DP Side Story Episode 21
by BrieDeep Pivot Side Story, Episode 21
“Jeong-woo!”
Yeon-woo dashed over and scooped up the small body running toward him.
“Whoa! Why is our Jeong-woo so heavy now? And look at those long legs!”
From a bit of a distance, Seo-joon watched the reunion between the brothers. It was the first time Yeon-woo had smiled so brightly—despite being shy around both Hee-min and himself until now.
With a face full of joy, Yeon-woo peppered Jeong-woo with kisses. Jeong-woo, clearly mortified, rubbed his cheek furiously.
“Ugh, hyung… I’m grown up now. Don’t kiss me…”
Yeon-woo’s eyes widened.
He looked at Jeong-woo with a mock pout, as if genuinely heartbroken.
“Jeong-woo doesn’t want hyung’s kisses anymore?”
“Mm-hmm. You haven’t done that in forever…”
He must’ve kissed a younger version of Jeong-woo constantly before.
Though he didn’t show it much, Yeon-woo’s face looked oddly conflicted—like the reality hit harder than he expected.
Today was Jeong-woo’s dental appointment for cavity treatment.
Having met several specialists at the Center by now, Jeong-woo greeted the doctor with practiced ease and handled the treatment calmly.
“Jeong-woo must really be all grown up now. Doesn’t even want to kiss me anymore.”
Yeon-woo muttered this in a slightly deflated tone as he watched from the sidelines. Still not used to his fully grown adult body, he fidgeted, long legs shifting back and forth awkwardly.
The little gestures, the tone of voice—it all screamed youth.
Seo-joon couldn’t help but quietly smile to himself.
“He grew that much because you raised him well, Yeon-woo.”
Yeon-woo glanced at Seo-joon out of the corner of his eye, only to immediately look away.
Seo-joon didn’t bother turning his gaze, simply enjoying the flush spreading to the tips of Yeon-woo’s ears.
“…Thank you for saying that.”
The awkward gratitude sounded like something you’d say to an elder.
Embarrassed, Yeon-woo fiddled with his hair and turned his head even further away from Seo-joon.
“…”
Even this awkward tension, Seo-joon decided, was something worth waiting through—just to be with Yeon-woo.
By the time Yeon-woo returned to the hospital room after spending time with Jeong-woo, night had already fallen.
“Thank you… for letting me see Jeong-woo.”
He spoke quietly as he helped Seo-joon clear the dinner table. Seo-joon gave a soft smile as he folded the tray back onto the bed.
“Not just today—you can see him anytime now. As long as the doctor gives permission, of course.”
“…”
“I’ll leave your medicine here. Take it and brush your teeth, okay?”
Placing the pills on the console, Seo-joon turned away.
“Sleep well, Yeon-woo. If anything happens, just press the bell.”
“…Lieutenant Ji.”
He had just reached the door when Yeon-woo’s voice stopped him. Turning back, Seo-joon looked at him.
Yeon-woo hesitated for a long moment, eyes darting nervously, then finally spoke in a stammer.
“Just in case…”
“…”
“…Could you… hug me? Just once?”
The sudden request made Seo-joon raise an eyebrow. That wasn’t like Cha Yeon-woo at all—he never made the first move, not like this.
“…Yeon-woo. Don’t tell me…”
Watching him fidget and avoid his gaze, Seo-joon furrowed his brows slightly.
“…You think this is all a dream?”
As expected, Yeon-woo gave a small nod.
“I might wake up tomorrow… and you won’t be here.”
“…”
Seo-joon’s mouth opened, but no words came out.
Cha Yeon-woo was treating all of this like a dream—believing that he might wake up back in his half-basement studio apartment as if none of this had happened.
And from his perspective, that wasn’t such a far-fetched fear.
But this place—the world they were in together—was real.
Twenty-one-year-old Cha Yeon-woo had tumbled backward into his eighteen-year-old self overnight. And Seo-joon had no idea how to deal with that.
But he knew exactly what he wanted to give him.
“…Come here.”
Seo-joon opened his arms calmly.
Yeon-woo stepped forward, his throat visibly bobbing as he swallowed nervously.
He paused for a moment, unsure what to do with his suddenly grown body—then carefully leaned forward and rested against Seo-joon’s chest.
“…”
If Seo-joon had ever met the eighteen-year-old Yeon-woo back then—surviving on school, part-time jobs, and desperate hospital visits for his brother—he would have wanted to hold him like this.
I know it’s hard now. But just hold on a little longer.
Better days will come.
Seo-joon gently stroked his back.
Only then did Yeon-woo’s arms rest lightly on Seo-joon’s back in return.
The steady thump of his heartbeat echoed between them—warm, real. A reminder that his precious lover was alive and here.
After a few seconds, Yeon-woo slowly pulled away. His eyes wandered, unsure where to settle, before they finally landed on Seo-joon.
“…Thank you.”
He gave a small, polite bow and returned to his bed.
Seo-joon, with one hand still on the door handle, gave his reply.
“Good night, Yeon-woo.”
A quiet voice answered from behind.
“…I hope I can see you again tomorrow.”
Seo-joon paused in the hallway. Letting out a silent breath, he gave a brief reply before gently closing the door.
“Me too.”
Hoping that tomorrow, the twenty-one-year-old Cha Yeon-woo would come back to him.
But the next day came.
And the day after that.
And still—twenty-one-year-old Cha Yeon-woo did not return.
“How about now, Yeon-woo? Do you feel like anything’s starting to come back?”
A sleek black car glided smoothly along a quiet road. Seo-joon was slowly driving through Sector 1, giving Yeon-woo a tour of the Center.
“That over there is the Guide Training Center where you had your induction ceremony. Cheong-oh snuck you out from there and dragged you to the site in Hyoseok-dong. You’ve seen parasitic mites before on TV, right?”
When he noticed Yeon-woo leaning toward the window to get a better look at the Training Center, Seo-joon continued.
“That site was for parasite containment. You did incredibly well from the start, and the whole team really liked you.”
“Then… um…”
Yeon-woo, who had been quietly listening the whole time, hesitated as he spoke.
Ask me anything, Seo-joon thought, and smiled wider to encourage him.
“…Did I ever fire a gun?”
“…”
Before he was Seo-joon’s lover, Yeon-woo had been a shy, curious eighteen-year-old—just slightly offbeat in the most age-appropriate way. Seo-joon stifled a laugh and answered seriously.
“You were no joke… a natural marksman.”
Once the first cautious question was out, Yeon-woo started asking more excitedly.
Did I wear combat gear like in movies? Did I ride in a helicopter? What about throwing grenades?
Seo-joon responded to each one with sincere, detailed answers.
“Then… I must’ve saved a lot of people too, right?”
“Of course. You saved so many lives, Yeon-woo.”
“Just like you, Lieutenant?”
“…”
Seo-joon glanced over, momentarily at a loss for words. Yeon-woo’s bright eyes shimmered with curiosity and admiration.
As soon as their eyes met, Yeon-woo flinched and quickly turned to look back out the window.
Seo-joon let out a soft, breathy laugh and replied gently.
“…Not as much as you did.”
“Yeon-woo, now slowly lift your foot off the brake.”
In the empty parking lot inside the Center, Seo-joon’s car inched forward at a crawl.
“Gah—!”
As soon as the car began to move, Yeon-woo panicked and slammed the brake again.
Seo-joon chuckled and gave his knee a light tap.
“Relax your foot. Don’t tense up.”
It had all started with a simple question: ‘Do I have a driver’s license too?’
And just like that, it turned into a driving lesson.
“Slowly now, press the accelerator again.”
As the speed began to rise, Yeon-woo instinctively lifted his foot again. But Seo-joon was unfazed and continued to praise him.
“You did great just now. Try pressing it again.”
Vrrrmmm…
As the speed gauge crept upward, Seo-joon lightly adjusted the steering wheel.
Yeon-woo inhaled sharply, eyes wide and glued to the road ahead, completely frozen.
“Alright, now turn this way and do one big circle around. You got this, right?”
Seo-joon took his hands off the wheel.
Yeon-woo, gripping it like he might snap it in half, drove forward at a crawl, his face locked in concentration and his mouth hanging slightly open.
Seo-joon watched the scene with a quiet smile.
“I… I can’t. I really can’t do it.”
Before even making it halfway around the lot, Yeon-woo let off the gas and stepped on the brake.
The car eased to a gentle stop without even a jolt—surprisingly smooth for a first-timer.
Even if his memories were gone, his body still remembered a few things.
“My hands are all sweaty…”
Yeon-woo showed him his palms, glistening with nervous sweat.
Seo-joon laughed and laid his own hand over Yeon-woo’s.
The damp warmth clung to his skin.
“I’m sitting right next to you. Why were you so nervous?”
He tapped their palms together lightly, still smiling.
“…Because you are sitting next to me.”
Suddenly, silence settled over them.
Seo-joon froze in place for a moment, then quickly pulled his hand away, realizing his mistake.
Right.
This Yeon-woo wasn’t his lover—not yet.
Casual touch like that… maybe it wasn’t so appropriate after all.