What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 853

If It Can’t Be Done, Do What Can Be Done (3)

I was surprised at my own impulsive thoughts when I accidentally tapped the wrong KakaoTalk room, and the chat window started scrolling up rapidly.

‘Kim Ji-hyung, you crazy bastard, don’t you know that Yeseo *hyung* [older brother or male friend] has a girlfriend?’

‘Oh, does he have a girlfriend? I’m sorry. I didn’t know because I hadn’t heard anything.’

‘Is his girlfriend pretty?’

‘Lee Jae-yoon, you crazy bastard, don’t you know that Yeseo *hyung* is completely single?’

‘WTF’

‘(Emoji)’

‘WTF, we should just kick that bastard out, LOL.’

‘Ah, LOL.’

‘Ugh, I’m working overtime, and I burst out laughing, making eye contact with the team leader.’

‘*Hyung*, I’m really sorry. I must have confused you with a college senior I KakaoTalked with yesterday.’

‘There are things you shouldn’t confuse, you idiot.’

‘Okay, the guy who first brought up the girlfriend topic should buy food at the next meeting, right?’

‘Deal.’

‘Let’s just designate a forbidden word this time, LOL.’

“······.”

Following that, a wave of *kkk’s* [Korean equivalent of ‘lol’] surged.

I smirked, looking at the chat window for a while. Knowing that my younger friends would be anxious if my reply was delayed, I finally moved my fingers and wrote a few words.

A vague answer that I was okay.

I appreciated the offer, but Ji-hyung’s sibling was too young. I was almost thirty, so it seemed like a bad deal for them. They should meet someone much better than me.

Just some general words of refusal.

‘Ah!’

‘My sibling is my twin, so they’re twenty-seven, *hyung*.’

‘I was born five minutes earlier, you know.’

‘Hey, kick that bastard out now.’

‘Yeseo *hyung*, you’re throwing a stone into a lake-like heart.’

‘LOL.’

The KakaoTalk room on Friday night was bustling.

I could tell at a glance that several of them were already reeking of alcohol.

I added a few more words so that my younger friends wouldn’t worry, and left a reply telling them to eat dinner well and drink in moderation.

Then Ji-hyung said one last thing.

‘*Hyung*, if you ever change your mind, please contact me anytime. They work at a tax firm, so they’re very busy until May, but they said they’d make time somehow.’

‘(Emoji)’

“······How flattering.”

I think I would be very upset, even if I couldn’t show it, if our Eunseo brought a boyfriend home.

I smiled faintly at the playful emoji, answered simply, and turned off the screen.

Thoughts piled upon thoughts, and those thoughts devoured other thoughts, spitting them out again, filling my head with nothing but black byproducts.

A gray shadow was reflected on the darkened screen.

That was me.

-The screen door is opening.

“······.”

It had already been a week and two days since I heard from my youngest that my friends didn’t remember me.

During that time, Eunseo was very busy.

Even when I was in college, it seemed that there were hardly any students who just played around, especially during exam periods.

She couldn’t let her guard down among the top students, or her grades could take a big hit. So, she went back and forth between home and school in the most ‘student-like’ manner since entering college.

She stayed late at the school library to do homework and study for exams, listened to online lectures, obtained precious *jokbo* [exam archives] and memorized them, and complained about the male students in her department about one hundred and fifty times while eating (we must not forget that Jung Eunseo is an engineering student).

Even in the midst of all that, she somehow made time to read her friends’ stories. Occasionally, she would knock on my door and bring me snacks, and I could see my younger sister opening my laptop.

Each time, I just smiled blandly and didn’t say much.

I couldn’t bring myself to ask a college student in the middle of exams how far she had read.

‘······I’ll enjoy it, *Oppa* [older brother],’

······But judging from Eunseo’s expression, which wasn’t good either, I could tell that there was no progress in the situation.

-This stop is Jamsil, Songpa-gu Office Station. The doors will open on the right. You can transfer to Amsa direction or Garak Market······.

“······.”

I know I can’t give up. I really do.

-You can transfer to the line number 8······.

“······.”

My goal hasn’t changed in the slightest.

As long as Johan is by my side, I must never let go of the thread of hope.

Even if I can never cross over to that side again, Herrit’s father must return to Herrit’s side.

His family is there. So, even if everyone has forgotten me, I can’t give up here.

I know the unchanging proposition better than anyone else. In short, I’m just······.

-Thump-thump, thump-thump······

-This stop is Jamsilnaru, Jamsilnaru Station. The doors will open on······.

“······.”

I’m just having a hard time accepting reality and it’s overwhelming.

The fact that I’m still here, but maybe my friends have gone far, far away.

The fact that I’m still dreaming of that place, but my friends may be living their present.

The fact that I wait for ‘us’ every day, but my friends no longer wait······.

The fact that I might be left alone like this.

‘Jung Ye, are you free this weekend?’

The screen lit up again. The Ark decoration on my phone dangled.

I read the words with an expressionless face.

‘Law 11, the classmates are having a flash gathering, and the girls say they won’t come if you don’t come.’

‘If you’re there, the 09 *noonas* [older sisters or female friends] will come too, no joke.’

‘Please reply LOL~~~~!!!’

“······.”

-Swish······

Suddenly, I felt like the color of the train’s interior was changing.

I suddenly looked up and out the window.

-Clunk-clunk, clunk-clunk······

“Ah······.”

The scenery, having passed several stops beyond my stop, was now reflecting the Han River, with twilight descending and lights twinkling.

The train, free from the tunnel, ran coolly over the bridge, making me envious.

I looked at the flowing river and suddenly thought.

A blind date would be a nuisance to an innocent person, so absolutely not······.

······Alcohol. Should I drink alcohol? A lot.

*

The next day. Saturday night.

“Oh my, Yeseo, oh my. Who fed him so much? You’re not usually good at drinking, are you?”

“*Noona*, just leave him alone. I’ve been trying to stop him since earlier, but he won’t listen and keeps pouring it down himself.”

“Is that okay? This is the first time I’ve seen him sleep like this since he was a freshman.”

“Shouldn’t we put him in a taxi and send him home?”

“Wow. When we’re drunk and sprawled out, they drag us out, saying we’re obstructing traffic······.”

“You guys were really obstructing. Let’s not forget that.”

Joyful laughter spread across the table. It was a barbecue restaurant in the middle of Gangnam.

Several classmates and seniors were looking at the top of the sleeping young man’s head, exchanging worried words.

The empty *soju* [Korean distilled rice liquor] bottle was clearly the result of exceeding his alcohol limit.

Then, the person sitting next to him chuckled while grilling meat.

“*Sunbae* [senior], you don’t have to worry. Jung Ye called his *hyung* himself earlier. He said he was at such and such place and drank a lot of alcohol and couldn’t walk, and asked if he could come pick him up. His *hyung* will probably be here soon.”

“Right, Yeseo is the same as he was in college······. He even packed his bags and put them on his lap. Did you see this? I’ve moved around to several law firms, but he’s the only one I’ve ever seen with this kind of drinking habit.”

“But why did he drink so much? Did something happen?”

“His expression was so bad that I couldn’t ask him directly. But when I listened to him mumbling earlier, he said he broke up with someone······.”

“Oh dear.”

“What should we do? He must have broken up.”

‘Yeseo had a lover?’ Even the seniors at the next table put down their wine glasses and stirred.

Soon, everyone’s topic changed to the story of the young man who was both a classmate and a junior.

“Doesn’t Yeseo still live at home?”

“His family is all in Seoul and they have a good relationship, right? There’s no reason for him to live alone.”

“Hey, don’t you remember? Was it our last semester? Jung Ye’s younger sister came to school, and Gwangbok Hall was turned upside down······.”

“I remember exactly! Because I was eating *sundubu* [soft tofu stew] at the Engineering Hall that day, and suddenly the girls······.”

“He’s really crazy about the Engineering Hall *sundubu*.”

“Excuse me.”

At that time, a low voice brushed past the group’s ears.

Those who felt an inexplicable chill were startled and looked up. There was no sign at all······.

“I’ve come to pick up Jung Yeseo.”

“Ah······.”

“Oh, hello······.”

He was very tall, a handsome man with white hair tied back under a black cap.

He had a friendly smile, but he had an atmosphere that was difficult to approach, so it was hard to make eye contact.

While the classmates who had gotten up were stammering, the man slung the drunk’s luggage over his shoulder and checked the area once more to see if there were any belongings left behind.

Then, without hesitation, he picked up the sleeping young man in his arms.

Everyone gaped at the sight, which was hard to come by. Even the customers at the table across the street, who had nothing to do with the flash mob, glanced this way.

“Then, have a good time.”

“Excuse me, but what is your relationship with Yeseo······? Are you a friend?”

“······.”

“Ah, we thought Yeseo’s *hyung* would come. We’ve seen his *hyung’s* face a few times······.”

The classmate put down the barbecue tongs with an embarrassed expression and added.

Then, Johan Haines replied with a refreshing smile.

“We’re living together.”

“······.”

Then he strode away and disappeared in an instant. Huh······.

“······Wow, who was that just now? Is he a model?”

“Did you see his nose? Did you see his jawline?”

“Ha······. I should have asked for his number······. I was so shocked by the handsome man that I couldn’t say anything right away······.”

“Let’s ask Yeseo later······. No, leave a KakaoTalk message now.”

The entire restaurant soon became noisy. But that too subsided quickly like a breeze.

*

A little later, a light car that received a signal stepped on the accelerator.

-Vroom······

“Thank you for your trouble.”

“It’s nothing.”

“There’s not really a place to park here. It’s best to drive around in the alley and pick him up.”

“Ah, I see.”

Johan in the passenger seat chuckled softly and nodded.

Jung Hyunseo quickly looked at the back seat through the rearview mirror.

The sight of the second one, fast asleep with his seatbelt fastened, came into view.

He falls over after half a bottle of *soju*, what kind of confidence does he have to drink a whole bottle by himself······. He should just eat as much meat as he wants with his seniors’ money.

“He seemed to have been crying.”

“Yes?”

“There were tear stains on the Princess’s cheeks.”

“······.”

However, the nagging in my head disappeared completely at Johan’s added words.

Hyunseo sighed deeply, looking at the Gangnam *daero* [main street] that was as congested as his insides.

Even this was difficult to utter in front of the second one, given the current atmosphere of the family.

“······The situation has become amazing. I thought that once Jung Eunseo started reading, it would somehow unravel smoothly.”

“I had a similar prediction as well.”

The Cardinal agreed readily and turned off the heater.

Hyunseo briefly recalled whether he had sought his consent before he pressed the button.

Of course, that didn’t happen.

“But since the current method doesn’t seem to be working, we need to find the cause. We can’t just keep clinging to the same means······. We’re slowly running out of time.”

“······Is the time that Johan-ssi is talking about referring to Jung Yeseo’s time?”

“······.”

The man replaced his answer with a beautiful smile.

Hyunseo clicked his tongue inwardly, worrying about the second one’s fate.

Why are there only crazy people around you······. Whatever.

“······I agree with the opinion to find the cause. Because the way things are generally going is unusual. But where are you going to start? Do you have any good ideas?”

“I naturally thought that *Hyungnim* [term of respect for an older brother or male friend] would be thinking the same thing.”

-Whish······

A pleasant breeze blew through the car.

It was the perfect temperature to cool the drunk’s hot cheeks.

Mint-colored eyes emitting ether gave off a chilly light.

“Let’s go to Mother. She is the *geunwon* [source] itself.”