MIM 105

“You.”

Ma Jae-seung quickly stopped the hand reaching for the zipper and gritted his teeth tightly. He nervously ruffled his bangs and glared at Shin-woo.

“Didn’t you hear what I just said?”

“I heard. I said I won’t do it again. But that’s that, and since I’ve already taken the drugs, we should make the most of it.”

“I mean I won’t ‘use’ you anymore.”

Ma Jae-seung emphasized each word, speaking slowly. It sounded like he was both trying to convince Shin-woo and make a promise to himself. His attitude was firm and resolute.

“You didn’t use me for money either. I don’t want to do that anymore either.”

Unable to think of how to counter and persuade him, Shin-woo was at a loss for words. Since he’d taken the drugs, it looked like the water was already spilled. Whether they slept together or not wouldn’t change that fact, so he wanted to at least help stabilize Ma Jae-seung. Even if nothing came back, even if only scars remained, he wanted to give everything he could.

That was how Shin-woo loved. He didn’t know how to express it differently.

“Maybe saying ‘use’ was inappropriate…That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?”

Ma Jae-seung, sat there and turned sideways, glancing back over his shoulder. Shin-woo moved to where he could face Ma Jae-seung, trying to give his answer more weight. Then, looking straight into his eyes, he spoke deliberately.

“How about maximizing efficiency in the given situation?”

“Get out.”

Thinking he might have disliked the term ‘use,’ Shin-woo had racked his brain, but Ma Jae-seung didn’t like the alternative either. After seemingly expecting an answer for just a moment, his face hardened and he pushed Shin-woo away.

He was weak to pleasure. Deciding to use a slightly underhanded method, Shin-woo finally pressed his lips forward. He slipped his tongue in, following the surprised intake of breath. He pushed him down on the bed, straddled him, and kissed him deeply while holding his cheeks with both hands. He licked everywhere from the inside of his cheeks to his palate, sucking on his tongue tip. Already accustomed to kisses that had been awkward until recently, he’d learned what felt good.

Ma Jae-seung’s large hands embraced his back. The gentle caress along his shoulder blades sent light shivers up and down his spine. His previously docile tongue began moving, wrapping around Shin-woo’s. As he felt something hard pressing against his thigh, he grew increasingly hot below.

“Ah.”

A moan escaped as his body was suddenly flipped over. As his back hit the mattress, Ma Jae-seung climbed on top of Shin-woo and pressed their foreheads together. Red from his neck with its visible tendons, he quietly looked down at Shin-woo with dark green eyes. The touch of his thumb gently stroking near his temple was so tender it felt alien.

“From now on, I’ll only have sex whenever I want to.”

With hot breath tickling his lips, Ma Jae-seung abruptly got up and left the bed. Before he could be grabbed, he quickly distanced himself and strode out, opening the door.

Left behind, Shin-woo sat up, blinking blankly. Sex when he wants to. Pondering those words naturally brought to mind their recent intimacies. Nights spent intertwining their bodies, drenched in each other’s sweat, without trying to hide scars or constantly checking if Ma Jae-seung’s fever had dropped. The name called out countless times and the endless exchanges of kisses also came to mind.

Looking down at his arm with injection marks, Ma Jae-seung’s screams echoed in his ears like an auditory hallucination. He’d expected disapproval but hadn’t anticipated him screaming with tears in his eyes. The words asking why he had to become fake, too, stayed with him. For someone who had lived his whole life with fake names and identities, the only time he became real was when facing Ma Jae-seung.

Maro approached and sat at Shin-woo’s feet as he sat there dazed. After staring at Maro, who had naturally taken his place beside him, he carefully reached out to stroke his back. Watching Maro tirelessly licking the hand that stroked him gave him a strangely hollow feeling. Right after picking him up, he hadn’t petted him often, afraid of getting too attached. The fear he felt when first picking up Maro from the street felt as vivid as if it were yesterday.

Shin-woo spent time lying in the room until nightfall. While giving Ma Jae-seung time to process his emotions alone in the bedroom, he rested in another room, organizing his thoughts. Dawn soon arrived as he endlessly watched Maro alternating between dozing off and wandering around the room.

The cottage was quiet. Having been constantly with Ma Jae-seung since arriving, this was their first such silent night. After lying down and resting for over half a day, sleep wouldn’t come. He wondered if Ma Jae-seung still had that pained expression on his face. He, too, must be unable to sleep. Shin-woo looked up at the dark ceiling with a weak smile. Separation anxiety wasn’t just Ma Jae-seung’s problem.

It was just as the silence was starting to feel comfortable. A rustling sound came through the gap in the window he had deliberately left slightly open.

Shin-woo’s eyes snapped open as he crouched and walked up to the window. The small room’s window was positioned to easily observe anyone approaching the entrance. Could it have been a wild animal? As Shin-woo watched the unchanged scenery, he suddenly noticed something and narrowed his eyes.

From afar, a large white mass was approaching, swaying up and down. Upon closer inspection, it looked like it was the landlord, who seemed to be carrying a large blanket. His face, pale in the moonlight, looked almost ghost-like.

3 a.m. After checking the time, Shin-woo carefully picked up Maro and put him in the closet, closing the door. Then he drew his gun and hurriedly headed to Ma Jae-seung’s bedroom. Maro, now awake, barked once with a “Woof!” but fortunately remained quiet afterward.

This cottage had no back door, so anyone trying to sneak in would likely use the terrace connected to the main bedroom. They could break through the living room or small room windows, but if they planned such a commotion, they wouldn’t have chosen this late hour.

“Ma Jae-seung, wake up.”

“What is it?”

As expected, Ma Jae-seung, who hadn’t been asleep, had his eyes wide open in the darkness. When shown the gun, he quickly drew his own from the drawer.

“The landlord’s coming with a blanket.”

“At this hour?”

“It won’t be just one person. Given he’s carrying a blanket, when the landlord knocks or rings to get our attention, others will likely use that chance to break in. Either through this terrace or the living room window—if it were me, I’d choose the terrace since the living room windows would need to be completely broken.”

Ma Jae-seung swallowed and nodded. He didn’t ask who might be coming. By now, he probably knew pretty well who wanted them dead.

“If they hired professionals, there’ll be at most five, minimum three. If it’s people I know, maybe two. Though this isn’t a tourist area, it’s close to the city, so they couldn’t use many people without drawing attention.”

“It’s strange they’re coming with a blanket instead of just breaking in. Is the landlord involved?”

“They’ll probably try knocking softly rather than ringing the bell, using the landlord. If we don’t answer because we’re sleeping, they’ll try sneaking in quietly. Even if we’re awake and open the door, others might enter through the terrace meanwhile…They’ve decided it’s better to divide our attention.”

“I’ll go out if they knock. They might have a gun hidden in the blanket. I won’t die anyway.”

“Don’t be stupid.”

Shin-woo’s eyes flashed fiercely. Even with superhuman strength and rapid healing from experiments, Ma Jae-seung lacked experience.

“When they knock, we’ll stay quiet and wait. When they come through the terrace and entrance, shoot their heads. Don’t hesitate.”

“Damn it.” Shin-woo cursed while staying alert. He’d expected Joo-yeon to attack but hadn’t thought she’d send people overseas. She wouldn’t give up her inheritance to kill Ma Jae-seung, so she must have found a way to secure her share by contacting Ma Jae-seung’s brother. He’d been monitoring mental hospital visit records in preparation, but how…Did they exchange messages instead of visiting to avoid leaving records?

The plan had been to help Ma Jae-seung find stability after killing Kim Ye-wook and evacuating him in his unstable state, then return to deal with his brother one by one, but they were too late. 

Shin-woo blocked Ma Jae-seung’s front while focusing on the movements outside.