ABFR 04

Chapter 4

For the first time in a long while, it became a weekend without assignments or deadlines.

After melting into my tiny rented apartment and sleeping for a good while, my mind finally became a little clearer. The date had already changed to early Saturday morning. Since I had woken up anyway and it was already dawn, I thought about having a drink to enjoy the mood, but unexpectedly, the first thing I did was call Railey.

Calling a man as soon as I had some free time… Even I never thought my life would turn out like this, but it couldn’t be helped. After all, I was the person who had waited four years and only finally got him half a year ago. Wasn’t it okay to act like this just a little?

But still, it was strange.

Why the hell was I doing this just to hear that bastard’s voice?

I thought about it until that point, then hurriedly pressed the end-call button. Come to think of it, it was the middle of the night.

But the moment I pressed the button, the phone started ringing again.

“Uh, hello.”

―Why did you start calling and then stop?

“No, it was just because it was late…. Did I wake you?”

―I wasn’t asleep yet.

Railey answered in his usual calm voice. I quietly got up, took a can of beer from the refrigerator, returned to my seat, and opened it.

“Hey, I don’t have anything to do this weekend. So I just called you.”

―Then, would you like to stay at my residence?

His answer came without even a one-second hesitation.

I stared blankly at my phone, tilting it beside my cheek, and took a sip of beer first.

―I will give you three seconds.

“Ah, fuck, wait. Don’t you have any patience? I need some time to think about it!”

―Patience? I never had any. Then shall I come pick you up tomorrow morning?

His temper was enough to make me choke on the beer I was drinking.

I lowered my phone and stared at the screen with a pitiful expression before belatedly putting it back to my ear and answering hesitantly.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to get up in the morning…. Come pick me up a little later. Or I’ll just go whenever I wake up and feel like going.”

―If you sleep now, won’t you wake up around lunchtime at the latest?

“No, well, actually, I just woke up.”

There was a long silence from the other side of the phone.

I awkwardly drank a little more beer before calmly answering Railey’s next question.

―Say that again.

“Yes, sir. I ruined my sleep schedule again, so I just woke up.”

―It is two in the morning.

“That can happen….”

―Then I’ll come pick you up right now.

“Now?”

But the call ended without even waiting for my answer.

What the hell was this bastard talking about?

I stared irritably at the screen, gulped down the rest of my beer, quickly crushed the can and threw it away, then called Railey again.

―Why? What are you going to do?

“Hey, asking questions like ‘What are you doing?’ is something only I get to ask in this situation, you know?”

―Since you asked, I am on my way down to the parking lot.

The moment I heard that, I heard a beep.

It sounded like a car door opening.

I silently listened to the sounds coming from the other side before finally letting out a deep sigh and taking another can of beer from the refrigerator.

“Hey, Railey.”

―Yes.

I could hear rattling noises. It sounded like he was opening the car door.

“I just finished what I had to do and woke up in the middle of the night, so let me enjoy some personal free time.”

―Can’t you enjoy your free time by my side?

“You are talking bullshit again.”

This time, there was no answer.

Instead, a clear and pleasant sound rang out, followed by the soft voice of the navigation system announcing that the car’s power had been turned on.

It seemed that the phone call had now been connected to the car.

I hurriedly continued speaking.

“Even so, this crazy bastard is trying to come get me in the middle of the night. Turn off the engine and go back upstairs.”

―I turned off the engine.

“You bastard, I can hear the navigation turning on. Who are you trying to fool?”

―If I don’t go get you now, aren’t you going to drink with some other man again, sitting shoulder to shoulder with him?

“Who am I supposed to call at this hour! I’m drinking alone, so don’t worry and go back upstairs. No, in the first place, what does it matter to you whether I drink with a man or not? If we’re drinking together, of course we’re sitting shoulder to shoulder. What else, in the shape of a cross?”

―It has nothing to do with me, but I am in a bad mood, so I will come get you. I have to drive, so I will hang up.

“Why should I care whether you’re in a bad mood or not?!”

―Pardon?

Railey asked back softly.

His attitude was as if he were stating some obvious truth.

―If I am in a bad mood, it will matter quite a lot to you. Who else will have to deal with the aftermath if not you, Ajin?

“Why do I have to deal with that?”

―Who knows?

Finally, I heard the sound of the engine starting.

I let out a scream of frustration before hurriedly beginning to clean up the state of my apartment, which was sure to earn me a whole lecture from Railey.

The noises grew louder.

From the other side of the phone, Railey clicked his tongue.

―It seems you are hurriedly cleaning your apartment.

“Ah, you bastard, are you really coming?”

―Is there somewhere you want to go?

“Where would I go at this hour?”

―Think about it. I will hang up.

And after saying that much, he really hung up again without waiting for my answer.

I threw my phone onto the sheet and cursed angrily before starting to clean my room.

In truth, Railey Craha had always been a jealous bastard who liked interfering in other people’s business over every little thing. Whether then or now, that part of him hadn’t changed. He also still had the habit of suddenly pushing forward without thinking things through.

But hadn’t he also cut off his answer ambiguously this time?

I hurriedly gathered the beer cans and cheap wine bottles that had piled up into a box. Then, while sitting on the floor, I fell into deep thought.

Actually, even now, Railey and I were living more or less like a couple.

If I had to say what made me feel uncomfortable, it was because of the subtle change in his attitude.

Of course, even if two people were lovers, they didn’t have to kiss every single day or sleep together all the time.

But Railey Craha was that kind of man.

Even if every other person in the world was modest and wholesome, Railey Craha was not that kind of person.

What kind of person was he?

He was the kind of bastard who kissed me out of nowhere simply because he wanted to, even before we started dating. He constantly kissed me and seduced me, and, as expected, we even slept together before we officially started dating.

I did play along with him, but his personality was like that from the beginning, so I had simply been swept along by him. I had never been the one to suggest doing those things first.

But my body had changed….

Rather than saying it had changed, it was more accurate to say that I had changed from the ideal body of a novel character into my ordinary body from reality.

I had become an ordinary person with an average appearance, no special abilities, and not even a particularly good personality.

After meeting this “human Kim Ajin,” I had never again seen Railey Craha’s characteristic intense clinginess or his reckless habit of suddenly pushing things forward.

The reason he had developed such deep feelings for me in the first place was because I was an ordinary modern person.

In a dystopian world, I was the person who had spoken about a value that Railey Craha had never been able to experience throughout his entire life.

So naturally, what kind of thoughts would come to my mind?

Damn it.

Did I really have to think about things like this?

I hated the fact that I had to think about such things in the first place, and I was extremely annoyed by the situation that had made me think about them.

It was stressful in itself.

I thought about all kinds of things, but for the moment, I hurriedly gathered the empty bottles and cans before Railey arrived, put them into a box, and left the apartment.

I planned to sort them out in advance at the recycling area.

After taking care of the urgent trash, I cleaned up the messy apartment a little and quickly gathered the laundry lying around and put it into the laundry basket.

Only then did I open the closet and pick out the cleanest-looking clothes I had.

But just as I was about to put them on, I held the back of my hand near my nose and sniffed.

It seemed to smell a little musty.

“Do I really have to go this far….”

I checked the time of my last call with Railey Craha.

Then I hurriedly washed my body with nothing but water, filled a basin with water, and washed my hair.

Since everyone else in the building would be asleep at this hour, there was no way I could properly shower without making noise, so I planned to throw the water away later.

Since I had only washed myself roughly, I sprayed some perfume twice just in case and returned to the closet.

“I’m not even a middle schooler who just got her first boyfriend. What the hell am I doing….”

I grumbled again while quickly taking out a blouse and putting it on.

I usually dressed rather poorly, so a white blouse and jeans were among the prettier outfits I owned.

After doing all this, it felt as if I were the only one clinging pathetically to old feelings that I couldn’t let go of.

Maybe Railey Craha had simply decided to keep me by his side and live like this for the rest of his life out of courtesy and loyalty to me, since I had waited four years because of him.

After all, that bastard had absolutely no interest in dating or marriage.

He was the kind of person who would willingly take on the responsibility of keeping just one person by his side, even if it was only out of duty and obligation.

“Goddamn it, I’m disgusted with my life….”

Even while grumbling, I picked out a decent outfit and put it on piece by piece.

Then I obediently sat down on the sheet.

And as I sat there, I found myself thinking again about just how unnatural our current relationship really was.