GP | Chapter 2.2

Even if it was done in secret, they welcomed it, punishment or not. That was how much Espers needed guiding.

Up until now, Seoh had only heard about Song Taejoon from rumors, and he had not met him in person until he became his assigned Guide . He had disliked it when they briefly touched before, but he had not felt scared then.

Now, though, he was a little afraid. Maybe he had unconsciously believed that because the Guide was the only person an Esper had, he would not be harmed. Or maybe…

Maybe he had simply been certain he was a Guide .

“…”

Seoh suddenly felt that something was wrong.

If that was the case… what made him different from the other Guides? It meant he had also been freely messing with their lives, treating their survival as collateral. The Guides for power, and himself for peace…

His stomach tightened as if it had been clogged shut. He had believed all along that this was the one thing they helped each other with, but that had not been true.

Being certain of his own safety meant, in other words, that he had thought it was fine to ignore Song Taejoon’s words. Because he was an Esper, and because Seoh was a Guide , Taejoon could not hurt him no matter what he did. That thought had been lying at the root of it all.

But then… what was he supposed to do? Lock himself in a room and endure it alone? Guiding did make both sides feel better, after all. If he took what he wanted, it should not be a problem…

Seoh could not gather his thoughts, lost in confusion.

But he hates guiding… then what does that make this?

He had thought the ground beneath his feet was solid, but once he peeled it open, the inside had been rotten through and through.

He had been acting however he wanted all this time, using pain as his excuse.

He felt the pillar he had trusted and leaned on cracking apart. Not only had he thought it was survival, but he had secretly been resisting the Guide Center’s abuse all along. That belief had been nothing but his own delusion.

If he was honest about it, he had been worse than them. He only realized that after meeting Song Taejoon. Just as an ugly face could not be hidden by wearing a mask, this was the truth that would someday be exposed.

Seoh’s cold hands drooped uselessly, and his dulled eyes lowered toward the floor without meaning. His chest felt jammed shut and breathing was hard, but he did not have the room to feel that.

Taejoon’s sharp gaze landed on Seoh, slumped with his head bowed. Seeing him trembling faintly from the cold, Taejoon turned away with irritation and clicked his tongue softly. Only then did he gather up the power he had been letting leak out unconsciously.

This place, with Yoon Seoh in it, was no longer somewhere he could rest. It would be better to go back to the temporary lodging in the Esper Center. He had received a little guiding, after all, so Sungmin hyung would not be able to say anything more.

But just before he was about to rampage, he would come back again. Sungmin hyung would not stand by and watch him die, and the only person who could guide him was Yoon Seoh.

Right. The target was just fixed on one person now, nothing else would change. In any case, once Yoon Seoh experienced it for himself, he would abandon him quickly enough. He would find out just how empty a Guide felt once all their guiding energy had been taken away.

Taejoon gave one last look at Seoh, still sprawled there, and turned away without hesitation.

He hated this damned situation, how taking a little guiding actually made him feel better. He wished for a world where people could live without Guides someday.

Ripping off the invisible leash around his neck, Taejoon strode out of the front door without hesitation.

Bang!

The door shook so hard with the sound that it seemed like it might tear off its hinges. But Seoh did not react. He only stared blankly at the floor.

Winter was coming fast.

✿ • ✿ • ✿

Back at the Esper Center, Taejoon headed for the temporary lodging despite Park Sungmin’s summons. He did not particularly want to see him now either, so he was moving on when Park Sungmin, who had apparently come down at some point, approached from afar.

“Taejoon!”

“You really don’t give me any time to rest…”

Taejoon let his stiff expression loosen and put on his usual smile. It would probably be better to simply confirm that he had received guiding now.

“What is it?”

“You brat. Why did you come back? You haven’t even been in the lodging for long.”

“Don’t worry. I got guided.”

“…Really?”

As Park Sungmin came closer, Taejoon raised both hands to show him. The skin and veins that had been flushed red were now calm, and his condition was visibly better than before, so Park Sungmin let out a relieved breath.

“If you got guided, you should’ve rested there. Why come back?”

“Obviously I came back because I got guided.”

“Song Taejoon.”

“Why? I accepted the assigned Guide like you wanted, and I got the guiding properly too. So there’s no problem, is there?”

Taejoon shrugged with a bright smile, and Park Sungmin looked at him with sympathy.

The Guide Center’s intention in assigning him a dedicated Guide , Yoon Seoh of all people, had been obvious, but on this side there had been no grounds to refuse. They had to accept it even knowing that, and he felt sorry for Taejoon. At the same time, he felt relieved. Taejoon had always lived on the edge.

“But when are you going to keep that condition about not worrying about it?”

“I don’t know, you punk.”

“You know that counts as abuse of power, right?”

“Enough of that. How much guiding did you get? Your matching rate with Yoon Seoh is high, so the efficiency should be good.”

Taejoon nodded as if agreeing. A 91 percent matching rate was obviously going to be good. He had only ever seen Guides with less than 30 percent matching, so it was definitely shocking. For a moment, it had been enough to make him feel like he was losing his mind.

But it could not be said that he had received all the guiding he needed. It had not been long enough to count as proper guiding, so it had been more like emergency treatment.

“Well… enough?”

It was not necessary to tell the truth, so Taejoon brushed it off carelessly, and Park Sungmin’s brow creased.

Taejoon snorted and said, “Hyung, you should start thinking about your age now. If you keep making that face, you’ll get wrinkles later.”

“An Esper doesn’t age until they’re past fifty. I’m still a lively man in my thirties, so stop worrying about nonsense.”

“Well, thirty-nine is still in your thirties.”

“…You think you’re never going to age?”

Taejoon laughed until his shoulders shook, as though he had just heard something amusing. When Park Sungmin looked at him strangely, he said something terrifying with complete calm.

“I’ll be dead before I age, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

“Hey! What kind of thing is that to say!”

“Anyway, I’m going to rest now. Don’t call me unless something comes up.”

Dodging Park Sungmin as he rushed at him, Taejoon turned and hurried away before he could be grabbed. He waved carelessly at the huffing Park Sungmin and disappeared unhurriedly. Having been put through the wringer by Song Taejoon, Park Sungmin rubbed his face like he had a headache.

He could not do anything about Taejoon disliking Guides, but at the very least, he had wanted him to open his heart a little to his dedicated Guide . Looks like that had been an unreasonable wish after all.

He knew very well what kind of guide Yoon Seoh was, but he had still inwardly felt relieved that he was not the kind to slack off on guiding. And yet now it seemed the problem was not the Guide , but the bastard Esper himself.

What was he supposed to do about Taejoon being cold even to his dedicated Guide ?

As an Esper, he had not welcomed the “my” guide he had always dreamed of. Setting aside whether he cared about the guy, Taejoon’s behavior as an Esper was irritating.

Still, even so.

He could not help understanding it because he knew why Taejoon kept resisting like that.

Raking a hand through his hair and groaning, Park Sungmin let out a long sigh and looked toward the direction Taejoon had gone. This was something that needed time, so all he could do was watch.

Thinking of that energy that had seemed full of cold despite the smiling face, Park Sungmin slowly shook his head.

Once Taejoon got back into the room, he hardened his face the moment he closed the front door. Staring into space like that for a moment, he sighed and sat on the sofa armrest.

“…”

All the way here, he had kept thinking about what had happened with Yoon Seoh. He had even clenched his fist and rubbed the back of his neck, but the lips he had touched kept bothering him.

Yoon Seoh’s soft, pliant lips had grown hotter and hotter during the kiss, and by the end they had become thoroughly warmed through and mashed at will. Even the inside of his mouth had been so sweet he still could not forget it. Even now, just thinking about it made him want to taste it again, enough that he swallowed hard.

And the guiding that had untangled the knotted power had been warm and careful.

Just as people had different personalities, guiding energy differed slightly from person to person, and Yoon Seoh was clearly different from the Guides he had met before. It was not simply that the matching rate was high, so the efficiency was good.

Guiding energy was also one component within a person’s body, so it was influenced by the owner’s personality, mood, and inclinations. That was why if he received guiding from a Guide who disliked him, he could not feel good. At best, all that mattered was that the pain lessened.

But Yoon Seoh…

“…”

Taejoon, thinking about him, rubbed his face irritably.

Just how much did he like doing that sort of thing that he would even try to hold an Esper who hated him? If he was seducing him purely out of his own desire and hunger, then he might as well have made it sticky and obvious. There were some Guides who secretly satisfied their sexual cravings, and those guys definitely gave themselves away.

But there had been no trace of that in Yoon Seoh. He had simply been soft and warm. If that feeling came from something filthy beneath it all, it was creepy enough to make his skin crawl.

It would have been better if it were visible or something he could sense directly. If he was going to be this devious about it, it was only going to be a headache.

He could tell even now. The way he kept thinking about it, wanting to feel it again, meant the problem was more serious than he had expected.

“…Ha.”

Even knowing it, he still felt like he wanted to be fooled. He wondered if there might be some misunderstanding. And if he kept thinking like that, someday he might give in to Yoon Seoh and end up twisting the truth.

To that extent, Yoon Seoh, his guiding, was… gentle.

A body pressed close in desperate embrace with all its strength, moist lining and soft flesh, and energy just as tender and warm.

Taejoon dazedly touched his lips as he thought back on the sensation, then suddenly stood up with irritation.