What Kim Daeseok said wasn't entirely wrong. It was true that I was jumping to conclusions and being suspicious without solid evidence.
But there were things that could only be explained if Chaeyujung and Yuchae were the same person. Like our first meeting, for instance.
Judging by Chaeyujung's attitude at the wedding, it seemed he had a fairly favorable opinion of me. So when he realized that Hiore's "I'm sleepy" and Jenoris's "I'm sleepy" were the same person, he must've changed his demeanor right away.
After that, he probably heard from Seo Taeyoung that I was playing as Jenoris. As for hiding his personal info, he likely did it on purpose to prepare for possibly meeting me at the wedding.
Most of all, I'd already experienced being approached by Yuchae while she was pretending to be someone else. I had that same strong gut feeling as when I realized that Cotton Candy Fox was Yuchae's sub-character.
"But…"
That was all I had. Just this much wasn't enough to confidently ask Chaeyujung, "Are you Yuchae?"
Whether they were really the same person or it was just my imagination, I needed to take some time to confirm it. If I didn't, I'd probably end up burdening both of them.
Especially Yuchae… We had only just started to grow closer, and I didn't want to hurt her over some baseless misunderstanding on my part.
After organizing my thoughts, I looked down at the glass on the table. The ice-filled lemonade sparkled like a jewel in the sunlight streaming through the window.
Just then, someone walked up near my seat, visibly nervous, and opened their mouth.
"Hello."
As I looked up, just as I'd expected, Chaeyujung was standing there.
I simply nodded in greeting and pointed to the seat across from me. He sat down stiffly, like a rusted machine creaking into place.
'Why did he get so dressed up?'
Chaeyujung had swept his bangs to the side and wore a dark navy turtleneck with a thin autumn coat over it. Meanwhile, I was just in a hoodie and jeans.
Thanks to how flashy he naturally looked—and the extra effort he'd put in—people around us were starting to stare in our direction.
"Oh, have you been waiting long?"
"No."
"Sorry. I, um… I meant to come right away."
With a visibly flustered face, Chaeyujung awkwardly apologized. That only made things more uncomfortable for me.
"I really only waited about ten minutes… and I was the one who suddenly contacted you yesterday to meet, so don't worry about it."
"Y-yeah, okay."
"For now, go ahead and order a drink."
Chaeyujung glanced once at the lemonade in front of me and smiled brightly. It created the illusion that flowers were blooming around him.
How can a guy look so pretty? It's kind of surreal.
"I'm fine."
"This place has a one-drink-per-person rule, though."
"..."
Looking a bit embarrassed, Chaeyujung got up again to order. He returned with the same lemonade as mine.
"Sorry for asking to meet out of the blue. There's something I wanted to ask you face-to-face."
"No worries. I was actually really happy you asked first. I… actually wanted to see you too."
With a blush tinting his ears, Chaeyujung looked shy for a moment, then his eyes sparkled as he asked,
"Can I call you Ji-han hyung again, like last time?"
"About that…"
Scratching my neck, unsure how to begin, I finally opened my mouth.
"How do you know me?"
"Ah…"
"Of course I know you, Chaeyujung. You're a popular pro gamer. We've even gone up against each other several times."
As I dropped the playful tone and spoke seriously, the overly excited Chaeyujung quickly calmed down.
"But I still can't figure out why you know me. Even if you heard about me from Taeyoung-hyung, this level of… well…"
Wait. How should I phrase this? Like feels too strong. Interested in me sounds vague. Maybe trying to get close to me?
"…Trying to get close to me—it doesn't make sense."
After quickly racking my brain and settling on the safest word choice, I asked, and Chaeyujung smiled with a faint curve of his lips.
"I get what you're trying to say. I did come on a little strong at the wedding, huh? I regretted that a lot when I got home. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."
Chaeyujung, now a bit calmer than before, responded in a soft, low voice.
"It's true—I do like you. Kind of like a fan. I admire you… a little."
"…Huh? Admire me?"
A successful pro player admiring an average college student?
"You're good at games. Not just Hiore, but all kinds of games. That's really cool."
"Are you messing with me right now? Is this a joke?"
"I'm serious."
Feeling frustrated, I let out a small sigh and crossed my arms.
"And this is how you treat someone you admire? Saying stuff like 'jungle diff' in chat?"
"Oh, that…"
"Honestly, from my point of view, it's ridiculous. I can't really complain about losing every time we face off—it's probably because I lack the skill and got unlucky with teammates. But saying things like that in all chat? That's just picking a fight no matter how you look at it."
"…I'm sorry."
Chaeyujung's shoulders slumped instantly as he looked at me with sorrowful eyes full of regret.
Ugh…
He looked so pitiful—like a puppy abandoned in the rain—that my heart wavered just a little.
"I was trying to mess around with you, but I went too far. I realized it was a mistake right after I typed it and wanted to apologize, but… you left right after the damage chart came up, and you didn't accept my friend request, so I couldn't."
…Did that really happen?
I guess I did rage quit. Come to think of it, I blocked his name on my ignore list right before quitting Hiore.
Unlike RPGs, Hiore doesn't allow communication unless you're friends. The only way to talk is through all chat or the damage chart window after a match—and I quit right away, so even that didn't work.
"…Alright. I won't press that issue. I blocked you without hearing your side, so that's on me too."
"W-wait, blocked? You blocked me?"
Chaeyujung's eyes widened in shock, and he stared at me, then puffed out his lips a little as if sulking.
What, you think glaring at me's gonna change anything?
"So? Answer the question. I asked why you're trying to get close to me."
"You really want to know?"
"I wouldn't ask if I didn't."
With his lips pursed and a clearly displeased expression, Chaeyujung turned his head sharply and replied with a sassy tone.
"Unblock me first. Then I'll tell you."
"What?"
"Unblock me on Hiore. Do that, and I'll answer."
"…Seriously?"
What the hell is up with this guy?
Suppressing my growing irritation by rubbing at the corners of my eyes, I forced a smile.
"Fine. I'll unblock you as soon as I get home. So explain now?"
"How can I trust that? You're the type who blocks someone the moment they mess with you."
"Well, I blocked you and then quit the game, so it's not like it matters anymore."
"Don't care. I don't wanna."
"Then what do you want me to do?"
"Send me a screenshot proving you unblocked me. After that, I'll talk."
"…Do you know how annoying you are?"
Unable to hold it in any longer, I let it slip—and Chaeyujung covered his mouth with his hand, looking like he was about to cry.
"How could you say that… That's so mean, hyung!"
"What is?"
"You just straight up called me annoying. But I really like you… That's just cruel."
"You're the one being cruel."
"Asking you to unblock me isn't even that big of a deal… I just really want to get closer to you…"
Looking genuinely hurt, Chaeyujung blinked his large eyes several times. His long lashes fluttered lightly like butterfly wings.
"If you don't want to hear that kind of thing, then just explain already."
"You called me annoying and said I was a pain…"
As my voice grew louder, the attention of the café customers around us intensified.
"I think they're fighting."
"Whoa, he's seriously good-looking."
"Is one of them crying?"
"..."
Maybe he heard the murmurs, because Chaeyujung deliberately drooped his eyes and put on an even more sorrowful face.
This fake little bastard…
With my arms crossed and face twisted in frustration, and Chaeyujung lowering his head with one hand covering his mouth, shoulders hunched…
From the outside, it clearly looked like a confrontation between a villain and a victim. Just looking at it made me want to curse.
"Fuck."
I grabbed the lemonade I hadn't even sipped since Chaeyujung arrived and downed half of it in one go. Then I popped one of the half-melted ice cubes in my mouth and stood up abruptly.
"Get up."
He flinched and looked up nervously with a dumb expression.
"…Huh?"
"Get up. You wanted proof, right?"
"W-wait, hyung!"
I walked out of the café without another word, and a flustered Chaeyujung scrambled to follow me.
"H-hyung! Are you mad? I really don't want anything else—just a photo showing I'm unblocked is fine!"
"Shut up and follow me."
Not wanting to hear him babble anymore, I grabbed his wrist and walked ahead. Startled, Chaeyujung didn't shake me off and obediently followed behind, clattering along.
Thankfully, the destination wasn't far. Just a short three-minute walk down the alley next to the café building, and a familiar sign came into view.
[Latest Hardware, Comfortable Space! Nice PC Bang!]
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