PITBABE - ENGLISH - Chapter 15: Chapter 15

"Do you want to add a lot of water?"
"How much are you going to add?!"
Babe answered with an annoyed expression because the stupid kid kept asking him about everything. Even when boiling instant noodles, he had to ask how much soup he wanted. If not for the fact that he was currently having trouble doing things on his own, Babe would have gone and hit him. Who knew, it might have helped his brain work better so he wouldn't need to keep calling Babe all day like this.
Since his last competition, a week had passed since his accident. In fact, this wasn't the first time he'd encountered something like this. Mistakes on the track were commonplace for a racer, so he had enough experience to survive before being roasted in the car as Charlie feared. But of course, persisting at that time would have definitely caused him harm. His right wrist was broken and his right knee sprained, which was considered quite a problem. After he received treatment, he would need another 4-6 weeks to recover and had to wear casts on both hands and knees. That meant he wouldn't be able to drive for at least the next two months.
This fact made him very upset because, within the 2 months he had to recuperate, he wouldn't be able to compete for the rest of this season. When he heard this the first time, Babe threw a massive tantrum. It could be said that both Way and Charlie had a difficult time enduring the racer's emotions. After Way saw his condition, he went to talk to the stadium organization team and asked them to cancel the competition for now, then use that time to investigate the culprit who secretly damaged his car's system, which was the cause of his car losing control and causing the accident. However, the final result was that the stadium refused to take part in the offer because 2 months was considered too long to stop the competition due to problems with one of the cars. It made him barely able to survive and made him go berserk until the track was almost destroyed again.
To be honest, Babe still couldn't accept the fact that he wouldn't be able to compete again this season. This meant he would lose the title of King from being unable to compete. The more he thought about it, the more annoyed he felt. Just the fact alone that he lost the match and was injured like this was enough to upset him, but the loss also spread to affect his performance for the season. He really wanted to grab that loser by the neck and stomp him into the ground.
"Here it is." Charlie's cheerful voice was heard along with the fragrant aroma of instant noodles that he'd wanted to eat since last night. However, last night Charlie forbade him on the grounds that eating late at night wasn't good for his health. Of course, he wasn't interested at all, so the giant boy tried hard to convince him with the promise that when he woke up, Charlie would boil it to eat first thing in the morning. In the end, he couldn't help but be impatient.
"Here!" Babe stretched out his uninjured hand towards Charlie, intending to take a bowl of noodles to eat. But the tall figure withdrew his hand and refused to hand over the bowl to him. He shook his head lightly.
"I'll feed you in a moment."
"You're starting this again!" Babe said with a bored look on his face, because ever since he got out of the hospital, Charlie wouldn't let him do anything on his own. Even when eating, he would feed him, the reason being that he was right-handed. Although, it wasn't that bad because eating with his left hand wasn't difficult. Only this kid acted like it was a big deal. "I'm not paralyzed, Charlie. I can use my left hand."
"But it's hard to eat."
"I can."
"But those are chopsticks," Charlie said with an innocent expression. "Can you use chopsticks with your left hand?"
"Give me a fork."
"Forks are hard too."
"Eh! It's you!"
"Let's eat. Having someone to feed you will make you feel better." The boy tried to sound sweet, hoping it would make Babe obey him. But all he received was an annoyed expression and a wordless shake of the head. Therefore, Charlie interpreted it as if he had to do whatever he wanted in Babe's language.
Charlie sat on the couch next to Babe, while the irritated man furiously pressed the remote to select a Netflix movie without looking at him.
"P'Babe..." the tall figure called out to the other person in a low voice. Using his chopsticks, he picked up the noodles and blew gently on them before holding them in front of the other.
Babe still acted like he didn't care about Charlie. That was his usual attitude. Of course, Babe was usually an irritable and stubborn person. What's more, he was injured and couldn't race like this. He became increasingly angry. But Charlie didn't get upset or think it was Babe's fault. He knew how important racing was to Babe. It was Babe's everything and he was very committed to it at all times. But when faced with bad things like this, it wasn't surprising for Babe to be stressed and annoyed about everything.
"P'Babe..." Charlie was still calmly trying to convince Babe, because he knew Babe's attitude wouldn't last long if Charlie acted calmly with him. "Hurry up and eat, aren't you hungry?"
Babe remained as quiet as ever, even though Charlie thought he was trying his best to beg.
"Didn't I make you what you wanted to eat? Here it is. I've cooked it for you. Open your mouth... quickly." The tall figure moved a little closer to Babe. If only the sweet aroma of minced pork flavored noodles could soothe the irritated person a little. "Here, eat some. If you don't eat anything, your recovery will be slower."
"You don't have to fool me, Charlie. I'm not a child." Babe finally agreed to answer. Babe turned to look at Charlie's face in annoyance because he kept bothering him and acting like a child. But, when he saw the sparkling eyes of the stupid child sitting while holding a bowl of noodles and chopsticks in his hands, he couldn't help but curse.
Why did he always have to give him that puppy face?
"You don't have to make a face like that."
"Like what?" Charlie tilted his head and asked, not understanding what kind of face Babe was talking about. According to himself, he was just acting like an ordinary person and didn't think about anything except wanting Babe to agree to eat.
Babe looked at Charlie's innocent face and, feeling helpless, the beautiful Alpha sighed in annoyance. He stared at the young man's face for a moment, before finally, his full mouth opened slightly, and it was that image that made Charlie smile.
"When you've finished eating, I'll peel an apple for you," said Charlie, smiling happily because he was able to make a stubborn person like Babe obey him again. Although it took a little effort, it wasn't considered too difficult beyond his abilities. "Or do you want to eat snacks?"
"If I eat a lot, will I get better straight away?" Babe said in a low voice, his eyes still fixed on the giant screen TV which up to now, he still couldn't decide what he wanted to watch.
"How can eating dessert make you feel better?"
"I can't move much. Don't make it too much trouble for me to eat."
The tall figure wrinkled his face, but said no more. He just picked up the noodles and stuffed them into the older man's mouth. Every time Babe put the noodles in his mouth, the smooth cheeks would puff up and move back and forth following the rhythm of his chewing, which looked very cute in Charlie's eyes.
Of course, just finding it cute wasn't enough to reduce the madness in his heart, so to get over the feeling, Charlie kissed Babe on the cheek. After feeding him some more noodles, Babe didn't react, perhaps because he was used to this kind of behavior. Besides, the person who normally did this was Babe, but he didn't complain much when Charlie kissed him on the cheek.
When he saw that Babe didn't mind, Charlie was even more enthusiastic. He bit Babe once and kissed him on the cheek many times. From the start, Babe didn't react in any way, but he started giving him death glares even though he still didn't say anything, which meant Charlie didn't need to stop right away.
He continued to feed noodles into Babe's mouth and kissed his soft cheeks, moving to the rhythm of Babe's chewing, and smiled contentedly. Meanwhile, the person repeatedly being kissed started to get increasingly annoyed.
Babe's mouth moved in a grunt, annoyed that Charlie kept kissing his cheek. If he didn't eat well, Charlie threatened to kiss him, so he was forced to eat every bite he gave him. Though, Charlie still occasionally kissed him because Babe didn't seem to mind otherwise. He could understand that this might be a little crazy, but what madman would be so cunning to kiss him like this while eating?
No matter how patient Babe was, he still wanted to scold him. Was he trying to annoy him?
"Charlie, you're annoying!" In the end, Babe who was trying to survive couldn't help but give in to the never-ending ordeal. Babe glanced at Charlie with a very annoyed expression and raised his hand to rub his cheek; he felt that the pervert had kissed it until it was completely bruised. "Why do you like kissing me so much?!"
"Sorry," Charlie smiled teasingly, but he didn't seem too afraid, because he had guessed that he would be scolded sooner or later. Seriously, as they spent more time together, Charlie began to feel like Babe's attitude wasn't offensive, but more like Babe's unique way of speaking. Because of that, he didn't feel as scared as he had when he first knew him, and he wasn't angry at all. In fact, he thought Babe looked very cute when he was upset. "But when I chew it, your cheeks become adorable."
"Do you think my face is fat?"
"No." The tall man laughed softly when he saw Babe's regretful expression. "It's just that your cheeks are swollen."
"This is why I told you not to let me eat too much!"
Charlie smiled slightly before ladling out more soup for him to drink without saying anything. Babe also seemed satisfied, having scolded him a little. Now, he turned his attention to a series he was sure Babe had already watched, but that was normal because Babe liked to watch something over and over again, even though it seemed very contradictory to his boring personality.
"So you're not going to go driving, Charlie?" Babe suddenly asked after being silent for a while. Meanwhile, Charlie used his chopsticks to roll up some of the remaining noodles in the bowl and put it into his mouthful. And of course, Babe accepted the noodles into his mouth easily. "You haven't driven in a week."
"If I leave, who will stay and look after you?"
"Oh, why can't I stay here myself?" Babe said, annoyed that Charlie acted as if he needed someone to look after him all the time. "You don't have to act like my personal nurse. If there's something you have to do, do it. Don't act like I can't take care of myself, okay?"
"I know you can do it," Charlie said softly, placing the bowl of noodles and soup on the bottom of the low glass table in front of the sofa. "But you aren't as comfortable as usual. I just want to help."
"If you want to help, you can help. But it doesn't have to be all the time." Babe turned to him instead of looking at the TV screen and spoke with a serious expression. "During the day, you can go out and drive. You haven't driven all day. If you really want to look after me, when you come back after doing what you have to do, you can come back to help me."
"But I don't dare leave you alone..."
"Charlie...."
Babe's deep voice made Charlie, who was about to argue, immediately cover his mouth, because he knew that arguing now would upset Babe again, and when that time came, it would be even harder to talk about.
"I told you, it's not your fault. When will you stop feeling guilty?"
Charlie sighed softly at the question and looked down at his palm, even though there was nothing to see. But because he didn't dare to meet Babe's eyes at the moment, he could only try to divert his gaze elsewhere.
"You weren't even in the car with me. How could this be your fault?"
"But if I hadn't restrained you, if I'd told you to go back and check the car first, during the race, you probably wouldn't have—"
"When did you restrain me? I was the one who refused to go alone."
The tall figure raised his head and looked into the older man's eyes as soon as he heard those words. Of course, this wasn't the first time Babe had had to explain to him that the accident wasn't his fault. Still, he constantly annoyed Babe about it because he couldn't stop thinking about it.
He kept wondering what would've happened if he'd been a little more stubborn, if he'd looked at everything more seriously, if he'd firmly insisted and told Babe to go back and check the car himself before the race instead of wasting time with him. At that time, none of this would have happened, Babe wouldn't have gotten hurt like this, and he wouldn't have had to lose the competition.
If only he didn't act like a child. Babe didn't need to get hurt.
"You told me to go check the car, but I myself did not go. If you want to blame someone, you should blame me for being careless. I don't understand why you blame yourself." Babe seemed a little annoyed that he was blaming himself like this, but he knew that the other person was trying hard to play it cool with him.
"I just feel like I'm bothering you."
"Then how is it your fault if I can't control myself?"
Babe's words made sense, but Charlie felt a little strange hearing that. He didn't know whether it was too selfish or not. But if Babe used that word, unable to control himself during the time spent with him, that wasn't wrong, right? If he interpreted it deeper than that...
"I understand what you're saying. I'll try not to think about it either."
"Don't even think about it. It's not even something you need to think about."
"But I'm taking care of you... I'm not doing it because I feel guilty," Charlie said quietly. He wasn't afraid to make eye contact with Babe when he said these words, because it was the truth he wanted him to know. There was no need to misinterpret his intentions just enough to hear them. Babe seemed a little surprised. "I want to do it because I don't like it when you do something difficult. So I want to do it."
Babe didn't answer immediately. He just stared at his face as if he was thinking about something, then let out a soft sigh and spoke in a calm voice.
"That means even if I told you not to do it, you would still do it, right?"
"Yes," Charlie answered immediately without hesitation. That innocent expression filled with determination made Babe understand that even if he resisted, it would be futile, because every time he saw Charlie's eyes like that, it meant the kid was ready to be twice as bullish as he was.
"Oh, then whatever," Babe answered quietly as he leaned against the back of the sofa, not wanting to argue with the other person, "If you want, just do it. If you like it and it makes things difficult for you, then don't blame me."
"Taking care of you doesn't seem difficult at all. But if someone else did it, they would definitely die young."
"Damn—" The person being teased raised his uninjured leg as if he was ready to kick Charlie, but the other person hurriedly grabbed his leg first for fear that Babe's carelessness would make his injured leg tremble too.
"Be careful," Charlie said softly when Babe didn't seem to take any precautions with his own body. "What would I do if your knee sprained again?"
"If I could kick you just once, it might be worth it."
"Don't invest that much." The tall man chuckled as he poured water on the table and handed it to Babe. "Your feet have many other uses."
"It used to be more useful," Babe took a sip of water and said in a bored voice, "now I can't do anything. I can hardly even walk."
Even though he spoke as if he wasn't thinking about anything, Charlie who heard him couldn't help but feel sad about what happened. If possible, he wanted to do something so that Babe wouldn't have to be like this. Maybe he was secretly thinking the same thing. If he was the one injured, it might be easier. At least his body wasn't as valuable as Babe's. To think that someone who lived a pleasant life all the time had to be stuck in this situation for even a month or two was already sad. As for the opportunities to be lost? It was better not to mention it at all. Was he very depressed?
"If you had to give up your position to someone else, would you regret it?"
Charlie knew this was probably a sensitive question, but he really wanted to know how Babe would feel if that actually happened. At least as the person closest to him at the moment, he would behave properly.
"Honestly, it's a shame." Babe's expression was calmer than Charlie expected. At least it felt a little calmer than the first time he found out he wouldn't be competing. "I've been doing statistics for a long time. If it doesn't continue then it would be a shame. Especially for reasons like this. When I think about it, it makes me feel annoyed."
"But what can I do? It's already happened." The famous racer shrugged his shoulders lightly, as if trying to let it go, but Charlie knew Babe wasn't letting him in yet. "If you let me be stubborn and continue competing under these conditions, I will lose."
"It's a shame, but I don't really regret it."
"If I were the owner, eventually the record would come back to me."
"I think so."
Hearing this, Charlie felt relieved to some extent. At least he knew that Babe didn't blame himself or dwell on his disappointment too much. He didn't cling so tightly to the word 'statistics' that he hurt himself. Plus, he was sure he could still build it up again. That was the most important thing.
Babe had really been struggling all this time, and until now, the other party hadn't stopped fighting.
"That's good." Charlie said with a small smile. "I thought you would be so upset that you wouldn't do anything."
"Who says I don't hold grudges? Now I'm upset."
"Shit..."
"When did I receive this? I will drag that bastard and beat him up!!" It seemed like other people could let go of their own problems, but the person who made it like this still had to pay for their karma. That was how it should've been. Whatever happened, that person had to pay for their actions.
"If there's anything I can help you with, you can tell me."
"Are you going to beat him up for me?"
"Well, except for the beating thing," Charlie grinned. "I can't do something like that."
"When other people approach me, you're ready to bite them at any time. Why can't you do it?"
"That's for self-defense. Apart from having me beat up other people, I'll do whatever you want."
"Whoa, what is this?" Babe's mouth pursed in annoyance; he forgot that Charlie was just an alpha child with an angry face. To make him do something like that would probably be too much even if his body looked capable of competing with other people. Plus, he still had some fighting skills. If he weren't so naive, he thought this kid could've done more.
"Apart from beating people up, I can do everything."
"Enough."
"Really..." Charlie confirmed firmly. "I don't want you to get too stressed."
"Then can you hold my position for me?"
Babe seemed to speak without thinking, but the listener took it seriously. Charlie fell silent when he heard Babe's words. Meanwhile, Babe stared at the stupid kid's face, wondering what he was thinking. Why did he have to act so serious?
"I'm kidding..." Babe said quietly as Charlie just sat there frowning, as if he was arguing with himself in his head.
"P'Babe...."
"What?"
"You said it would be a shame to have to give that position to someone else."
"But what if it was me?"
Babe raised an eyebrow in surprise at that statement. Charlie's eyes were not joking at all. The boy looked very serious about what he said, but Babe still didn't understand what Charlie meant.
"What do you mean?"
"If I compete this season and win, I will be the new King." The young man looked Babe in the eye and spoke as if he had already made up his mind. It seemed that Charlie didn't ask his opinion. "This way, you don't have to give up your position to someone else."
"If it were me, at least other people would know. If there's anyone who can be King, besides Pit Babe...."
"Then that person must be your own person."
At first glance, Babe thought Charlie's idea was completely crazy. But there was something even crazier, and it happened a few seconds later.... He felt it was a reasonable idea.
Charlie thought that he would spend all his time caring for the injured Babe, but in the end there were still obstacles in his way. In the afternoon, he suddenly received a call from someone Babe didn't know. Babe secretly glanced at the phone screen and saw that it was a number Charlie hadn't saved. But what was strange was that the young alpha looked more serious than usual when answering the call. Babe couldn't help but feel surprised. For one, because he usually never saw Charlie call anyone. Second, was that after hanging up the phone, Charlie then walked over and told him that he needed to go out immediately, which didn't seem normal at all.
Charlie, on the other hand, felt uncomfortable leaving Babe alone in the room. Even though it was the hundredth time Babe emphasized that he could take care of himself, and there weren't any problems at all, he was worried about everything. So before leaving the room, Charlie repeated many instructions, such as don't lift heavy things, don't walk too much, or don't take a shower until he came back. Of course, Babe put on his usual annoyed face. Charlie still firmly believed that the other person would definitely do as he said, because now Babe was less stubborn with him than before.
When he was out alone like this, Charlie didn't need to wear a mask like he did when he was with Babe. He felt his breathing was easier than before. But at the same time, it felt a little strange because since moving in with Babe, he never went anywhere alone.
Currently, Charlie chose to take electric trains instead of driving because he still felt that driving a car for his daily life was too obtrusive. Therefore, traveling by public transportation was the current choice. It only took him 15 minutes to take the electric train from the station near Babe's condo, to the destination station. After walking out of the station, he only had to walk down a small alley, and in less than 5 minutes, he had arrived at the meeting point.
The tall figure opened the door and entered a small coffee shop with not many people inside. This didn't seem like a shop where many people hung out, as there were only a few tables. Each table was set far apart and the atmosphere was very quiet. Every customer in the shop seemed only interested in what was in front of them, like typing something on a laptop, reading a textbook, or even just sitting around reading a novel while sipping coffee.
Because there weren't many tables, Charlie was able to find his target the moment he walked into the shop. He rushed towards a person sitting with their back facing him at the table in the farthest corner. Because this person was someone he had known for a long time, he was able to recognize them just by looking at their back.
"Hey..."
Charlie greeted softly, making the person who hadn't seen him walk in a little surprised. The person smiled at the pleasure of seeing each other after several months.
"I'm very surprised."
That person pursed his lips slightly before consciously pushing the glass of bubble tea he ordered in front of him. For this guy, he was like a book he had read about a hundred times because he only had to see a little to know the meaning. Therefore, he could never lie to others.
"Have you been waiting long?" Charlie asked as he lifted the glass of milk tea and took a leisurely sip.
"Only a while."
"Did you miss me?"
"I've been busy thinking about you."
"Wow, Jeff."
Charlie seemed disappointed when the other party seemed to like insulting him more and more because he didn't have much to do with it.
The person he met today was Jeff, the person closest to him in the world. They had been together since childhood. He was 3 years younger than him, but looked much more mature. At least he had contacted him beforehand and arranged to come out today, but Charlie just acted like he was clinging to Babe and refused to contact anyone.
"What? Are you hurt?" Jeff said with an indifferent expression as he picked up the hot coffee and took a light sip.
"If I say I'm disappointed, you'll scold me again."
"Yes, because missing people have no right to be angry!"
"I didn't disappear completely. You know where I am."
"Oh, but that's all I know."
Charlie was starting to get used to Jeff's attitude like this. The other party didn't support his actions from the start, but he'd never thought about interfering. He knew that, no matter what happened, he couldn't possibly stop it. In fact, he always felt guilty towards him. This often worried him, but what could he do? He also had his own reasons. Even though he felt guilty, there wasn't much he could do.
"Don't you have much time? I rarely see you." Charlie said in a weak voice, hoping that it would gain sympathy from others.
"Of course racers don't have time to do anything else. They'll stay on the track day and night."
"So you basically called me to complain?"
"Yeah, I just called you to complain." Charlie stood in front of him, looking like he didn't mind. Jeff wasn't just going to stop being cynical, so he couldn't do anything but accept it. Because in reality, he caused quite a lot of trouble for other people. He knew that.
"Fine. If you want to complain about anything, just complain."
"You don't need to act like you're upset."
"What? I didn't do anything."
"Charlie..." Jeff made a firm tone towards the older man.
"What?"
"Are you really not going home?"
Jeff's question wasn't much different from what he'd expected. Therefore, Charlie could only sigh softly, not knowing what to say. He suspected the other person might already know what the answer was.
"Did he ask again?" Charlie said quietly, gently placing the glass of milk tea on the table.
"I always ask."
"I'll tell you the same thing. If I want to go back, I'll go back myself."
"With an answer like this, I'll ask again," Jeff said with an uneasy expression. "You could at least tell me when you'll be back."
"Well, I still haven't thought about when I'll come back."
"And how long are you going to keep doing this? You're not a kid anymore."
"If I'm not a kid, then you shouldn't ask me to come home, okay?"
Jeff was stunned when he heard that. Charlie's serious expression made him dare not to respond emotionally because he knew he would lose to Charlie in the end.
"I still have things to do." Charlie said quietly.
"To have to do it and to want to do it are not the same thing, Charlie."
"For me, if I want to do it, then I have to do it." Charlie's answer made Jeff sigh in exhaustion. It wasn't that he didn't understand Charlie's feelings. He knew all that. He knew from the start what was what. But the more he found out, the more worried he became. "You don't need to say it, because now is not the time."
"You're going to be in trouble, Charlie. I'm serious."
"I don't care."
Charlie had been stubborn since childhood. No matter what it was, if he had already decided, it was even harder to change. As he grew older, his stubbornness became a bigger problem. It got bigger and bigger until now he thought that what he was doing was the biggest thing in his life. For Jeff, who had been with Charlie almost all his life, when Charlie was little and had problems with every alpha who bothered him, it was considered a big problem. He used to be so bothered by Charlie's arguments that he blamed himself for being born an omega. If he was bigger, he would be better off being stronger than this and able to protect and look after himself. Then, Charlie wouldn't have had problems with other people as often.
But ...
As he grew older, it became clear that Charlie was capable of much greater things.
"You're always like this, so stubborn!" Jeff grumbled softly as he gave in. Actually, he didn't intend to trap Charlie with the intention of changing his mind. But every time he saw his face, he couldn't help but speak. "If Father finds out about this, you will definitely die."
"Don't tell him."
"How can that be? Someday he will find out."
"Then just pretend you don't know anything. So you won't get dragged in either."
"Why are you always looking for trouble?" He wanted to keep complaining, but when he saw Charlie's expression, Jeff chose to remain silent. At least it was better than fighting again after not seeing each other for a long time. "Oh, never mind. Do whatever you want."
"Very good." Charlie smiled, satisfied to hear that.
"So, how are you today? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but Babe, not so much."
"Oh, I saw the news," Jeff nodded lightly. Pit Babe's accident was pretty big news. Even people who weren't involved in the racing industry noticed it. He had to admit, apart from being a professional racer, Pit Babe was like a famous person who everyone admired. "He won't be able to race?"
"Yeah, he's a little upset about that." Charlie gently ran his fingers along the side of the milk tea cup and sighed as if he couldn't help but worry just talking about it. Jeff saw this, but he chuckled at his close friend's unusual behavior.
"Do you really like him?"
That question, accompanied by Jeff's mischievous smile, made Charlie act a little uneasy. He blinked, before taking the milk tea and sipping it, then put on an indifferent face as if he didn't hear the question. Which, in Jeff's eyes, was very annoying.
"You know they can't stop you," Jeff said quietly after a moment of reflection. "But you have to know that whatever you do, there will be a price you have to pay."
"I won't threaten or discourage you, but I want you to know that you will eventually get in trouble because of this."
"I don't know whether what you did was right or wrong."
"But I'm sure one day you'll find out."
"Or if you don't know, Babe will probably tell you in the end."
"Until then, you have to live with it."