ETP Ch 65

Fuck, I think this bastard really is an alien. Either that or it’s a sign the world is about to end. Hwang Yoohyun saying such cringe-worthy lines. Ugh, goosebumps.

Sunjung, though internally disgusted, outwardly reassured Bokseung with a calm demeanor.

“Oh, right. I misspoke. I have another appointment soon anyway, so I’ll be leaving in a bit. Bokseung, don’t worry about it and just be comfortable.”

“Okay. I understand.”

Only then did a faint smile grace his round face.

Yoohyun kicked Sunjung’s shin under the table. As punishment for his loose lips, Sunjung could only swallow a pained grunt, ‘Ugh!’.

Only after Bokseung had settled in did the meal truly begin.

Making a mockery of his claim to be full, side dishes ceaselessly entered Bokseung’s mouth. Seeing this, Sunjung ordered more beer, urging him to eat more, and Bokseung didn’t refuse, downing the beer.

And watching this, a small frown formed between Yoohyun’s brows.

He said he was full earlier, he’s going to get a stomach ache eating like that.

Yoohyun discreetly moved the beer bottle in front of Bokseung to the side.

Sunjung, who witnessed this from the side, had his mouth drop open. Now that he knew Yoohyun’s feelings, every single one of these actions was cringey.

Shivering briefly, Sunjung put a nacho in his mouth and called out to Bokseung. Bokseung, following Sunjung’s lead by putting a nacho in his own mouth, replied with a “Yes?”.

“So, is it okay living at his place? I heard something happened, so are you going back once that’s resolved? This bastard is unusually fussy, you know.”

“Yes, it’s fine.”

“Really?”

Sungyeon nodded his head. It wasn’t just an empty pleasantry; it was truly fine.

Honestly, it would be a lie to say he wasn’t conscious of him being an alpha, and for the first day or two, he felt his whole body tense up whenever he just stared at him.

However, making a mockery of such worries, Hwang Yoohyun’s pheromones were always stable, and while at home, he was even more attentive to Bokseung’s suppressant intake than before. If he was even a little late in taking it because he was busy with something else, he would glare so fiercely that it would make his legs tremble.

“Well, since both Sunbae-nim and I are sub-genders, there are some things we’re mindful of. So in that respect, both Sunbae-nim and I are careful with each other. And living with Hwang Yoohyun Sunbae-nim is fun.”

“Fun? Living with Hwang Yoohyun is fun?”

“Yes, it’s like playing a game.”

Game? A question arose in the eyes of the two alphas looking at the kid.

It was the first time not only Sunjung but also Yoohyun had heard of this.

In what part of living with me is there a game-like element? All the while living with Bokseung, Yoohyun was fiercely fighting a battle with himself, with no room for anything else. Because of that, far from feeling any fun, he was only cultivating patience.

“A game, you say?”

“Uh, well. There’s something like that.”

Bokseung discreetly shifted his gaze towards Yoohyun to check his expression. As expected, the kid, noticing the coolness in his face, clamped his mouth shut like a clam. As if he had never been chattering away, Bokseung quietly sipped his beer.

This doesn’t sound like a game in a good way, does it? The quick-witted Sunjung grinned and prodded Bokseung.

“What part of it is like a game? Huh? Are you fighting with Hwang Yoohyun like in a fighting game?”

“N-no! A fighting game! We’re not even in the same weight class to begin with!”

“Then? Huh? What kind of game is it??”

Sunjung kept asking Bokseung. Surprisingly, even Hwang Yoohyun didn’t stop him.

“It’s nothing much.”

“Right, so what is that ‘nothing much’? I’m really just purely curious.”

“Actually…”

Sungyeon carefully recounted everything he had been feeling lately, without leaving anything out.

He said it was so much fun to feed, dress, teach, make Yoohyun work, and even provide character education from morning to night.

“So, get this? Sunbae-nim actually asked a customer if they needed anything first yesterday! You have no idea how proud I was to see that! It was like, a feeling of leveling up, I guess.”

As expected, Sungyeon was Sungyeon. He was cautious only at the beginning; as soon as his story gained momentum, he got excited and brought up things he wasn’t even asked about.

After passionately pouring out his story, Sungyeon poured beer down his dry throat. With a satisfied exclamation of ‘Keuh!’, a contented expression appeared on his round face.

And then he witnessed it.

Yoo Sunjung, who was practically collapsing with an expression that was hard to tell if he was laughing or crying, and Hwang Yoohyun, who had become incomparably colder than before.

“Kk-euhk! Wow, raising a prince! Fuck, Hwang Yoohyun the prince! Prince-nim!”

Sunjung slammed the table, laughing with his whole body. Hearing Hwang Yoohyun mutter “fuck” under his breath next to him, Sungyeon finally realized the gravity of the situation. However, he only knew that it was serious; he couldn’t guess the reason at all.

Did I say something wrong? No, but I didn’t say anything bad about Sunbae-nim, did I? What he had just said at the end was even a compliment to Yoohyun.

Sungyeon tilted his head with a clueless expression.

Just in case Yoohyun might get upset, he had carefully chosen his words, using only positive ones.

“I must have said something wrong… right? Haha.”

Sungyeon was about to ask what he did wrong, but quickly changed his words upon feeling the murderous gaze. At this rate, I’m going to get a hole drilled through my face.

Tsk. Looking at the still-choking Sunjung, Sungyeon scratched his head with an embarrassed expression. It seems he shouldn’t have said such things, no matter how much Sunjung asked.

It was a regret that came too late. Even as time passed, Yoohyun’s mood did not improve.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

For a few days, Yoohyun’s mood hit rock bottom.

He never thought Kim Bokseung would think of living with him in such a way. Since he was the only one feeling more than just fondness, he hadn’t thought he would achieve any grand wish like Bokseung playing along with him or their relationship progressing beyond a ‘some’ stage.

But what? Raising Hwang Yoohyun? Raising a prince?

Crazy. It was a statement that drained him of the energy to even be angry.

What’s a kid who’s not even a handful raising anyone for. I’m the one raising him.

Yoohyun was annoyed by the reality of being “raised” by a kid who, as Bokseung said, was not even in his weight class. But he couldn’t completely refute it either, as there was not a single exaggeration or lie in what Bokseung said.

Just thinking about the scene of Sunjung collapsing in laughter made his fists clench automatically. He had practically handed Yoo Sunjung something to tease him about for the rest of his life.

But what could he do? Kim Bokseung said it was fun living with him; would he even be human if he weren’t curious why it was fun?

Yoohyun sighed as he tackled the pile of dishes in the sink one by one.

Come to think of it, he had only just gotten used to doing these dishes after being nagged by Bokseung, and nagged, and nagged again.

Fuck, Kim Bokseung is so annoying.

“Sunbae-nim? Have one of these while you work! I made takoyaki for a snack. I even put on the pollack roe mayonnaise that you especially like, Sunbae-nim!”

On behalf of Yoohyun, who was wearing rubber gloves, Bokseung brought a round ball of takoyaki to his mouth. When Yoohyun just stared at it, he wiggled the toothpick, urging him to open his mouth quickly.

Watching the wobbling takoyaki, Yoohyun opened his mouth. A perfectly cooled ball of takoyaki popped into Yoohyun’s mouth. At the same time, the corners of the kid’s mouth curled up high.

It was an expression of pride, as if even Yoohyun eating a single takoyaki was a praiseworthy feat. It was absurd.

Anyway, Kim Bokseung was annoyingly cute, which was a big problem.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

All the way to school, Sungyeon was struggling with a thick stack of A4 paper. It was because he had only just received the lecture materials from Yoohyun that morning.

Of course, if it weren’t for him, he would have known nothing until the lecture started, so he was grateful, but why on earth did he think of printing all this out? When there was a perfectly good thing called a tablet.

But if he were to look at it on his tablet, he was worried that Yoohyun would think he was ignoring his effort by leaving the thoughtful gift in a corner, which felt wrong.

Anyway, Sungyeon was cramming the terms, which weren’t even registering properly, into his head.

“Those are just examples, so just skim through them. We’ll probably be dividing up the roles again during today’s lecture anyway.”

“Yes, I understand.”

As he said, no matter how hard he looked at it now, all he felt was that he didn’t understand. Sungyeon skimmed through the general outlines and closed the material. At the same time, Yoohyun’s car arrived at the school.

The two, who entered the lecture hall without being late, met with their group members for this project.

The group members for this assignment were all new faces, except for Yoohyun. It was a relief that he didn’t see the faces of the Sunbaes who had been sarcastic to Bokseung.

“Hello, I’m Kim Seoleun, a sophomore in Business Administration.”

“Hello! I’m Lee Jihye, a freshman in Economics. It’s nice to meet you!”

The female group members greeted them first. Sungyeon nodded at the two cheerful-looking female students. They seemed more sociable than the members from the midterm group project.

“Hello! I’m Kim Bokseung, a freshman in Sociology. It’s nice to meet you.”

Sungyeon put on Bokseung’s mask and made a shy expression. Bokseung’s public persona was that of a slightly timid and gentle freshman.

Only Hwang Yoohyun, who was watching from the side, sighed internally, thinking there goes the shy Kim Bokseung again. It was a strangely stubborn act of pretense.

The kid, having finished his introduction, poked Yoohyun in the side. What are you doing, not introducing yourself quickly. Yoohyun, surprised by the stronger-than-expected force, raised and lowered one eyebrow before opening his mouth.

“Hwang Yoohyun, a sophomore in Business Administration.”

At the sound of his voice, the two female students’ eyes sparkled. Especially Kim Seoleun, who was in the same major as Yoohyun, had a deep curiosity in her eyes.