# Chapter 152.
## Unusual Signs
The sun was slowly setting. As the sky darkened, the ground grew brighter.
In the end, Lee Hwan headed back to Taesung’s house. Unless Taesung was a fool, he wouldn’t repeat the same mistake, and even if he tried to confine him again, there were countless ways to escape—breaking windows or smashing walls.
“Would it be awkward to go back to my place? I’m just uneasy leaving you alone here.”
“What’s wrong with my house?”
“This neighborhood had a Gate overflow once.”
It was unusual that a Gate was near a residential area, but that had happened long before Lee Hwan moved in.
He was about to say it was safe now, but decided to go along with Taesung just this once. Lee Hwan simply nodded in agreement.
Otherwise, he felt like Taesung would never leave this cramped single room. It was better to go somewhere more spacious than to be squeezed together in a place with only one room and one bed.
“…Let’s go.”
For a return journey that involved one person restraining someone and the other running away and coming back, the atmosphere wasn’t bad. They exchanged casual conversation about what to eat and rest when they got back, and when would be a good time for Awakened registration.
Taesung just occasionally looked at Lee Hwan, as if wanting to confirm he was still alive and breathing. It was somewhat heartbreaking.
If not for the monster wave, they wouldn’t have had to worry about each other’s lives instead of what to have for dinner.
But the tender moment was brief. As they were getting out of the car, Lee Hwan felt something was off again. While he was lost in thought, not even realizing they had arrived, Taesung silently reached out to unbuckle his seatbelt.
“!”
Lee Hwan instinctively flinched away from the approaching hand. Taesung’s surprised face flashed before his eyes.
“Uh…”
Belatedly returning to his original position, he felt goosebumps rising on the back of his neck. It was an action he couldn’t understand even though he had done it himself.
“…Sorry. Did I startle you?”
It was just anxiety making him act strange all day—he was still Taesung. Obviously, he had no intention of being wary of him.
He had planned to comfort the anxious person and have a meal together as soon as they got to his place. Apparently, he was tired as well.
“Yeah, I guess so. Haha…”
As Lee Hwan laughed hollowly, Taesung slowly raised the corners of his mouth. Somehow, his smile seemed a bit stiff.
He hoped Taesung didn’t think he was avoiding him because of the door lock incident. Lee Hwan sighed deeply inside.
After that, night fell while they spent time together aimlessly. Perhaps thinking Lee Hwan was uncomfortable with him, Taesung kept watching him from outside his field of vision after dinner.
Pretending to look for snacks or check the room, he kept leaving inconspicuously, but Lee Hwan couldn’t miss it.
Because of that, they barely discussed plans or talked about the future. For someone so large, he was remarkably good at hiding his presence.
“Aish, damn…”
Lee Hwan finally found Taesung standing alone in the kitchen and dragged him to the living room. Placing him in front of the sofa, he pushed his stomach to make him sit.
“Sit. Lie down.”
When he playfully commanded, Taesung, who had been pacing around, finally smiled. Lee Hwan patted his legs a few times and then rested his head on them. The firm yet warm sensation was quite pleasant.
“Isn’t it funny? I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. The stone floor was a bit hard.”
With a grin and narrowed eyes, a hand large enough to cover the entire ceiling rested on his forehead. As if he had never avoided it, Lee Hwan closed his eyes contentedly, feeling Taesung gently stroking his hair.
“Did you know you can hear the pulse when lying on someone’s legs like this? Even after being Awakened for quite some time, I still find this fascinating every day.”
“Can you hear it now?”
“Yeah. I can hear it. Let’s see… Patient, you are a Taeyang type.”
“So you know how to read pulses too.”
“Of course not. You seem to have overflowing yang energy, so I just guessed.”
“That’s not how it works,” Lee Hwan objected, chuckling softly. It was nice to see him like this. His lips formed a gentle curve, and his sharp eyes held a warm light. Lee Hwan appreciated the scene for a moment as if looking at a painting.
Yes, this guy suited a relaxed expression. This time, Lee Hwan couldn’t resist and reached out to poke the tip of Taesung’s chin.
He blinked once and slowly erased his smile. Taesung bent his head low enough for his lips to touch Lee Hwan’s hand and gazed down at him intently. Countless emotions swirled in his dark eyes.
Worry, anxiety, joy, a hint of happiness, something like regret or sadness—a turbulent emotion. It was remarkable how each one was readable. Lee Hwan felt his heart skip a beat at Taesung’s still-smiling face.
He could feel Taesung’s breath on his hand. The ticklish sensation further disturbed his heart.
“I wanted this too. For a long time. Many times.”
His voice, filled with lingering attachment, buzzed in his ears.
It was strange. Whenever Taesung smiled like that, Lee Hwan felt somewhat melancholic. Perhaps this was also a side effect of regression. Lee Hwan silently thought so while suppressing his unsettled heart.
* * *
When the TV broadcast announced midnight, Lee Hwan sent the unusually tired-looking Taesung to the bedroom and then slipped into bed himself.
Despite the soft mattress embracing his back and the light-as-down blanket adding warm comfort, he couldn’t easily fall asleep.
If asked whether regression was good, of course it was fucking great. Delicious food, comfortable sleep, a healthy Taesung, and a life without pain.
Honestly, he was happy. If this life tried to run away again, he’d catch it, smack its head three times, and chain it beside him—that’s how satisfying it was.
Nevertheless, looking at the constantly creaking situation and his intuition that kept sounding alarms on its own, it seemed he was quite a greedy person.
‘Should I believe in religion?’
Maybe that was why he couldn’t fully understand all of Taesung’s actions. Would it get better if he adopted a religion and embraced agape in his heart?
‘That would only be possible once future matters are resolved.’
Whether believing in religion or skills, he’d feel like he was waiting for his day of death until those issues were resolved. It was inevitable that he felt rushed.
Since Taesung had decided to handle Kang Dongha, Lee Hwan now just needed to go around the Gates related to monster waves and fight.
But why did he want to meddle in others’ family affairs? Was it because he didn’t trust him?
‘Ah, damn it. I can’t sleep.’
His thoughts kept going in circles, making sleep even more elusive. Maybe it was because the moon was unusually bright tonight.
The moonlight faintly shone through the glass window where the curtains had been drawn. Though not as bright as turning on the lights, with Awakened eyes, he could distinguish all objects.
It seemed like at least an hour had passed since he’d lain down to sleep. He wondered if Kang Taesung was asleep. Suddenly, he was curious about him.
‘I wanted this too. For a long time. Many times.’
Those words he heard while lying on the sofa kept replaying strangely in his head. That low, sorrowful voice. It conveyed a hint of depression, and he almost hugged and threw him to the ceiling to comfort him like a child.
Lee Hwan didn’t know how to comfort others well. At most, he’d sit him down and feed him snacks one by one as he did in the past.
Would that work this time too? How many snacks were in this house? Should he go to the supermarket as soon as the sun rises? While useless plans kept piling up instead of the sleep that wouldn’t come…
Click. Rustle.
The sound of a door opening came from somewhere. Lee Hwan, who had been lying absent-mindedly, turned his attention to the sound beyond the door.
Swish- thud. Swish- thud.
What followed was the faint sound of bare feet brushing against the floor. Since the only people in this house were Lee Hwan and Taesung, the sudden footsteps must be his.
‘Why is that bastard going to the living room in the middle of the night again?’
Lee Hwan had been shocked the day before when he tried to leave through the front door. Sensing a presence in the dark dawn, he had the reasonable suspicion that Taesung was trying to guard the entrance like a sentry again.
‘This guy… today I’ll give him a scare.’
It was slightly disappointing that he was doing this again after apologizing earlier in the day. But perhaps because he had been feeling sympathy for him just moments ago, he wasn’t too angry.
He just wanted to tease him a bit. Like a child. That was all.
Lee Hwan quietly rose and carefully slipped out of the room. Then, as soon as he saw the large silhouette standing in the living room, he approached with a pout and called out.
“Hey, Kang Taesung.”
Lee Hwan’s voice echoed through the quiet living room. Silence hung heavily like a curtain.
“…”
Contrary to Lee Hwan’s expectation that he would turn around startled, Taesung didn’t move at all. He was just standing still as if nailed to the spot.
Lee Hwan licked his dry lips once and stared stupidly at his back.
“…Kang Taesung?”
Thinking he might not have heard, though it seemed unlikely, he called again as he approached. Still, instead of an answer, all that came back was steady breathing.
Belatedly sensing something strange, Lee Hwan rolled his eyes and stood beside Taesung. Finally, the face that hadn’t turned appeared in his sight.
Lee Hwan felt his heart drop.
“Hey, man…”
Taesung had his eyes closed. Standing powerlessly facing the glass window, he was floating in his own dream world.
He looked like he might turn into smoke and disappear at any moment. Lee Hwan was suddenly scared and grabbed his shoulder.
“Are you? Are you sleeping?”
Still, no words came back. His face, illuminated by moonlight, was pale.
“Kang Taesung. Taesung-ah.”
Even when he called with his voice lowered a tone, there was no response. Lee Hwan instinctively realized that he had walked here in his sleep.
“Kang Tae…”
The vengeful feelings and slight mischief that had been circling his heart had dried up like a drought-stricken rice paddy. Fear and bewilderment crept up and choked him.
What should I do? Lee Hwan thought, clenching and unclenching his fist. Should he just carry him to bed? But there was no guarantee he wouldn’t get up and come out again.
He was too scared to shake him awake. He was worried about whether it was okay to touch him. What if he did something wrong and caused a problem for him?
He had never seen someone walking around in their sleep before. Seeing a situation he had only heard about, and with Taesung no less, made his hands tremble.
Why couldn’t this guy sleep properly and wander around the house at dawn?
‘…Is he dreaming about the time before regression?’
Thinking about it that way suddenly made him incredibly sad. Taesung’s powerless figure standing in the darkened living room was so shocking that Lee Hwan suddenly felt like he might cry.
