The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 125
“Hey… why would that mean I like you, no, wait…”
Cha Eui-jae swiftly swallowed the curse that was about to escape. He wanted to treat Lee Sa-young as kindly as possible, but it was proving difficult. Lee Sa-young, who had stepped forward to face Cha Eui-jae, blinked and tilted his head slightly.
“Why?”
“Move your… face out of the way.”
“Do you not like me?”
His long eyelashes fluttered. Cha Eui-jae gritted his teeth. In his mind, the rude Lee Sa-young and the kind bandaged boy were clashing violently. He knew they were the same person, that Lee Sa-young had gone through many things, and had waited a long time for his return. He was grateful and touched by the promise kept without any certainty. But…
‘Lee Sa-young’s first impression… was not great.’
The memory that floated to the surface was of Lee Sa-young in a gas mask, beating up people in an alleyway. Not to mention the image of him flipping his middle finger with attitude, persistently following him.
‘This is why they say first impressions are important…’
Cha Eui-jae looked at Lee Sa-young with an ambiguous expression. Of course, he wasn’t looking too good back then either, so their first impressions of each other must have been equally terrible. A meeting of crazy people, perhaps. Cha Eui-jae found himself starting to self-reflect. And then,
When no answer came, Lee Sa-young’s lips twisted slightly. He murmured in a gloomy tone.
“No answer, huh…”
“No, I do like you. Of course I like you.”
It was a response that came out mechanically, like a customer service line. Of course, there was no way Lee Sa-young would be satisfied with such a robotic answer. He glared at Cha Eui-jae with a defiant posture.
But with the mindset of a well-meaning part-timer like Cha Eui-jae, there was no way he could keep up with Lee Sa-young’s logical leaps. Lee Sa-young was someone who, with a single word, could completely disorient a long-awaited reunion with an old colleague.
‘Damn, he really is multi-talented.’
Alright, let’s calm down. Cha Eui-jae took a short, deep breath. This was the boy he had been searching for. He must have gone through a lot of tough times. Cha Eui-jae decided to exercise a little patience. He grabbed Lee Sa-young’s black hand, which was fidgeting with his mask, and asked a question, doing his best to soften it.
“What kind of thought process leads to that conclusion?”
Of course, despite his efforts, it didn’t soften much.
“Huh? Ah…”
Lee Sa-young withdrew his glaring gaze and shrugged his shoulders.
“You didn’t plan on meeting Jung Bin like this, did you? Even if you did, it wouldn’t have been now, right?”
That was true. If Lee Sa-young hadn’t been avoiding conversations like a slippery fish, he wouldn’t have had to face Jung Bin alone. He would have gone to see him after more time had passed. Lee Sa-young slowly continued speaking.
“But despite that, you went out of your way to contact Jung Bin, and not just for any reason… you asked about me.”
His violet eyes stared intently at Cha Eui-jae. Then, his eyes narrowed into a sly smile.
“That means you were curious about me. Right?”
“…”
“And that curiosity came from interest…”
Lee Sa-young slightly tilted his chin up as if to say, “Am I right?” He looked like a cat proudly showing off a prey it had caught. Cha Eui-jae lightly patted him on the back, then clasped his hands behind his back.
“Yeah, well… let’s say that’s true. And also…”
Cha Eui-jae glanced behind Lee Sa-young. The creaking sound of the spring had quieted down. It seemed that the repairs had been successfully completed, and Seo Min-gi was now lounging on the pig-shaped rocking horse, tapping away on his phone. Sensing the gaze, Seo Min-gi looked up, and their eyes met.
“Oh.”
Seo Min-gi let out a short exclamation and pulled out a pair of headphones from his inventory, putting them on. He nodded slightly.
“Think of me as if I’m not here and continue your conversation. I’m about to embark on a journey into the world of rock.”
“Ah, yes. Please go ahead.”
“Then I’ll see you later. If you have any instructions, please contact me via phone.”
“Alright. You can go.”
“By the way, just so you know, dear customer, Romantic Opener is completely knocked out, so you don’t have to worry about him. See you.”
As if to prove his words true, Seo Min-gi started nodding his head rhythmically to the music. Soon, he seemed to melt into the shadows. Romantic Opener was left slumped over on the seesaw. He looked so lifeless that one might have thought he was dead, but the steady rise and fall of his back indicated he was still alive.
‘…Yeah, if he’s knocked out, I guess it doesn’t matter.’
Cha Eui-jae turned his gaze away, pretending not to see, and looked at Lee Sa-young again. Lee Sa-young still hadn’t taken his eyes off him. When their eyes met, a smile appeared on his delicate face.
After choosing his words carefully, Cha Eui-jae let out a deep sigh.
‘As expected, I’m no good at beating around the bush.’
In the end, he decided to be straightforward.
“Let’s just talk openly. Every time I ask you something, you dodge the question, and we’re not getting anywhere.”
“…”
“Don’t avoid it this time.”
Lee Sa-young didn’t respond. The shadows on his face shifted with every flicker of the streetlight. The orange glow of the streetlamp flared for a moment, deepening the shadows. The shaded, handsome face took on a somber hue. Cha Eui-jae slowly continued speaking.
“Jung Bin gave me a rough idea, Lee Sa-young, from the moment you awakened until now. But there are things that only you know.”
Lee Sa-young, despite having dodged conversations before, nodded calmly.
“Well… that’s true.”
“We have a lot to talk about. There’s a lot I want to say, and a lot I need to hear.”
“…”
“Tell me everything that happened to you after I went into the rift.”
If Lee Sa-young had been waiting for Cha Eui-jae all this time.
He wanted to hear everything that had happened. He wanted to know all about the past eight years he hadn’t been there for. He wanted to share the burden and pain that Lee Sa-young had carried alone, hoping it might serve as a small atonement for not being there to protect him.
But Lee Sa-young…
“Why?”
“What?”
Lee Sa-young’s expression was genuinely puzzled.
Cha Eui-jae’s eyes widened. It was an entirely unexpected response. Lee Sa-young, with his arms crossed, stared at Cha Eui-jae intently. His eyes narrowed. Then he sighed lightly and tapped his arm with his fingers.
“I expected this from you, Hyung, but…”
“…”
“But actually seeing it happen…”
Lee Sa-young muttered, deep in thought.
“It doesn’t feel good.”
Why?
His chest tightened. Cha Eui-jae had heard plenty of insults to his face and behind his back, but this wasn’t harsh at all, and yet his heart sank like a stone. Unable to overcome the mysterious emotion, Cha Eui-jae clenched his fist. His short nails dug into his palm.
Lee Sa-young slowly began to speak.
“If you had told me to listen to your story… I would have gladly listened.”
“…”
“I would’ve liked it. I’m curious about the time you spent in the rift.”
“But then why…”
The words slipped out before he could stop them. Lee Sa-young raised an eyebrow.
“Let me ask you something instead.”
“…What?”
“Why are you curious about my past? I’m not being sarcastic; I really want to know the reason.”
Lee Sa-young spread his arms wide.
“The person you were looking for is right in front of you.”
“Well…”
Lee Sa-young, who had been dragged into Prometheus’ research facility during the time Cha Eui-jae was in the West Sea rift. They must have subjected Lee Sa-young to all sorts of experiments to turn him into an artificial awakener. Even the files from the Odaesan research facility gave him a rough idea of the kind of experiments he must have undergone.
It was unforgivable.
Cha Eui-jae opened his mouth to speak.
“While I was in the West Sea rift…”
“No.”
Lee Sa-young cut him off firmly.
“That premise is wrong.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
Cha Eui-jae snapped back sharply. Lee Sa-young ran his fingers through his hair, exposing his pale forehead through his parted bangs. He muttered almost to himself.
“I knew it would come to this…”
“Speak clearly. Don’t beat around the bush.”
“My past isn’t something you need to worry about, Hyung.”
It was an absurd claim. Cha Eui-jae gritted his teeth. And then, spitting the words out one by one, he asked.
“Why isn’t it something I should care about? While I wasn’t there, you…”
“It’s something that happened a long time ago…”
Lee Sa-young took a step closer. His black hand reached out as if to cover Cha Eui-jae’s face. Cha Eui-jae neither pushed the hand away nor dodged it. His body instinctively knew that the hand posed no threat to him. The hand gently removed the mask. Now, their eyes met with nothing between them. Lee Sa-young’s lips parted slightly.
“It’s not something you need to take responsibility for. I told you that in the dungeon too.”
In the shaking and crumbling dungeon, what had Lee Sa-young said back then? Fortunately, it came to him quickly.
“You act as if you have to take responsibility for everything and solve all problems by yourself.”
But this is different, isn’t it? Cha Eui-jae muttered only to himself. Lee Sa-young was Cha Eui-jae’s only success. The person he had saved, the person he had kept alive. The one he had resolved to protect, no matter what.
A special person.
“You’re telling me not to take responsibility for you? When I…”
Only now could he understand the nature of the strange emotion he was feeling. Cha Eui-jae was…
“For you…”
He was hurt.
Then, a black hand gently cupped Cha Eui-jae’s cheek.
“It’s really nice that you think about me and are curious about me, but…”
“…”
“I don’t want that to turn into a responsibility.”
A soft voice whispered.
“A relationship where one person takes responsibility for the other isn’t equal, is it?”
“…”
“I want an equal relationship, J.”
