ETP Ch 10

The way home after the game was a veritable battlefield. Bus stops, subway stations, parking lots – every mode of transportation was overflowing with tens of thousands of people pouring out of the stadium.

Bokseung’s small frame was perfect for getting jostled and injured in the crowd. Thinking he needed to wait until the crowds thinned out, Bokseung decided to kill some time in the restroom before heading home.

Ever since he’d entered this body, Bokseung had made a point of using the individual stalls in the restroom for the sake of Omega Bokseung’s privacy.

Today, as usual, Bokseung went into the last stall and took his time.

Just as he was about to leave the stall, he heard a familiar name.

“Ah, shit, there are so many people outside. Let’s wait here a bit longer. Hey! Did you see Hwang Yoohyun here today?”

Bokseung froze with his hand on the doorknob.

The voices of the men mentioning Hwang Yoohyun were the same as the groupmates who had been gossiping about him in the lecture hall.

Wondering what misunderstanding they would use to badmouth Hwang Yoohyun this time, Bokseung’s pale eyebrows furrowed.

“He was dressed up so nicely coming to the baseball stadium, right? Anyone would think he was a celebrity going to a shoot.”

“He probably was going to a shoot. It’s not like it’s the first time we’ve seen articles about the team owner’s family coming here.”

“Yeah, just looking at him, you could tell he doesn’t know anything about baseball, but he’s trying to act cool.”

Enjoying their Hwang Yoohyun gossip, they showed no signs of leaving, engrossed in their conversation.

Their talk was full of resentment towards Yoohyun, who they believed was acting all high and mighty just because he was the team owner, despite knowing nothing about baseball.

Bokseung, however, remembered that those very people were the ones who had been yelling without even knowing the rules of baseball. Who were they to judge? Bokseung scoffed internally.

The slander outside didn’t stop. It was interspersed with useless TMI about how much Yoohyun’s clothes cost, where his shoes were from, and how limited edition his car was.

It was like watching people who both admired and criticized celebrities. Bokseung’s spirit, honed from guiding many such pathetic fellows at the counseling center, began to stir.

It was beyond him how their personalities could still be stuck in adolescence, even though they were well into their twenties.

Bokseung’s desire to guide and counsel these inadequate individuals welled up inside him.

Just as Bokseung, unable to contain his meddlesome nature, tightened his grip on the doorknob, an unexpected name came out of their mouths.

“Is Kim Bokseung an Omega?”

It was a remark that dragged Bokseung, who had been quietly existing without a presence, into the conversation.

“Kim Bokseung? Yeah, just looking at him, he looks pale and Omega-like, doesn’t he?”

“Right? No wonder.”

“Huh? Why?”

Yeah, why? Bokseung tilted his head. No matter how much he thought about it, he hadn’t even exchanged a single word with those two. Bokseung had missed his chance to leave due to the men’s sudden change of topic.

“I saw him hitting on Hwang Yoohyun earlier. It was hilarious. You could clearly see Hwang Yoohyun’s deadpan expression, but he was all excited, even grabbing Yoohyun’s phone and fiddling with it.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, I was sitting right behind them. Damn, his body was completely turned towards Hwang Yoohyun. What, is he trying to snag an Alpha because he’s an Omega?”

Their words were laced with ridicule. No, it wasn’t just ridicule. It felt like they had brought every negative emotion in the world to bear.

Bokseung’s heart sank. It was the first time he’d realized that actions he hadn’t even committed could be portrayed as truth.

Perhaps it was because, as the Beta male Lee Seong-yeon, he had never been treated so lightly before. The shock was greater than he expected, making him dizzy.

The gossip about Hwang Yoohyun had merely been unpleasant, but when it came to him, it couldn’t have been more infuriating.

Wow, those bastards. Seriously. Wow, shit. How dare they treat the pure, cute, and lovable Bokseung like some cheap thing?! And it was Hwang Yoohyun who initiated contact with the phone!

Bokseung couldn’t just stand by and let them insult the Bokseung he cherished.

Realistically, in Bokseung’s body, he couldn’t get into a physical fight with them. That was truly frustrating. However, if he did nothing and let them go quietly, the injustice would keep him awake at night.

Bokseung considered the students’ ages. Even if they had served in the military, they would only be 22 or 23 years old. Outwardly, they were Bokseung’s seniors, but inwardly, he couldn’t bring himself to curse at these kids who were ten years younger than him.

After pondering, Bokseung opened his bag and took out a few business cards for ‘Saebit Psychological Counseling Center.’ It was a good thing he had diligently carried them around from Bokseung’s desk drawer, just in case.

Taking a deep breath, Bokseung flung the door open with a loud bang.

The men by the sink flinched at the sudden noise. And when they saw the face of Bokseung, the source of the sound, their flinching turned into outright jumping.

“Good evening, seniors,” Bokseung said, bowing politely. The flustered men stammered, clearly not expecting him to have heard their conversation.

“Uh, uh… Oh, you haven’t left yet?”

“No! I was in the middle of enjoying my happy potty time, which I’d been holding in at the stadium, when I heard your voices. It wasn’t like you were the only ones in the restroom, but your voices were so loud, I couldn’t help but hear.”

Bokseung smiled as brightly as he could. His expression conveyed not anger, but rather an overwhelming joy at encountering his seniors.

The men coughed awkwardly at this strange and unexpected reaction, far from an angry confrontation.

Approaching them with a beaming smile, Bokseung pressed a business card into each of their hands.

“Seniors, listening to what you were saying just now… you seem to be seeing things and hearing nonsense that I never said. All of that comes from a hurting heart. Being jealous of others, making up stories… those aren’t things to hide because you’re ashamed, but illnesses that need to be treated.”

The men’s faces began to sour as they listened to the eloquent words pouring from Bokseung’s small lips.

“W-what?!”

“You can’t even understand what I’m saying? Oh my, that’s really serious!”

“This, this bastard…!”

The men’s faces turned red as they understood Bokseung’s veiled insults. Bokseung, not stopping there, continued to speak his mind, pretending to be concerned.

“Seniors, you know that mental illness isn’t something to be hidden, right? This center is a really good place. So I hope you both visit together. I’m saying this because I care. These things are always better treated early on.”

Bokseung made eye contact with each of them and squeezed their hands once more. Bowing his head to the men, whose faces had turned from red to a dark purplish hue, Bokseung went to the sink and scrubbed his hands.

“Ew, dirty,” he muttered to himself, loud enough for them to hear.

He had said his piece and even managed to promote the counseling center. He felt so good after talking so much for the first time in a while that he started humming.

He felt so good, in fact, that even the string of curses hurled at his back as he left the restroom went in one ear and out the other.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

Screech, screech.

The sound of slippers dragging across the spacious living room echoed continuously. A small cat, a mix of white and cream, followed the slippers, as if stalking prey.

How long had Yoohyun been pacing with the cat at his heels? Sure enough, after a while, he felt a sharp pain in his heel.

“Ouch, Yuja, I told you not to bother your brother.”

Yoohyun immediately crouched down, picked up the cat, and put on a stern expression. Ever since Bokseung had warned him that he might get holes in his skin, he’d been admonishing the cat every time it scratched him.

At first, it seemed like his words had no effect, but after repeatedly showing a stern face, the cat began to look at him cautiously. Even now, it was licking the back of Yoohyun’s hand that held it, expressing its apologies.

Yoohyun’s stern expression melted away instantly at the cat’s affectionate gesture.

“Yuja, why isn’t he here yet? It’s 7:02.”

Only two minutes had passed since the agreed-upon time of 7:00, but it felt like Yoohyun had been waiting for over two hours. He took out his phone and looked down at it.

[One Punch: Yes! Then I’ll see you tomorrow at 7 pm. Have a nice day, senior ^^]

That was the first and last message he’d received from Bokseung. Even though Yoohyun had contacted him directly, not through an app, with his actual number, Bokseung’s response was curt, bordering on cold.

It felt like a junior employee replying to a bothersome department head. Yoohyun hadn’t even bothered to reply with an “okay,” disgusted by the feeling of suddenly becoming an annoying, old-fashioned boss.

Even so! Bokseung hadn’t even sent a message saying he was on his way or that he’d be a little late.

Yoohyun pouted.

It was the first time he’d invited someone over, so he didn’t know if this was normal or if Kim Bokseung was particularly indifferent. Because of that, he’d been anxiously pacing the living room floor in his slippers since 6:00.

7:03. Another minute had already passed. Wasn’t this a no-show?

Just as Yoohyun was fuming inwardly, staring at the clock on the wall—

Ding-dong

The clear chime of the doorbell rang. The sound he’d been waiting for.

Yoohyun quickly pressed the open button and held Yuja in his arms. He cleared his throat and composed his anxious expression.

The elevator, directly connected to the entrance, started moving. Yoohyun’s pulse quickened as the numbers on the display increased.

Finally, the elevator announced its arrival at the top floor, and the doors opened.

As the doors smoothly parted, the round, white face he had been waiting for all day popped out.

The frantic beating of his heart stopped abruptly the moment he saw Bokseung’s face.

Yoohyun just stood there, dumbfounded.