Churu for the Angry Guide

49

Unlike on the way there, Siwoo sat in the passenger seat. Seojun, who had come out to help with Siwoo’s luggage, opened the passenger door first. Because of this, Siwoo naturally ended up sitting next to him.

It’s more comfortable in the back.

Out of awkwardness, Siwoo kept opening and closing the backpack he had brought for no reason. With not much luggage, all his belongings fit into one backpack.

“Is that all you have?”

Seojun asked, looking at Siwoo’s bag. Even to him, the lack of luggage was surprising.

“Yeah.”

Leaning close to the window to indicate he didn’t want to be asked further, Siwoo remained silent. When Siwoo entered the center, he had only come with this old backpack slung over his shoulder. A few pairs of underwear and two sets of clothes were all he had. Even during his stay at the center, his belongings hadn’t increased.

Siwoo had lived in a state where he could leave at any moment. It was a life where he had never settled in one place.

But why did I follow this guy?

Interrupted by this sudden question, Siwoo stopped looking out the window and hugged his backpack. He had hurriedly packed his things to leave, but thinking about it now, it seemed strange.

What made me trust this guy enough to follow him? He had packed his things without hesitation, seeing his messy bed in the accommodation he had just left. Seeing the pile of empty snack bags and unworn clothes after being away for a few days made him feel he had to leave immediately.

“We’ll go to our accommodation first.”

Seojun gently turned the steering wheel while checking Siwoo’s reaction from the corner of his eye.

“If you don’t like it after seeing it, tell me. I’ll ask the secretary to find an empty accommodation for you.”

He explained before Siwoo could burst out in anger. He had suggested it because their accommodation was very spacious.

Fortunately, Siwoo didn’t refuse. It was unexpected, as Seojun thought he would hate the idea of going to the Espers’ accommodation.

“You can sleep if you’re tired.”

Leaning against the window, Siwoo looked quite exhausted. Moreover, having eaten a full meal, he must be even sleepier.

Seojun observed the silent Siwoo and increased his speed a little more.

* * *

“Come in.”

Seojun guided Siwoo into the Baekya Guild’s accommodation. Their accommodation was on a different level compared to other guilds.

“We all use only the second-floor rooms. We rarely come down to the first floor except when using the kitchen.”

It was a space with an incredibly high ceiling and many rooms. Siwoo couldn’t help but exclaim in amazement, his mouth wide open as he looked around the house.

“It’s spacious, isn’t it?”

Siwoo nodded, lost in thought. Judging by his expression, he didn’t seem to realize he had responded.

He seems properly surprised. Well, Seojun had a similar reaction when he first came to the accommodation.

“Sometimes we don’t even know if the others are here.”

While Geonho’s presence was always noticeable, when it was just Seojun and Jihan, they would sometimes ask each other when they had arrived. There were many times they hadn’t noticed each other despite being in the accommodation all day.

“There’s an empty room upstairs too, but it’s used as a storage room.”

Seojun showed a room in the farthest corner of the lower floor, not the upper floor where their bedrooms were gathered. Behind the tall stairs, there was a door that looked like a hidden secret room.

“But there’s really nothing in here.”

When he opened the door, as Seojun explained, there was just an empty room. It was spacious, but there was no furniture at all. It was truly just an unused space left empty.

“You just… left this room empty?”

Siwoo marveled at the room, which was much larger than the studio he once lived in. It was big enough to fit a large bed and a desk. Plus, it had a large window. It was in a direction where sunlight would come in well.

“We didn’t have any particular use for it.”

“No, what a waste!”

Siwoo, who had raised his voice without realizing it, quickly calmed down and put down his bag. Such accommodation was certainly worth staying in. It was so spacious that you really wouldn’t know if someone was on the upper floor.

“I want to sleep here.”

Above all, he liked the location of the room the most. He was satisfied with it being tucked away in the corner and hidden by the stairs.

“There are two major drawbacks, so listen before you decide.”

“What are they?”

Siwoo looked around the room, half-closing his ears. Fearing that Seojun might change his mind, he started unpacking. Though his luggage consisted of just a few pieces of clothing.

“First, there’s no bathroom in the room, so you’ll have to use the living room bathroom. It’s close to the room, but it might be inconvenient to have to come out every time you need to use it.”

“That’s fine.”

After a moment’s thought, he quickly answered. That level of inconvenience was tolerable. In his previous accommodation, six people shared one bathroom. He was used to using public bathrooms since childhood.

“You’ll all be using the upstairs bathroom anyway, right?”

“That’s right. No one uses the downstairs bathroom.”

“That’s fine then.”

Siwoo spread out the clothes he took from his bag on the floor. With no particular belongings, he did this anyway. It was a mark that this was now his room. At least for a few days.

“And the door doesn’t lock.”

“It doesn’t lock?”

Seojun approached the door and showed the doorknob without a lock.

“None of the rooms have locks. It’s not just this room.”

“Is that normal for all accommodations?”

“I’m not sure about others, but that’s how it is in our accommodation.”

Seojun lightly turned the doorknob and asked what Siwoo wanted to do. While the bathroom issue was one thing, not being able to lock the door seemed like a critical drawback. Of course, nothing would likely happen, but it might make one feel uneasy.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m only staying for a few days anyway.”

Siwoo planned to move into the new accommodation the secretary would find for him next week. He just needed a place to stay until then.

“Do as you like.”

Seojun shrugged one shoulder and left the room. He left so quickly that Siwoo couldn’t even thank him. Siwoo thought it was better this way and continued to look around the spacious room.

“Why leave such a nice room empty? What a waste.”

After touching the clean wallpaper without a single stain, he went to the window. It was summer, so the days were long, and the sky was still bright.

After the long rainy season ended, bright weather continued for days. It was sweltering hot, but the bright sunlight was a pleasure to the eyes.

Standing still and looking out the window, Siwoo suddenly grabbed his clothes and sniffed them. He also smelled his wrist and forearm.

There wasn’t any particularly unpleasant odor. It just smelled like his own body.

Maybe it doesn’t smell bad because it’s my own scent?

As he was about to lift his arm to smell a deeper area, he quickly straightened up at the sound of Seojun’s voice.

“Can I come in?”

Seojun, who Siwoo thought had returned to his own room, came back. And he was carrying something very large.

“What’s… that?”

“A bed.”

Seojun put down a king-size bed in the center of the room, with a look that said, “Can’t you tell by looking?” How did he manage to bring that down the stairs?

“Where do you want it? Against the wall?”

Caught off guard, Siwoo vaguely pointed to the desired location. It was close to the window.

“Which way for the head?”

“Just leave it as it is.”

“It would be better to see out the window if we turn it the other way.”

“…Then turn it around.”

Changing the position as Seojun suggested, Siwoo liked it even more. He couldn’t take his eyes off the large king-size bed he had never used before. When he touched it lightly, it was so soft it could wake him up.

“Is this yours?”

“Yes, I have another one. I sleep on two beds pushed together.”

The question ‘Why bother?’ came to mind, but seeing his large body, Siwoo understood. With such a big body, he might easily roll off even a king-size bed.

“I’ll tell the secretary. Jihan will come back late today, and if Geonho comes, I’ll let you know by knocking.”

Since Siwoo didn’t have a phone, there was no other way to contact him. Knocking seemed the best way to alert him.

“Geonho often leaves the accommodation empty, so he probably won’t come. The leader never comes at all.”

“Then where does he sleep?”

“They manage on their own.”

Fatigue began to show on Seojun’s face. He was still smiling, but not as brightly as he did in front of others.

Siwoo stared at him for a moment before averting his gaze. Seojun was about to close the door and leave.

“I’m sorry.”

At that moment, Seojun’s gaze fixed back on Siwoo. Siwoo’s large eyes, sharply slanted, wandered uneasily before meeting Seojun’s.

“Earlier… I was just angry and said those things. I didn’t mean it.”

Siwoo mumbled in a tiny voice that he was actually really sorry to Geonho. The content of his words was clearly an apology, but his expression looked more like someone cursing.

“Of course you’d be sorry.”

Seojun watched Siwoo and tilted his head to the side. Then he smiled silently.

“I thought you were apologizing to me.”

“I have nothing to be sorry for to you!”

Siwoo put on a proud face again. Looking at him continuously, his expressions were surprisingly diverse. It was unexpected, as Siwoo thought he only knew how to make cold and haughty expressions.

“I’m only sorry to Kang Geonho and the secretary. I owe nothing to you and Yoo Jihan.”

“Then please try to appease Geonho.”

Seojun slowly walked backward, approaching the door step by step.

“Geonho is simpler and kinder than you might think. He’s definitely not a strong-willed person.”

Siwoo knew he was foolishly kind. But even the kindest person has a line they can’t tolerate being crossed.

Siwoo had crossed that line. Seduced by Churu.

“If you just make an effort, he’ll forgive you quickly. He’s the kind of person who caught your vomit with his bare hands.”

“What?”

Siwoo, who had been looking at the floor pattern, raised his head.

“Caught what?”

“Your vomit. When you fainted in our guiding room.”

Seojun asked if Siwoo really didn’t know, as he thought Siwoo would certainly be aware of it.

“Didn’t Jihan tell you?”

This was the first time Siwoo had heard about this. He remembered someone holding his chin and shouting at him to vomit here just before he fainted. When he tried to cover his mouth, unable to vomit on the bare floor, someone had urged him.

[It’s okay, hurry!]

So that was the idiot’s voice. It was his hand holding my chin.

[Spit it out quickly! It’s not dirty!]

No wonder it felt warm.