Falling for the Omega Idol-Chapter 74: I’M A FAN, OKAY?

HANEUL tilted his head, genuinely confused by Robin’s comment. Condescending? He hadn’t picked up on anything like that during their earlier exchange. If anything, the conversation seemed pretty calm and amicable, didn’t it?

"I think he was very friendly," he commented.

Robin stopped in his tracks and turned to face Haneul, studying his expression. It was clear that Haneul genuinely believed what he had just said, which left Robin baffled. Normally, Haneul was quick to catch on to subtle social cues, effortlessly reading between the lines. Yet here he was, claiming that Jung Taeyang had been friendly? It didn’t add up.

Unless...

His eyes widened, a shocking realization suddenly hitting him. He leaned in closer, his voice hushed but filled with disbelief. "Haneul, wait... do you actually like Jung Taeyang? I mean, is he your type?"

Haneul almost lost a step and tripped when he heard Robin’s question. "What?"

"I mean, I’m not judging. Everyone is free to like anyone they want."

"No, I mean, where did you even get that idea?" Haneul asked, utterly baffled by how Robin had arrived at such a wild conclusion. It was completely absurd. Yet, despite himself, he could feel the heat rising in his face at the mere suggestion.

"Well, for starters, you’re completely overlooking the fact that Jung Taeyang clearly doesn’t like me—or at the very least, he’s not too thrilled with me being around. Normally, you’d pick up on that right away. The only reason I can think of for you missing something so obvious is that you’ve got a special filter when it comes to Jung Taeyang. And the only explanation I could think of for that was that he might just be your type."

Haneul felt like he was being hit by every word that Robin had said. He wanted to refute it, but he couldn’t. Because the other was making fairly good points. Did he really have filters when it came to Jung Taeyang that he didn’t even see something so obvious? He wanted to say that’s definitely not the case, but he couldn’t. Because as much as he didn’t want to admit it, he probably had one.

But it’s definitely not because of the reason Robin gave - that he liked Jung Taeyang or that he was his type. That he was sure of.

It was his damn ’fan mentality’ at play. He never expected that liking Jung Taeyang’s music would actually cloud his judgment of him as a person. No matter how much he tried to convince himself to treat Jung Taeyang like anyone else, a part of him was still subconsciously viewing him as the musician he admired. Which definitely wouldn’t be good moving forward.

Seeing Haneul speechless, Robin became even more certain his guess was right. He gave Haneul a look of mild pity, surprised that his taste in Alphas was surprising, to say the least. Even Haneul, it seemed, wasn’t immune to making unexpected choices. Well, it’s probably not even a choice, but an unexpected variable Haneul had no control over.

Could it be love at first sight?

Now his gaze on Haneul was more like a mother looking at his adorable child.

Haneul happened to see that and felt like Robin was having a very bad misunderstanding right now and he had to correct it before it became even worse.

"Hyung, I don’t like Jung Taeyang. At least not that way," he clarified.

"Alright, I get it. You don’t like him," Robin said in a patronizing tone. "Don’t worry, I won’t say anything. But if that guy tries anything inappropriate or crosses any boundaries with you, I won’t let him get away with it."

Although Haneul appreciated the protective sentiment, the reasoning behind it was something he definitely didn’t appreciate. "Hyung, I swear I don’t feel that way towards Jung Taeyang. I’m simply... I’m a fan, okay? That’s probably why I have these tinted glasses, as you put it. But it’s definitely not for the reason you’re thinking."

Robin initially thought Haneul was just making excuses, but when he saw the sincerity in Haneul’s expression—his earnest eyes and the way his brows furrowed slightly—Robin could somehow tell he was telling the truth.

That surprised him a bit. So, his guess was wrong. It’s not because Haneul liked Jung Taeyang, it’s because he was his fan. That was definitely better than what he’d initially assumed. At least with this, there was no risk of Jung Taeyang taking advantage of Haneul’s feelings.

But wait— a fan?

"Is that guy Jung Taeyang actually a celebrity?" he asked. Although he liked K-pop, it didn’t mean he knew all Korean celebrities out there. "Is he a famous idol trainee?"

Robin had heard that some idol trainees from big companies could have pre-debut fans. But if that were the case, Jung Taeyang wouldn’t be allowed to participate in this survival program, since only those without a current agency could join. Maybe he’d been dropped by his former agency, or something along those lines?

When Haneul heard Robin’s response, he suddenly realized how strange his own reasoning sounded. How could he be a fan of someone who hadn’t even debuted yet? Robin would probably think he was just making up excuses, which would only strengthen his belief that Haneul actually liked Jung Taeyang.

There’s really only one way he could salvage this situation.

"I don’t think he’s a well-known trainee," Haneul began. "When I said ’fan,’ I meant I’m a fan of his talent. And I think he’s got plenty of that."

Robin thought for a second and then nodded. "That makes sense."

The two of them resumed walking, and Haneul quietly let out a sigh of relief. He was glad the conversation had finally come to an end.

They reached Haneul’s door first, with Robin’s room right next to it. Since they had already discussed meeting later to practice, they simply exchanged quick goodbyes and went into their respective rooms.

Haneul swiped his card key to unlock the door and stepped inside. As he entered, he stopped almost immediately. Because he felt the palpable atmosphere in the air.