Fortunately, today the Guide distribution was done quickly, so there was no particular reason to run into Director Ha. Although there was a moment when their eyes met, Ilkyung quickly avoided it. And around the time work was wrapping up, Director Ha was nowhere around. Ilkyung thought it was fortunate and followed the group, trailing along into the meat restaurant. Up to that point, it was good.
“Director! Over here, over here!”
The hand of Ilkyung, who was holding tongs and putting meat on the grill, stopped abruptly.
“Ah, hot!”
Because he was spacing out, he didn’t realize he was being exposed so directly to the fire on the grill. Ilkyung quickly pulled his hand back and looked at his arm.
“Assistant Manager Woo, are you okay?”
“Where were you spacing out?”
“Didn’t all your fine hair burn off?”
“Sob, Team Leader.”
Ilkyung rubbed his arm and whimpered. Just then, Director Ha Daehoon walked over deliberately and stood beside Ilkyung. Ilkyung tried to pretend not to notice, but he couldn’t. As he fidgeted, not knowing where to put his eyes, his wrist was suddenly grabbed.
“Tsk, where is your mind? It’s gotten all red.”
“Huh? I’m fine though. Could you let go of my wrist…”
Ilkyung tried to pull his wrist free, but as expected, it was useless against Director Ha’s strength.
“Go cool it down with cold water. I’ll grill the meat.”
“What?”
“You heard me but you’re pretending you didn’t again. Hurry up and go.”
Daehoon stood up Ilkyung, who was sitting and resisting, and pushed his small back. Then he plopped himself down in Ilkyung’s seat. Ilkyung was forced to stand and didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t push Director Ha aside and sit back down himself… The Team Leader, reading the situation, quickly urged him to go to the bathroom, so Ilkyung had no choice but to trudge off.
“Where am I supposed to sit? Ah, it stings.”
Ilkyung muttered as he held his right wrist under the running water. Just then—
“What are you grumbling about with so many complaints? Let me see your wrist.”
“Huh! When did you get here?”
Just when he’d looked at the mirror a moment ago, there was no one behind him, so did he teleport or something? Ilkyung looked around wildly in surprise.
“I don’t know how to do things like teleporting. As you know, I’m not an Esper but a Guide, so how could I have that ability? Your wrist is getting cold. Stop that and let me see it.”
He saw right through what Ilkyung was thinking—his intuition was really quick. In any case, what am I, a dog? Does he think I’m the type to just hand over my hand when asked? As Ilkyung thought this and stood there sulking, the sound of water disappeared and silence arrived.
“Woo Ilkyung-ssi really doesn’t listen. You seem like you would have gotten scolded a lot growing up, but no? Did you grow up like a greenhouse flower because you’re the youngest?”
“Who says I’m a greenhouse flower? I didn’t grow up like that. If anything, Director, you’re the one from a chaebol family, so didn’t you grow up more like that?”
Ilkyung looked up at Daehoon, who was much taller than him, and retorted. The way he lifted his chin and chattered seemed to Daehoon like a Maltese he’d seen on his morning walk.
“Fine. Let’s say that’s the case. Stop holing up in the bathroom and come out to eat. At this rate, people will think I stole your seat and you came crying to the bathroom.”
“That’s, that’s not it, if you would just go and let go of my hand…”
“Stop talking and let’s go eat meat. You’re so scrawny. What is this wrist?”
Daehoon grabbed the other wrist and said. The grabbed wrist wasn’t even hurt, but it grew hot along with the other one for no reason. Ilkyung wanted to argue back more, but had to be dragged back into the restaurant, pulled along by Director Ha’s hand.
Wait a minute! Everything was fine up to here! Why is Director Ha sitting next to me? Ilkyung looked at Daehoon with a bewildered expression. But Daehoon lightly ignored such gazes and picked up meat grilled golden-brown on the grill and put it on Ilkyung’s plate.
“Uh, uh. I can do it myself.”
“I know. That you can do it.”
Then just leave me alone, he wanted to answer, but couldn’t deliver that question. Because Director Ha spouted nonsense again.
“Should I wrap you a ssam or something?”
“No! I can eat by myself.”
“Alright then.”
The people at the same table who heard their conversation laughed heartily. This clearly had the full intention of making him uncomfortable. Ilkyung couldn’t even object because there were people around and just focused on eating meat. After eating for a while, Ilkyung was thirsty and looked for beer.
“What are you looking for?”
“There was a beer glass here…”
“I cleared it away. Assistant Manager Woo, you drink soda. I’ll order you a carbonated drink.”
“What? Why? I’m going to drink beer though?”
Ilkyung looked at Daehoon, who was controlling him, with disbelieving eyes.
“You’re injured, so what are you doing drinking alcohol?”
Ilkyung looked down at his right wrist with an expression of absurdity. It was red and stung a little, but a wound like this would be fine soon. Ilkyung showed his wrist to Director Ha as if it was nothing. Daehoon looked at what Ilkyung was doing with eyes asking what he was doing now.
“Look.”
“What do you want me to do about it? Should I guide you? Even if I did, it wouldn’t work since Assistant Manager Woo isn’t an Esper.”
Ilkyung frowned. Every time he opened his mouth, ‘Because Assistant Manager Woo isn’t an Esper,’ ‘Assistant Manager Woo doesn’t know because you’re not an ability user.’ It was so tiresome he could die.
“I’m saying it’s nothing.”
“Your wrist is red but you’re saying it’s nothing? Don’t tell me you’re colorblind? Or do you not have pain sensation?”
“No, look closely. It really is nothing.”
“Just listen. I’ll buy you alcohol next time, so drink soda today.”
At that moment, an Esper sitting next to them suddenly interjected.
“Director, buy me alcohol too.”
Just then, as Ilkyung found an empty glass and sneakily tried to reach out, Director Ha grabbed that hand to stop him and smiled. Ah, how many Espers must have fallen for that smile? Turns out Ha Daehoon wasn’t impotent but a playboy? Ilkyung thought such things as he removed the hand holding his wrist.
“I’d like to buy you some too, but you Espers never know when you’ll be dispatched. Excuse me, boss. One cola here please.”
What that meant was, you’re an Esper who might have to go out to a scene whenever an accident happens, so are you just going to sit here drinking? It was no different from an elegant refusal. Ha Daehoon quickly turned the conversation elsewhere so the Esper couldn’t say anything more in response.
“No, I want beer…”
To Ilkyung looking for beer, Daehoon responded by raising and lowering one eyebrow, then opened a canned cola on the table and poured it into a new glass with a glug glug.
“Even if it’s a bit disappointing, let’s have Assistant Manager Woo drink this.”
Ilkyung lifted the glass while stroking his wrist with a face full of dissatisfaction.
When he woke up in the morning, his wrist, which he thought would be fine after sleeping, was swollen and even redder. It seemed to have gotten worse, probably because he’d touched it while sleeping.
Ilkyung scratched his bird’s nest hair and came out to look for medicine, but his family members had already all left, so there was no one to ask. Ilkyung, who usually received care rather than doing anything himself, didn’t even know where the first aid supplies were.
When he finally opened the first aid kit he found, Ilkyung was truly devastated.
“Ah, what? Why is there nothing in the first aid kit?”
Ilkyung was dumbfounded and could only let out a hollow laugh. Since more than half the household members were Espers, except for Ilkyung, no one paid attention to the first aid kit.
“How can a non-Esper live with such sorrow?”
Espers had far superior physical abilities and recovery abilities compared to ordinary people. Moreover, when they received guiding, not only did their body’s condition recover, but simple wounds healed quickly.
When he was young, Ilkyung would feel a strange sense of alienation because of these trivial differences. No matter how much his family paid attention, these were things that only the person involved could feel.
The difficulties of being an Esper that naturally came up at the dinner table, the emotions and physical sensations felt when receiving guiding, etc… These were everyday stories for his family members, but things Ilkyung could never know. When his family talked about such things while he was present, Ilkyung knew they didn’t mean to, but he naturally felt alienated. But it wasn’t like he could tell them not to talk about abilities in front of him.
