. Haeyul shot to his feet and smacked the back of Kim Geon-ung’s head with a thud. The idiot staggered forward, clearly caught off guard.
“Shit, that fucking hurt!”
“Don’t be such a baby. Didn’t you once brag that my weak little hands couldn’t even make you itch?”
“When did I ever say that?”
“First semester of our second year in high school.”
“…You remember that? You creepy bastard.”
Haeyul just shrugged and grabbed his bag, standing up. It was still midday, but he planned to head home and crash. The more he rested—made his body comfortable—the faster his mana would replenish. Better to rest whenever he could.
“Do whatever you want. Guess it doesn’t really matter if you wander around like that.”
Kim Geon-ung got up as well, speaking lazily. Haeyul wanted to agree with a “Yeah, guess so,” but he couldn’t bring himself to nod. Every day, he had no choice but to personally check on Cha Jae-woo’s condition.
What was the point if his Guiding got better? Cha Jae-woo would just come back each time, somehow reverting to the same unstable mess. At this point, Haeyul even wondered if maybe he was purposely using his abilities just to destabilize himself again. To deliberately throw his wave patterns into chaos.
“Haah…”
He could only respond with a faint nod.
No way, right? Before Haeyul had started visiting Cha Jae-woo’s place, he’d heard that the man couldn’t even sleep properly. Thinking back to when they first met, Cha Jae-woo had looked absolutely exhausted, on edge and worn down. Surely, he wouldn’t want to go back to that state.
It had to be something simpler. Just…
‘He probably has that classic “must defeat the Gate and save people” hero complex… right?’
It was a feeling common among Espers, or so people said. Nothing unusual. And yet, for some reason, it didn’t feel like it fit Cha Jae-woo at all.
It felt wrong to accuse someone who ran into Gates so frantically, but Haeyul really didn’t think Cha Jae-woo was motivated by any noble sense of duty to save others. A hero complex? Even less likely.
But if not that, then there was no other way to explain why he rushed into Gates every single day. Haeyul shook his head to dispel the pointless speculation.
Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter. Today, he would settle this once and for all. He would tell Cha Jae-woo: stop going into Gates that aren’t absolutely necessary. There were plenty of other Espers ready to step up. He didn’t need to put himself through this every time.
Today, he would tell him.
***
It had been over ten minutes since Haeyul started loitering in front of Cha Jae-woo’s room. There was no need to hesitate anymore—Cha Jae-woo must’ve already sensed his presence—but still, he found it hard to bring himself to open the door.
“Huu…”
He inhaled deeply and exhaled several times. His palms were so clammy that he felt like he’d slip right off the doorknob.
His hand, trembling violently, finally touched the knob. As expected, his fingers slipped, but the door creaked open with surprising ease.
“Why.”
Before Haeyul even caught a full glimpse of Cha Jae-woo through the gap, a low, rough voice hit him. It was so charged, so raw, that just hearing it made his heart pound. Not that it was anything new; lately, his heart almost never beat calmly.
Without replying, Haeyul stepped inside. Opening the door had been so difficult, but once he did, all hesitation vanished.
“…It seems like you might need some Guiding?”
After all, his purpose for visiting had shifted.
Originally, he came to tell Cha Jae-woo to stop running into Gates so recklessly. Not to forbid him from ever going—but just, you know, to moderate himself. Rest at home unless it was absolutely necessary. Stabilize his wave patterns fully first.
With the pitiful amount of mana Haeyul had, it took a long, painstaking process to stabilize Cha Jae-woo even once. If he kept running into Gates and wrecking his wave patterns daily, there would be no chance of fully stabilizing him.
In other words, even if Cha Jae-woo couldn’t hold back from using his powers, returning in such a wrecked state—his unstable wave patterns so dark and turbulent that even the pristine white bed sheets looked blackened—was doing no good at all.
“Why are you like this today again…?”
Wasn’t it supposed to have been just a small-scale Gate? So why were his wave patterns this catastrophically ruined?
“……”
Haeyul clamped his mouth shut. He didn’t even feel like asking anymore. It felt like all his willpower had suddenly drained away. It wasn’t just pouring water into a bottomless pit—what was the point of him beating his head over this when Cha Jae-woo himself didn’t even seem to have the will to fix it?
“I’ll do it.”
Today, Cha Jae-woo hadn’t even come looking for him. Haeyul had to come all the way here himself. Was it supposed to be fine if he didn’t show up?
‘If you’re going to be like this, why the hell did you make a contract with me in the first place? You could’ve just kept living like you were.’
Frustrated thoughts tangled inside him. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t understand this man.
“And then what?”
Cha Jae-woo asked indifferently, as if he neither knew nor cared what Haeyul was thinking. Despite having clung to him for days as if they were lovers while guiding, now he simply dragged a chair over and sat at a distance, apparently finding Haeyul’s change of approach curious.
‘What’s so pretty about that, huh.’
Haeyul jutted out his lower lip and retorted immediately.
“What’s the point of working so hard? It’s the same either way.”
He didn’t even realize how blunt his tone sounded. Honestly, he was upset. If he at least knew why Cha Jae-woo kept pushing himself like this, he might feel a little better—but it didn’t seem like Cha Jae-woo had any intention of explaining, and that made it all the more frustrating.
“Just accept it like this.”
“Ha.”
Cha Jae-woo let out a hollow breath, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Haeyul flinched at the sound, but stubbornly kept his mouth shut. Normally, he would have apologized immediately, but not today.
“I’m starting the Guiding.”
“I’m really in bad shape, you know.”
But faced with those words, Haeyul didn’t know how to respond. He froze, his outstretched hand hovering awkwardly in the air. Cha Jae-woo simply watched him, motionless.
“……”
Meeting that gaze—ridiculously, Haeyul felt tears well up in his eyes. He wasn’t the kind of person who cried easily, but lately, it was like his tear ducts had developed a mind of their own.
“Fine, hurt then.”
Despite trying to hold it back, a fat tear slipped down and splashed onto the floor. Without thinking, Haeyul glared up at Cha Jae-woo, unafraid. Cha Jae-woo, his face faintly twisting into a grimace, stared right back at him.
