As soon as the door was opened, it didn’t take long for Ha Jun-seo to burst in.
“Ha-yoon!!”
Throwing off his shoes, Ha Jun-seo ran straight to the sofa and pulled Kim Min-seok into a tight embrace. The soft scent of fabric softener brushed past his nose.
“Do you have any idea how scared I was? How could you just run away like that? Are you okay? You didn’t get hurt, did you? You said you were scared—what happened to make you so frightened?”
Ha Jun-seo ran his hands over Kim Min-seok, as if checking for injuries, while bombarding him with questions. Guilt surged inside Kim Min-seok. He had completely deceived Ha Jun-seo and escaped, after all. Sneaking a glance at Choi Sang-hyuk, he gently patted Ha Jun-seo’s arm to calm him down.
“I’m fine. Nothing bad happened. I wasn’t even that scared.”
“That bastard didn’t do anything to you? Why aren’t you more afraid? You had no idea what that bastard might have done, and you went there alone?”
That bastard Ha Jun-seo was referring to had to be Seo Chang-seop.
“What happened to that fucker? Is he dead? You didn’t just let him off easy, did you?”
Ha Jun-seo turned to Choi Sang-hyuk and asked.
“I took care of it. None of your business.”
Choi Sang-hyuk frowned as he replied. Ha Jun-seo took a deep breath and cupped Kim Min-seok’s face with both hands, carefully examining him.
“So, are you okay now?”
His voice was calm, but it carried deep concern. His brown eyes meticulously scanned Kim Min-seok’s face, his expression, and even his pupils.
“Yes. I’m fine now.”
Kim Min-seok placed his hands over Ha Jun-seo’s, still resting on his cheeks, and gave them a gentle squeeze. His sincerity must have come through, as Ha Jun-seo’s tense expression finally softened.
“Seriously… I thought my heart was going to melt from worry.”
Ha Jun-seo murmured, then pulled Kim Min-seok into another tight hug. Leaning in, he whispered into his ear.
“Don’t ever do that again.”
“…Okay.”
Kim Min-seok nodded, stroking Ha Jun-seo’s back to soothe him. Watching them, Choi Sang-hyuk stood with his arms crossed, glaring at them with clear disdain. Kim Min-seok broke into a cold sweat at the awkward situation.
“So, did you fucking take care of that bastard or not? If you haven’t, just say the word—I’ll fucking do it myself.”
Still hugging Kim Min-seok, Ha Jun-seo snapped at Choi Sang-hyuk, his temper flaring again.
“Whoa, whoa—calm down. Just calm down.”
Kim Min-seok patted Ha Jun-seo’s back, trying to pacify him. Ha Jun-seo finally loosened his arms but immediately cupped Kim Min-seok’s cheeks again, scanning his face all over. Even though he was right in front of him, he still didn’t seem entirely reassured.
Kim Min-seok quietly looked into Ha Jun-seo’s clear brown eyes before asking in a soft voice.
“Jun-seo… did you see it too?”
At his question, a crack suddenly formed in those clear brown irises. Ha Jun-seo remained silent for a moment, seemingly at a loss for words, before slowly nodding. The warmth and kindness that usually filled his expression darkened with a shadow of gloom. Not liking the sight of it, Kim Min-seok gently rubbed his fingers over Ha Jun-seo’s furrowed brows.
“Don’t make that face. It’s all okay now.”
“Is it really okay?”
“I think Seo Ha-yoon would feel the same way once he knows it’s been taken care of.”
Ha Jun-seo stared at him for a moment before speaking again.
“Not just Seo Ha-yoon… but you, Min-seok. Are you okay too?”
The fact that he was worried not just for Seo Ha-yoon but for him as well made Kim Min-seok’s throat tighten. He quickly nodded.
“Yeah. I’m okay. I really am.”
“Alright. That’s all that matters.”
Finally, Ha Jun-seo smiled.
“If you two are done, get off of each other. And you, get the hell out and go back to your own place.”
Choi Sang-hyuk, who had clearly reached the limit of his patience, cut in. Surprisingly, Ha Jun-seo stood up without protest. Without so much as a goodbye, he strode toward the front door.
“……???”
Kim Min-seok watched him go with a puzzled expression. Even Choi Sang-hyuk raised an eyebrow at Ha Jun-seo’s unexpected behavior.
Clack—
The sound of the front door opening echoed through the apartment. Ha Jun-seo bent down as if picking something up before shutting the door again. When he turned around, he was holding a large travel suitcase.
“Ha-yoon, you’re staying here for now, right? So I figured I’d stay here too. Brought all my stuff with me.”
Choi Sang-hyuk’s face instantly twisted in irritation, while Ha Jun-seo flashed a smug, victorious grin.
For fuck’s sake.
Kim Min-seok felt a headache coming on and pressed his forehead with his hand.
***
A steaming bowl of freshly cooked white rice. A ladleful of thick, bubbling doenjang jjigae poured generously over it. On top, a perfectly runny fried egg, a drizzle of soy sauce, a splash of sesame oil, and a heaping spoonful of butter.
Kim Min-seok rested his chin on the dining table, watching as Ha Jun-seo stirred everything together with a spoon. His mouth was already watering. After mixing it thoroughly, Ha Jun-seo sprinkled some crushed seaweed over the top before sliding the bowl toward Kim Min-seok.
“Here, eat up.”
With a bright smile on his face, Ha Jun-seo looked like an angel.
“Thanks for the meal.”
Kim Min-seok hurriedly grabbed his spoon and began shoveling food into his mouth. The rich, nutty aroma of butter mixed with the savory doenjang stirred into the rice was absolutely divine.
“Mmmph, so good.”
With his mouth full of food, he gave a thumbs-up. Ha Jun-seo, finding the sight adorable, playfully tapped his cheek before starting on his own meal.
While chewing, Kim Min-seok stole a glance at Choi Sang-hyuk, who was seated beside him. Despite the sour look on his face, he was eating the meal Ha Jun-seo had prepared. Originally, he had been adamant about not eating and was about to leave, but Kim Min-seok had forcibly made him sit down. And as much as Choi Sang-hyuk complained, once he started eating, he always finished the entire bowl. It made the effort of forcing him to eat feel worthwhile.
Somehow, a full week had already passed since the three of them started living together. For the first few days, the two men couldn’t even make eye contact without hurling curses at each other, but the hostility had slightly softened over time. At first, Kim Min-seok had been so overwhelmed by the tension that he could barely breathe, constantly caught in the middle. But now, he’d grown a bit more shameless about it.
For the first two days, Choi Sang-hyuk had refused to leave for work, handling only the absolute necessities from home. But that had quickly proven unsustainable, and eventually, he resumed going to the office.
However, he absolutely despised the idea of leaving Ha Jun-seo alone with Kim Min-seok in the house. His solution? Hiring a live-in housekeeper to stay in the apartment while he was gone. And even with that, he made sure to return home precisely when the housekeeper’s shift ended. It was obvious that he had cut down on his work hours just to come home earlier.
Because of that arrangement, for the past week, Kim Min-seok had never been left alone in the apartment with either of them. The real issue arose at night—when it was time to sleep.
At first, both men had insisted that Kim Min-seok should sleep in their room, leading to endless arguments. Eventually, the compromise was that all three of them would sleep separately in their own rooms.
And then… a new problem emerged.
Kim Min-seok found that he simply couldn’t fall asleep alone. Every time he tried, the loneliness and emptiness were unbearable. Back when he was just Kim Min-seok, he had always slept alone without issue. But after living as Seo Ha-yoon for a while, it seemed he’d become ridiculously needy.
As a result, he had spent the first night in the apartment completely awake. The next morning, when he emerged for breakfast with dark circles under his eyes, both men immediately noticed his lack of sleep.
The following night, he couldn’t take it anymore and secretly crawled into Choi Sang-hyuk’s bed, falling asleep in his arms. The night after that, he curled up in Ha Jun-seo’s arms. And the night after that, he went back to Choi Sang-hyuk. It was his own way of making sure the two men didn’t fight over him.
Both of them clearly knew that Kim Min-seok was alternating between their rooms, but they deliberately chose not to bring it up. It was obvious they were silently tolerating it for his sake—because they knew he couldn’t sleep alone.
Still, it took a certain kind of audacity to slip into different lovers’ beds on alternating nights while they were both aware of it. As a result, Kim Min-seok spent his days carefully monitoring their moods. If having just two lovers was this exhausting, he had no idea how men who juggled multiple relationships managed to survive.
“Have a good day at work.”
Kim Min-seok bid farewell to Choi Sang-hyuk as he left for the office. As he turned to go back inside, Choi Sang-hyuk lightly patted his ass before walking out the door.
The moment he turned around, Ha Jun-seo handed him a glass of something suspicious. It was the so-called health juice he’d been forcing on him for the past few days.
The moment Kim Min-seok saw the thick, green liquid, his expression soured. But Ha Jun-seo wasn’t backing down.
“It’s good for your health, so hurry up and drink it.”
Ha Jun-seo urged him. After all, he had carefully prepped, chopped, and blended all the ingredients himself. There was no way Kim Min-seok could refuse something made with such effort. With no other choice, he took the glass, shut his eyes tightly, and gulped it down in one go. The indescribable taste assaulted his tongue like pure torture. It seemed like Ha Jun-seo had found a subtle way to express his grievances over the past few days.
“…I finished it.”
Since he had to drink it anyway, it was best to down it all in one breath without stopping—that was the survival tactic he had mastered over the last few days. As Kim Min-seok handed back the empty glass, Ha Jun-seo patted him on the butt approvingly before taking the glass and setting it in the sink.
“Oh my, if you had just told me, I could’ve made it for him.”
The housekeeper chimed in. Kim Min-seok looked at Ha Jun-seo with desperate eyes, silently begging him to take up the offer.
“It’s for Ha-yoon, so I feel more comfortable making it myself.”
Ha Jun-seo replied with a gentle smile. The housekeeper, clearly charmed by the kind expression of the handsome young man, beamed with approval.
