FETCH 22

Had he once wished for Jaechan to awaken as a Guide?

Two years had passed, and at nineteen, Han Kang held thoughts that were entirely different from back then.

Throughout the duration of his guiding, Han Kang kept his expression hardened, feeling a sense of resistance against the energy that made his body feel refreshed.

The relationship between Espers and Guides that he witnessed at the Center was a sight to behold. To him, the way they couldn’t resist instinctive physical relations seemed no different from beasts.

Perhaps that was why.

As an Esper himself, Han Kang loathed the refreshment and the indescribable pleasure he was forced to feel every time he received guiding. Because of this, Han Kang tethered himself to the belief that the only thing capable of stabilizing him was his relationship with Jeon Jaechan, not this pathetic guiding.

As a result, he naturally became more obsessed with Jaechan. Whenever they met, he held his hand out of joy, and after receiving permission to stay out overnight, he deliberately slept while hugging him. He would kiss him and wrap his arms around his waist whenever there was a spare moment.

Jaechan, who had initially objected saying they shouldn’t do this, was recently being obedient again and engaging in physical affection with him. Occasionally, Jaechan would even kiss him first, or hold his hand when they walked together.

He couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief every time.

A whirlpool of emotions, completely different from when he had physical contact with Guides, certainly swirled in his chest. He was glad to be touching him, and that was only natural. To him, Jaechan was always the exception.

Even amidst that, he felt a sense of skepticism at his own self for instinctively craving the guiding he received after training. The only silver lining was that, so far, no Guide had shown a matching rate above the appropriate level, so he didn’t have a dedicated Guide.

Han Kang, who was constantly worried that he might see his own raw, bare self, hoped even more that Jaechan would not become a Guide. It was because he hoped that this sense of stability he felt and the mental attraction boiling toward him would not be replaced by a mere animal instinct.

“Did you say you’re staying out tonight?”

“Yes.”

“Are you going to see that friend again? Was it… Jaechan?”

“Yes.”

Han Kang answered bluntly, drawing a line with the Guide who was being kind to him. Since the person wasn’t his dedicated Guide, they didn’t even need to endure his behavior, but the counterpart simply laughed maturely as if they were already used to his defiant attitude.

Many changes had also occurred for Han Kang over the past years.

As he faithfully trained according to the schedule set by the Center and occasionally participated in competitions to win awards, his position had become quite solid before he knew it. The Center treated him like a precious gem and listened to almost everything he said. When he snapped out of it, he was in the middle of making a name for himself publicly as a high-profile Esper.

There was no pleasure in the fact that many things had changed. Even though his salary had increased, his bonus ratio had changed, and the prize money he received from each competition had reached a level where he no longer needed to work for money, he wasn’t particularly happy.

Han Kang left a formal “Thank you” to the Guide who pulled their hand out from under his clothes and stood up abruptly. After changing into daily clothes instead of the living uniform provided by the Center, he immediately prepared to go out.

Even though he was in his third year of high school, Jaechan, who had no great interest in studying, was constantly sending messages asking, “When are you coming out?” Seeing them, the mood that had been fluctuating until a moment ago became completely refreshed. His feet practically stomped in place on their own, wanting to get out quickly.

「Jaechan: When are you coming? I’m in front of the Center」

No way, he was in front of the Center already.

Han Kang stopped in the middle of grabbing his coat and hurriedly typed a reply on his phone.

「Going now!!!」

After typing three exclamation marks to convey his urgency, he left the dormitory without even saying goodbye to his team members gathered nearby. Behind his back, he heard the voice of Team Leader Kang Bichan asking where he was going, but he just waved his hand. Work reports were already finished anyway, and it was obvious the leader was asking even though he knew.

Jaechan, who was undergoing the handover procedure in front of the Center, looked quite used to it by now. Having done it a few times, he had adapted; he answered “Yes, yes” without really listening properly to this or that, while wearing a watch.

The moment he saw him, a smile spread across his lips. Han Kang steadied his heart, which was thumping cutely, and called out to him, “Honey.” At the familiar title, Jaechan whipped around and welcomed him with a smile, saying “Yeah,” as expected.

“So, are you sleeping at home today?”

“No, I’m going to sleep with you, honey.”

“Hey, why do you always sleep with me when your house is in the same complex?”

“I can’t?”

Han Kang smiled playfully and walked backward while facing Jaechan.

Another big competition was fast approaching. Once full-scale training began, he wouldn’t be able to see him properly, so he thought he should see him as much as possible like this. He constantly made eye contact with him and tried to capture him in his eyes one more time.

Then, whenever an obstacle appeared behind his back, he liked it when Jaechan grabbed him firmly and pulled him away. Jaechan, who had been chattering about things that happened at school all along, once again grabbed his forearm with a “Whoops” and pulled him sharply toward his side.

He could have withstood it if he wanted to, but Han Kang simply let himself fall into his arms as if collapsing. At that, Jaechan laughed loudly, saying it was absurd.

“Hey, you can’t even withstand this?”

“Was I supposed to?”

“Seriously… Get up.”

“Okay.”

Han Kang stood up with a grin. Even though they had only touched for a moment, his mood improved so much that he couldn’t control the corners of his mouth.

He wanted to hurry to his house, eat plenty of delicious food, and end the day feeling good. Han Kang gave sweet answers like “Yeah, yeah” to Jaechan, who was chattering about school stories he wasn’t even interested in.

Yes, he liked this trivial sense of stability. A special emotion that only he could feel when he was with Jaechan—something the adults simply dismissed as “being comfortable because you’re old friends.”

School without him seemed to be quite fun for Jaechan; seeing him look excited throughout his talking made Han Kang feel a bit grumpy. He had never once thought he wanted to go to school, but when he looked at Jaechan fluttering about in his school uniform, he pointlessly wanted to go to school too.

It was even more so because the only days he went were for midterms and finals.

He probably goes to the snack bar with other guys during break time, right? He’ll play soccer during lunch too. Since Jeon Jaechan was so active and popular among his friends, his school life was easy to imagine even without seeing it.

Is that why I’m jealous?

It was just as Han Kang was harboring a vague longing for a life he couldn’t enjoy.

“But it’s no fun because you’re not there.”

As if it really wasn’t fun, Jaechan’s expression sank in an instant. All interest vanished from the face that had been full of fun just a moment ago, replaced by an utterly indifferent expression.

“I want to be a Guide too.”

At the words that followed, Han Kang’s expression immediately hardened.

The stability he had felt while being with him just a moment ago fluctuated instantly, turning into a rough storm.

“Guide my foot, you just stay exactly as you are. What kind of half-baked Guide? I hate the idea of you becoming a Guide. Don’t be a Guide, okay? Absolutely no Guide, don’t even dream about it.”

He couldn’t even stop the harsh words from coming out of his mouth involuntarily.

“…What do you hate so much? I’m just saying it because I like being together.”

“Together or whatever, I hate it. I’m sick and tired of people linking Espers and Guides together, so why are you like this too?”

Regret naturally followed after he blindly poured out his heart to a bewildered Jaechan, but Han Kang didn’t bother to take those words back.

Han Kang really didn’t even want to imagine Jaechan becoming a Guide.

“Ah…”

Han Kang, recalling the series of events, let out a long sigh. In spite of the years he spent building his strength so the Center couldn’t force anything on him and building his public reputation, Jaechan had become a Guide.

He sincerely hoped he wouldn’t become a Guide, and he told him several times not to do so, so he hated Jaechan for breaking that. Of course, whether it was his will or not, he kept feeling grumpy at Jaechan, who was just happy without knowing how he felt.

Han Kang, who had been lying down looking at the ceiling, rolled over to face the wall. He was now afraid of what would happen if he ended up craving him while purely swept away by desire. He had prided himself on the fact that the feelings he had for him were of a different nature than those he showed toward other Guides, but the line he had drawn so clearly was now trapping him.

“Fuck…”

Muttering a curse quietly, Han Kang squeezed his eyes shut.

He had made a huge fuss to have him attached as his dedicated Guide because he couldn’t stand seeing him have physical contact with others, but he felt utterly lost about what to do in the future.

The fact that he could no longer comfortably enjoy the daily kisses or the physical affection that had been getting deeper, and the fear of a future where he would push himself while feeling stability from him, were simply daunting.