EPISODE 84. Tracking
In the midst of everyone’s confusion, Han Yi-gyeol, who just unbuttoned his shirt, put his hand on his belt with a dazed eye.
Kim Woo-jin, who screamed inwardly at the sound of the belt loosening without hesitation, rushed and grabbed Han Yi-gyeol’s hand.
“Han Yi-gyeol. If it’s hot, let’s go to your room and change clothes, ung?”
Kim Woo-jin’s face was a mess as he was forced to laugh with a feeling of wanting to cry. Han Yi-gyeol, who looked at Kim Woo-jin for a while, slowly took his hand off the belt.
Did he understand what he said? That was when Kim Woo-jin was relieved. Han Yi-gyeol’s hand reached over his head.
“……?”
Then he started stroking it. Kim Woo-jin, who reflexively bowed his head so that Han Yi-gyeol could stroke his hair easily, soon looked puzzled.
“Ha, Han Yi-gyeol?”
Even when Kim Woo-jin called, Han Yi-gyeol continued to stroke his hair with a calm expression. Ha Tae-heon got up after seeing Kim Woo-jin completely suppressed by Han Yi-gyeol by stroking his hair.
“Stop it.”
Ha Tae-heon grabbed Han Yi-gyeol, who was gently stroking Kim Woo-jin’s hair, and carried him on one shoulder like a sack.
“Ha Tae-heon-ssi… I’m going to throw up…”
“I’m going to throw him in the room upstairs.”
Ignoring Han Yi-gyeol’s whining, Ha Tae-heon immediately left the living room and went up the stairs. Piiik! Fox, who was lying next to Han Yi-gyeol, also got up quickly and followed him.
Cheon Sa-yeon, who had been silently watching the scene, turned to Woo Seo-hyuk.
“Secretary Woo Seo-hyuk.”
“…yes.”
“Is my memory bad… I don’t think there was anything like this in the last report.”
“I’m sorry.”
“How can you betray me in this way after receiving bonuses separately? My heart aches.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“You have a bad relationship with Team Leader Park Geon-ho, but in this case, the two get along really well?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Suddenly why am I…”
Min Ah-rin sighed slightly between Woo Seo-hyuk, who spit out apology like a parrot with an expressionless face, and Park Geon-ho, who shrugged with an unfair expression.
The meeting ended here as Han Yi-gyeol, who was the center of the team, got drunk and went to bed. Watching Woo Seo-hyuk and Park Geon-ho being scolded by Cheon Sa-yeon, Min Ah-rin began to clear the bottles one by one.
While Cheon Sa-yeon hardily scolded his subordinates, Ha Tae-heon went into the room where Han Yi-gyeol stayed last time. And Han Yi-gyeol, who was limp with his shoulders hanging, was laid down on the soft bed.
“Han Yi-gyeol.”
At Ha Tae-heon’s call, Han Yi-gyeol raised his head. Except for the slight redness on his cheeks, he didn’t look much different from usual.
Fully unbuttoned shirt and unfastened belt. Ha Tae-heon’s gaze, carefully examining Han Yi-gyeol’s outfit, turned to Han Yi-gyeol’s face, sitting on the bed.
“Han Yi-gyeol.”
“Yes.”
If he called his name, he would get an answer right away. Even so, the blinking speed of his eyes was noticeably slower than before because he was more tired than he guessed.
“Is it still hot?”
“Yes, it’s hot.”
“It’s because you drank. Change into your pyjamas and go to sleep. Don’t sleep naked.”
Still, he was worried that he was trying to take off his clothes as he was weaker than other A-rankers. He used to fall ill with a cold or body aches on ordinary days, so he had to be especially careful.
While Ha Tae-heon looked for the pyjamas he had worn last time, Han Yi-gyeol quietly took off the clothes he was wearing. Even when facing Han Yi-gyeol, who took off his shirt and pants and sat idly in his underwear, Ha Tae-heon handed over the pyjamas and helped put them on without much reaction.
For Ha Tae-heon, Han Yi-gyeol’s body was already familiar, so there was no reason to be surprised. He didn’t know if he changed into Kwon Se-hyun though.
Ha Tae-heon, who just helped him changed clothes without any problem, lead him to the bathroom attached to the room and had the toothbrush with toothpaste on it in his hand. He lightly kissed Han Yi-gyeol’s lips and when held out the toothbrush, he opened his mouth slowly.
The habit of taking off his clothes when he was drunk was a problem, but this attitude of accepting whatever the other person did was also a problem. His head hurt at the thought of not letting Han Yi-gyeol drink with strangers.
Ha Tae-heon, who had simply washed Han Yi-gyeol, lifted him and laid him on the bed, pulled out a blanket and then covered him over his chest. Han Yi-gyeol, with his eyebrows down from drunkenness and a gentle expression on his face, gave off a youthful feeling like a high school student.
Piik, Fox hated Ha Tae-heon’s energy, so he, who was sitting in the corner of the room, cautiously approached him and laid down on Han Yi-gyeol’s bedside, rounding his body. Ha Tae-heon smiled faintly as he felt quite reassuring with Fox never left Han Yi-gyeol’s side no matter what.
“Sleep now. Prepare yourself to be scolded when you wake up.”
“I, Ha Tae-heon-ssi.”
“What is it?”
Hesitation lingered on his blank face. Ha Tae-heon was curious about Han Yi-gyeol’s feelings, who was like a doll the whole time.
“Actually… I have something to tell you.”
“Say it.”
“That…”
Han Yi-gyeol frowned, unable to speak easily. His reddened cheeks had turned white before he knew it.
His trembling brown eyes filled with anxiety. What the hell is there to say that he was reacting like this even while he was drunk?
“Do it later and go to sleep first. If it’s important, it’s better to listen when you’re in right mind.”
“…yes.”
He was curious, but he didn’t want to see Han Yi-gyeol getting stressed out because of it. When Ha Tae-heon covered his eyes with his big hand, Han Yi-gyeol also closed his eyes.
Ha Tae-heon, who had been staring at Han Yi-gyeol for a while, exhaled a calm breath and whispered softly.
“Sleep well, Han Yi-gyeol.”
* * *
I felt the bright sunlight shining through my closed eyes. I opened my eyes after rubbing my face in the soft blanket.
Piik!
Noticing I was up, Fox licked my cheek with a warm tongue. I thought while patting him on the head.
‘I feel…’
So refresh? I raised my upper body and looked around, sweeping my frizzy hair that blocked my view.
I was alone in the room with the morning sun shining through the window. It was a familiar room I had used while staying at Cheon Sa-yeon’s house.
“Umm.”
After drinking enough to cut off the memory, I always had a wild dream and my body was tired… why am I so fine today? Was it because I slept soundly without dreaming? If not… was it because I drank with people I’m comfortable with and didn’t get nervous?
‘Even with people I’m comfortable with, it’s a problem that the memory is cut off.’
I couldn’t remember anything after the last wine Elohim gave me. I must have survived until I took a sip of wine. No? Two sips?
Grabbing my head, I groaned ‘uuh’ before getting out of bed. Let’s wash up first. Think that after washing up.
I went into the bathroom, washed up quickly, and put on the shirt and pants I wore yesterday that were on the table again. I didn’t know what kind of mind I was when I changed the clothes and lied down.
After getting ready, I put my hand on the doorknob. No wonder… I was a little afraid to leave the room. Under the circumstances, it seemed that the drinking habit of taking off clothes came out intact while the memory was cut off, but I couldn’t figure out how to face everyone.
If possible, I would like to meet with Park Geon-ho and Woo Seo-hyuk, who knew my drinking habits, and hear the explanation of the situation. Still, it was early in the morning and it was on the second floor, so if I went out carefully, I might run into as few other people as possible.
While holding Fox that approached me in my arms, I prepared myself, gave strength to my hand, and pulled the doorknob. The door opened slowly and as I saw the hallway, a familiar voice greeted me at the same time.
“Good morning.”
“Gasp…!”
Surprise me! Cheon Sa-yeon, who was leaning against the wall and holding a coffee cup, smiled as he watched me being terribly surprised. I was taken aback by the sight and my mouth fell open.
“Crazy… what are you doing here?”
“Well indeed. I was waiting for our main character to come out, who was taking off his clothes last night.”
“……”
There was nothing to say at the sarcastic reply. Cheon Sa-yeon took a sip of coffee as I stared at him with a dumbfound look.
“So, did you sleep well?”
“Well…”
“Even if I don’t ask, you seem to have slept very well just by looking at your complexion.”
“……”
Even though his mouth was smiling, Cheon Sa-yeon’s attitude, who seemed to be in a very low mood, made me sweat. I couldn’t escape because the road was blocked and I kept making eye contact with him, so eventually I surrendered first.
“It was beyond control.”
“Who said what?”
“You are cursing with your eyes right now.”
“You got me.”
“Move.”
Time was wasted on useless conversations. Pushing Cheon Sa-yeon’s shoulder, I walked to the stairs and he followed after while covering his mouth with his hand.
“I said it because I was worried. Such a heartless reaction, it really breaks my heart…”
“Ah, you little!”
As I came down to the living room while arguing with Cheon Sa-yeon, Kim Woo-jin rushed out of the kitchen. Min Ah-rin and Kwon Jeong-han also greeted me while watching the news on the sofa in the living room.
“Yi-gyeol-ssi, did you sleep well?”
“You woke up early, Hyung.”
“Yeees. Good morning.”
As if waiting, I answered the greetings, sweeping the nape of my neck awkwardly.
Why is everyone waking up so early? It was impossible to secretly meet Park Geon-ho or Woo Seo-hyuk even if it wasn’t because of Cheon Sa-yeon.
“Han Yi-gyeol, drink this.”
What Kim Woo-jin gave me was warm honey water. He gave me a cocktail yesterday and honey water today. There was no particular hangover, but since he prepared it with care, I took it and drank it without saying anything.
‘He’s good at making honey water.’
I knew he was good at cooking, but I didn’t expect him making plain honey water into delicious ones. While I was diligently emptying the honey water, Elohim, who had gone out to the garden, came in.
“Did you sleep well, Se-hyun-ah?”
I narrowed my eyes at Elohim’s appearance, who was the cause of all these incidents. Seeing my dissatisfied expression, Elohim shrugged his shoulders.
“El…”
“You can’t hide your drinking habits for the rest of your life, can you?”
“It’s bad that you gave me wine knowing everything.”
“Still, you drank well, so please let it slide just once Unfortunately, the memory of drinking deliciously seems to have disappeared, but…”
“……”
I sighed at the braazen apology. Had I known this would happen, I should have rejected the wine no matter how pathetic Elohim looked. Belated regrets came crashing down like a wave.
“Oh, our team member who was drunk has finally woken up.”
“Han Yi-gyeol, how’s your body?”
“Han Yi-gyeol-ssi. I bought a hangover medicine just in case you need it, so take it if you need it.”
Meanwhile, Park Geon-ho, who came out after washing, and Ha Tae-heon and Woo Seo-hyuk, who went out, also came into the living room and started throwing words at me as if they were waiting. I got a headache as everyone checked my body condition in unison.
The second party I had planned yesterday was buried deep in my heart. If we had a drinking party again in this situation, I would have to hear the voice of whether I was okay every time we had a drink, but I didn’t have the courage to stand it.
‘I never drink with these guys again, really…’
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