Hae-joon lets out a quiet scoff, though it comes out thinner than he intended.
"…Yeah? And what, I should just blink out of existence now?"
The boy doesn't react.
That's what makes it worse.
"No," he says after a moment, voice calm—too calm. "If it were that simple, I wouldn't be here."
Hae-joon's jaw tightens. "Then stop talking like I'm some kind of an error."
Another pause.
The boy tilts his head slightly, studying him again. Closer this time. Slower. Like he's trying to understand something that refuses to make sense.
"You're reacting wrong," he says.
"…Excuse me?"
"You're not afraid enough."
Hae-joon blinks, caught off guard.
"So what!?" he shoots back, though his heartbeat has definitely picked up. "You show up out of nowhere, say I don't exist, and expect me to just-what? Panic on command?"
For the first time, something shifts in the boy's expression.
Not emotion exactly.
But… interest.
"…Humans fear what they don't understand," he says quietly.
Hae-joon shrugs, forcing a smirk. "Yeah, well, maybe I'm just built different."
A beat.
The boy's gaze lingers on him a second too long.
"…You are," he murmurs.
That lands.
Not like a compliment.
Like a problem.
Hae-joon exhales slowly, trying to steady himself. "Okay, enough of this cryptic nonsense. Who are you?"
Silence stretches again.
Then—
"Arthur."
The name feels… out of place. Like it doesn't belong in the cold alley or the sharp edge of the moment.
"Arthur," Hae-joon repeats, testing it. "I'm Hae- oh ya you already know."He sighs.
"Right. And Arthur, what exactly were you planning to do about this 'mistake'?"
Arthur doesn't answer immediately.
Instead, his gaze drops, just for a second to Hae-joon's hand.
Then to his chest.
Like he's tracking something invisible.
"…I was sent to erase it " he says.
The words are quiet.
But they hit harder than anything else he's said.
Hae-joon goes still.
"…Erase," he repeats slowly. "You mean fix, right?"
Arthur looks back up.
And this time, there's no confusion in his eyes.
"No."
A step closer.
The air feels heavier now. Thicker.
"I mean remove."
Something cold crawls up Hae-joon's spine.
For a second, neither of them moves.
Then Hae-joon lets out a breath, shaking his head.
"…Yeah, no. You're insane."
He turns, like he's about to walk away..like this can still be brushed off, turned into some weird story to laugh about later.
But—
"Don't."
Arthur's voice cuts through the air.
Not loud.
Not aggressive.
But absolute.
Hae-joon stops.
He doesn't know why.
Behind him, Arthur's voice drops lower.
"If you leave now… I might not be able to find you again."
A pause.
"…And that would be a problem."
Hae-joon turns back slowly, brows furrowed.
"For you?"
Arthur's gaze doesn't waver.
"…For both of us."
Silence settles again.
Heavier this time.
Because now..
it doesn't feel like a misunderstanding anymore.
It feels like something has already started.
And neither of them knows how to stop it.