* * *
He’d always stood by Yeongdeok, even when there was nothing to gain.
He’d probably go on living, easily deceived, as long as someone showed him a bit of kindness.
But why did his vision start to blur?
Yeongdeok felt an unusual warmth rising to his eyes.
“Make the choice that truly speaks to your heart, hyung. That’s all I want.”
Jihoon’s large hand covered Yeongdeok’s cheek.
Yeongdeok closed his eyes briefly, then opened them, clasping Jihoon’s hand.
The moment he embraced his true feelings, his decision became clear.
“I… I can’t accept a confession from an idiot like you. Your stupidity might be contagious.”
“That’s fine. As long as that’s how you really feel.”
Jihoon’s hand slid slowly away from Yeongdeok’s cheek, leaving a faint, aching sensation as if he could still feel Jihoon’s touch.
“So I got rejected in the end.”
“Am I supposed to say sorry in a situation like this?”
Yeongdeok recalled a scene from a novel where a character apologized after rejecting someone.
But Jihoon waved off the idea.
“There’s no need for you to apologize. I’m the one who put you in this position. Confessing was my selfish desire.”
With a sigh of release, Jihoon stretched his body, finally standing up from the bench where he had been sitting for a long time.
Yeongdeok’s expression softened as he watched Jihoon try to act like nothing had happened.
Seeing this, Jihoon’s expression shifted as well.
“Don’t make that face. It doesn’t suit you, hyung.”
“What face am I making?”
“The kind of face that makes it look like you’re the one who got rejected.”
Jihoon patted Yeongdeok’s shoulder, saying that a face like that didn’t suit him and that he should try smiling confidently instead.
“I’ll go ahead now. And, hyung.”
Jihoon took a step forward, as if to leave, but kept his body turned toward Yeongdeok.
“Thank you.”
He whispered his thanks quietly and walked away, never once looking back or stopping.
Even after Jihoon left, Yeongdeok stayed seated on the bench, gazing blankly at the setting sun.
As he did, Jihoon’s eyes came to mind.
He sat there, mulling over Jihoon’s words and expressions, until it got dark and moths began to cluster around the park lights.
Finally, he took out his phone.
Scrolling through his chats with Seonwoo, he found the phone number that Seonwoo had once sent in an open chatroom.
For the first and likely the last time, he decided to call.
After three rings, the line connected, and Seonwoo’s soft voice came through the phone.
“Hello?”
When Yeongdeok didn’t respond, Seonwoo asked who it was.
After another silence, Seonwoo guessed.
“Cha Yeongdeok? Is that you, Yeongdeok?”
“How did you know?”
“I haven’t given my number to many people… If it’s not a scam call, then it must be you.”
“I see.”
“Did you call because of what happened at the hospital earlier? I guess you made up your mind quickly.”
Seonwoo let out a hollow laugh, like he was trying to ease the tension.
Before Yeongdeok spoke, he called Seonwoo’s name softly and seriously.
“Seonwoo.”
“Don’t be so serious. It’s making me nervous.”
Seonwoo laughed again, but it gradually faded, as if he knew what Yeongdeok was about to say.
A heavy silence lingered over the call.
Finally, Seonwoo spoke first, his voice resigned.
“To be honest, I already knew. That you weren’t interested in me.”
“…….”
“I’ve liked you for a long time, but your gaze has never once rested on me.”
Seonwoo’s voice began to tremble as he confessed he had always watched Yeongdeok, hoping that one day he would see only him.
“But you were always kind to me, and that made me start hoping. I wished that, just once, I would be the only one in your eyes.”
Hearing those words, Yeongdeok let out a small sigh into the empty air, feeling an odd heaviness in his chest.
“Cha Yeongdeok, you’re cruel and heartless to the very end.”
“If you want to resent me, feel free. I’ll take it all—anger, hatred, everything.”
Maybe this would turn his relationship with Seonwoo into something dark, like the original story.
But Yeongdeok said it sincerely.
“Fine. I’ll hate you. I’ll hate you till the day I die.”
“Are you… crying?”
Seonwoo didn’t respond, but a faint sniffle reached Yeongdeok’s ears.
He quietly offered his apology.
“I’m sorry.”
“If you’re sorry….”
Seonwoo began to say something, then fell silent.
Yeongdeok waited patiently, but Seonwoo cut himself off.
“It’s nothing. It hurts more now than when I woke up from surgery.”
“…….”
“Let’s hang up.”
The call ended.
Yeongdeok wondered if he’d done the right thing by rejecting Seonwoo.
Usually so sure of himself, he now found himself questioning his choices.
The uncertainty filled his mind.
Just then, his phone rang.
He thought it might be Jihoon or Seonwoo, but it wasn’t.
It was a man who’d stayed at his place a few days ago after getting drunk.
He picked up the call from the clueless caller.
“Hey, Yeongdeok, if you’re free, do you want to hang out again today…?”
“Get lost.”
“Huh?”
“I’d prefer if you never contacted me again.”
Without a second thought, Yeongdeok ended the call.
He didn’t fully understand what it meant to be true to himself yet, but he felt certain that following his own heart, unbound by anything else, was the most natural way forward.
“Thanks to today’s filming, I got to know you a lot better, author. It was a meaningful experience.”
“Haha, it’s nothing.”
“And that’s all for our special guest, the renowned writer Petit Rorand! Thank you!”
As the MC wrapped up, the panelists on stage clapped enthusiastically.
The show’s main PD nodded, pleased.
“Good, cut! With Petit Rorand as our guest, this episode’s ratings should be a hit.”
Roran, a popular author now appearing on a public network show, tried to hold back the ache in his cheeks from forced smiling.
Just as he left the set, the MC came up with a piece of paper.
“I’m actually a huge fan. Could I please get your autograph?”
“Sure….”
Without enthusiasm, Roran scribbled a line on the paper and handed it over.
He knew it didn’t matter how he signed it; the MC would treasure it either way.
“T-thank you so much.”
As expected, the MC stammered with joy.
“Don’t mention it.”
Roran waved dismissively and walked away.
Watching from the side, one of the other panelists muttered to the MC.
“For such a famous writer, he’s got an ego. How hard is it to give a real autograph?”
“He could’ve just said he was busy. This seems like basic courtesy.”
Roran didn’t know that with Eungyeol, Jihoon, and Seonwoo all veering from the original plot, this novel was slowly ceasing to be just a story.
After a busy schedule, Roran got into his sleek sports car, the twenty-first one he owned, and leaned back, exhausted.
“Being on a broadcast as a popular author was a dream of mine, so I tried it once, but damn, it’s tough. I don’t think just anyone can handle being a celebrity.”
With a click of his tongue, Roran picked up No to obsession, which he’d been neglecting lately while spending time out and about with his supercar.
He read through the current story developments.
Yeongdeok, who always acted in a contrived way while thinking, ‘Cha Dowon would never do something like this.’ ‘What kind of obsessive love-interest character would act this way?’ was now experiencing an emotional transformation, gradually breaking away from the rigid mold of “Cha Dowon.”
Just as if he was proving that this wasn’t the dream Roran had assumed it was.
For a moment, Roran couldn’t shake the feeling that Yeongdeok seemed less like a figment of his imagination and more like a real, living person.
[System: The main characters have begun to deviate from the original plot.]
[System: -Warning-]
[System: Synchronization with the original work is now at 14 percent.]
It was then that the warning windows from the system finally started to catch his attention.
Still, Roran remained in denial.
After all, this was just a dream—a dream based on his novel.
Otherwise, how could a system window appear before his eyes like this?
How could he perform anything he desired as if by magic?
It was far too surreal to be reality.
“Yeah, it’s a dream… just a dream.”
Roran muttered the same words over and over.
At last, a sense of calm replaced the unease that had taken root in his heart.
Translator: There are still 60 chapters left before this novel ends. Maybe, I will be able to finish it all by the end of the year.
* * *
Ahhhhhh???!??!
Goddammit my heart! What is this?!
He made a great decision though. He’s at a point where he doesn’t know what to do anymore and lost all of his goals and totally lost sight of himself. Yep, its true that he can’t accept any of those feelings at this point till he comes to terms with himself.
I can see it now… once he knows what he wants, is there anyone that could stop him? I am secretly hoping he will use the same obsessive line he used as Cha Dowon on the person he ends up choosing 🤭
I really like his answer
Only 60 chapter left 🥲this has been a fun story. Still on team jihoon, he is a sweetie!
14%? that’s still a lot.
my heart is breaking for jihoon, we can all see that yeongdeok feels something for him but just doesnt understand it
Thanks