ETP Ch 6

“Mr. Kim Bokseung! Please come into the examination room.”

Thankfully, Bokseung’s name being called in the examination room allowed Sungyeon to escape the swamp of embarrassment sooner than expected.

“Welcome. You’re here for your regular checkup, right?”

As he entered the examination room, a female doctor, who looked about Sungyeon’s age, greeted Bokseung and asked.

Sungyeon quickly shook his head.

The doctor, who remembered the patient’s usually gentle demeanor, looked puzzled.

“Doctor!”

“Yes, yes?”

Sungyeon had a very important matter to discuss. Whether or not he could achieve his lifelong dream depended on the doctor’s answer.

“I was in a car accident recently.”

“Oh my!”

“I was in a coma for a week. It was quite a serious accident. So, as soon as I woke up, a lot of thoughts came to me. I realized that a person can disappear from the world so suddenly and meaninglessly!”

The doctor flinched, looking at the young patient’s frantic eyes. She wondered how big the accident must have been to cause such a 180-degree personality change.

Completely unaware of the doctor’s bewildered inner thoughts, Sungyeon continued to express his desires with an earnest expression.

“Therefore! I kept thinking about what I should leave behind in life. I pondered for days and nights. After much deliberation, the conclusion I reached was family! The only proof that I lived in this world would be children who look just like me, wouldn’t it? Right, Doctor?”

“Uh, yes, yes.”

As if he had attended a public speaking academy while he was sick, Bokseung clenched his fists as he presented his argument. Overwhelmed by his momentum, the doctor nodded incessantly.

“So, what I want to ask you is!”

After pausing his bulldozer-like speech, Sungyeon took a deep breath.

“Can I, you know, become a biological father? And if so, how many would be possible?”

Bokseung’s eyes narrowed as he asked. His gaze seemed far too suggestive for a boy who had just turned twenty.

The doctor, sensing a strange, almost peer-like vibe, rephrased the question.

“Mr. Kim Bokseung, although you have a recessive gene, you’re not infertile, so pregnancy is certainly possible, but…”

Sungyeon shook his head at the doctor’s response. He didn’t want to carry a child. Sungyeon had never, and would never, entertain the thought of being pregnant.

“No, my question is, you see, can my sperm and a woman’s egg meet, and, well, yes, that kind of father.”

Bokseung’s expression was so serious that the doctor almost gave him false hope. However, the reality was close to impossible.

“Ah, I understand what you’re asking. Unfortunately, that kind of thing is so rare that it’s reported in academic journals…”

The doctor looked at Bokseung apologetically.

However, contrary to the doctor’s assumption, Sungyeon, within Bokseung, was not disappointed by her answer. ‘So rare it’s reported in academic journals’ meant it wasn’t entirely impossible. Rather, it gave him hope that even he could create something worthy of being reported in academia.

Sungyeon finished the rest of the consultation thinking about foods that were good for men.

Afterward, he underwent simple blood tests and an ultrasound, which confirmed that his heat cycle was not yet due.

Having received the answer he wanted and being told there was nothing wrong, Sungyeon felt much lighter. He was even cheerful despite paying for the rather expensive suppressants.

However, his uplifted lips drooped the moment he checked his bank account balance, which arrived with the check card transaction details.

313,700 won.

The plan to buy beef, abalone, and grilled eel on his way back evaporated.

He had to drastically downsize his grand plans, resigning himself to convenience store chicken instead of beef.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

<Sports and Popular Culture>

The name of the course he had managed to avoid was the group project horror stories. As the name suggested, it was a lecture about the general understanding of sports and culture, and even planning sports marketing strategies.

The vague and broad scope of the lecture was more famous for the professor’s laid-back assignments.

The professor gave two assignments per semester: 

“Attend a sporting event and devise effective marketing strategies using sports.”

It felt like a date with young people while watching their favorite sports, and the reports were simple and stress-free.

For this reason, “Sports and Popular Culture” had been a popular lecture rumored to be an easy A for several years. Fortunately, Bokseung had managed to register for this lecture, and Sungyeon was reaping the benefits.

“Now, are you all gathered in your groups?”

The professor asked, looking at the students gathered in groups of six.

Sungyeon looked around at the people sitting nearby. Two female students, three male students, and Kim Bokseung. Six people in total.

Among them, there was one familiar face. The Scented Guy. He was in the same group.

He’d been desperate to avoid him after the embarrassing incident last week, but he was stuck in the same group, forced to see his face every time.

The professor allocated one hour of lecture time for them to plan their assignments. The students were excited, but Sungyeon felt a bit disgruntled, thinking it was rather careless considering the hefty tuition fees.

Of course, inwardly, he cursed the professor as a wage thief, but outwardly, he maintained a clear and innocent expression. This level of acting was easier than chewing gum for Sungyeon, a five-year veteran of social life.

“Um, hello. Shall we introduce ourselves?”

One of the girls sitting next to Bokseung started the conversation. Following her lead, everyone recited their name, major, and student ID.

Sungyeon looked at each face as he heard their names. Among the group members’ names he had seen beforehand in the materials uploaded by the professor, none were registered in Bokseung’s contacts. This meant Sungyeon didn’t have to act like Bokseung with them.

It was subtly stressful for Sungyeon to just smile no matter what he heard from the Beagle Trio. Therefore, he felt more at ease among strangers.

That is, if it weren’t for the Scented Guy sitting next to him.

“Hwang Yoohyun, Business Administration, class of OX.”

So, the Scented Guy’s name was Hwang Yoohyun.

It was definitely a name not in his contacts. Sungyeon had been worried that Bokseung might have been perceived differently because of his nosiness and troublesome behavior, but now he could put those worries aside.

Still, he felt a lingering guilt for potentially creating embarrassing moments for the kid.

Sungyeon glanced sideways at Hwang Yoohyun, then quickly opened his mouth, lest their eyes meet.

“I’m Kim Bokseung, Sociology, class of OO. Nice to meet you all!”

Sungyeon greeted them as the sweet and innocent 20-year-old Kim Bokseung. Everyone clapped for him after his introduction. Since everyone except Bokseung was a sophomore, his image as the youngest seemed to have stuck.

The group members, already seasoned with three semesters of group projects under their belts, started planning efficiently.

“Since it’s the end of September, the sports we can watch before the assignment deadline are soccer and baseball. And basketball and volleyball will start in a few weeks.”

Sungyeon inwardly exclaimed at the group member’s suggestion.

Baseball! Definitely baseball!!

Of course, outwardly, he maintained a harmless smile. He desperately hoped at least one person would suggest baseball.

He grew anxious, wondering what would happen if someone said soccer. He had absolutely no interest in soccer, and it bored him. If he went to a soccer game, he’d probably just end up yawning.

Bokseung’s legs trembled.

And that trembling was transmitted directly to Hwang Yoohyun.

What’s wrong with him? Like a puppy who needs to poop. Yoohyun frowned and looked at Bokseung.

Small, plump lips kept muttering something. Looking closely at the shape of his mouth, he was chanting, “Baseball, baseball, baseball.”

If he wants to see it that badly, why doesn’t he just say so? He couldn’t understand why Bokseung, who had been so meddlesome with him, was keeping his mouth shut now.

Yoohyun stared at the intensely focused Bokseung as if he were some strange creature.

Unaware of, or perhaps pretending not to notice the gaze, Bokseung’s brown eyes darted between the lips of the other group members.

“Um, I think baseball…”

One of the group members cautiously voiced their opinion.

Sungyeon clenched his fists. Definitely agree, definitely!

Before other members could speak, Sungyeon subtly raised his hand.

“I agree with you, senior. Autumn is baseball season!”

Overwhelmed by Bokseung’s assertive, albeit quiet, voice, the other members nodded in agreement. Then, as if they had promised beforehand, they looked at Hwang Yoohyun. As if they needed his permission.

Everyone’s gaze focused on Yoohyun. Bokseung’s head instinctively turned towards him along with the others.

He’s still handsome and pretty.

Sungyeon clicked his tongue.

Isn’t it unfair that someone who looks like that is an Alpha?

The mysteries of the human body and the enigma of secondary genders remained unsolved in Sungyeon’s mind.

“Let’s do that.”

The words of permission fell from Hwang Yoohyun’s lips. At his affirmation, the group members started writing down their plans even faster than before.

Sungyeon was curious why they needed Hwang Yoohyun’s permission, but for now, he quietly observed their actions.

“That’s all for today. See you in the next lecture.”

Exactly 50 minutes later, the professor left the classroom. And as soon as the professor left, Hwang Yoohyun also got up from his seat.

Despite Sungyeon turning his head at the scraping sound, Yoohyun’s long shadow had already disappeared out the door.

He has really long legs. I wonder what kids these days eat to grow so tall.

Sungyeon felt a pang of bitterness as he recalled his original body, which didn’t have particularly long legs for his height.

However, now wasn’t the time to be depressed about other people’s leg length. He had to quickly pack up and go eat the delicious school cafeteria food. From his week of experience, the biggest advantage of this school was the food.

Sungyeon was smacking his lips in anticipation of today’s cafeteria menu when the conversation of the group members in front of him reached Bokseung’s ears.