For some reason, Chunmonggak felt peaceful after Yoon Yeomin left. Yoo Dohyeon, who had lost his ally first, seemed to have checked the backlash from the "flop idol comment" and was living like he was there but not there.
"Ah, Dansol-ssi! You still haven't moved rooms? It was empty?"
"I… um, not yet…"
After Yeomin left, PD Choi suggested several times that Dansol move rooms, but Dansol couldn't pack. No—he packed, but he couldn't bring his things out of the room.
Every time Dansol carried his luggage into Yeomin's old room one piece at a time, his suitcase would come back almost immediately, like something out of a horror movie. He thought it was his imagination and put it back again, and it was back. Back, back, back.
He'd lost count of how many times it had happened. Seeing his carry-on sitting in its original spot again, Dansol trembled. Then a cold voice spoke from behind him.
"Sol… are you really going to move rooms?"
"Ah! You scared me!"
So startled that he dropped into a crouch on the floor, Dansol froze. Jisu ignored that and helped him up. With his legs giving out, Dansol practically collapsed into Jisu's arms as he made it to the bed, and he let out a whimper.
"Hyung…! You scared me! Was it you moving my suitcase back? No… even if it wasn't, just say it was. Please?"
"Sol's really jumpy. Hyung didn't mean to. Sorry."
"Ah… thank god."
"But… are you really going to move rooms? Did hyung do something to upset you?"
Jisu sat on the floor under the bed and leaned his head against Dansol's knees, after seating Dansol on the bed. From the posture alone, it looked like he was begging for Dansol's forgiveness.
Jisu was the kind of person who brought ginger tea, honey water, cold medicine and supplements he had no idea how he even found, if Dansol so much as coughed lightly. There was no way Dansol could be upset with someone who took care of him more than his own manager did.
But…
"Being with hyung… it feels like my hands and feet stop working properly."
"My hands and feet are all right here and attached just fine—what are you talking about, Sol? Ha… how can hands and feet be this pretty?"
At first, Dansol thought he was just a kind person. He opened doors, carried heavy luggage, gave him an arm to use as a pillow, and when Dansol couldn't wake up in the morning, he even carried him to the bathroom, woke him up, and helped him brush his teeth… even bringing breakfast into the room and feeding him.
Even Taeoh, who said there was a hired auntie who did housework for them—did he live this comfortably?
Dansol, who had fed and clothed a large group with his own hands, knew this kind of luxury wasn't meant for him. If he got used to living like this, he didn't think he could go back to that moldy, semi-basement dorm.
"Sol, do you hate hyung? If you hate me, you can go."
Jisu rested his face on the back of Dansol's hand. The smooth, cool feel of skin that looked like it never broke out even once in his life didn't feel bad.
There was another problem.
The skinship that became too natural from living together had crossed the line. Since they ended up sharing a bed because Dansol said he left his comfort doll behind, there were too many moments that made him embarrassed.
One day, he opened his eyes and realized he was using Jisu's bare chest as a pillow. Seeing that dizzying point right in front of him, Dansol—who was usually hard to wake—snapped fully awake.
But the real problem was… he didn't hate it. To be honest, he kind of liked it. Those affectionate touches and that warmth aimed at him.
His head turned complicated with feelings he'd never even felt from his parents. Dansol pulled his hand away from Jisu's and abruptly stood up.
"That's not it!"
"Sol, where are you going? Come with me. What if Jeong Daesu suddenly comes to kill me? Hyung's scared."
On top of that, after the elimination announcement, Jisu developed separation anxiety. He said Daesu was after his life and refused to be apart from Dansol.
If that was the case, why did he vote Daesu as an elimination target in the first place? Jisu was so scared of Daesu that it made Dansol feel embarrassed for ever thinking there was something between them.
"But… Jeong Daesu-sunbaenim doesn't seem like that kind of person…"
"What are you talking about, Sol. Are you taking that bear bastard's side? Ah… you saw his forearms. Sol, bears tear people apart…! If hyung gets ripped to shreds, are you okay with that?"
Jisu clung to him with a face like he was about to cry. Dansol was weak to a handsome face.
"Ah… I'm not going. It's not that I hate you… I'm just scared I'll get too comfortable."
"You can't be comfortable?"
"Huh…? I can't."
"Why not?"
"Uh… well…"
Right. Honestly, no matter what happened with this program, Dansol only wanted to get his ordinary life back. He never meant to do well as a celebrity, but without realizing it, he was thinking about his members.
'You have to do well for the team to survive. If you fail, the team fails too.'
The traces of years of gaslighting didn't disappear easily.
The members that came to mind weren't the cruel ones who had turned away from him. He saw the younger members, still small, with hardship stuck all over them.
"Because I have a lot of mouths to feed…?"
"Our Sol said he was an only child."
"That's… the members. If I do well, the members do well. I'm still older than them. I felt like I couldn't afford to be comfortable."
"And now?"
"Huh? Ah… honestly, being comfortable feels good. When I'm with hyung, I really don't lift a finger. I told you earlier. It's already starting to feel bleak, thinking about going back…"
"Then don't go back."
"Come on… how could I do that. Ah… the sunlight's warm."
Before he knew it, Dansol—caught by Jisu—flopped back and lay spread-eagle on the bed. The bedding rustled, dried fluffy under the warm sunlight.
"I really hate semi-basements… I want to keep living somewhere like this."
Hearing Dansol's mutter, Jisu smiled meaningfully. Dansol didn't see it with his eyes closed. Jisu quickly returned to the gentle face he'd worn before and softly stroked Dansol's head as he lay fused with the blanket.
When Dansol opened his eyes, it was late afternoon. Two or three hours had flown by—he must have dozed off. Jisu, who had claimed Daesu was coming to kill him and kept Dansol trapped in the room, was gone.
"Where did everyone go…"
Rubbing his eyes, Dansol stepped into the living room and found Chunmonggak so quiet it felt like it had been scrubbed clean. Glancing down, he couldn't see anyone on the shore either, so he headed toward the hiking trail.
There was a stream beside the trail—Minhyuk's usual nap spot.
Sure enough, Minhyuk was lying on a flat rock in nothing but swim trunks, like it was his own bedroom. His guitar, like an extension of himself, lay beside him.
"Hyung. Minhyuk-hyung."
Dansol tapped him lightly.
"Dansol-ssi, you're here?"
"Where did everyone go? The house was completely empty."
"Everyone went grocery shopping for tomorrow's camping mission."
"Huh…! Then why didn't they wake me? Why didn't you go?"
"Jisu-ssi lied and said you were sick and sleeping, and I was up in a tree. They didn't bother calling me, so I didn't bother coming down."
The longer Minhyuk lived on the Filming Island, the more he seemed to turn into a nature man. Dansol genuinely worried that by the time the show ended, tree roots might start growing out of Minhyuk's body.
Dansol plopped down beside him.
"…Why did you climb up there again. And what's this spot on your foot? Did you get a skin infection?"
"Ah… that's from the slippers."
Minhyuk stood and showed him the slippers he'd neatly taken off beside the rock. They had holes punched all over them, following the shape of his feet.
It made Dansol think, What kind of celebrity is this? But then he saw Minhyuk's face and understood. Even holding slippers, he looked like a luxury brand photoshoot, which made it even more annoying.
It wasn't just the tops of his feet. His arms were tanned in the shape of a short-sleeve shirt, and his legs were tanned in the shape of shorts, like he'd tattooed them on.
"Hyung! Please, put on sunscreen."
Without thinking, Dansol smacked Minhyuk's forearm where the short-sleeve tan line was. Why did he treat a body and face like this that way? Even though it made a crisp sound like hitting a block of acorn jelly, Minhyuk just grinned.
"Dansol-ssi, did you know? Today is the last day we can lie on this rock and sleep. Hurry and lie down."
After giving Dansol the neck pillow, Minhyuk lay back down, using his own arm as a pillow instead. Dansol lay down beside him.
"Why is today the last day?"
"It's going to rain."
"Then we can come again after the rain stops…"
"After the rain stops, it gets cold. Right now it's warm."
Like he said, the rock that soaked up the midday sun was warm. But it wasn't hot. Wind blowing from the stream and mountain brushed across Dansol's face. Leaves knocked together. Clouds swept past their eyes.
"In winter, when I look at the top of my feet, I'll think about right now—lying here with you, Dansol-ssi. Even after a season passes, it's my own way of remembering that season."
Minhyuk's calm voice rode the clouds and brushed past Dansol. It was a drowsy afternoon.
"Hyung."
"Yes?"
"Sunscreen is annoying, right."
"Yes…"
{Trailer: Daesu and Jisu Grocery Shopping Vlog}
Han Jisu: We're going camping tomorrow, so we came into town… but I don't actually like camping, so I don't know what to buy. What do we need? Daesu-ssi, have you ever gone camping?
Jeong Daesu: I don't really enjoy camping, so I'm not sure, but probably a shovel, an axe, rope… things like that.
Han Jisu: …Let's go.
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