Chapter Text
Ryu Jaekwan walked into a cloud of smoke.
“..!”
He coughed his lungs out for a good few seconds before he regained his breath. “Sunbae! Are you smoking in the break room again? I told you to go outside, or just open a window!”
Waving the smoke away from his face, he approached Agent Choi, who sat slumped on the break room couch. “There’s no windows in here, hubae…”
It was only then that Ryu Jaekwan realized his senior was lacking his usual grin and good cheer. Instead, dark bags lay beneath his eyes, and his shirt was buttoned up to the throat. Covering the scar on his neck.
“Wait… Are you contaminated, sunbae??? Are you alright?”
Agent Choi leaned his head back to look at Ryu Jaekwan. His eyes crinkled with mild amusement. “You worry too much, Jaekwan.”
“...”
Wasn’t it this senior who was always prodding him for attention? Looking again at Agent Choi’s sorry state, he let out a sigh, letting go of his irritation.
“You know, I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but despite being a newbie you’re so reliable Jaekwan-ie. I can definitely see civilians looking up to you.”
Ryu Jaekwan furrowed his eyebrows. What was this senior talking about now? “Prior to joining the Disaster Management Bureau I worked at the Lee Jeong Bookstore. And before that I was rescued from a disaster by an agent when I was in high school. I suppose I have had more time to adjust to supernatural phenomena than most rookie agents.”
Agent Choi snorted. “What a logical deduction.”
He placed a hand behind his head in an attempt to look casual, but Ryu Jaekwan could see his fingers on his neck.
“...Does it hurt, agent?”
“Eh, here and there. Nothing an old agent like me can’t deal with.”
“I’ll go make some coffee for us then. I’ll be back.”
With a worried look, Ryu Jaekwan left the break room towards the shared coffee machine down the hall. As the only two agents currently assigned to Hyunmoo Team 1, Ryu Jaekwan found himself growing closer to Agent Choi than he’d ever expected to. It wasn’t like he particularly liked his senior, but seeing his reckless nature made Ryu Jaekwan worry.
Filling two cups with instant coffee, he waited for the hot water while lost in thought. The clatter of porcelain caught his attention.
“Oh hey, if it isn’t Choi’s little rookie.”
A woman was standing by the door, a mug in hand. Ryu Jaekwan recognized her as Team Leader Agent Haegeum.
“Ah– hello agent.”
“Relax~ no need to be nervous. So, based on your worried face, that brat Choi is down in the dumps again?”
“Ye– how did you know?”
“Haha, I’ve worked here longer than him, I know a lot about that kid. Must have surprised you, huh?
“...He’s normally obnoxiously cheerful. It’s a bit strange to see him so quiet. Also… he’s covering his scar.”
With a cheery tone, the water kettle blew out steam as it reached a boil. Ryu Jaekwan began filling the cups with hot water. He offered to pour some in Agent Haegeum’s cup as well, and she held out her mug with a short “thanks.”
“Hmm… yeah that scar hurts him quite a bit. Especially since today marks the day when he first got it.”
“Do you mind me asking what happened…?”
“Well, it’s a common story. Something went wrong in a disaster, and he now lives with it forever. Honestly, everyone recommended retirement for him. It’s not like there aren’t other jobs he can take on to help. Safer ones that won’t trigger his trauma. But like an idiot, that brat kept going. Even though he lost his entire team in that disaster.”
“...”
Ryu Jaekwan knew. Knew that disasters were made to break people, and that agents would inevitably be scarred for life, if they even managed to survive. But knowing and seeing were different, and seeing the energy fade from his lively senior once again reminded him of how pain changed people.
“That brat is surprisingly sentimental, too. He gets bothered when people die. Especially his coworkers. He gets really attached to his hubaes, but it hurts him just as much when they die. I can already tell he likes you quite a lot, so do him a favor and stay alive. Preferably for a long, long time.”
“Yes.”
When Ryu Jaekwan entered the break room again, Agent Choi was fast asleep, sprawled on the couch. He lightly put down a cup of coffee and left some painkillers on the low table. Today, he hoped there would be no rescue calls. Agent Choi could do with a break.