Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 520 - Friend (5)

“Are you sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?”

 

Choi Jeho asked. I explained that it wouldn’t do any good.

 

“Remember how my stomach ulcer healed in an instant? It’s a similar principle.”

 

I scrubbed my face roughly with the T-shirt he’d handed me. My own clothes were doomed because they had the misfortune of belonging to me, but two of Choi Jeho’s innocent shirts had also met their end because of me. I should just buy him two new ones in a normal color while I was at it.

 

“They say if a nosebleed flows backward, it can come out through the eyes.”

 

When I showed him the search results I’d painstakingly pulled up with my left hand, Choi Jeho frowned. As he pressed a wet wipe above my eyebrow and wiped, dried blood came away on it. Those tears of blood had honestly terrified both me and Choi Jeho.

 

“I’ll buy you new clothes.”

 

“Forget it.”

 

“Why? Is it a discontinued design? Then let me wash them for you.”

 

“I said forget it.”

 

Choi Jeho left the room carrying the stiffening garments. When he returned, his hands were empty.

 

By the time I finished washing my face, Choi Jeho was already settled in his bedding. Since he was openly lying with his back to the bed, I quietly climbed into my spot. I also turned my back to him and lay down.

 

It was ambiguous whether the conversation had gone well or not. A silence so deep that even the sound of breathing was barely audible filled the dark room.

 

I gauged his mood before opening my mouth.

 

“Let me ask you one thing.”

 

“What.”

 

“The fact that I went to the Han River. Do the others know about that too?”

 

“No.”

 

It was an answer that relieved the anxiety I had been carrying.

 

“Chanyoung hyung only told me. The other kids probably just think your condition was pretty bad.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

“I’m also the only one who knows you wore those dogsh*t protectors and brought that hat. If the others found out… it would only make them more distraught.”

 

Pretty bad, huh? Still, it seemed the manager had shared just enough information to establish a minimum safety net without spreading the depression. No wonder that bastard was standing right behind me when we went to see the night view in Japan.

 

“I’m telling you this because you seem anxious, but I won’t do that anymore. My mental state is perfectly fine.”

 

“If you do it again, the information won’t stop with just me.”

 

Choi Jeho didn’t back down for a second. refused to give an inch. He probably wanted to bring up Jeong Seongbin or Kang Kiyeon, but that would’ve been a battle I was guaranteed to lose, so I wisely chose to retreat.

 

After finally telling someone the things I’d kept bottled up for years, I found it even harder to fall asleep. So I just lay there staring at the ceiling with my eyes wide open.

 

Beside me, I couldn’t hear the steady breathing characteristic of a sleeping person. Glancing sideways, I saw his back, which looked like a solid iron wall.

 

“Don’t you have anything to ask me? Since we’re at it, ask me anything you’re curious about. Let’s clear everything up. Like how I ended up with such a mysterious talent.”

 

“I’m not curious about that crap.”

 

I’d only asked casually, but irritation came flying right back.

 

“You have no interest in your colleague.”

 

“For f*ck’s sake, hey. You said your nose explodes if you say the wrong thing.”

 

Choi Jeho suddenly sat bolt upright and barked at me. Then, huffing, he pulled the covers back over himself and lay down. Taking the hint that I should know when to stop pressing the issue, I quietly pulled my own blanket over me.

 

Even so, it seemed he genuinely wanted to believe this bizarre phenomenon. It was both absurd and admirable—his magnanimity in choosing to either look the other way or simply accept it.

 

He remained quiet for a long time before speaking again.

 

“In the past.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“You asked if we’d be able to keep promoting without you.”

 

He seemed to be referring to the day I was carried off after drinking coffee. His habit of cutting out the context and diving straight into the core was the same as ever.

 

“I did.”

 

“Is something… going to happen to you later?”

 

Choi Jeho threw a sharp, direct pitch. I couldn’t bring myself to answer yes, so I deflected.

 

“You should have asked that when I was pouring blood earlier. Then I could have solved it in one go.”

 

A retort telling me to shut up didn’t come. Fearing I would complicate his mind during a vacation meant for enjoyment, I added in a bright voice:

 

“I only said it as a what-if. You know how I always worry about little things. Sure, the world’s full of mysterious stuff, but do you really think something this small is going to cause a huge problem?”

 

“…”

 

“You saw it yourself, didn’t you? I fall apart for a moment, then recover almost immediately.”

 

The pain caused by the System had never lasted long. If those things had a lasting impact on my life, convincing Choi Jeho might have been much harder, but my history of healing uncannily fast would serve as sufficient evidence.

 

“It’s just a passing incident. No big deal.”

 

The things happening around me were unrealistic. But from Choi Jeho’s perspective, I was probably included in the category of ‘unrealistic’. I was the one who decided to reveal the abnormalities, but it was up to him how to accept them.

 

Occasionally, the voices of his family members chatting and laughing could be heard from outside. How could I explain this feeling of being separated from such trivial, everyday things? How would Choi Jeho see me now—a guy claiming to know the future, suddenly getting a nosebleed, yet recovering almost instantly?

 

Choi Jeho’s question about whether something would go wrong later kept echoing in my head. I could vividly picture Kang Kiyeon, who had started counseling again while doing everything he could not to make me feel uncomfortable.

 

I also thought of Park Joowoo, who said he didn’t want to see anyone get hurt anymore. Since the accident, his face had been stuck in a corner of my heart. Because I knew exactly what he was thinking when he said that.

 

I asked tentatively.

 

“Are you scared?”

 

“Of what.”

 

What do you mean ‘of what’? I mean, is it okay to do a group project with a member who babbles nonsense like he’s possessed, films horror movies with blood-splattered scenes, and turns daily life into a suspense thriller?

 

I’m asking if you’ll be okay if that person suddenly drops out of the cast one day. I’m asking if your mental health is fine with going to safety training and CPR classes…

 

I didn’t say it all out loud. Now that I knew he was far more perceptive than I’d expected, I trusted that he’d understand this much on his own.

 

After a long silence, Choi Jeho answered.

 

“Could I possibly be more scared than the person actually going through it?”

 

It was an unexpected answer. And a thoughtful one. Meanwhile, I, the one actually living through it, had only felt real fear when I stepped in front of that car.

 

Imagine that the day had actually come when Choi Jeho understood me. I doubted anything bigger than this would ever happen in my life.

 

“And just one last thing.”

 

I spoke, feeling like a school principal giving a closing speech.

 

“You don’t have to be grateful to me.”

 

When we’d met for a meal as thanks for saving him, Mr. Polo had told me he was glad he’d been there that day. Back then, I hadn’t truly understood what he meant because I’d been too focused on the fact that I’d received help from a senior in the industry that I could never repay. But now, I understood exactly what feelings those words had come from.

 

I could understand that Choi Jeho might have wanted to thank me for preventing the lighting accident. But before even discussing whether it had been an appropriate situation for expressing gratitude—

 

“Helping a friend isn’t anything special.”

 

There was simply no need.

 

Because reaching out to you was ultimately my choice. Because I would do the same thing even if I went back.

 

I felt like I could finally understand the meaning behind Mr. Polo’s hug. Someday, this guy would understand what I meant too. That was enough for me.

 

“You sure talk a lot.”

 

Choi Jeho retorted bluntly. Dumbfounded, I snorted, asking if I could possibly compare to how much he spoke the day before yesterday. Seeing as my vision was getting blurry, sleep was finally coming.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, our daily life was exactly the same as before. By ‘before’, I mean before Choi Jeho and I fought.

 

Without caring whether the other was looking or not, we exchanged a casual ‘Sleep well?’ without even making eye contact, then folded our own blankets. With our hair sticking up like bird’s nests, we ate a breakfast more lavish than a king’s royal feast and then washed the dishes.

 

While his mother went to a gathering and Choi Jeho went out to throw away the trash, I checked the mountain of missed messages on my phone. Notifications looking for me were coming in real-time from each private chat.

 

[King of Cuteness Kang Kiyeon]

[Did you make it through the night safely?]

 

[Cutie Pretty Visually Lee Cheonghyeon]

[Requesting a report on the sparring results.]

[Cheonghyeon is 300 minutes away from biting off all ten carefully grown fingernails out of nervousnessㅠㅠ]

 

[22-Year-Old Metal Marble Park Joowoo]

[Seeing as there’s no news]

[You lost, didn’t you… 8*8]

 

[Mental Pillar Jeong Seongbin]

[Hyung, good morning!]

[Did you have breakfast?]

[Did things go well with Jeho hyung?]

 

Everyone was dying to hear the results. When I sent the news that we had reached an amicable agreement, the replies were all sights to behold.

 

[King of Cuteness Kang Kiyeon]

[Congratulations b]

 

[Cutie Pretty Visually Lee Cheonghyeon]

[All ten of Cheonghyeon’s nails secured safely~!]

[Merry Chuseok, Happy Hangawi~!]

 

[22-Year-Old Metal Marble Park Joowoo]

[I knew you would win, hyung /(^▽^)/]

[Let’s have a party when you get back to the dormㅎㅎ]

 

[Mental Pillar Jeong Seongbin]

[Good work! I knew you hyungs would work it out ㅎㅎ]

[Jeho hyung was really worried about you on the day of the accident…]

[I was worried because Jeho hyung rarely gets that angry, but I’m glad you reconciled ㅎ]

 

Seriously. If they’d all been so worried, why hadn’t they pushed us to reconcile sooner?

 

Even though I knew the reason, I couldn’t help sulking to myself a little. I told them to forget the party and to not overeat holiday food. As if they’d rehearsed it beforehand, not one of them read the message.

 

Just as I was about to let out a hollow laugh at the ‘1’ that wouldn’t disappear…

 

[22-Year-Old Metal Marble Park Joowoo]

[Sorry…]

[I’ll lose the weight by the time we meet again…]

 

…I couldn’t help laughing at the final confession that perfectly completed the picture. Honestly, even if you guys let your guard down, how much could you possibly overdo it?

 

I opened the group chat and sent a long message.

 

[Me]

[Everyone’s having a fun vacation, right?

I’m eating lots of good food and getting plenty of rest too.

It’s our first proper holiday in a year, so play to your heart’s content.

A person needs to recharge to move again.

Things will get busy again toward the end of the year like they always do, so think of this as the last chance you’ll have to rest this year… Read More]

 

I was about to wrap things up on that warm, wholesome note, but.

 

[Mental Pillar Jeong Seongbin]

[Hyung, you missed this part!]

[[Column / Holiday Food A to Z] Happy Holidays—How to Survive a High-Calorie Feast (1)]

[* Acts not permitted even in private time, including vacations: Deviance, illegal acts, behavior likely to cause social controversy, news material, etc.]

 

Jeong Seongbin hurriedly copy-pasted part of a message I had written during the last vacation. At that exact moment, the front door lock clicked open, and Choi Jeho appeared, looking fed up. No sooner had he put down his phone than a new message arrived in the group chat.

 

[Center Emperor Choi Jeho]

[Vacation or not, all of you get yourselves to the gym.]

[Unless you want Kim Iwol to burn through my home’s Wi-Fi spying on Bubble Pop just to monitor how much you are eating.]

 

A string of crying emojis followed Choi Jeho’s message.

 

That evening, six gym OOTD photos were faithfully uploaded to the Spark group chat.