“Not really. My weight is probably similar.”
“No. You lost weight.”
Dawoon, who’d been shrugging his shoulders, muttered weakly with enlightened eyes, “Fine, I guess I did.”
His opinion as a mere supporting character didn’t matter. Dawoon tried harder to exercise patience when he was with Yeoul.
Honestly, even without trying, his heart softened on its own. It was because he knew all about the guy’s past that only appeared in the novel’s narration.
The guy who was only twenty-one had lived through so much hardship.
Go Yeoul had been trapped in an illegal ability research lab throughout his childhood, living as a test subject and suffering abuse. His parents, who’d needed money, had directly received compensation and sold off their son.
Because of that, Go Yeoul’s mind deteriorated day by day. The affection deficit symptoms that developed led to an obsession toward his dedicated Guide, Ryu Jin.
However, his love was never fulfilled in the end, and Go Yeoul, who completely collapsed from the wound of unrequited love, became a villain who led everyone to ruin.
Ryu Taeha was put in mortal danger trying to stop Go Yeoul, who gathered the test subjects trapped in the illegal ability research lab and started a riot, and Ryu Jin, who’d lost his sanity to guilt, took his own life.
This was the terrible ending of <I’m Pregnant with My Hyung’s Child>.
Thinking about it again, it was indescribably bleak. Perhaps even the author thought they shouldn’t unite the brothers to the end, so they ultimately finished with a miserable sad ending.
Even so, it was too much. What sin did the supporting characters who lived virtuously commit?
Over thousands of people died in the riot Go Yeoul started. And Jeong Dawoon was one of them. It wasn’t even explained how Jeong Dawoon died. His name was just stuck in the casualty list as one line.
For Dawoon, who’d worked as a firefighter in his previous life and saved countless lives, it was an absolutely unacceptable death. Not just him, but he couldn’t let thousands of people’s lives end so miserably like that.
Dawoon hoped that no one in this world he’d possessed into would die in vain. That’s why he’d been catching monsters while struggling to master an ability he wasn’t even familiar with. The same went for Go Yeoul. Knowing about his rampage, he’d made constant efforts not to provoke him.
Though they were just existences in a novel, knowing that innocent ordinary citizens would be in danger, he couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. Especially when he could save people if he tried, there was no reason to neglect it.
“Dawoon hyung.”
Dawoon, who’d been mulling over the resolve engraved in his heart again, focused his eyes. Yeoul was holding his hand and shaking it as if throwing a tantrum.
“Why are you looking elsewhere? Look at me properly.”
“Uh… sorry.”
He’d gotten lost in other thoughts again and spaced out. It was a big problem that he’d developed a habit of mulling over the novel’s contents to somehow change the ending, so he spaced out whenever he had a moment.
“Are you still hurting? Want to go to the dorm?”
Dawoon considered just going to the dorm but said he was fine. Seeing the other Espers who’d come out to the site diligently going around removing gates, his desire to rest vanished.
He rested yesterday, so he should work properly today.
“Your complexion doesn’t look good though…”
“My mood is bad. My body is fine.”
“Why is your mood bad?”
Because of that bastard Ryu Taeha. Dawoon barely swallowed the words about to burst out.
He couldn’t honestly confess to the youngest who followed the Leader well. He hoped the youngest and Leader’s relationship would remain as amicable as now.
“Tell me. Why is your mood bad?”
Thinking he’d brought up a pointless topic, he lightly placed his hand on top of Yeoul’s black crown.
“Just. No particular reason.”
“Your mood is bad for no reason?”
“That’s how working adults are.”
Though Yeoul’s face showed he wasn’t convinced, when Dawoon gently stroked his head, he didn’t talk back anymore.
He’s not even a beastman, yet he really likes human touch.
Perhaps because he grew up lonely, Yeoul loved skinship very much. Even when irritable or acting sensitive, he’d quickly become docile when Dawoon touched his head.
Dawoon hoped he would stay quietly like this. With that earnest wish, he stroked more carefully.
When he spread his palm wide and swept from the crown to the back of his head, Yeoul’s eyes relaxed.
He even leaned his cheek against Dawoon’s knee. A laugh burst out at the sight of him shaking his head left and right as if begging to be touched more.
Then Yeoul also smiled along with a grin. When the corners of his mouth, which were always drooping downward, gently rose upward, his already handsome appearance shone brightly.
Just like Ryu Taeha, who had a disgustingly large number of descriptions about being handsome, the youngest also had each of his features described with full devotion.
If Ryu Taeha was a perfectly textbook handsome man to the point of being disgusting to look at, this guy had boyish beauty. His eyes were big and his eyelashes were so long that a faint shadow fell whenever he closed his eyes.
A guy born so pretty. Dawoon admired Yeoul’s pretty face anew and looked at him carefully.
Maybe it’s because he’s the youngest. When his expression softened, he looked even younger. Though his build was large, looking at just his face, he still seemed like a child. His soft cheeks that still had boyish charm seemed to announce he was an age who’d worn a school uniform just two years ago.
Though this guy had never even worn that common school uniform…
“Why don’t you just get a room?”
Dawoon, who’d been patting Yeoul’s cheek with pity, raised his eyes. A clone of Ryu Taeha was walking over from the opposite direction of the barracks.
Though it was a clone, he looked exactly like the original and wore an annoying smile while looking at Dawoon and Yeoul sitting close together.
“Should I get you a room? I know a lot of good places.”
“What room?”
Dawoon covered Yeoul’s ears, which were showing interest in the Leader’s words, and jerked his chin toward the barracks.
“We don’t need it, so hurry and go to the meeting.”
Just like a womanizer pervert would. He had no words he couldn’t say in front of the young youngest.
“How cold.”
Ryu Taeha smirked while looking at Dawoon sharply showing his edge, then leisurely headed to the barracks.
“Let’s go inside too.”
Now Dawoon also tried to get up to attend the meeting. However, Yeoul grabbed his knee and wouldn’t let go.
“Is it because of Leader?”
At the out-of-the-blue question, Dawoon tilted his head.
“What is?”
“Your bad mood.”
Yeoul’s gaze fixed on Dawoon became even more persistent.
Dawoon was fully reflected in Yeoul’s eyes, which were clear and blue enough to be transparent, resembling his ability. Yeoul put more strength into the hand holding Dawoon and asked.
“You’ve been strange lately, hyung. It’s because of Leader, right?”
“What’s strange?”
Dawoon immediately denied without pausing at all. He’d suddenly entered the novel world—how could he not be strange? He naturally knew he was acting strangely, but he unconditionally pretended not to know.
“I said there’s no reason. I’ve been sensitive because it’s been hot lately.”
The moment Dawoon said it was hot, a cool water mist formed around him. Yeoul had created it.
“Honestly.”
Yeoul, who slowly raised his head, murmured while straightening his hunched shoulders.
“I wondered if you confessed to Leader and got rejected, hyung.”
A big question mark appeared on Dawoon’s face as he’d been observing his broad shoulders.
What is he saying right now?
“You like Leader, hyung.”
Yeoul spoke matter-of-factly, as if telling a story everyone in the world knew.
But there was no way Go Yeoul would know about Jeong Dawoon and Ryu Taeha’s relationship.
Jeong Dawoon’s secret one-sided love for Leader Ryu Taeha and the two of them spending heat cycles together in the empty dorm and guiding room were thoroughly hidden secrets.
The only one who knew Jeong Dawoon’s true feelings was Ryu Taeha.
The foolish Jeong Dawoon lived while preciously embracing that secret. While trapped in the delusion of having a movie-like love in a world of just the two of them.
Bewildered, Dawoon blinked while retracing the novel’s contents. Even though it should definitely be the content he knew, he wasn’t confident at all.
If he’d known this would happen, he shouldn’t have read it once and closed it—he should have read it about five times.
Since it was a novel focused on explicit scenes, there was a possibility he was misremembering the content because he’d read it roughly.
“Why are you so surprised? You always showed you liked him.”
I see. I didn’t know. Dawoon scratched his head and thought about what reaction to show.
“Now… I don’t like him.”
This seemed the cleanest approach. Since he said he’d shown it without knowing, it was awkward to insist he’d never liked him.
But for some reason, Yeoul’s expression became subtle.
“…Did you really like him?”
At the same time, Dawoon’s lips opened smoothly.
This bastard was testing me. Damn it. I underestimated him because he’s the youngest.
If he said no now, it would seem more suspicious, so Dawoon just scratched his head vigorously.
“I liked him briefly. Really briefly. I have absolutely no feelings now, so don’t ask.”
Yeoul was silent as if shocked. He wondered what was so surprising about it. Everyone in the novel liked Ryu Taeha, the protagonist, after all.
“You don’t now, right?”
“Yeah, I don’t. I don’t like him even a little.”
Dawoon confidently said he could bet his entire fortune on it. Only then did Yeoul’s expression gradually return to normal.
He deeply leaned his forehead on Dawoon’s knee. The corner of his mouth that was faintly visible was raised upward.
Little punk. Making me panic and then smiling.
He must have been worried that Jeong Dawoon might like the Leader. Since he was a guy with severe affection deficit, it was understandable he had a lot of jealousy.
He was someone who’d kill everyone just because he failed at a one-sided love—how could it be otherwise? Dawoon accepted Yeoul’s behavior of wanting to monopolize his attention as the youngest’s tantrum.
Anyway, it’s fortunate. The content is flowing as I remembered.
He stroked Yeoul’s head again, hoping no variables would arise. The story had to unfold as he knew it so he could prepare for the ending.
“Yeoul.”
At Dawoon’s call, Yeoul slightly turned his head and looked up at him with only one eye. Dawoon touched his hair even more carefully and casually brought it up.
“I’m saying this as your hyung, but it’s not cool if a person suddenly changes or acts violent just because they got rejected a little.”
He spoke while firmly pressing down his hope that he wouldn’t become a crazy villain from the wound of unrequited love in the future.
“There are so many people to love in the world.”
“There are?”
“Of course there are. If your first love fails, just find another love.”
He added pleasant praise, saying that since he was handsome, he’d be able to find a partner quickly.
It wasn’t just flattery. He actually had the solid body characteristic of Espers and the outstanding appearance of an alpha. He was charming enough to seduce anyone if he set his mind to it. Except for Ryu Jin, who was deeply in love with his hyung.
“How many are there?”
“Hm?”
“Who else do you like, hyung?”
Yeoul, who suddenly sat up straight, grabbed both of Dawoon’s wrists. Dawoon, whose arms were raised as if surrendering, widened his eyes.
“Is love that easy for you, hyung?”
The following words were so flustering that he didn’t even care about his own ridiculous posture.
“No, what I meant was—”
Just as Dawoon was about to elaborate, the screen attached to the barracks entrance fluttered greatly.
“You two. Save the lovers’ quarrel for later.”
Ryu Taeha, who came out of the barracks, gestured at Dawoon being held by Yeoul.
“Let’s go to the guiding room for a moment.”
“Why?”
What could it be when he’d only gone into the barracks for less than 10 minutes?
Ryu Taeha immediately used telekinesis to pull Dawoon over. He was hurrying in a way unlike himself.
Well, actually, even without asking, the reason was obvious. He pulled Dawoon into his arms and spoke in a serious voice.
“Ryu Jin got hurt.”
