Lee Ha-jin’s world was made up of addition and subtraction.
The amount of money he could earn in a month was fixed. So was the money that had to go out. Subtract the necessary expenses from what came in, and what’s left was what he had to live on. That was the formula of Ha-jin’s life. Multiply the daily cost of living by thirty, and that was his month.
His parents, who spent their entire lives at each other’s throats, had never been a source of support for him as a child. One day, his mother disappeared without a trace, and after that, his father turned violent.
Unable to endure it any longer, Ha-jin ran away from home just like his mother had, leaving behind his younger brother and grandmother.
It was a fleeting peace, but not a happy one. In those days when he only had himself to take care of, he learned what emptiness truly felt like.
“Is this Lee Ha-jin? This is the police. Um… I’m sorry to bring bad news, but… there’s just been a fire at Mr. Lee Sung-soo’s residence. Unfortunately, Mr. Lee Sung-soo passed away in the incident. We’re still investigating the scene… but you’ll need to come as soon as possible.”
It happened just when he thought he could finally start a new life—having saved money while staying with Kwak Mari, finally becoming a legal adult. They said his father had been refueling the heater with a cigarette in his mouth. As always, he was drunk out of his mind. The only eyewitness to give a statement was his middle-school-aged younger brother.
It fell on Ha-jin to care for his collapsed grandmother and his younger brother, who went into a pheromone-induced seizure.
Shouldering responsibility became second nature, and from that moment on, his life was like building a tower—adding, subtracting, regular, and simple.
There was no room for deviation. For someone like Ha-jin, barely hanging on, unpredictability was a luxury he couldn’t afford. The share he had to carry was always set—non-negotiable, inescapable, and unbearably heavy.
The greatest disruption in that orderly life had been Tae-seong. He had quite literally brought Ha-jin to the brink of death. That alone said it all. And now, even after coming back to life through regression, the rules of his world were starting to blur again.
Though it felt like everything was breaking apart in the face of such a monumental change, strangely enough, it wasn’t scary. It didn’t feel bad either. Maybe the situation had gotten so out of control that his brain had simply short-circuited…
Was this feeling of screw it, let it happen just a sign that he was exhausted? Ha-jin didn’t know.
Inside the cramped car, Ha-jin welcomed the weight pressing down on his body as he wrapped his arms around Tae-seong’s neck. They’d been holding hands the entire ride back from Cheon Han-jo’s house in Seoul, but instead of satisfying anything, it only stoked the hunger. The moment they parked at the curb in a side alley near his home, their lips crashed together—neither knew who initiated it first.
The car sat low, making it feel like they were trapped in a tiny box together. The passenger seat reclined all the way, and Tae-seong climbed on top of Ha-jin in a movement so forceful it felt almost desperate. Their bodies pressed tightly together, radiating heat, with overwhelming pheromones flooding the air until it was hard to breathe.
Ha-jin felt dizzy, but he didn’t dislike it. Even in his dazed state, the only thing clear in the darkness was the sharp light in Tae-seong’s eyes.
After a long, consuming kiss, Tae-seong buried his lips against Ha-jin’s neck and let out a deep, heavy sigh.
“Boseong Bathhouse again?”
He muttered gruffly as he nipped at the soft skin.
“Don’t wash. I don’t like it when it’s all washed away.”
“Ugh… Don’t bite.”
Kisses rained down his neck, cheek, and even the inside of his ear. Soft lips left their imprint all over his skin, and when restraint ran thin, he’d bite. When Tae-seong sucked in his tender earlobe and rolled it carelessly around in his mouth, Ha-jin couldn’t help but squirm from the ticklish sensation.
“Wait… You’re pressing too hard. Hng… It tickles…”
Ha-jin shifted his body. Something hard and bulging poked insistently at the inside of his thigh, making him twitch from the ticklish tension in his belly. He reached down, trying to create space, but what he grabbed wasn’t a phone—it was a hot, solid mass.
“Ah!”
Startled, Tae-seong shot upright and slammed his head on the car ceiling. Thud! The loud noise made Ha-jin’s eyes go wide.
“Gasp—are you okay?”
“You scared me! You just grabbed it outta nowhere.”
“I thought it was your phone. It kept pressing into me…”
Ha-jin sheepishly reached out and gently rubbed the back of Tae-seong’s head. There was still a faint, bumpy scar where he’d needed stitches after Ha-jin had struck him there once.
“Ow!”
“Ah! Did it hurt?”
“Why are you yelling when I’m the one who’s hurt?”
Laughter tumbled freely from between Tae-seong’s teeth, like bubbles popping one after another.
It was obvious he was joking—he flashed a soft smile, his pretty eyes crinkling gently. Even in the dim car lit only by a faint streetlamp, every nuance of his expression was visible.
Suddenly, Tae-seong flopped down onto Ha-jin’s chest again. The sound of his body hitting was audible.
“You’re heavy… You know muscles are heavier, right?”
“Ha-jin, don’t go.”
“……”
When Ha-jin didn’t respond, Tae-seong groaned.
“Stay with me. Don’t leave.”
“……”
“Let’s not leave. Okay? Come to my place.”
“……”
Instead of answering, Ha-jin wrapped both arms around Tae-seong’s broad shoulders. His elbow got caught in the car door, and he had to wriggle to adjust.
Tae-seong suddenly lifted his head, grinning wide enough to show every tooth.
“So, you are coming?”
“…No.”
“Why not? You hesitated just now.”
That part was true.
Ha-jin let out a long sigh.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“No, wait. Hold on.”
Tae-seong scrambled back to the driver’s seat, locked the doors in a hurry, and pulled out his phone. Ha-jin quickly covered the screen with his hand.
“What are you doing?”
“Let’s bring Yushin too. That’s fine, right?”
“What? Since when do you call him Yushin? No way.”
Snapped out of the daze, Ha-jin’s eyes sharpened.
“No. Absolutely not. Yushin won’t like it. Why should he have to do that?”
Just one word—no—and Tae-seong’s eyebrows drooped. He pouted adorably, but Ha-jin’s firm stance didn’t waver.
***
After finishing his bath and stepping outside, Ha-jin spotted Tae-seong’s car still parked in the exact same spot across the street. Not so much as a twitch. Ha-jin couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh. Tae-seong had poured out so much pheromone earlier that even with the extra time he’d spent scrubbing himself clean, the car hadn’t moved.
“I’m heading in. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Ha-jin waved both hands toward the car.
He needed to visit the hospital tomorrow. Whether or not he was pregnant, he’d gone through a knotting, so he had to get checked. Still, he didn’t say anything to Tae-seong about going together—because he knew without a doubt that Tae-seong would insist on coming.
As if he sensed Ha-jin’s thoughts, Tae-seong waved back from the open window, arm propped on the edge. His expression still screamed I don’t want to say goodbye, but he didn’t get out of the car. He was being considerate, not wanting his Alpha pheromones to affect Ha-jin’s younger brother.
I hope Yushin gets better soon.
That stray thought made Ha-jin chuckle. If Yushin found out, he’d probably be really upset. Maybe Ha-jin had changed as much as Tae-seong had, and in just as short a time.
Feeling a twinge of guilt, Ha-jin stopped by a convenience store to pick up some snacks. Oddly enough, Go Yeon-mok was behind the register himself. Seeing him brought Tae-seong’s grumbling face to mind again, and Ha-jin let out a small laugh.
“Did your part-timer quit?”
Yeon-mok returned the smile, maybe thinking Ha-jin was laughing at something else.
“You know how kids are these days. Another three-month runner. Hey, why don’t you get your little brother to stop lazing around at home and come work here instead? Studying for exams just sucks the life out of you. You go out and break your back working under some weird boss while he lounges around all day living off your paycheck? He’s young—he should be out earning his keep.”
As he scanned barcodes for the chocolate and ice cream on the counter, he launched into his usual lecture. When Ha-jin had once said his brother was studying for an exam, this was the kind of talk he’d get every time.
Ha-jin frowned as he opened the rewards app. Now that he thought about it, there was no reason he had to explain what his job was or why Yushin stayed home all day just because his landlord asked. He’d never really been bothered by it before.
He really had been living like a fool.
He’d told himself go along to get along, but nothing about it had been good for him.
Maybe it was time to move.
And this wasn’t about being seduced by Tae-seong—it was something different. Maybe it was time to accept what people had been saying—that Yushin was a grown adult now. A change in environment might even help him adapt better to his illness.
Yushin must have things he feels uncomfortable about, even if he hasn’t said them out loud. He’s an adult now; maybe he needs more privacy.
Shifting his perspective a little… might not be such a bad thing.
Lost in thought, Ha-jin soon found himself at his front door. As if on cue, his phone was bombarded with messages from Tae-seong asking if he’d made it home.
Ha-jin smiled without even trying to hide it, standing at the entrance and froze in place.
In shock, the plastic bag in his hand slipped and dropped to the ground.
With blood drained from his fingers, he reached for the door. Around the electronic lock, scorch marks had spread as if something had exploded or burned there.
