Joo-hyun realised that Cha In-ho was a very good actor. It's not that he had a good personality or behaviour, but rather that he was good at 'acting'.
With a lifetime of being sensitive to others' animosity, Joo-hyun knew that the guide in front of him didn't like him very much. He couldn't help but notice the sinking pupils, the subtly tense shoulders, and the pager still in my pocket.
Cha In-ho's pretence of being a good person for the sake of the matched topic, especially when smiling as if dealing with an ordinary person rather than a rampaging esper, was irritating. No matter how pretty the smile was, it was unpleasant to see.
"Anyway, shall we start guiding? Is there anything you'd like me to do?"
Unless they were really close, no guide would give all the decision-making power to an esper like this. Looking at the guide that seemed to have erased the fact that he had just been threatened, Joo-hyun moved his lips and let out cigarette smoke.
As the smoke drifted over, Cha In-ho blinked, his eyes feeling a bit itchy, and he smiled awkwardly. It was like the smile of someone unsure how to deal with a mischievous child. It infuriated Joo-hyon.
"Yes. There's a wound here."
"Where?"
The guide approached a bit more. With a self-satisfied smirk, Joo-hyon crushed the cigarette butt in his palm and glanced at Cha In-ho.
The smile vanished completely from his face, after seeing a rough, round mark where the skin had melted. A hint of shock and discomfort clouded his worried expression, tainting his pretty face.
Feeling pathetic for feeling a sense of victory over something like this, Joo-hyon looked at the red-eyed esper, who smiled.
* * *
The Esper-Guide contract between Shin Joo-hyun and Cha In-ho was a little different from a normal contract. Among many parts, it was particularly noticeable how carefully considered the guide's position was.
Just twice a week. At first glance, the clause that the guide should come on the day he wanted didn't seem to be a big deal, but in fact, if Cha In-ho were to exploit it maliciously, Joo-hyun would be left without any guiding for over ten days.
In addition, the matching guide was given top priority when an esper urgently needed guiding, but in the contract between the two, it's written that it could be refused depending on the guide's circumstances.
Yet, like a normal contract, the clause to give a portion of esper's income to the guide went in without missing.
He didn't mind the clause and wouldn't say a thing against it even if he had been asked. Joo-hyun knew that even if offered the same deal to any other guide, he would be rejected. Because it was offered by a runaway esper.
No matter how good the conditions could be, there wouldn't be any guides willing to match with a runaway esper. Well, there hadn't been any.
"The book is very old. Is it your favourite?"
Joo-hyun rolled his eyes irritatingly and looked at the man sitting across the table. Cha In-ho was still smiling. Yet, there was no laughter in his eyes as if he wasn't interesting in the topic.
"The books here are all old."
"Oh, is there a library in Block C?"
"No."
A hand wrapped in handcuffs flipped the page.
Of course, there wouldn't be any convenience facilities like a library in Block C. The books here were either personal belongings brought by runaway espers or donated as discarded items.
Joo-hyun, who didn't want to be caught reading what others had thrown away, remained silent. Cha In-ho smoothly changed the topic.
"By the way, I went to Block A last time, and it was incredibly spacious. There were a museum and souvenir shops, and there were also kindergarten kids on a field trip, probably because there were a lot of other things to see."
"Then why don't you go there instead of staying here?"
Cha In-ho casually brushed off the blunt response and took something out of his pocket. He stood up and placed the small box in front of Joohyun.
With a gesture to open it, Joo-hyun cautiously took the box, still wary. Seeing his cautious demeanor, Cha In-ho even made a compassionate gesture. Suppressing any hint of unease, Joo-hyun opened the box.
"...."
"This is medicine."
Glancing at the contents, Joo-hyun raised an eyebrow and gave Cha In-ho a suspicious look. The impeccably smiling man chuckled, but Joo-hyun couldn't bring himself to smile back.
"I'm a celebrity, so I shouldn't smell of cigarettes."
The box labeled 'Nicotine Patch' was crumpled and rolled towards Cha In-ho. Not expecting any gratitude, Cha In-ho showed no sign of disappointment even when the gift was practically tossed in front of him.
"That's your problem."
Joo-hyun smiled widely. A calloused hand pulled out a cigarette. Chick! The match sparked, and the flames were transferred to a cheap cigarette. Beyond the scattered smoke, the eyes resembling dry blood flashed with delight. The smoke veiled the worn-out cover of the book and drifted across the room.
With a slightly nauseated expression, Cha In-ho waved his hand to disperse the smoke before taking the patch box.
"You really have a bad temper."
"Would you obediently say, 'Yes, let's stop' when asked to quit your only hobby?"
"Does smoking usually fall into the hobby category?"
"Don't come here to think about what's usual."
There was nothing ordinary about Block C, where even Joo-hyun's eyes gleamed like those of a beast.
Seemingly having no desire to press further, Cha In-ho simply nodded. The patch box disappeared back into his pocket.
As Joo-hyun held the nearly finished cigarette, contemplating where to extinguish it, his gaze met Cha In-ho's. There was something firm and almost reproachful in his eyes.
It was a familiar gaze, and though it didn't hurt or itch, Joo-hyun somehow disliked the idea of receiving guiding treatment after receiving a gift like a nicotine patch.
The thought that Cha In-ho might be trying to make him quit smoking to avoid unnecessary guiding might be speculative, but considering Cha In-ho didn't choose to match himself with Joo-hyun, it was quite plausible.
In the end, Joo-hyun dropped the cigarette butt on the floor and rubbed it with the shoe. The floor and shoes became dirty.
Glancing at the contents, Joo-hyun raised an eyebrow and gave Cha In-ho a suspicious look. The impeccably smiling man chuckled, but Joo-hyun couldn't bring himself to smile back.
"I'm a celebrity, so I shouldn't smell of cigarettes."
The box labeled 'Nicotine Patch' was crumpled and rolled towards Cha In-ho. Not expecting any gratitude, Cha In-ho showed no sign of disappointment even when the gift was practically tossed in front of him.
"That's your problem."
Joo-hyun smiled widely. A calloused hand pulled out a cigarette. Chick! The match sparked, and the flames were transferred to a cheap cigarette. Beyond the scattered smoke, the eyes resembling dry blood flashed with delight. The smoke veiled the worn-out cover of the book and drifted across the room.
With a slightly nauseated expression, Cha In-ho waved his hand to disperse the smoke before taking the patch box.
"You really have a bad temper."
"Would you obediently say, 'Yes, let's stop' when asked to quit your only hobby?"
"Does smoking usually fall into the hobby category?"
"Don't come here to think about what's usual."
There was nothing ordinary about Block C, where even Joo-hyun's eyes gleamed like those of a beast.
Seemingly having no desire to press further, Cha In-ho simply nodded. The patch box disappeared back into his pocket.
As Joo-hyun held the nearly finished cigarette, contemplating where to extinguish it, his gaze met Cha In-ho's. There was something firm and almost reproachful in his eyes.
It was a familiar gaze, and though it didn't hurt or itch, Joo-hyun somehow disliked the idea of receiving guiding treatment after receiving a gift like a nicotine patch.
The thought that Cha In-ho might be trying to make him quit smoking to avoid unnecessary guiding might be speculative, but considering Cha In-ho didn't choose to match himself with Joo-hyun, it was quite plausible.
In the end, Joo-hyun dropped the cigarette butt on the floor and rubbed it with the shoe. The floor and shoes became dirty.
While Joo-hyun appeared displeased, Cha In-ho seemed rather satisfied, nodding in apparent contentment. Joo-hyun, who had been pondering how to avoid guiding by being unwilling, simply sighed and reluctantly unfolded the book with his uncomfortable, bound hands.
Unfortunately, he couldn't recall the page.
* * *
Unless abilities were used, no one could tell whether the person in front of them was an esper, a guide, or an ordinary person. Because it's not the part that was externally visible.
However, espers clearly has different powers from regular people. To reveal this, the committee gave espers a uniform that could be recognised at a glance.
Basically, the uniform was black and had a lot of pockets for convenience, and had a silver logo on the chest that symbolised an esper. Of course, in private occasions, they wore plain clothes, but the clothes that espers usually wore the most were the uniform.
Since it was wore almost every day, espers could customise it to some extent. Most didn't change it much, but a few made big changes, such as wearing shorts instead of trousers or adding a cloak.
Among them, Joo-hyun was on the side of not touching the clothes that were provided. There was no reason to change it because he couldn't go out in the first place, and above all, the association didn't allow it.
Nevertheless, Joo-hyun's, or more precisely, Block C esper uniform had a difference from those of typical espers. From shoelaces, pockets, belts around the arms, to scarves around the neck, everything was in red. It was an intense bright colour, like a warning to run away from a dangerous runaway esper.
When an esper's guiding index dropped to a dangerously low level, their pupils turned red. The colour gradually spread with the feeling of being consumed by malice.
Especially when an esper was on the edge, both eyes would turn completely red, which was also a part of a runaway esper's notorious reputation; the transformation gave an esper a lot of strength. There were many who feared esper red-blazing eyes, which were rampaging in all directions, looked devilish.
And even if an esper survived a runaway, the red colour wouldn't be erased completely, leaving a mark on an esper's eyes. A stigma that could never be cleaned. The lack of guiding remained as an indelible inscription of sin.
So for an esper, red was like a symbol of impending doom. Every esper and guide knew the meaning behind the colour, but Cha In-ho, who was an ordinary person until just a month ago, didn't even know.
"I've been wondering for a long time, what is this?"
Although he didn't want to admit it, it was a day when his metrics were much lower than usual. It was also the first day he met Cha In-ho without handcuffs.
The guiding flowing into his captured hand healed the wounds and cleared his mind. The desire to continue like this and the wish to never feel it again crossed paths and passed by.
Joo-hyun shifted his gaze to where Cha In-ho indicated with his chin. He was curious about the red belt that wrapped Joo-hyun's arms around.