FRWD Ch 8

Even after returning to his daily routine, time flew by quickly. Unlike his expectation that Hyungseok would have taken a disliking to him for starting a fight at work, Hyungseok was still a good employer, and Miyeon seemed completely uninterested. Thanks to this, Haseong was also able to interact with them without difficulty.

“Haseong! You just sit down. You must have been through a lot….”

“Pardon? No, I’m all right now, sir.”

“No. I’m asking you, please just sit down….”

It was slightly bewildering, as Hyungseok seemed to be going beyond being a good employer and was being overly considerate, more so than before. The way Hyungseok would jump in surprise every time their eyes met and ask if he was comfortable enough sitting down was also like that.

When Haseong, feeling a bit self-conscious because of it, would try to get up, Hyungseok would press his shoulders to make him sit back down and let out heavy sighs, which was even stranger.

Aside from Hyungseok’s attitude of being considerate to a strange degree, the part-time job at the live club was going more smoothly than ever before. Since he was no longer in a band, he had plenty of time, so he was not physically tired, and since the annoying older guys who used to bother him were not coming around, he was also mentally at ease.

On the day he had just returned home, Haseong meticulously looked around every corner of his house but found no trace that Woochan had been there. The landlady also said that no man around Haseong’s age had come looking for him and simply handed him the new front door key she had readily replaced.

Furthermore, perhaps because the landlady had even given fertilizer to the potted plant, the perilla leaves, which seemed even more vibrant than before, greeted Haseong with their fresh green leaves as if nothing had happened.

He thought that Woochan would surely visit at least one more time, knowing that Haseong had not only quit the band without notice but also blocked his number, but contrary to such worries, the area around his house was nothing but peaceful.

‘Did he find another bassist in the meantime?’

He felt a little embarrassed in hindsight, thinking he might have overreacted by getting scared and staying away from home for a few days, but in any case, it was one less worry. A few days had passed since he returned home, and not even a single strand of Woochan’s hair had been seen, so his remaining anxiety gradually disappeared.

Friday approached quickly amid the stable repetition of his daily life, where he would wake up to work on songs to show Kim Jinho, and in the evening, he would commute to the live club to work.

Haseong, who had followed Yehan while dressed in the same clothes Yehan had bought him before, lowered his arms under the table and repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists.

“There’s no need to be nervous. I really just called you to have a meal together.”

Yehan, who was leisurely sipping wine beside him, laughed lightly and gently tapped his cheek. There were about ten minutes left until the promised time, so Kim Jinho had not arrived yet. Yehan gave Haseong’s lower body, hidden by the table, a quick scan and then nodded as if satisfied.

“You wore what I bought for you.”

“Among the clothes you bought me, this one looked the most formal….”

“That’s right. It suits you well, too. Oh, what did you do with your original clothes?”

“I organized and threw away everything except for the ones I wore often.”

“Good job. I’ll buy you more clothes when autumn comes. We should get you a few good coats, too.”

He really didn’t need any more clothes…. But he couldn’t think of a suitable way to refuse, so he only moved his lips. It was then that he felt a presence from beyond the firmly closed door of the private room. Haseong reflexively shot up from his seat even before a silhouette appeared through the crack of the door.

“Oh, man, they even have valet parking here. Anyway, you have high-class taste.”

Soon, a man with refreshingly large and distinct features pushed the door open and entered. Haseong was familiar with his face, as he had seen his interviews in a few online articles. The man looked much better in person than in the carelessly published photos in the articles.

Kim Jinho, who stood in front of the air conditioner for a moment to feel the breeze, swept back his neatly trimmed hair and acknowledged Yehan. Yehan also greeted the guest warmly with a responding smile.

“Long time no see.”

“Yeah, Mr. Actor Go Yehan. Have you been well?”

“Me? I’m always the same.”

“True, what could possibly go wrong for you. Ah, are you Mr. Yoon Haseong?”

After exchanging simple greetings, Kim Jinho turned his gaze toward Haseong first. As soon as his name was called, Haseong stiffly bowed his waist and exclaimed in a loud voice.

“Hello. I am Yoon Haseong. I have heard a lot about you. Today, th—thank you so much for asking to meet me first!”

“Why are you so disciplined? Did Go Yehan say something to you?”

Perhaps because he was so nervous, his voice cracked in the middle, and he even went off-key. At his shrill voice that had become high like a parrot’s, Kim Jinho chuckled as if finding it absurd. A small laugh, like air escaping, also came from Yehan, who was sitting in his seat.

A thick right hand was extended in front of Haseong, who was only caressing the area around his neck with a flushed face.

“Don’t give me such a stiff greeting. Let’s just shake hands.”

“Ah, yes, yes….”

He was in a complete daze. Haseong was so out of his mind that he did not even know if he was extending his right hand or his left, and just reached out his arm as it went. Seeing that no one laughed after they shook hands, it seemed he had fortunately extended the correct hand.

“Wow, you’re handsome. Your face doesn’t lose out even next to this guy Go Yehan.”

Kim Jinho, who had also lightly shaken his hand and let go, joked around. Haseong brushed off the very exaggerated compliment about his looks and forced a bright smile. The corners of his mouth, forming an unfamiliar, forced smile, trembled.

Even though the handshake was over, Kim Jinho, who had not gone to sit at the table, suddenly snatched Haseong’s left hand again. He made Haseong spread all five of his fingers and continued to speak while pressing the tips of his fingers.

“You have big hands. Looks like you’d be good at playing the bass, too. You must have made many women cry, huh?”

Far from making them cry, I was the one who cried. Since it had been nearly two months since he was dumped, the wound had faded to some extent, but the memory was still there. Haseong recalled himself sobbing in the garbage dump and, feeling a renewed sense of embarrassment, fidgeted with his fingers.

If I hadn’t been dumped back then, I would never have met Yehan, so I guess it turned out… for the best? Seeing as he was having such a carefree thought, it seemed the wound from that time had long since disappeared.

Although it was a situation where someone he had just met was kneading his hand as if it were dough, it was not unpleasant. In Kim Jinho’s scrutinizing eyes, only the pure curiosity of a fellow musician could be felt.

It was not an incomprehensible action, so he was just quietly presenting his hand, when a soft voice was heard from behind.

“Why don’t you stop fondling Mr. Haseong’s hand and sit down to talk.”

“Fondling, what an expression. Originally, among people who play instruments, you can get a rough idea just by looking at their hands….”

“Sit.”

At the sharp tone, Haseong inadvertently looked back. Yehan was smiling gently as always. But unlike usual, there was a somewhat grim aura about him that sent a shiver down his spine. When their eyes met, Yehan tilted his head and patted the chair next to him.

Thinking it was probably time to return to his seat, he looked back at Kim Jinho, and his captured hand had been flung away at some point. Following Kim Jinho, who was taking a seat opposite Yehan, Haseong also quickly sat down.

“This is Jinho. He’s also the music director for the drama I’m going to be in.”

The grim aura he had felt just moments ago was nowhere to be found. He gestured toward his friend with his palm facing up and introduced him affectionately.

It was an unnecessary explanation since Haseong already knew the man in front of him was Kim Jinho, but what followed was unexpected. Haseong’s eyes widened at the words he was hearing for the first time today.

“Are you working together on this drama as well?”

“Yes. Sickeningly enough, it just happened to turn out that way.”

“That’s my line.”

“Then you quit. The main actor can’t drop out.”

“…Mr. Haseong, have you ever formally learned composition?”

As soon as he was losing the argument, Kim Jinho blatantly changed the subject of the conversation. At the serious question that came in so suddenly, Haseong’s Adam’s apple bobbed slowly.

“No. I didn’t go to college….”

“What about lessons?”

“…I taught myself.”

“Then how did you come to play the bass?”

Haseong briefly explained his history. From how he started attending church following the older neighborhood boys when he was young, got a chance to join the band club, and started learning the bass guitar there, to an appeal that he could also play the piano and regular guitar in addition to the bass.

Was it because of his meager pride? He had never experienced composing, nor was he a music school graduate, but he wanted to let him know that he was confident in playing most instruments. However, even before he finished speaking, Kim Jinho indifferently crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair.

“Piano and guitar are basics, of course. And while it’s not common to find someone who can also handle the bass, it’s not like they’re completely nonexistent either. Hmm, could I listen to some of the songs you’ve worked on?”

Haseong typed in the SoundCloud address he had prepared in advance and opened the window. Ah, and some earphones, too. Kim Jinho, who requested them naturally, took the entire phone away. Kim Jinho, who listened to the music in silence for a while, only took off the earphones and muttered after the first course of the meal started to arrive.

“It’s not bad. I was on the fence since you said you haven’t even had lessons….”

“Thank you.”

“It’s really good. You have a good sense, don’t you? Your composition spectrum is wide, too. If you just polish up the technical aspects a little more, it’s good enough to be used right away.”

At the friendly and honest praise, which was the complete opposite of his previous indifferent attitude, Haseong’s expression brightened up. Even Yehan, who had kept his lips firmly sealed the whole time as if it were a rare occurrence for Kim Jinho to praise someone like this, narrowed his eyes as if surprised.

“Is it that good?”

“Yeah. It’s much better than the songs from most of the wannabes I’ve heard so far.”

Kim Jinho passed the phone and earphones to Yehan as if to say, ‘listen for yourself.’ Haseong was startled and stretched out his arm. It was because he did not want to let Yehan, of all people, hear the songs he composed. It was on a completely different level from letting him hear a cover of just the bass line of an existing song.

If Yehan reacted positively after listening to his complete creation, he would be endlessly proud and happy, but if he did not….

In that moment, all sorts of sad imaginations flashed through his mind. Haseong, now pale, tried to snatch his phone, but Yehan was one step faster. Quickly grabbing the phone, he even moved his body away so Haseong could not take it and put the earphones in his ears.

Yehan, who dodged Haseong’s attempts at interference and managed to listen to the song to the end, returned the phone after winding the earphones around it. Just seeing him twitch his eyebrows in surprise made Haseong’s heart drop.

“Mr. Haseong, you’re this good, why have you been so dead set on not letting me hear it until now. That’s disappointing.”

Fortunately, his heart returned to its original place at the excited voice filled with admiration.

“No, it’s because it’s embarrassing….”

“What’s there to be embarrassed about between us. We’ve already….”

Already what. Haseong instinctively gripped Yehan’s thigh tightly. With his face turned up, he looked at Yehan with a desperate gaze while applying so much rough force that the pants creased. Please, keep your mouth shut…! He did not want it to be revealed to the entire world that he had slept with him.

At that, Yehan gave a barely perceptible nod. It was as if he knew exactly what he meant. Just as the relieved Haseong was about to let go, a warm temperature touched the back of his hand. The blunt tips of fingers tickled the protruding bone on the back of Haseong’s hand.

When he curled his hand because it tickled, a hand came over his, covering it as if with a blanket. Under the downward pressure, Haseong’s hand became stuck to Yehan’s thigh like a piece of gum. It was to the point where he could even feel the subtle twitching of his thigh muscles through his palm.

Cold sweat trickled down the neck of Haseong, who had suddenly ended up playing with hands under the table. This wasn’t why I grabbed him…. As Haseong, whose body was frozen stiff, was staring at the white plate as if he were about to bury his nose in it, Yehan continued the words he had stopped, slowly pulling Haseong’s hand further up.

“I’ve already heard Mr. Haseong play the bass several times.”

Was it a silver lining? It seemed Yehan, while brazenly playing with hands under the table in front of his friend, had no intention of dropping a bombshell announcement.

Haseong applied force to stop his hand, which had by now reached the area right next to his pants pocket. He could predict what he would feel if it went up just a little more. From what he had seen directly, it was definitely not a size that could be neatly tucked away in underwear, so it must be around here.

As he resisted by clenching his fist and tapping the thigh, Yehan let out a soft laugh and released his hand. At the same time, a question flew in from Kim Jinho.

“Right, you said you were originally in a band? Did you compose in that band too, Mr. Haseong?”

“No. The leader composed everything himself, and I only played the bass.”

“Hmm….”

Kim Jinho, who was muttering something to himself, started to hum. Haseong quickly identified the tune. It was one of the works he had just let him listen to, which was uploaded on SoundCloud. He was improvising and continuing a song that had been composed up to the first verse and then ended with the instrumental part leading to the second verse blurred out.

It connected naturally with the first verse that he had originally created and at the same time blended well with the overall mood of the song, so it was not the least bit dissonant. It was simply amazing that he could improvise and piece together a song like this after hearing it only once. Kim Jinho, who finished the instrumental part by humming, was mouthing words to himself before he paused.

He offered a sudden apology, saying he was sorry for acting like a crazy person all of a sudden while eating, then rummaged through his wallet and handed over a business card. It was Kim Jinho’s own business card. The crumpled corners of the paper suggested that he carried it around like an ID card in his wallet rather than for the purpose of giving it to others.

“Mr. Haseong, be my assistant.”

Kim Jinho’s eyes shone as he pressed the business card firmly into his hand. He seemed determined not to let go of his hand until he answered yes. In a tone that was more of a demand than a suggestion, he quickly continued.

“I’m not a black-hearted employer. I’ll be too scared of that guy Go Yehan not to, so I’ll write up a formal contract, of course I’ll pay you a proper salary, and I’ll teach you well so you can gain a lot of composing skills, so don’t worry about things like that. Annoying chores? I won’t make you do a single one. Promise.”

A hint of madness could even be seen in the way he flicked his pinky finger dazzlingly while clasping his hands as if in prayer. He knew that the reason this meeting was arranged was for Kim Jinho to hire an assistant, but it was still a very bewildering offer.

However, the working conditions were quite good, contrary to his notorious reputation, and he did not feel bad because it seemed Kim Jinho liked him a lot. No, in fact, it was not just ‘not bad,’ he felt like he could fly.

He had just witnessed Kim Jinho’s skills, which lived up to his fame, right before his eyes. To be noticed by such an amazing person. The fact that his attitude had changed after hearing his music, after he had been so clearly displeased before he listened to his work, only made him feel proud. It was because he was truly acknowledged for his skills alone.

Should I do it? The conditions are good, I have plenty of time since I quit the band, plus Kim Jinho seems like the type of person who, although he has some eccentricities, wouldn’t go back on his word, and his skills are beyond question, and above all, he said he would teach me professionally….

“Ah, do you need time to think?”

Kim Jinho, unable to wait for that short moment while Haseong was contemplating, asked suddenly. Just as Haseong was about to ask back, not wanting to miss the chance, that he wanted to do it and if he could tell him more about the job.

“I….”

“Of course, we have to give him time.”

His voice overlapped with Yehan’s, who spoke at the same time. At the low, beautiful voice that answered for him while smoothly pulling his captured hand away, Haseong immediately clamped his mouth shut and looked at the owner of the voice. His expectation that Yehan, having caught that they spoke at the same time, would courteously let him speak first was splendidly wrong. Yehan continued speaking without a pause, as if he had not heard Haseong’s voice at all.

“If you were him, would you immediately accept an offer to work for someone you just met today, the moment you met him?”

“Is that so? Then how long should I wait?”

“So that’s what you need to discuss with Mr. Haseong….”

Maybe I spoke too softly and he didn’t hear me. Yehan was now talking with Kim Jinho as if they were having a private conversation. Feeling anxious, Haseong shouted in a voice loud enough for even Kim Jinho to hear.

“Um…! I would like to do it.”

Mr. Haseong, nice. Kim Jinho cried out in triumph. But unlike the visibly pleased Kim Jinho, Yehan showed no particular reaction. He simply rested his chin on the table and raised the corners of his mouth into a placid smile.

“Hmm. Last time, didn’t you say you wanted to think carefully about being an assistant?”

“I did, but after meeting you in person, you seem like a good person, and you also saw my songs in a good light….”

“So to Mr. Haseong, anyone who acknowledges him looks like a good person.”

“Pardon?”

It was an exceedingly gentle voice, but at the somewhat thorny tone, Haseong momentarily doubted his ears.

“Mr. Haseong, you just met Jinho today.”

“That’s true, but….”

Yehan tilted his head back as if he truly did not understand. Haseong trailed off, carefully observing Yehan. He could not read any emotion from his face, but he definitely seemed angry.

Did it bother him that he had rashly judged him to be a good person upon their first meeting? But of all people, the friend Yehan himself had offered to introduce him to, he thought well of him…?

That couldn’t be it. There must be some other reason. Haseong reflected on his actions. But no matter how much he reflected, he could not think of any action that could be called a mistake.

Having failed to pinpoint his mistake, Haseong stared blankly at Yehan, who then released the hand that was propping up his chin and smiled brightly.

“Ah, I’m not opposing it. I’m not angry either. It’s just, I thought it would be good if you developed a better eye for people.”

“…I’m not that bad of a person….”

Kim Jinho muttered quietly with a face expressing his sense of injustice. Yehan ignored the complaint coming from across the table and stroked Haseong’s hair.

“If Mr. Haseong wants to do it, well then. Continue hearing him out.”

In that suffocating atmosphere, the main dish began to be served.

Haseong only left the table after making a verbal agreement with Kim Jinho that he would become his assistant even if the sky fell. Because the conversation had dragged on, Haseong left for the live club without even finishing his dessert, while Yehan and Kim Jinho continued their meal at a leisurely pace.

Kim Jinho, who had been constantly watching Yehan’s expression even while explaining the working conditions, finally looked as if he could breathe. He grumbled while breaking apart the abstractly shaped dessert in front of him with a fork.

“Hey…. I really can’t keep up with your whims. When did you ever offer to recommend an assistant because I said I needed one, and then why are you suddenly giving me the evil eye?”

“I wasn’t giving you the evil eye.”

The guy with the annoyingly handsome face, who hadn’t even touched his dessert and was just sipping coffee, answered in a voice as annoying as his face. Even though he had been seeing that outer shell for several years now, seeing it up close still was not something he could get used to.

If only his personality were half as good as his face…. No, that would have been even more annoying. If the inside was as perfect as the outside, he could no longer be classified as human. That level of flaw was human and good.

Though it seemed that because he had the profession of a celebrity—a job that inevitably required him to expose himself to others—his already flawed personality had become twisted in an even more insidious direction.

‘Anyway, when I see him, he’s just like his mother.’

From getting easily bored with everything, to being endlessly cold to things that were no longer of interest, and even the disposition to not be satisfied unless he held and molded everything in the palm of his hand. Recalling the mother and son who had frighteningly similar personalities in their negative aspects, Kim Jinho was dumbfounded and snapped.

“Saying to develop a better eye for people in that situation is calling me a son of a bitch, isn’t it?”

“I wasn’t calling you a son of a bitch.”

He frowns slightly as if the coffee does not suit his taste and puts down the teacup. He seemed to be eating the meal fine, but he’ll probably stop coming to this restaurant right away. Kim Jinho predicted the misfortune of the restaurant he had visited for the first time today.

Yehan dabbed his mouth with a napkin as if to wipe away the unpleasant aftertaste and continued.

“I was saying it to Haseong. If he wags his tail at anyone who shows him affection, isn’t that worse than a guard dog.”

“……”

“I’m starting to think I shouldn’t have introduced you two.”

“…What should I do, should I cancel it now?”

Crazy bastard. There were times when he felt like he was even more insane than his mother. Kim Jinho, while harboring disrespectful thoughts about his own mentor, was busy cursing that mentor’s son in his head. In his head only, of course. Outwardly, he was busy trying to stay on his good side.

Although he’d only met him briefly, he seemed like a very gentle and sincere kid, so how did he end up catching the eye of a guy like that and getting treated like a dog? A pang of sympathy for Haseong arose for a moment, but that too quickly subsided.

In any case, Yehan was not the type to maintain interest in others for long, regardless of who they were, so the dog treatment would be temporary. He could just endure it until then. After all, wasn’t he enjoying a handsome reward in return for catching Go Yehan’s eye?

He did not know exactly what their relationship was, but it was certain that Go Yehan was currently very fond of Haseong. Just look at him now. Even though he was clearly in a foul mood about something, he slowly shook his head and stopped him.

“You can’t go back on your word. Seeing him dejected really looks like a son of a bitch.”

He treats him like a son of a bitch, but it also seems like he’s doing it because he’s quite fond of him in his own way….

Come to think of it, this was the first time Go Yehan had ever offered to introduce someone, or paraded a young kid around by his side so ostentatiously. It had always been him who had to beg and plead for Yehan to arrange meetings with famous directors or production company CEOs.

Go Yehan, who chuckled at some memory, shrugged his shoulders.

“And you were quite pleased with him too, weren’t you?”

“That’s right. It’s the first time I’ve felt like I wanted to properly nurture someone.”

With that much skill from being self-taught, he was a talent who would be a huge success if only he were properly taught. Kim Jinho nodded seriously. Go Yehan also smiled back as if pleased with the answer and whispered softly.

“Okay. Then do it properly. And don’t act like a jerk like you did earlier.”

“…Huh?”

“Your attitude before you listened to Haseong’s work was extremely grating.”

The eyes, the color of a single drop of black ink dropped into clear water just enough so it does not become turbid, glinted with a dangerous light. Sweat trickled down the back of Kim Jinho’s neck, his gaze fixed on the gently curved corners of those eyes.

“You, you graduated from a prestigious music university and built your career by landing music director positions at a young age with our mother’s connections, so you have nothing to envy… but not everyone can live like you. Do you think I would have introduced him to you for no reason?”

“I—I’m sorry…. I wasn’t trying to disregard him….”

It was true that his expectations had been halved upon hearing that Haseong had not attended college and was self-taught. It was also true that he had adopted an attitude that could, at a glance, be seen as disregard. But in this situation, he could not, for the life of him, say that he had disregarded him because his credentials seemed unimpressive.

As he desperately made excuses, his pronunciation stumbling, Go Yehan tapped the table. Tap, tap, exactly twice. As if to say, that’s enough idle talk, focus.

“There’s no need to apologize, just work hard. Now that you’ve decided to take him on.”

He was going to do that even without being told. To Kim Jinho, who swallowed hard in the instantly frozen atmosphere, a short exclamation of “Ah” was heard.

“And stop fondling his hand. I don’t like it when others touch what’s mine.”

Even if everything is done on the computer these days, it’s hard to work if you have a problem with your wrist, right? The question, which made his spine tingle, came along with it, a mix of worry and threat.

That was scarier than a threat to break his wrist. Go Yehan was not the type to get his own hands dirty. It said it all that he had not filmed a single noir film featuring gangsters or the underworld, saying he hated taking on a vulgar image.

He did not know for sure, but if he were to defy those words, Yehan would cunningly create a situation. An unavoidable situation where a problem would arise with his wrist.

Kim Jinho hid his wrists under the table and, unable to hold back the question that had been on his mind the whole time, blurted it out.

“…Is he really just a close younger brother you happened to get to know?”

“If not, what do I look like?”

“……”

You don’t usually harbor that much possessiveness towards a younger brother you just happened to get to know, right? It’s even stranger because it’s you. You’re acting like some crazy alpha who’s lost his mind, hovering over an imprinted omega. And Mr. Haseong doesn’t even seem to be an omega.

Unable to answer with what he truly felt, he just licked his lips. After a period of silence, a beautiful voice tinged with a scornful smile broke the unnatural silence.

“You’re trying to know all sorts of things. You just need to do your job properly.”

The club was packed with customers today, as the special circumstance of it being the end of summer overlapped with it being a Friday night.

Around the time Haseong usually came to work, there would only be about three or four tables, or band members who were friends with Hyungseok would come to hang out and chat, but today, Miyeon was frantically collecting entrance fees at the counter.

Seeing her busy, Haseong also felt a sense of urgency and rushed inside. The thought of contacting Yehan to ask if something unpleasant had happened, as his words during the meal had been bothering him, temporarily vanished while he was busy working.

It was not until around midnight that he got a moment to look at his phone. The inside of the store was still packed, but no new customers were coming in. Haseong, who finally had a moment to catch his breath, took out the phone he had put in his back pocket. The notification light was blinking, indicating a message had arrived.

[Yehan Hyung: What time do you get off work today? It’s bothering me that I couldn’t give you a ride earlier. I’ll come pick you up.]

Surprisingly, a message had come from the person he had been debating whether to contact. And the content showed no trace of his earlier angry demeanor.

Was I just being overly sensitive? Haseong frowned slightly but diligently wrote a reply. Checking the time the message had arrived, he saw that two hours had already passed.

[There are a lot of customers, so I think I’ll be done around 1.]

[You don’t have to come pick me up.]

[Yehan Hyung: I understand.]

A reply came as soon as he sent it. Haseong, naturally understanding it as a reply to his previous message saying he did not need to be picked up, resumed his work. That was why, after work, upon opening the back door of the store and going out, he was terrified to find a white car waiting for him.

“Mr. Haseong, get in.”

Yehan, who had rolled down the driver’s side window, waved his hand cheerfully. Unlike usual, he was not even wearing a mask. Fearing that a customer coming out the back door might recognize him, Haseong quickly ran over and practically blocked the driver’s side window with his upper body, whispering softly.

“Why did you come?”

“I said I’d come pick you up, didn’t I?”

“Pardon? You said you understood when I sent you a message saying you didn’t have to pick me up.”

“I answered that I understood because you said you were getting off at 1.”

Could it be just his imagination that the nonchalant expression looked particularly feigned today? Haseong was so dumbfounded that he gripped the window frame tightly.

“That’s…!”

“There was a miscommunication.”

Yehan, who answered with composure, gestured towards the passenger seat with his chin.

“Get in. Since I’m here anyway. Don’t tell me you’re going to make me have gone through all this trouble for nothing and send me away?”

There was no other choice. A person who was already busy these days had come to pick him up in his car at one in the morning for his sake, and as he said, he could not just make him have gone through the trouble for nothing. Haseong pressed his lips together firmly and shook his head from side to side.

As he got into the passenger seat as told, Yehan flashed a smiling-eyed look and took out a cigarette to put in his mouth. He thought, what would he do about the aftermath if someone came out while he was like that, but the moment he smelled the cigarette, the desire to smoke one himself welled up. It was even more intense because he could not smoke while working his part-time job.

I was trying to cut down. Throwing away his resolution to quit smoking, which had failed again today, Haseong also took out a cigarette. It was funny to ask for permission now after they had smoked together several times, but for now, he asked for permission with a glance.

Yehan, who answered by lending him a lighter, rested his arm on the open window frame and exhaled smoke outside. Haseong, who followed his lead and lit his cigarette, returned the lighter and asked.

“…Did you enjoy the rest of your meal?”

He casually brought up a random topic while holding smoke in his mouth. His pronunciation was slightly slurred, but Yehan astutely understood and answered.

“It was just okay. The dessert wasn’t very good.”

“Is that so? I thought it was delicious….”

“It was fine up to the main dish. But there are plenty of places that are that good.”

The statement that there were plenty of places that good was a shock to Haseong. The amuse, amu… anyway, that thing that came out as soon as he sat down was the most delicious thing Haseong had ever eaten in his life. He was even inwardly disappointed that he could not eat the dessert because he was going to be late for his part-time job.

“I think it’s hard to find something that’s good all the way to the end, no matter what it is.”

Yehan, who had stubbed out his cigarette in the car ashtray, muttered softly. Haseong also hurriedly took a few more drags and crushed his cigarette in the ashtray. In the meantime, the car started, and fresh night air quickly seeped into the interior that had been filled with the acrid smell of cigarettes.

Haseong was waving his arm out the window to get the smoke out when he paused. It was because the topic that had been bothering him the whole time was mentioned once again.

“Jinho seemed to like you a lot, Mr. Haseong, but what did you think?”

“He seemed like an interesting person.”

Recalling that the atmosphere had turned strange when he said he seemed like a good person, he offered a different word this time. The fact that he was getting needlessly anxious was a bonus.

It would be better if Yehan were concentrating on driving, but the car had just stopped at a red light. Haseong resentfully looked at the blinking red traffic light while receiving a direct stare.

“You said he seemed like a good person earlier.”

“Well, that’s because he’s your friend, Hyung.”

“Are all my friends good people?”

“It’s not so much that, but… I figured you wouldn’t introduce a bad person to me, Hyung.”

Why isn’t this light changing? Haseong answered honestly as he had thought and gripped his knees tightly. He did not know why he always automatically cowered whenever he was in front of Yehan, even though Yehan was not trying to scare him. If he looked even slightly displeased, he would needlessly become self-conscious, wonder if it was his fault, and feel anxious.

And yet, Yehan was always affectionate toward him. There were times when he acted coldly, but that was because he had been so frustrating. In the restaurant earlier… he did not know why he did that.

Why did he really do that? He became even more curious since he could not even begin to guess. Haseong, who could no longer hold back his question, met the eyes of the man who was staring at the side of his face with an intensity that seemed about to pierce it.

“But… is that not the case? Is he maybe like that when he works or something…. I’ve been bothered by your reaction this whole time.”

“Ha….”

For someone who had mustered up the courage to ask, his attitude was hesitant. At Yehan’s reaction of sighing while stroking his jaw as if he were troubled, Haseong shrank back even more.

Ah, maybe it would have been better not to ask this question. That stupid light could have changed just a little earlier…. The car started as the light finally turned green. To Haseong, who was blaming himself while feeling the blowing wind, a mumble like a soliloquy flowed in, mixed with the noise.

“Just when I think he’s a bit lacking, he always does this.”

“Pardon?”

Because they were driving on a wide-open road with all the windows open, he could not hear well what was being said right next to him. Haseong, who quickly rolled up the passenger side window, asked what he had said again, but Yehan, instead of repeating himself, continued with incomprehensible words.

“That’s a talent too, if you can call it a talent, Mr. Haseong.”

The hand that reached out to lightly pinch his cheek was playful. So was the face that smiled gently. Outside the window, tall buildings with their lights out sped by.

Though it was one in the morning, the neon signs had been flashing brightly until they turned into the alley, but once they were on the main road, the surroundings were dark except for the streetlights. It was far from a splendid night view, but even that quiet scenery looked serene and wonderful when it became Yehan’s backdrop.

Why can’t I take my eyes off this person? Haseong was busy stealing glances at Yehan’s side profile as he drove, and by the time he realized he was acting too much like a starstruck fool, he turned his head toward the passenger side window. Then he glanced at the face reflected in the window again.

He only realized that he had passed the way to his own house a long time ago by the time he saw the exterior of Yehan’s apartment.

💜

Haseong fidgeted, glancing out the window without even having unbuckled his seatbelt. The uniquely dark and damp scenery of the underground parking lot, even with the lights on, amplified his anxiety.

A space where outsiders were strictly forbidden, but any resident could come and go, with many blind spots due to corners, making it impossible to even know if someone was approaching, and where sound echoed.

What if someone were to secretly approach and look inside the car….

“Why do you keep looking away?”

“Hk!”

His vision, which had been glancing at the corners, blinked to black in an instant. At the touch that rubbed the shallow groove of his glans as if pressing it with a fingernail, his thighs, which had been spread at an awkward angle, trembled.

Because he was sitting with his seatbelt on, he could not even twist his body as he pleased. Haseong sat fixed to the seat as if glued to it and made a sound as if he were about to stop breathing.

“Ah, ahk, ugh….”

“Does doing it in the car make you more excited?”

Haseong covered his own mouth with his palm and just shook his head. The moment he opened his mouth, moans flowed out uncontrollably. Why was it that the pleasure he had never felt when masturbating alone would rush in to the point of him losing his mind whenever Yehan so much as touched him?

Haseong, who desperately bit his lip to quiet his voice, straightened his back. The deep pink penis, peeking out from between the white fingers, likewise became even more erect.

The act had begun as soon as they parked. The reason he had not unbuckled his seatbelt was that he had been swept away by the suddenly unfolding situation without having a chance to resist. To be precise, the moment he was about to press the button to release it, Yehan had reached out, taken out his penis, and begun to handle it as he pleased.

His penis, which he had not touched once since the last time he had relations with him due to a lack of energy, sensitively absorbed the stimulation that had come after a long time.

The calloused palm, unlike his pretty face, wrapped around the shaft and squeezed it hard, then released the pressure and moved up and down. Each time, along with the rough texture of the calluses, his skin was scraped upwards as if it were catching on the knuckles.

His penis, which had become erect after only a few movements of Yehan’s hand, seemed to know no shame. At the tip of his glans, a drop or two of clear fluid had already begun to well up.

Yehan did not miss that chance and, like last time, pressed down along the hole and the groove with his fingernail. Haseong struggled against the pleasure he could not get used to. Transparent fluid welled up between the fingernails that were persistently tormenting his urethral opening and then trickled down the shaft. The hand, which had quickly become sticky, moved without rest.

“Ha, ugh, u-uhng, Hyung, ah…! Wait, heuk!”

At this rate, it seemed he would ejaculate in Yehan’s car. Due to his posture of sitting facing forward, it was clear that if he ejaculated, semen would splatter everywhere. He was wearing clothes, the seats were leather, and he wanted to avoid, at all costs, dirtying the interior of a car that must be worth at least several hundred million won with such a filthy liquid. Haseong hurriedly covered his glans with his hand.

“I’m about to, eut, about to come….”

“I’m doing this to make you come, so what’s the problem.”

“It’ll get dirty… heut!”

Yehan, who smiled benevolently as if he understood, squeezed the base of his penis as if wringing it. Haseong trembled and threw his head back, opening his mouth wide. He had barely managed to hold back his ejaculation, but his toes were already curled as if right after an orgasm.

Yehan, gently correcting the grip of Haseong’s palm which was covering his glans, whispered.

“Then Mr. Haseong, catch it well in your palm. If it splatters anywhere else, you lick it.”

“Ah, Hyung, no, heuk, I don’t want to, just a moment!”

Lick it if it splatters anywhere else? My semen?

Without waiting for Haseong, who was shocked by the stunning words, Yehan started moving his hand again, which he had stopped. The sound of bare skin rubbing against each other echoed loudly in the car. Perhaps because it was a parking lot, the sound seemed to reverberate and amplify, and Haseong’s reddened eyes kept turning worriedly toward the window.

The sound, the sound shouldn’t leak out… and the semen too…. Haseong, with a face that looked like he was about to cry, panted and buried his upper body into the backrest. As he shook his head, not wanting to ejaculate, a gentle voice soothed Haseong.

“It’s better to come once before we start, so your body can relax. Otherwise, it’s too tight.”

“Euk, u-eut, keuk! Heu-eu….”

At the same time, his smooth glans was rubbed with a finger, and the ejaculation he had been desperately holding back arrived. His body, which had been buried in the backrest, tensed as if it were about to lunge forward, and the muscles in his thighs and buttocks tightened.

The sticky, milky white semen that his penis spurted out was thankfully blocked by Haseong’s palm, ending with just dirtying his clothes and hand. It was the moment Haseong was inwardly relieved, feeling the warm temperature drenching his palm.

“It splattered here.”

Yehan suddenly pointed towards the window frame and then swiped the area with his index finger. As he said, a few splattered drops of semen had smeared stickily. With his finger, the tip of which was coated in semen, held close to his mouth, he said softly.

“Ah.”

Unlike Yehan who was smiling and offering it, Haseong’s lips were firmly shut. Is he really telling me to eat it? Surely, he must be joking. He desperately hoped so and kept his lips firmly shut, just shaking his jaw. He was afraid that if he opened his mouth, the semen-smeared finger would be pushed in.

“You don’t want to eat it?”

He nodded his head furiously at the question. There’s a limit to joking. With all his might, while his body was limp as the excitement from the recent ejaculation had not yet subsided, he expressed his unwillingness to eat it, and Yehan slyly withdrew his hand.

And then, meeting the relieved Haseong’s eyes, he licked the semen off his finger as if to show him.

“……”

“Should I eat what’s on Mr. Haseong’s hand, too?”

Yehan asked mischievously, deliberately stroking his now glistening lips with the index finger he had just licked. Haseong, who had been staring blankly at the lewd sight for a while, only came to his senses when Yehan tried to pull his hand away and hurriedly took out a wet wipe to clean it.

Yehan, with a very playful look, clicked his tongue as if disappointed and unbuckled Haseong’s seatbelt. The thought that they were finally getting out was short-lived; Haseong’s eyes trembled when he saw the passenger seat backrest automatically begin to recline.

“…Are you going to continue here?”

“There’s no reason we can’t.”

“N-no, I don’t want to. I….”

No reason they can’t. Did that mean that, by his standards, car sex in a parking lot was an acceptable thing to do? They teach you to refrain from excessive displays of affection in public places as soon as you enter elementary school.

Moreover, if someone found out, it would be one thing for him, but for Yehan, it would be a fatal blow… no, the entire country would be turned upside down. What crazy celebrity has car sex with a same-sex beta male in the underground parking lot of the apartment he lives in. The sensational article headlines that flashed through his mind were already dizzying.

“You’re saying ‘no’ a lot today.”

“Because you keep making strange requests, Hyung….”

“Then what does Mr. Haseong want to do?”

“…At home, first, I want to go home.”

It was an answer given under the shallow calculation that whatever they did, it would be much better to do it at Yehan’s house. He could not go to his own house alone at this hour when the buses had stopped running, and it was obvious he would not be let go.

“Then you should have said so sooner.”

If he had been given time to speak, that smiling face would not have been so detestable. Haseong glared at Yehan, but at the words that looking at him so prettily made him have no choice but to do it in the car, he just adjusted his pants and scrambled out.

Even in the short time they waited for the elevator, Yehan did not let it go to waste. Haseong was busy accepting the lips that were caressing him, hugging his waist, and touching his ear with near-obsession.

As soon as they entered the long-awaited home, the unfinished act continued. The moment the front door closed, Yehan rushed at him with the momentum to fuck him right there, standing without even taking off his shoes, so Haseong used all his strength to barely escape Yehan’s embrace.

“I need to wash up.”

He adamantly insisted that he had to wash up, saying he had sweated a lot while working because he had been so busy today, and Yehan wrinkled his nose.

“You don’t smell like sweat. Mr. Haseong always has a nice scent.”

“How can that be. I’m not an omega.”

“I know. But that’s what I smell. A citrus-y… The handkerchief Mr. Haseong tore and returned also had a similar scent.”

“That’s probably the fabric softener scent. Grapefruit.”

“Yes, grapefruit is a citrus scent.”

“……”

I see. In the gap when the embarrassed Haseong slightly lowered his head, Yehan’s arms wrapped around his waist again. Haseong, who was once again trapped in the embrace he had just escaped, gave up resisting and took off his shoes as if in resignation.

Yehan lifted Haseong up in a single motion. Embarrassed at being lifted like a child, Haseong buried his face in his shoulder, and a light kiss landed on the back of his head as if in praise.

Yehan, holding Haseong, strode forward and stopped in front of the bathroom. The relief of thinking he was being given time to wash was rendered moot as he followed him into the shower booth and tormented his nipples under the pretext of lathering him up.

He was only able to leave the bathroom by the time his nipples were swollen and puffy, and small nail marks and bite marks were embedded around his areolas, with reddish wounds taking the place of his original skin color.

Even lying on the bed, the teasing of his nipples continued. The tips of the protrusions, which had become slightly larger due to the swelling, were rolled inside his tongue. Haseong moaned, covering his eyes with his arm at the novel stimulation.

“It stings, heut, it stings. Stop….”

No answer came back. Yehan seemed to be preoccupied with sucking on his nipples. One was being nibbled on, and the other was being pinched. It was even more humiliating because it was audibly embarrassing, as if he were deliberately making sucking sounds.

What was even more maddening was that, unlike at first when it only smarted and hurt, as time went on, a subtle pleasure began to rise at the end of the stinging sensation. Especially when, after biting with his teeth, he would engulf the nipple with his wet tongue and lick the tip, a tingling sensation would spread through his stomach, and the tips of his toes would twitch.

His dick, which had been slowly getting hard, was now fully erect and pressed against his abdomen, bobbing on its own. Yehan was also erect. He had been rigidly erect since he followed him into the bathroom. Yehan, who finally removed his mouth from the nipple, caressed his own dick and lowered his gaze to Haseong’s lower body.

“Why are you hard?”

I didn’t even touch you here. He let out a hollow laugh and flicked the plump nipple. At the same time, Haseong’s dick, which was dripping Cowper’s fluid, twitched. Haseong, also witnessing the sight, covered his eyes with his arm in shame.

Unless I’m really crazy…. No matter how much they only had sex during Yehan’s rut, could he get used to it this quickly? He was even being subjected to having his nipples touched for the first time today, yet the stimulation was enough to make his lower parts tingle. As if anticipating the next step.

It seemed that after spending three or four days embracing only a cock, the body’s entire system of stimulation had been completely altered. Haseong found this point the most shocking. He was not an omega, he had not originally been in relationships with men, nor had he been interested in such things, yet just from the experience of the past few days, he had become like this….

“Euk….”

While his eyes were covered, his two legs were lifted swiftly. He squirmed at the position that exposed his private parts completely, and cold gel poured down over his genitals and perineum. His waist trembled, and his legs automatically tried to close, but the more he did so, the stronger the grip on his calves became.

Yehan, who had settled himself between Haseong’s legs, spread only his right leg wide to the side and then gathered the gel, poking at the hole with his fingers.

“It’s going to take a while to loosen you up again. It’s completely closed up since we haven’t done it for a few days.”

“U-uhng, heu, heu-eut…!”

With a squelch, the gel slathered on his perineum was pushed into the hole and began to wet the inner walls. The gel, melted by his body heat, trickled down like water, soaking the bedsheet. Haseong’s buttocks trembled minutely at the sensation of water flowing down his back.

Once the hole accepted two fingers, the muscles that had only been contracting to return to their original size somehow began to slowly relax. Because his hands were so large and his fingers so long, this alone felt like a tight, dull pain, as if a whole penis had been received. But it was not an unbearable level of pain like the first time.

Rather, when the protruding knuckles caught on the hole, pulled out, and then pushed back in, he could feel his insides clenching and his stomach churning without him even realizing it. When his longest middle finger scraped against a spot on the inner wall, his legs twitched as if he had received an electric shock.

This was not a stimulation that could be endured just by trying. Each time his body reacted honestly, as if to announce that it had become a body that could feel pleasure from being poked in the hole, the number of fingers filling the inside and the force of the poking gradually increased.

“Mr. Haseong will take a cock better than most omegas.”

Yehan laughed as he finally jammed four fingers into the hole and tickled the smooth perineum with his free thumb. Just clenching his insides tightly around the four deeply inserted fingers was enough to make him see stars, so there was no way he could endure the blunt nail tickling his perineum like a feather.

“Ah, a-ah, a-euh!”

His back arched in a curve, and a milky white fluid burst out from below. His upper body was completely stained and messy with the semen that had splattered up to his chin.

Because he had ejaculated twice in a row without much of a time gap, the amount was less than what he had done in the car, but the degree of pleasure was much greater than what he had felt in the car. Haseong, with dazed eyes and his mouth slightly open, panted for breath.

Without even giving him a moment to catch his breath, the stimulation continued relentlessly. As his prostate, which had become sensitive right after ejaculating, was pressed down firmly, his inner walls crumpled and convulsed madly.

“A-eung, eu, heu-eu-eu!”

Haseong was not even aware that he was struggling. His chin was thrown back, and his Adam’s apple protruded from his neck, where the veins stood out.

Taking that opportunity, Yehan pulled out the four fingers he had been ramming in and thrust his own cock in deeply. It felt as if his body was being split in half by the insertion that followed, forcibly parting his convulsing insides. It seemed to be overwhelming for Yehan as well, as moans escaped from both of their mouths at the same time.

“A-euk!”

“Hoo….”

His stiffly tensed neck felt choked. Ignoring Haseong, who was writhing in a storm of pain and pleasure that made it impossible to breathe, Yehan grabbed Haseong’s waist with a force that seemed about to crush it and pushed his cock in to the very end.

At the same time, the tip of his glans poked his prostate directly. Haseong’s eyes flew wide open, and an unrefined moan and plea burst out together.

“Pull, pull it out, heuat, eut, eu, ah! A-euh-eu, it’s strange, it hurts!”

“Lies. If it hurt, your cock would have gone limp long ago.”

“No, no…! Ah, really, heu-eung, it’s… strange, ah!”

Just as Yehan said, his penis, which had become erect again right after ejaculating, as if to mock that fact, was even flushed red at the glans. From the tip of his cock, which looked as if there was nothing left to come out, clear fluid dripped out with difficulty. It seemed to have arisen as a physiological reaction to the continuous stimulation, but it looked weak, unlike when it had bobbed on its own in time with Yehan’s prodding fingers.

…But something was strange. Something different from the sensation of ejaculating, a much more agonizing, throbbing, and unbearable sensation was churning in his lower abdomen. It was similar to when he had held his urine for a long time. The moment he realized that, Haseong was instinctively engulfed by a certain urge. That urge grew every time his inner walls, still greedily swallowing the cock, tightened and enveloped Yehan’s cock.

He wanted to cum. He wanted to throw away all shame and everything and just feel relieved. He was holding back with all his might, but every time Yehan thrusted so deeply that the area around his navel bulged out, the patience he was barely holding onto loosened to the point of his vision going dizzy. It really felt like it was going to burst from the huge cock rummaging inside, poking here and there indiscriminately.

Haseong sobbed, covering his lower abdomen that repeatedly bulged and deflated. It was certain that if he continued to be fucked like this, something other than semen would come trickling out of his cock. If he would just thrust shallowly, he might be able to bear it somehow, but Yehan, who had no way of knowing Haseong’s situation, thrust his hips upwards with the momentum to shove even his testicles in.

Now, Haseong did not even know what he was saying. He just pleaded, almost begging, with whatever came out of his mouth and pushed against the bedsheet with his heels, and Yehan gently pressed his lips to his shoulder and the nape of his neck.

“Are you exaggerating because you’re afraid I’ll knot? Don’t worry. I told you, I don’t do it unless it’s my rut.”

“Heu-eut, eu, no, no, it’s not that. Something, heut, is going to come out….”

“From your cock?”

Haseong nodded his head frantically. Yehan flicked his finger and tapped Haseong’s cock, which was lying limply on his abdomen.

“Do you feel like you’re going to pee?”

“Heuk, u-uhng… yes…. Please, just a little.”

If he had to describe the sensation he was feeling in words, the closest thing was the urge to urinate, so he affirmed it. He also thought that if he said he needed to urinate, Yehan would readily let him go. But contrary to his expectation, he smiled even more deeply and pulled his hips back in a large motion.

“That would be cute. Show me you cumming.”

Along with the lewd request that made him doubt his ears, the cock that had pulled out thrust back in with a thud, with the momentum to pierce through his stomach skin. Haseong cried out.

“A-eu-eu-eu! Ah, a-heu, heut, heu-eung!”

“Keuk, for some reason, it’s tighter than last time, hoo… How are you so good at this?”

The blush-inducing words that Yehan muttered no longer entered his ears. The only thing that mattered was holding it in. Because it was clear that the moment he relaxed his body even a little, it would burst out. But Yehan, as if possessed, dug into only the prostate and the area around it, weakening Haseong’s self-control.

“A-eu-eung…!”

It was around the time when the fear that his hole, stretched open to the diameter of Yehan’s cock, would never close again dominated his mind. Yehan, who had been continuing his fierce thrusting, buried his cock to the root inside Haseong and ejaculated. The temperature of the warm liquid filling his stomach and the feeling of a foreign object were now familiar.

The sensation, imprinted in his mind from the experience of being ejaculated into non-stop during the rut, naturally induced Haseong’s ejaculation as well. It was because Yehan would always block his urethral opening, saying it was better to come together, and match the timing.

But unfortunately, Haseong had been clamoring to release something other than semen for a while now. In the end, Haseong’s cock gave a great jerk, and a strong stream of water shot out.

In time with his cock trembling, the transparent liquid also gushed out here and there, trickling down. The colorless, odorless liquid not only soaked Haseong’s pillow and the bedsheet but also splattered onto Yehan’s chest, trickling down in droplets.

“Haha, you’re showing your childish side like this.”

What are we going to do if you can’t even control your bladder properly. It splattered everywhere. Yehan laughed as he wiped away the liquid that had splattered on his eyelids. The moment he heard that mischievous voice, tears streamed down his face. His face burned so hot that his vision turned black from the heat rising to his head.

What was even more humiliating was that, even while he was buried in such self-loathing, a clear liquid was trickling out of his genitals as if from a slightly opened faucet.

Yehan rubbed the liquid that had not only pooled in his navel like a well but was also flowing down his abs with his palm. He looked at the liquid, which had almost no viscosity, with curious eyes and said.

“Why are you crying. From now on, when Mr. Haseong goes to the bathroom, I can just hold your cock for you.”

“Really, really… heuk, I hate it….”

Haseong felt unbearably sad. One person was dying of embarrassment, while the other was just teasing him.

He felt like he wanted to dig a hole and crawl into it if there was one, but Yehan showed no sign of being serious at all. Just leaking something like urine during sex was a huge mental blow, and to top it all off, he was now offering to help him when he went to the bathroom in the future. Haseong rubbed his tear-soaked eyes and glared at Yehan.

“…Are you really crying? Because you hate it?”

Yehan, who had been smiling playfully, also hardened his expression as he gradually noticed that Haseong’s state was unusual. Without even pulling out his cock, which was still inside the hole, he hurriedly raised his hands. His hands, soaked with the unknown liquid, glistened under the lights.

“This isn’t urine. Look, it doesn’t smell and it’s transparent.”

“……”

“I thought Mr. Haseong knew, too. That’s why I was teasing you a bit…. I didn’t know you’d be so embarrassed that you’d cry like this.”

Is he really kidding me…. He wanted to ask who wouldn’t be embarrassed when teased like that, but after confirming through his words that it was not something dirty, his mind was somewhat at ease. Yehan was busy stroking Haseong’s cheek with his relatively clean hand, soothing and placating him.

“Stop crying, okay? It’ll be a problem if Mr. Haseong dislikes me….”

“…The bath…room, that too.”

“I said it because it was cute. I won’t follow you in, so don’t worry.”

That his sorrow subsided so quickly was, in a way, a talent. Was that why he was called a pushover? Along with that useless realization, his insides, which were interlocked with Yehan, felt as if they were turning over, and the huge cock slid out.

A brief, sharp, dull pain followed, and then the milky white semen that had been blocked by the cock and unable to leak out gushed onto the bedsheet. It was certainly a smaller amount of ejaculate compared to during the rut, but it was still more than that of a normal beta male, so just what flowed out from the hole was enough to make the area between his legs slosh.

Yehan lifted Haseong in his arms and then, with his free arm, stripped off the bedsheet that was soaked with all sorts of liquids.

“It’s okay if we go wash up together, right?”

This was something he was more than used to, so there was nothing to refuse. The routine after entering the bathroom was the same as always.

As Yehan led, he scraped out the remaining semen inside his hole, washed his body clean, and then got into the bathtub filled with warm water. His back, which felt like it was about to break, found some stability.

Haseong leaned back and sat between Yehan’s legs. The square bathtub was large enough for three or four grown men to sit in, but it was because Yehan had requested they sit side by side like this. Yehan had his arms wrapped around Haseong’s waist and his nose buried in the nape of his neck.

“It’s a bit of a shame at times like this that Mr. Haseong is a non-phenotype.”

“Why is that?”

“Mr. Haseong’s body scent, my pheromone scent, and the body wash scent we just used blend so well together, it’s really nice.”

“Your pheromones, Hyung?”

“Yes. The scent they create when they mix is so good that I keep wanting to rub it on you. It’s okay, right? You’re a beta anyway, Mr. Haseong.”

Haseong needlessly fiddled with the nape of his neck. Perhaps it was because he had heard directly from Yehan the reasons why phenotypes would mark their partners with their pheromones. He said he was rubbing it on him because he liked the blended scent, but Haseong could not help but be conscious of it.

“It doesn’t matter to me, but other phenotypes might misunderstand….”

“There are no other phenotypes around you now, are there, Mr. Haseong? Hyungseok, Jinho, Ms. Miyeon are all betas. Ah, do you have any among your friends?”

“No.”

To be precise, he just did not have any friends. In fact, it was safe to say that the three people Yehan had mentioned were all the acquaintances Haseong saw these days. Somehow, he had ended up with only people he knew through Yehan, or people Yehan had introduced him to, around him.

But it was too embarrassing to say, ‘The only acquaintances I have are the three people you know, Hyung,’ so Haseong just answered concisely.

Who do I drink with and who do I hang out with now? From his already small circle of human relationships, after Woochan, Yeongjun, and Juwon were all cut out, there was no one left he could call a friend. Well, he had not been on laughing terms with those three this year anyway.

He had no regrets about cutting ties, but a sense of doubt about his human relationships, which had not just narrowed but been completely annihilated, remained, and he let out a deep sigh. It was then.

“Then that’s that. Just let complete strangers misunderstand if they want to.”

A warm hand gently swept his hair back, as if to take away his worries. Haseong entrusted his head to that hand and quietly leaned his body against him.

A busier life than ever before began, as he worked as Kim Jinho’s composition assistant while also holding down a part-time job at the live club.

It was a huge relief that Hyungseok, who had heard the situation, said that the summer peak season was ending anyway and adjusted his hours so he would only come to the live club on Fridays and Saturdays. Otherwise, his schedule would have been working seven days a week from morning until dawn.

Thanks to the salary Kim Jinho gave him, there was no problem with his livelihood even with the reduced part-time hours. To be frank, the amount itself was only slightly more than what he earned at his convenience store part-time job, but compared to the infamous stories he had heard about the state of this industry, it was a salary to be grateful for. Even more so when considering he could learn while working.

“This is the studio. Ah, I can speak casually, right?”

Kim Jinho asked as he threw open the studio door. Haseong was so busy looking around like a village idiot that he could only answer, ‘yes, yes,’ to Kim Jinho’s question. It was his first official day of work, so nothing was properly registering in his ears, and he was completely frozen with tension.

“For now, I’ve just hastily brought in a desk, a chair, and some basic equipment. If you need anything else while working, just use this card. Don’t ask about trivial things. Let’s only ask about work-related things when we’re working.”

“Yes.”

“I like to come in on time like an office worker, focus hard during the hours, and finish up sharply. You get used to it too.”

“Yes. Um, but is it okay to stay behind and study alone?”

“That, well… just get Go Yehan’s permission. I don’t mind. I’ll give you the studio key, so just be careful with locking up.”

Permission for wanting to stay voluntarily? And from Yehan Hyung, of all people? To Haseong, who tilted his head, a key tied together with a blue card was tossed over. An explanation followed that he should first tap the security deactivation card, then open the door with the key, and do the reverse when locking.

After looking around the studio, he toured the building and learned about the basic facilities, such as the purpose of each room and the location of the lights. Back in the studio, Haseong was reading the contract when he paused and tapped his pen. It was the most important part, yet he had forgotten to ask.

“Should I call you seonsaengnim?”

He could not call him ‘sajangnim’ like Hyungseok, and since he was in a position similar to a boss at work, it was also awkward to call him ‘Hyung’ like he did with Yehan. But since it was not like a regular company with job titles, it was a dilemma. At Haseong’s question, Kim Jinho waved his hand in disgust.

“Seonsaengnim? How embarrassing. Just call me Hyung….”

He, who had been grimacing with a disgusted look on his face, suddenly paused slowly and then forced an awkward smile.

“…You can’t call me that. Seonsaengnim would be good. Kim-seonsaengnim. Hmm, good. It has an appropriate sense of distance, very good.”

His expression, as he talked about an appropriate sense of distance as if he had never hardened his face, was peaceful.

…He doesn’t seem to have any intention of getting that close to me. Of course, Haseong had no intention of being on intimate terms with Kim Jinho, who was slated to be his boss and teacher, but for some reason, it felt like he had been rejected before he even thought of confessing, so it did not feel very good.

The disheartened Haseong wrote his name in a scrawling script and finished signing. Kim Jinho, who took the completed contract with a wide smile, neatly placed the paper in a file folder and then extended his right hand.

“Alright, then let’s do a good job.”

“Yes. I look forward to working with you.”

Likewise, Haseong was about to extend his hand for a handshake. It was at that moment.

“Oh, shoot. I have shingles on my palm.”

Kim Jinho, his eyes twitching, pulled back his right hand before Haseong’s hand, which was about to clasp his, could even brush against it. Haseong, who was suddenly left with his hand extended in the air, stared intently at Kim Jinho. Shingles my ass, I saw his palm, clean without a single paper cut.

Kim Jinho’s pupils also began to tremble uncontrollably as he met Haseong’s gaze, which clearly showed a mixture of slight indignation and disbelief. He repeated, “Oh my, it’s hot, so hot. I need to go get some iced coffee, oh my,” in an incredibly awkward tone and then disappeared into the elevator.

Haseong, left all alone in the unfamiliar building, thought. For some reason, it seemed there were many rather peculiar people around Yehan, like his manager named SeHyung, and Hyungseok who was sometimes overly considerate to him.

Haseong gritted his teeth as he looked at the sleek face carelessly flipping through the papers while lying on the bed. What does he mean, ‘I have to look at the script today, too, so let’s work together at my place.’ Haseong clutched his back, which felt like it was about to snap, and his throbbing, aching stomach, and groaned as he lay face down.

It had been a full three weeks since he had started learning and working under Kim Jinho. Contrary to his worries on the first day of work, he was a decent boss and teacher.

Except for the fact that he did not answer at all when he was concentrating, he taught him well as promised, and while he made sure to assign him work, he had a knack for distributing only tasks that Haseong could handle with his current abilities.

Being in a trance when concentrating was something he could understand well enough. At first, he had been terrified when he would not answer his questions and just stare at the screen with bloodshot eyes, muttering to himself like someone possessed by something, but now that he was used to it, he looked like a master, so frankly, he even looked a bit cool.

Anyway, quite satisfactory days were continuing. Money being regularly deposited into his bank account without having to worry about living expenses, narrow but stress-free human relationships, and he was getting one step closer to his long-desired dream. There was no reason for things to be bad.

…Except for the times Yehan would occasionally trick him completely and take him to his house after work.

‘He really looks like an angel.’

Unlike his holy beauty, Yehan was very, very far from a celibate sex life. No matter how much of a dominant alpha he was, he thought his sex drive was a bit excessive. And to match that sex drive, his thing was excessively large too…. The excuses he used to drag him to his house were also very diverse.

The most memorable one was when he asked him to come over and catch a bug because a bug had gotten into his house and he was scared. The identity of that bug was a mosquito, and as soon as he found it on the wall, Yehan killed it by spraying insecticide. Seeing the person who claimed to be scared casually wrap the mosquito carcass in a tissue and throw it away, Haseong thought, this Hyung doesn’t even have the will to act anymore, and he too became somewhat detached.

He had promised to help him for his convenience, for his pheromone management or whatever it was, but he slightly regretted it. If he had known his body would be this worn out, he would have thought about it a bit more before agreeing…. Whenever he came to this house, whatever the reason for the visit, he would end up lying on the bed like a corpse to recuperate, making his own state seem like a grandfather suffering from chronic back pain.

‘Homework, have to do it….’

Haseong, who had tried to somehow raise his body, let out a panting breath like an old man whose strength had run out and collapsed again. All the strength had drained from his entire body, to the point that when he tried to support his upper body with his elbows and sit up, his arms would tremble.

Yehan, who had been concentrating on the script with a blank face, cast his gaze over when he heard Haseong flop onto the mattress. The corners of his mouth were already turned up.

“Aren’t you working, Mr. Haseong? That Jinho guy is a pretty tough style to work with.”

“…I don’t think I can get up.”

“Oh, my.”

How annoying that formal exclamation was, as if he were talking about someone else’s business. Just from hearing his chuckling voice, it was obvious that a wide smile was blooming on his face, so Haseong sulked and buried his face in the pillow. A large hand came down on Haseong’s back and patted the sore spot.

“You left your laptop in the living room, right? Should I get it for you?”

“No. I’ll just… be resting, so you can keep reading, Hyung….”

“That’s strange. We only do it once or twice a week, why are you always so sore?”

Out of indignation, the head that had been buried in the pillow snapped around. It was true that he was kidnapped to Yehan’s house about once or twice a week. It had become an almost fixed routine for him to come pick him up around the time he finished his part-time job at the live club on Saturday nights, and Yehan would also visit once during the weekdays.

So if you only count by days, once or twice a week was correct, but…. No, you can’t count it like that, can you? Isn’t that too shameless? Haseong’s disgruntled voice rang out softly.

“Have you… not considered that when we do it that one or two times, we do it too much, excessively?”

“I haven’t really thought about it. From what I see, it seems Mr. Haseong’s stamina is a bit weak.”

It was unfair. The fact that he was enduring this level of sex life while working six days a week was already proof that he was born with good stamina. Haseong, with his eyes narrowed, retorted.

“It’s not a stamina problem, my back and stomach hurt.”

“You pass out once in the middle every time we do it.”

“That’s, that’s….”

How could he possibly endure when the man held him down and did it for hours on end like that? And when he woke up, although his body would ache as if he had been beaten up, his head would feel refreshed as if he had slept soundly, so he was also the type to easily let go of consciousness when he started to feel drowsy while doing it.

At a loss for words, Haseong buried his face in the pillow again, and Yehan laughed openly.

“But your back is one thing, why your stomach?”

“I don’t know. Lately, it often hurts like I have indigestion.”

The feeling was similar, stuffy and nauseous like when he had indigestion. But unlike the symptoms of acute indigestion where the area around his solar plexus would tighten, what was different was that the area around his lower abdomen would have a strange, sharp ache. It was not painful enough to go to the hospital, so he was letting it be, but it was an unpleasant sensation.

It seemed to throb even more particularly after having relations with Yehan, so he could only inwardly guess that it might be due to his size.