Secret Incident (BL) - Chapter 7

August in Pening Harbor was anything but peaceful.

A film crew had swept in, setting up operations with full force. Every day, new faces appeared.

In the new district, a vast empty lot had been enclosed with green barriers. Occasionally, when vehicles passed through, the residents could catch glimpses of a miniature town being constructed inside.

Speculation ran wild.

What kind of production needed such an elaborate set?

Then, Ethan Fane arrived.

And suddenly, even the older generation—the uncles and aunties who rarely watched television—could recognize him.

“Oh, it’s that guy.”

“That kid from that show.”

“Little Quinn!”

With Ethan’s arrival, groups of young fans also began to appear.

Carrying long-lens cameras, they lingered on street corners, waiting for a glimpse of him.

The town buzzed with activity.

It wasn’t just the film industry taking interest—tourism developers had also set their sights on Pening Harbor.

Some locals felt irritated by the influx of outsiders.

Others found it exciting.

But overall, life went on as usual.

Until one day, the town’s most vital location—the docks—was shut down.

Because beneath the pier, in the murky waters near a drainage outlet, a badly decomposed corpse had been found.

“Just an Accident.”

“Probably just an accident. Must’ve fallen into the drain.”

Zhao-jie stood on a borrowed stool from the butcher’s stall, straining to get a better view.

“Poor soul. Dying in this heat… Even death isn’t merciful.”

“Even if it wasn’t an accident, they’ll call it one,” A-Jian muttered. “It’s bad for business otherwise.”

Then, he glanced at Ethan.

They had arrived late and were stuck at the edge of the crowd.

A nearby resident echoed A-Jian’s thoughts. “Will they cancel the movie? I was hoping to sign up as an extra.”

The conversation fizzled out as a gust of sea wind carried the unmistakable stench of rot through the air.

Everyone instinctively covered their noses.

Zhao-jie climbed down from the stool. “I’m leaving. Another minute here, and I won’t be able to eat dinner.”

A-Jian, ever the dutiful husband, hurried to return the stool.

Meanwhile, Zhao-jie turned to Ethan, urging, “Come on, let’s go back.”

Ethan, well-covered with his hat and mask, could tell she was worried.

So he gestured toward the police line and reassured her, “I’m fine. Don’t worry. I’ll head back with Mr. Jun later.”

Zhao-jie followed his gaze and spotted Liam Jun amidst the crowd.

On the way back, she muttered to A-Jian in the local dialect, “That guy acts so high and mighty, but Little Quinn doesn’t seem to mind him. That kid really is easygoing…”

“Little Quinn”—

A nickname that had stuck with Ethan ever since he played a younger brother character in one of his earliest TV roles.

The role had been an innocent, lively, lovable younger brother.

And that image had followed him off-screen ever since.

It became his brand.

His public persona.

As the overwhelming stench drove away most of the crowd, Ethan edged closer to the police barrier.

Word was that the corpse was incomplete.

The police were still searching for the rest of it.

What had already been recovered…

Ethan didn’t even dare to glance at it.

A police officer came over to disperse the remaining onlookers.

Within minutes, the gathered crowd thinned out even more.

Ethan hesitated before speaking.

“Poor guy. I hope they figure out what happened to him soon.”

No response.

The man standing beside him, wearing sunglasses and looking overly composed, didn’t even react.

Ethan lowered his cap slightly, rolled his eyes beneath the brim, and then pouted.

Then, switching to his best ‘curious, naive’ voice, he said:

“You’re really brave. This doesn’t scare you?”

He took a step closer.

“You found him, didn’t you?”

Tilting his head, Ethan deliberately moved into Liam’s line of sight.

Liam Jun wasn’t fazed by the corpse.

But he was genuinely startled by Ethan’s sudden appearance.

Reflexively, he grabbed Ethan’s shoulder and shoved him down.

Hard.

Ethan winced, flinched, and struggled.

Then, snapping his head up, he glared at Liam.

And—loudly—

“IT WAS ME!”

The volume startled the nearby forensic investigators and police officers.

Several turned their heads.

Liam immediately let go.

He looked down at Ethan, checking his reaction—

But he didn’t apologize.

Or ask if he was okay.

Just stood there, impassive.

So aloof.

So distant.

So goddamn pretentious.

Ethan rolled his eyes openly this time.

“You embarrassed me.”

He reached for his mask and hat, intending to pull them lower—

Then froze.

This was a crime scene.

The way he was dressed…

Wouldn’t he look suspicious as hell to the police?

And sure enough—

Every single officer nearby was now staring at him.

Their eyes held no hesitation.

Ethan immediately ripped off his mask and gave an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry for interrupting your investigation.”

One of the officers called out, “There’s nothing to see here. Go home.”

Ethan didn’t put his mask back on.

Instead, he bowed slightly and thanked the officers, slowly backing away to show that he was leaving.

Then, turning his head slightly, he glanced at Liam.

“You can stop hiding,” Ethan murmured. “They weren’t even looking at you.”

Because just a moment ago—

The second those police officers turned their attention to them—

Ethan could feel it.

Liam Jun had instinctively tried to avoid their gaze.

Ethan Fane muttered under his breath, “Standing next to a big celebrity, who’s even gonna notice you?”

Then, smoothly switching back to his public-facing persona, he added, “Aren’t you scared? You’ve been staring at it for ages. I can’t even look at it.”

There was a pause.

Then, Ethan tilted his chin up, meeting Liam Jun’s gaze.

“You found him, didn’t you?”

Liam’s brows furrowed slightly—

But the moment he saw the smugness in Ethan’s expression, his frown eased.

As if going through the motions, Liam replied, “What did you say?”

Ethan countered smoothly, “Mr. Jun, did you bring your business card today?”

Liam gave a faint, almost lazy smile. “Considering I’ve brought you porridge for three days in a row… let’s just skip the business card.”

Three days.

Three days since Ethan had first opened his hotel room door to find Liam standing there—

Three days since he had, in a daze, accepted the homemade porridge Liam brought.

During that time, aside from knocking, opening doors, and leaving a thermal food container at the doorstep—

They hadn’t actually interacted.

That’s how it should have been.

But Ethan wasn’t just sharp when it came to acting.

He was just as good at reading people.

The first time Ethan stood on his balcony, attempting to experience what it felt like to have “the best view of Pening Harbor,”

He didn’t actually get to enjoy it.

Because his gaze had landed elsewhere.

Between the flower pots, hidden in the shadows—

He had been watching Liam.

At first, his thoughts were purely sarcastic.

“Old man got weak kidneys or something? Why does he have to stop and rest every few steps just from carrying a bottle of water, a bag of rice, and some groceries?”

But then—

He noticed the way Liam avoided the manhole covers.

Not just once.

Not just casually.

But methodically.

Then, he noticed the detours Liam took.

And the earpiece in his ear.

It was… strange.

So he borrowed a telescope from the props department, set it up on his balcony, and spent two days counting every visible manhole cover.

And when he finally decided it was too ridiculous to keep watching—

The corpse showed up.

“Zhao-jie said people have been talking about a bad smell coming from the drains these past few days.”

Ethan casually flipped his baseball cap backward.

Liam stepped forward to leave—

Ethan followed immediately, speaking with obvious satisfaction:

“You’ve been circling the construction site on your way to the market every day.”

“Last night, at 8 PM, you followed a man to this very spot.”

“And now, today… this happened.”

As they stepped into the narrow alleyways of the old town, Liam took off his sunglasses.

Without glancing at Ethan, he spoke in his usual, unreadable tone.

“I followed someone here last night.”

“And today, they found a body here.”

Then, finally—

“Aren’t you afraid I might be the one who killed him?”

Ethan didn’t even hesitate.

“That body’s been dead for at least three months.”

“You only arrived in Pening Harbor three days ago.”

And with complete confidence, he added—

“I’ve played a detective before.”

Liam kept walking.

Ethan followed, then suddenly lagged behind, leaving a small distance between them.

Only to quickly catch up again.

“For a second, you almost had me,” Ethan admitted.

Then, with a smirk—”The market entrance has surveillance cameras. They definitely caught us walking together.”

Liam responded flatly, “They didn’t.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “And why not?”

“They’ve been broken for months. They’re just there for show.”

Ethan’s grin faded slightly.

His voice dropped as he asked, “Then what are you going to do with me?”

His tone drifted toward something almost playful—

“There’s no surveillance here, after all.”

Liam couldn’t quite suppress the smile tugging at his lips.

By chance, they had stopped beneath the same awning where he had taken shelter from the rain on his first day.

Ethan kept walking.

He stopped under the awning across from him—leaning lazily against the wall.

Then, he let out a low whistle.

For a moment, he completely forgot to maintain his “harmless” persona.

“You didn’t cook porridge just to feed me.”

“You just needed an excuse to walk around Pening Harbor freely.”

Liam leaned back slightly, lazily spinning his earpiece between his fingers.

“I work in tourism development.”

“Even if I wasn’t, why would I need an ‘excuse’ to walk around a small town?”

The long, winding alley was buzzing with cicadas, their calls echoing against the old stone walls.

The midday breeze stirred the weeds between the uneven cobblestone paths.

Without the downpour from that night, without the weight of first impressions, Liam looked at Ethan again—

And found him even more interesting.

Not just in the fleeting “this could be fun” kind of way.

Ethan thought for a moment.

Then—

“But you’re not in tourism development.”

“Maybe you just don’t want to attract attention.”

“Buying groceries, fish, and meat makes you blend in with the locals.”

Liam met his gaze.

And with absolute seriousness, he said—

“But the porridge really was for you.”

Ethan scoffed.

A single “Tch—”

Then, with a smirk, he said,

“Mr. Jun, you really are an expert.”