Beyond the tightly shut door, the sound of laughter could be heard. Seo-yul’s laughter pierced his ears, making his chest ache. Vin let his hand, which had reached for the doorknob, fall limply.
He knew he could open the door without any problem, yet he couldn’t bring himself to push inside. It was as if an invisible wall existed between them.
It was unbearably unpleasant. Ever since that brat Han Se-yul arrived, an unbridgeable gap had formed between Seo-yul and himself.
He had been the one by Seo-yul’s side for longer. Han Se-yul was just some guy who would be gone by tomorrow. And yet, he couldn’t shake this feeling.
No matter how much time passed, Han Se-yul would remain by Seo-yul’s side, while he… he was precarious.
“This feels weird.”
He didn’t know how to describe this feeling. His stomach churned, it was uncomfortable, and at the same time, he felt like he was sinking endlessly.
Vin was numb to emotions. No one had ever taught him about them, so it was only natural. No one had ever told him, This is what this emotion feels like. This is the color it holds.
So Vin didn’t even realize that what he was feeling right now was jealousy.
Click. As he hesitated, the door opened, and Han Se-yul stepped out. Their eyes met, and both their pupils wavered. Han Se-yul was the first to recover. He quickly shut the door behind him, blocking Vin’s way to Seo-yul.
“What the hell? Why are you here?”
It was only natural for Vin to come to Seo-yul. And yet, Han Se-yul always spoke like that. As if Vin had no right to be near him, as if he was drawing a line.
“What does that have to do with you?”
His already wounded heart made his voice come out sharp and aggressive. Han Se-yul, raising an eyebrow, took a step closer to Vin.
He was shorter, so he posed no real threat, but that piercing glare, as always, was incredibly irritating. Lowering his voice so Seo-yul wouldn’t hear through the door, Han Se-yul muttered.
“I heard. That you got ‘cleaned up’ and dumped into our district.”
It wasn’t something he had any reason to hide, but hearing it from Han Se-yul’s mouth didn’t sit well with him. Se-yul, under the delusion that this single fact gave him the upper hand, smirked as he continued.
“Our school has quite a few Shining kids. The 1st District Leader has a ridiculous number of children, you know? So I’m aware. That they ‘clean up’ the ones they don’t need on a regular basis.”
“…And your point is?”
“You’re the same. You were useless, so they threw you away.”
Since it was something he already knew, Vin remained indifferent. That reaction seemed to be different from what Han Se-yul had expected—his expression faltered slightly.
“Aren’t you even angry?”
“Not really.”
To the 1st District Leader, I was less than a thorn in his side. A child born from an impulsively taken Omega—so insignificant that he didn’t even bother giving me a name, just left me neglected.
There wasn’t even a need to consider when to get rid of me. One day, when he happened to remember, he simply cleaned me up.
It was all a fact I already knew, so there was nothing to be angry about. Everything Han Se-yul was saying was true.
But to think he stopped me just to say something like this—how utterly childish. He must’ve thought that by poking at me like this, he could get me to snap. Too bad for him.
“So what exactly are you trying to say?”
“I’m saying… you’re pitiful.”
At that, a small crack appeared in Vin’s expression. His ever-unreadable face, always annoyingly blank, finally began to show emotion, and Se-yul was pleased to see it.
Now he’s gonna yell. He’s gonna explode.
Se-yul clenched his fists, waiting for Vin’s reaction. He knew it was petty, but even so, he wanted to rip that mask off Vin’s face—the one he always wore in front of Seo-yul, pretending to be unaffected.
His naive older brother was completely fooled by this cunning Shining. On the surface, Vin played innocent, but deep inside, who knew what he was scheming?
He had to expose that darkness Vin kept buried inside. Only then would his brother come to his senses and send this Shining far away.
“Are you done talking?”
Se-yul had expected him to break down, but instead, Vin returned to his usual indifferent state as if nothing had happened.
This sly bastard. He must’ve realized that if he lost his temper now, Seo-yul would hear everything through the door.
“Move. I need to see Seo-yul.”
Vin pushed Se-yul’s shoulder aside. Se-yul tried to stand his ground, but the unexpected strength behind Vin’s shove made him stumble backward.
Though Vin’s face remained composed, his touch was seething with rage.
He’s pissed. Really pissed.
“So if my brother ever throws you away, you’re completely done for, huh?”
Se-yul dug in deeper. This should be enough to drag that hidden ugliness out.
And just as he predicted, Vin snapped.
“You done talking?”
As if his earlier calm had been nothing but a lie, Vin’s pale face twisted with fury.
Just a little more, and he’ll start swinging.
Se-yul was about to open his mouth again when—
Vin grabbed him by the collar.
“Ghkk—!”
Still clutching Se-yul’s throat, Vin dragged him as far away from Seo-yul’s room as possible. Se-yul, completely overpowered, struggled but couldn’t break free until they reached the far end of the hallway. Only then did he manage to shove Vin’s hand off.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”
He shouted, but they were too far for Seo-yul to hear.
So that’s why he dragged me here.
He’s planning to beat the shit out of me without getting caught.
Se-yul shot Vin a venomous glare. From now on, it was a battle of wills. He had to prepare for whatever attack might come next.
Fists clenched, body on high alert, Se-yul held his ground, only for Vin—who had been watching him closely—to let out a deep sigh.
“Hey.”
Vin’s voice was low, almost ominous, and Se-yul involuntarily flinched.
Vin stepped closer, his teeth clenched so tightly his jaw looked carved with tension.
Se-yul barely managed to stop himself from stepping back.
“You’re no different.”
“…What?”
“You got thrown out too. By the 5th District Leader.”
Se-yul’s face flushed red with humiliation. From the moment Se-yul returned, Vin had heard the murmurs of the attendants. And after seeing the 5th District Leader’s unmistakably cold attitude, he was sure of it.
Han Se-yul wasn’t the biological son of the 5th District Leader. That was why, whenever possible, the 5th District Leader tried to get rid of him.
Unlike Seo-yul, whom they barely let out of his room for fear he might get hurt, Se-yul was only allowed to return to the mansion once a year. The excuse that the 1st District was far away was nothing but a lie.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“You’re not allowed back home, are you? Because the 5th District Leader hates you.”
Vin didn’t give Se-yul the chance to deny it. He drove the nail in without hesitation.
Se-yul, struck right where it hurt most, clamped his mouth shut.
His once-defiant face twisted in pain.
One more word, and he’ll start crying.
Vin swallowed down the rest of the words he had prepared. He didn’t actually want to make him cry. Besides, he had already won this childish argument.
“I’ll tell my brother. I’ll tell him to throw you away as soon as possible.”
And then what?
Vin scoffed, curling his lips into a smirk. Do whatever you want. He waved a hand dismissively, uninterested in wasting more words.
He needed to go back to Seo-yul.
“You really think my brother’s going to keep you forever?!”
Se-yul’s voice rang out behind him.
Vin should have ignored it. But instead, his feet stopped on their own. His fingers clenched into a tight fist, then relaxed. He had to control himself.
No. He couldn’t leave any visible marks. That was exactly what Han Se-yul wanted.
Taking a deep breath, he forced his turbulent emotions back down.
“When he gets tired of you, it’s over. You’ll be ‘cleaned up’ again.”
“That won’t happen.”
Vin rejected the idea without hesitation, without a shred of doubt. He believed in Seo-yul, in the promise he had made.
In truth, Se-yul knew it too. His brother wasn’t the type to keep a Shining by his side on a whim.
And that only made it worse.
Se-yul was the one who had to leave. Yet that damn Shining would get to stay by Seo-yul’s side. He couldn’t stand it.
All that talk about exposing Vin’s true nature—just an excuse.
Han Se-yul was jealous.
Even if he refused to admit it, he was.
“I really hate you.”
“Right back at you.”
Vin didn’t even turn around. He left Se-yul behind and walked away.
He had almost let himself be provoked into doing something he’d regret.
Just one more day.
After tomorrow, he wouldn’t have to see that face ever again.
That thought alone was enough to suppress his anger.
“…Hah.”
He stopped just short of Seo-yul’s door.
He wanted to brush it off as meaningless, but Han Se-yul’s words kept jabbing at his chest.
If Seo-yul ever gets tired of you, it’s over.
That single sentence rattled him.
That’s impossible.
Seo-yul had promised, pinky-finger sworn.
He promised to always keep him by his side, to never abandon him.
Han Se-yul didn’t know that. He was just talking nonsense.
So there’s no reason to be shaken.
Vin placed a hand over his left chest.
It hurt.
He hadn’t been hit, yet Se-yul’s words had sunk deep inside him, making him ache.
He had won.
So why didn’t it feel like it?
“…Annoying.”
Vin desperately wished for Han Se-yul to leave.
And never come back.
