GTLTGIDES chapter 14

I left the hospital with Elliott. The rain had stopped, but the sun had already set, making the evening even colder.

I quickly slipped one hand into Elliott’s coat pocket. Elliott sighed and took off his coat to drape it over me.

“Thank you…”

A smile naturally spread across my face. I didn’t expect him to give me his coat unless I forcefully took my hand out.

“Just this once. Next time, dress warmly. Don’t make a fuss and disturb everyone.”

“I know, I know.”

Though the coat was thin, it felt much warmer than before.

It also carried Elliott’s scent.

Did he use perfume?

It smelled like lavender, mixed with other floral and woody scents.

It was like walking through a blooming forest on a dewy, cold dawn.

I wondered if sniffing it so openly made me seem a bit strange, so I pulled the sleeve away from my nose and chuckled.

Beep beep.

Elliott pressed the car key and half-opened his eyes to glare at me.

“…You’re just offering me to be a ‘Dad’ because you need a sucker to help pay the hospital bills, right?”

‘That’s the truth.’

Besides that, it’s insurance.

After experiencing pain today, I felt I could die at any moment.

I wanted someone to care for that little kid if I suddenly passed away.

I had to seize this opportunity.

I couldn’t be sure another chance would come for someone like me with an uncertain future.

I put on the friendliest smile I could manage.

“Oh, come on, it’s because I trust you, Elliott.”

“Sure, sure.”

“Really. You’re the first person I’ve brought here.”

“….”

“Oh, I didn’t specifically mention it, but I think Junseong knows. He even deposited money today…”

“That guy probably finished his background check the moment you tried to join our team.”

I agree.

Thinking about the original work, there’s nothing Cha Junseong wouldn’t know.

He might even know how many pairs of underwear I have at home.

Maybe even the color of the underwear I’m wearing now.

…The thought gives me chills.

Shivering, I got into the passenger seat, following Elliott, who had already boarded the car.

“…Yang Heewoon, you know you’ve been acting strange for the past few days, right?”

Elliott looked at me seriously without even fastening his seatbelt.

It must seem strange. While Yang Heewoon and I share similar circumstances, we are ultimately not the same person.

For Yang Heewoon, the Special A Team was just a source of money, but for me, they are all precious people I cared about. I couldn’t help but act differently.

“Is that so? The three of you in the Special A Team are so great and admirable that I decided to work harder to not fall behind.”

But there’s no need to make it obvious. I decided to be shameless.

After all, it’s only for six months.

“You’re driving me crazy…”

But his reaction was excessive. Is it really something to drive one crazy?

Elliott sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

His slender fingers were so beautiful that they caught my gaze as he muttered.

“Being a dad right away is a bit much, but I’ll consider it.”

“Really?”

“Have you been living under a rock?”

For Elliott, that remark is as good as a yes. He keeps his word out of pride, and when he finds it hard to agree outright, he says something like that as a pretense.

Hearing a positive answer made my heart swell.

It felt like it was filled with cotton candy the same color as Elliott’s eyes.

“Elliott.”

“…I feel like I’m becoming a major sucker… but I was already willing to give you about 500 million, so let’s just consider it as replacing that cost.”

“Elliott!”

“…Why are you calling me?”

“Do you want to try receiving a membrane guiding?”

“Again, again, what now? What’s with you today?”

“Just…”

I felt so grateful, but since I had nothing to offer in return, I felt too embarrassed to say that honestly.

I fiddled with my hair and grinned.

“You’ve never tried it before, right? It’s good to practice in case of emergencies. Don’t you want to?”

“…I really don’t understand how a person can change in an instant. It’s baffling…”

Elliott, uncharacteristically, messed up his well-groomed hair and buried his head in the steering wheel.

Judging by his strong reaction, he seemed to dislike the idea.

It’s not something that must be done.

I wasn’t disappointed.

I’d have other opportunities to repay him as long as I didn’t suddenly drop dead.

As I forcefully pulled the seatbelt to fasten it, a hand grabbed mine.

“…I don’t dislike it.”

In the dimly lit outdoor parking lot, with only a distant incandescent light bulb illuminating the surroundings, I could tell Elliott’s face was red despite the nearly monochrome view.

Not wanting to embarrass him by seeing his current expression, I closed my eyes first, and his soft, thin lips touched mine.

“Ugh…”

As soon as our tongues touched and my lips parted, a chill ran through me, making my body feel like ice.

The emotional impurities transferred from Elliott were more than I expected.

It felt like being plunged into icy water, even hearing the faint crackling sound of ice forming.

It was then that I remembered the last time I guided Elliott was at the shooting range.

Today, he didn’t have any particular mission on site, yet he came out.

Did he want to receive guiding?

‘It must have been tough… Did he hold back?’

I thought of Elliott’s sharp words when he saw me.

He must have been angry, having come all the way to receive guiding only to find the guide looking deathly pale from poor health.

Despite that, he spent this much time with me.

He cared about me first, told me to rest, and even agreed to my unreasonable request to be the kid’s dad.

In the stark, white cold world, a small, warm fire was lit.

Though I knew this small flame, kindled by a mere B-class guide like me, couldn’t handle all of Elliott’s coldness, I didn’t want to give up.

“It’s enough…”

“I’m fine.”

Every time, Elliott ignored my reactions and dumped his impurities into me.

Yet today, surprisingly, he stopped.

He must have remembered that I was unwell.

But I had no intention of letting him go. I grabbed Elliott’s arm and hugged his back.

Though my body trembled from the cold, I wasn’t afraid of this bone-chilling cold.

Until Eunsoo joins the Special A Team, I am their guide.

I’m the only one who can guide them.

Looking into Elliott’s eyes from up close, I whispered.

“Pour it all into me. I’ll take it all.”

Though my breath felt like it was freezing and I anticipated more coldness to come, I didn’t let go of Elliott.

I embraced him more tightly and willingly opened my lips to accept him deeper.

After guiding Elliott, I don’t remember how I got home.

When I opened my eyes, I was lying in front of the entrance with my shoes barely removed.

It felt like a thousand needles were piercing my brain.

My whole body was cold, and my muscles were screaming.

The mild fever I had earlier had now flared up to the point where it felt like my body was on fire.

“I really pushed myself…”

I guided Elliott while suffering from a fever and a body that wasn’t functioning properly.

On top of that, the chills from Elliott’s mental image were cutting through me like knives.

It was obvious that it would worsen the fever.

But I didn’t regret it.

Emotional impurities that accumulate to a certain extent can disrupt an Esper’s emotions and magnify them multiple times.

If left like this for a few more days, it would have exceeded Yang Heewoon’s ability to handle.

I fumbled with Elliott’s coat that I was still wearing and managed to turn my body around.

Staring at the ceiling, a thought came to me.

“Medicine…”

To make matters worse, the effects of the medicine were wearing off.

What would happen if, in this state of poor health, the medicine’s effect were to wear off?

I could only think of ominous possibilities.

“Ugh, ah…”

I managed to prop myself up, but I couldn’t muster any strength in my legs. I couldn’t stand.

In the end, I crawled to the bedroom almost on all fours.

“This coat Elliott lent me…”

Elliott, who is as particular about his appearance as he is about his beautiful face, wouldn’t wear just any clothes.

This coat must have cost at least a million won.

To think I used such a coat to wipe the dirty floor while moving around. I’m at a loss for how to make up for this; the thought weighs heavily on me.

But surviving was more important right now.

I crawled for what would take no more than three seconds by walking, dragging myself to reach under the bed, and reached out for the potion.

I managed to drink the potion while propping myself up on the bed, but…

“I… I think I’m going to die…”

Even after drinking the potion, my condition was at its worst.

Having experienced death once before, I could tell.

My entire body was filled with the aura of death.

I had a premonition that if I closed my eyes now, I might never open them again.