His eyes flew open the moment the alarm went off. Yeoul fumbled for his phone in the darkness and turned off the alarm. Today was finally the day he would go to work for the first time—not as a trainee, but as Guide Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul.
He diligently washed his face, brushed his teeth, and changed his clothes. He considered having a simple breakfast of eggs or milk but decided against it. Whether it was because it was his first day or not, he felt nervous, and he was worried he might miss the bus.
He was checking the bus schedule on his phone that he’d looked up the day before when he suddenly heard the door lock disengaging. Yeoul’s eyes widened.
“…Is that you, hyung?”
“Yeah. Did you sleep well?”
A tall shadow stepped into the entrance. He squinted slightly at the bright entryway light flooding in.
His eyes showed sensitivity soaked in fatigue. Seeing the dark shadows cast under his eyes and his chapped lips, Yeoul’s eyes widened.
“Don’t tell me… you pulled an all-nighter? Did you at least eat…?”
“Just, this and that.”
It was a vague answer, but even without hearing the details, Yeoul could roughly guess. He must have dealt with terrifying monster creatures all night long, and because of that, he probably couldn’t even eat properly… Seeing Yeoul at a loss for words, Hyeseong smiled faintly and threw out a joke.
“Ah, this is serious. What was I thinking, bringing our baby to such a busy team.”
“That’s fine. More importantly… hyung.”
“Yeah?”
Yeoul gulped. Just as he’d resolved yesterday, he tried to ask if he was receiving guiding properly. However, a memory that suddenly surfaced made Yeoul hesitate.
Some time ago, a reporter on the news had asked him if he had a dedicated guide. It was during a live broadcast, and suddenly Hyeseong’s expression hardened terrifyingly, broadcast in real-time. After he flatly declared that he would not answer anything about that, matters related to Kang Hyeseong’s guiding became classified as top secret.
Is this kind of question a sensitive matter?
What if I get on Kang Hyeseong’s bad side for asking something like this carelessly?
Even though he’d made up his mind resolutely yesterday, when it came to actually asking the question, he felt a little scared. But his worry about Kang Hyeseong’s condition took priority, so Yeoul ended up bringing it up after all.
“Hyung, is your condition okay? Are you… receiving guiding properly?”
Kang Hyeseong noticeably flinched. He stood there for a moment with an expression that anyone could see was surprised, then soon smiled lightly as if it were nothing.
“Our baby’s motivation is at an all-time high on your first day of work?”
“…I’m asking seriously.”
Everyone in South Korea knew that Kang Hyeseong was the busiest Esper at the Supernatural Abilities Security Bureau. It hadn’t been just a day or two that he’d been worrying about him as he silently carried out a murderously packed schedule for years, but now that he’d actually become a guide and received training and education, he could vaguely grasp just how absurdly intense the workload was.
He’d brought it up after agonizing over it, but Hyeseong was treating it lightly, which made him feel a little choked up. Yeoul looked straight into his eyes and continued speaking clearly.
“I’m worried about you, hyung. You must have been using your abilities all night.”
“……”
“Rampaging wave levels have to be lowered on time, don’t they? For someone at your level, it can’t be something that can be solved with guiding potions or wave suppressants.”
The silence wasn’t short. It was difficult to read Hyeseong’s emotions as he stared at him quietly. He didn’t seem to hate him or get angry as he’d originally worried…
“You were worried? I’m sorry.”
The response that came back was unexpectedly straightforward. Yeoul stood still and received Hyeseong’s touch as he stroked his head.
“But, hyung is fine.”
“……”
When Yeoul looked at him with dubious eyes, his lips pressed tightly together, Hyeseong smiled softly. Then he began to explain step by step.
“Really. Look. You learned about the warning signs of Esper rampage during your education, right?”
“…Yeah.”
The higher the risk of rampage, the more an Esper loses their reason and shows unstable behavior. In severe cases, they show bleeding or convulsions and can’t even breathe properly.
In this case, because they use their abilities extensively, it’s extremely difficult to approach them. They lose control and rampage, potentially putting fellow ability users or citizens in danger, so in the worst case, they may even be killed… such horrific content was inputted flawlessly into Yeoul’s mind.
“What do you think when you look at me? Do I look like an Esper on the verge of rampage?”
“No. Not that, but…”
Yeoul mumbled and trailed off. It was difficult to deny his words. He couldn’t find any such signs in Kang Hyeseong, who stood before him with a calm face. He just looked like an office worker who’d worked overtime, exactly that level.
“…Still, you do look tired.”
“Of course I’m tired since I stayed up all night. It’ll go away once I sleep. Don’t worry.”
Hyeseong smiled faintly.
“Our baby has really grown up. Even worrying about your hyung like this. You received pretty proper education too, didn’t you? Very commendable.”
“…Just now, I was worried as a teammate, not as the kid next door. Don’t treat me like a baby.”
When Yeoul grumbled, Hyeseong burst out laughing. He thought about glaring at him for constantly teasing him about being young, but he decided to let it slide for today. Since he’d been working all night.
“Then, shall we head to work now?”
“Mm-hm. But hyung, did you come to pick me up?”
“Hm? Of course.”
His tone was as if asking why he was even asking something so obvious. Yeoul bit his lip hard. He drove all the way here because of me, didn’t he… He must already be tired enough.
“You didn’t have to… There’s a bus too.”
“It’s troublesome if you have to transfer.”
“Well, that’s true…”
“Let’s hurry. I’ll buy you a hamburger breakfast set on the way.”
“…Really?”
His anxiety hadn’t completely disappeared, but seeing Kang Hyeseong acting no differently than usual, his doubtful feelings gradually faded. Yeoul came out of the entrance, quieting his footsteps so as not to wake his parents.
“Ugh, it’s cold.”
“Wear this.”
Yeoul saying it was cold and Hyeseong taking off his coat happened almost simultaneously. Even when he said it was fine, a heavy coat was soon draped over his shoulders.
His heart pounded at the deeply embedded body scent. It was a smell he’d encountered hundreds, thousands of times growing up. Kang Hyeseong’s scent, which both let him rest comfortably and at the same time stirred up his heart confusingly.
“You must be sleepy, so close your eyes for a bit.”
“You’re the one who stayed up all night. If I knew how to drive, I’d do it…”
Yeoul trailed off. He usually got around fine without a car, but at times like this, not having a license felt frustrating. If he knew how to drive, he could have let his hyung, who’d worked hard all night, rest a little.
“Hyung, I’m thinking about getting my license.”
“License? Why all of a sudden?”
Hyeseong, who had been smoothly pressing the accelerator, raised his eyebrow slightly.
“Just… there might be urgent calls, and when commuting together like this with you, I feel bad making only you drive. Once I get my salary, I’ll buy even a compact car…”
“Why would you do that when you’re with me? It’s fine. Hyung can do it.”
“Still. I have to get my license eventually anyway.”
“Wait a little. Hyung is too busy right now, once things settle down a bit, I’ll give you driving lessons then.”
“…I can do it by myself though.”
“No way.”
Is he treating me like a child again? He wasn’t really a kid, and he wanted to say he could do that much by himself. However, Hyeseong was faster to add in a seamless tone.
“I let you take the college entrance exam alone, couldn’t go to your graduation, and you spent your first day of university alone too. Please understand hyung’s feelings for missing all of that.”
“…What’s with that?”
“At least for the license, you’re getting it with hyung, and I’ll give you driving lessons too. I can’t compromise on that much. Got it?”
Yeoul, who had been blinking blankly, soon burst into soft laughter. This person who seems uninterested in everything in the world except work is always so greedy when it comes to things related to him.
“Got it. That aside, I was going to consult with you, hyung. Should I apply for official residence, or should I commute? Which would be better? The distance is a bit awkward for commuting.”
“Mm.”
Hyeseong paused with a serious expression.
“Actually, the gate occurrence rate has suddenly been increasing lately. Since there will probably be many days like today where I’ll be up all night… it seems like hyung might have to stay at the official residence for the time being.”
“Oh? Then I’ll do that too!”
The conclusion was clearly reached. If Kang Hyeseong, the team leader, was too busy to even come home, there was no way he, as a team member, could commute from home. It would also be awkward if there was an emergency call at dawn. He’d have to go to the administrative team later and apply for official residence first.
Kang Hyeseong let out a deep sigh with a complicated-looking expression.
“…Why did you have to awaken, Kim Yeoul?”
“Huh? What are you suddenly talking about?”
“Haah… It’s nothing.”
Kang Hyeseong, who had blurted that out randomly, sighed once more. Dawn was breaking hazily outside the car window. Kang Hyeseong pulled into a brightly lit fast-food restaurant.
“You’re going to eat a bacon English muffin, right? With a hot Americano.”
“Yeah yeah. Sounds delicious.”
When they ordered from inside the car, an employee handed the food through the window. She had been handing over the breakfast set with businesslike gestures when she recognized Kang Hyeseong and her eyes widened.
“Oh my god, you’re Esper Kang Hyeseong, right…? I’m really a fan!”
As Kang Hyeseong lightly bowed his head, she shouted, ‘Have a great day!’ When he returned the greeting, the employee stomped her feet and covered her mouth.
The two parked in the fast-food restaurant parking lot and ate breakfast. Even during high school, Kang Hyeseong had often bought him breakfast sets.
Whether his test scores didn’t turn out as well as expected, or he’d fought with a friend. When he was gloomy over trivial worries, Hyeseong would take him on dawn drives like this and buy him delicious food to comfort him.
The morning sun began to rise slowly. Watching the streets starting to turn red and the people busily coming and going while drinking coffee side by side, his heart felt warm. The nervousness of his first day at work gradually melted away too.
