Seated at the study table, Jae-jin blankly lowered his gaze. Tok, tok. The rhythmic sound of nail clippers filled the background as he briefly sank into thought.
‘Ha…’
For the past few days, his dreams had been unsettling. Despite his relationship with Seo Eui-woo reaching its peak, becoming as perfect as it could be, Kwon Jae-jin kept having the same ominous nightmares.
In his dreams, the 24-year-old first-round Seo Eui-woo pointed toward the farthest reaches of space, where a horde of writhing, pitch-black creatures swarmed toward him with overwhelming force.
The legion of monsters in the dream was unusual in its intensity. With each passing day, they drew noticeably closer. At first, they had been so minuscule that he had to squint to make them out—mere specks of mold. But now, their individual forms and features were starkly visible.
Jae-jin felt nothing but confusion and unease.
‘Just when I thought I could finally start living well… what the hell is with these dreams?’
He was already plenty busy, with too many things demanding his attention.
Farming techniques, sowing schedules, transplanting periods, pest prevention methods, mushroom cultivation—there was an endless list of things he needed to research. No matter how much he studied, he never seemed to reach the end of his preparations. On top of that, he had to learn construction methods for emergency situations, plumbing systems, fireplace and stove structures—so many areas of knowledge were required.
And amidst all this, he also had to maintain a relationship with Seo Eui-woo.
He had anniversaries to remember, letters to write, gifts to choose. He had to review the dozens of custom ring design samples that Seo Eui-woo, with his keen aesthetic sense, had painstakingly crafted. Each time, he had to offer a response—
“Yes, that looks good.”
“Yes, this one too.”
“Yes, that… might be a bit too flashy.”
“This one’s nice.”
On top of that, they had to go on home dates. He had to dress appropriately for those dates. He had to eat all three meals that Seo Eui-woo diligently prepared with unwavering dedication. And he had to keep himself from getting too distracted by the way Seo Eui-woo clung to him, always by his side, never showing any intention of letting go.
He was busy.
Kwon Jae-jin was incredibly busy.
If he let his guard down for even a moment, Seo Eui-woo would latch onto him, and before he knew it, they’d be kissing. If they stared into each other’s eyes too long, lost in silent affection, their clothes would inevitably come off. Then, just like that, another day would slip away, and he’d have the same damn nightmare all over again.
‘At this rate, we won’t be able to leave even by summer, let alone spring.’
He had always known that balancing work and romance would be difficult, but this was beyond frustrating—nothing was going as planned. It wasn’t like they could keep their distance. Living together 24/7 under the same roof only made things worse. And now, on top of everything, these nightmares were haunting him, adding to his frustration.
Dreams are a reflection of the subconscious.
If these nightmares were a manifestation of his mental state, then there had to be something he had overlooked—some flaw he had failed to notice. And until he identified and addressed that gap, his subconscious would keep sounding the alarm.
‘Is there really something I overlooked… something I failed to notice?’
If so, what exactly had he missed that would cause him to have such ominous dreams over and over again?
Jae-jin swallowed a frustrated breath and rubbed his tired eyes with his index finger. As he repeatedly massaged his eyelids, Seo Eui-woo, who had been trimming Jae-jin’s nails, whispered softly.
“Jae-jin, are you tired? Feeling sleepy…?”
“Ah… No, I’m fine.”
“Fine, my ass. You should rest a little, don’t you think? You’ve been searching nonstop, reading papers, watching documentaries. You even finished that five-part series, Nature’s Blessing: Bamboo, or whatever it was.”
Seo Eui-woo gently smoothed out the freshly cut nails. After confirming that Jae-jin’s middle finger was neatly trimmed with no rough edges, he moved on to the ring finger, positioning the nail clipper before snap—another nail was cut.
For the record, Jae-jin had repeatedly insisted that he could do this himself, but Seo Eui-woo had stubbornly insisted on trimming his nails, refusing to take no for an answer.
“Bamboo will be useful. It grows extremely fast, and since it’s hollow, its applications are endless. Plus, bamboo shoots can be used in cooking. We absolutely need to plant some.”
“Haha, I guess we’re going to end up living in a bamboo forest, then.”
“Yes, and since it grows tall, it’ll act as a natural fence, making it easier for us to stay hidden.”
Seo Eui-woo finished trimming the ring finger and moved on to the pinky. The nail was small, and he hesitated for a while, almost as if he found it too precious to cut. After a long pause, he finally snipped the last nail and said, “Now, give me your right hand.”
Jae-jin switched off his tablet screen and obediently held out his right hand.
“If your nails grew as fast as bamboo, I could cut them every day. But since they grow so slowly, it’s a shame.”
As always, Seo Eui-woo was spouting insane nonsense.
“And toenails grow even slower, don’t they? I want to trim them evenly too, but when will they finally grow out…? Waiting is so frustrating.”
“…Why would you even wait for that? Don’t wait. And for the record, I never agreed to let you cut my toenails.”
“Why not? What’s wrong with toenails?”
“Well, for starters, feet are dirty.”
“What’s dirty about them? I’m the one who gives you baths, remember? I always scrub you thoroughly, down to your toes.”
“That’s not what I meant. It’s just… a matter of feeling.”
“They’re not dirty. They’re nice and smooth. Your feet are really pale.”
“Can you stop talking nonsense? Anyway, no. No toenails.”
Even if Jae-jin said no, Seo Eui-woo would eventually push until he got his way. But that was a problem for another day.
After neatly trimming the nails on Jae-jin’s right hand as well, Seo Eui-woo ran his fingers over the short, round tips with satisfaction, as if he found them unbearably cute.
“Hmm, if I said I wanted to collect all the nail clippings separately… that’d be a little creepy, wouldn’t it?”
Seo Eui-woo laughed as he spoke, his long, curved eyes brimming with warmth and amusement. His expression was sweet, affectionate even—but what came out of his mouth was pure madness. Jae-jin still struggled to understand his way of thinking.
“…What? Are you even listening to yourself right now? Just throw them away. Actually, no—give them to me. I’ll throw them away myself.”
Jae-jin hastily swept the pile of nail clippings from the corner of the table into his palm. It seemed like a joke, but knowing Seo Eui-woo, he might actually want to keep them.
Seo Eui-woo chuckled, thoroughly entertained by Jae-jin’s horrified reaction.
“Ah, haha! Jae-jin, you’re adorable. Seriously… Ahaha.”
“Shut up.”
After gathering all the nail clippings, Jae-jin rose from his seat. If he just tossed them in the trash, there was a chance Seo Eui-woo might dig them back out, so he decided to flush them down the toilet instead. As he left the study, Seo Eui-woo lazily followed behind, his long legs covering the distance in just a few strides. That ever-present smile never left his lips.
“I’m not collecting them. I mean, you’re right here, alive—why would I bother keeping dead cells?”
“……”
“If I were the type to hoard things like that, don’t you think I would’ve already started collecting all your fallen hairs by now? But I haven’t. See? I’m not that far gone. Not yet.”
Not that far gone?
Then exactly how far gone are you…?
Jae-jin entered the bathroom and dumped the nail clippings into the toilet. The sensor detected movement, triggering an automatic flush, and the lid closed on its own. The absurdity of the situation hit him all at once—was he seriously disposing of his own nail clippings just to prevent his boyfriend from collecting them? No matter how he looked at it, this wasn’t normal.
“Happy now? You should trust me a little. I said I wouldn’t keep them…”
Seo Eui-woo, standing at the doorway, flashed an exaggeratedly sweet smile, as if putting on a show. Jae-jin simply turned on the faucet and washed his hands before stepping out of the bathroom.
“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I do.”
“Really? Then can I trim your toenails?”
“That’s a no.”
“If you don’t like that, how about shaving? You’d be fine with that, right? Since it’s your face and all?”
Jae-jin shook his head as he chatted idly with Seo Eui-woo, making his way back to the study. The table was just as they had left it—dictionaries and plant encyclopedias spread open, the tablet he had turned off still resting there, and the nail clippers lying abandoned in the middle of it all.
As he stepped past the threshold, however, he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.
An invisible force seemed to pull at him from behind, holding him back. It wasn’t physical, yet he could feel it—a resistance, as if unseen hands were gripping him, urging him not to move forward.
“Jae-jin?”
Jae-jin was busy.
He had to finish preparing to leave with Seo Eui-woo before spring arrived. And he had to do it while simultaneously managing their relationship, dealing with Seo Eui-woo’s relentless insistence on trimming his nails and shaving him. There was no time to space out like this.
And yet, his legs refused to move. He was rooted to the spot, like a tree planted at the doorway, his eyelids the only things stirring as they blinked slowly.
After standing still for a long moment, he finally turned around.
Seo Eui-woo gazed at him with quiet concern.
“Jae-jin, what’s wrong?”
“…Eui-woo.”
“Hm?”
“I… just got curious about something all of a sudden.”
The image of the creatures flashed through his mind—millions of black monstrosities, swarming forward in an endless horde. They were getting closer with each passing day, no matter how much he tried to ignore them.
Kwon Jae-jin had already made up his mind to run. He was satisfied with that decision. He was doing everything in his power to build the future he wanted. And yet, something about them wouldn’t leave his mind.
“…With my current shooting skills, how many of them do you think I could take down?”
