That Face Is the Problem - Chapter 42.2
Jae-gyeong listened blankly as Da-sol forced himself to say what he clearly did not want to. Jae-gyeong did not know how to respond, and honestly… it felt as if he had really been rejected, which left him feeling utterly bewildered.
“Huff… from now on, will we continue as team member to team member?”
Da-sol glared at Jae-gyeong while extending his hand for a handshake, then pulled back in surprise.
“Yes…?”
Jae-gyeong asked absentmindedly and wiped his cheeks with his hand. Damp tears smudged onto his palm. ‘Right, I am crying. Why am I like this?’
“Oh, you do not have to worry about it…”
Jae-gyeong waved his hand dismissively. He raised the corners of his mouth into a forced smile while crying. People often think that pretending to be fine reassures others, but he did not realize that it could instead trigger alarm in the other person.
“It is not like I cursed at you, well, I did curse a little, but not at you specifically, Jeong Jae-gyeong…”
Da-sol, looking slightly aggrieved, offered a sort of non-explanation, then awkwardly stood up. He pulled a few tissues from the nightstand and handed them to Jae-gyeong.
“Do not cry. I have never been this gentle while breaking up with someone, really. I mean it.”
Jae-gyeong wiped his tears and waved his hand again.
“No, I am not crying because of you, Da-sol. I just… I am the type who cries easily. I have been like this since I was a child. You do not have to worry… I understood what you said clearly…”
“Really? Eye dryness or… something like that?”
“Uh… yes, you could say something like that.”
It was not like that at all. He was simply a crybaby whose tear glands opened at the slightest provocation. But Jae-gyeong humored him. He felt it would make Da-sol feel less guilty.
“And also… I already told you… I am done with love. I will not date anyone. So you can reject me… even a hundred times if you want…”
“No, you should not put yourself in a situation where you have to be rejected a hundred times.”
“Oh, yes… huff…”
“No…”
While Da-sol repeated the word ‘no’ endlessly, Jae-gyeong wiped his tears and blew his nose properly.
“Then rest.”
Da-sol seemed unable to think of anything else to say. He stood up awkwardly, nodded briefly, and left. It was natural that Jae-gyeong’s tear glands opened again after being left alone.
‘Why am I crying? Even a kindergartener would not cry like this. A newborn might, maybe.’
Jae-gyeong reached for all the tissues and brought them in front of him. He soaked them with fresh tears and reaffirmed his earlier resolution.
Jeong Jae-gyeong had sworn not to fall in love with anyone, and especially not to give his heart to Da-sol, who looked so much like Seo Da-in. Now he understood that Da-sol and Da-in were completely different people, but the fact remained that the person he had liked for three years was Da-sol’s sister. This was something he had to respect both for Da-in and Da-sol.
Even as he blocked the tears with tissues, he steeled himself. Ten minutes later, exhausted from crying, he hugged the tissues and fell asleep.
***
“Really, is this something to cry over?”
Da-sol muttered as he left the hospital. In truth, a sense of guilt was steadily building inside him.
Jae-gyeong, sitting in a hospital gown and silently shedding tears, looked purer and more delicate than usual. His messy hair had grown longer, giving him a slightly charming appearance.
“What the hell am I thinking right now?”
Da-sol absolutely hated the idea of calling a man pretty, one of the top forty-seven things he despised in the world. And yet, here he was thinking that.
Still, he could not help feeling guilty toward Jae-gyeong. In the dungeon, through the mirrors, he had tried his best to hide his own feelings while secretly watching Jae-gyeong. He had tolerated Da-sol’s harsh words and seen him swallow back tears multiple times.
Unlike other men, Jae-gyeong had not confessed recklessly, tried to overpower Da-sol, or touched him inappropriately. He had not tried to kiss him either. Instead, he had behaved extremely cautiously, repeatedly stating that he would avoid love or dating entirely.
‘Am I… too harsh?’
For the first time in his life, Da-sol reflected seriously on his own behavior.
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