Actually, It’s a Messy Melodrama Chapter 97

“Who is he suddenly meeting?”

Strangely, however, his mind was restless. From the moment he heard the news that Taejun seemed to be seeing someone, Youngmin’s heart hammered as if he had received an ominous omen.

Struggling to suppress his anxiety, Youngmin pulled out his phone and called Haeshin. There was no particular reason; he simply wanted to hear Haeshin’s voice right this instant.

“…Fuck, why the hell isn’t he picking up!”

But no matter how long the ringback tone played, Haeshin did not answer. Come to think of it, it felt like he hadn’t been able to reach him on the first try at all lately.

Until now, he had let it slide, assuming Haeshin was distracted because his mother was ill, but the sudden realization felt suspicious. Shouldn’t Haeshin be even more diligent about answering his calls the more difficult his situation became?

Cha Haeshin cannot solve a single thing on his own. In the end, Haeshin would have to beg him for help. Youngmin could not believe the fact that Cha Haeshin was still holding out against him, when he should be the one calling first and acting charming just to stay in his good graces.

While it was true that such a side of Haeshin’s personality had initially appealed to him, it was time to stop playing hard to get. He didn’t want to wait any longer.

[Call me as soon as you see this]

After sending the message to Haeshin, Youngmin lay on the bed and steadied his breathing. Even though he knew there was no reason for it, he kept feeling impatient. He was almost there—just one more step and he’d have him—so why did Cha Haeshin still feel so far away?

“There’s a limit to how long I’ll be nice.”

Youngmin spat the words out with displeasure. He had been patient enough. Now was the time for him to approach a bit more aggressively.

Perhaps Cha Haeshin was waiting for that as well. Since he was a man who possessed manners and a sense of shame, he might simply lack the courage to be more brazen now that his situation had worsened.

Thinking that he should start pressuring Cha Haeshin so the man could lean on him using the excuse that he had no choice, Youngmin tried his best to push down the anxiety that kept rearing its head.

☂️

“Is it really okay to ignore him like this?”

“Yeah. It’s fine.”

At Haeshin’s careful question asked in a somewhat anxious voice, Taejun nodded nonchalantly as if it were of no consequence. On the phone in Haeshin’s hand, a missed call notification from Youngmin was displayed.

[Call me as soon as you see this]

Then, a message from Youngmin arrived. Haeshin looked at Taejun with wide eyes and spoke.

“I think he’s angry?”

“What, how can you tell just by looking at that?”

“I just know. Besides, usually he pretends to be much sweeter than this.”

“Hmm.”

Taejun pouted his lips. Haeshin could easily read the emotions reflected in Taejun’s expression. He didn’t like the fact that Haeshin knew Jin Youngmin so well, nor the fact that Jin Youngmin had acted sweetly toward him.

Only then did Haeshin feel the fear that had been weighing heavily on his heart begin to recede. For Haeshin, terror was an old habit. A stubborn habit that wouldn’t disappear no matter how hard he tried to shake it off.

But now, by Haeshin’s side, there was an affection so vast it couldn’t even be compared to the pressure of fear. Wrapped in that affection, Haeshin intended to escape from every trace Jin Youngmin had left behind.

“Give that to me for now.”

Taejun, who had been glaring at the phone as if Jin Youngmin were standing right there, soon snatched it from Haeshin’s hand.

“Are you going to keep it, Mr. President?”

“Yeah. You moved everything you need to the new one, right?”

“I did… but what are you going to do with my phone?”

It was out of pure curiosity. Since the only person who would contact this phone now was Jin Youngmin, he wondered what Taejun planned to do with it. Taejun shook his head.

“You don’t need to know. It’s not something you should worry about.”

“It’s my business, is it really okay for me not to worry?”

Haeshin’s eyes sparkled as he asked. He wasn’t asking because he doubted Taejun or because Taejun seemed unreliable. It was the opposite; his face showed curiosity because he trusted Taejun’s actions implicitly.

Because that face was so undeniably lovely, Taejun tapped Haeshin’s forehead with his fingertip and answered in a soft tone.

“I’m going to make it so Jin Youngmin can’t legally approach you.”

“What? Huh? Is that possible?”

Haeshin asked in surprise, as if it were an entirely unexpected answer. Taejun shrugged.

“It is. So don’t you worry about it, and don’t even think about Jin Youngmin. If you need anything, I’ll take care of it for you.”

“Wow… You’re really cool right now, Mr. President. I think I might fall for you.”

“…Stop teasing, seriously.”

Despite Haeshin’s obvious joke, Taejun reacted strongly and shot him a look. Even so, since he clearly looked embarrassed to anyone watching, Haeshin hunched his shoulders and giggled. The sound of his laughter scattering like someone without a single worry was so pleasant to hear that Taejun couldn’t scold him for laughing like he usually did.

Then, suddenly, amidst the comfort of this moment, Taejun recalled the sense of incongruity he had felt last night and this morning—those moments when the intimacy between himself and Haeshin was so extreme it felt foreign.

Last night, when it was definitely Cha Haeshin but didn’t feel like the Cha Haeshin he knew. This morning, when he had performed an act he hadn’t consciously intended, even though it was his own doing.

Taejun asked the question he had been curious about all along, partly to divert Haeshin’s attention so he wouldn’t think about Jin Youngmin anymore.

“Cha Haeshin.”

“Yes?”

“Are you okay after having that nightmare last night?”

Taejun asked while pretending it was no big deal. He wanted to see Haeshin’s natural reaction.

“How did you know I had a nightmare?”

However, it was Han Taejun who became unnaturally flustered by Haeshin’s response.

“Huh?”

“Did I, like, talk in my sleep or something?”

Haeshin blinked his eyes innocently. His face looked as though he didn’t remember a single thing he had done last night.

It’s possible for a person not to remember words or actions performed while not fully awake. It isn’t a particularly strange occurrence.

But was Haeshin that intoxicated by sleep yesterday? No. Haeshin had spoken and moved with perfect clarity. Though he fell back asleep quickly once he lay down, he hadn’t been so out of it that he should have no memory of it at all.

“No, just… a little bit.”

Taejun deliberately hid what had happened last night. For some reason, it felt like he had to. He didn’t want to make Haeshin anxious over something that wasn’t even certain yet.

Fortunately, Haeshin didn’t seem to notice anything strange and nodded.

“Ah, so that’s why you woke up, Mr. President. I’m sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry about. So… what was the dream about?”

“Um, I’m not really sure.”

“You’re not sure?”

“Yes. I remember it being a very unpleasant dream, but I don’t really know exactly what happened…”

Haeshin furrowed his brow seriously, as if he truly couldn’t remember. Taejun didn’t press further. After all, what the dream was about wasn’t the important part.

Perhaps Taejun was reacting oversensitively. Was it because he was in such an abnormal situation? Lately, Taejun had frequently found himself getting tense and assigning meaning to trivial things.

It was because Cha Haeshin had become excessively precious to him. Death was a given, but he was so on edge that he didn’t want even a speck of pain or injury to touch Haeshin.

This incident was the same. Perhaps Haeshin had simply been more tired than Taejun realized. And Taejun’s behavior this morning was something a person in love could easily do.

“Well, no need to force yourself to remember.”

For now, Taejun decided not to dig any deeper. There was no need to let his attention be stolen by vague suspicions when there were clear problems right in front of him.

“Do you not have nightmares lately, Mr. President?”

Haeshin asked Taejun, who had quickly cleared his thoughts. Taejun answered without hesitation.

“No. I don’t.”

“Really? You aren’t just pretending not to have them because you’re worried I’ll be concerned?”

“I told you. Since meeting you, my hell has become bearable.”

“Ah…”

Haeshin wore a blank expression at Taejun’s sudden sincerity.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had the nightmares that tortured me every day. Even if I were to have one now, it wouldn’t be that hard.”

“Why…?”

Haeshin asked as if entranced. He knew the answer would be cheesy, but he didn’t want to avoid it. No, far from avoiding it, he wanted to hear it even though he already knew. He wanted to fill his heart with the kind words Han Taejun gave him.

“Because those dreams are no longer what I fear.”

“…”

“The only thing I fear is failing to protect you, Cha Haeshin. So, nightmares that have already passed mean nothing to me.”

For a very long time, Taejun had hated the chill of death felt in his dreams. The coldness of the blade piercing his side, the sensation of blood draining away, and the simultaneous feelings of helplessness and despair were horrific.

But now, Taejun wasn’t afraid of those things in the slightest. It was because he had realized what truly terrified him. He just had to not lose Cha Haeshin. As long as he didn’t lose him, there was no hell for Han Taejun.

That conviction had turned Taejun’s long-standing nightmares into mere nonsense dreams.

“Ah, seriously…”

At that moment, Haeshin sighed softly and lowered his head. Just as Taejun was about to replay his words in his head to see if he had made a slip of the tongue, Haeshin suddenly lifted his head and spoke.

“I don’t want to be this much of a brazen person.”

“Why? What is it?”

“Every time you’re like this, Mr. President… my heart really flutters. It’s racing.”

Cha Haeshin, who didn’t want to be brazen but had become quite so, said as his cheeks reddened shyly for a brazen man. A smile quickly spread across the lips of Taejun, who had briefly worn a dazed expression.