His attitude was so blatantly displeased that anyone who saw would have no doubt he was truly his lover. In Yeonrok’s eyes, Moon Gyeonwoo acted almost as well as Choi Hwan. Chief Kim hurriedly withdrew his hand with an “oops” and apologized.
“I’m sorry. The research topic is something that would displease Name Manifestors, so every simple cooperation request has been rejected. But I can’t exactly hide the research topic when making requests either. I was just so grateful that I…”
What could it be? What kind of research would make people uncomfortable just from hearing about the topic? When Yeonrok felt a bit uneasy, Moon Gyeonwoo quickly interjected naturally and sent Chief Kim away.
“Chief Kim, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? I’ll watch over things here, so go eat first.”
“Oh my, is it already this time? Now that you mention it, I am a bit hungry. Then I’ll be back shortly.”
As soon as Chief Kim left, Yeonrok put distance between them. The vicious researcher crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. With his mind set on escaping the lab at any moment, Yeonrok interrogated him sharply.
“What is it? Tell me honestly. What kind of research are you doing? If you try anything funny, I won’t let it slide!”
Moon Gyeonwoo, looking quite troubled, tilted his head and stared at the air for a moment, then soon finished deliberating and obediently confessed to Yeonrok.
“I’m researching a way to erase Names.”
“What…?”
It was a completely unexpected answer. A way to erase Names? Yeonrok had never once imagined such a thing. But surprisingly… he was a little tempted. It was because he’d suffered so much physically and mentally because of his Name Partners. However, on the other hand, he didn’t quite understand.
“Are there really that many people who want to erase their Names?”
“Surprisingly, there’s quite a demand. For instance, people who have manifested but don’t want to meet their Name Partner, relatives of Name Manifestors, or Name Manifestors with a terminal diagnosis who worry about their partner’s life after their death. You were hospitalized not long ago yourself, so you know well how much Names restrict a person’s life, don’t you?”
It was the first time he’d seen someone express Name Manifestation as a “symptom.” But setting aside the unfamiliarity of the expression, Yeonrok understood well the meaning of what Moon Gyeonwoo said next—that Names restrict one’s life. If a Name suddenly manifested on a family member or lover’s body one day, one couldn’t simply rejoice. While Name Partners could be healthy for life if they stayed together, if that wasn’t possible, only harsh consequences awaited.
Once manifested, one might have to unwillingly separate from a lover they’d been with before, and if unlucky enough to be unable to stay with their Name Partner, their health would gradually deteriorate, making it practically a terminal diagnosis.
To begin with, if only the “Name” didn’t exist, this harsh fate could be avoided. Even if not, if one just didn’t meet their partner, if one could just endure the subconscious longing to find their partner, one could live an ordinary life. That’s why there were people who didn’t register with the Name Matching Center even after manifesting.
“Honestly, to me it looks like a kind of pathological condition. So from the moment I manifested, I wanted to get rid of it.”
As he said this, Moon Gyeonwoo opened his mouth and tapped near his lower lip with his finger. Only then could Yeonrok finally see where his “Name” had manifested. His four-leaf clover-shaped Name was on top of his tongue. Yeonrok hadn’t known until now because he’d had no interest in places like the inside of Moon Gyeonwoo’s mouth. He found himself asking unconsciously.
“Even now when your Name Partner is your lover?”
“Well…”
Moon Gyeonwoo looked at the reagent flask in the fume hood with a complicated expression for a moment. He soon spoke in the cold voice familiar to Yeonrok.
“Anyway, don’t tell anyone about this research. If those crazy religious people who go on about Names being destiny or God’s miracle find out, it’ll become a headache.”
“I don’t have anyone to tell anyway.”
Though Yeonrok said that, Moon Gyeonwoo still didn’t seem reassured and insisted on presenting a contract. After some wrangling, when the exasperated Yeonrok had thoroughly torn up the contract, Chief Kim returned. Moon Gyeonwoo quickly hid the torn non-disclosure contract and pretended nothing had happened.
“I bought some coffee and snacks too.”
Yeonrok gratefully accepted the snacks that Chief Kim handed over with a good-natured smile. After eating a bit of the snacks, Yeonrok watched Moon Gyeonwoo, who was pretending to be modest while saying he’d prepare for the experiment himself. Chief Kim spoke to Yeonrok in a friendly manner.
“I’m working on this kind of research with my senior, but honestly I’m so envious of Name Manifestors. How romantic. They’re literally destined partners.”
Having experienced what he had until now, Yeonrok couldn’t easily agree. From the moment he’d learned he had three Name Partners, he’d sometimes thought it was more like an administrative error or someone’s prank rather than destiny. Chief Kim, who seemed to truly love his work, rattled off research details to Yeonrok without even being asked.
“It hasn’t been proven yet, but they say Name Manifestors can even sense when their partners are in danger.”
“Oh, I’ve seen quite a few posts like that in the community too.”
Yeonrok, finally able to have a proper conversation with these researchers, quickly agreed. They were cases like sensing a Name Partner’s death from far away and fainting, or subconsciously feeling when they’d been seriously injured and becoming extremely emotionally anxious, or finding a missing Name Partner through intuition alone.
“It’s fascinating. When you see things like that, it seems like telepathy might really exist. But it doesn’t make scientific sense, does it?”
At Yeonrok’s words, Chief Kim pondered for a moment then spoke.
“Do you know about the chameleon vine?”
“No?”
“Its scientific name is Boquila trifoliolata… It’s a plant with truly amazing mimetic polymorphism. Even without eyes, it knows how to mimic the shape of nearby plants. Even plastic artificial plants. Doesn’t it remind you of Name Manifestors who come to have the exact same shape as their partners? Who knows. Maybe telepathy really is possible.”
This kind of information was hard to obtain in Name Manifestor communities, so it was very interesting. While Chief Kim was kindly attending to him, Moon Gyeonwoo finished his preparations. When he made a gesture holding some unknown tool, Yeonrok reluctantly dragged his feet closer.
“It won’t really hurt, right?”
“I told you we’re really just looking. Are you that scared? How cute…”
Moon Gyeonwoo coaxed and soothed him as if he were truly talking to a beloved lover. Yeonrok, who’d suffered tremendous mental damage from grumbling for no reason, screamed internally.
Fortunately, it didn’t hurt as Moon Gyeonwoo had said. They just carefully cleaned the “Name” area, looked at it with a magnifying glass, and took dozens of photos. They also collected what they called samples, but that was just wiping thoroughly with something like wet cotton swabs.
“Chief Kim, come look at this.”
Moon Gyeonwoo and Chief Kim, completely focused on examining the samples, seemed to have forgotten Yeonrok’s existence. Their breathing even became slightly rough, making them seem like perverts. Yeonrok, who needed to use the restroom after even drinking Moon Gyeonwoo’s beverage, quietly got up from his seat. The two didn’t notice Yeonrok opening the lab door and leaving.
“Ugh, stuffy.”
After finishing his business, Yeonrok took off his stifling mask and fanned himself. He was drying the inside of the damp mask when—
“Excuse me.”
At the sound of someone calling him, Yeonrok flinched as he turned around. Without making any sound at all, a researcher in a white coat was suddenly standing tall behind him. But he looked somewhat familiar.
‘Where have I seen this person?’
As he tilted his head, the haggard-faced researcher took another step closer. After scanning Yeonrok’s handsome face, he bit his lips tightly.
“Um, are you really… Gyeonwoo hyung’s lover? Really, are you really Name Partners?”
Only after hearing the tearful voice did Yeonrok recall a vague memory. Though he wasn’t quite sure just from the face, judging by the atmosphere, this seemed to be the person who’d been kissing Moon Gyeonwoo in front of his house that Christmas. In other words, an ex-lover.
‘Oh no. This must be the stalker Moon Gyeonwoo mentioned.’
The tense Yeonrok observed him carefully. He didn’t seem to be holding any weapons. Planning to run away immediately if things got dangerous, he fiddled with his phone and agreed for now.
“Yes, we’re lovers.”
Tears streamed from the haggard eyes of someone who seemed to have gone through quite a difficult time after the breakup. When Yeonrok tried to quickly leave the restroom taking advantage of the moment, the other person inconveniently blocked his way.
“Just a moment… I really, really can’t give up… Could you show me your Name? If you show me just once, I’ll really give up. Please… I’m begging you like this…”
Yeonrok deliberated. The other person looked truly desperate. He was someone who knew well how hard it was when dumped by a lover you loved. Feeling some sympathy for a fellow sufferer, he scanned the other person up and down again. He looked slender to the point of being frail enough that Yeonrok could easily subdue him if it came to it. He didn’t get a feeling that it would be particularly dangerous.
“You’ll really give up if you confirm it.”
With the calculation of solving the stalker problem on this occasion to get Yeondoo back early, Yeonrok said firmly. Then he fumbled to unbutton his shirt.
He is so innocent….I am sure that stalker will attempt to hurt the wound and he will then suffer from it.