Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 296. Necessary and Sufficient Conditions for Happiness (4)

“It’s the sea―!”

“Slow down, Haru.”

“Just let him be. He’ll only learn after falling and shedding some tears.”

As soon as he got out of the car, Jung Siwoo tried to stop Dan Haru, who was dashing madly toward the sea. However, he ended up laughing dryly at Lee Yugeon’s words, who stretched like an old man who had seen it all. Siwoo hesitated to chase after Haru, partly because he trusted Yugeon’s ample experience in childcare.

“Let’s rest here for a bit before going in. The caretaker called and said the villa isn’t fully prepared yet.”

“Hyung, why don’t you stay and hang out with us? Aren’t you tired?”

“Would hanging out with you guys really be playing? It’d be work.”

“You must be tired from driving since dawn. Take a break; we’ll watch the kids.”

“Alright then. I’ll take a quick nap. I still have to pick up Taehyun later….”

Manager Kwon Wook yawned and climbed back into the driver’s seat. Siwoo, who now considered Wook within the ‘trustworthy people’ category, even lent him his neck pillow, which he’d left in the passenger seat, so Wook could rest comfortably.

Meanwhile, Yugeon, who had said to just let Haru fall over on his own, had already caught up with Haru and was walking slowly about five steps behind him.

‘Is that… some kind of instinctive parenting reflex?’

Sitting on the moderately warm sand, Lee Doha observed the entire scene with genuine curiosity. No one had ever assigned Yugeon such a caretaker role, yet he always naturally looked after his younger siblings in situations like this. Doha was curious about the underlying logic behind Yugeon’s behavior.

The sea in March wasn’t exactly warm. The sand had warmed up under the morning sun, but the breeze that brushed against Doha’s nose was still cold.

Doha, who had grown up valuing his health from years of exercising, instinctively pulled up his mask. Next to him, Siwoo meticulously applied sunscreen to his face and hands.

‘It’s peaceful.’

Doha hadn’t had many opportunities to leisurely enjoy the beach in his life, and he had never visited the southern coast before. The southern beach he was visiting for the first time in his life was quieter, cleaner, more secluded, and more deserted than he had imagined.

“Whoa! Yugeon-hyung! Run!”

“I knew this would happen….”

“Oh no! I only brought one pair of shoes!”

Suddenly, a big wave must have surged in. Haru and Yugeon, who had been writing in the wet sand with their fingers, were now noisily running away from the incoming seawater.

Siwoo, who had been meticulously applying sunscreen, was now sitting under a shaded parasol, reading a book he had brought from the lodging. Although Doha couldn’t help but wonder why Siwoo had bothered to apply sunscreen so diligently just to sit in the shade, he found himself oddly accepting of it because it was Siwoo. Doha nodded to himself.

Then, suddenly, he remembered one person who had yet to enter his line of sight.

“……?”

Where did Hajin go?

Doha, who had recalled the existence of his only friend of the same age, looked around. It wasn’t uncommon for them to stop at a rest area during an event and accidentally leave behind one of the members after miscounting.

“……Ah.”

Thankfully, Doha soon spotted his friend not too far away and let out a sigh of relief. Knowing Hajin, even if he were stranded at a rest stop without a phone, he’d probably hitchhike his way back to the lodging by asking someone for a ride….

Regardless of that thought, Hajin was filming Haru and Yugeon with a camcorder he had recently purchased. Hajin had placed all his first settlement money, except for a small portion, into savings and deposits. The camcorder was one of the few purchases he had made.

When Doha had asked him why he chose a handycam when he could have bought a better camera, Hajin had simply smiled and replied.

-Just. I wanted to regain some of my initial feelings. …This was my first camera, after all.

It was a response that somehow didn’t quite align, but Doha didn’t care much. Hajin often made such inexplicable comments.

‘If anyone else had said that, I would’ve asked what they meant.’

Doha admitted to himself that he was unusually soft when it came to Hajin.

Doha’s way of thinking, which always prioritized understanding situations, couldn’t fathom it, but he generally accepted anything Hajin did.

It wasn’t that Doha gave Hajin special treatment; rather, it was a trust born out of experience. The trust had started when Hajin, who everyone considered a poor dancer, had confidently given him the dance breaks.

Since meeting Hajin, Doha had never once fully understood Hajin’s actions, but the results he produced had always been satisfying.

“Lee Do.”

“……?”

While he was lost in thought, Hajin, who had been filming from a distance, had suddenly approached him. With the sun at his back, Hajin’s expression was hard to see, but his cheerful voice was clear.

“Can we talk for a bit, just the two of us?”

“…….”

“I need to ask you for a favor.”

“What is it?”

When Doha easily asked, Hajin hesitated, as if it were difficult, and closed his mouth.

“It’s a bit strange. Even after hearing it, you might not understand what it means.”

Had Hajin ever been this hesitant to say something?

Though he’d only known Hajin for about a year, this side of Hajin was still unfamiliar to him.

Doha pondered for a moment.

Then, he made up his mind.

“Is it something that has to be done?”

“…Yeah.”

“Is it illegal?”

“No.”

“Alright, then.”

“…….”

“Tell me. I’ll listen.”

After all, Doha had never fully understood Hajin’s choices.

He just trusted the results Hajin would produce.

There wasn’t a trace of hesitation in Doha’s clear nod.

* * *

Dan Haru suddenly woke up from his sleep.

He must have played so hard that he didn’t even know when he had fallen asleep because as soon as he opened his eyes, his entire body felt heavy and drenched as if it had been submerged in water.

‘When did I fall asleep…?’

He tried to recall.

He had been excited about seeing the beach for the first time in a long while, had run around energetically, written in the sand with Yugeon, and even taken off his socks and shoes to dip his ankles in the seawater.

And also….

He had tried to go live to show this beautiful scenery to the Destis but had decided against it, worrying that saesangs might track their location. So, instead, he had taken tons of photos.

He had video-called Eunchan and Taehyun, who were still at their schedules, telling them to hurry up and come, gone grocery shopping with the hyungs at a nearby mart, and spent 20,000 won at a food stall buying tteokbokki and fish cakes….

‘I did a lot.’

After spending a packed holiday, he must have dozed off in the car on the way back to Eunchan’s villa.

As he blinked slowly, he felt the soft cushions of the sofa beneath him. It seemed the hyungs had carried him into the villa while he was asleep.

‘Having hyungs around is comforting.’

Just as he had this thought, which might earn him criticism from countless younger brothers worldwide who lived under the tyranny of their older brothers, someone approached, making their presence known.

“Haru, you’re awake?”

It was Hajin, holding two white mugs in his hands.

“Hyung….”

“Yeah. Drink this. You must be thirsty.”

“Yes. Where are the other hyungs?”

“…They’re asleep. Everyone seemed tired.”

Haru, noticing the fatigue in Hajin’s eyes as well, got up with a hint of concern. Only now did the view of the villa come into full view. The open window opposite him framed a breathtakingly beautiful coastal scene.

“Wow, this place is amazing.”

“Yeah. It’s nice, isn’t it? I made sure to prepare it just for you.”

Haru burst into laughter at Hajin’s characteristic boastful tone. Holding a warm cup of tea in his hands, Haru got up and moved closer to the window. The sunset over the beach was unbelievably beautiful.

“…Haru.”

“Yes?”

“Didn’t you say your grandmother lives around here? Before.”

“Ah, um, yes. But it’s still about an hour’s drive away. My grandma’s place is really nice too. I miss Deokgu. Deokgu is cute too.”

Haru reminisced about his grandmother and her house, his eyes filled with longing and warmth. Hajin, who had placed his cup on the table, put his hands in his pockets and slowly stood up, stopping a little distance away from Haru.

Hajin, whose expression was unreadable, asked Haru a question in the same gentle tone as always.

It was just like that time in Miro’s hallway when Haru had spilled his story before he could even feel shy.

“Did you say your grandma has a dog?”

“Yes, a Jindo dog. It’s really cute and really big.”

“But wasn’t its name originally Rex or something? I think that’s what you said last time.”

“Rex? Um… No, it’s definitely Deokgu.”

“Really? Then I must have gotten it wrong. …What does your grandma do? Is she retired now?”

“Yeah. I heard she used to run some kind of daycare. Maybe that’s why? I

grew up in her care, and I don’t think I had a tough time.”

“I see.”

It was then, as Dan Haru was watching the waves crash, that he sensed something strange.

‘The waves… They seem to be crashing the same way over and over again.’

He felt a strange sense of discomfort, but before he could dwell on it, Hajin’s voice came first.

“Maybe that’s the setup in this timeline.”

“…What?”

Haru turned around. He saw Hajin standing there, and behind him was another large window.

Outside the window, there was another stunning view, but what was strange was that it was snowing.

Pure white snowflakes were falling like feathers.

With the odd sight of snow in March as a backdrop, Hajin took a step closer to Haru.

“But Haru. Isn’t it a foster home, not a daycare?”

“…What?”

“Your grandmother used to run. It was a foster home, wasn’t it? The place where you stayed.”

“Why… Why are you being like this, hyung? Come on, stop joking.”

“Where are your parents? Do you remember what they do? What kind of work are they doing so diligently that their child is living as an idol with strangers in Korea without receiving a single call from them?”

“Why, why are you being like this, hyung. Seriously…?”

“Haru. Look again.”

A dream? Is this a dream?

Terrified, Dan Haru tried to step back, but the cold window blocked his retreat.

Like Alice cornering the rabbit in a dead end, Hajin, with an unreadable expression, grabbed Haru’s shoulders and turned him back to face the window.

Then, in a chillingly low voice, he spoke coldly.

“This is the familiar sea, isn’t it?”

“H-Hyung, stop it. I’m telling you, this is scary….”

“It’s the sea where you buried your grandmother with your own hands.”

The struggling Haru suddenly froze.

As if expecting this reaction, Hajin tightened his grip on Haru’s shoulders and continued.

“It’s the sea where you tearfully said goodbye to your grandmother, Haru.”

“…….”

“Look properly, Dan Haru.”

In that moment, Haru quickly turned around and grabbed Hajin by the collar.

Hajin willingly allowed Haru to grab his collar, meeting Haru’s gaze with eyes that were cold and devoid of warmth.

“Hey.”

From Haru’s mouth came a low, growling voice, the likes of which Hajin had never heard before, and a rather rude term of address. In the place of the usual lively glint in Haru’s eyes, there was now a murky mix of anger.

Before Hajin could stop the trembling hands that tightly gripped his collar, ‘Haru’ glared at Hajin and shouted.

“What the hell are you doing, you crazy bastard!”

Even in the face of Haru’s rough voice, Hajin remained unfazed. He calmly removed Haru’s hands from his collar and pushed him back against the window.

The rough physical struggle and battle of wills intensified, and Hajin’s voice, filled with rage, burst out.

“What the hell have you been doing with Dan Haru all this time, you son of a bitch.”

Finally caught you, you damned Chosen Regressor.

The grinding of Hajin’s teeth echoed his murderous intent.

(To be continued)