TG Ch 3(2) Part 2

Once he was dressed, Sijin stepped out of the room to find Ham Geonwu waiting for him in the hallway.

“I’ll walk you back. I need to grab a towel.”

“Ah… I guess I used your last one. Sorry.”

“Eyy, it’s no big deal.” 

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Sijin accompanied him to the laundry room. They could either use their personal towels or grab a fresh one from the communal laundry room. 

They walked side by side down the stairs. It felt awkward to call it ‘walking him back’ when their rooms were in the same building. 

They stopped by the lounge to get water and coffee, and then headed to the laundry room for a fresh towel. Ham Geonwu, with his large hands, helped Sijin carry his growing pile of supplies. They chatted as they walked, making their way back to Sijin’s dorm at a leisurely pace.

Sijin was actually enjoying their conversation, and he felt a pang of regret when they finally reached his door. 

As Sijin unlocked his door, Ham Geonwu asked, “Are you going back to sleep, Doctor?”

“I’m not sure. What time is it…? It’s already 6. How are you feeling?” 

Sijin’s eyes widened in surprise as he checked his watch. Ham Geonwu had been drinking until 5 a.m. He studied his face, his concern growing. Ham Geonwu looked surprisingly fine, which actually made Sijin worry even more.

“Geonwu, don’t drink so much next time. I had no idea you could drink this much.” 

“…..”

“You’re not drinking until our next session, right? You’ll ruin your health if you keep this up. I’m not saying you have to quit completely, but at least cut back a little, okay?” 

“…..”

“…Ham Geonwu?” 

Ham Geonwu remained silent, his eyes fixed on Sijin, as if lost in thought. 

He finally spoke, his voice unusually somber, “Doctor.”

“Yeah?” 

“Why do you think I got so angry earlier?”

“…What?”

Sijin stared at him, bewildered by the unexpected question.

Ham Geonwu was leaning against the doorframe, his head tilted. He was watching Sijin with a quiet intensity, his expression unreadable. Sijin hadn’t noticed it before because he was always smiling, but there was a certain weight to his presence, a stoicism that felt both powerful and intimidating. Sijin felt that same unsettling feeling he’d experienced when he’d first met Ham Geonwu. 

The motion sensor lights in the hallway flickered off, leaving them bathed in the soft, pre-dawn light. Despite the dim lighting, neither of them looked away. It felt like a moment suspended in time.

Finally, a faint smile touched Ham Geonwu’s lips. “I honestly don’t know.”

“…..”

“Do you?”

Sijin couldn’t answer. He could only stare back at him, his eyes wide and questioning. Had he been wrong to think that Ham Geonwu had been joking earlier?

There was a hint of sadness in Ham Geonwu’s gaze, a darkness in his eyes that Sijin couldn’t decipher. Sijin’s heart pounded, a strange, unfamiliar feeling tightening his chest.

He finally managed to speak, “Are you… talking about when you came back to the room earlier?” 

“Hm…”

Ham Geonwu pondered for a moment, one eyebrow raised. Sijin held his breath, watching him. Then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the seriousness vanished, and Ham Geonwu spoke in his usual carefree tone. “Never mind. Just pretend you didn’t hear anything. How’s your toe, Doctor?” 

“Oh? Oh… It’s fine,” Sijin stammered.

Ham Geonwu grinned. He then carefully placed the hangover remedies and the bag of food in Sijin’s hands. “I guess I shouldn’t leave the dolphin alone anymore in the future.” 

Sijin had a feeling that he’d misinterpreted the situation. Worried, he quickly said, “Geonwu, it wasn’t… There was nothing suspicious going on earlier, I promise.”

“I know. It’s Jeong Tae, after all.”

Ham Geonwu chuckled reassuringly. He opened the hangover remedy for Sijin. “But I guess I didn’t realize how much it would bother me to see someone I trust completely with someone else.” 

“…..”

“Make sure you drink this, Doctor. I’ll definitely be there for our next session.”

Sijin could only nod dumbly. Ham Geonwu, with a last reminder to get some rest, quietly closed the door behind him.

Sijin stood there for a long time, staring blankly at the closed door. He was confused. He couldn’t figure out who Ham Geonwu had been referring to—Jeong Taeyul, or Sijin himself, or perhaps both.

***

That day, even after arriving at work, Sijin couldn’t focus.

His eyes were mechanically processing work, his body struggling with the lingering hangover, and his mind was stuck on a single question:

‘Why do you think I got so angry earlier?’

The paper he was holding absentmindedly began to curl slightly at the edges. Ham Geonwu’s words had left him completely shaken.

The anger was clearly directed at the scene that had greeted him upon his return. It was undeniably a suspicious situation. Anyone would be angry to find their main Guide in bed with a half-naked examiner.

However, Sijin couldn’t help but wonder who Ham Geonwu’s anger had been directed at.

Was it jealousy towards Jeong Taeyul, or perhaps towards Sijin himself?

‘If it was jealousy directed at me…’

Sijin’s thoughts drifted to Ham Geonwu’s face, his handsome features, the mischievous glint in his drunken eyes. A smile touched his lips, but he quickly bit it back, a wave of anxiety washing over him. Every time he entertained the thought, the image of Jeong Taeyul’s intimidating presence would pop into his mind.

He couldn’t concentrate on his work, despite having a mountain of tasks to complete. He rubbed his burning ears, trying to clear his head.

Maybe it wasn’t even necessary to categorize those feelings right now.

‘It doesn’t seem like Ham Geonwu even understands his own feelings…’

Sijin chuckled wryly. Ham Geonwu seemed to be struggling with his own emotions, so what was the point of Sijin agonizing over it? 

Besides, what was he, a regular person, supposed to do about the complicated relationship between an Esper and his Guide?

Sijin shook his head, his face etched with fatigue. As far as Sijin could tell, Ham Geonwu was emotionally immature. To put it bluntly, he was a bit childish. He was always chasing excitement, accustomed to the freedom that came with Esper-Guide relationships. The attention he’d shown Sijin might simply stem from a fleeting interest. 

‘Get a grip, Sijin. Ham Geonwu is your patient.’

Sijin took a deep breath, reminding himself of his professional boundaries. 

Ham Geonwu had a trauma related to examinations, which meant he relied heavily on Sijin, his examiner. Getting emotionally involved, especially now that he was making progress with his trauma, would be reckless. If things went sour, it could worsen his trauma, undoing all their hard work. As an examiner, Sijin had to maintain emotional distance.

“Haa…”

He let out a tired sigh. There were times when he wished he had a different job, but work had to come first.

Sijin had always prioritized work over his personal life. While that had its downsides, it had always been the right choice for his career. Ability Users, often emotionally unstable, tended to rely on him for support. However, they would eventually find their own way, regain their composure, and move on. Sijin’s role was to simply observe and provide a steady, non-judgmental presence.

And to be honest, he had more pressing matters to attend to right now. He couldn’t even afford to get enough sleep, let alone worry about his personal life.

“Doctor Baek, could you double-check this week’s examination schedule?”

“Ah, yes. Hand it over.”

Shin Dayoung entered the examination room, interrupting Sijin’s thoughts. He startled, accepting the documents from her. His face was grim, as if he were heading into battle.

[F12 Center – Second Quarter – Full Ability User Examination Schedule]

It was the week examiners both dreaded and expected— the week of comprehensive examinations. 

Sijin felt a wave of nausea wash over him. During this week, the compatibility rates between Ability Users would be reassessed, their overall health and ability improvement would be evaluated, and statistics would be compiled.

In addition, Sijin had to discuss team assignments with the Captains, taking into account each Ability User’s individual strengths and weaknesses. There were a total of six teams at the F12 Center, which meant that Sijin, as the lead examiner, had the heaviest workload. He was already resigned to the fact that he wouldn’t be getting more than two hours of sleep per night this entire week. It was a cruel fate.

As he flipped through the documents, Sijin noticed another set of results attached at the back. It was Jeong Taeyul’s. Shin Dayoung, who was standing next to him, explained, “Those are the compatibility test results from last weekend for Guide Jeong Taeyul and the Alpha Team.”

“What? Shark already got his done?” 

“He didn’t want to come in when it was crowded, so he got it over with on Saturday.”

“…That figures…”

Looking at the timestamps, it seemed that Jeong Taeyul had completed his compatibility test with the Alpha Team on Saturday and then left. The examiner on duty that day must have been surprised, but at least it saved Sijin some work. He shook his head, taking a closer look at the results.

Something seemed off.

‘He’s been partnered with Ham Geonwu for 10 years, and their compatibility is only 70%? And the team members who’ve been working with him for 3-4 years are barely at 45%?’

Jeong Taeyul’s compatibility with Ham Geonwu was a mere 70%, and he barely surpassed 45% with the rest of his team. 

Generally speaking, a compatibility rate of 70% was considered high, indicating a strong bond between an Esper and their Guide.

However, for a team that had been together for 10 years, a 16% increase felt surprisingly low. 

‘Their initial compatibility was 54%, which is a decent starting point, but it only increased by 16% over 10 years…?’ 

This was puzzling. On average, Espers and Guides partnered together for a year would see an increase of at least 3% in their compatibility. It seemed that Jeong Taeyul and Ham Geonwu were only achieving half of that.

Just to be sure, Sijin pulled up Jeong Taeyul’s complete compatibility history. A long list of tests with various Espers at the F12 Center filled the screen. Sijin scrutinized each entry.

Jeong Taeyul’s most recent test with Seo Gyuho had resulted in a paltry 28%. Considering that anything below 20% was usually only seen in tests with incompatible partners, this was a worryingly low score.

‘His wave values are still unstable…’

Sijin frowned, turning towards Shin Dayoung. “About Guide Jeong Taeyul’s compatibility… Has it always been 28% with Esper Seo Gyuho?”

It had been Shin Dayoung who conducted the compatibility test that day. She leaned in, looking at the data with Sijin. “Yes! We ran the test twice that day, and both times it came out to 28%. It was so low that we retested it on a day when Esper Seo Gyuho was in better condition, but the results were the same.” 

“Hm…”

Sijin pondered this, scanning Jeong Taeyul’s overall compatibility data once more. Shin Dayoung commented, “Guide Jeong Taeyul generally has lower compatibility rates than most Guides.” 

“Well… As examiners, we can’t just assume things are ‘just the way they are.’ There’s always a reason behind every anomaly. We need to investigate.”

Sijin said gently, his eyes still glued to the data. Inspired, Shin Dayoung joined him in examining the data. She had once told Sijin that she enjoyed working with him because she was always learning something new. They had a positive influence on each other’s work ethic.

Sijin continued, “Guide Jeong Taeyul’s compatibility rates are about 9% lower than the national average for Guides.”

At first glance, it might seem like an insignificant deviation, easily dismissed as ‘just his personality.’ Or perhaps it could be attributed to discomfort with guiding Espers, having an imprinted partner, or simply being emotionally fragile. However, none of those seemed to apply to Jeong Taeyul…

He decided that further investigation was necessary. 

“The general examinations haven’t started yet, right? Could you compile a list of Guide Jeong Taeyul’s recent compatibility test scores?”

“Should I include his physical examination data as well?”

“Yes, please.” 

Sijin nodded. Thankfully, the general examinations were scheduled to start in the afternoon, so they still had some time. For now. 

Sijin glanced at the list of over 100 Ability Users scheduled for examinations, stretching his stiff neck. He had no time to be distracted by hangovers or complicated emotions. Work came first.

***