Gentle Giant 53

Gentle Giant Chapter 53

He was so startled that it was fortunate the car was stopped at a red light. Juho’s eyes widened as he nearly slammed the brakes in the middle of the road.

Though Juho was usually a comfortable driver who breathed easily behind the wheel with a 5-year accident-free record, he found it hard to maintain his composure at Dain’s sudden words.

“……Hyung? Suddenly saying that……?”

When Juho spoke in his rarely flustered voice, Dain quickly waved his hands.

“Ah! It’s not that I’m going into heat……!”

“That’s…… right.”

Juho said while looking at Dain’s innocent face. He was the person who felt most disappointed that Dain didn’t go into heat. Then why would he suddenly bring up such a topic……?

“Mmm. I just heard something like that. That beast-men who are big and tall like me… when they go into heat, they don’t feel like doing anything at all…… Do you think you’d be the same, Juho?”

Dain asked with his eyebrows drooping down.

Hearing Dain’s words, Juho thought carefully.

If Dain went into heat…… he’d probably want to do things all day long, 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, 86,400 seconds straight, which would be the problem.

He was troubled about how to express this gently and softly.

Since Juho couldn’t easily give an answer, cold sweat was bubbling up on Dain’s palms.

As expected, a male beast-man with this kind of build isn’t appealing?! Not only Dain’s eyebrows but even his lips drooped down.

Whether he knew Dain’s feelings or not, Juho was alone spreading his wings of inappropriate imagination when he heard the honking from the car behind and finally started driving.

For a while, silence flowed in the car. What broke that silence was Dain delivering deliberately calm words to Juho in an ant-like voice.

“R-right…… You probably don’t want to do anything with a big beast-man either, Juho……?”

“What?”

“Ah, no. It’s okay! I don’t even have to worry about going into heat, mm-hm! So……”

“Hyung. What are you talking about.”

Realizing that he still hadn’t answered because his head was completely filled with thoughts of biting and sucking Dain, Juho quickly added:

“I’m disappointed enough that hyung doesn’t go into heat. Ah, but that doesn’t mean I dislike that hyung doesn’t go into heat…… I just mean that I like hyung as you are. Regardless of such things.”

“R-really?”

“Of course. Hyung, I like you as a person. It’s not that I like hyung because you’re a certain type of person.”

If there was a question asking ‘What is the correct answer for an ideal boyfriend?’, this would definitely be a 100% model answer.

Dain also seemed relieved hearing those words and nodded slightly. Before he knew it, the corners of his mouth began to slowly turn upward. The cold sweat that had been springing from his palms had also dried and become soft.

Juho let out a short sigh inwardly. For something he had blurted out to hide his lewd inner thoughts, it wasn’t bad. Dain also seemed to like his answer.

While Juho focused on driving and Dain looked ahead with him, Dain glanced sideways. Dain, who was secretly admiring Juho’s handsome profile even up close, let out a short “hehe” laugh.

Juho, who somehow caught that brief sound and smiled along, looked at Dain and asked:

“Did you like my answer?”

“Huh? Mm-hm. Completely! As expected, I think you’re the kindest person in the world, Juho.”

“Me?”

Juho’s eyebrow went up and down once as if he didn’t quite understand. Even that movement was so natural and handsome that Dain unconsciously mimicked it.

“Yes! You’re so kind, Juho! You said it was okay when I made that mistake at the airport in the beginning, and when I said I’d take responsibility for you so unreasonably, you accepted it all…… Ah, right! Even when I asked that weird question just now, you only gave me pretty answers.”

Dain folded his fingers as he listed the kind things Juho had done, that is, the things he had done well for him.

Those things were so trivial that even folding all ten fingers wasn’t enough and he had to unfold them again.

Juho, who had been feeling good from Dain’s compliments after a long time, began to feel slightly embarrassed when those compliments extended to things like bringing him water during breakfast.

“Also, what else is there……”

“Hyung, hyung. That…… stop now. Before hearing what you said, I didn’t know I was this kind either.”

“Huh? Really? You’re so kind and gentle, Juho…… I still have a lot more to tell you……”

“Please continue next time. Just up to here for today.”

“Mm-hm. Okay!”

Dain answered obediently. It wasn’t just something he was saying – he really had a lot more to continue with next time. This was because he had collected enough material to write a thesis when it came to the ‘Lee Juho Angel Theory’.

In a notebook in the corner of Dain’s room, things that happened with Juho were written densely.

It was a notebook where Dain wrote in his diary, one of his hobbies, and it was natural that his recent diary entries were written more than half full with only things that happened with Juho.

Since he mostly wrote while Juho was showering, Juho probably didn’t know about it yet. It would be a bit embarrassing if he got caught, but since nothing bad was written, it wouldn’t matter if he was found out.

Dain looked at Juho’s reddened nape, which seemed bashful, and laughed “hehe” again.

* * *

On the day of the group project meeting. When Dain, whose lecture ended earlier than the other group members, was preparing for tomorrow’s test in the library, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket.

Dain put down the pen he was using to take notes and quickly checked his phone screen.

[Lee Minjun: Sujeong and I finished our lecture! Where are you, Jung Dain sunbae??│5:12 PM]

[Han Jiyoon: I’m almost done too! If you tell me the location, I’ll go there!│5:14 PM]

[5:15 PM│I’m at the humanities library right now. You can come to the front of it!]

These were messages from group members letting him know their lectures had ended. Dain immediately sent a reply and then hurriedly began packing his bag.

When he stood on the stairs in front of the library and waited for a moment, he could see a figure waving from afar.

“Dain sunbae!”

It was Jiyoon running over while her bob cut swayed. Dain also waved slightly in response to her greeting.

While exchanging a few words of greeting with Jiyoon, Lee Minjun and Kim Sujeong, who attended the same lecture, joined them.

Dain glanced at Sujeong’s face. Because of his secret that he had accidentally learned a few days ago, he found himself unconsciously concerned about him. In contrast, Sujeong just bowed his head to Dain with an indifferent expression.

Minjun also bowed his head in greeting and then said apologetically:

“Hello, sunbae! It must have been tiring waiting for us, right?”

“Ah, hello. No! It was fine. It wasn’t tiring at all.”

At Dain’s answer, Jiyoon made a “keuu” sound and nodded. As expected, Dain sunbae only looks scary at first impression but is definitely super kind.

Every time the number of meetings with Dain increased, Jiyoon’s desire to become close friends with Dain grew.

Even though she was the same age as Dain, she liked Dain, who was mature and even a cat beast-man, more than Dohyeon, who had the same mental age as herself. To do that, she had to make building friendship her absolute goal from now on.

What’s the best thing for friendship? It would be eating together, wouldn’t it!

“Dain sunbae! What would you like to eat? It’s almost dinner time anyway, so shall we talk while eating something?”

“Ah, shall we do that?”

“Of course! Even Mount Geumgang comes after eating! You have to eat something delicious for your brain to work really well!”

“Mm-hm.”

Dain nodded, overwhelmed by Jiyoon’s enthusiasm. Since the other two sophomores had no objections either, the four decided to look for a restaurant or cafe near the school.

However, perhaps because it was close to dinner time, there were no seats available at restaurants suitable for four people to sit and talk together. The places with plenty of seats remaining were mainly drinking establishments.

The four people found themselves looking at each other’s faces with troubled expressions in this unexpected situation.

“Ah, but going to a snack bar is a bit……”

Minjun, who had been looking around at snack bars that at least had seats available, said this. Everyone’s faces showed agreement with his words.

It was already quite some time later to move their steps looking for other stores. When everyone was just making “mmm……” sounds, wondering what to do, Dain cautiously suggested an opinion.

“Um, then shall we go to my studio apartment? It’s a 15-minute walk from here. It would also be good for talking quietly……”

At Dain’s words, three pairs of eyes turned to Dain.

Because of the three pairs of eyes that gathered in an instant, Dain’s earlobes turned bright red. Did I say something wrong? Maybe they don’t like going to other people’s homes? Could this also be something kids these days hate hearing? And so on.

When Dain’s head was full of various thoughts, Jiyoon shouted:

“I love it! Dain sunbae’s house! I’m definitely in favor! By any chance, is the cat visiting today??”

“Ah, no. He didn’t come today.”

At Dain’s words that there was no cat, Jiyoon was slightly disappointed but soon repeated that it was good in a bright voice. Minjun, who was next to her, also agreed with Jiyoon’s opinion. Now only one person remained: Kim Sujeong.

“……”

“……Sujeong sunbae?”

Sujeong, who faced three pairs of eyes instead of Dain, nodded. Honestly, he just wanted to quickly finish talking and part ways, regardless of where they did what.

Having received Sujeong’s agreement last, the four people moved their steps following Dain’s guidance.

* * *

027982.

Dain put force into his fingertips to press the numbers accurately, then opened the door wide.

Since he had cleaned before going out in the morning, it wasn’t severely messy. However, since this was the first time he had invited anyone other than Juho to his home, he naturally felt nervous.

Dain stepped aside slightly in the entrance so the other people could enter comfortably. Jiyoon, who entered the house first, made an expression of ‘As expected of Dain sunbae!’ at the cozy room atmosphere. At Jiyoon’s not-bad reaction, Dain’s tension eased a little.

“Wow, sunbae, you live so cleanly!”

Minjun, who followed in, also gave Dain flattering compliments. When his expression, which had been stiff with tension, was gradually relaxing at those words, it happened.

The eyebrows of Sujeong, who was the last to step foot in Dain’s house, crumpled with a scrunch. Seeing that expression, Dain’s face froze stiff again.

Whether conscious of such a Dain or not, Sujeong, who briefly bowed his head and then raised it, had already returned to his indifferent expression. It was such a momentary change that the other people who were looking around the house didn’t notice, but Dain, who was standing right in front, saw his crumpled expression clearly.