ACTSV chapter 77

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While Jinwoo and Soohyuk were subtly clashing, Wonbeom was indulging in his own desires.

“…Do you happen to have a pet?”

“No.”

“Then why do you keep touching my head?”

By now, whenever he met Jingyeom, his hand instinctively went to Jingyeom’s head.

It was different from the first time when it felt like he was just tapping it.

Now, he genuinely caressed it softly.

Jingyeom shook his head left and right to escape the large hand, as his carefully styled hair from the morning was now a mess.

“I spent a lot of time on my hair!”

Wonbeom moved his hand, searching for the vanished head, but stopped at the urgent outcry.

When he furrowed his brows and then relaxed, Jingyeom added an excuse.

“…It took me 30 minutes to do this.”

Jingyeom’s hands were busy fixing his hair. His lips, protruding from grumbling, looked unusually red.

“You did well. It looks nice.”

“…”

Jingyeom’s lips twitched, but then he pressed them shut.

When Soohyuk said it, it sounded like just a pleasantry, but when Wonbeom said it, it felt different.

His whole body tingled.

“I said it looks nice, didn’t I?”

“…I know.”

Wonbeom’s eyes narrowed again.

The reaction was too different from the one he gave Soohyuk, making Wonbeom slightly irritated.

When Soohyuk complimented him, Jingyeom smiled and said he knew, but when he said it, Jingyeom’s response was lukewarm.

‘Has he heard it too many times and become numb to it? I thought I’d at least see him smile again.’

At the same time, he felt a bit disappointed.

Then, realizing this unfamiliar feeling, he chuckled softly.

‘I’m curious to see how much he can shake me.’

Wonbeom lightly pushed Jingyeom’s forehead with his fingertip.

“Ouch!”

Jingyeom’s eyes trembled as if in shock from the sudden act.

Wonbeom hadn’t used much force, but since it was the first time he’d been touched on the forehead like that, it startled him a little.

“What’s up with you? Why are you hitting the kid’s forehead?”

“Because I didn’t like the reaction.”

“What reaction?”

Soohyuk, who had been too busy having a subtle battle with Jinwoo to pay attention to Wonbeom and Jingyeom, asked, but there was no answer.

Soohyuk looked at Jingyeom, as if asking what happened.

“I’m not really sure either…”

The incident was so out of the blue that Jingyeom had no idea why Wonbeom acted the way he did.

Rubbing his forehead, Jingyeom moved closer to Jinwoo.

It didn’t hurt, but he felt like he might get hit again if he stayed nearby.

Jinwoo was just as baffled by Wonbeom’s sudden behavior.

“Why did the director suddenly hit you?”

“He didn’t hit me, just gave a little push…”

“But why?”

“I don’t know. He said my reaction annoyed him. …Did I do something wrong?”

Worried that he might have made a mistake, Jingyeom asked, but Jinwoo shook his head.

In any situation, Jinwoo’s conclusion was that it was more likely a selfish act on Wonbeom’s part than any fault of Jingyeom’s.

Jinwoo gently rubbed the slightly reddened spot on Jingyeom’s forehead.

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

As Jinwoo comforted Jingyeom, Soohyuk, unable to hide his disbelief, tapped Wonbeom’s arm.

“What’s your problem? The kid’s forehead is all red.”

“I didn’t push hard.”

“Look at his forehead. You pressed right in the middle.”

“….”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but he’s going to be hospitalized tomorrow. Take it easy.”

Since Wonbeom didn’t respond, Soohyuk didn’t push it further.

He knew that no matter what he said, Wonbeom would do as he pleased.

Soohyuk checked the movie tickets he had reserved and glanced at the time.

They had about an hour before the screening.

“We’ve got an hour until the movie starts. What do you want to do? Anything you want?”

“Yes! I want to go there!”

There was no need to debate where to spend the time. Jingyeom had already decided to go to the arcade next to the theater.

The arcade was loud and bustling, even from outside.

Inside, it was even more crowded. Moreover, the noise from the machines was deafening.

Wonbeom’s stiff expression and hesitant steps clearly expressed his reluctance.

Soohyuk wasn’t thrilled either, but seeing Jingyeom’s face light up with excitement as he looked at the arcade, he decided to just go along with it.

Once the decision was made, Jinwoo went to change some coins.

In truth, he had expected that if they were going to the arcade, Soohyuk might go along, but Wonbeom would probably stay outside.

Wonbeom’s sudden change in behavior since Jingyeom lost his memory was something even Jinwoo found intriguing.

He began to understand why Secretary Yang found it amusing.

“Here you go.”

When Jingyeom held out his palm, four 500-won coins were placed on it.

“You guys take some too.”

“Oh, is Secretary Baek treating? Then I’ll take it.”

Soohyuk took the coins as well. When Jingyeom tried to hand some to Wonbeom, he shook his head.

He intended to stay outside and just watch, but the thought of the three of them having fun without him didn’t sit well, so he subtly joined Jingyeom’s side.

As the handsome group entered the arcade, they caught the attention of those already there.

Accustomed to such looks, the three of them didn’t pay any mind, and Jingyeom was too busy deciding what to do first to notice.

Jingyeom wandered around the arcade before spotting two basketball machines side by side and heading towards them.

“Shall we have a bet?”

“A bet? Sure. What’s the wager?”

“This!”

When Jingyeom pointed to the basketball game, Soohyuk smirked.

“Think you can win?”

“I don’t know!”

“Huh?”

“This is my first time playing!”

Soohyuk laughed in disbelief.

He was about to tease Jingyeom, but his overly cheerful response left Soohyuk feeling a bit deflated.

Competing seriously against someone like this made him feel petty.

Standing in front of the machine, Soohyuk spoke up.

“Whoever scores the most buys dinner. How about that?”

“Isn’t the loser supposed to buy dinner?”

“If we do that, it’ll definitely be you.”

Jingyeom couldn’t bring himself to disagree. Though he pouted a bit, he agreed.

“Director Tak, join us.”

Wonbeom and Soohyuk stood side by side.

However, they had only ever played basketball on a court before—never with a machine like this.

The same was true for Jingyeom and Jinwoo, who were next in line.

As soon as they inserted the coin and pressed the button, the net that had been blocking the top disappeared, and a bunch of basketballs tumbled down.

Perhaps because it was different from playing real basketball, both of them missed a shot or two in the beginning.

But they quickly got the hang of it, and soon every ball they threw was sucked into the hoop.

“Wow…!”

Their scores kept going back and forth, with only a single point difference between them.

By the end of the first quarter, they were tied.

It was just a basketball game, but before they knew it, a crowd had gathered. The other machines had few players, but this area was bustling.

At first, the two thought it was just about scoring points, but they soon became completely immersed in the game, intensifying their efforts in the second quarter.

It was still a tie.

“Didn’t miss a single one, did you?”

“…Yeah.”

Jingyeom admired, while Jinwoo, who had been focused on the two, was pushed forward when someone behind him nudged him.

He quickly grabbed Jingyeom’s shoulders and pulled him back to his side.

Seeing Jingyeom in his arms but still unable to take his eyes off the game made Jinwoo feel a bit jealous, so he whispered into his ear.

“I can do it too.”

Jingyeom shuddered at his words, chuckling softly.

“Of course, our Jinwoo is good at sports too!”

“…Feels like you’re teasing me.”

“No way, I’m serious!”

Hearing the playful tone, Jinwoo didn’t mind and pulled him even closer.

Meanwhile, the third quarter ended.

The score difference was three points. Wonbeom won by a single basket.

“I won.”

Somehow, Wonbeom’s chin seemed a bit higher than before.

Soohyuk, who had briefly glanced at Jingyeom, missed a shot when he saw him being held by Jinwoo.

“Why are you suddenly hugging him?”

“What do you mean?”

“Sigh… Never mind. You two go ahead.”

Since Wonbeom had the higher score, it was already decided who would pay for dinner.

Jingyeom had wanted to play, so they made way for him.

But he couldn’t score enough points to play the second quarter, so the game ended there.

Jinwoo focused solely on surpassing Wonbeom’s score.

“Ah… So close.”

The score difference with Wonbeom was six points.

If he had made two more baskets, it would’ve been a tie, but time ran out.

Jingyeom had expected to come in last, so he quickly brushed it off.

However, Soohyuk’s next words made him scowl and glare.

“What can you even do with this body?”

“…”

“Weak, no athletic sense, small, tiny, a mini-me… Ouch!”

Unable to take it, Jingyeom rammed Soohyuk with his shoulder.

“Let’s play something else, something else!”

Even after playing several more games, Jingyeom lost every time. But there was one game he finally won.

A racing game.

It was a multiplayer game where two people could race on the same track.

Jingyeom and Soohyuk faced off, and while Soohyuk drifted around corners, Jingyeom, who was new to driving, just pressed down on the accelerator, opting for a safe drive.

Following Jinwoo’s advice to stick to the inner lane, he went at his own pace and managed to cross the finish line first.

“Wow!”

Jingyeom jumped in joy, and Soohyuk joined in, congratulating him on his victory.

They spent the rest of their time in the arcade.

When it was time for the movie, they entered the theater, but couldn’t sit down right away.

Another little battle ensued over where to sit.

Once again, Wonbeom stayed out of it, while Soohyuk and Jinwoo bickered.

“I’m holding the popcorn, so I should sit with Jingyeom.”

“I can hold it.”

“Then what about me? I want to eat some too.”

“I’ll buy another one.”

“That’s a waste. You two won’t even eat much. Don’t make such a fuss over just watching a movie.”

In a regular theater, they’d sit in a row, but here, the seats were like couple’s seats—spacious and a bit apart from the others.

There was even a partition that provided some privacy.

Jinwoo liked the idea of watching the movie comfortably in the wide seats.

But that only applied if he and Jingyeom were sitting next to each other.

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