ETP Ch 43

Looking at the small, white hand extended towards him, Yoohyun fell into contemplation. He truly didn’t have even 1g of desire to use this coupon like this.

Yoohyun subtly pulled the coupon from his wallet and grasped it. Then, he took out a bill and held it out.

“I don’t have the coupon. Let’s call it even with this.”

It was a 50,000 won bill.

“Sunbae-nim, what you’re holding in your right hand right now, that’s the coupon.”

“No, it’s something else.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s my handwriting.”

Bokseung’s small lips twitched.

If you admit it’s the coupon, you get one hit per coupon. A delinquent possessed Sungyeon. Outwardly, he was Pedestrian 3 being harassed by a thug, but inwardly, he was a super strong gangster.

“Whatever. Take it, quickly.”

This time, Hwang Yoohyun’s hand wiggled. The 50,000 won bill swayed with his movement.

Sungyeon briefly debated between the value of the coupon and 50,000 won, but coolly shook his head. Since he’d only said it to tease Sunbae-nim, he had to end it here.

“Oh, it’s okay. I was just joking. I don’t need the coupon or the money. Put it away.”

Sungyeon smiled widely, his eyes crinkling. Having flustered Yoohyun like this, it was a more than satisfying meal. He felt Yoohyun’s gaze fixed on him, but couldn’t stop smiling.

“Let’s go.”

Yoohyun, who had been silent for a while, spoke as he turned around.

His long strides looked somewhat awkward. Could he be sulking because he was teased by his much younger hoobae?

Sungyeon, finally thinking that he might have gone too far, quickly moved his feet. He felt a little annoyed that it took some time to catch up due to the difference in leg length, but he walked diligently.

“Sunbae-nim?”

“…….”

“Sunbae-nim? Are you sulking because I teased you?”

At the word “sulking,” Yoohyun stopped walking abruptly.

Bokseung’s small nose, having just caught up, bumped into Yoohyun’s back. Sungyeon winced at the sharp pain.

“Sulking? Me? Why?”

“Oh, is it not? I thought it was.”

“Uh, no.”

Sungyeon examined Yoohyun’s face, which was stiff with reddened ears.

He must be annoyed by his hoobae’s insubordination. Then again, the pheromones he was emitting weren’t sharp. Tilting his head between his cold expression and soft pheromones, Sungyeon soon came to a conclusion.

It must be because he really wants to go home.

Sungyeon breathed a sigh of relief, now somewhat accustomed to gauging someone’s mood through pheromones.

“Scaredy-cat.”

Yoohyun, whose ears had returned to their normal color, smirked, one corner of his mouth lifting. Seeing him instantly transform back into the annoying Sunbae-nim, Sungyeon narrowed his eyes.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

Having sent Bokseung off with the hangover soup he’d packed in the morning, Yoohyun arrived home quite late.

In the darkened house, mirroring the darkened sky outside, only Yuja’s purring could be heard.

“Yuja.”

Yoohyun approached Yuja, who was motionless at the top of the cat tower. He must have been sleeping soundly, as Yuja only blinked one eye, even though he knew Yoohyun was close.

“I’m home, and you don’t even acknowledge me?”

Yoohyun gently stroked the cat’s small head. Only then did Yuja lick his finger with his tongue. His characteristic purr, which seemed to say, ‘Here, are you happy now?’, came as a bonus.

Even after that, Yoohyun poked the cat a few more times, but it wasn’t nearly enough to rouse Yuja. He cautiously retreated, feeling like he’d only get scratched if he continued to bother him.

Still feeling a bit unsatisfied, Yoohyun sat down where he could see Yuja well.

[One Punch: Sunbae-nim, thank you so much for today. I’ll enjoy the hangover soup! ^_^! Have a good night!]

Why does he keep using these words? ‘Good night.’ It’s just like him to send a text like that.

Yoohyun shook his head, rereading the text he’d seen several times already.

The image of Bokseung’s puffy eyes and face, like a blowfish, overlapped with the text.

“Should I get a fish?”

He thought it would be nice to have a fish that resembled Kim Bokseung at home. Along with the resolution to get a plump, round, pinkish kind.

By the way, that small thing is having a heat cycle.

For the next week, the number of times he’d have to take his medicine would increase. If he missed even one dose, his pheromones would go wild, so he had to be more diligent than usual.

“Annoying.”

Yoohyun muttered softly. However, his hands were moving faster than ever.

With the notification that the message had been sent, Yoohyun wore a satisfied expression.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

[Hwang Yoohyun Sunbae-nim: MedMedMed]

“Honestly.”

Sungyeon, who was already gathering his medicine, chuckled in disbelief.

He probably wrote the same word three times for emphasis, thinking it was important in his own way, but from the recipient’s perspective, it was an incredibly burdensome message.

“I’m seriously scared someone else will see this.”

[Yes^^ Yes^^ Yes^^]

Sungyeon, having expressed his slight displeasure, headed to the bathroom to take a shower.

From the hangover in the morning to the unexpected pre-heat cycle symptoms, he’d been sweating buckets all day, leaving him feeling sticky and uncomfortable.

Entering the bathroom, Sungyeon made an awkward expression looking at his reflection in the mirror, or rather, Bokseung’s reflection. The still-puffy round face stared back at him.

“Cute.”

Even with a swollen face, cute was cute.

Sungyeon grinned and poked Bokseung’s soft cheek. The feel was so good that he wondered if a “Boing” sound effect should be playing.

After poking his cheeks several times, addicted to the touch, Sungyeon lowered his head and took a deep breath. He needed to prepare himself mentally.

One, two, three. Sungyeon counted to himself and opened his eyes wide.

And what filled his eyes was Bokseung’s fair skin, which he still felt shy about.

He hadn’t realized it before because he’d mostly showered with his eyes half-closed to avoid looking for too long, but taking a closer look now, it was a remarkably soft and delicate body.

He ran his right hand over his stomach and kneaded the inside of his arm. His skin turned red at the slightest touch, suggesting it was quite sensitive.

It’s no wonder he was disgusted, enduring such harsh abuse and neglect with a body like this.

The thought of now having to live in Bokseung’s body was a little daunting. Until now, he’d been thinking, ‘I’ll use it well and return it, just in case he comes back,’ but now was the time to think, ‘How should I live so I won’t be ashamed to face Bokseung later?’

“Let’s do this!”

Sungyeon shouted loudly, his voice echoing in the bathroom, as he clenched his fist.

He felt like he was now about halfway assimilated with Bokseung.

Despite his declaration to do well, Sungyeon was under the weather for a week starting the next day.

It was because of the strong suppressants he had to take diligently three times a day during his heat cycle. After taking the medicine, he felt dazed as if drunk, and his body felt weak, making it extremely difficult to work his part-time job.

He was newly impressed by Bokseung, who had endured this for several years.

Even with these side effects, he couldn’t stop taking the suppressant because it prevented him from leaking pheromones in public or experiencing sudden shock.

The biggest problem was that, despite not wanting to experience this again, there was nothing he could do about it.

As an omega, he couldn’t avoid heat cycles, the medicine made him feel terrible, and he couldn’t just resolve it with any alpha.

It was a very frustrating situation.

Speaking of any alpha, a post he’d seen on a community site a few days ago while researching heat cycles came to mind.

The explicit and raw descriptions filled his mind for a moment. Sungyeon’s face flushed, and he began fanning himself with his hand.

“Mr. Kim Bokseung?”

“Yes, yes!”

Sungyeon turned his head towards the voice calling Bokseung’s name. A middle-aged man was holding the ‘Sensitive Medical Examination Confirmation.’ He looked Bokseung over once more before clearing his throat.

“Hmm, alright. Are you feeling okay now?”

“Yes, I’m perfectly fine now.”

Sungyeon stretched his lips into a wide smile. It was definitely not because he was embarrassed about having such thoughts in front of his professor.

“This might be a bit early to discuss, but…”

“Yes?”

“Mr. Kim Bokseung, you took my class last semester and are taking it again this semester.”

The professor continued after placing the confirmation in his file.

“I was wondering if something happened. You’re still a freshman, and you’ve just started your major, so there’s no need to rush, but your exam scores are quite… puzzling.”

The professor pointedly mentioned the drop in his grades.

Of course, even in prestigious universities, there were students who openly slacked off and had rock-bottom grades in their first year. In fact, it was better for professors’ mental health to think of most freshmen as unrestrained colts rather than humans.

However, ‘Kim Bokseung’ wasn’t a colt.

He had been a particularly bright student among his peers, so his reputation had spread among the professors since the beginning of the semester. In particular, because he was receiving the Hope Scholarship from the scholarship foundation, he was one of the students his advisor paid special attention to.

As if well aware of this, Bokseung had reciprocated with outstanding grades throughout the semester.

Therefore, Bokseung’s advisor had intended to recommend him for the scholarship again this time, but his midterm exam scores had fallen far short of expectations.

It would have been fine if it were only the course he was teaching, but he couldn’t help but feel anxious.

After the professor finished speaking, Sungyeon wanted to hide in a mouse hole immediately. Even though he was small, there was no mouse hole big enough for Bokseung to hide in.