IPSTDS Chapter 26

Chapter 26

There was no reason not to tell them who caused the accident.

Nahyuk felt uncomfortable and tired being caught between Seo Dowoong and Kim Daon, but he still didn’t wish for anything bad to happen to them.

“Yeah, I know who was behind it.”

“Who is it?”

“Have you heard of… Park Sangchul? I think he went to the same high school as us.”

“…Park Sangchul?”

The smile vanished from Kim Daon’s face. His expression twisted with displeasure, and a dark aura began to emanate from him.

It was similar to the aura Seo Dowoong exuded.

‘So Daon knows Park Sangchul too.’

Sensing that ominous intensity, Nahyuk was certain.

“It seems like he holds a grudge against you two.”

“How do you know that, sunbae?”

“Well…”

He wanted to be honest because he didn’t want anything bad happening to Daon again, but it was still hard to explain how he knew.

The hesitation dragged on, and the more it did, the deeper Kim Daon’s stare became.

“Don’t tell me you’re still…”

“Hm?”

“Are you still digging into me and Dowoong? Is that how you found out Park Sangchul was trying to hurt us?”

What? Digging into them?

‘Yoon Noah, you little wildcat. You did cute things like that?’

True to the clumsy image that made him 2% short of being a proper villain, it seemed Yoon Noah’s investigations had been discovered by the people involved.

Maybe that’s why there were so many comments during the original serialization calling him the neighborhood idiot older brother.

Anyway, it was a lucky break for Nahyuk.

As the saying goes, the path doesn’t matter as long as you reach Seoul. A perfect excuse had fallen right into his lap. He was just thankful to Yoon Noah for snooping around.

Now, he just had to make good use of that excuse. Nahyuk began preparing his performance.

First, he made a face that looked like he’d been caught red-handed. He trembled his shoulders, furrowed his brow deeply, and bit down on his lower lip.

He looked every bit like someone whose secret had been exposed.

“Sunbae, I appreciate your help, but don’t ever do something like that again.”

It worked like a charm.

Kim Daon didn’t say anything, but from the anxious look on his face, it seemed he’d assumed his guess was right.

His cutesy act had worked on Seo Dowoong before, and now he’d even fooled Kim Daon.

‘I could seriously become an actor.’

To bring his performance to its climax, Nahyuk lowered his voice.

“…Yeah. Sorry. I won’t do it again.”

“You promised.”

“Yeah, I promise.”

“Whew. I’ll take care of the Park Sangchul issue myself. He wasn’t targeting you, but me and Dowoong.”

“Okay. You must be shaken up too. Go home and get some rest.”

Kim Daon nodded as if he had nothing more to say. As he turned around, he added, “I’ll come again later.”

It looked like he was leaving the room, but…

Kim Daon suddenly turned back to look at him, as if something had occurred to him. His eyes were full of doubt.

“But sunbae.”

“Yeah?”

“The illness you have… It’s not something that affects your brain, is it?”

Was I acting that strangely? Lee Nahyuk tilted his head in confusion.

“Don’t take it the wrong way. I don’t mean you’re weird, it’s just… ever since that incident, or rather, ever since you got sick, you seem really different in a lot of ways.”

If he was simply questioning the change, Nahyuk could understand his confusion.

Nahyuk responded rather calmly.

“Daon. They say people change when they’re close to death.”

“…What?”

“When I found out I had a terminal illness, I guess I subconsciously wanted to change.”

“…”

“I’m not going to cling to Seo Dowoong anymore. When I said I supported your love, it wasn’t just a whim.”

Kim Daon didn’t reply, just looked at him with a complicated expression.

“So, Daon.”

“…Yes.”

“Today, and tomorrow, live as boldly as you want.”

No matter his intentions, it was true that he had caused conflict between Kim Daon and Seo Dowoong.

They should’ve been confessing and dating by now, and instead, he’d stirred up trouble. He felt sorry about that—not to Seo Dowoong, but to Kim Daon alone.

That odd little cheer made Kim Daon smile again.

“You too, Noah sunbae.”

So, you’re saying I’m the best too, huh?

Nahyuk waved until Kim Daon completely left the room. He felt even closer to him than he had the day before.

Once the storm of visitors had passed, a forgotten hunger crept in. As if on cue, dinner was delivered to the hospital room.

The menu was a pale, bland porridge. It made sense—this was his first meal since collapsing.

Nahyuk began eating. As the warm food spread through his mouth, he felt the tension in his body slowly melt away.

Just as he was about to take a second bite, the hospital door swung open without a knock. Before he could even see who it was, a sharp voice rang out.

“You say you want to live, so why are you overexerting yourself?”

It was a man’s voice, laced with irritation. Holding the spoon, Nahyuk looked at the newcomer.

So that’s why it had been quiet for a while—Lee Kangil, wearing a white lab coat, was staring at him with clear displeasure.

His eyes, sharply raised, didn’t leave Nahyuk’s face.

“If you keep this up, it won’t be Kim Daon dying—it’ll be you. When your time should be spent worrying about your own life, why are you so concerned about someone else’s?”

“…”

Lee Kangil spoke like he knew everything that had happened.

Maybe Yoon Noah wasn’t the only one snooping—maybe Lee Kangil had been too.

Nahyuk stayed silent, choosing his words carefully, while Kangil walked over and sat on the edge of the bed.

“I told you I’m not going to let you die.”

“…Yeah.”

“Then you need to try not to die. You were desperate to live before, so what’s this about? Don’t you know overdoing it will make you collapse? Do you really want to die?”

“…”

Being used to pain didn’t mean he wanted to give up on life. Nahyuk wanted to live.

He wanted to survive and meet someone who wouldn’t hurt him.

He wanted to fall in love.

To die without ever experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime love felt unfair. So unfair, he might not even be able to close his eyes peacefully when the time came.

“Kangil, I still want to live.”

“Then why did you push yourself like that?”

“I found out Daon might be in danger. How could I just stay still?”

“You think he’s going to thank you for that?”

Lee Kangil clicked his tongue in annoyance, as if to say it had all been for nothing.

But Nahyuk didn’t regret it one bit.

Even if he could turn back time, he would have rushed to Kim Daon again. Even if it meant getting hurt in his place.

Call it nosiness if you want. But he still didn’t want anything bad to happen to Kim Daon.

And contrary to Lee Kangil’s assumption, Kim Daon had sincerely been thankful. In fact, the incident had even brought them closer than before.

“He was grateful, actually. Seo Dowoong and Daon stopped by the hospital room just a bit ago.”

“…What did they say?”

Without much hesitation, Nahyuk recounted what had happened with them.

He told Kangil that Daon had expressed his thanks, and that afterward, Seo Dowoong had shown up and wrongly accused him of orchestrating the accident, leading to a minor argument.

“Kangil, do you think I’m lying too? Are you saying you think I was the mastermind behind the accident?”

Lee Kangil idly fiddled with the hem of Nahyuk’s hospital gown as he replied.

“The wildcat may have done some bad stuff, but I doubt he’d actually kill someone.”

It was the same kind of thing Kim Daon had said.

It seemed Yoon Noah wasn’t a real villain, just a mischievous “neighborhood idiot” kind of character. The real villain was probably someone else—most likely that man, Park Sangchul.

“Kangil, you’re spot on.”

“A car crash? Why would you bother with that? You’re way more suited to being a kidnapper than causing accidents.”

“…Right? Hah.”

He couldn’t exactly deny it—not with the things Yoon Noah had done.

Yoon Noah had kidnapped Kim Daon several times when he was on his way to dates. Though calling it a kidnapping was a stretch—it was more like a forced romantic drive.

The novel had even depicted those parts in a fun and adorable light.

Yoon Noah would tie Kim Daon’s hands and feet, put him in the backseat, and then worry about speed bumps. And when trying to keep him from meeting Seo Dowoong, he even drove onto the expressway…

‘You son of a bitch, Kim Daon. If you need to pee, just say so. There’s a rest stop 500 meters ahead. If you wet yourself without warning, I swear to God—’

He even considered Kim Daon’s bathroom needs.

And that wasn’t all.

‘You son of a bitch, Kim Daon. We’re stopping at this rest area no matter what. They’ve got some damn good food there.’

He would stop at rest areas along the way to treat Daon to tasty snacks.

Though Kim Daon was confused, he still went along with what Yoon Noah told him to do.

Having lived mostly in Seoul, he’d never really had a reason to go out of the city, and he found that he kind of liked it.

Yoon Noah even made sure to get him home before it got too late at night…

So on the days he wasn’t kidnapped and actually got to go on a date with Seo Dowoong, Kim Daon would occasionally find himself thinking, “Why is Noah sunbae being so quiet today?”

Which was why the comments on the original novel had always been split—some saying “Kidnapping is too much,” while others said “It’s such a clumsy kidnapping, just let it slide.”

Nahyuk stayed neutral.

He’d never truly hated Yoon Noah. He had just always wanted his favorite character, Kim Daon, to be happy. Deep down, he had hoped that Yoon Noah would fall in love with someone other than Seo Dowoong.

If Daon had enjoyed the kidnappings, then that was enough for Nahyuk. That’s how he saw it.