DASH-Chapter 154

Jiheon was guided by a nurse and headed to the administrative department after leaving the examination room. While waiting in the hallway for his hospitalization procedures, he couldn’t stop looking at his cell phone.

The race should have already ended, but Manager Yoon hadn’t called yet. He checked the internet news just to be sure, but there was no information about today’s men’s 400m individual medley.

‘At this point, it means the race isn’t over yet.’

Jiheon touched his forehead and sighed. Maybe the race was over, but something went wrong. The announcement could have been delayed because the referees were re-examining the results of the race through video review, etc.

Normally, Kwon Jaekyoung would have asked him what he was worried about, but he couldn’t do that today. He was anxious because such a thing happened right before the race. He wondered if Jaekyoung got off to a false start because he was overly agitated.

Of course, Jaekyoung had never made a false start before. In swimming, even a slight movement before the start signal was considered a false start and led to disqualification. People said that it was inevitable to get caught at least once in one’s career, but Jaekyoung had never been disqualified for a false start, even with so many competitions under his belt. He hadn’t been disqualified for other problems either, of course.

Despite knowing this, Jiheon felt anxious because the last time he saw Jaekyoung, the guy’s expression was so unusual. No blood on his face, just red and bloodshot eyes, entering the waiting room looking like he was ready to kill anyone. It was difficult to expect him to maintain his usual composure.

However, as long as he started safely, he didn’t need to worry about the rest. With Jaekyoung’s current skills, even if his breathing got a bit messed up and he lost his pace, he could easily beat the qualifying time. The record might be a bit worse than usual, but that didn’t matter. Today’s goal was to beat the qualifying time and come in first place. Regardless of what the media—especially the foreign media—might say about the results not meeting expectations, Jaekyoung was the type of person who didn’t care about other people’s reactions. He just had to close his ears to what people around him said, prepare well, and show a better performance in the second selection round.

So, Jiheon was praying that the race would end safely.

At that moment, Manager Yoon called. When Jiheon answered, Manager Yoon’s voice came through the speaker.

｢Kwon Jaekyoung just set a new Asian record!｣

Jiheon stood up without realizing it and shouted.

“What’s the record?”

｢4:04.38 seconds!｣

Jiheon covered his mouth with his hand and let out a silent cheer. That was an even better performance ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) than in practice.

Anyway, Jaekyoung had achieved a record of 03-second only once, usually ranging from 04.80 to 05.40 seconds. With five months left before the Olympics, this was a very good record in the first official competition. All of this despite the unsavory thing that had happened just before.

“But why did it finish so late?”

Taking a seat on the bench again, Jiheon excitedly asked Manager Yoon.

｢There was a massive crowd, so they delayed the race by 20 minutes since people couldn’t get in.｣

“Ah.”

Jiheon mumbled.

‘I see. I noticed it when I went to the hospital earlier; the line to get in was pretty long.’

｢You wouldn’t believe how crazy Kim Giseok was about it. He was making a fuss about the swimmers’ tension dropping and insisted on starting the race right away. Anyone watching would think it’s the first time a race got delayed.｣

“......Kim Giseok was there?”

｢Yeah.｣

‘I see... He came, after all.’

Jiheon didn’t know whether to consider this very fortunate or annoying. Feeling complicated, he asked Manager Yoon again.

“What about Han Yuseong?”

｢4:21 seconds. He came in second.｣

“He beat the selection time.”

｢Yeah, pretty close though.｣

Even if it was close, he still made it. It was impressive for a long-distance freestyle athlete to achieve such a record in just a few months. If Jaekyoung hadn’t participated, Han Yuseong could have made it to the Olympics through KSC’s recommendation.

But that hope vanished when Jaekyoung passed the qualifying time. Now, there were only two ways for Han Yuseong to make it to the Olympics: either surpass the qualifying time in the second round or hope for Jaekyoung to be disqualified or withdraw, which seemed nearly impossible.

After ending the call with Manager Yoon, Jiheon went straight to the internet. The breaking news was already on the main page of the portal.

<Breaking News> Kwon Jaekyoung Sets New Asian Record in Men’s 400m Individual Medley

Honestly, while working with Jaekyoung, Jiheon figured he’d gotten used to hearing about new records, but seeing it again made him feel good, happy, and moved. It was kind of expected today.

‘Why the hell did I even worry about him?’

Jiheon chuckled and clicked on the sports news bar. One page was almost entirely filled with articles about Jaekyoung. With so many reporters gathered, many photos were taken, the sports news section was loaded with Jaekyoung’s pictures from all sorts of angles. Jiheon clicked through the photos one by one.

Most of the photos were taken during the race, so Jaekyoung’s entire face wasn’t always visible. Still, Jiheon felt like he could read the expression. It was probably the same as always—expressionless and indifferent, just silently moving his arms and legs.

If, really, if something really went wrong with the baby in his womb, and Jaekyoung found out, he would definitely be very sad and distressed. But he wouldn’t let it ruin his career. Never.

It wasn’t because Jaekyoung was cold and inhuman; it was because he had put in so much time and effort that he couldn’t be shaken by such sadness and pain.

No matter how tough it got, once the buzzer rang, he’d jump into the water and give it his all. He had no choice but to do so. That was the athlete named Kwon Jaekyoung.

So, if Kwon Jaekyoung truly fell apart as a human being, it was more likely to happen because he didn’t know about having a child and lost it rather than losing it consciously. Because he’d think he wasn’t reliable. He’d believe Jiheon took it upon himself because Jaekyoung wasn’t reliable, just like back then.

“.......”

He held onto his cell phone for so long that he saw his own face on the darkened screen. Jiheon looked at his still puffy and messy face.

Honestly, Jiheon thought he could hide it well. He would’ve been able to shake it off quickly since the baby wasn’t even a fetus, but an embryo, and he had mentally prepared himself this much. He believed he could act like nothing happened, without even letting Jaekyoung know.

But now....... He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t confident. Just looking at the blood on his underwear left him distraught, and the thought that something might be wrong with the baby made him feel like he was going crazy. Jiheon no longer felt confident that he could stay calm if that unfortunate imagination turned into reality. Plus, he had to deceive Kwon Jaekyoung, who was more sensitive of his condition than Jiheon himself. That seemed much harder than deceiving himself.

Above all, he didn’t want to deceive Jaekyoung. Whether it was under the guise of doing it for Jaekyoung’s sake or whatever, he didn’t want to deceive him anymore. He didn’t want Jaekyoung to be hurt when he found out the truth later, and he didn’t want to regret it later, thinking he should have just been honest. He didn’t want to repeat the same mistake twice.

‘What should I do now?’

Jiheon sighed softly as he looked at his face on the screen. Suddenly, numbers appeared, and the cell phone started ringing. It was Jaekyoung.

Just seeing Jaekyoung’s name on the screen made him chuckle. Thinking that Jaekyoung too was seriously disturbed, Jiheon pressed the call button.

“Hey, congrats on the new Asian record.”

｢Hyung, where are you?｣

Jaekyoung asked, not even hearing Jiheon’s congratulations.

“Here? Hospital.”

｢Are you done with the checkup? What did the doctor say? Is it bad? Did you need stitches?｣

Jaekyoung asked in a gloomy voice.

｢Did you get the medical certificate? It’s been a few weeks since you had one.｣

He asked without even giving Jiheon time to catch his breath, but Jiheon was curious about how the race went, especially since Jaekyoung set such an incredible record.

“I don’t know yet.”

Jiheon said with a smile.

“I’ve registered and am waiting.”

｢Not yet?｣

“It’s a general hospital. I guess the wait time might be a bit.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Jiheon continued.

“So, Jaekyoung, I think I’ll just stay here today for the checkup and head back to Seoul tomorrow.”

｢Then I’ll do that too.｣

Jaekyoung said right away.

｢Let’s leave together tomorrow.｣

Seeing that Jaekyoung spoke without any distress, Jiheon didn’t think he would listen even if he told him to head back to Seoul first.

“Okay. Finish your interview and schedule before coming here.”

｢.......｣

“Hey, Kwon Jaekyoung.”

Jiheon deliberately lowered his voice.

“I’m telling you clearly, finish everything on your schedule.”

｢Okay.｣

Jaekyoung answered reluctantly.

“Good. See you later then.”

Jiheon said with a smile again. After ending the call, he slipped his cell phone into his suit pocket, but something caught his fingertip. It was the ultrasound picture he had received earlier.

Jiheon pulled out the photo and gave it another careful look. Earlier, he was so distracted that he couldn’t figure out the details while listening to the explanation. But now, he could roughly make out the butt and the head. The arms were clearly visible too.

‘Wow, just a bit more, and it’ll look like a real person.’

Amazed by the photo, Jiheon suddenly remembered the doctor saying the baby would be tall and healthy if it resembled the dad, and he burst into laughter.

“If you end up looking more like your other dad, you’ll be even taller and healthier. Right?”

Jiheon said, gazing at the white dot in the photo. After giving it a quick kiss, he tucked it into his suit pocket.

Jaekyoung showed up at the hospital around four in the afternoon.

“Hyung, how are you feeling? Does it still hurt a lot?”

He checked as soon as he entered the hospital room.

“I’m okay. I put this on.”

Jiheon pointed to the large compress attached to his cheek. As Jaekyoung approached the bed, he made a face as if questioning if such a thing actually worked.

“Did you get the medical certificate? What did the doctor say?”

“Well, it’s just bruises and scrapes. I gotta use this thing and take it easy for three weeks.”

“That’s it?”

Jaekyoung got mad, calling it ridiculous.

“I heard it has to be a broken bone or something to make it more than 4 weeks. Even if the eardrum is torn, it takes 3 weeks.”

Jaekyoung muttered, “That fucking bastard...,” and dropped his bag next to the bed.

“So, can we throw that bastard in jail in 3 weeks?”

“That’s gonna be tough. At most, he might get fined or put on house arrest.”

“Then why not hire a hitman and kill him?”

“Hey, don’t make me laugh. My face still hurts.”

“Why? I’m serious.”

Jaekyoung sat on a chair, speaking very seriously.

“But how did you manage to get hospitalized?”

“What do you mean how?”

“You can’t do it without a guardian.”

“Oh, in this hospital, you can talk to your guardian if you pay upfront. So I called my sister and did the paperwork.”

This content is taken from fгeewebnovёl.com.

As soon as Jiheon finished, Jaekyoung clicked his tongue.

“What’s wrong?”

When Jiheon asked with a smile, Jaekyoung grunted.

“I was going to sign as the guardian.”

“How can you do that when you’re not even a real guardian?”

“I did it back then.”

“Back then, the hospital accepted it because it was urgent. It was supposed to be a family member.”

“.......”

Jaekyoung suddenly closed his mouth. Seeing his openly sad eyes, it seemed like he wanted Jiheon to say something.

Even though Jiheon knew, he acted clueless and asked.

“Why? You wanna be my guardian?”

“Yes.”

Jaekyoung quickly answered. Then, maybe thinking he rushed it too much, he spoke calmly.

“But to be precise, I don’t want to be a guardian. I want us to have a relationship where I can be your guardian.”

“Like what? My brother?”

“......Hyung.”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t do that.”

Jaekyoung said softly.

“I’m already going crazy looking at your face right now, so please don’t make me angrier.”

Though he told Jiheon not to upset him with words, his expression was almost like he was begging him to stop upsetting him.

“Okay, I won’t do it anymore. My bad, my bad.”

Jiheon quickly apologized.

“It’s just a joke. Anyway, Jaekyoung-ah, you wanna be my family, right?”

Jaekyoung didn’t answer. Even though he was sitting with his arms crossed and looking somewhere else, he seemed very upset. Jiheon laughed, then opened the drawer next to the bed.

“Okay, then I’ll give you this.”

Jiheon said as he put the ultrasound photo he took out of the drawer into Jaekyoung’s hand.

“Marry me, Jaekyoung-ah.”