* * *
“Hyung!”
“…Jin Siwon?”
“Why do you look so startled?”
Junhee bit back the words that nearly escaped: ‘I thought it might be someone else.’
“What are you doing here?”
“Well, uh… I had something to tell you.”
Siwon was uncharacteristically hesitant, fumbling over his words.
“You could’ve just called or texted.”
“You’re always busy. And it’s something I felt needed to be said in person. Oh! I found a great restaurant nearby. You haven’t had dinner yet, have you? Wanna eat together?”
What could he possibly want to say, waiting outside his company like this?
Normally, Junhee might have considered listening over a meal, if only to acknowledge the effort.
But tonight…
“Sorry, I’m too tired right now.”
He didn’t have the energy for long-winded explanations to spare someone’s feelings.
His mind was already overloaded, incapable of accommodating someone else’s concerns.
As Junhee walked past Siwon, Siwon called after him.
“Hyung, wait!”
He chased after Junhee, his steps quick and determined.
“Please, just a moment. I won’t take up much time. An hour… No, just thirty minutes. Can you spare that?”
Crossing the blinking crosswalk, Siwon kept up persistently.
Usually, he wasn’t this oblivious, but today, he was unusually insistent.
Junhee ignored him and stepped onto the sidewalk.
But he froze at the next words that came.
“It’s something my mom asked me to tell you…”
The mention of “mom” made Junhee falter, his resistance crumbling in an instant.
“So, what’s the favor?”
Even before the food arrived, Junhee asked Siwon, who sat across from him.
Siwon rolled his eyes in a way that didn’t suit his broad frame.
Whatever the issue was, Junhee decided to wait patiently, especially since Siwon’s mother, the principal, had also been involved.
“Well… it’s… uh…”
The server entered just then, bringing their meals and unintentionally giving Siwon some relief.
“Hyung, let’s eat first. This place is super famous, you know? Have you ever been here with your colleagues?”
Junhee, knowing full well that eating in his current state would only lead to indigestion, simply picked at his salad.
“Come on, eat something, Hyung. You’ll collapse at this rate. Remember in high school? You were always fainting and getting nosebleeds because you studied too hard. Don’t work too hard at your job either. Just take it easy.”
To think that his complexion looked bad enough to get such advice from a 20-year-old kid who hadn’t even experienced working life yet… Junhee felt a pang of self-reproach.
“Enough. Just get to the point already…”
“I’m thinking of taking a leave of absence after this semester.”
“…What? Why?”
Junhee, who couldn’t care less about anything unrelated to “Mom’s favor,” couldn’t help but press further this time.
Could the favor actually be about stopping Siwon from taking a leave of absence?
But knowing Siwon’s mother, she’d more likely respect his decision and cheer him on than try to stop him.
“Why are you so surprised? Everyone takes time off these days. I just want to take a semester or maybe a year to figure things out, try things I’ve always wanted to do, and travel a bit.”
“Is it because of money? The tuition?”
“Oh, come on. It’s not that. It’s just… I feel like I don’t have anything I’m particularly good at. And I need to start planning for the future.”
“Jin Siwon, you’re good at everything when it comes to sports.”
Siwon had always excelled at physical activities—basketball, soccer, high jump, running, even judo and taekwondo.
He was a black belt.
Junhee, who had always struggled to run even a single lap around the track, couldn’t help but marvel at how gifted Siwon was.
Despite the compliment, Siwon only shrugged indifferently.
“I’m not exceptional at anything. I might do okay at regional competitions, but I never place at nationals.”
“That’s because you always give up halfway. You quit because you’re bored before seeing anything through.”
“Hyung, you’re so blunt sometimes, you know that?”
Raising his eyebrows as if asking, ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’, Siwon sighed and replied.
“I was younger back then. My pride wouldn’t let me admit it, but… do you know how it feels to face kids in competitions who are absolute monsters?”
“…”
“It’s like… no matter how many times I’m reborn, I’d never be able to beat them. That thought hits me every single time I step onto the field. I try my best, give it my all, but I know—even if I put in hundreds of times more effort—I’ll never win. And those kids? They dominate every sport. All of them are top-tier Alphas.”
A bitter smile crossed Siwon’s face, shadowing it.
“You… enjoy teaching kids, though.”
“Yeah, I do. But even that felt like an excuse to run away. That’s why I chose sports education—it seemed easier. I wasn’t expecting much, but it turned out to be fun. Still… if I keep going like this, I feel like I’ll just become a mediocre nobody. So I want to take this chance to figure out what I really want to do.”
At some point, Junhee had set his chopsticks down and was staring at Siwon intently.
Beneath his freshly cropped hair, his tanned skin glowed with health.
The way he spoke thoughtfully about his future felt surprisingly mature, almost unfamiliar.
“…You’ve grown up a lot, Jin Siwon.”
“Wow. Took you long enough to notice? I only act childish around you, Hyung. I’m actually a full-fledged adult now. My mental age might even be higher than yours.”
Junhee instantly regretted his compliment when he saw Siwon puff up his shoulders in exaggerated pride.
Still, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride in return.
“Alright, just eat.”
“What about you, though? Why aren’t you eating?”
Junhee was about to explain that his stomach felt unsettled when Siwon’s phone buzzed on the table.
Naturally, Junhee glanced at the screen, but Siwon quickly snatched the phone away as if hiding something.
“Hyung, I’ll just take this call real quick.”
Then, without waiting for a response, he scurried out of the room.
The way he acted made Junhee suspicious.
Sure, everyone has secrets they don’t want to share.
But Siwon?
He was the type to spill everything to Junhee rather than keep anything hidden.
‘Could he be dating someone?’
That might explain why he’d been less communicative lately.
Junhee’s gaze wandered to the table’s corner, where the bill sat.
Siwon had insisted on treating, bragging about his generous paycheck from his part-time job.
But it was still a hefty sum for a student.
Junhee debated sneaking out to pay while Siwon was distracted, but leaving the table unattended could lead to a misunderstanding.
Just then, the door opened.
“You’re back quick.”
Junhee hastily pushed the bill to the side as Siwon reentered.
But Siwon’s expression was… strange.
“Hyung… about that…”
“What? What happened?”
Could his “lover” have demanded to meet him immediately?
“I… uh, ran into someone on the way back.”
Junhee’s eyes shifted behind Siwon, noticing a large figure obscured by his broad frame.
When Junhee motioned for Siwon to move aside, Siwon reluctantly stepped to the side.
From behind him emerged…
“Junhee…”
A gaunt woman with her head bowed low, as if burdened by guilt.
“Jin Siwon. You’ve got to be kidding me…”
Junhee’s words slipped out, laced with venom, before his brain could even process the situation.
Without another thought, he shot to his feet, ready to storm out, but Siwon grabbed his arm in a panic.
“Hyung, please wait! She just wants a moment—just one moment!”
“Damn it, Jin Siwon. You’ve been waiting outside my office for this? Don’t tell me this is just some ‘coincidence’!”
“Hyung, I’m sorry for lying! I really am! But she promised it’d just be for a second! Calm down and—”
Siwon clung to Junhee’s arm, his face etched with desperation.
Junhee glared at him, his expression cold and unforgiving.
“You had no right to do this to me. Not you.”
As the feeling of betrayal surged, Junhee forced it down, his throat stinging in protest.
Who else even knew about Junhee’s circumstances?
Just the orphanage director and Siwon, really.
And Siwon was an orphanage sibling, someone who shared the same plight.
So how could he?
How could he bring that woman—the mother who abandoned him—right in front of him, even lying to make it happen?
Junhee’s head throbbed as the blood rushed to his face.
* * *
