The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Chapter 203

There was a time when I randomly asked Mist.

Why are we meeting now?

Mist blinked his large eyes and asked what I meant by that.

“We first met when I was in fifth grade, right? When I got hit by a hit-and-run driver.”

“Yeah…?”

“Why then? Why not before?”

Mist didn’t seem to understand the intent behind my question.

I couldn’t press a clueless kid, so I just said never mind and changed the subject.

But I was genuinely curious.

Why did it have to be the car accident when I was 12?

It didn’t make sense that I met Mist because of the accident.

“It doesn’t add up.”

I had experienced many accidents before that.

Sure, the hit-and-run when I was 12 was pretty serious.

But there had been even more severe incidents before that.

Like the car accident when I was seven, the one where Ji-heon hyung got hit by a car instead of me.

* * *

To be honest, I didn’t remember much from that time.

Thinking about those days brought back fragmented memories.

My adoptive mother’s pale face, her perfume scent, the damp atmosphere of the house, people gradually losing their words.

And the look of disgust in Eun-taek’s eyes directed at me.

I think I wanted to escape those memories.

I lived as if I remembered nothing, and after a long time, I finally looked up my adoption records.

That was during the time when my teachers were whispering about how obsessed I was with books.

I wanted to understand why these things were happening to me, but no matter how many books I read, none contained the answers I sought.

So I sneaked into the director’s office when they weren’t around.

What I found in my records was surprisingly brief.

My less than two years of adoption were summarized in a few lines.

―X1. 02. 10, Lee Yeon-jae to be adopted by prospective family (Father: Lee Jong-hyuk, Mother: Kim Se-ran). Information confirmed.

―X2. 04. 20, First child of the adoptive family, Lee Ji-heon, deceased.

―X2. 10. 22, Second child of the adoptive family, Lee Eun-taek, hospitalized.

―X2. 10. 23, Application for annulment of adoption filed. Temporarily placed back in the orphanage.

―X3. 01. 03, Adoption annulment finalized during mediation. Lee Yeon-jae re-entered orphanage.

Among those few lines, one name stood out.

‘Lee Ji-heon.’

Seeing those three syllables filled me with dread.

It was the moment forgotten memories came rushing back.

‘Hello, I’m Lee Ji-heon.’

‘…Hello.’

‘Call me Ji-heon hyung, Jae-hee.’

Ji-heon hyung was kind to me from the moment I was adopted.

Eun-taek, who didn’t like me from the start, hated me even more because of it.

‘I hate him! Hyung, can’t we just play together like before?’

‘Eun-taek, how can you say that to your little brother?’

‘He’s not my brother! He’s a stranger!’

Eun-taek really, really hated me.

My adoptive father’s name was Lee Jong-hyuk, the first child’s name was Lee Ji-heon.

And my new name was Lee Jae-hee.

I remember Eun-taek once cried because his name was the only one that didn’t match.

In retrospect, I can understand why Eun-taek hated me.

‘People are careful even when adopting pets.’

Who wouldn’t feel resistance if told, ‘Here, this stranger is your sibling from now on’?

Meanwhile, a kind older brother doted on the new arrival, making the young boy dislike me even more.

But Eun-taek never openly bullied me.

‘Even if he had, I would have understood.’

In my memory, Eun-taek was quite nice.

Following Ji-heon hyung’s advice, I worked hard to get along with Eun-taek, and he didn’t completely reject me.

Once, after lunch, Eun-taek secretly gave me a candy.

I was so surprised and happy that I held onto that candy for days.

I felt like I owned the world with that tiny candy, whose flavor I can’t even remember now.

The accident happened around that time.

‘It’s all my fault. All my fault… Ji-heon, my baby….’

‘Ji-heon’s mom, pull yourself together. Sigh….’

It happened about a year after I was adopted.

I was on the road, and a car was coming toward me.

Ji-heon hyung pushed me aside.

That’s all I remember.

Honestly, I don’t want to remember any more.

* * *

“…Where am I?”

I came to my senses, standing idly in an unfamiliar hallway.

I didn’t even know how I got here.

‘This is crazy.’

Walking around dazed in someone else’s company building, I must have lost my mind.

I hope no one took a photo.

‘Get a grip.’

The unexpected encounter with Eun-taek was surprising, but that was all.

There was no reason for me to be shaken.

‘Bi-hyuk… I can talk to him later.’

Even if I had gone out with Noh Bi-hyuk, I would have rambled incoherently.

Eun-taek stopping me might have been for the better.

‘Yeah, let’s go home first.’

I’ll calm my mind at home and figure out what to say to Noh Bi-hyuk.

Or better yet, I should see Mist first.

‘Will I be able to sleep if I lie down now?’

My mind felt foggy.

‘In this state, it’s a gamble.’

Sometimes I couldn’t sleep no matter how long I lay down.

‘Maybe I should go to the hospital and get some sleeping pills.’

That’s not a bad idea.

Then I’ll need Jin-bae hyung to take me there.

“First… I should make a call.”

My brain wasn’t working quickly due to the daze.

I slowly took out my phone.

When I turned on the screen, I saw a flood of missed calls and messages.

I thought they were from Jin-bae hyung, but they weren’t.

I stared blankly at the phone when a familiar name with countless missed calls appeared.

[Lee Yeon-jae’s Real Best Friend, Bi-hyuk]

“…?”

I stared blankly at the vibrating phone.

‘I thought this situation wouldn’t end soon.’

Had I been out of it for that long?

If so, that was a bigger problem.

‘I should answer the call.’

That was my thought, but my hands wouldn’t move.

My body felt unresponsive today, and even that thought drifted away slowly.

A few seconds later, a loud voice roared from behind me.

Chapter 203

The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune (203)

“Lee Yeon-jae!!!!!”

I almost jumped out of my skin.

The loud yell nearly stopped my heart. I turned around and found myself locking eyes with a breathless Noh Bi-hyuk.

“You… why the hell… why didn’t you answer your phone, you piece of crap, cough, do you know how long I’ve been—”

“Bi-hyuk, watch your language.”

“…Is that really what you need to say right now?”

Noh Bi-hyuk, drenched in sweat in the middle of winter, was breathing heavily.

Seeing him so angry made me feel awkward.

‘I didn’t mean to…’

The words came out by habit, and I felt embarrassed too. Still…

“It’s important. Especially here at the company. What if someone hears you?”

He’s about to debut and should be more careful.

As I spoke calmly, Noh Bi-hyuk cut me off, his face full of irritation.

“I don’t care. Everything’s ruined anyway.”

“Did you finish talking with Eun-taek hyung before you left?”

I had lost track of time and asked just to be sure. At least I was confident he wouldn’t have left without finishing the conversation.

But I didn’t expect the answer I got.

“Don’t you get it? It’s ruined. I just left.”

“….”

Noh Bi-hyuk ran a hand through his sweat-soaked hair, clearly agitated.

“Why carry a phone if you don’t answer it? Do you know how many times I’ve called since earlier? Jin-bae hyung didn’t know where you were. I’ve been searching from the basement level five up, seriously.”

“….”

“Now you don’t even answer? Are you five? Huh? If you’re going to leave like that, at least answer your phone.”

He jabbed my cheeks hard enough to push me back with each poke.

As I was pushed back, I dumbly thought:

‘Why?’

Why is Noh Bi-hyuk doing this?

It made no sense.

I listened to his complaints for a while before asking back:

“Are you crazy?”

“What?”

“Do you think debuting is a joke?”

One of his eyebrows shot up.

His reaction made me even more annoyed.

Has he lost it?

“Did you forget what Eun-taek said? What if he tries to sabotage your debut?”

“Hey. If Eun-taek hyung saying that is enough to delay my debut, maybe I shouldn’t debut.”

I’m not that unstable, you know?

Noh Bi-hyuk grumbled.

Just the other day, he was saying, “Lee Yeon-jae, do you think I can really debut?” What is he talking about?

I was furious.

“Whatever the case, Eun-taek hyung will be in your group if you debut.”

“….”

“Why create bad blood? You should be faking smiles, not picking fights!”

I felt like I was boiling inside.

The more I talked, the angrier I got.

The kid didn’t seem to understand. He just stared at me.

“…You called him hyung earlier but now you’re calling him Eun-taek. What’s that about?”

“Is that important right now?”

This brat.

‘What am I going to do with him?’

I shouldn’t have come here.

It’s all my fault. If only I had—

“Stop overreacting.”

Noh Bi-hyuk’s words cut through my thoughts.

When I looked up, I saw his sweat-soaked hair.

“Members fight sometimes. It’s no big deal. They make up later.”

“….”

“Even if I can always resolve things with my hyungs. Do you think I’d feel okay leaving you like that?”

Noh Bi-hyuk wrinkled his nose awkwardly.

“I hesitated for a few seconds, but I followed you out pretty quickly, you know? But you weren’t there, didn’t answer your phone. I ran around like crazy looking for you.”

Noh Bi-hyuk flapped his clothes, still radiating heat.

‘How much did he run around?’

I was at a loss for words.

No matter what I tried to think of, my dazed mind couldn’t handle it.

Forget it. I give up.

“Let’s get out of here.”

“Yeah. Let’s eat. I’m hungry.”

I needed to get out of here.

After contacting Jin-bae hyung, we left the lobby.

“Bi-hyuk.”

“Huh?”

Just before we left the building, I asked him if he had any regrets.

He looked at me for a moment before smiling.

“Do I have regrets? Of course I do. I already regret it.”

I knew it.

I sighed and pushed him back.

“I’ll wait until you’re done. Go back and talk to them.”

“It’s fine. I told them we’ll talk tomorrow. It’s going to be tense.”

Noh Bi-hyuk shivered at the thought of tomorrow.

He said he regretted it, but he looked too relieved.

“Today, I just want to hear your story.”

“….”

“You said you’d tell me earlier.”

“Yeah.”

“You can wait until you’re ready. You don’t have to tell me today… Nah, just tell me. I’m curious.”

He kept changing his mind every second.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Alright. I’ll tell you everything.”

“Yeah, but let’s eat first. I’m really hungry.”

“Jin-bae hyung is waiting in the parking lot.”

“How does that hyung survive without you?”

Noh Bi-hyuk shook his head, exasperated.

I glanced at his profile.

‘It’s strange.’

Everything felt like a mess.

But somehow, it didn’t feel completely hopeless.