Chapter 93 – The Price of a Misjudgment
The scheme to subtly lure Yoon Ki-hyun into his home had failed miserably. It just meant that even if he had backed down, Yoon Ki-hyun was still Yoon Ki-hyun.
Jeong Si-jun stood in the center of the living room, which he hadn’t visited in a while, and let out a sigh.
“Sigh…”
At first, he had considered this house natural and unremarkable, but the aftermath of his delusions—imagining that Yoon Ki-hyun might stay here—was quite significant.
Otherwise, there was no reason for the house to feel exceptionally empty today. No matter how he thought about it, the place was too large for one person.
‘Isn’t this place better than that tiny gosiwon? No matter how I look at it.’
Even if he were lucky enough to succeed in changing Yoon Ki-hyun’s mind and dating him, cohabitation might be harder than he thought.
As Yoon Ki-hyun had admitted himself, he had a severe inferiority complex copy" style="display:none;" aria-label="unauthorized copy">unauthorized copyregarding financial matters, and he was the type of person who would rather die than depend on others.
‘How on earth am I supposed to seduce someone who doesn’t even pretend to listen when I beg to be used?’
He was doing his best to seduce him whenever he could force the opportunity, but he couldn’t tell if it was working. He couldn’t shake the thought that Yoon Ki-hyun might only be acting soft toward him out of a sense of pity.
Just as he was pushing aside the task of organizing the suitcase he’d stuffed with the belongings that had gradually accumulated during his hospitalization, and was pondering how to win over Yoon Ki-hyun, the notification chime rang, signaling someone was calling from the lobby.
Since he hadn’t ordered any food and only his family knew where he lived, Jeong Si-jun frowned as he checked the monitor. Sure enough, an obnoxious face appeared.
“Ugh, why is it Jung Si-taek?”
After a brief grumble, he opened the door. Shortly after, Jung Si-taek arrived via the elevator and knocked on the door.
“Gosh, are you crazy? You’re not some thug coming to collect a private loan.”
“This brat has no filter when talking to his brother. Even if our family were thugs, we’d handle our money business cleanly. Knocking like this is illegal debt collection, you brat.”
“Ugh, whatever. Why are you here?”
Jeong Si-jun asked as he let the fiercely grinning Jung Si-taek inside.
“I heard you were discharged, so I came by out of brotherly duty.”
“You didn’t even show your face while I was in the hospital, and now you come?”
“Ah, I had some slightly busy business in the meantime. Personally.”
Seeing him smile while revealing his canines in that obnoxious way, it was clear he had found the whereabouts of his runaway lover.
“That lover who ran away?”
“Run away? Please. He was just being a bit active with his tantrums. My Seo-chan isn’t that kind of guy, man.”
“Ugh, I’m gonna throw up.”
The thought of having to listen to his brother’s love life, [Read [Read on Read BL Novels]on Read BL Novels]which he had zero interest in, made his vision go dark.
“Then go be with your amazing lover. Why come here and make a fuss? Now that you’ve confirmed I’m healthy, just leave.”
He waved his hand as if shooing away a peddler, but Jung Si-taek ignored the youngest’s request to leave and made himself at home, crossing his legs in the center of the living room sofa.
“I have to give our Chan some time alone occasionally. That’s how he stays fresh. By the way, how’s that one doing lately?”
“That one?”
“Your Guide, man. You didn’t get dumped in the meantime, did you?”
“Ah…”
He hadn’t been dumped yet, but it wasn’t as if the relationship between the two was smooth. However, to reveal every little detail…
‘Not to my brother.’
Jung Si-taek was not the right person for relationship counseling.
He felt it would be better to talk to the eldest brother than to seek advice from a man whose lovers frequently ran away.
“Ah, well, it’s still kind of ambiguous. But is Si-ho hyung in Korea these days?”
When Jeong Si-jun subtly shifted the topic, Jung Si-taek tilted his head.
“Yeah, come to think of it, he came back to Korea the day before yesterday. Wait a second. You little shit, are you subtly changing the subject?”
“Ah, getting relationship advice from you is just…”
“So Si-ho hyung is okay, but I’m not? What am I lacking? I’ve dated ten times more than you have.”
“But all your lovers run away. You do. Si-ho hyung would be better for counseling.”
The eldest son, Jung Si-ho, was a renowned romantic of the Jung family who had succeeded in a love marriage. Although he had lost his wife in a tragic accident, he had since raised their daughter alone and continued to miss her.
“…Then should I ask Si-ho hyung to come if he’s not busy? [visit our site[stolen content]style="font-size:0;position:absolute;left:-9999px;">]visit our site -->Ye-on is probably out playing with friends right now.”
At the control-freak tendency of knowing even his niece’s schedule, Jeong Si-jun shook his head and replied.
“Do whatever.”
A moment later, after receiving a reply from the eldest, Jung Si-taek smiled coolly.
“Hyung says he’s coming.”
Jeong Si-jun scratched his forehead at the sudden brothers’ gathering. Still, since they had lived much longer than he had, he figured he could pick up at least one useful piece of advice.
As he thought this, Jeong Si-jun glanced at Jung Si-taek’s phone. It was clearly a CCTV feed. From what he could see, some man was vigorously smashing things inside Jung Si-taek’s house.
“Is that the Seo-chan you mentioned?”
“Yeah. My lover’s temper is amazing, right?”
“…”
Instead of answering, Jeong Si-jun quietly stood up. He vowed to himself that no matter what, he must never take Jung Si-taek’s relationship advice to heart.
The gathering of the Jung brothers, which took place late at night, had a surprisingly cozy atmosphere.
When Jeong Si-jun ordered delivery food, claiming he was hungry, the two older brothers complained about the menu selection but proceeded to eat the food heartily.
“…So, in short, it’s that.”
Jung Si-taek, chewing on sweet and sour pork, muttered with a smirk.
“You’re suffering like this because you ran your mouth wrong a few times, isn’t that it?”
“…Yeah.”
He wanted to refute it, but the description wasn’t wrong, and he didn’t have the confidence to explain it any other way, so Jeong Si-jun simply nodded.
“Hmm.”
Jung Si-ho, the eldest of the family, who had been listening silently to Jeong Si-jun’s explanation, picked up a piece of flatfish sushi and spoke.
“Even from my perspective, you’ve made many mistakes with that friend. From what you’ve said, he seems to be someone with quite a strong sense of pride, but because you keep trying to solve everything with money as you always do, things keep clashing.”
The low voice pointing out the mistake was strict, befitting the eldest. Since Jeong Si-jun also acknowledged his faults, he nodded repeatedly instead of making excuses.
“And just what kind of logic is it to offer settlement money every time you feel sorry? Is that a settlement? That’s just throwing money around.”
Following Jung Si-ho’s critique, Jung Si-taek chuckled mockingly, causing Jeong Si-jun’s expression to distort.
“No, then what am I supposed to do? My image is already ruined; is there anything else I can do to earn points other than throwing money around?”
“Sigh, you brat. That’s why you’re failing. You should have stayed close to him, becoming a source of support when he was struggling and hurting, and then thrown the money around. Do you really think someone looks sane when they say, ‘I’m sorry. I’m so damn sorry that I’ll give you money whenever it comes to mind’ from the start?”
Just as Jeong Si-jun was about to roll his eyes at Jung Si-taek’s blatant sarcasm…
“Jun.”
Jung Si-ho, who had been quietly watching the argument between his two younger brothers, called the youngest.
“…Yeah.”
“Don’t listen to Si-taek. From what I’ve heard, you’ve also undergone one-sided imprinting with that friend.”
“Yeah.”
“As far as I know, once you’ve awakened as an Esper, that’s a problem you have to carry for the rest of your life, even if you quit the Center.”
“…”
“Then that means that friend is the one holding your lifeline.”
In truth, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the lifeline had been held even before the one-sided imprinting.
Thanks to Jeong Si-jun’s peculiar constitution, which was exceptionally picky, Yoon Ki-hyun was the BEGIN: visit our site -->visit our siteonly person among all the Guides affiliated with Centers nationwide who could perform a proper purification.
“Jun, how much can you let go for the person holding your lifeline?”
Jung Si-ho’s low question settled heavily in the spacious living room. Jeong Si-jun chewed over the eldest brother’s question and asked back.
“What do you mean by ‘let go’?”
“Your personality, where mean words fly out at the drop of a hat; that pride of yours, thinking you’re the best because you grew up being pampered.”
“…I’m already groveling like a man with no spine.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about.”
A stern gaze turned toward Jeong Si-jun. Instead of glaring back, Jeong Si-jun only pouted.
Even if he was an S-class Esper who acted however he pleased at the Center, in front of his eldest brother—who was more than twelve years his senior—and his violent second brother, he was unmistakably the baby of the family.
“I’m asking if you have the resolve to not act like Si-taek over there, even if things go [unauthorized copystyle="font-size:0;position:absolute;left:-9999px;">]wrong and that friend’s choice isn’t what you wanted.”
“…”
“If you don’t have that intention, don’t harass that friend too much. From my perspective, unilaterally pushing yourself onto someone you like without that level of resolve is also a cruel thing to do.”
Jung Si-ho’s words felt like a blow to the back of his head.
After the gathering continued a bit longer and Jeong Si-jun saw his brothers off—almost kicking them out—he sat on the sofa and thought.
‘…I feel like I’ve been hit by something.’
When this sweet and anxious grace period ends, if Yoon Ki-hyun does not accept his feelings, would he be able to respect his choice without lingering attachment?
To be honest, he wasn’t confident.
His first instinct was to demand what was wrong with his offer or to lie down on the floor and tell him to think again; respect my foot.
As he thought this, Jeong Si-jun began [visit [unauthorized copy]our site]style="position:absolute;left:-9999px;font-size:0;">[Read on Read BL Novels]to agonize deeply over whether it was truly okay to keep pushing himself onto Yoon Ki-hyun.
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