Alpha Trauma Novel (Completed) - Chapter 114. Side Story 16. Outsider (6)

“What?”

Ding— The elevator door opened. Jinah pushed away Dohyun’s hand and pulled Wooyeon inside. Since she couldn’t use force on Dohyun’s younger sibling, Wooyeon obediently moved as Jinah told him to.

“If you follow…”

Jinah, who powerfully blocked the door, looked up at Dohyun. Her broken voice sounded quite eerie.

“I’m going to tell Mom and Dad everything: that you have a tattoo on your back, and that you’ve been drinking and smoking since high school.”

“…”

Dohyun’s face crumpled mercilessly. Wooyeon thought it was strange that he was showing so much emotion. He had seen him cry and smile brightly, but this was the first time he’d seen him look so utterly defeated.

“If you understand, move.”

Jinah pressed the 1st floor button and then the close button repeatedly. But instead of meekly stepping back, Dohyun grabbed the elevator door with his hand. The door rattled and slowly gaped open.

“If you have a complaint, tell me.”

“I don’t have one?”

“You really…”

“Wow, Oppa, you can get angry.”

It was openly sarcastic. Not stopping there, Jinah even glared at Dohyun defiantly.

“I thought you were a pushover who could never get angry your whole life.”

“…”

The words, uttered as if gnawing, sounded thorny even to Wooyeon. Wooyeon, watching Jinah’s curly hair fall, came to a conclusion on his own. He didn’t know what it was, but the conflict between the two might actually be quite deep-rooted.

“…Yeon ah, get off.”

“Hyung.”

What should he do?

It wasn’t difficult to organize his thoughts. He had received Dohyun’s help in all his relationships so far, so he wanted to be of help to him for once. And to do that, a little gamble didn’t seem so bad.

“I’ll contact you.”

He subtly reached out an arm and pulled Dohyun’s hand away. Dohyun’s face was colored with shock, perhaps not expecting Wooyeon to do this too. Jinah, not missing the opportunity, pressed the close button, and the elevator door slammed shut with a thud.

The shabby-looking three-layered meat restaurant was neat for its age. Round iron tables, drum-shaped chairs, and smoke vents hanging from the ceiling. Jinah handed Wooyeon an apron given by the staff, as he awkwardly fidgeted on his seat.

“Wear this. Your clothes are white.”

The apron had a well-known soju brand that Wooyeon was familiar with. Wooyeon glanced at his white hoodie, then at the worn fabric, and silently put the apron around his neck. He didn’t spill food when he ate, but oil would surely splatter when grilling meat.

“What do you want to eat? I just brought you here, but you can eat meat, right?”

A little while ago, Jinah had abruptly dragged Wooyeon out and then just as abruptly put him in a taxi. She hadn’t explained anything, nor had she apologized. Only after arriving in front of the restaurant with the shabby sign did she curtly ask, “Can you drink?”

“Stop looking around. You’ve been acting like you’ve never been to a place like this before.”

“…”

It was his first time, but Wooyeon didn’t bother to affirm it. He remembered the looks Garam and Seongyu had given him when he said he was eating tteokbokki for the first time. He just kept his mouth shut, and Jinah offered again.

“I’ll buy, so choose what you want to eat.”

“No, you don’t have to buy for me.”

Wooyeon couldn’t even touch smelly pork anyway. He wasn’t particularly hungry, nor did he feel like being treated by his boyfriend’s younger sibling. So he refused first, and Jinah’s eyes narrowed.

“You have a lot of money?”

“…”

He had a lot. A huge amount.

“Where does a student get money to refuse someone buying for them?”

Jinah, who couldn’t possibly know Wooyeon’s circumstances, called the staff with an indifferent expression. Ordering two servings of three-layered meat and soju, and even showing her ID to confirm her age. With her movements as natural as flowing water, Wooyeon also presented his ID.

“I dragged you out, so I’ll pay. I have a lot of money.”

Again, Wooyeon didn’t bother to correct the misunderstanding. There was no need to stubbornly insist he had a lot of money, and no desire to argue unnecessarily. He just had to be quiet. As soon as he thought that, an awkward silence descended again.

It was unavoidable. They had no common ground, and there was no suitable topic for conversation between people who had just met today. Wooyeon, who was already shy and quite taciturn even with close friends, knew that a conversation wouldn’t start unless Jinah opened her mouth first.

But Jinah also just observed Wooyeon intently. Her gaze, subtly resembling Dohyun’s, meticulously scanned his face.

“…Is there something on my face?”

“No.”

He barely managed a question, but it was immediately cut off as if by a knife. As it was early, Wooyeon and Jinah were the only customers. The buzzing of an unknown machine, the sound of a boring drama from the TV above. After a long silence, side dishes, soju, and meat finally arrived.

Jinah silently opened the soju, filled Wooyeon’s glass, and then her own. He expected a toast, but the clear liquid simply disappeared into her mouth. Wooyeon, not even thinking of drinking the soju, just watched Jinah’s actions. “Kkuh,” Jinah, after clearing her throat, picked up the tongs and began grilling the meat.

“Why did you follow me out?”

“…Pardon?”

Sizzle— The three-layered meat sizzled on the hot grill. Her skill in placing the meat, garlic, and kimchi showed she had grilled many times before. Jinah, with the tongs in her hand, filled her own glass and clinked the tongs together.

“I asked why you followed me out. It’s strange for someone you just met to suddenly drag you out and for you to just obediently follow.”

Actually, this was the question Wooyeon should have asked Jinah. ‘Why did you bring me out?’ He could have asked that, but Wooyeon answered directly without beating around the bush.

“I was curious why you two fought.”

He didn’t know how to subtly get what he wanted by beating around the bush. Nor did he want to have a power struggle with Dohyun’s younger sibling.

“I was also curious why you dragged me away.”

“Ah, you’re very curious.”

Jinah flipped the three-layered meat. The golden-brown surface looked delicious even to Wooyeon. Of course, he wouldn’t be able to eat it as soon as it entered his mouth due to the pork smell.

“Well… there’s no particular reason why I dragged you out. Since you’re Oppa’s lover, I just wanted to talk to you a bit. And…”

What she was about to say seemed important, but Jinah just trailed off. She cut the meat with scissors, arranged it neatly, and gulped down a mouthful of soju.

“…Shall I tell you why we fought?”

Wooyeon nodded, feigning an expressionless face. Just hearing that would make following her worthwhile. He didn’t want to meddle in other people’s family affairs, but since it was something she could tell him, Jinah probably wouldn’t have brought it up otherwise.

“Well, the superficial reason is… I looked at Oppa’s phone. It said, ‘I miss you, Hyung.’”

“…”

He said it was none of his business, but…

Wooyeon knew better than anyone who sent that message. Jinah flipped the meat again as if it were nothing.

“I asked him a few things, trying to tease him, thinking it was his lover, and then Oppa suddenly snatched his phone away and got angry. You can eat the cooked ones here.”

“…Hyung got angry?”

“Yes. Or rather, annoyed?”

It was utterly unimaginable. Dohyun that Wooyeon knew wasn’t someone who would get angry over something so trivial. He might dislike someone looking at his phone, but he wouldn’t say anything to make his younger sibling sulk and go home.

“But the funny thing is, he got angry and then he apologized.”

“But why did you fight?”

“Because his apology annoyed me.”

This time, too, it was incomprehensible. Jinah furrowed her brows, perhaps seeing Wooyeon’s bewildered expression.

“You don’t understand me, do you?”

“No.”

“Wow, usually you’d say no out of politeness.”

Jinah chuckled and took another drink. She scooped up a handful of meat with the tongs and pushed some towards Wooyeon.

“Oppa never gets angry, you see.”

Jinah smiled bitterly and put new meat on the grill. She urged him to eat it before it burned, so Wooyeon reluctantly took a piece of meat. As he awkwardly wrapped the meat, Jinah turned down the heat.

“He’s never raised his voice at me my whole life. Not when I woke him up, not when I disturbed his studying, not even when I broke something and blamed it on him; he’d just say it’s okay and end it with a smile.”

He sounded like an ideal older brother to others. Jinah seemed to think so too, as she lightly blurted out.

“He seems like a really good older brother, right?”

Even Wooyeon couldn’t answer easily this time. The image of Dohyun smiling gently came to mind. A teacher who never got angry and just said everything was okay. That was more like…

“Actually, he’s just drawing a line.”

“…”

“And no one’s stupid enough to realize it.”

Even when tutoring Wooyeon, Dohyun was always gentle and mild. While Wooyeon didn’t do anything to make him angry, there was definitely an intentional kindness. It was something he only vaguely felt now that it was all in the past.

“Honestly, I did it on purpose. I know Oppa is sensitive about his private life. He’s never shown it to friends, lovers, or family, so I knew he’d be uncomfortable if I showed interest. And sure enough, he got angry, saying it was none of my business, but then…”

His expression subtly frowned. He aggressively chewed the meat and swallowed it with soju. Thud, the soju glass he put down made a heavy sound.

“He apologized again. And with a face that clearly said, ‘Oops.’”

Honestly, it was hard to understand just by hearing it. What was so wrong with getting angry and apologizing? Wooyeon was about to ask but swallowed the question. Jinah continued speaking immediately.

“You wouldn’t know unless you’ve experienced it. It’s not about yielding; it’s about giving up. It’s not that his personality is good; it’s that he hates being bothered. Getting angry, annoyed, fighting—you can only do those things with people inside your line.”

“…”

Wooyeon had already experienced something similar once. Hadn’t Kang Jun-seong always ignored him whenever he picked a fight? He had maintained an attitude of ‘you bark, I’ll go,’ because he couldn’t even spare the energy to deal with him.

“Do you know what I think whenever Oppa does that?”

Their eyes met in the air. It was the same look he had seen when she fought with Dohyun. Jinah lightly snorted and muttered as if chewing her words.

“Wow, he really acts like a stranger.”