Page 3 of Saint

“Sure it is. He’s dense. He’ll never figure it out on his own.” Proof of that was the fact Yejun had known about Beck’scrush for years now, ever since West’s dad had beat him in a parking lot and hospitalized him. At this very hospital, in fact. If after all this time, West still didn’t know how Beck felt, he never would. “Tell him yourself, that way—”

“He can let me down gently?” Beck smiled sadly and glanced away, embarrassed all over again when Yejun’s brow winged up in mild surprise. “You insult me. I’m not naïve. I’ve seen what’s been going on with you three since the semester started, and I didn’t need Lake’s teeth marks in Nix’s neck to confirm my suspicions either.” He wrung his hands. “It’s too late for me. West has already found someone else.”

“Sorry,” Yejun said weakly. He lifted a hand and lightly patted him on the back, unsure how to proceed. He wasn’t the best at comforting anyone outside of his inner circle. He could fake it, but something told him Beck would be able to see right through his bullshit. They’d known each other too long, even if they weren’t all that close.

“It’s my own fault,” Beck said. “You’re right. I should have confessed sooner while I still had the chance. At least Nix seems nice. He seems good for West, for all of you, really.”

“He is.” This was getting a bit too personal for his liking. He wasn’t comfortable discussing Nix with anyone other than West and Lake. Hell, at this point in their personal relationship, Yejun didn’t even have the right to. Nix probably hated him at the moment.

What could he do to win him back? There had to be something. Judging by how Nix and Lake had been acting earlier, clearly they’d made up already. That meant there was hope for him yet, didn’t it? Of course, he’d taken things a lot further than Lake had…had a lot more to make up for but…Nix would understand where he’d been coming from, wouldn’t he?

“Are you all right?” Beck frowned at him. “You’ve gone pale.”

“Just thinking about why we’re here,” he lied and motioned toward the closed doors directly across from them. “How much longer do you think they’re going to take?”

“Worried about your fourth?”

“Yes.” Yejun leaned back in his seat.

“At least you’ve caught the culprit in time.”

“Have we?”

“You’ve got doubts?” Beck asked. “I don’t know the full story since I’m not technically a part of this investigation, but from what I witnessed at the dorms, West seemed pretty certain that Dew is the guy you’ve been after. Lake appeared convinced as well.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Yejun reminded, “for confirmation. If there were any foreign substances in Dew’s system during the time of his fall, that could indicate that he was pushed.”

“No one else was up on that rooftop. We went over the security footage less than twenty minutes ago.”

That was true. West had sent it over after viewing it himself with the others. The footage was of the stairwell in the dorms leading up to the roof, and clearly showed Dew making his way up there shortly after West and the others had arrived to interrogate him. No one else was seen following or leaving, and they’d since inspected the roof to ensure no one was secretly hiding up there still.

“It just seems too easy,” Yejun admitted. Although, none of it had actually been, if he were being honest. He snorted. “Maybe I just don’t want to admit it’s been solved.”

“Why not?”

“Who knows.”

Beck considered things and then suggested, “Perhaps you’re just not satisfied with how things were discovered? I betyou feel guilty over the fact your work was used as a means to wound him, don’t you?”

It wasn’t guilt, because Yejun didn’t have any part in what had happened with his painting. It wasn’t like he’d switched it, and if he’d known about it, he would have stopped it before anyone—let alone Nix—had gotten the chance to so much as glimpse it hanging on the gallery wall.

But he definitely felt…something.

There was a dash of anger at himself for getting upset in the first place. For feeling wronged for being accused when it was his own damn fault that the others were so quick to believe it. Of course, they’d think him capable of such a thing; it wasn’t like he was known for being kind when he considered someone his enemy, and he’d made it clear in no uncertain terms for the better part of a week that he’d shoved Nix into that category.

“You reap what you sow,” he whispered, shutting his eyes against the harsh overhead hospital lighting. “Nix and I have been…at odds.”

“How so?”

“I wronged him.” There was no way he was about to go into details about it. Hadn’t he just been thinking how he didn’t want to discuss this topic anyway? He was letting his emotions get the best of him again. Seeking…He didn’t know what he was trying to find. Absolution? From Beck? If so, he was talking to the wrong person and he knew it.

“Have you tried apologizing?” Beck asked, tipping his head when that earned him another snort. “I mean it. A sincere apology can go a long way.”

“Is that all it takes for you to forgive? All someone has to do is say they’re sorry?”

“No,” Beck waited for Yejun to meet has gaze once more and then added, “they also have to mean it.”

Would that really be enough? It sounded ridiculously lacking to Yejun.

---