Red Dot - 125

Chapter 125

Chaeyi, thinking that Junseong’s reaction was simply due to surprise, added more to her words.

“He’s been strange for a while. He’s always smiling, but his eyes are so cold and scary, like he wants to kill someone… Sometimes, it even felt like he was already a dead person himself, and it made me uncomfortable.”

At Chaeyi’s words, Junseong turned his gaze away, avoiding her eyes.

As she said, Junseong also thought the same when he first met Hanseo. It was just in the past, though; now he knew that there was more warmth than coldness in Hanseo’s eyes, and he wanted to defend him.

“He just naturally has that kind of look in his eyes. He doesn’t seem like that now.”

“You don’t get it, Oppa. It’s not just his eyes that are scary.”

Chaeyi shuddered as if shaking off a chill.

“Anyone who’s sparred with him has been hurt. There’s someone who had their head cracked open and had to be taken away, even after they kicked him, and there’s also a teammate who got hurt after his bamboo stick snapped but he still managed to stab them. Is it normal for him to be smiling by himself after that?”

Junseong couldn’t defend him against something like this.

He stayed silent as Chaeyi grabbed his arm and clung to it.

“You saw it too! Even when we were being chased by zombies, he was still smiling. When we almost died, his eyes didn’t change at all!”

“Chaeyi, that’s…”

“That person’s looking at you like he wants to eat you up and kill you!”

Junseong’s voice faltered as he tried to comfort her. He could feel the tremble in Chaeyi’s hand, which was still clutching his arm.

“He’s… he’s looking at you like prey… I’ve never seen him look at anyone like that before.”

The tip of Junseong’s eyebrow twitched.

He knew that Chaeyi had good instincts and sharp perception, but for her to notice this so quickly, in such a short amount of time…

How persistent had she been in observing him?

‘Do Hanseo… Should I tell him to keep his eyes down?’

Junseong clicked his tongue inwardly and gently patted Chaeyi’s hand, which was still holding onto his arm.

“To you, he might seem that way, but to me, he’s a very reliable ally. He’s a good person.”

Chaeyi bit her lips and raised her eyes, glaring at him.

“Didn’t you say the same thing before and get stabbed in the back? Do you forget that, Oppa? Of the reliable allies you trusted, who’s still left?! Daewook, except for you, is gone!”

Junseong was at a loss for words. The sharp remark seemed to stir up a painful, burning sensation in a small corner of his chest.

Seeing Junseong’s face darken, Chaeyi hesitated, and then she spoke with an apologetic tone.

“…I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring that up. But Oppa, what I meant is…”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

Junseong forced a smile, trying to calm her down.

“I wouldn’t know if I disappeared, but he won’t do that. …Not ever.”

Do Hanseo would never leave him, who shared his past. Even if he wanted to betray him, Junseong was the only one who could change his past, present, and future, and he was also the one who could suppress his impulsive emotions.

Master and dog.

As Do Hanseo said, he was the master of that dog.

A trained dog couldn’t betray its owner, so he could trust him.

“If he abandons me, he’s dead.”

Junseong smiled faintly, recalling something Do Hanseo had once said.

To lighten the heavy mood, he ruffled Chaeyi’s hair roughly.

“By the way, are you done being angry? This has been going on for a while.”

“Don’t mess up my hair like that!”

Chaeyi swatted Junseong’s hand away and ran her fingers through her disheveled hair. She glared at him, but with her usual cold expression gone, she looked more like a child.

“I wasn’t angry.”

“You were angry. That’s why you didn’t contact me for over two months and ignored my messages.”

“No, it wasn’t because I was angry, I just didn’t know what to say to you…”

Chaeyi hesitated, then sighed and spoke in a mixed tone of frustration.

“I heard from Daewook Oppa. That day, it wasn’t just a casual visit, you were offered the coaching job, right? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Junseong clamped his mouth shut and stared at the door. He had told her not to speak of it, but it seemed Daewook had already spilled everything.

It was the day of their parents’ memorial.

Even though they were always apart, they had promised to be together on that day, but this year, Junseong had broken that promise.

The sudden offer from a famous pro gamer team to become their coach.

Of all the days, the team had chosen the day of their parents’ memorial to discuss the offer. Junseong, who had been somewhat unjustly forced into retirement and was in a dead-end job with no invitations, had no say in adjusting the meeting time.

He had to work.

The money Junseong had earned during his pro-gamer days wasn’t enough to guarantee Chaeyi’s future until she graduated. He had always discouraged her from getting a part-time job and made her focus on her studies, so now he wanted to be the strong older brother and stand in for their parents.

Although he accepted the coaching offer, Junseong wasn’t going to start right away.

His coaching work wouldn’t begin until next year, and signing the contract wouldn’t happen for several months.

It was possible that it would be cancelled by then, so he didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up by mentioning something that wasn’t guaranteed. It was his pride as an older brother.

So, he had only called it a “meeting,” and after that, Chaeyi cut off contact.

If she had only argued or openly expressed her anger, she might have said everything.

But Chaeyi chose to endure on her own. If there was ever a reason why he had to go to that meeting, she thought that her brother would eventually tell her. Even if it was just a simple meeting with no significant reason, she figured that since it had been a while since he had gone out and interacted with people, she should understand.

However, she didn’t want to speak while still upset, thinking that she might end up getting angry unnecessarily. She worried that she would end up shouting, asking why he had to go on the day of their parents’ memorial, and say something harsh. So, she decided to avoid contact for a while, but two months had passed by now.

Hearing the reason Junseong hadn’t told her, Chaeyi felt embarrassed about the time she had stubbornly spent keeping her distance and lowered her head.

“You should’ve told me, whether it worked out or not.”

“If it didn’t work out, it’d be embarrassing.”

“Why would it be embarrassing? You’re such a fool.”

Chaeyi, narrowing her eyes, gave Junseong a light flick on the forehead. The sound was so crisp, it could rival that of any muscular man’s flick, and it hurt pretty badly.

Junseong, holding his aching forehead with one hand, looked up at Chaeyi as she stood proudly.

“I’ve never been embarrassed by anything you’ve done. If it doesn’t work out, it’s just because those people have bad judgment, so you don’t need to worry.”

“But…”

“And about your dreams, too. If you keep hiding everything and not telling me anything, just know that next time, it won’t just be a flick. I’ll throw a punch instead.”

At Chaeyi’s fierce words, Junseong looked down at her tightly clenched fist. From childhood, he knew her punches were way stronger than his, and if she really landed one, it wouldn’t just end with a bump on his head.

Still, Junseong couldn’t bring himself to tell her everything.

The biggest thing he had kept inside was, without a doubt, Do Hanseo.

After calming Chaeyi enough, Junseong thought about the two people waiting outside and opened the door.

Then.

Crash-!

“Ugh!”

With a heavy sound, someone let out a groan. Junseong turned his head to find two people tangled up next to the living room sofa. Upon closer inspection, Hanseo was sitting on Daewook’s back, leaning forward toward his face.

“What are you doing?”

Startled, Junseong rushed over to them, and only then did Hanseo get off Daewook and stand up. Hanseo’s face, when he looked back, was as calm as always.

“Just having a chat.”

“How are you having a chat like that?”

Junseong lightly tapped Hanseo’s chest, almost like scolding him, as he extended a hand to Daewook, who was getting up.

“Are you hurt? That noise sounded pretty loud.”

“No, I’m fine. Men usually talk like this, don’t they?”

Daewook, smiling as if nothing had happened, absentmindedly rubbed his neck. However, his sharp gaze remained fixed on Hanseo.

Junseong, observing Daewook’s condition, narrowed his eyes and glared at Hanseo.

“Talking should be done with words, not by jumping on someone. Sit down and talk.”

Speaking like he was scolding a child, Hanseo smirked and tilted his head.

“You could still talk even if you jumped on someone…”

“Are you not going to shut up?”

Hanseo, interrupting his own sentence, looked at Junseong with a kind of affection, like he found him cute. The two pairs of eyes watching them were filled with both confusion and unease.