I looked down quietly at the things that had fallen, then lifted my gaze to Kang Ichae — very slowly.
“...Hey?”
When I murmured again, Kang Ichae let out a hollow laugh, as if completely dumbfounded.
Then he abruptly stopped.
“...Right. Dying.”
“.......”
“I didn’t know. All this time, for months, I’ve been stupidly happy by myself....”
For a moment, he looked at a loss for words, rubbing at the corner of his eyes.
“When exactly were you planning to tell me? When I figured it out myself? Or only after a slip-up like just now?”
He looked at me with that expression — the one that said he was sick to death of it all.
“Or did you never intend to tell me at all?”
When I stayed silent, he seemed to take my expression as confirmation. He kicked at a fallen item, dropped his leg, and scoffed bitterly.
“Changed? Yeah right....”
...Alright.
Let’s understand this first.
He must’ve misunderstood.
He probably thought I’d decided never to tell him.
And I’d made the opposite mistake — assuming that since he was sharp, I didn’t have to say it out loud, that he’d already figured it out on his own.
‘We both misunderstood.’
If I’d known he didn’t know, I would’ve found a day to explain everything.
Because we’ve changed.
Because I keep my promises now.
Because I intend to keep running with him.
But right now, he was clearly too worked up. I’d decided to smooth things over first and explain once he’d calmed down.
Even if it was unfair, the mistake was mine.
“...Ichae.”
So what should I do?
I had to calm him down, speak gently.
“...Did you just call me ‘hey’?”
“...What?”
...I should probably clarify that one before anything else.
“Did you just call me ‘hey’?”
—No.
“...There’s a twelve-year age gap between us.”
First, I needed to rein in my own irritation.
“...And you’re calling me ‘hey’?”
“.......”
“.......”
“......R-right now.”
Kang Ichae looked utterly dumbfounded.
So shocked that his anger seemed to falter for a second, he stammered, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“...You seriously want to argue about that right now?”
“Yeah.”
Damn right I did.
I was pissed as hell.
“...What does that even matter? You’re saying I didn’t know you’d die, and you’re hung up on that word?”
“Kang Ichae.”
I stepped closer.
I grabbed one of his shoulders, pushing him back against the couch, and murmured quietly,
“I know I look young, but sometimes you seem to forget—.”
Had he never called me “hey” before?
‘Oh, he had.’
Back when he didn’t know about my past, the rejuvenated me was only two years older than him, so when he’d go, “Hey, hey, Seo Hoyun,” while joking around, I’d let it slide.
It got under my skin occasionally, sure, but considering even Joo Woosung used to call me “PD-nim” and then, after I got younger, went around saying “You klutz, Hoyun, jeez”— Ichae’s teasing was harmless by comparison.
That was before.
When he didn’t know.
And a two-year gap could pass for equals.
But now?
“I’m thirty-seven.”
When he was starting grade school, I was working my ass off raising Seo Hojin — and he knows that now.
I leaned closer, tapped my own cheek.
“No matter how smooth my face looks, the inside hasn’t changed.”
“.......”
“Got it?”
He stared at me, still completely baffled.
‘......Sigh.’
I’d avoided confronting him whenever he got angry, because I had too many guilty spots.
He’d always been terrifyingly intense — enough to genuinely intimidate me sometimes — but mostly, it was because I was scared the system would glitch.
Explaining my situation would sound like bullshit.
If I got caught, I’d take a penalty.
If I took a penalty, the system could collapse.
And if the system collapsed, something might happen to Seo Hojin.
—And above all else,
‘I felt guilty.’
I’d always backed down with him because I felt guilty.
But this was a misunderstanding, and I could clear it up.
“...Kang Ichae.”
After a pause, I called his name.
I was still angry, but the guilt outweighed it.
‘He’s probably bewildered too.’
Well, since it’s come this far, better to be honest and fix it right now.
I thought about how to explain, and carefully began,
“And what I said earlier—”
“—Crazy old man.”
“What?”
I looked at him, stunned.
Pinned by my hand, Kang Ichae glared up at me.
“A crazy old man who just avoids everything.”
“.......”
“I gave The Dawn my youth, my songs, my whole damn life, and when I finally hit a slump and felt down, you show concern just long enough to pat yourself on the back. You’re insane.”
“.......”
What the hell was this now?
It was my turn to be dumbfounded.
He brushed my hand off his shoulder roughly, eyes glinting with something unhinged, and sneered.
“If that’s what you want, sure, teacher. Honestly, thirty-seven isn’t even that old these days, but if you want the honorifics so badly—”
“...Be honest. You haven’t liked me lately, have you?”
“Looks like it. Guess I’m too stupid — I was just amazed at how ‘kind’ you’ve gotten lately, didn’t even realize what that meant.”
This guy...
I swallowed it down, about to explain, but of course — he was a rapper.
He didn’t even blink as he fired back.
“I did think it was weird how soft you’ve been acting lately. Still, you said in Prague we’d run together, so I believed you. But guess what? You still don’t say a damn thing about the important stuff — not. one. bit.”
“.......”
“Even that whole ‘Eohwa-doongdoong’ crap earlier — you were just trying to smooth things over when the mood felt off, right?”
...No, that really was just me trying to cheer him up.
But he’d clearly gotten the wrong idea, and the longer he spoke, the angrier he got.
Finally, he stood up straight and met my eyes.
“Even moving into the dorm with us — that was just to keep me in line, wasn’t it?”
“...What?”
No.
That was because I knew how easily this guy got lonely — I wanted to look out for him, that’s all.
“You were the one who asked me to.”
Honestly, purely out of goodwill.
“Ha, you—... You were the one who asked, you brat.”
“.......”
When he looked caught off guard, I started getting mad too.
So he’d doubted me?
“Wait, Kang Ichae, don’t tell me— you’ve been doubting everything this whole time?”
I’d cared about him.
No bullshit, no sweet talk, no manipulation.
I didn’t need any of that.
He was already someone within my reach.
“—This damn kid, seriously.”
And yet—?
“I’ve been trying to be nice to you on purpose! What’s wrong with that?!”
“On... purpose? After all those years of me being fooled, I can’t even get a moment’s confusion?!”
“What confusion? I’m being fucking honest right now — what’s there to be confused about?”
“Funny. Honest, you? Throwing out random lines just to defuse things — that’s your habit! Starting with that crap about you dying—...”
He suddenly bit his lip.
“...Dying....”
Instead of finishing the sentence, he laughed emptily.
I watched him run a hand through his hair in frustration, but my own patience was reaching its limit.
“Ha, ha. Ha....”
“.......”
“Wow, seriously....”
Kang Ichae lowered his head to the side,
as if even bothering to argue was beneath him.
“...I really just hate it. I’m sick and tired of you.”
“I’m about to lose my mind too.”
“Yeah? Then that’s settled.”
The one with venom at the end of his words spat it out.
“I’ll get the work done as fast as possible. Don’t talk to me.”
“I won’t.”
“Even if you come into our house, don’t act like you know me.”
“Oh, so it’s fine if I ‘come into our house’, huh?”
I crossed my arms and mocked him, and Kang Ichae let out a short, disbelieving laugh.
Then he took a step closer, shoved his hands into his pockets, and glared at me with his eyes darkened.
“Go on, come in, sir.”
His lips curled into a mocking smirk as he bit out his words.
“If you want to see what real MZ-craziness looks like.”
Then, without a trace of hesitation, he turned and slammed the door shut behind him.
Left alone in the heavy silence, the system notification tone echoed in my ears.
Ding.
[Why....]
[Why on earth....]
[You shouldn’t... be fighting like this...?]
“......”
[Just hurry and apologize to each other....]
[Clear up the misunderstanding too....]
Ignoring the system window, I kicked the bothersome table aside and flung the door open—
but the hallway was empty.
“Ha..........”
Leaning my back against the door, I messed up my hair and glared at the suitcase sitting all alone in the corner of the studio.
“Ha, fuck..........”
The day had gone so well—how the hell did it end up like this?
Cursing under my breath, I picked up my phone and called Kang Ichae.
【—The person you are trying to reach cannot answer the phone. Please try again later.】
...There was no ringtone, it went straight to the automatic response.
“......”
[...You’ve been blocked.]
Fast as hell, seriously......
***
【Hm? You want me to play the piano?】
These days, Kang Ichae was full of aegyo.
【Ahaha, I did it yesterday too, though? Not that I mind. Do you have a song you want? I’ll play it.】
No, calling him just playful didn’t even cut it.
He’d always had a cute side, but this year—it was on a whole other level.
[“Kang Ichae’s aegyo is insane.”]
He’d joke and smile brightly, even to Noeul, not just the members. Most of the time he looked genuinely happy, and whenever he did, he would start playing the piano on impulse, singing songs of life and love for Noeul without anyone asking.
[“I’d like to fill up my gas tank with maximum Kang Ichae aegyo, please.”]
[“That smile {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} born from true happiness... why does he look so happy..”]
[“Wait, isn’t he that guy from the audition show who made the most participants cry?”]
So, of course everyone was startled.
Even the fans who used to laugh, “He may look scary, but he’s actually full of aegyo~,” were now baffled, wondering, “Wait... is he really this happy?”
[“If being alone scares Kang Ichae, just hand him The Dawn.”]
[“He seems like he’ll be an idol forever lol. Amazing—how can someone born to be a superstar love his group this much?”]
And then, one day.
Kang Ichae started a live broadcast alone, quieter than usual.
He looked through Noeul’s messages one by one, replying gently.
【You’re asking why I love The Dawn so much?】
Then, resting his chin on his hand with a smile, he whispered to the chat.
【...Do I really need a reason?】
He gave a small laugh, saying, “I used to have one, but now I’m not sure,” then leaned forward, resting his upper body on the desk.
Watching the comments scroll by, Kang Ichae slowly lowered his lashes.
【......You know.】
He looked away, scratching his head shyly, but his voice came out soft and sincere, as if he couldn’t let the moment pass without saying it.
【Thank you... for letting us be together.】
And so, everyone fell in love with him.
[“Aaaaaaaaahhhh!”]
[“Ichae-yaaaaaaaahhh!”]
[“Kang Ichae-yaaaaak!”]
There isn’t a single Kang Ichae fan who wouldn’t love a man who’s this desperate to give love.
While they clutched their phones and screamed, Seo Hoyun’s departure notice dropped.
[“Whoa, Hoyun’s leaving today.”]
[“Huh?? He’s going to America?”
└“Yeah, for that spy series ‘Midnight Protocol’—final shoot.”
└└“Holy hell, I can’t wait till it wraps and premieres!”]
[“Once ‘Mid-Prot’ wraps, he’ll start promo again haha.”]
[“But lol DrYoungDeok fans are all talking about only that.”
└“Really?”
└└“Yeah lol, search it up.”]
Noeul wasn’t exaggerating.
A quick scroll through the internet was enough to see post after post full of excitement for the new film Midnight Protocol.
Comments everywhere were overflowing with anticipation and cheers.
[Title: Read the Midnight Protocol article and started drooling]
【—Seo Hoyun plays the role of Han, code name Specter. Han is a mysterious agent the protagonist ‘Baek Sunwoo’ encounters overseas. He’s fluent in English, Korean, and Chinese, but his true background remains unknown.
He accompanies the protagonist in times of crisis, but ‘Baek Sunwoo’ begins to suspect Han is a double agent, and a tense psychological battle unfolds between them....】
“Fucking hell, when does this movie come out.”
└“Aaaaahhh I’ve read that article a thousand times.”
└“I swear I could survive ten years just with this.”
└“Huff... gasp... Seo Hoyun’s new filmography... I can’t breathe, just release it already!”
[Title: When does Midnight Protocol come out]
“I’m fasting until Mid-Prot releases.”
└“Fill yourself with Kang Giyeong instead.”
└└“Sir, you see, I booked a plane ticket this winter, this country’s too cold for me.”
└└“Please give me PD Lee Junghoon too.”
└└“Take care of your own rice bowls, my wings got clipped, such a waste.”
└└“Ahhhhh I feel so full now.”
└└“Aaaaarghhh!”
Curious, Noeul looked him up—and was left speechless.
[“Th... this much?”]
For some reason, those movie fans seemed even more hysterical than Noeul themselves.
Feeling like they’d stumbled onto something forbidden, they quickly closed the tab and changed the topic.
[“Anyway... I hope he comes back soon. By the way, didn’t Ichae say he was finishing up recording in the U.S. too?”]
[“Maybe they’ll fly out together?”
└“If it’s Ichae Kang, of course he will...”
└└“He’ll cry out like a fox and of course follow...”
└└“He probably tried to drag Sunghyun, Dajun, and Jiwon along but failed.”]
Everyone assumed they’d leave together.
Since filming had already begun locally, Seo Hoyun was joining the team later—and it was obvious that Kang Ichae, with his usual bright grin, would just casually tag along.
They were about to shrug it off with a “have fun, you two,” when the airport departure articles and videos hit.
〔Seo Hoyun departs to join overseas filming for ‘Midnight Protocol’〕
Their idol appeared at the airport!
As soon as Seo Hoyun stepped out of the van, gasps erupted and camera shutters burst in rapid fire.
[“Wow... insane.”]
Wearing a cream-tinted white knit with sleeves lightly rolled, light blue denim, white sneakers, and a small black suitcase, Seo Hoyun looked every bit the youthful movie star.
The moment he met fans’ eyes, a radiant smile spread across his face.
〔The Dawn’s Kang Ichae departs for overseas schedule... working on full album?〕
Following him, Kang Ichae appeared, removing his sunglasses.
In a black leather jacket, chain ear cuff, and earrings, he smiled playfully and waved to the fans.
[“Holy shit, the rockstar has arrived.”]
The bright, composed youth star who smiled softly at fans—
and the mischievous rockstar who blew them kisses—
〔Departing together! The Dawn, friendly as ever♡〕
—did not look at each other once.
They forced a show of friendliness for the cameras,
but the chill between them was so palpable it could be felt even through the lens.
Watching the video, Noeul quietly closed it and let out a dry laugh.
[“..The Dawn, fighting again as always☆”]
