DP Episode 80
by BrieDeep Pivot Episode 80
“…Hmm.”
Seo-joon tried to manage his confusion as he spoke up.
“Why do you think you’ll be a burden? Living together would benefit me too.”
Yeon-woo, who had been fiddling with his hair, lowered his head and put on his helmet. A silence that Seo-joon couldn’t quite decipher settled between them.
“…You’ve already done so much for me, Lieutenant. Like arranging treatment for Jeong-woo.”
“…”
“I know your intentions are kind, but… I just wish you’d consider that I like you.”
Seo-joon tried to make sense of what Yeon-woo was saying, but even though it was in Korean, he couldn’t understand a word.
“When you do these things, Lieutenant… I can’t help but want more and expect things.”
That’s when Seo-joon sensed that something was off.
“When someone you like gives you favors, it’s nice and makes you grateful at first, but if it keeps happening…”
“Hold on.”
Seo-joon interrupted him. His mind reeled, and he looked at Yeon-woo with a feeling of dread.
“Do you think what I’m doing for you is just a favor?”
Yeon-woo looked up at him, puzzled. His eyes darted around in confusion, revealing that he genuinely didn’t know.
As soon as Seo-joon saw those eyes, he realized.
“…Ah.”
A heavy silence hung between them. The usual smile on Seo-joon’s face disappeared as he spoke to Yeon-woo, usually with an air of confidence.
“Have I ever given you mixed signals, Yeon-woo?”
He gazed at Yeon-woo, who seemed pitifully nervous. His downward-slanted eyes would look utterly helpless and scared with the slightest sign of distress.
“You didn’t know, huh.”
Seo-joon looked into those fearful eyes.
“That I like you.”
Yeon-woo’s already round eyes widened even further. Surprise gave way to confusion, confusion to disbelief, and disbelief back to surprise. Seo-joon carefully observed the shifting emotions that swept across Yeon-woo’s face.
“…What?”
In response to the hesitant question, Seo-joon spoke firmly to reassure him.
“I’m saying I like you, Yeon-woo.”
Not out of pure kindness, sympathy, or simple charity.
“I want to be with you.”
“…”
Yeon-woo’s half-open mouth snapped shut, and suddenly he stood up.
“I… I… this…”
He paced back and forth, his movements quick and restless. Without a tail or ears, he still looked like an eager puppy to Seo-joon.
“…This is a dream, right?”
Yeon-woo asked Seo-joon with a dazed expression.
“I’m dreaming again, right? You keep saying things I can’t believe…”
His mumbling was nearly to himself, “I must have been shot wrong. This is weird. Otherwise, something like this…”
Seo-joon approached him, chuckling, and cupped his cheek. The incessant muttering finally stopped.
“Is this really that surprising?”
“…What?”
Seo-joon kissed different parts of Yeon-woo’s stunned face and gave a helpless laugh.
“I thought I’d made it clear. Wasn’t it enough?”
“…”
“I told you that you’re beautiful.”
“You’ve been saying that ever since the first test.”
“Why would I spend nights together with someone I don’t care about? Even at dawn, I’d respond to the insurance company.”
Yeon-woo’s brow twitched, and his already wide eyes quickly grew red. Seo-joon smiled at the sight of his trembling, confused gaze.
“Can you kiss and caress someone you don’t like?”
“G-G-Guiding…”
“It wasn’t guiding, it was a kiss for me.”
Yeon-woo grabbed Seo-joon’s sleeve, his lips tightly pressed down. He was about to cry. Seo-joon thought to himself, I’m going to make him cry again.
“…Say it.”
Yeon-woo’s face twisted.
“Say it again, Lieutenant.”
“I like you, Yeon-woo.”
“…”
“I really do.”
Tears welled up in his eyes, rolling down his cheeks.
“Oh dear.”
Seo-joon gave a sheepish smile and embraced him. Sniffle. Yeon-woo’s large frame collapsed into his arms as he burst into sobs.
“Say it… again, Lieutenant.”
“I like you.”
“Again…”
“I like you.”
“Say it again…”
Sob, sniff. For whatever reason, Cha Yeon-woo wailed, crying his heart out. Luckily, they weren’t near the base camp for those eliminated. Seo-joon gently sat Yeon-woo in a chair and comforted him.
“Don’t cry, Yeon-woo.”
“You’re too much, really…”
Too much? How?
Wasn’t it a bit much to break down sobbing after a confession, as if the world were ending?
“Why, sniffle… why did you keep it hidden for so long?”
“Hidden…”
Who hid anything? Momentarily speechless, Seo-joon replied in disbelief.
“I gave so many hints. Isn’t it too much that you didn’t notice, Yeon-woo?”
“You never told me outright!”
Sob, sniff. The wailing resumed. Despite the seemingly accusatory sobs, the words that followed were surprising.
“Thank you, sniffle… I’m so happy, so happy that you like me… I feel like I own the world…”
Oh dear. Seo-joon worried that Yeon-woo’s crying would leak outside the tent.
…Even crying like this is adorable, so I’m in big trouble now.
✽✽✽
Loud chatter could be heard from the base camp, where the number of eliminated players had increased.
“…”
And beside Seo-joon, the sound of sniffling was audible. He looked at Yeon-woo, whose eyes and nose were red from crying. Now that Yeon-woo had somewhat collected himself, he silently tore at the tissue in his hand while keeping his eyes downcast.
“Have you calmed down now, Yeon-woo?”
Yeon-woo nodded without a word. With his swollen eyes and pouty lips, he looked like a child throwing a tantrum, and Seo-joon almost burst into laughter.
Honestly, he found it unbelievable. Yeon-woo had shot at him after the suggestion to live together, and now, after confessing his feelings, he had cried as if mourning a tragedy.
…Anyone watching might think he’d just broken up with him instead of confessing.
Seo-joon cupped Yeon-woo’s cheeks and lifted his head to inspect his face. Even Jin Cheong-oh, who was determined not to lose to Kang Miyeon, would probably forget about the five million won fine if he saw Cha Yeon-woo returning in this state.
“If anyone asks, just say I scolded you. Say you got in trouble with me for accidentally doing a team kill.”
“…Okay.”
Yeon-woo’s voice, still hoarse from crying so much, answered quietly.
“Let’s go. The game should be finishing up soon.”
Seo-joon gently brushed Yeon-woo’s hair back and was about to turn away when Yeon-woo grabbed his sleeve.
“…But, Lieutenant.”
Seo-joon looked down at Yeon-woo’s curly, white hair. Yeon-woo looked up at him, still fidgeting with the tissue in his hand. His tear-streaked eyes were still glossy.
“I… I have a question.”
“Tell me.”
“…When did you start counting day one?”
Seo-joon thought he misheard and asked again.
“…What?”
“When did day one start for us?”
“Day one?”
What was he talking about? Despite Seo-joon’s confusion, Yeon-woo nodded earnestly.
“From the day I confessed? Or from the day you stayed over at my house? Or maybe, from the safe house…?”
“Wait a minute, Yeon-woo.”
Seo-joon held his spinning head and sat back down beside him.
“What are you talking about right now?”
Yeon-woo, still with a teary face, said, “I’m just curious about when our day one was.”
“…Is that something we really need to know?”
“We need to remember our anniversary. Even if we don’t celebrate 100 days, we should still mark one year, two years…”
Yeon-woo paused, seeing the look on Seo-joon’s face.
“Aren’t we… dating?”
“…What?”
Seo-joon was taken aback, unable to follow the conversation that was going in an unexpected direction.
“Dating? I hadn’t really…”
“But we confessed that we liked each other, so we’re dating.”
Seo-joon shook his head left and right before slowly changing his motion to a nod. He hadn’t thought about that specifically, but Yeon-woo did have a point.
And looking into Yeon-woo’s still-teary eyes made it impossible to say anything else.
“Well, actually, I didn’t think that far, but… Yeon-woo, what are you doing? Why are you pulling out your phone suddenly…?”
“I’m entering our day one.”
Yeon-woo, sniffling, fumbled through his pockets for his phone and tapped on the screen.
“Since you don’t know either, let’s just count today as day one.”
…Oh.
At that moment, Seo-joon realized.
If he wasn’t careful, he was about to start dating someone who acted like a high schooler.