From the moment Ilyas first met Ethan, he couldn't get him off his mind.
Ethan was a type of person he had never met before, someone with a lot to hide and someone with a presence so thin in this world. That's why Ethan piqued Ilyas' curiosity.
His grandma told him, once he found a person he couldn't take his gaze off from, he had to gift a protective charm to them. It's a spiritual belief that's been going through generations in his family. Though Ilyas didn't know what that meant yet, he knew for sure he had given it to the right person.
He silently gazed at Ethan, who had a shocked look on his face, then spoke, "Remember how the previous two guiding sessions went? I don't have the heart to wake you up if you fall asleep again, so why don't we just accept it and prepare in case it happens?"
Hearing Ilyas finish his words, Ethan's face became even more of a spectacle to look at.
Bewilderment, hesitation, embarrassment.
Every emotion flashed on his face within the span of a few seconds.
'He's usually quite expressionless, but he becomes a chaotic mess when it comes to expressing his emotions.'
Ilyas noted that for future reference.
After contemplating for a bit, Ethan finally nodded and sat down on the sofa.
But that's all he did, he didn't move an inch after.
Ilyas chuckled at his behavior. He raised his hand and gently guided Ethan to lie comfortably on his lap. Ilyas could feel the man tensing up.
"I'll begin guiding."
Clasping their hands together, Ilyas channeled his guiding energy. Ethan blinked slowly, seemingly becoming drowsier. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep.
Ilyas took this chance to take a closer look at Ethan's face. Sharp nose and red lips, the dark circle under his eyes didn't cover his handsome features.
Ilyas stroked his hair and felt the silky texture on his fingers.
"Sleep well, Ethan."
His whisper vanished into the air.
.
.
For the first time in one year, I woke up feeling refreshed. The headache that usually hit my head like a truck had been reduced to the level of being hit by a motorcycle.
Ilyas' face was the first thing I saw. Blinking, I raised my hands to wipe my blurry eyes.
"How are you feeling?"
I raised my body while rubbing my temple. Clenching and unclenching my hand, I assessed my body condition.
"A lot better, thanks to your guiding."
I gave him a nod of appreciation. Guiding was indeed a crucial health care for espers. But still, in my perspective of someone whose earth wasn't invaded with gates and supernatural powers, esper and guide was a foreign concept.
Standing up and tidying up my clothes, I asked Ilyas, "Are you tired? Full-guiding three espers at once must be exhausting."
Ilyas shook his head, "Not at all, even if I look like this, I'm still an S-Rank. I still have a lot of energy left."
His energetic expression calmed my mind. I guess I underestimate Ilyas too much. All the guides I had asked to guide me before collapsed not long after they started guiding, so I was sensitive with every fluctuation of their wavelength and signs of them collapsing.
And because of that same reason, I unconsciously started treating every guide like a fragile glass.
But now Ilyas had joined, it felt like a thick and sturdy wall I could rest on had appeared.
It felt nice.
"By the way, I've been wondering, but what part of me do you trust so much that you are willing to hand me your protective charm?"
Ilyas rubbed his chin, staring at the floor for a moment, then started explaining, "You see, my family is actually a family of shamans."
'Shamans?'
I widened my eyes in surprise.
"We were gifted with the spiritual ability of sixth sense, where we can feel something that's about to happen… Something connected to people around us. This power is running especially strong in my grandma, she could sense if someone would get sick or die."
"But unfortunately, my father — who's her direct descendant — doesn't inherit that. And the same goes for me."
"Which is why, on the day my grandma went out of town and my family was having a vacation, a car accident happened, which took away my parents' lives."
"Since then, I could sense someone's existence. Like a string of life that attaches them to this world."
"And when I sensed yours, I couldn't stop thinking about it."
Ilyas picked up his bag and pulled out another red pouch. "My grandma made this herself, she said it would be helpful to avoid the universe's gaze. I don't really understand it myself, but she told me to keep it close every time."
A teasing smile appeared on his face, "This is my way of repaying you, so don't lose it Ethan. Who knows, maybe you might win a lottery with its luck."
I nodded, though I didn't know whether it could bring me good luck in lotteries, keeping a protective charm around might be helpful.
But this was unexpected.
While researching the characters, I focused only on Ethan himself. So I didn't know Ilyas' family details or his past.
We will be working together for a long time, so I would be using this chance to know each other better.
BANG!
The door was opened with a kick and a hot-headed redhead entered, followed by a gloomy guy with a death glare behind him.
"Oy! It's been an hour! The hell are you two doing anyway?!"
I bluntly answered Xain with a deadpan expression.
"Talking like how a normal person would."
Looking at the door handle that's on the verge of falling off, I sighed.
'I'm going to charge him the repair cost.'
With that kind of attitude, their reformation project would be one hell of a ride.
"It's almost lunch, let's grab a bite, my treat."
I asked them to pick which one of their favorite restaurants we would go to. And after a few minutes of argument, we decided to have a meal on a fried chicken restaurant nearby. Ilyas' suggestion.