PIA 50

“I’m being told off by the most immature person in the world.”

“Anyway, I’m more mature than you, who switched from liking the Jeong younger brother to dating the older one.”

“Oh, come on, I said it’s not like that.”

Ji-an raised his gaze and corrected himself. Due to the force exerted on the spoon pressing the meat, the demi-glace sauce spilled over the edge of the plate.

“It’s not?”

“I’ve said it several times, it’s not.”

Woo-seok chuckled softly and looked Ji-an straight in the eyes.

“Whether it’s liking Jeong Han-joo before, ditching him now, or having a child with Jeong Hee-seo, it’s not all true, is it?”

Jeez. Ji-an snorted in frustration.

“Some of it is true, some of it isn’t. And so what if it is? People can like someone and then move on. How old are we? Playing with people’s emotions like this, are you a kid?”

“Okay, okay, I got it.”

Woo-seok decided to stop teasing Ji-an because he felt like Ji-an would throw a fit if he bothered him any more. He took a sip of water to rinse his mouth before changing the subject.

“Then let me hear what you wanted to tell me by meeting in person today.”

“…”

Ji-an’s expression stiffened suddenly at the abrupt change of topic.

Woo-seok had indeed been quite curious about what he couldn’t convey over calls or messages and could only say in person.  It seemed to be no light topic as Jiab leaned in, closing the distance over the table.

“Okay… don’t laugh at what I’m about to say.”

“What is it, just say it straight instead of stalling.”

“You know how I lost my older brother when I was young.”

“I know.”

Ji-an studied Woo-seok’s eyes for a moment before licking his dry lips and continuing.

“I think I found my older brother.”

“… What?”

“It seems like the person Han-joo hyung is dating is my older brother.”

“Jeong Han-joo’s… lover is likely your older brother?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you saying that Seo Ji-hyuk is your older brother?”

Woo-seok’s face contorted as he questioned back.

“Yeah, Seo Ji-hyuk, my dominant Omega older brother who is four years older than me and whom I lost at the playground when we were kids.”

“… Seo Ji-an.”

“You don’t believe me? Why do you look at me like I’m crazy?”

In the drama, it was not accurately depicted whether ‘Seo Ji-an’ had already figured out whether Seo Ji-hyuk was his biological brother at this point. However, around the middle of the story, when the secret of Seo Ji-hyuk’s birth was revealed, ‘Seo Ji-an’ doesn’t seem too surprised, implying he had known all along.

Being four years older than Seo Ji-an, has the same surname, and even has the same trait. On top of that, they looked similar, yet within the drama, none of the characters even suspected it until the birth secret came out, causing everyone to freak out in shock. Like those makjang dramas where someone appears with a dot on their face acting as a different person.

“The names are the same, the ages are the same, and the traits match. And don’t you think he looks a bit like me?”

“Not at all.”

They say that when coincidences happen three times, it becomes fate.

Just as Woo-seok couldn’t easily believe Ji-an’s words, it seemed the people in this world were unable to even suspect the truth about Seo Ji-hyuk, as if locked behind some barrier. Ji-an suspected this would be the case until the revelations unfolded later. Ji-an let out a deep sigh.

To smoothly cover up misdeeds he didn’t even commit and restore Seo Ji-hyuk to his rightful place, he needed allies on his side. And to make Woo-seok that ally, he first had to make him believe him. For that to happen…

“If you can’t believe me, there’s nothing I can do, but I have a strong feeling about this. It’s been bothering me so much that I can’t even sleep. So, Woo-seok, you…”

Ji-an hesitantly took out an envelope containing strands of hair from his bag and handed it over.

“This is a strand of hair from my mother, Mrs. Yoon Ok-hee’s hair. You get a sample of Seo Ji-hyuk’s hair and run a DNA test. You’re good at this kind of background investigation stuff, right? I get a bit nervous just being around Seo Ji-hyuk…”

The way to convince Woo-seok was simple. Just get a genetic test done and show him the results.

Woo-seok, who had been blankly staring at Ji-an as if he’d been hit on the back of the head, blinked rapidly. Abandoning his food, he leaned back deeply into his chair, suddenly looking a year older and exhausted in a short time.

Woo-seok slowly opened his mouth.

“Hey…you didn’t go crazy from liking Jeong Han-joo for too long, did you? Seriously.”

“…”

When Ji-an just stared back seriously without responding, Woo-seok also couldn’t continue. Their serious gazes crossed for a long time. Woo-seok’s eyes were very cautious as he slowly searched to see if his bad-tempered but quite good-looking friend had gone crazy.

After about 5 minutes of scrutiny, Woo-seok let out the breath he had been holding and let out a long sigh. He reached out his hand and snatched the envelope that Ji-an was holding.

“Okay. It’s not difficult. If it turns out to be true, it’s good news for your family, and even if it’s not… at least it will help you regain your sanity.”

“Thank you.”

“… But why is it your mother’s hair and not yours? It would work with yours too.”

Ji-an twitched his nose at Woo-seok’s unexpected sharpness.

Well… it was because he had the unique characteristic of being a possessed person who crossed over from another dimension. Ji-an was worried there might be a variable such as the body changing due to the changed soul. Since the current Ji-an was not biologically related to Yoon Ok-hee’s family in this dimension…

It would be right to test the actual mother-child relationship.

Ji-an answered by gently scratching his ear.

“Just because. Paternity tests are usually done this way, right? So.”

After handing over Seo Ji-hyuk, the real son, to Yoon Ok-hee, wouldn’t it be okay if Ji-an disappeared? Ji-an’s face lost its initial expression of determination.

Woo-seok suddenly felt uneasy when Ji-an didn’t look at him but made an expression that seemed to be looking somewhere beyond. Could he really have gone crazy? Perhaps because of the unexpected pregnancy, Ji-an seemed to be retreating more and more into the corner.

Woo-seok suddenly found Ji-an unfamiliar to him these days. But ironically, he felt closer to him than before. If Ji-an’s vulnerability was the foundation that maintained their friendship when he was cold and rude, then this softer, warmer side of him these days, was…well…

As much as he didn’t want to admit it, but there were times when he felt like he wanted to protect him a little. Because every time Ji-an newfound gentleness revealed that underlying vulnerability, Woo-seok himself felt uneasy. To offset this inexplicable anxiety, he had to do something.

“Uh, I got a call from hyung-nim. Just a moment.”

Ji-an covered her mouth full of hamburger steak and spoke. He pounded his chest, quickly chewed and swallowed what was in his mouth, and stood up while answering the phone. ‘Hello, hyung-nim.’ Ji-an said, but why did it sound so awkward?

“Yes, hyung. I’m eating right now. It’s a bit early though.”

Ji-an said they had met for lunch, and now, after a few hours, he’s calling to check if Ji-an has eaten… while also denying they were dating…?

“Ji-an and I are going to have fun until late today. Thanks for not calling!”

Woo-seok suddenly got up and shouted into Ji-an’s phone.  It was a secret that he did so out of slight mischievousness.

* * *

Was the sudden mischievousness the problem? Woo-seok dragged Ji-an to a wine bar despite his protests that he couldn’t go.

Bar Aspirin was a place that Ji-an often went to with Woo-seok even in his original world. They came here even on their birthday and when they got their ID after becoming an adult. Of course, Ji-an was single at the time, and he didn’t experience any dimensional transfer or possession…

“How did you find out about this place? Hyung-nim.”

The dominant Alpha father of his child, Jeong Hee-seo with his unsettling attachment to him, didn’t exist either.

“What difference does it make if you know how I got here?”

Jeong Hee-seo’s hands on the small, square table look particularly large and scary. Seated diagonally from Ji-an with the lighting behind him, even his expression looked ominously dark.

“I was just curious and asked…”

Ji-an tilted her head meekly. Despite thinking about it, it didn’t seem like he did anything wrong, but Jeong Hee-seo’s demeanor was so intimidating that Ji-an started to be cautious.

Maybe his Hyung-nim had a worse personality than he thought.

“Haha… Would you like a drink too, hyung? They make good highballs¹ here. I’ll treat you today.”

Jeong Hee-seo happened to show up right after Woo-seok got drunk and made a tongue-twisting sound before falling down. Woo-seok and Ji-an were both weak with alcohol, therefore they constantly kept their drinking to a minimum because they couldn’t take care of each other. But today, Ji-an, sitting across from him, ruined the pacing by kept sipping his drink.

Woo-seok drank tequila at the same pace as Ji-an drank his lemonade…

Jeong Hee-seo twitched his eyebrows while looking at Ji-an rolling his eyes.

“Why did you come to a place like this when you can’t even drink?”

“To talk…”

“You should have gone to a meat restaurant instead.”

“The snacks here are also delicious.”

Though the last serving of cheese canapé left on the plate looked pathetic. Ji-an, who ran out of things to say, raised his hand. He was thinking of ordering one more drink and snack for Jeong Hee-seo.

“Stop it. Don’t you dare drink here while you still have responsibility.”

Jeong Hee-seo grabbed Ji-an’s hand and lowered it. Perhaps because the air conditioner in the store was strong, Jeong Hee-seo’s body temperature was warm as he held his hand.

“But it’s fine…”

“Just get up.”

Ignoring Ji-an’s feeble resistance, Jeong Hee-seo abruptly stood up and effortlessly lifted the unconscious Woo-seok. Ji-an gaped at the sight of Jeong Hee-seo lifting and dragging the hefty Alpha by himself, which seemed like a lot of effort. Without breaking a sweat, he turned to Ji-an and urged him to quickly settle the bill.

Even before Jeong Hee-seo arrived, Ji-an was troubled seeing the sleeping Woo-seok. He wondered how he could move the guy who was sitting there dozing off with all his might.