That Face Is the Problem - vanish into fiction

Da-sol dropped his honorifics for the first time. Because the tone and voice were so terrifying, Lee Hyeon instinctively bowed his head and replied like a subordinate in the military.

“Ye- Yes, that is correct!”

“But even in the midst of that, you liked me?”

“Wh- What?”

Lee Hyeon was startled and made eye contact with Da-sol. However, in less than a second, Lee Hyeon lowered his gaze again. The shame of having his feelings, which had only recently started growing, immediately found out turned his entire body crimson.

“The part about wanting to get… get stronger was sincere. But as I kept spending time with you, hyung… you treated me better than I expected… the way you separate public and private matters is cool… your heals are so good… and above all, you are just so pretty…”

There was no malice in Lee Hyeon’s confession. And there would be no lie either. Da-sol could tell that much. But it wasn’t as if things only felt like total shit when malice or lies were involved.

“So what do you want me to do about it?”

Da-sol glared at Lee Hyeon, looking up so sharply that the whites of his eyes showed.

“So, did you think that if you kept training with just the two of us and guarded me for a bit, you’d actually get to sleep with me or something?”

“Wh- What?! No?! I- I haven’t even thought about something like that! Just… I- I have imagined us dating, but—”

“Fuck, this is exactly why male bastards are.”

“…I’m sorry, hyung.”

“It’s disgusting, so cut it out with the ‘hyung’ crap. And don’t call Jeong Jae-gyeong ‘hyung’ either.”

“Yes…”

However, as if he also had something to say, Lee Hyeon deftly started making excuses.

“But really, truly, for real, hyung—no, Healer-nim—it hasn’t been long since I came to like you, okay? Originally, I only thought about getting stronger! I’ll sort out my feelings right away, so could you please not fire me…?”

Without realizing it, Da-sol scoffed at Lee Hyeon, pulling up just one corner of his mouth.

“Sorting out your feelings happens that quickly?”

“I’ll try my best! Genuinely, right away—”

“If it happens that quickly, you should have sorted those feelings out and kept your fucking mouth shut. Why did you pull that bullshit on Jeong Jae-gyeong then?”

At Da-sol’s call-out, Lee Hyeon beat his chest with his fist as if it were unfair.

“No, I really never pulled any bullshit on Jae-gyeong-hyung—no, Hunter Jae-gyeong! I’ve never spoken to him rudely either! I just spoke to him the exact same way I speak to you, Healer-nim. It’s just that Hunter Jae-gyeong is so nice—”

“Exactly. You did it precisely because you knew Jeong Jae-gyeong is nice.”

“…!”

Lee Hyeon froze. Da-sol looked at Lee Hyeon with eyes full of contempt. It was the first time in his life Lee Hyeon had ever received such a gaze. A gaze that looked at him as if he were a piece of trash rather than a human being.

The moment he saw it, a sense of resistance kicked in, and a surge of anger flared up inside him.

“You’re pissed off, right? At your core, you’re similar to me. You have a dirty temper, a strong ego, and grit. When someone looks at you like this, it feels like total shit and makes you want to snap back and ask what they’re looking at. Normal people are like that too, but you and I have a slightly stronger tendency for it. We’re combative, and we’re hunters.”

Lee Hyeon thought similarly. Because he felt that Da-sol resembled him, he had felt even more attracted to him.

Unlike himself, who was a C-rank, still young, and only a guardian hunter, forcing him to smile and show manners to others, Da-sol, an A-rank healer, wore a blunt expression consistently and only said and did exactly what he wanted. To Lee Hyeon, that looked like power derived from strength. That was why he wanted to become like Da-sol, felt a sense of kinship with Da-sol, and liked Da-sol.

At first, it was clearly admiration, envy, and positive feelings, but as time passed and he saw Da-sol’s pretty face or smooth skin, when their hands touched during a heal, or when his heal awakened Lee Hyeon’s senses… Lee Hyeon realized moment by moment that a different emotion was growing inside him.

“As expected, you knew too, Healer-nim. That we’re a bit similar. That I like you. Then—”

“I knew. Is that why you messed with Jeong Jae-gyeong too?”

A brief silence fell over that question. Those words were not just a simple inquiry. Da-sol only realized it after spitting it out, and Lee Hyeon knew it even before hearing it. Lee Hyeon asked with a trembling voice.

“Do you mean the fact that Hunter Jae-gyeong is nice, and therefore an easy target? Or… that you think of Hunter Jae-gyeong a bit differently, Healer-nim?”

The reason Lee Hyeon singled out Jeong Jae-gyeong and asked for a personal favor. The reason he tried to separate him from Da-sol. While it was partly due to Jae-gyeong’s personality, he had also unconsciously tried to eliminate a rival in the same unrequited love. Because… Jae-gyeong looked a little special to Da-sol.

Da-sol had a somewhat dumbfounded face for a moment. Because he, too, had recognized the meaning embedded in his own question.

No, perhaps he had known ever since he got an erection after looking at Jae-gyeong. If not then, even earlier? From the moment he found himself standing in front of the 8th floor without realizing it. From the moment he waited for Jae-gyeong so they could go eat a meal together?

He didn’t know the answer, but one thing was certain. A different emotion had grown inside Da-sol as well, for the very first time in his life.