“Oh, it fell.”
Cautious hands moved back and forth over his chest multiple times. How many times had he clenched and unclenched his fist? Only after what felt like an eternity by Shin-jae’s standards did the little kitten finally let go.
“Mew!”
And then, an even stranger situation unfolded. Sa-yoon, who had just placed the glowing kitten on the floor, didn’t step back. Instead, he stared fixedly at Shin-jae’s chest, his gaze unwavering. He even squinted one eye slightly, as if scrutinizing something.
Because of his looks, Sa Shin-jae had encountered far too many perverts in his life. It was only natural that he’d become sensitive to staring.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Discomfort flared up instantly. The moment his guard rose, his words came out sharp and cutting.
“Do you want to take off your clothes first?”
“…What?”
“Or would you rather wash up first?”
Was there any other way to interpret that? No matter how he thought about it, the question left no room for misinterpretation.
So that’s why he’d been staring so openly—it was a bad omen from the start. And this wasn’t even the first time he’d encountered this kind of bullshit. His mood plummeted in an instant, a sigh slipping from his lips.
So that’s why he invited me over when no one else was home. Maybe asking me to pick up the kitten together was just an excuse.
He should’ve just treated me like shit from the start. Or at least lied and said he was interested because of my acting.
Discomfort was soon overtaken by a deeper, heavier disappointment.
With an ice-cold expression, Shin-jae parted his lips. He was about to tell him to quit with the fucking nonsense. Normally, he would’ve just cursed like before, but strangely, no words came out. He knew that dealing with bastards like this required blunt rejection, yet for some reason, his voice wouldn’t come.
As Shin-jae opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water, Sa-yoon disappeared somewhere again. Until now, they’d only met through the same classes or shoots, so he hadn’t realized just how easily the guy could slip away without a word.
When Sa-yoon reappeared, he was holding something—clothes? The question was answered almost immediately. Sa-yoon unfolded a large T-shirt and held it up in front of Shin-jae, as if measuring whether it would fit.
“I’m not sure if this will work. It’s meant to be worn oversized, though.”
“…?”
Something about this situation felt increasingly off. The icy expression on Shin-jae’s face wavered slightly, just as Sa-yoon lifted his head.
“Hm? Go wash your hands and change.”
It was a simple statement, yet it didn’t register immediately. Seeing this, Sa-yoon lowered the clothes he was holding and pointed at his own sternum.
“I meant your clothes. They got ruined because of Sesame’s claws.”
Only then did Shin-jae lower his head to check his shirt. The fabric where the kitten had clung for dear life had stretched out. On top of that, there were precisely four small holes punctured through it.
“I’m not sure if it’s salvageable, but if you leave it here, I’ll look into it for you.”
As he spoke, Sa-yoon pulled a cat treat tube from his back pocket, tore it open, and crouched down. The kitten, which had been hovering nearby, was drawn to the scent and approached. Sa-yoon scratched its nape lightly with his index finger.
“First the cardigan, and now this… Just how much damage are you going to cause, you little troublemaker?”
He muttered to himself, his voice laced with amusement. Then, as if noticing the silence that followed, he lifted his head.
“Are you upset about your clothes?”
Shin-jae hadn’t responded because there was too much he needed to process internally.
“If it can’t be fixed, I’ll buy you the same one.”
That kitten already ruined a cardigan last time. Sa-yoon added the comment with a face so utterly unbothered that it was almost infuriating. He either had no clue how much the clothes cost or simply didn’t care—probably the former.
“It’s fine,” Shin-jae finally managed to say.
It wasn’t like he could replace them anyway. Both the cardigan from last time and today’s knit sweater were from past seasons, special orders purchased through a seller. There was no point in explaining that they were irreplaceable.
“You want to change in my room?”
“Yeah.”
Instead of arguing, Shin-jae obediently headed toward the room Sa-yoon gestured to.
As he reached the doorway and stepped inside, his feet suddenly stopped. This was Sa-yoon’s room. The scent that usually clung to Sa-yoon’s fingertips now surrounded him from all directions.
Shin-jae hated both visiting other people’s homes and having guests in his own. Ever since middle school, he had never once broken that rule.
And yet, before he even realized it, he was in someone else’s house, undressing. He had wanted to make a good impression on Sa-yoon as Chasa, but this definitely wasn’t what he had in mind. Somehow, being around Sa-yoon always made him do things he would never normally do on his own.
“Is it because he’s naturally sociable?”
Engulfed by the unfamiliar scent, Shin-jae pulled off his sweater and slipped into Sa-yoon’s shirt. It was supposed to be slightly oversized, but on him, it fit perfectly. The fabric smelled like fresh sunlight and well-dried fabric softener.
As soon as he put on the unfamiliar-scented shirt, a wave of belated embarrassment hit him like a truck.
“What the hell am I even doing…?”
He had almost made a serious mistake. Sure, Sa-yoon was partially at fault for making him think he was hitting on him at first, but this time, it was just Shin-jae being overly sensitive.
After running a hand over his face a few times, his vision finally adjusted to the room’s interior. It was a typical college student’s space, furnished with a super single-sized bed and a simple, functional desk. The only thing that stood out was the massive clothing rack that spanned an entire wall.
The neatly arranged clothes, categorized by color, made the place feel like a high-end boutique. Most strikingly, there was an unusually low amount of black—something rare for a Korean. Instead, beige and white dominated the collection.
Come to think of it, when he rescued Sesame, he had been wearing a light blue zip-up hoodie. For someone who looked like they’d dress in all black from head to toe, he sure seemed to prefer bright colors.
And yet, why was Chasa’s default look always black? That thought crossed my mind when—
Knock, knock.
“You done changing?”
“Yes.”
At my response, the door creaked open slightly. Through the gap, a small furball darted into the room and disappeared under the bed.
“Oh… Seems like he’s still not used to the place. Can you keep an eye on Sesame while I make tea? He can hide in the corners, just make sure he doesn’t chew on any wires.”
“Alright.”
It wasn’t a difficult request, so I nodded without hesitation.
“Is black tea okay? Got some as a gift. If not, I have green tea bags.”
“Black tea’s fine.”
“Alright, make yourself comfortable.”
With that, the owner of the room left, and with nothing else to do, my eyes naturally wandered around.
The clothes rack was neatly organized by color, yet the desk looked like a hurricane had just blown through. Still, there was a strange sense of division, as if each mess had its designated area.
The tidiest section was the camera zone on the far left. A DSLR with a thick lens, a compact digital camera, and even a still-packaged disposable camera were lined up in a row.
A stack of thick textbooks stood like a tower, seemingly acting as a divider between the camera zone and the next section. On top of them were a few loose coins, a pack of cigarettes, and a red lighter.
Right—he was a smoker, wasn’t he? I hadn’t smelled any smoke on him recently, so I assumed he’d quit, but apparently not.
Next to that was the PC setup. The thought that this was where Chasa customized builds and worked on his screenshots felt oddly surreal. A 27-inch gaming monitor, a mechanical keyboard, and—
“Huh?”
The PC tower under the desk was glowing and running. The moment I noticed it, the hum of the machine filled my ears like rolling thunder.
I felt drawn in, like I was under a spell. Without realizing it, my hand reached toward the power button on the monitor. With a soft beep, the dark screen flickered to life, revealing familiar characters.
It was Divine.
[Guild] Shokrates: Jeon-gi’s here.
[Guild] Shokrates: As expected, everyone’s just a ghost.
In the chat window, I saw familiar nicknames. I pressed a shortcut key, and the guild window popped up, showing all guild members online.
Last week, a sudden login reward event started. These events, which occasionally happen without notice, require staying logged in all day to get the best rewards.
There were plenty of cases like this. It was a common sight in games that turned people into shut-ins.
As expected, he had left it running. It wasn’t surprising that Sa-yoon, a hardcore player, kept the game on while going about his daily life as usual. After all, just last night, he himself had gone looking for Chasa, who had logged off first, and left Killer standing beside him.
If Chasa found out, he’d probably complain about being stalked and call it creepy—but that wasn’t an option. Shin-jae understood Sa-yoon now. Deep down, he was softhearted and affectionate. If someone wasn’t around, he could completely forget about them, but the moment they lingered in his sight, he couldn’t help but care.
The problem was the location. The two characters were currently standing in the Appearance Modification Shop—a place where you could tweak your character’s customization.
