I Picked Up the Greatest Villain in the Story

52.

‘He really is just hanging out alone…’

Jian sniffled, trying to hold back his runny nose as quietly as possible. It had been six hours since he started tailing Sehun.

Since his stealth skill lasted for 30 minutes, he would follow Sehun within a 5-meter range for 30 minutes, then observe from a distance when he couldn’t use the skill.

He repeated this pattern, getting close again after an hour. Fiddling with his scarf, he pondered over the places Sehun had visited so far.

Buying coffee at a convenience store, then sitting on a park bench and zoning out. Perhaps feeling cold, he went to a shopping center, visiting a toy store, a stationery shop, and a bookstore, finally ending up at a cafe ordering another coffee.

Even though he was just looking down at his ordered coffee, there was a different air around Sehun. It wasn’t just Jian who thought so; two people approached Sehun at the cafe to ask for his number.

Each time, Sehun refused with a somewhat cold expression. When someone visibly older than him approached, he would glance at his school uniform, then at the person’s face, embarrassing them.

‘I suspected him for nothing.’

Feeling sheepish, Jian bit his lip, then lowered his scarf slightly to sip the hot chocolate he had ordered.

The hot and sweet taste filling his mouth made him feel a bit better. Tailing someone wasn’t as easy as he had thought.

It was only possible because of his stealth skill; without it, he might have given up within an hour.

Every time Sehun casually turned his head in Jian’s direction, it felt like his heart dropped to his feet.

Each time, he would pull his scarf up to his nose and hold his breath. He had been so tense that various parts of his body, from his shoulders to his calves, were aching.

Due to the tension, he hadn’t been able to eat properly, let alone drink water. The sweet taste of the hot chocolate somewhat relieved the fatigue built up from following Sehun.

While emptying his cup, he kept glancing at Sehun’s back. He didn’t need to worry about being caught by his gaze. With a slight exaggeration, most people sitting in the cafe were glancing at Sehun.

‘Thinking about it again, the perfect score interview is definitely a no. I must refuse.’

A quick-acting broadcasting station had contacted Jian a few days ago. He had asked Sehun just in case, but Sehun said he would do whatever Jian wanted.

Seeing Sehun casually leaving the decision to him, Jian almost felt the recent disappointment dissipate.

In the end, he couldn’t resist and closed the cafe to follow Sehun today.

Contrary to expectations, Sehun wandered here and there like someone who genuinely wanted to spend time alone. He didn’t meet anyone in particular.

After some deliberation, Jian decided to follow Sehun a bit longer. He might meet someone suspicious late in the evening.

‘He really didn’t meet anyone.’

However, Sehun ate a hamburger at a burger joint and then went to the Han River, walking along the riverbank. Until the sun set and the red glow of twilight settled on his broad shoulders.

The skill duration ended again. Jian, hiding behind a tree, let out a small sigh as he watched Sehun slowly moving away.

To avoid being caught tailing, he needed to head back home soon. It could be troublesome if Sehun went home while he was still out.

When Sehun’s figure became a mere dot, Jian took out his phone. Without hesitation, he pressed the name at the top of his call list.

Ring ring― Ring ring―

The dial tone sounded a few times before cutting off.

“Sehun, where are you?”

He asked straightforwardly where Sehun was, despite already knowing.

―Just outside.

Jian’s hand gripped the phone tighter at the perfunctory answer. He could have just said he was walking along the Han River. Did he really want to keep secrets from him?

Pushing aside his hurt feelings, Jian cleared his throat.

“Have you eaten dinner?”

He couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten with Sehun. Sehun would leave without breakfast and return home long after dinner time, so there was no chance to eat together.

Even during his exam preparation period, he always came home to eat dinner.

Although he had seen Sehun eat a hamburger earlier, he wanted to hear it from Sehun’s voice. To think there would come a day when he had to beg just to hear Sehun’s voice. It was unimaginable just a month ago.

―Yeah. Have you?

“I’ve eaten too.”

Actually, he hadn’t. The hot chocolate was all he had. He felt like he would get indigestion no matter what he ate now.

―Should I buy chicken on my way back?

“Chicken?”

―Yeah. I feel like eating it after a long time.

But when Sehun mentioned chicken, his appetite returned. Maybe it was because Sehun, who had been pushing him away, now wanted to do something together.

“Sounds good.”

―I’ll be there soon.

With that, the call ended. Jian fiddled with the phone screen with his thumb before turning around.

Although he needed to keep watching a bit longer, he had confirmed that Sehun wasn’t lying. All he could do now was hope that Sehun would soon return to being the Sehun he knew.

* * *

“…It burst again.”

“It’s okay. We can make more.”

As Sehun looked dejected at the noodles sticking out of the burst dumpling, Jian quickly took the dumpling from Sehun’s hand.

He set aside the unsalvageable dumpling and put an appropriate amount of filling on a round dumpling wrapper before handing it to Sehun.

“Follow me. You put too much filling. This much is just right.”

As Jian moved his hands slowly for Sehun to follow, a decent-looking dumpling was completed in Sehun’s hands.

Although it was still clumsy compared to Jian’s, it was a remarkable improvement from the burst dumpling.

“Seeing this, I think God is a bit fair. Han Sehun, who’s good at everything, isn’t very good with his hands.”

Hyunsu, with flour on his nose bridge, placed the dumpling he had just made on his palm and held it out proudly. It was certainly better than the one Sehun made.

Jian smiled softly and placed the dumpling on the paper foil spread on one side of the table. The pale surfaces of the dumplings stood in a neat row.

“Wow. But Jian hyung, how many dumplings are we making? Can we eat all of these?”

“Shouldn’t we eat at least ten each? The dumplings aren’t that big.”

Contrary to Hyunsu’s thoughts, Jian looked around with a content expression, worried that there might not be enough.

Sehun was making dumplings beside him, and Hyunsu, even wearing an apron, was doing his fair share.

‘The everyday moments are the most precious.’

The days of anxiety that had been precariously continuing came to an end starting from the day Sehun came home with two chickens.

From the next day, Sehun ate breakfast properly and came home before dinner. Although he still went somewhere alone after school, he wasn’t as cold as before.

Thanks to this, Jian regained his lost appetite and was preparing to welcome the new year with some peace of mind.

“Hyung, where does all the food you eat go? I’m envious of your metabolism that doesn’t gain weight.”

Hyunsu sent an envious look at Jian, who boasted an extraordinary appetite. Hyunsu himself was born with a constitution that didn’t gain weight even if he ate ramen with rice late at night.

“You’re similar, why are you saying that? Both of you, keep making dumplings. I’ll steam a few. We should taste them.”

Jian picked up a small tray and selected a few nicely shaped dumplings. This time, learning from last year’s failure, he reduced the amount of kimchi and added more meat to make them taste more like meat dumplings.

While the dumplings were being steamed in the kitchen, Hyunsu stretched out his legs and leaned against the sofa leg.

“If I’d known it would be like this, I would have just played games at home.”

“You should have.”

He had come intending to hang out casually with Jian, but ended up participating in a dumpling factory. He wasn’t entirely serious, just grumbling a bit because his shoulders were stiff, but a heartless reply came back immediately.

“Right. What should I expect from you? Looks like the deviation is over. Seeing you stuck at home all day today.”

Hyunsu lowered his voice after glancing towards the kitchen. Jian had been struggling emotionally because of Sehun disappearing alone after school ended.

He felt a bit hurt too, but it was nothing compared to the shock Jian received. But recently, Sehun had started following Jian around again.

Only when this familiar scene, which he had been seeing for nearly 10 years, unfolded before his eyes did Hyunsu secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

“He just needed some fresh air.”

“Does Jian hyung believe that?”

Hyunsu frowned at the half-hearted excuse. If he was going to make excuses, he should do it properly. Fresh air, yeah right. He was definitely up to something behind Jian’s back.