I Picked Up the Greatest Villain in the Story

28.

“Both our eyes are a mess.”

Jian, having composed himself, leaned back and smiled broadly. Sehun also smiled, following Jian. Despite their different appearances, the upward curve of their eyes made them look like real brothers.

“Are you hungry?”

Though it came out as a question, Jian straightened his bent knees while clutching his hungry stomach. Sehun also placed both hands on his belly, as if feeling hunger.

Nod, nod.

His black hair fluttered as his head moved up and down.

“Alright. Today, let’s eat out…”

His lips closed shut as he was about to suggest it. Hyunwoo’s warning came to mind. Currently, a crazed researcher targeting Sehun was roaming outside.

He couldn’t ignore the advice to avoid taking Sehun out if possible.

“No, it’s bothersome to go out. Shall we order something to eat at home? Let’s order everything Sehun and I want to eat.”

Jian deliberately raised his voice, worried his anxiety might affect the child. Sehun, happy with anything as long as it was with Jian, simply nodded.

They closed the cafe door and went up to the second floor, holding hands. Traces of Sehun and Hyunsu’s lesson remained in the living room.

Jian tidied up the textbooks scattered on the table, then sat next to Sehun on the sofa and opened a food delivery app.

As they each chose foods they wanted to eat and added them to the cart, the total exceeded 100,000 won. With slightly trembling fingers, he pressed the order button and then took a shower.

Today too, Sehun wanted to bathe together, and as they were playing in the tub, the doorbell rang. They hurriedly dried off and put on comfortable clothes.

As Jian carried the plastic bags left at the door to the dining table, Sehun, wearing only his favorite T-shirt, was trotting around, placing plates and utensils on the table one by one.

“Thank you. Ah, wait. Let’s dry our hair a bit before eating.”

As he stroked the child’s head, cold moisture wet his fingertips. Worried about a potential cold, he quickly found a hair dryer and dried Sehun’s hair.

“Hyung’s hair is cold too…”

Sehun stopped Jian’s hand as he was about to unplug the hair dryer. Unable to resist the worried voice, Jian reluctantly blow-dried just the crown of his head. Sehun watched the hair dryer with lingering eyes before following Jian.

“The food will get cold. Let’s eat quickly.”

Today’s menu was jajangmyeon, fried rice, and guo bao rou. The reason for ordering Chinese food was simple. He suddenly remembered eating jajangmyeon with his parents when he was younger than Sehun.

The memory of sitting around a round table, eating with sauce smeared all over his face, was one of the few memories he had with his parents. After thinking about his parents, he wanted to create similar memories with Sehun.

“This is a food called jajangmyeon. This is guo bao rou. You know fried rice, right?”

“Yes.”

The eyes, swollen from crying, fixed on Jian’s hands mixing the noodles and sauce. Gulp, Jian caught the sound of the child swallowing softly.

“Try it. It’ll definitely be delicious.”

Perhaps there are no children in the world who dislike jajangmyeon. The taste that’s not spicy, slightly sweet, and clings to your mouth is so attractive that it’s hard to forget once you’ve tried it.

The child’s cheeks flushed as he put the noodles wrapped around the fork into his mouth. Seeing the child enjoying it made Jian excited too.

The taste of jajangmyeon after a long time was exactly the same as in the original world. It seemed to cost 3,000 won a bowl when he was young, but at some point it exceeded 5,000 won, and just before his death, almost all restaurants charged close to 7,000 or 8,000 won.

At that time, it was difficult to spend more than 5,000 won a day on food, so he would just sniff the aroma when passing by Chinese restaurants. On days when he really craved jajangmyeon, he would buy and cook jajang ramen.

Although the taste was similar, it was different from the sauce made by stir-frying vegetables, chunjang, and meat. All the regret accumulated from those times melted away in this moment.

Jian remembered the name written on the takeout container as he chewed vigorously. It was so delicious, not greasy and with a savory taste, that he felt sorry to see the noodles disappearing.

“Hyung…”

Sehun, who had already emptied his plate, looked at Jian with desperate eyes. Not only his mouth and chin, but even his nostrils were dotted with sauce.

“There’s still a lot. Eat more. Try the rice and this too.”

He served more jajangmyeon than before and picked up a piece of guo bao rou to taste. The slightly warm temperature was perfect for eating. He brought tongs and scissors, cut it into bite-sized pieces, and handed it over, making Sehun’s black eyes sparkle.

Perhaps hungrier from crying, Sehun inhaled the food frantically until his flat stomach bulged like a tadpole’s. When only a little sauce remained in the bowl, Jian rested his chin on the back of his hand and asked.

“Was it delicious?”

“Very much. I want to eat it again.”

“Then let’s eat jajangmyeon whenever you feel upset from now on.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Jian felt a small sense of relief seeing the clear face, as if all the upsetting things had been forgotten.

After roughly cleaning up the empty plates, they stood side by side in the bathroom, brushing their teeth. Watching the child smile whenever their eyes met in the mirror, Jian steeled his resolve.

‘It’ll be hard to go out from today.’

Until now, after Sehun fell asleep, he would quietly slip out of the house and finish his day by running through nearby dungeons. But it was dangerous to leave the child alone until the person targeting Sehun was caught.

He had become somewhat accustomed to his skills now and adapted to his changed physical abilities. Although he only had one attack skill, he had sufficiently confirmed its power.

He had enough money to live on even now. There was no reason to push himself to run dungeons.

After helping Sehun spit out the toothpaste foam, they left the bathroom. It was a quick journey from the bathroom to the bedroom.

Lying in bed with the child, he gazed into eyes that showed no signs of sleepiness. Following the blinking eyes, the black eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings.

“Can’t sleep?”

“…Tell me more stories.”

Jian immediately understood what kind of stories the child meant. It seemed he wanted to hear more about Jian’s parents.

“Hmm. What kind of story are you curious about?”

When he actually tried to tell a story, he couldn’t figure out what to say. As he gently stroked the hair covering the child’s forehead and asked, Sehun thought for a moment before speaking with difficulty.

“What does it feel like to have a mom and dad?”

The eyes he met contained a deep sadness uncharacteristic of a child. It felt like the delicious jajangmyeon he had eaten was now sitting heavily in his stomach.

While Jian was at a loss for words, Sehun raised his arm, pulled down Jian’s hand that had been stroking his face, and fiddled with it using both hands.

“…I don’t have any memories. So when Hyunsu talked about his mom and dad earlier, I wanted to see you.”

The child’s pronunciation became clearer with each passing day. The resonance in his words shook Jian’s heart.

Jian had never experienced the loss of not even knowing the existence of parents. Just imagining how Sehun must feel made his heart ache. He tried his best to put into words the vague emotions he felt, as the child’s eyes waited for his answer.

“The world… felt like it was mine. I felt like I could do anything as long as mom and dad were by my side. Although I don’t have many memories of my parents, when I think of them, it warms my heart.”

Sehun’s eyes rolled as he fell into thought. At some point, whenever he met Jian’s eyes or saw his smile that resembled the clear blue sky, his heart would beat fiercely.

The world that had always been gloomy and dreary changed when he took Jian’s outstretched hand.

Anger, depression, lethargy, despair, hatred. These were the emotions Sehun had learned from the moment he became aware of the world.

None of them gave a warm feeling. They were cold enough to freeze the skin at a mere touch. Sometimes they would boil up as if to cause burns.

As he realized anew the change brought by Jian, he felt as if a feather was tickling the inside of his chest. The feeling of his fingertips curling was unfamiliar, but more intense than any emotion he had felt in his life.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Sehun tightly grasped Jian’s white hand and pulled it to his cheek. His eyes grew hot at the touch that seemed to have been waiting to share warmth and affection.

For the first time, he found something he wanted to possess. He was afraid that his growing desire might one day consume his heart.

Seeing moisture gradually seeping into Sehun’s eyes, Jian’s face contorted with tenderness. Soon, warmth touched his forehead and their noses met.

“Although I’m lacking in many ways, I hope I can become such a person for Sehun too. I want Sehun to find stability by my side, smile brighter than anyone in the world, and sometimes even throw tantrums.”

A kind and good person. A person different from the adults he had met so far. A person who makes him think it was good to have lived.

All the positive emotions Sehun felt were connected to Jian. The look in his eyes, promising to become a parent to him, was more beautiful than anything in the world.

Unable to contain the overwhelming emotions, he hugged Jian’s neck tightly. The body that had hesitated for a moment embraced him back.

Thump thump thump thump.

He could feel the heartbeat, slower than his own but still quite fast. Sehun closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath. The cozy scent seeped deep into his lungs.

At last, he had found a nest to embrace him.