“Hyung… this feeling is strange…! Stop now.”
Yeoul, who had been dazed, grabbed Kang Hyeseong’s wrist firmly. Then he urgently pushed his hand away and whirled around.
“Why all of a sudden…”
“……”
“Why… are you doing this…?”
Without realizing it, he stepped back. His back touched the wall. Kang Hyeseong obediently withdrew his hand and didn’t come any closer, but the fact that there was nowhere to escape felt dizzyingly overwhelming for some reason.
It felt like sirens were blaring in his head. He was just flustered, unable to comprehend Kang Hyeseong’s intention for acting so forcefully toward him.
An awkward silence continued for quite a while, and Kang Hyeseong, who had been quietly looking down at Yeoul’s face, opened his lips.
“When you guide Espers with high wavelength amounts, you can get things like bruises.”
“……Ah.”
“Esper Seo Giwon is also A-rank. I was just checking to see if anything like that remained.”
So that’s… what it was.
…And I didn’t even know that.
Yeoul bit his lower lip hard out of embarrassment. Kang Hyeseong had just been obsessing over his health and well-being as always, so why on earth had he foolishly panicked?
‘…How embarrassing.’
Heat flushed hotly to his face. What must Kang Hyeseong have thought seeing his reaction—trembling and rejecting his touch? The embarrassment came rushing in a beat late, and it was driving him crazy.
“Th-then at least tell me before you check! You startled me doing it so suddenly!”
“Did I startle you a lot? I’m sorry.”
He belatedly got worked up and raised his voice out of unjustified frustration and indignation, but unlike him who felt like he was riding a roller coaster, Kang Hyeseong’s voice was just calm. Since he immediately apologized, there was nothing more to argue about.
At this rate, his reddened face would be discovered. Yeoul, who just wanted to escape from this situation quickly, said ‘Then I’ll order some food!’ and swiftly came out to the living room. He snatched up his phone and frantically tapped on the delivery app.
“What do you want to eat?”
“Whatever you want to eat, order that. I’m going to wash up.”
“…Okay.”
Only after hearing the sound of Kang Hyeseong closing the bathroom door and going in did Yeoul exhale the breath he’d been holding. In truth, the food listed on the delivery app didn’t even register in his eyes. His heart was still pounding boisterously, and his burning face showed no signs of cooling down.
“I’m crazy, really…”
Yeoul weakly threw down his phone and closed his eyes. He covered his face with both hands and slid down onto the sofa.
It wasn’t this bad before.
It wouldn’t be wrong to say his life had been almost entirely spent liking Kang Hyeseong, but still… looking back, his childhood self hadn’t been this impure. His affection toward him had most resembled the emotions of pure admiration and longing.
But why on earth was he suddenly like this?
Why did just one touch from Kang Hyeseong make him feel like he was doing something wrong, make his mind go completely blank, and make his face heat up like it would burst?
‘The feeling was really strange…’
Could it be because of guiding? Because they kept holding hands and embracing, doing that sort of thing every day as an obligation…?
But actually, that level of skinship wasn’t particularly special. It was just the difference of whether they were doing the act of guiding or not. Until he was dispatched to Lebanon, he had embraced him almost every day, received pats, and there were countless times they’d even slept together lying down.
If not that, then was it because they’d started living together in earnest? Or was it because he’d truly become an ‘adult’ now…? He was an adult now, old enough to know everything, so perhaps the days when he could purely and unreservedly leap into Kang Hyeseong’s arms had truly passed.
Yeoul lightly slapped his reddened face with his palm. Whatever the cause was, first he needed to calm down this face quickly.
Yeoul rushed to the other bathroom and only came out after washing his face with cold water until the heat completely dissipated. Fortunately, his startled feelings had calmed down to some extent, so he could manage to sit across from Kang Hyeseong and eat dinner without showing it.
“Ul-ah. How’s your condition?”
“Me? I’m totally fine.”
Kang Hyeseong, who had finished washing the dishes and cleaning up, asked that. Yeoul, who had been wiping the table, narrowed his eyes and answered immediately. He was suspicious that this might be another ploy to avoid guiding. He’d been obediently receiving guiding for a while, so why was he doing this again?
“Then, can I ask you for guiding?”
However, unexpectedly, Kang Hyeseong said that. It was the first time. The first time he’d requested guiding first. Yeoul looked at him with surprised eyes.
“Huh…? What’s the occasion? Are you not feeling well somewhere today? Did you use your abilities more than usual?”
“That’s not it. I just want to receive guiding from our Ul. Of course, only if your body is okay.”
Kang Hyeseong’s voice as he said that was quiet and gentle. His uncracked face didn’t look at all like someone who had requested guiding, but it didn’t matter anyway. What was important was the fact that he had requested it first.
“Of course I’m okay! Come here quickly. I’ll do it right away.”
Yeoul grabbed Hyeseong’s wrist with a happy heart and led him to the bedroom. He sat him, who was acting very docile unlike usual, on the bed and measured his wavelength levels.
With a beep, numbers appeared on the LCD screen. Yeoul, who had been looking at the measurement device with a serious expression, put the device down on the bed.
The wavelength level was high, not much different from usual. Despite guiding almost every day lately, the fact that the level was this high meant that the amount of abilities Kang Hyeseong used during a day was enormous.
This was why Kang Hyeseong’s especially cooperative attitude today was so welcome and pleasing. You’re so adorable I could die, my Esper. I wish you’d always be like this. Amid the surging enthusiasm, the emotional turmoil he’d felt earlier was pushed to the back.
“Then… I’ll start.”
Yeoul, wearing his guiding gloves, tried to suppress his pounding heart as he carefully climbed onto Hyeseong’s thighs and sat down.
“Yeah, thank you.”
Kang Hyeseong leaned against the headboard and looked up at him loosely. His gaze that seemed kind yet captured him without any gaps felt dangerous today for some reason. Saliva gulped down the back of Yeoul’s throat.
‘No, wait. Why again…’
His heart began to cause a ruckus again. He’d managed to calm it down, but just because he climbed onto Kang Hyeseong’s lap and made eye contact…!
‘Don’t be conscious of it… please.’
What if his face turned red again? If he showed that kind of face to Kang Hyeseong… Just thinking about it made him dizzy. Yeoul quickly lowered his gaze and buried himself in Hyeseong’s embrace.
Definitely, this level of guiding was no longer a problem. Perhaps because they’d been intensively conducting embrace guiding for the past few days, fortunately he could proceed with guiding right away without any fear or sense of incongruity. The wavelengths of the two people, who had harmonized frequently recently, now permeated naturally like water.
However… the problem was him, who was extremely restless just because he was close to Kang Hyeseong. Thump. Thump. Because of his heart that kept racing without rest, Yeoul didn’t know what to do. If this continued, it seemed like getting caught was just a matter of time…
“Why is your heart beating so fast?”
Finally, those words came out of Kang Hyeseong’s mouth. Yeoul’s back jumped in surprise.
“Wh-what?”
“Is it straining your body? You’ve never been like this even after doing embrace guiding for days in a row.”
Hyeseong, who had been slowly stroking the back of Yeoul’s head like petting a dog, muttered. Yeoul hurriedly put strength in his arms, pushed him, and separated their bodies. He couldn’t let him hear this wildly pounding heartbeat any longer.
‘Right, my face…!’
Yeoul hurriedly flopped down on top of him with a thud, realizing his mistake. This damn face that had gotten hot like a burning sweet potato—he’d forgotten about it.
If he embraced him, the sound of his pounding heart would be discovered, and if he separated their bodies, his reddened face would be discovered… It was truly a dilemma. Yeoul squirmed his hips and back, not knowing what to do.
“Stay still and let me hold you.”
Kang Hyeseong, who quietly scolded him, firmly pulled Yeoul’s body into an embrace.
“Why are you so restless? Are you a puppy?”
“Th-there’s such a thing. Do you even know the struggles of a Guide?”
Flustered, Yeoul blurted out anything. He grumbled asking to be let go, saying it was stuffy, but rather than letting go, he just said ‘Yeah, good boy’ while patting his back. Pick one—either treat me like a child or treat me like a dog.
“How long did you guide Seo Giwon?”
Kang Hyeseong suddenly asked.
“Me… about 30 minutes…?”
“Were you like this then too? Heart beating fast, face turning red?”
“Th… no, I wasn’t. I was fine then.”
Looking at his increasingly seriously furrowed brow and face turning expressionless, it seemed Kang Hyeseong’s worry-illness had flared up again. Wondering if the guiding with Esper Seo Giwon had been a big burden on me.
“And I’ll have you know I’m an A-rank Guide. Giwon hyung is also A-rank, so do you think I can’t cover that?”
In case he took me to the hospital again or called a doctor, Yeoul deliberately put on a smug expression and showed off.
Actually, it was somewhat sincere. Handling the wavelength of an S-rank Esper that felt like a wave that would swallow his body at any moment, relatively guiding Esper Seo Giwon who was less than that even felt easy. Even though Seo Giwon was by no means an Esper with a small wavelength amount.
“Right, now that you mention it, that’s true.”
Kang Hyeseong chuckled.
“But it seems you two have gotten pretty close? Calling him hyung.”
“Yeah! Hehe.”
“Is this a school? Getting comfortable calling each other hyung and dongsaeng?”
“No, of course we only do that when we’re alone together, not when everyone’s around.”
Despite the additional explanation, Kang Hyeseong’s expression was quite displeased. This old-fashioned man again… Yeoul, who had been glaring at him narrowly, suddenly curved his lips. He suddenly wanted to tease him a bit.
“What’s this? Could our hyung-ah be jealous?”
“Jealous my ass.”
“You are. I should only call hyung-ah ‘hyung,’ but I’m also calling Giwon hyung ‘hyung,’ so our Hyeseong hyung-ah is sulking. Aren’t you?”
“Haa…”
Kang Hyeseong sighed and pressed his temple with his hand. Watching him click his tongue with a dumbfounded face yet unable to refute, Yeoul laughed out loud. It felt somehow exhilarating and refreshing.
“Anyway, today Giwon hyung personally signed an autograph for Huijun noona, and also took videos and photos.”
“…Videos and photos?”
Kang Hyeseong held out his hand saying let’s see. Yeoul hummed softly and opened his gallery to hand it over.
When the video played, the lively atmosphere from the meat restaurant earlier was recreated. Yeoul’s voice continuously exclaiming in admiration and Esper Seo Giwon’s voice cheekily putting on a fire show flowed out.
Next were the photos. The faces of the two people sitting close together with their shoulders side by side filled the screen.
Yeoul looked at Esper Seo Giwon smiling brightly in the photo and unknowingly smiled slightly himself. This thought is really rude to my senior, but… if you personified a Labrador Retriever, wouldn’t it look like Esper Seo Giwon? How can he smile so purely?
“……”
However, Kang Hyeseong looking down at the photo was terrifyingly expressionless. It was a bit scary watching from the side. He was about to ask why, but before that, he opened his mouth first.
“You had fun.”
“…Uh, yeah.”
Kang Hyeseong put down the phone on the bed like throwing it. Then he spread his arms as usual.
“Now you have to finish guiding me, right?”
“Yeah! Great!”
Really, just for today, you’re a 100-point Esper. Why are you so enthusiastic…? Yeoul, whose mood had improved, quickly grinned and pounced on him.
“Ah- You’re being really good today, my Esper. I should reward you with guiding.”
At the bold words, he patted Yeoul’s back and chuckled as if dumbfounded. Yeoul, who had buried his face in Kang Hyeseong’s chest, began to infuse purification energy along with a hum. The stable heartbeat transmitted through his chest felt pleasant, so Yeoul breathed in and out comfortably.
But was it his imagination? The strength of Kang Hyeseong’s arms binding his body today seemed unusually strong…
“Hyung, I can’t breathe.”
“Mm.”
Only then did he relax his arms a bit, but the restraint of the arms that had pulled his body in without any gaps showed no signs of loosening. In Kang Hyeseong’s embrace that confined him almost obsessively, Yeoul slowly absorbed his energy and purified it.
