DP Episode 76

Deep Pivot Episode 76

“The adults who abandoned you…”

Yeon-woo said softly after listening to Seo-joon’s story.

“Are truly horrible people. I hope they face punishment somewhere.”

Seo-joon smiled slightly and turned to face Yeon-woo. Their elbows brushed each other, closing the distance between them a little more. Seo-joon met Yeon-woo’s gaze.

“Still, meeting good people afterward was a blessing. The nuns at the orphanage and my adoptive parents were all wonderful people. In a way, I was fortunate. There are many parents in the world who aren’t worth having.”

As soon as he finished the last sentence, Seo-joon felt a pang of regret. Of all days, it seemed like an indirect reference to Yeon-woo’s father.

At this awkward moment, Seo-joon hesitated. But the silence didn’t last long as Yeon-woo asked an unexpected question.

“…You came here today to bring me Jeong-woo’s test results, didn’t you?”

Seo-joon looked startled.

“How did you know?”

“I saw the document in the back seat when you were checking the tire.”

“…Oh.”

“Were you going to tell me that Jeong-woo isn’t my real brother?”

Once again, Seo-joon was at a loss for words. Even if he had to share the results, he hadn’t planned to do it today.

“When did you see it? I don’t think you had time to read it.”

“I just saw the cover.”

A moment of silence followed as Seo-joon processed Yeon-woo’s words.

“Even without looking, I already know Jeong-woo isn’t my real brother. I picked him up from the orphanage.”

Yeon-woo continued calmly.

“We happened to be together on the day the gate opened.”

Seo-joon could only open and close his mouth in disbelief.

So Cha Yeon-woo had taken in an infant who happened to be with him on the day of the accident, raising him as his brother and shouldering all the medical bills.

He wasn’t a wealthy adult; he was so young that he could barely take care of himself.

“But how did you manage all this time…?”

The question almost left his lips but faded away. Without fully understanding Yeon-woo’s intentions in caring for Jeong-woo, he couldn’t ask.

However, Yeon-woo answered on his own.

“My father put Jeong-woo on our family register. There was financial aid available for victims of the gate incident, and children under 15 received double the support.”

“…”

“I’m sorry. I should have told you earlier, but I worried that if I admitted Jeong-woo wasn’t my real brother, he would miss the opportunity to get treatment at the lab.”

Is that really the issue? Not revealing it sooner?

Seo-joon thought that Yeon-woo’s circumstances couldn’t be worse. The more he learned, the more he realized that…

“…There could have been another way, later on.”

His words came out in shock, though he knew they weren’t correct. There might not have been another way but to ignore the situation.

Jeong-woo, suffering from a rare disease, wouldn’t have found a home, and the orphanage couldn’t take him in either.

Even so, there should have been help available for Yeon-woo. The government benefits should have been possible to access in various ways.

But it was likely Yeon-woo’s father had blocked that path.

“Jeong-woo only has me… No one else can take care of him like I can. If this becomes an issue for his treatment…”

“No, Yeon-woo. That doesn’t matter.”

Seo-joon cut in, rising slightly.

“Jeong-woo will continue to receive treatment at the center. Don’t worry about that.”

“Thank you.”

Yeon-woo said softly, his eyes lowered in relief. Seo-joon watched him with a sense of helplessness. He couldn’t help but wonder if Yeon-woo had struggled or why he didn’t simply give up and put Jeong-woo in another orphanage. But such questions would only negate Yeon-woo’s perseverance so far.

What could he possibly say in this situation? Words of advice or clumsy comfort would be useless.

“…Is your pillow uncomfortable, Yeon-woo?”

Seo-joon raised his arm slightly, watching Yeon-woo’s puzzled expression.

“Come here. My arm will be better than a piece of clothing.”

After a moment, Yeon-woo cautiously moved closer, resting his head against Seo-joon’s arm. Seo-joon looked down at him.

“How is it? Much better, right?”

“…Yes.”

Yeon-woo replied and wrapped his arm around Seo-joon’s waist. The room, which had felt a bit chilly even with the heater on, quickly warmed with their shared body heat.

“…There’s no one as kind as you, Yeon-woo.”

“Am I kind?”

Yeon-woo looked up at Seo-joon. Seo-joon couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Are you asking because you don’t know? It’s like you have a habit of questioning things that are obvious, Yeon-woo.”

His head nestled back into Seo-joon’s embrace. Through the thin layer of the T-shirt, he felt the warm breath spreading across his chest. While absentmindedly brushing through Yeon-woo’s soft curls, Yeon-woo suddenly spoke.

“…But I’m not that kind.”

“What…?”

What a contradiction, like warm iced coffee.

“Am I cute? Am I kind?” was followed by this third outrageous claim from Cha Yeon-woo. He sometimes says things so strange they leave Seo-joon speechless.

“If you say things like that, there won’t be anyone left who could be called kind.”

Yeon-woo chuckled at Seo-joon’s words.

“But it’s true. I’m actually a pretty bad person.”

After a brief pause, he continued in a lower voice.

“…When you were hurt at the Yeonseon MyPark Mall incident, Lieutenant.”

“…”

“I regretted saving Jang Hyun-soo and wished I’d just let him die. Captain Jin was so furious he beat him up badly, and I hoped he’d die from it.”

He’s talking about when he lost his lower body to Jang Hyun-soo’s grenade. Seo-joon, who had lost consciousness for three days from the pain, couldn’t have forgotten.

“…That’s certainly something a bad person would say.”

Seo-joon responded in disbelief. He doubted anyone hadn’t blamed Jang Hyun-soo that day. Even wishing him dead was an understandable reaction.

“Sometimes,” Yeon-woo began, confessing once again.

“…I wish my father would never come back.”

Seo-joon’s hand stopped brushing through Yeon-woo’s hair. This time, he couldn’t respond with a joke.

“I’ve often prayed that he’d disappear from this world and never show up in front of me again…”

After enduring for so long, the wounds that festered finally surfaced. It was a burden Yeon-woo had to bear alone for an unimaginable time.

Simply because that burden was placed on him by his father, Yeon-woo became a sinner without guilt. His small voice continued to confess his embarrassing sins, as if worried someone might overhear.

“…I’m not really that kind.”

Even though none of this was shameful or sinful.

“People may think otherwise on the outside, but inside… inside, I have thoughts that others could never imagine.”

Seo-joon quietly looked at Yeon-woo’s eyes peering up at him. Yeon-woo’s hand reached up carefully and touched Seo-joon’s cheek.

“…With you, Lieutenant.”

Seo-joon watched Yeon-woo’s face draw closer, his clear blue eyes closing tightly.

Warm lips met, and a shaky breath brushed Seo-joon’s cheek. They stayed frozen for a few seconds, too tense to move.

“…This is what I think about every day.”

The soft words slipped through their parting lips.

“…Every single day.”

All the time.

Yeon-woo’s head burrowed into Seo-joon’s neck and chest. The pounding heartbeat between their bodies echoed. Even just lightly touching lips made their hearts race so much they felt they might burst.

Cha Yeon-woo’s impulsive kiss.

Seo-joon’s grip tightened around Yeon-woo’s waist. With his face buried in Seo-joon’s chest, Yeon-woo took shallow breaths. He seemed to be bracing for a scolding, trembling like he was waiting to be reprimanded.

Seo-joon cupped Yeon-woo’s cheek, lifting his face. Yeon-woo’s tightly shut eyes fluttered.

Tracing his thumb over Yeon-woo’s lower lip, Seo-joon leaned in and whispered.

“I wish you were a really bad person, Yeon-woo.”

Their lips met again, and the breath between them vanished.