MY 28

He let go of the held hand with a jerk and turned his back. It was a one-hundred-percent pure display of severe seriousness without a hint of playfulness. At the heartless rejection, his heart dropped all the way to the floor. Embarrassment and regret rushed in simultaneously.

Left all alone out of the blue, Han Seolwoo blinked blankly. He was restless, unable to do one thing or another.

He had not watched any strange porn anywhere, nor had he done anything a minor should not do. He had simply wanted to hold the warm guy and whisper ticklish words.

However, it was not that he did not understand. Even if they had somehow reached this point, there would be no boy who wanted to cuddle with another boy he did not even like. Furthermore, he was not the petite and small type like the women Won Wooje used to meet.

Han Seolwoo, fallen into heartbreak, lay back down and looked at the ceiling. Closing his eyes, he let out a faint sigh.

“Good night.”

He offered a nighttime greeting, trying his best to act as if it were nothing. However, no answer came back, whether because he was already asleep or because he was pretending to be.

In the sunken silence, Han Seolwoo chewed over his sincerity, which was gradually becoming more resolute.

Won Wooje.

I guess it is true that I like you.

Splash, the sound of a sudden rain shower pouring down came from outside the window. His drenched heart began to throb with a dull ache. Emotions that could not be avoided flooded in rapidly.

[୨ৎ]

Won Wooje opened his eyes at the suffocating, stuffy feeling constricting his lungs. As he slowly rolled his squinted eyes, fluttering brown hair entered his field of vision.

Only then did it occur to him that this place was Rose Mansion room 303. And also the true nature of the existence pressing down on him heavily.

“Hah.”

A hollow breath escaped him. It was because of the incredibly innocent face of Han Seolwoo, who was sleeping while holding his waist tightly. Even though he had given a chilling scolding last night, the sight of him stubbornly crawling into his arms to sleep stuck together was absurd. Whether it was intentional or unintentional.

Won Wooje stared vacantly at the ceiling. There were countless times in his life when he had fallen asleep with him. He, too, had no intention of being distant with Han Seolwoo at this point.

But the “them” of the past and the “them” of the present are different. From the moment he started to think that Han Seolwoo liked him, it meant he could not act the same as before.

“When you date… It is not like this.”

“You can do things like this too.”

Suddenly, the events of the previous night flickered past his eyes. The persistent gaze of Han Seolwoo staring at the studded condoms, and the texture of the large palm that wrapped tightly around his hand. Every single thing—the hot breath touching the tip of his chin and the temperature against his waist—was felt vividly.

Fuck. Irritation surged up.

They say the quiet cat climbs the stove first, and whether his eyes had turned because of a late-blooming passion or what, he was nothing less than a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Won Wooje realized instinctively. Right now, Han Seolwoo is unstable. He is going through the greatest transition period of his life. If he left him to shake like this, he might become a more reckless butcher-like bastard than anyone else he knew.

…There must be many guys among gays with strange sexual desires. He heard there are types who enjoy beating people up or being hit. Could he have seen some strange, harmful media and gained interest? No, even so, surely he wouldn’t have that kind of taste, surely.

Suddenly, an image of Han Seolwoo kneeling with handcuffs behind his back came to mind. Unconsciously, strength entered his fists. He was at the point of going crazy from the dog-like imagination that continued without rest.

He managed to suppress and breathe out a breath full of anger. In the early morning, Won Wooje’s meddlesome, stray thoughts that began as soon as he opened his eyes swelled without knowing an end.

Last night, he had shaken him off blindly because he was flustered, but he should not react in this way indefinitely. The face that must have been dejected at the rejection he spat out hovered before him.

Now that it has come to this, there is only one way to stop Han Seolwoo’s deviance. It was to tie him up tightly by his side and manage him so he couldn’t budge. To do that, in order to do that, he had to never break up with him and maintain this relationship well. He himself needed a proper, textbook-like preparation in advance.

The eyes of Won Wooje, who was still not fully awake, twitched. Having made his judgment, he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. First, he had to go to school.

“Honey, wake up.”

“… .”

“I said wake up, you pervert bastard… .”

He muttered as if it were a chore. A voice heavily laden with sleep leaked out.

Even at the continuing urging, Han Seolwoo showed no movement. Won Wooje, slightly opening his eyes, grabbed his shoulder and shook it roughly. Mmm, he seemed to show a sign of presence for a moment, but soon the sound of soft, rhythmic breathing was heard again.

“…Hey.”

Won Wooje gripped the shoulder that was clinging heavily and pushed it away strongly. And at that moment, Han Seolwoo held his waist even tighter and dug in. It was a desperate look, as if he refused to be separated.

Suddenly, his body was pulled and turned as if tied to a large boulder. Won Wooje, who ended up on top of Han Seolwoo in an instant, instinctively reached out his hands to support himself on the floor. Due to gravity, his face dropped down sharply. It was a close distance where their lips might touch if they moved even a little.

At that moment, Han Seolwoo blearily opened his eyes. The fair face, which lacked even a single humiliation even after just waking up, shone brightly like sunlight. Regardless, the frozen Won Wooje stared down at him quietly while rigid.

Eyes not yet fully awake blinked, repeating closing and opening. Long eyelashes also fluttered like the wings of a butterfly. Han Seolwoo, whose eyes had regained focus, smiled. Very brightly and clearly, like a baby smiling for no reason upon seeing its mother. It felt as if his breath were being taken away.

At a distance where the tips of their noses almost touched, Won Wooje froze. He jerked his upper body up and twisted his frame. It was to escape from him.

“You, what kind of strength…”

In the moment he muttered, a hard object touched near his lower abdomen. His expression hardened automatically. Won Wooje could tell instinctively what it was.

Unlike the face smiling harmlessly at him, the hideously swollen bat was incongruous. That gap made Han Seolwoo look like the swindler of the century.

“…You’re healthy, you.”

Won Wooje, raising only one corner of his mouth, gave a bitter smile. At the out-of-the-blue words, Han Seolwoo blinked his eyes like a cow. It seemed he had not aimed for it and was unable to grasp the situation properly.

“…I’m washing up first.”

Won Wooje stood up from his spot as quickly as a gymnast. He strode into the bathroom and slammed the door shut, then threw his clothes off haphazardly and turned on the faucet. Cold water, without any temperature adjustment, poured over his head like a waterfall.

What the fuck. Fuck! Fuuuuck… I’m really going to go crazy.

Ragged breaths leaked out. Won Wooje, standing under the shower, dropped his forehead against the wall. Unlike the streams of water soaking his whole body, the inside of his mouth was drying up.

I thought wrong. Becoming lovers with a childhood friend was not an easy task. Dating a friend was damn hard and difficult, and it was a very troublesome, complicated, and abstruse matter.

[୨ৎ]

“First, it’s divided into group games, individual games, and ball sports, and they say they give individual prize money by picking an MVP, so those of you who need money, put your lives on the line.”

The physical education department head standing in front of the chalkboard began to write. It was because of the sports meet that was coming up soon.

[[Events]] Soccer Relay Race Arm Wrestling Two-Person Three-Legged Race Hula Hoop Basketball

“First, are there any volunteers for soccer? Or recommendations are fine too.”

When the class president finished writing and turned around, the sitting kids began to shout regardless of who was who.

“Won Wooje!” 

“Wooje!” 

“Seolwoo!” 

“Wooje!” 

“Han Seolwoo!”

The names of the two people erupted simultaneously. It was an overwhelming recommendation. The physical education department head began to write the names of Won Wooje and Han Seolwoo clearly next to “Soccer.”

“Take Han Seolwoo out.”

A low, firm voice cut through the boisterous noise. The gazes of the students who were making a fuss turned.

“He hurt his leg, you idiots. Do you want to play a losing game? Pick someone who’s fine.”

Won Wooje, who was sitting with his legs crossed on the desk, leisurely crossed his arms. His brow was furrowed to the limit.

“Ah, that’s right.” 

“Isn’t he all better? He took off the cast last time.”

“Seolwoo, does it still hurt?” 

“Seolwoo dropping out is a bit much.”

At the sudden sharp remark, local broadcasts of 4D sound buzzed from all sides. Han Seolwoo, who was sitting quietly, lifted his gaze with a glance.

“I’m fine. It doesn’t hurt even if I run now?”

Then he gave a slight smile and waved his hands. Han Seolwoo also liked soccer very much. He was good at it, too. This was also why Han Seolwoo and Won Wooje were split into different teams for every match.

Now there was no problem in walking, and there was no problem in running. The doctor also said his recovery speed was twice as good as others, and it was just about the time when his inability to run together due to his leg recently was building up inside him.

Furthermore, it wasn’t some petty game during lunch break, but a class-versus-class soccer match with prizes on the line. Just thinking about it, how fun…

“Are you crazy? What if you get hurt again.”

He snapped to his senses at the out-of-the-blue scolding. Won Wooje was looking at him with eyes full of a scowl. At the extraordinary face, dry spit was swallowed automatically, gulp.

“…I can just run carefully.”