Chapter Text
It was after dark that Lee Hoyeol arrived home. Half of the office had stayed late to beat the deadline for a marketing campaign. It was miraculous that their boss had not called a meeting at short notice, and, not wanting to tempt fate, most of the workers had made a hasty retreat once their work was done.
He was, again, too tired to cook and decided to make a beeline for the nearest convenience store on his way home. The cashier behind the counter had looked miserable after dealing with a drunk customer before him, so Hoyeol kept their interaction as brief and civilized as possible.
Work was truly a shared misery even during the Cataclysm.
The fact that the world had turned fantasy-themed did not put a stop to a profit-driven society and its framework. There were still examinations to pass, career paths to consider, and bills to pay. Lee Hoyeol had once been wide-eyed and expectant until he officially joined the rat race.
His small studio apartment was unlit and silent when he turned the knob, but Hoyeol paused at the doorway, letting the light outside the hallway flood into the gloom. He squinted his eyes at the backlit figure leaning against the window in his direct line of sight, which must be intentional.
Lee Hoyeol sighed, switched on the light inside, and closed the door behind him - all the while ignoring the person who had been watching him the moment he stepped in.
"You are having that unhealthy instant food again," said the intruder, calmly looking at Hoyeol place his admittedly unappealing dinner on his little folding table.
It was samgak jumeokbap, for the third time this week, but it was near month-end and he was on a tight budget until his next paycheck. Also, his mother had called early in the day, saying she had saved him some banchan and reminding him to visit on the weekend to get his share. So it was not like he was actively trying to deprive himself nutritionally.
Once upon a time, he might have found the need to explain himself; however, at this point, Hoyeol did not elaborate and simply offered, "D'you want tea?"
For a fleeting moment, his gawker seemed to waver before uttering a soft and sure, "Of course."
And quickly adding, "Thank you."
Lee Hoyeol did not understand why, but the way the other's manners exceeded his emotions suddenly brought a small grin to his face, and the following restrained bafflement just amused Hoyeol further. Enough to help him bypass his exhaustion while he focused on making tea for his guest, who had an unfortunate habit of breaking and entering.
It did not take long for the kettle to boil, and tea of the cheap variety, a hundred won per bag, to brew. Soon, the tiny, low folding table was crowded by two adult men sitting cross-legged on the floor with their food and drinks respectively.
Lee Hoyeol absentmindedly ate his jumeokbap while his gaze tracked across the features of the man seated opposite. With his blue coat draped on his shoulders, his back ramrod straight, and his longer silver hair kept in a loose fishtail braid, Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo imperturbably sipped his green tea like it was served on a silver platter rather than from an unsightly mug Hoyeol had randomly gotten on sale.
Yes, that Grandfell.
The Grandfell that could whip a crowd of netizens into a frenzy and was beheld as Gramen of all names. Which had sent Lee Hoyeol himself into a fit of hysterical laughter once he caught wind of it on Park Hwikang's stream.
If people knew Lee Hoyeol dared ridicule their favorite player for months for that sobriquet, he knew a large number of death threats would be imminent. Top players around the world would rally for his downfall even.
But, strangely, the fact that Grandfell was put on a pedestal just made him more subject to Hoyeol's casual criticism. Something upon which Lee Hoyeol instinctively avoided reflecting too deeply.
"I thought you were in Yusra, keeping an eye on that elf," commented Lee Hoyeol as he crumbled up the kimbap plastic wrapping and distractedly dragged his mind to his monthly report that he had yet to start.
"As long as the Hierarchy of Blessing holds strong, Elsidor will be of no significance." As usual, Grandfell seriously observed his speculation. "He'd better put his mind on his current duty of tending to the Garden of Dignity."
"Huh," was all Lee Hoyeol replied instead of asking Why are you staying here when you have your own quarters at Yusra, Frost, and even the Magic Tower? "Right. I'm going to take a bath. Do you want me to keep the hot water on?"
When he got out of the bathroom, Grandfell had cleaned up his own cup of tea along with the dishes left in the sink, and was scrolling through the phone that Lee Hoyeol had used a part of his modest saving on buying to give Grandfell a basic means of communication after they met in that fateful rift which had previously been Lee Hoyeol's daily train route to his office building.
It had been one of the rare rifts that erratically merged places on Earth with those of Arcana, so civilians were trapped within the rift that they normally would not even be able to see. Just like that one City of Gloomy Rain Dugeon in London.
As though a demon himself emerging from Hell, Grandfell appeared amidst the chaos, skillfully eliminating all of the imps and destroying the dungeon's core. Hence, his debut and subsequent fame as a player. Especially when one of the people he saved was the older brother of Nam Taemin, the guildmaster of one of Korea's biggest guilds.
The famed player looked up from his internet surfing when Lee Hoyeol handed him a new set of pyjamas. "I've just ordered this for you. Can't keep borrowing mine."
"Thank you."
"You can buy your own, you know. It's not like when you first came here and couldn't afford things without proper identification."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Yah, what does that even mean? So you'll buy them yourself or not?"
Up until the time Grandfell disappeared inside his bathroom, Lee Hoyeol's question yielded no answers. Unbothered, Hoyeol just climbed into the sweet cocoon of his bed, the tiredness of the day finally crashing down on him.
His mind wandered as noises echoed distantly from the bathroom. He thought of his waiting report, of a possible Friday meeting for the campaign. He thought of what time would be best to go to his parents' house to avoid his sister Lee Yerim this Sunday.
He thought of a Thursday update, of Grandfell in another dangerous, impossible rift. He thought of people raving about Grandfell's newest feats on a hot search, and there he was, seeing Grandfell as a fit of imagination in the flesh - the nostalgia and outlandishness of Grandfell's existence. A strange kind of deja vu.
He thought of how their realities were interwoven in spite of how different they were. Then again, even before Earth was stricken with space and time fractures, the world had long witnessed man-made disasters that ruined nations and damned civilizations, and experienced changes and turbulences beyond comprehension and predictions.
The world constantly transformed, but human sufferings remained the same, for human natures did not change. Everyone had always had their own personal version of reality. It just so happened that this time Lee Hoyeol's reality and that of Grandfell were both possible simultaneously. Because the moment the two possibilities were equal, they were truly two different beings.
So Lee Hoyeol did not deny Grandfell access to the comfort of his home, did not comment on Grandfell's precaution not to draw public attention to Hoyeol, did not insist on asking Grandfell the reasons for his persistence.
If one day Lee Hoyeol could eventually get over himself, there may even be a formal introduction to his family, his sisters' nagging and tauntings notwithstanding.
By the time Grandfell finished his shower, Hoyeol had been drifting off to sleep, unperturbed by Grandfell's joining him on his small twin bed and shifting until his back was warmed up by their proximity. The discussion about their bed sharing had at first been such a debacle, even though it had been an obvious choice for Grandfell: Why did the guest have to sleep on the floor? How could the owner sleep on the floor, either? And most importantly, there was enough room. Eventually, finding no advantage to more arguments, Lee Hoyeol naturally accepted the arrangement.
Deep into the night, Hoyeol did not hear Grandfell let out a quiet sigh. Whether it was of relief or torment was only known by Grandfell and the darkness that enshrouded them both.