“Get lost! Get lost!”
I ran shouting at the top of my lungs. Really, I mean I literally fled like my dick would fall off.
Perhaps because I was running around all over the asphalt ground, the soles of my feet ached. But what could I do? Having unintentionally started a deadly game of tag with Baek Sahyun, the only option left to me was ‘escape.’
‘I feel like my heart’s going to burst…’
If I get caught, fuck, I’ll really die this time.
“Heejae-ya!”
That damn ‘Heejae-ya!’ sound made me feel like my mind was going hazy. He could at least curse to his heart’s content or something, but Baek Sahyun had been choking my breath by only repeatedly chanting Nam Heejae’s name since earlier.
‘What do I do? What does your oppa really do, Haesu?’
The closer his voice got, the more my spine became soaked with cold sweat. The damp hem of my clothes stuck to my skin.
‘Haesu…, I miss you so much!’
Half wanting to stop for a moment and take in a full breath, half wanting to run to death and hide anywhere.
It was just when I was gradually starting to wonder why exactly I had to be sprinting through a rest stop like a debtor being chased by a loan shark.
Right, at most what more could happen than dying if I get caught?
I’d get some molars pulled out with pliers and my knees smashed with a wooden plank, but anyway, that was also the fate Nam Heejae had to live. It’s not like I could spend my whole life running away like this.
But…, getting caught itself was fucking scary.
‘He’ll definitely hit me, right?’
I knew that if I rolled in under that bastard with my own feet, at least I’d get a chance to beg desperately, but damn it. Even stopping was terribly frightening.
The sweat streaming down and my mouth drying up completely. All of these things seemed to indirectly reveal my feelings toward him.
Right now I was fortunately ahead of Baek Sahyun, but the premonition that I’d be overtaken in just a few minutes flashed clearly.
Then Baek Sahyun would first grab my hair and slam me to the ground. Maybe he’d even drag me all the way to his car. The moment the car door closed with a thud, I’d helplessly fall to becoming Baek Sahyun’s punching bag.
No. Would he just beat me up badly in front of people? Baek Sahyun was definitely a bastard who’d do that and more. I could clearly see my future rolling around on the ground going ‘Oh my, I’m dying!’ among the murmuring crowd.
I, who kept making the worst assumptions, ended up falling into despondency.
Oops. My legs were slowing down. The soles of my feet felt as heavy as a ton. It was just when the desire welled up to just spread both arms and lie down on the roadside to sleep.
“Nam Heejae!”
Baek Sahyun shook my weak mentality. Startled by his shout, I agonized over whether to just let everything go.
‘Kneel? Kneel and prostrate myself in apology?’
Thanks to my decent physical condition, I was desperately running around, but I didn’t know when or where my stamina would run out.
But really…, even if I raised the white flag now, would that bastard leave me alone safely?
‘Won’t he get more excited and beat me?’
Right. First, I’d probably get hit in the head a few times to start. Therefore, I was practically standing at a major crossroads.
To stop or not. To beg desperately or not.
I briefly wondered which side the original Nam Heejae would have chosen. In the end, I chose the lesser evil option.
Ding-a-ling!
“Welco…”
“Hello!”
I charged toward the convenience store visible before my eyes.
As soon as I pushed through the glass door, I passed the counter and approached the beverage section. At the same time as I randomly grabbed a water bottle, a chilling remark rang out from right behind me.
“…Hah, Heejae-ya.”
“……”
“Why do you keep running away?”
I gripped the 500mL water bottle with trembling hands. Gulp. My throat was parched so I forced myself to swallow saliva.
Baek Sahyun, who had just been in a long-distance race until now, amazingly didn’t have his voice crack even once. In comparison, I was in a state where I had to wipe away the sweat droplets wetting my forehead.
‘Is this the difference between the lead and supporting character?’
I felt inwardly sad, but anyway, I could accept that as this body’s inherent limitation. What’s important is the problem of how to overcome the predicament facing me now.
“Nam Heejae.”
Baek Sahyun called me once more.
Seeing how this time it carried slight irritation, it seemed I’d get beaten badly if I delayed any longer. I creaked around to meet eyes with him.
Heek, fuck! Totally dead fish eyes!
Baek Sahyun was watching me with eyes that had become unfocused. Because this bastard molded prettily like a doll was doing that, an even more eerie atmosphere emanated. I answered stammering:
“…Water, you said to buy water. Here.”
“Mm.”
When I quickly held out the water bottle, my hand shook pitifully.
“You, you said to buy water. Don’t tell me you don’t remember?”
Thanks to that, the innocent water bottle was also trembling together. Nevertheless, I raised my lips pretending to be composed. Hoping that my cheerful smile could soften Baek Sahyun’s momentum. Why, isn’t there that saying that you can’t spit on a smiling face? I wanted to be a beneficiary of that saying.
Baek Sahyun, who gave a sidelong glance, asked questioningly:
“Water?”
I promptly opened the cap and answered:
“Yeah yeah. You ate fish cake with capsaicin and were about to cry. You said to quickly buy water.”
He even made someone who said they didn’t want to buy it disgustingly. Even sticking out his bright red tongue slightly at that.
I was a complete idiot for making that clumsy plan to run away. Since I’d end up returning with my own feet like this anyway…
Baek Sahyun nodded.
“Right. I did.”
That at least was a reaction worth rejoicing over. I hurriedly pressed the opened water bottle into Baek Sahyun’s hand.
“Alright, so drink up quickly. It was hot having a running match, right?”
It was a product that hadn’t even been paid for yet, but looking good to Baek Sahyun came first. Payment was a problem to worry about later. The clerk’s view was blocked by Baek Sahyun’s broad back anyway.
Baek Sahyun, who had been staring at me blankly, held out the transparent water bottle back.
“You drink a lot.”
“Huh? Why?”
“If I say drink, drink.”
Then he smiled gently. But his eyes were still insane, so it was difficult to obediently gulp down the water as told.
‘Me to drink? Why?’
As an answer to my question, Baek Sahyun said, cutting off his pronunciation clearly:
“Because you look more tired.”
“Ah…”
That was actually reasonable. Just looking at appearances right now, he was impeccably neat and dry, while I was as haggard as someone who’d been exploited all day.
That gay bastard we met in the outdoor parking lot earlier probably had a huge influence. Perhaps because I realized that homos were everywhere, my tender heart was greatly shocked.
It’s not like in zombie novels where every character is either a zombie hunter or a zombie, and it’s not like in horror movies where every character is either an exorcist or a ghost, so why is it like this here?
“…Thanks. Then I’ll drink first.”
When I gulped down the water without declining, Baek Sahyun patted my back.
“You should drink slowly. You’ll choke like that.”
As affectionate worry accompanied it, I felt anxiety beyond puzzlement. I thought my lifeline would end the moment I got caught, but instead Baek Sahyun was in a gentler state than usual.
‘Could he be pretending not to be a psychopath because of the CCTV here?’
I carefully checked every corner of the convenience store. As expected, surveillance cameras that might or might not be decorative were firmly guarding blind spots.
Even so, is Baek Sahyun an ordinary person? It seemed like he wouldn’t care about surveillance cameras or anything…. Honestly, this bastard seemed like he’d beat people up as he pleased regardless of surveillance cameras or whatever.
Gulp gulp. Drinking water without thinking, already about two-thirds was gone. I hurriedly pulled my lips away and closed the cap again.
Just as I was about to return it to Baek Sahyun, he whispered:
“You drink like a hippo…”
Pfft! I had a terrible time choking and coughing while swallowing the bit of water remaining in my mouth.
Fuck, why is he being sarcastic when he told me to drink? When I looked out with eyes full of rebelliousness for a moment, Baek Sahyun shrugged his shoulders. And soon he started babbling nonsense.
“If you answer honestly, I’ll just let it go, Heejae-ya.”
“What?”
“Why did you go to meet a man, leaving me behind?”
“What?”
“Maybe…”
Baek Sahyun looked at me like I was a pervert. Seeing how his brows furrowed deeply, he seemed quite angry.
“Are you the type who can’t live without men?”
“……”
“The type who plays around with multiple people because one isn’t enough?”
“……”
“Ah, what do I do? I hate that type…”
