SLC 37

“…Aren’t you hungry?”

Kim Jinkyung asked while holding the steering wheel, watching Mok Seongha’s mood as he sat in the back seat. Mok Seongha kept his eyes closed and didn’t answer.

“Are you sleeping?”

“Yeah.”

He didn’t even have to answer.

Mok Seongha was displaying how irritated he was with his whole body. It had been like that since he got in the back seat instead of the passenger seat, no, since the moment he opened his eyes and discovered Mok Seongha sitting on the wooden porch, waiting for him.

“Then go ahead and sleep. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”

“Just try waking me.”

“…….?”

A chill ran down his spine, and Kim Jinkyung tightened his grip on the steering wheel. After they had been driving along the Seohae Expressway for quite a while, Mok Seongha called out, “Hey,” to Kim Jinkyung.

“Yes?”

“What were you talking about?”

“Talking about what?”

“What important stuff were you talking about with your parents all night?”

“Ah, that’s….”

The moment Mok Seongha started nibbling and sucking on his hand and then rubbed his lower body against him, an alarm went off in Kim Jinkyung’s head.

If he did something like that in this situation, when it wasn’t even his heat, there wouldn’t be any room left for excuses this time.

“Just school stuff, and stuff about the orchard….”

“Again.”

“…Uh, well….”

Kim Jinkyung desperately racked his brain. He had to come up with something. At that moment, his eyes landed on the bags of fruit piled up in the passenger seat.

“Ah, they were really worried that Seongha-ssi might be hungry….”

It wasn’t a complete lie. In the end, since he was leaving at dawn without even eating breakfast, his mother had grabbed her son’s hand and loaded him up with a pile of fruit, steamed corn, and steamed sweet potatoes.

‘Eat it on the way. It might not suit a Seoul person’s taste, but your dad grew it without pesticides, so it’s healthy.’

His mother had earnestly told him to make sure to share it with his student.

“You haven’t eaten anything since last night, so I think they’re really worried.”

“You.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t you worry about me?”

The voice stabbed into his heart like a chunk of cold ice.

“…I do.”

“But you fucking spent all night….”

“…….”

Kim Jinkyung kept his eyes ahead, still holding the steering wheel. He could feel the burning gaze from behind, but he didn’t have the courage to look in the rearview mirror.

“…Do you want a plum?”

Kim Jinkyung fumbled around the passenger seat, picked up a plum, and asked. It was sudden, but since he’d seen him lick the plum juice off his palm yesterday, he thought he might be able to eat at least one piece of fruit.

“Eat it yourself.”

“……”

Kim Jinkyung put the plum back into the plastic bag. If he offered corn, it felt like he’d get beaten with the corn cob.

He’d wanted to part on a smiling note, but it ended up like this.

…It wouldn’t be easy to forget. No, he’d never forget it.

Kim Jinkyung stole a glance at the man’s face in the back seat through the rearview mirror.

“Hey.”

As if he’d been caught in the act, Kim Jinkyung straightened his posture and answered, “Yes.”

“Make a wish.”

“What kind of wish?”

“I said if you helped me, I’d grant you one wish. You don’t even remember?”

“Ah, right. That’s true.”

It hadn’t even been that long, but it already felt far away.

“You sucker, idiot bastard.”

“…Haha.”

“So what’s your wish?”

Mok Seongha finally opened his eyes as he asked. Kim Jinkyung answered, “Well,” and slightly turned the steering wheel.

“What do you want? Fuck, if you ask me to introduce you to some ugly guy, I’ll seriously kill you.”

At the man’s gruff voice, Kim Jinkyung almost laughed.

“…I’ll think about it.”

“Then think about it for a long time.”

Mok Seongha crossed his arms and closed his eyes again.

There wasn’t really anything he wanted. He’d already been paid generously for tutoring, and he’d spent time beyond his station with the person he had a crush on.

More than anything, he hadn’t helped because he wanted something in return.

“Just say anything. I’ll do it all.”

Kim Jinkyung glanced at the man through the mirror. There probably wasn’t a genie of the lamp that handsome in the world.

“Just….”

“Just try saying you’re fine. I know how to bury people.”

…There wasn’t. There wasn’t a genie that savage.

As Kim Jinkyung sighed, his eyes fell on the plum he’d casually put aside earlier. He quickly picked one up and handed it to Mok Seongha.

“This.”

“What is this?”

“Eat it.”

“What? You’re telling me to eat this?”

Mok Seongha raised his eyes as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Yes. Eat this.”

Mok Seongha didn’t eat food given by other people. But he wasn’t picky about food itself. He was picky about who gave it to him.

Once in the past he’d asked the reason. Mok Seongha had frowned and he asked again.

‘Why would I risk eating food someone else gives me?’

It wasn’t a reason he could easily understand, but Kim Jinkyung assumed it was just a personal belief and didn’t think too much about it.

But after seeing him lick the plum juice off his hand yesterday, it didn’t seem like it was the case.

“That’s my wish.”

It was a wish combined with a bit of spite and worry. Since eating only a simple lunch yesterday, he hadn’t put anything in his mouth up to now. The day before that, because of the running away incident, he hadn’t eaten properly either. He said he wouldn’t die from skipping meals, but Kim Jinkyung couldn’t help worrying.

“…You, seriously…”

“If you don’t want to, you don’t have to eat it.”

When Kim Jinkyung tried to pull the plum back, a hand reached out from behind and snatched it away.

“That’s enough. Give it here.”

But even after taking the plum, Mok Seongha couldn’t bring himself to eat it.

“If it’s too hard, you don’t have to eat it.”

He remembered that feline animals had trouble with sour foods.

“Isn’t it your wish?”

“Ah, that was just….”

He was about to say it was a joke and that it was fine, but Mok Seongha put the plum into his mouth first.

“…Are you okay?”

Kim Jinkyung asked in a worried voice. Mok Seongha didn’t answer and took another bite of the plum.

“It tastes good, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then do you want another one?”

Feeling a little happy that he’d eaten food he gave him, Kim Jinkyung reached toward the passenger seat. Plum, corn, anything, he wanted to make him eat something. He had to be hungry, so before they got to Seoul, at least something…

“Uh.”

A raindrop splashed against the front windshield, and Kim Jinkyung’s eyes widened. He quickly checked the weather on his phone. The chance of precipitation wasn’t even 5%.

Looking around, he saw thick fog descending from the mountains. Since it was a place where coastal lowlands and mountains met, the air currents seemed unstable. Areas like this had a high chance of localized rain that didn’t show up in forecasts.

“It looks like it’s only raining here. It’ll pass quickly.”

The droplets pattering on the windshield began to multiply. Kim Jinkyung quickly turned on the wipers. But it was a relief. Even if Mok Seongha transformed, since they were inside the car, it wouldn’t be visible from outside.

“It’ll pass as fast as possible, so for now….”

As he spoke, Kim Jinkyung checked the back through the rearview mirror. Mok Seongha hadn’t said anything for a while, and it was starting to worry him.

“Um, Seongha-ssi.”

“…….”

Mok Seongha’s head was lowered.

“Are you okay?”

Mok Seongha still didn’t answer. Thinking he might be joking, Kim Jinkyung called him a few more times.

“Seongha-ssi. Right now….”

“…Ugh….”

A low groan rang out. Kim Jinkyung checked him again through the rearview mirror. He saw his face with his head lowered. It was pale white.

Kim Jinkyung turned on the hazard lights and quickly pulled over to the shoulder.

“Seongha-ssi. What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

No matter how many times he called him, Mok Seongha didn’t respond. His breathing was ragged, and his face was deathly pale. Cold sweat ran down his forehead and soaked into his collar.

“Seongha-ssi!”

Kim Jinkyung hurriedly unbuckled his seatbelt, got out of the car, and climbed into the back seat.

“Seongha-ssi. What’s wrong? What’s happening?”

This was completely different from the heat he’d seen before. He had been feverish and out of his mind back then, but now it was as if his consciousness was disconnected entirely.

Mok Seongha gasped for air. The low growling sounds were combined with rough breathing.

“Do you have a fever?”

Kim Jinkyung tried to touch his forehead. At that moment, sharp beast fangs pierced through the back of his hand.

Blood trickled down, but he didn’t care and quickly touched Mok Seongha’s forehead with his other hand.

He didn’t have a fever.

Then why? Faced with a situation he couldn’t understand, Kim Jinkyung’s mind froze completely.

He called Secretary Kang first.

The rain, which had been gradually growing heavier, pattered against the car. With trembling hands, he found Secretary Kang’s name and pressed the call button. The short moment while the phone rang a few times felt longer than anything he’d ever experienced in his life.

–Why!? I told you not to call, so why are you calling!?

A gruff male voice came through the phone.

“Secretary Kang. This is Kim Jinkyung.”

Kim Jinkyung kept an eye on Mok Seongha’s condition even while they talked. He held his face with quivering hands. He had a bad feeling.

–What’s going on?

“There seems to be a problem.”

–Explain the situation in detail.

“We left my place this morning, and he hadn’t eaten anything. No, he ate one plum, and he was fine until just now. But suddenly, I spoke to him and he didn’t answer, and he really was fine just a moment ago….”

Kim Jinkyung was a textbook science type. When a problem occurred, he was good at thinking about the cause, organizing the process, and drawing a conclusion. But right now, he couldn’t think logically.

Like a drunk person rambling, Kim Jinkyung could only stare at Mok Seongha, who was gasping for breath.

–Think about what’s changed compared to before!

Secretary Kang pressured him urgently. Kim Jinkyung caught his breath and looked around. Then his gaze was drawn to the wipers, which were sweeping rapidly across the windshield.

“Rain, it’s raining. It’s not pouring, just a little at a time….”

–What about the young master’s condition?

“He hasn’t transformed, but he’s different from usual, his breathing is rough, he’s sweating a lot. His face is pale, and it seems like he can’t understand what I’m saying….”

–Where are you right now?”

“Right now? Here, right now, the exact location is coming up from Hongseong…”

–Not the location. I’m asking what kind of space you’re in right now!

“We-We are inside the car.”

A deep sigh came from the other end of the phone. The hand holding the phone trembled.

–Listen carefully…

Kim Jinkyung nodded vigorously even though the other person couldn’t see him.

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“I-I want to rent a room.”

The motel owner looked indifferent as he asked the man who was panting and holding out a card, “Day use? Or staying overnight?”

“What’s day use?”

“Are you resting for a bit, or staying the night?”

The motel owner’s voice was filled with irritation.

“St-staying overnight. For now.”

“60,000 won. If you use disposable items, there’s an additional environmental fee.”

“No, that’s fine.”

While processing the payment, the motel owner looked through the glass window. A fair looking young man was drenched in sweat while supporting another young man who was a head taller than him.

“If he throws up on the bed or bedding, we charge a separate cleaning fee.”

“He isn’t drunk.”

Kim Jinkyung answered in alarm. The motel owner handed over the key card with an expressionless face.

“Tsk, they look fine on the outside, but grown men doing this kind of thing.”

He heard a tongue click behind him, but Kim Jinkyung didn’t have the time to care about that. After checking the room number and pressing the elevator button, he looked at Mok Seongha’s face as he leaned against him.

…His complexion looked even worse than before.

“Seongha-ssi. We’re almost there.”

The elevator arrived. Kim Jinkyung quickly pulled Mok Seongha inside. Even as they went up to the 3rd floor, Mok Seongha still didn’t come to his senses. Kim Jinkyung barely managed to drag him to room 302 and get inside.

After laying the unconscious man on the bed, Kim Jinkyung gasped for breath. From pulling him out of the car to bringing him here, his whole body was soaked with sweat.

“Seongha-ssi. This isn’t the car, we’re inside a building.”

Even though he knew it wasn’t getting through, Kim Jinkyung continued talking to Mok Seongha.

“You’ll be okay in a little while.”

After hearing the situation, Secretary Kang gave Kim Jinkyung quick, concise instructions.

‘Get out of the car and go into the nearest hotel or motel. Rent one room, lay the young master down, and come right back out. You must lock the door. Make it so no one can go in and he can’t come out either.’

‘What?’

He couldn’t immediately understand what he meant.

‘I’m telling you to lock the young master inside and stand guard outside the door. I’m heading there now too.’

‘Lo-lock him in? Seongha-ssi isn’t in his right mind right now, and you’re telling me to leave him alone?’

‘I’ll explain later, so hurry. How long has it been since the symptoms started?’

‘3, 3 minutes? It hasn’t been 5 minutes yet.’

‘You have about 20 minutes left. If there’s no hotel or motel, rent a nearby private house. Lock him anywhere inside. And no matter what happens inside, never go in. Unless you want to die.’

This wasn’t his usual joking threat. It was a serious warning.

Kim Jinkyung searched for nearby lodging just as Secretary Kang told him. Fortunately, there was a motel one block away. He drove there like a madman. Just like Secretary Kang instructed, he went inside and laid Mok Seongha down.

Kim Jinkyung sat on the bed and placed a hand on Mok Seongha’s forehead. It was a relief that he didn’t have a fever.

“Seongha-ssi. I’ll step outside. I’ll be right outside, so if anything happens….”

As Kim Jinkyung was about to get up, he saw Mok Seongha curl up while groaning in pain.

‘Lay the young master down and come right out. You must lock the door.’

Secretary Kang’s voice echoed in his mind.

Secretary Kang was always on Mok Seongha’s side. Even when Kim Jinkyung panicked and said Mok Seongha was scary when he turned into a black panther, Secretary Kang was the one who shoved him into the room and told him to go in and teach because if you looked attentively, he was cute.

‘No matter what happens inside, never go in. Unless you want to die.’

The warning, delivered in a frigid voice, slipped into his consciousness. Kim Jinkyung stood up as if he had made up his mind.