PIA 18

Ugh. Ji-an buried his face in his hands as he heard Woo-seok’s father’s story. He wondered how things would work out… Ji-an made a crying sound and raised his head and asked earnestly.

“You can do it without getting caught.”

“What kind of mistake did Seo Ji-an make that made him want to run away?”

“I didn’t do anything wrong. I just want to live quietly for 10 months.”

“Where do you want to go? Do you want to run away, showing off just enough for Jeong Han-joo to find you, or do you want to disappear altogether?”

As expected, this Woo-seok also knew about Ji-an’s one-sided love and seemed to pity him. Seeing him ask if he wanted to show off, it was clear that Woo-seok knew about all the strange things Seo Ji-an did while playing the role of a villain.

“Disappear altogether. To a place where no one in Korea can find me. To a place only you know.”

“Only me?”

Woo-seok stood up and looked down at Ji-an, slowly rubbing his chin. The afternoon light was shining brightly behind him, making his expression difficult to discern, and Ji-an had to narrow his eyes to see.

“What will you do if I help you like that?”

Woo-seok tilted his head crookedly and thought for a while before asking,

“… Anything.”

Ji-an felt uneasy for some reason, but he ignored it for the time being.

“Anything?”

“…”

“Hmm.”

Next, there was a long silence that was uncharacteristic of Woo-seok. After scrutinizing Ji-an with a meaningful expression, just when Ji-an’s patience was about to run out, Woo-seok clapped his hands and answered.

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

Ji-an’s eyes widened in disbelief at the cool answer despite all his worries. He felt a sense of relief that things were being resolved so smoothly.

“Hey! After all, friends are the best! I should have come straight to you a long time ago! Thanks!”

“No matter what, Woo-seok is the best.”

Ji-an jumped up and hugged Woo-seok.

“Wow, it feels like everything is just resolved. It’s the best, the best.”

Ji-an jumped around and hugged Woo-seok in a better mood. It became awkward after a time of doing that. Normally, Woo-seok would push Ji-an away because he found him disgusting but this time he silently let Ji-an hug him. Woo-seok held Ji-an tightly as he tried to subtly detach himself.

“Hey, …what are you doing?”

“Seo Ji-an has lost weight.”

“No, I didn’t?”

Even though he denied it, Ji-an wondered if he had indeed lost weight. While hesitating, Woo-seok lowered his hand and firmly grabbed Ji-an’s buttocks.

“Not really.”

Ji-an, startled, curled his fist and punched Woo-seok on the shoulder. Woo-seok just chuckled, as if he had exercised so hard that it didn’t even bother his rock-like shoulders.

“Hands off, you crazy bastard.”

“Do some exercise. Your buttocks feel like rice cakes.”

“Ouch! It hurts! Don’t pinch.”

His own buttocks felt like rice cakes. Whether it was because of the unexpected touch or the hard buttocks, Ji-an felt pain. Ji-an complained and snatched the cigarette from Woo-seok’s hand.

“Light it later.”

“…”

“Why? What?”

Woo-seok’s eyes widened as if he was surprised for once.

“Seo Ji-an. People say if someone suddenly changes, they’re dying. Did you catch some kind of terminal illness?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

“Then why are you suddenly acting like this? I’ve been suspicious since earlier, but this behavior is the most confusing. Explain.”

Ji-an scratched his eyebrows with a very embarrassed expression. Unsure of where to start explaining, he sighed heavily, as if giving up, and said, “I’m pregnant.”

The lighter that Woo-seok had dropped made a sound as it hit the ground.

∞

Someone wise once said, “Be wary when things go too smoothly.”

After explaining the self-inflicted crisis to Woo-seok, surprisingly, he insisted that Ji-an stay at his place until he leaves the country. With assurances that Ji-an need not worry about food or anything else, Ji-an found himself indebted to his friend and felt a sense of relief for the first time since entering this strange world after the possession.

Ji-an took his car and drove back to his officetel to trick the driver. The plan was to take the prescription medication he had forgotten about at home and then take a taxi to Woo-seok’s house.

Perhaps it was carelessness. Just as Ji-an turned a corner, he ran into Seo Ji-hyuk right in the hallway in front of his apartment. They say you meet your enemies on a narrow bridge, and Ji-an found himself in precisely that situation.

Ji-an turned around to run away without realizing it, but stopped when he heard Seo Ji-hyuk calling.

“Seo Ji-an-ssi, I see you’ve changed your strategy… Feeling satisfied with the results?”

What was he talking about, a strategy?

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

It was truly unfamiliar and shocking to see his older brother speaking respectfully to him. His legs were shaking from fear.

Seo Ji-hyuk lowered his eyes and smiled faintly.

“The new strategy seems quite plausible. Han-joo was very distraught.”

Ji-an recalled Jeong Han-joo’s 18 missed calls on his phone and bit his lip with a sense of impending doom.It was clear that Seo Ji-hyuk had seen it all.

“There seems to be a misunderstanding. I’m planning to disappear completely, leaving this officetel as well. So…”

“Aha. So you’re planning to drive Han-joo completely crazy.”

“No? Absolutely not.”

“Seo Ji-an-ssi, do you think I’ll believe those words now…”

Ji-an thought Seo Ji-hyuk was going to hit him as he made a step towards him. The body containing the soul that had been getting beaten up by its older sibling for a long time behaved according to its habits. He lowered his head, raised his arms, and crouched down.

“…”

“…”

However, even after waiting for a long time, there was not even the slightest touch, let alone pain.

When Ji-an finally lifted his head after groaning for a while, Seo Ji-hyuk was looking down at him with a puzzled expression.

“What’s going on here…?”

Huh, indeed. Seo Ji-hyuk uttered a question that one would make when someone’s confusion reaches its peak.

“…”

“If anyone sees me, they might think I’m threatening Ji-an-ssi every time we meet. What kind of acting is this? But since it’s just us two, isn’t it a waste of energy? Do as you were doing before; it’s disgusting.”

It was then that Ji-an realized he had behaved strangely.

“Uh… Hyung? I need to take some medicine, so would you mind coming inside to talk? There might be people passing by here…”

Firstly, Seo Ji-hyuk was surprised that Ji-an referred to him as ‘hyung.’ Secondly, he was astonished when Ji-an asked him to come inside, avoiding people.

Considering the person Ji-an used to be, someone who deliberately caused trouble to be noticed by Han-joo, it was difficult to believe.

Ji-an carefully passed Seo Ji-hyuk, who had his eyes wide open with a doubtful expression, and opened the door. Whether he believed Ji-an or not, it didn’t matter as long as he showed it through his actions. Ji-an entered the house with a cooperative attitude, checked the medicine packet on the table, and took a pill.

“Are you in any pain?”

Seo Ji-hyuk asked as he entered the house, keeping his distance like a wary animal.  Still thinking of Ji-an as a crazy guy not to be taken lightly, he lowered the door stopper and left the door slightly open.

Ji-an chuckled at that sight. It was amusing to see someone wearing the skin of his older brother being cautious and fearful of him. Truly, it was a sight to behold after living in this world for so long.

“Yes, a bit. There’s an issue with pheromones.”

“It seemed like the atmosphere around you had changed a bit…”

Seeing Seo Ji-hyuk’s understanding demeanor, Ji-an felt a sense of defeat. He wondered if the devilish pheromones had an effect on an Omega as well.

Although Ji-an couldn’t figure out why Seo Ji-hyuk was wandering in the hallway, he wanted to part ways as soon as possible. He wished to escape beyond Seo Ji-hyuk’s 1000 kilometer radius if at all feasible.

He had hoped to meet Seo Ji-hyuk at least once because he was the main character of the drama. However, he didn’t expect it to happen like this. His head throbbed painfully as he was unprepared for anything.

“Anyway, I… I’m going away soon… I’m going to disappear as far away as possible. I’m preparing to leave the country. I trust you to keep it a secret from Han-joo. Since you hate me meeting him, it’s better if he doesn’t know.”

“Does that have anything to do with taking medicine now?”

“Uh… Yes, a little.”

Was this buff for the protagonist? Why are these guys so perceptive? Ji-an turned his eyes as he broke into cold sweat. The medicine needed to take effect quickly.

“It’s not like I suddenly got a terminal illness and become a changed person or anything… Ah, this is because my friend makes this joke. You don’t have to worry about it, because I’m not really sick or anything… I don’t think you’ll care, but… No, that doesn’t mean that hyung is such a cold-hearted person.”

“…”

“…”

Ji-an bit his lip, realizing that the more Ji-an tried to explain, the more doubtful Seo Ji-hyuk’s gaze became. Maybe it would have been more believable to say he got a strange disease and changed as a person. No, saying that might have brought even more attention from Jeong Han-joo.

“It’s funny. To go so far as to say that, did you think I’d be foolish enough to think, ‘Ji-an seems a bit unwell, he’s going abroad’ and spill the beans?”

“No… really… I didn’t. I didn’t even think about it.”

The Seo Ji-hyuk in the drama was a sweet candy-like character. Still, could he really be that stupid? Also, it was never his intention to use it like that.  Ji-an vehemently protested with both hands raised, but Seo Ji-hyuk regarded every word from Ji-an’s mouth with a doubtful gaze.