JD 80

“Boss, why are you only telling me the most important part now? And why is your friend doing all of this for us? Are you sure it’s okay to accept it?”

A twenty-four-year-old more skeptical than someone who’s lived for centuries.

Just listening to him, you’d think he was some weathered old man who’d seen everything life had to offer—it was absurd, but at the same time, his sharp sense of caution was admirable.

Muheon couldn’t stop smiling at how cute Hakyung’s nagging lips looked. Hakyung kept chattering for quite a while, but the moment he noticed the smile forming on Muheon’s face, he scowled in exasperation.

Muheon gently rubbed at the wrinkle between Hakyung’s brows to soothe him.

“It’s not a burden for us to accept that kind of generosity. He has the means, so he’s offering. I’ll repay him in full when the time comes.”

“But I—I don’t have the ability to repay anything like that.”

Hakyung pouted. Now that they were married, it wasn’t just the boss’s responsibility—he felt he should return the favor too. But realistically, it was impossible.

Hearing this, Hajo tilted his head in curiosity. Just how rich was this man who’d married his brother? He even started wondering if the boss could help produce an album if his brother wanted to sing again.

Hajo had always dreamed of bringing his brother’s stolen voice—once taken by Kim Taeyoung—back into the world. They were only uploading YouTube videos for now, but Hajo had no doubt that one day his brother would be famous.

Whatever nervousness he’d once felt toward Muheon quickly faded. With a wide grin, Hajo beamed at him. Seeing that innocent smile replacing the previously timid expression made Muheon’s brow twitch in amusement.

“Maehyung-su-nim!”

“…Huh?”

“Hajo, what did you just say?”

Both Muheon and Hakyung blinked in surprise at the sudden and unfamiliar title. But Hajo just smiled cheerfully.

“Well, the boss is family now that he’s married to you, hyung. I figured I should call him something. I wasn’t sure whether to say maehyung (brother-in-law) or hyung-su-nim (sister-in-law), so I just combined them.”

“Oh… is that so?”

“Yup! It’s okay, right?”

Seeing Hajo’s bright grin, Muheon couldn’t help but smile too. With the boss’s reaction not being bad, Hajo turned back to Hakyung. He suddenly looped arms with his brother and, uncharacteristically, laid on the charm.

“Hyung, hyung! Can’t you have the wedding there? I wanna eat at the buffet too…! They say they serve really fancy meat at places like that!”

“…Really?”

“Yeah! Grandma would love it too!”

“Would she? You think Hawon would like it too?”

“Of course!”

Hajo’s enthusiastic support made Hakyung’s ears perk up. His eyes sparkled when he heard that Grandma and Hawon might be happy about it too.

Sure, Grandma would probably scold him for trying to act rich, saying something about sparrows breaking their legs trying to walk like storks—but deep down, she’d be proud her eldest grandson was having such a fancy wedding.

Hakyung’s heart began to lean. Watching closely, Hajo fanned those flames even harder, subtly supporting Muheon’s side.

When Hakyung finally muttered, “Well… I guess we could at least go see it…” Hajo winked at Muheon.

Catching the silent signal, Muheon shrugged slightly. He still had no idea Hajo was laying the groundwork to one day ask for help producing Hakyung’s album. For now, he just kept mulling over the term “maehyung-su-nim.”

It was becoming clear that he’d never be able to keep up with the river dolphin family’s bizarre talent for making up names.

***

It was definitely Huang Lin’s meddling, but once they accepted his help, they went ahead with the wedding plans diligently.

Hakyung went on multiple visits to wedding boutiques with Muheon, sampled the menu ahead of time, and even joined a bunch of wedding forums and cafés—apparently a rite of passage for all engaged couples.

Then one day, while preparing in earnest, Hakyung came across a post that caught his eye.

“How do you all handle terms of address with your fiancé?”

The post went something like this: the writer visited her fiancé’s family, and the future mother-in-law advised that since they were getting married, they should stop casually using names and instead use other proper forms of address.

In the comments, many people shared that their elders had said the same thing—so they opted for terms like honey, darling, and other affectionate nicknames instead of names.

Hakyung’s jaw dropped.

Now that he thought about it… even though he and Muheon were already married, they still called each other Boss and Kang Hakyung.

Oh my god…! We’re a married couple, and we still talk like colleagues?!

Right then and there, Hakyung shot up and ran straight to Muheon’s study. He burst in without knocking, but Muheon welcomed him with a warm smile, not the least bit surprised.

Struck once again by how handsome his boss—no, his husband—was, Hakyung dove into his arms and rubbed his forehead against his chest.

“Boss, Boss!”

“Hmm? What’s got you running in here like that?”

Muheon gently brushed away the hair sticking to Hakyung’s forehead as he asked. These days, Hakyung didn’t wear his hat at home anymore. He had fully come to recognize this place—this house, with his husband in it—as a safe space.

Which meant Muheon could see that cotton-candy-pink hair of his anytime. That soft hair swaying in and out of his vision every time Hakyung turned his head… it was so unbearably lovable, it made Muheon’s heart ache.

He needed to live a long, healthy life… It was a ridiculous worry, he knew. Other imugis or sea creatures would probably snort in laughter if they heard. But for Muheon, who now had a much younger husband, it was an inevitable concern.

Concealing his noisy thoughts, Muheon gently smoothed Hakyung’s hair. When he prompted with a soft “Hmm?”, Hakyung finally opened his mouth.

“I just saw a post in a wedding forum! And, well, we’re married now, right?”

“Right.”

“And Hajo changed how he calls you recently too… I think it’s time for us to change how we address each other too!”

Whatever had gotten into him, Hakyung’s eyes were burning with intensity. Even his blowhole at the top of his head was puffing with excitement.

Muheon nodded along in agreement, curious what this river dolphin would come up with.

“So, the thing is…”

Hakyung’s voice trailed off shyly. He twisted his body and fidgeted with his lips. Muheon, smiling, pressed a kiss to those little lips and playfully poked at his side.

“What are you gonna call me that’s making you hesitate this much?”

“It’s not anything special…!”

“Still, I’m curious.”

Muheon’s hand slid from Hakyung’s side down to his butt. He gently squeezed the soft flesh, completely unfazed by the way Hakyung tensed up. With a little teasing nudge, he encouraged him to go on.

Hakyung laughed nervously at the touch but leaned in close to Muheon’s ear.

“Honey.”

The two syllables struck Muheon’s eardrum and landed straight in his brain. For a brief moment, his whole body buzzed. The fact that he had become Kang Hakyung’s honey made him feel indescribably moved.

Muheon had never thought of himself as a sentimental imugi—but when it came to Kang Hakyung, maybe it was allowed. He nodded slowly in agreement.

“Hoo…”

Hakyung let out a breathy laugh. It felt weird and awkward calling him anything but “Boss”—he’d said it for so long.

And yet, even after being called honey, the boss gave no reaction aside from a short nod. Wasn’t he supposed to respond somehow? Say something back?

Feeling a bit disappointed, Hakyung thought maybe he’d just go back to how things were.

“Mm. Babe.”

A low, husky voice whispered in his ear. Eyes going wide in surprise, Hakyung stared at Muheon to check if he’d heard correctly.

Muheon met his gaze steadily and said it again.

“Babe, how’s that?”

“Uhh… it’s perfect.”

Hakyung gave a thumbs-up. Being called Babe by the boss—no, by his husband—was almost too good to be true. So this is why people get married and keep their cute little—well, snake-like—husbands by their side!

He clung to Muheon’s neck and begged him to say it again. His butt pressing into Muheon’s thigh stirred a different kind of heat in the latter.

Muheon hadn’t expected Hakyung to react this enthusiastically. Smiling, he leaned in again, but this time, Hakyung brought his ear right up to Muheon’s lips—he wanted to keep hearing it.

“Boss—I mean, Honey, I really think you could’ve been a voice actor.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. But actually, no. You can’t. That voice is just for me. You’re banned from speaking in front of anyone else.”

Suddenly flustered, Hakyung slapped a hand over Muheon’s lips. River dolphin jealousy had struck again—completely unprovoked.

Muheon found it so adorable he immediately nodded and licked the palm covering his mouth. The salty-sweet taste was delightful.

“Ah!”

Hakyung flinched from the surprise lick and looked down at his now-wet palm. Then he bit his lip. That wicked tongue needed to be punished—by his mouth.

Chup—smack.

The sounds of kisses, sweet and risqué, filled the study, with honey and babe whispered between every breath.