MIM 45

“Is this a gift? I can wrap it for you.”

“What? Oh, yes.”

“For a lover?”

“Pfft, no. Just…”

Who gives boxer briefs like these to their lover? Shin-woo burst out laughing at the odd assumption and rubbed his face with one hand. When he tried to answer, he was at a loss for how to introduce Ma Jae-seung. He couldn’t call him “young master,” and saying “boss’s son” would be strange.

“It’s for a younger friend.”

A younger friend. Though there was nothing incorrect about the phrase, it felt awkward and unfamiliar in his mouth. Shin-woo scratched the back of his neck sheepishly as he received the beautifully wrapped box. Seeing the item packaged properly like a gift box felt strange, more so than when he had just verbally called it a gift.

He didn’t feel too bad about it.

By the time he returned home with the gift, the sky was tinged with evening light. His original plan was to sneak into Jae-seung’s room when everyone was asleep, just give the gift and leave, but that day Shin-woo ended up not meeting Jae-seung at all.

The atmosphere in the mansion was unsettled. Shin-woo knew this chaotic and precarious mood all too well. Word came that right after receiving his birthday meal, Jae-seung had complained of severe abdominal pain, vomited blood, and lost consciousness.

* * *

When you’re in pain, you feel alive. Even while walking down the street as usual, when a sudden, profound emptiness strikes, nothing feels as vivid as pain. When your whole body’s senses seem to die off, your consciousness becomes hazy, and your entire body feels numb, the pain remains clear – whether it’s from a nosebleed after being slapped or cuts on your hands from throwing punches.

“Young Master Jae-seung has started self-harming. There are wounds on his wrists.”

Having experienced it himself, Shin-woo knew that feeling better than anyone. Self-harm wasn’t just cutting hands with knives; deliberately getting into fights was self-harm too.

“What a weakling.”

Ma Jin-seong shook his head, saying this was too much. His reaction was so nonchalant it was almost embarrassing for the lab director who had rushed in with an urgent report.

“It doesn’t seem like he’s using sharp objects like knives. Given his strength, he’s probably tearing flesh with his fingernails. But look at this. His recovery speed has noticeably increased.”

The lab director’s eyes gleamed with madness. He laid out several photos in front of Ma Jin-seong. They showed the process of scars on the wrist gradually disappearing. In the last photo, Jae-seung’s arm was clean without a single scar.

Only after seeing the photos did Ma Jin-seong slowly lean forward in his seat. It meant he was interested.

“Has his recovery speed increased a lot?”

“This happened in just a few days. Even his stretch marks have started to disappear.”

“As expected of my son, he’s extraordinary.”

Ma Jin-seong clapped his hands together, smiling with satisfaction. The lab director, equally excited, spoke passionately, even spitting as he talked.

“We might not need to wait until the young master becomes an adult. We could use medication to bring his rut forward by a few years. The young master’s physical abilities are incomparably more developed than other subjects. He should be able to withstand it. Then he could become a complete Alpha faster-“

“No. Not a single person has survived that method so far. Are you trying to kill my son?”

It was rather surprising to hear he had no intention of killing him. Ma Jin-seong started rattling off past failure cases, as if he had his own criteria for judging acceptable risks. The news of Jae-seung starting to self-harm was no longer even a topic of conversation for them.

As he stared blankly at them chattering endlessly, Shin-woo recalled the last time he saw Jae-seung.

[Did Mother send you?]

[Then Father?]

[Next Friday is my birthday.]

Self-harm wasn’t just cutting hands with knives; knowingly eating food with poison was self-harm too.

Shin-woo quickly left Ma Jin-seong’s study after finishing his report. With each harsh step, the sound of his shoes hitting the floor echoed in his ears. Though aware of how loud his footsteps were, he couldn’t control himself. Anger was rising to his head, on the brink of explosion.

He left the mansion and walked until he could see the window of Jae-seung’s room, then swiftly jumped onto a large tree opposite the window. There were no CCTV cameras here, so there was no risk of being caught looking into the window. Shin-woo, who had been preparing to escape, knew the blind spots well.

At this hour, Jae-seung, who usually would be scurrying around the garden, was curled up in bed. Lying still just as he had been when collapsed in the basement, it was impossible to tell if he was in pain or sleeping. Given how the lab director had endlessly praised his recovery ability, it didn’t seem likely he was physically ill.

It must be his heart that’s sick. At times like these, he should be moving his body, but being confined made that difficult.

Even after staring at the motionless boy for a long time, it was hard to accurately gauge his physical condition. Shin-woo, gripping a sturdy branch tightly, looked down. Just then, a maid was passing under the tree.

She might know about Jae-seung’s condition. Shin-woo quickly jumped down from the tree and blocked her path.

“Oh my!”

Startled by the sudden appearance of a man before her, she collapsed on the spot. Thinking he might be a robber, her legs gave out and she couldn’t stand up right away. Even when he offered his hand, she only shrank back without taking it, so Shin-woo had no choice but to crouch down to face her.

“Excuse me, I have a question.”

“…Yes?”

“Is the young master still very ill?”

Realizing the question was about Jae-seung’s health, she cautiously raised her eyes. As she slowly relaxed, Shin-woo tilted his head to show her the barcode tattoo on his neck. Seeing it, she finally recognized him.

“Ah, his body is fine, he’s just a bit low on energy. He’s been lying down all day.”

“So he’s not too ill to get up, right?”

“Probably not. He still comes down for meals…”

“I see. I was worried since I used to see him often in the garden, but he hasn’t been around.”

To avoid any awkwardness if she were to relay this conversation, Shin-woo smiled gently as if it had been a casual inquiry. Then, as if no longer interested in the maid who was blankly looking up at him, he gave a slight nod. As he turned and started walking towards the annex, the smile gradually faded from his face.

What he was about to do was completely insane. He knew it, but he couldn’t stop himself. He couldn’t even tell if this was for Jae-seung’s sake, for his own, or if he was just trying to vent his anger at this fucked-up situation.

As soon as he arrived at the annex, Shin-woo took out his laptop and searched for amusement park rentals. Looking for places that individuals could rent, he found that with roughly 500 million won, he could rent an entire amusement park for the late-night hours. Since they needed to leave secretly, he inquired about the earliest available date after midnight.

Besides the identity of “Shin-woo” given by Ma Jin-seong, he had prepared one more. The 500 million won settlement from Jae-seung’s kidnapping had been fully laundered and was sitting in this account. He hadn’t needed to touch that money for living expenses, and it was such a large sum that he had just been saving it, thinking he might need it someday.

Now he was going to blow it all at once. And on renting an amusement park, of all things.

But he had no regrets. The more he thought about it, the clearer his mind became, and his resolve only strengthened.

A few days later, close to midnight, Shin-woo secretly scaled the wall. It was easier to climb the wall from a blind spot and enter through the window than to sneak into the mansion, which carried a higher risk of being caught. Upon reaching Jae-seung’s window, he securely fastened a rope to the windowsill and then knocked on the window. Fortunately, the curtains weren’t drawn, so Jae-seung immediately spotted Shin-woo.

Jae-seung’s eyes widened, and he rushed to the window, pressing his nose right against it. Seeing him like that for a while without opening the window made Shin-woo laugh. The face beyond the window was overflowing with vitality, practically sparkling.

“Are you crazy? What are you doing here?”

“I’ve come to kidnap you.”

Want to come with me? Shin-woo creased his eyes playfully and held out his hand. Jae-seung pinched his own cheek lightly before opening the window. Without even knowing where they were going, he willingly took the hand of the night visitor who had knocked on his window in the middle of the night.