The trembling in Ga-ram’s hand, which he was holding, seemed to lessen a bit. Sol made a point of smiling as he met his gaze. It was surely an awkward smile, but it seemed better than looking at him with a serious expression. While Ga-ram and Sol were staring at each other in silence for a moment, they heard the voices of Yeong-ho and Ji-ho.
“Sol and Ga-ram, let’s go to the hospital first. Ji-ho and Deuk-yong… no, you guys come with us too.”
“It’s okay. We’ll stay at the dorm.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Since the police will keep patrolling, it’s fine.”
“I’m worried…”
Yeong-ho’s expression looked more anxious than Ji-ho’s and Deuk-yong’s. Arriving almost simultaneously with the police, Yeong-ho seemed extremely flustered, sweating like rain even in the middle of winter.
He had just finished checking the inside of the dorm with the police, making sure everything was safe, and then helped Ga-ram and Sol into the van. Ji-ho, who had come out after inspecting with him, said everything was fine, but his uneasy expression showed that he was still worried. The siren sound that had gradually faded was now getting closer again.
“It feels unsettling, so we should clean the door lock and the entrance first. Hopefully, nothing strange is hidden there or anything like that.”
“Right. You will stay in the B Team dorm for now.”
“You know that’s the worst place, right?”
The B Team dorm was where the regular male trainees stayed together. Whenever this place was mentioned, all four of them reacted poorly. Tae-oh always had a look that said he didn’t even want to talk about it, and Ji-ho and Ga-ram loathed it. Deuk-yong openly said he never wanted to go there again. As Ji-ho discussed things with Yeong-ho, he suddenly mentioned someone who wasn’t there.
“What about Tae-oh?”
They had completely forgotten about him. He was supposed to go back to the dorm with Ga-ram.
“Should we be relieved or what? Tae-oh is at the hospital because his younger sister’s condition worsened.”
“Is he okay?”
“They said she’s stabilized.”
“That’s a relief.”
It was Sol who answered Yeong-ho’s words. At his relieved sigh and the word “relief,” Ji-ho, Deuk-yong, and Yeong-ho turned to look at him.
“Yeong-ho hyung, take Ga-ram and Sol to the hospital first.”
“Wait, hold on. How can I just leave you guys like this?”
Ji-ho, seeing Ga-ram and Sol holding hands and looking at him, urged Yeong-ho. Despite the situation, Yeong-ho couldn’t just leave Ji-ho and Deuk-yong at the dorm, so he shook his head and made a call somewhere. After a short call, Yeong-ho managed to find someone to take care of the two grown men.
“Manager Jong-seok has agreed to stay with you, so don’t open the door to just anyone, okay?”
“Do you think we’re kids?”
“Yes, you are kids. And don’t try to handle it on your own if someone suspicious shows up.”
“Okay. When is Manager Jong-seok coming?”
“He’s at the office. He’ll be here in less than 10 minutes.”
“That’s quick. Please take the kids to the hospital now.”
“Alright, alright. If anything happens again, don’t try to handle it yourselves. Call 112, got it?”
“Yes.”
What shocked Yeong-ho the most upon arriving was that Deuk-yong and Ji-ho had tried to physically subdue the stalker themselves.
“Ga-ram-ah, Sol-ah, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Ga-ram… seems to be fine too.”
Ga-ram didn’t respond to Yeong-ho’s question. He just looked at his hand, which Sol was holding, with a sullen expression. In the awkward silence, Sol answered for both of them. Yeong-ho alternated his gaze between Ga-ram and Sol and then closed the van door.
He hadn’t expected to ride in this van twice today. As the van started moving, this time it was Sol’s hand that began to tremble. His physical strength, already diminished from going out during the day, was further taxed. When Sol’s hand started trembling, Ga-ram held it tightly, just as Sol had done for him a moment ago.
After getting an X-ray, Sol sat next to Ga-ram, who was sitting gloomily. Although Ga-ram didn’t suffer any physical injuries that required a check-up, he still received a simple examination due to the psychological trauma he experienced. Sol, except for some minor bruises, was miraculously unscathed. However, due to the fatigue from riding the van twice, he was diagnosed with a need for rest.
As Yeong-ho’s expression also became serious, he sat down cautiously and watched the situation unfold. They were discussing the events that had happened today. Sol didn’t dare to interrupt and just listened to their conversation, rolling his eyes back and forth.
“She cut off the circuit breaker, so the building’s CCTV didn’t catch anything. She’s a real professional. You haven’t even debuted yet, so you can’t have bodyguards... This is really troubling, really.”
Listening to Yeong-ho, Sol realized why the building’s sensors didn’t activate and why it had been so dark. Sol, who lived in the building, didn’t even know where the circuit breaker was. According to Yeong-ho, it meant that the stalker had been continuously entering and observing the building. A shiver ran down his spine.
“The culprit... It’s that person.”
“That person?”
Yeong-ho looked at Ga-ram with wide eyes as Ga-ram spoke in a low voice. Sol, who had been listening to the conversation, did the same.
“Are you talking about the ones we caught before?”
“Yes.”
“Did you see her face?”
“...No.”
“Then how do you know it’s the same person?”
“...From her tone and actions. She also called. The voice sounded a bit different, though...”
“What? Ga-ram-ah, why are you only telling us this now?”
“......”
“How did she get your phone number? Hah, this is driving me crazy. The situation with Eun-gyeom’s side is already serious with information leaks...”
On the day Ga-ram had been unexpectedly hit in the eye, he had also been looking at his phone. Over the past few days, he hadn’t seemed well. Hearing that Ga-ram had been on a phone call, Sol stared at him in disbelief. It turned out that all this time, Ga-ram had been glued to his phone because of the stalker’s contact.
A chill ran down his spine. Listening to Ga-ram, it seemed this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. Seeing him speak as if this had been happening continuously, Sol bit his lip hard. He had a strong sense that something was terribly wrong.
“Your photos are all over social media and community sites now. Deuk-yong’s selfies got leaked, and I got seriously chewed out by the manager.”
“......”
“How is this leaking so badly? You’re not using Instagram or something because you think I don’t check, right? Maybe an anonymous board.”
“They said they know the other kids’ numbers, too. They know all the names. It must be that person who leaked it.”
“Yeah, so how did they know?”
Yeong-ho, frustrated, pounded his chest with his fist like a potato. Sol clenched his hand, which had turned ice cold, and bit his lip hard. It became clear now what had gone wrong. He could see exactly where the mistake had been made.
“I think… it’s me.”
Listening silently to Ga-ram and Yeong-ho’s conversation, Sol bit his lip harder, then went pale and raised his hand cautiously. As he listened, it became obvious that he was the cause of this mess.
The lost cell phone, the memos and phone numbers that would still be in it, and the person he had already collided with once. It was unmistakable to anyone. Listening quietly to Yeong-ho’s words, Sol became ashen and confessed everything that had happened that night as if he were in a confessional.
“A few days ago, I bumped into someone on the street and fell. I lost my phone after that…. But today I saw that it looked like the same person.”
He had never spoken so quickly in his life. The words fired off rapidly, dwindled to a small, anxious murmur by the end. When Sol finished speaking, Yeong-ho rubbed his forehead.
“Didn’t you say you left your phone at the dorm last time?”
“…I’m sorry. I thought it was no big deal. I usually forget things often….”
“Oh my. We’ll have to change all the kids’ phone numbers.”
“I’m sorry.”
He really thought it was no big deal. Although he often lost things, he never considered that someone might misuse the information on his lost phone. Sol admitted to himself that he had been too naïve and sighed.
How could he be so stupid and thoughtless? If only he had mentioned to Yeong-ho that he thought he lost his phone that day when he ran into Ga-ram, or even the next morning, wouldn’t the situation have been different?
At the very least, Ga-ram wouldn’t have been tormented by the stalker’s calls for days. And more than anything, it finally dawned on him that this could negatively impact all the members. Sol was at a loss for words due to his own stupidity and could only lower his head deeply, repeatedly muttering apologies. He truly hadn’t imagined this would happen.
Yeong-ho shook his head in disapproval at Sol’s apology. All three remained silent for a long while, with only Yeong-ho’s heavy sighs filling the room. Each time Yeong-ho let out a sigh, Sol, with his head hanging lower, felt as though he might collapse to the ground. His neck was sore as if it would fall off, but he didn’t feel he deserved to lift his head, so he bowed it even further, staring at the ground.
“For now, both of you stay here at the hospital. I’ll take care of the admission process, so wait here.”
As Yeong-ho left, an even heavier silence settled between the two. Sol glanced sideways but couldn’t muster the courage to look directly at Ga-ram sitting next to him, so he only stared at his feet.
He thought everything had finally smoothed out. He believed he had become close enough with the members to call themselves a “team,” but once again, he had ruined everything. Even if Ga-ram cursed and got angry, he had no defense. Even if he cursed or even hit him, Sol should still be the one to apologize. Even if Ga-ram couldn’t forgive and blamed him, he still wanted to apologize.
Even though it was a different type of fear, Sol understood the chilling and anxiety-inducing impact fear could have. And though it was a different kind of gaze, he understood how uncomfortable and nauseating it felt to have eyes on him constantly. That’s why he wanted to apologize even more.
It was sincere. Sol clenched his fists tightly once more. His pale hands were so tensed that the bones stood out even whiter. Then, through his tightly pressed lips, a somber voice emerged.
