Guardian of my Heart // Keesoul

Unmasking

Chapter 31: Unmasking

The next day, Soul arrived at the school disguised as usual—another loose scarf, a hat pulled down to hide his hair, and a pair of thick-rimmed glasses to further shield his identity. He'd told himself it was the last time he'd follow Keeho, but curiosity had a way of pulling him back. Part of him longed for another glimpse of the boy who'd once been everything to him, even if he had to watch from the shadows.

In the hallway outside the art room, Soul carefully leaned against the wall, listening intently to the sounds filtering through the door. Keeho and Sunoo were in there again, their voices overlapping in easy conversation. He was close enough to hear Sunoo's bright laughter and Keeho's steady, warm replies. Soul swallowed down the swell of emotion in his chest and took a small step back.

The last few days of spying had been difficult. As much as he tried to convince himself that he was just checking in on Keeho, a part of him knew it was more than that. He wanted to be there with Keeho, not as a stranger, but as someone who mattered.

Today, he felt like he needed to know why. Why Keeho had so easily shifted his attention to someone else. Why their time together had ended as though it meant nothing.

Lost in thought, he didn't notice that the door had opened. He only registered the sound of footsteps approaching when they were almost too close to avoid.

Panicking, he tried to step back, but the ground seemed to betray him. His foot caught on a slick spot on the floor, and before he could steady himself, he slipped. His arms flailed out to catch something, but there was nothing nearby to grip. The next thing he knew, he was sprawled across the hallway floor, his disguise askew.

He cursed under his breath as he reached up, desperately trying to secure his scarf and glasses, but it was too late. In that split second, he could feel the weight of someone's gaze on him.

"S-soul?"

His breath caught in his throat. Slowly, he looked up, and his heart lurched at the sight of Keeho standing above him, wide-eyed, frozen in place. Keeho's expression shifted from shock to a look that Soul couldn't quite decipher, a strange mixture of recognition, confusion, and something else.

"Soul?" Keeho repeated, his voice barely above a whisper, as if he didn't trust what he was seeing.

For a moment, Soul felt time stop. His heart was racing, thoughts colliding in his mind as he struggled to decide what to say, if anything at all. Part of him wanted to turn and run, but he knew there was no escaping this now. They were both here, and the truth had already been exposed.

"Keeho..." Soul murmured, finally managing to speak, though his voice wavered.

Keeho's eyes narrowed, his gaze intense as he took a step closer. "What are you doing here? Have you been... following me?"

Soul swallowed hard, feeling a surge of embarrassment, fear, and, strangely, relief. He nodded slowly, unable to meet Keeho's gaze. "I—yeah. I wanted to see how you were doing. I didn't think... I didn't think you'd notice."

Keeho's jaw clenched as he took in the full weight of Soul's words. There was a slight flicker of something—was it hurt?—in his expression before he quickly masked it with a look of frustration.

"So... you've been spying on me this whole time?" Keeho asked, his tone tense, as though he were battling a storm of emotions beneath the surface. "Why, Soul? Why not just... come talk to me?"

Soul's face flushed. "Because... because I thought you'd moved on. You had Sunoo, you didn't need me anymore, and... I didn't want to get in the way of your new mission."

Keeho's expression softened, though there was still a spark of frustration in his eyes. "Soul, you're not... you're not in the way. I thought you understood that you'd always be important to me, even if I had other responsibilities."

There was a long pause as Soul processed Keeho's words, the vulnerability in them catching him off guard. He'd expected anger or dismissal, but instead, there was understanding—a deep, unspoken bond that neither of them had fully acknowledged until this moment.

"Keeho... it's hard for me," Soul admitted, his voice barely audible. "I know you're here on a mission. I know this is what you do. But... it still hurts, watching you with someone else. I didn't expect it to hurt this much."

Keeho's shoulders sagged, the tension leaving his body as he let out a quiet sigh. He reached out, hesitating for a moment before his hand found Soul's shoulder. "I get it, Soul. Believe me, I get it. This... this job is complicated. And I knew getting close to you would make things even more difficult."

Soul's eyes met Keeho's, and for the first time, he saw the weight of Keeho's role—the struggle he carried, balancing duty and personal connection. It was like looking through a window into a world he hadn't fully understood before.

"It wasn't supposed to happen this way," Keeho continued, his voice barely a whisper. "We were supposed to keep things... professional. I was just supposed to help you, but I couldn't help caring more than I was supposed to."

The hallway was silent, the weight of Keeho's confession hanging in the air between them. Soul's heart pounded as he tried to process everything, his mind reeling with emotions he'd pushed down for so long.

"Then... what are we supposed to do now?" Soul asked, his voice soft, hesitant.

Keeho took a deep breath, his gaze steady. "I don't know. But I don't want to pretend like you don't matter to me. And I don't want to watch you from a distance, pretending I don't care."

A surge of emotion overwhelmed Soul, his heart aching with a mixture of relief, hope, and a lingering sadness. Keeho's words felt like a lifeline, an anchor in a storm of uncertainty.

But just as the moment deepened, an unexpected voice broke the silence.

"Keeho, are you coming back?"

They both looked up to see Sunoo standing at the end of the hallway, looking at Keeho with innocent curiosity, oblivious to the gravity of the situation. Keeho's hand dropped from Soul's shoulder, and he took a step back, his gaze shifting.

"I... I'll be there in a moment, Sunoo," Keeho replied, forcing a reassuring smile.

Soul felt a pang of jealousy, but it was tempered by understanding. Keeho had his mission, and there was a part of him that couldn't deny Sunoo deserved the same guidance he'd received.

Keeho turned back to Soul, his expression conflicted but determined. "This isn't over, okay? We'll talk. We'll figure it out."

Soul nodded, a bittersweet smile tugging at his lips as he watched Keeho walk back to Sunoo. The unspoken promise between them lingered in the air, a connection neither of them could deny, even as they returned to their separate roles.

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