DP Side Story Episode 24 – End
by BrieDeep Pivot Side Story, Episode 24
“Then…”
Yeon-woo glanced sideways, sneaking a look at Seo-joon to read his expression, before hesitantly opening his mouth.
“Can I buy some Churu?”
“……”
“I want to carry it around and give it to the cats I meet.”
It took quite a while for Seo-joon to find his voice again. He’d truly not expected that response. The cautious way Yeon-woo asked made it sound like some impossible dream, and Seo-joon found himself nodding with matching seriousness.
“…Of course. You can carry around a hundred if you want. Even if you wanted to set up Churu feeding stations across the whole country, I wouldn’t stop you.”
“Hmm, then…”
This time, the pause lasted a little longer. It seemed like he was trying to come up with something bigger or harder to ask for, so Seo-joon waited patiently without pushing. If Yeon-woo asked for a pair of limited-edition sneakers from some brand, he’d buy them. If he asked for the latest phone, Seo-joon was ready for that too.
But 18-year-old Cha Yeon-woo’s wishes didn’t quite move in the direction Seo-joon had anticipated.
“…Can I buy convenience store ice cream every day?”
“……”
Once again thrown off by the unexpectedly grand dream, Seo-joon missed a beat before finally nodding in stunned silence.
“If you wanted to buy out the whole convenience store, I’d still say yes.”
“Not that much…”
“It just means you can have whatever you want, Yeon-woo.”
Yeon-woo turned his head slightly, and a pink flush appeared on his round cheek. A long silence followed. Then, shifting just a little closer toward Seo-joon, still avoiding his eyes, Yeon-woo carefully spoke.
“Well, there’s something I really want to do… with you, Lieutenant…”
“Go ahead. I’m totally open-minded when it comes to you, Yeon-woo.”
Like a genie from a lamp, Seo-joon nodded without hesitation. What cute thing would he ask for this time? If he said he wanted to go to an amusement park or a family restaurant, Seo-joon could take him right now.
Finally, Yeon-woo raised his eyes and looked directly at him. Their eyes met just inches apart. That’s when Seo-joon realized they’d gotten far too close without him even noticing.
“……”
The air between them suddenly tightened. Seo-joon leaned slightly back. Yeon-woo’s face was moving closer, eyes squeezed shut, with an unmistakable intention.
Their noses touched, warm breath passed over lips—right at the moment when their lips were about to meet…
“……”
Tap. Seo-joon leaned back and covered Yeon-woo’s mouth with his hand.
“Don’t pull that ridiculous move. Just take your medicine, Yeon-woo.”
Over his hand, Seo-joon could see Yeon-woo’s blinking eyes, full of innocent disappointment.
“Not until you get your memories back. Absolutely not.”
Seo-joon stood up. He busied himself tidying up and headed for the bathroom when a small sound came from behind him.
“…Tch.”
This is the kind of moment where a kiss brings memories back… You don’t even know anything… Seo-joon heard him muttering complaints behind his back as he closed the bathroom door and clenched his jaw in self-reproach.
That face, coming in with eyes closed—he’d nearly kissed him right then and there just because it was so lovable. He should’ve stopped him sooner. No—he shouldn’t have even let the mood get there in the first place.
…God, Ji Seo-joon, how do you have so little self-restraint?
Seo-joon, who woke up earlier than Yeon-woo, prepared breakfast. This was the fourth day in a row the typically late sleeper had gotten up early. There was no helping it—he had to feed Yeon-woo on time so he could take his medication.
He’d burned the scrambled eggs every time before, but now he was used to it enough that they came out okay. As he transferred the cooked eggs onto a plate, he tilted his head this way and that.
Since he’d been sleeping uncomfortably in the guest room while letting Cha Yeon-woo have the bedroom, his body ached all over. Yeon-woo seemed to secretly want to sleep together, but Seo-joon didn’t want to get swept up in any unfortunate situations.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Cha Yeon-woo—it was that he didn’t trust himself. He didn’t want to cross any lines, especially not with someone whose worst offense was a kiss.
Suppressing his troubled thoughts, Seo-joon raised his voice toward the bedroom.
“Yeon-woo, it’s time to get up and eat. You need to eat now so you can take your meds on time.”
Sunlight streamed into the still bedroom.
“……”
Bathed in that sunlight, the figure sitting quietly on the edge of the bed remained motionless for a long time. Clink, clatter. As the busy sounds from outside drifted in, the figure finally moved, slipping a ring off his left hand.
Seo-joon, now placing the scrambled eggs on a plate, added toast fresh from the toaster. His cooking skills were limited, so his menu options were few.
Maybe he should finally look up some recipes. He really should’ve watched those cooking videos with Cha Yeon-woo when he was so into them.
Just then, he sensed someone behind him.
“You’re up? Go ahead and sit. It’s all done.”
“…Looks like you didn’t burn the eggs today, Master.”
“Of course not. I’m actually a great cook. I just made a few mistakes the last few days—”
Seo-joon turned his body mid-sentence. Cha Yeon-woo stood beside the table, gazing at him quietly.
“……”
Tap. Seo-joon set down the plate in his hand, eyes drifting to Yeon-woo’s hand—his right hand, where he wore the ring.
“…Yeon-woo.”
Seo-joon knew it instinctively. The man in front of him…
Cha Yeon-woo was back.
Finally, the 21-year-old Cha Yeon-woo had returned.
Seo-joon rushed forward and threw his arms around him. Yeon-woo embraced him just as tightly, nearly choking him, and pressed a kiss to his lips.
“Did you sleep well, Lieutenant?”
“You just called me Master a minute ago.”
“No, I didn’t.”
Yeon-woo, whose lips were bitten hard in return, let out a laugh. His face was still youthful, but no longer boyish. The clear gaze in his eyes was much deeper and steadier—the eyes of the 21-year-old Cha Yeon-woo.
Seo-joon, overcome with emotion, kept calling his name, his voice catching in his throat. Yeon-woo… Yeon-woo…
“I missed you.”
“Me too.”
Yeon-woo smiled faintly and furrowed his brow as he gently seated Seo-joon at the table. It seemed the sudden flood of memories was making him a little dizzy.
Seo-joon, cupping Yeon-woo’s cheeks, peppered kisses all over them. My head really hurts right now, Lieutenant. Let’s eat first, then go to the clinic. They exchanged those words between their lips.
“But Lieutenant, you were really mean.”
“What did I do?”
“You didn’t even give me one kiss. I was super upset.”
“One more day and I’d have been a scumbag sleeping with a minor.”
As if… Yeon-woo pouted and pressed his face into his chest. Seo-joon, hugging that warm, familiar back, finally felt the relief he’d been longing for.
It finally felt like he had fully returned to his world. The world of Cha Yeon-woo and Ji Seo-joon. Our world, our universe.
On the way back from the center, after getting confirmation from the medical staff that he had made a full recovery, they had a small tug-of-war before Seo-joon ended up driving.
“Yeon-woo, don’t even think about driving alone again.”
“How could I not? If you go somewhere, I have to pick you up.”
That cute, slightly stubborn expression reminded Seo-joon of the 18-year-old Cha Yeon-woo. A sudden pang of tenderness struck his chest.
“I must’ve been really happy.”
“…I should’ve been kinder to you.”
“Huh?”
“I mean, to the 18-year-old you. It makes me feel awful, thinking about how pitiful he was.”
Yeon-woo turned his head toward him, looking baffled.
“…That was still me, Lieutenant.”
“I know.”
“That’s why I said I was upset.”
“Right.”
“…Seriously now.”
Yeon-woo turned fully toward him and let out a baffled laugh.
“You should be feeling sorry for me, not him.”
“What did I say?”
Seo-joon buckled his seatbelt and gave him a quick kiss. Lieutenant, you’re seriously weird… Yeon-woo muttered beside him, and Seo-joon chuckled.
Over the past fifteen days without Cha Yeon-woo, Seo-joon had felt just how small and empty his world had become. Without Yeon-woo, his life had been a shallow, narrow puddle. Only with Cha Yeon-woo did it finally become a true, complete universe.
He’d learned breakfast makes the day longer. He discovered the charm of dessert cafés he never would’ve visited on his own. He realized log cabin rentals—places he never would’ve considered—were actually kind of nice. He started looking forward to new movie releases just because they were part of a series they watched together.
Only through Yeon-woo’s absence did Seo-joon truly understand how the world he stood in had gradually expanded because of him.
“You’re a really strong person, Yeon-woo.”
“…Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”
Yeon-woo looked at him, puzzled, but Seo-joon just smiled without any explanation.
“Wait… is that your way of saying you love me?”
No need to open his mouth—his partner would always say something cute anyway.
–IF Side Story END.
TL/N: Thank you so much for reading this novel!
A quick word from me: if you spot any issues or mistakes in the chapters, feel free to tag me on Discord—I’d be happy to fix them! Also, don’t be shy to leave a comment. I genuinely appreciate the feedback, and it makes me happy (really, even when it’s corrections!).
Reading your comments always brings a mix of happiness and a little sadness. As a translator, I spend about four hours on every 10 chapters—each one takes me around 10 minutes—and I try to use AI as little as possible. Personally, smut and BL are the hardest genres for me to translate, since I’ve mostly worked on ropan until now. This was a big project for me in many ways, and honestly, it helped me grow a lot.
Smut, especially, is really tough—ChatGPT’s policies don’t allow adult content, so I have to stick to the old-school method: all manual translation. And just so you know, I’m not Korean and I don’t have formal knowledge of the language—but I am a huge novel reader. I love stories of all kinds: BL, GL, ropan, Western novels, even books from my own country.
When I started this, it was on a small scale—but it’s been totally worth it. I truly enjoy translating and plan to keep going. Interacting with you all brought me so much joy, especially in the middle of my never-ending university struggles, and I’m really thankful for that. And on today will be my convocation (I finally get my degree) You all are invited!!
— with love, from Brie 💛