“With you?”
To his response that implied ‘You dare think you can beat me?’, Junghyun shrugged his shoulders.
“You have to try something to know.”
At those words, Jaehyuk couldn’t help but laugh incredulously.
Like in martial arts, weight class is the most important factor in all sports. Swimming, in particular, was one of the sports where physical specifications mattered.
He acknowledged that Junghyun had excellent athletic ability, but such ability would struggle to overcome the difference in weight class.
For one thing, they had different arm and leg lengths.
“Just breakfast?”
“Let’s do something else for lunch. Two laps round trip.”
“You think you can swim two laps?”
“My stamina is good.”
“Fine.”
Confidently standing in front of the pool with the attitude that he would win no matter what they did, Jaehyuk immediately wet his body and put on his swimming goggles.
Junghyun, who had been standing next to him, also took his position in front of the pool, put on his goggles, and warmed up.
Jaehyuk turned to look at him, noting his surprisingly composed response, and nodded.
It meant that Junghyun should give the starting signal.
At that gesture, Junghyun immediately began counting.
“3, 2, 1.”
Counting the numbers instantly, as if playing a trick, Junghyun immediately dove into the water, and Jaehyuk didn’t miss the moment as he too launched his body into the water. After a long underwater swim, he began to surge ahead at tremendous speed.
The outcome was predetermined anyway.
Knowing that he would never lose, Jaehyuk confidently swam, made one turn, and immediately returned to his starting point. Just as he was about to turn again and go back, he felt something strange.
The left side where Junghyun was swimming felt too empty.
Thinking that perhaps the distance between them was too great, he looked at the left lane, but the adjacent lane was very quiet.
In fact, too quiet.
Without even ripples, let alone splashes.
There was a reason for that.
Because no one was there.
With a sinking feeling, Jaehyuk, who had stopped after a short distance, took off his goggles and looked around. Then his eyes met with Junghyun’s, who was near the starting point, having just entered the pool, putting his finger to his lips as if telling a child who had just come in to be quiet.
At that moment, Jaehyuk noticed Junghyun’s pupils trembling slightly.
That’s when he realized.
Junghyun had been dawdling there, planning to pretend he had arrived first just before Jaehyuk reached the finish line.
As soon as he realized this, Jaehyuk motioned with his right hand.
You, stay right there.
Junghyun’s response was quite fresh.
He suddenly flashed a finger heart out of nowhere, then just as he was about to leave the water, Jaehyuk returned to the starting point at an incredible speed and grabbed Junghyun’s ankle as he was stepping out, throwing him back into the water.
Jaehyuk smiled with satisfaction as he watched Junghyun dive straight into the water with a refreshing splash.
Serves you right.
Muttering inwardly that Junghyun would really get it this time for his utterly outrageous behavior, Jaehyuk wiped the water from his face when he felt something eerie around his leg.
The water currents were curling around his legs.
Something slithering and wrapping around him, like a snake…
At that creepy sensation, he quickly looked down and saw Junghyun wrapping around the lower part of his legs.
Jaehyuk laughed dismissively at those movements that clearly showed his intention to drag him down like a water ghost.
Even in water, the difference in strength is significant from the start.
He smiled leisurely as if to say “go ahead and try,” but something felt off.
He had expected Junghyun to grab and pull his legs, but unexpectedly, Junghyun’s hands wrapped around his waist.
In that instant, something flashed through his mind.
Junghyun’s goal wasn’t to drag him underwater.
Rather, Junghyun was targeting his swim trunks.
“You crazy…”
Unable to complete the phrase with “bastard,” Jaehyuk quickly dove underwater.
And with the momentum of someone who was going to kill Junghyun today, he tried to grab him, but Junghyun, having instantly caught on, began swimming towards the opposite side of the pool at tremendous speed.
Jaehyuk was momentarily taken aback by how surprisingly fast he cut through the water, but that wouldn’t be enough.
No matter how fast Junghyun was, he wasn’t fast enough that Jaehyuk couldn’t catch up.
In a split second, Jaehyuk gauged the distance and speed between him and Junghyun with his eyes, then dove underwater and followed with an underwater swim.
Though he moved through the water as quietly as possible, Junghyun, with his frighteningly good instincts, seemed to sense something without even looking back and increased his speed.
As he had said, Junghyun’s instincts and awareness were extraordinary.
He seemed to know very well that he would die if caught.
Seeing him run away only fueled Jaehyuk’s competitive spirit more, and he caught up with Junghyun in an instant, grabbing his ankle as he swam ahead. In return, he received a kick.
Though slow due to water pressure, it was quite a threatening resistance.
First a punch, now a kick.
Flinching at his wonderful partner’s welcoming gestures, Jaehyuk dodged, and at that moment, Junghyun, changing direction in the water as flexibly as a mermaid, began moving to the left.
As if proving the statement that he couldn’t become a professional because he couldn’t follow rules, Jaehyuk followed Junghyun who moved freely, ignoring all norms and manners, swimming through the lanes in a complete mess, and stuck close behind him.
The gap was minimal.
Sprinting the short remaining distance, Jaehyuk overtook Junghyun and grabbed his waist, causing Junghyun to let out a sudden scream.
“Help! Someone help!”
“Shut up!”
He tried to cover Junghyun’s mouth to stop him from yelling in the indoor pool, but it was useless.
“Help! He’s drowning me!”
Jaehyuk was amazed at Junghyun’s energy as he kept flailing and kicking despite gasping for breath from his all-out sprint.
Junghyun had said his stamina was good, but this was beyond imagination.
At this point, he was like a national talent that the country had missed out on.
“You wild punk. Just stay still.”
Despite his determination to teach him a lesson, Jaehyuk was bewildered by Junghyun’s reaction and tried to restrain him from behind, but that made the situation look even stranger.
Clearly he had started it, but now it looked like he was the one bullying Junghyun.
Even to himself, it looked too strange to be holding and forcibly covering the mouth of an Omega smaller than him, so when he hesitated, Junghyun didn’t miss the opportunity and bit the hand covering his mouth.
Surprised by the force, Jaehyuk quickly relaxed his arm, and in that gap, Junghyun slipped away, keeping a distance of about 1 meter and surrendering.
“I lose. I’ll buy you a meal.”
“You think it ends with a meal?”
Saying “Did you just bite me for real?” while looking at his bitten hand, he was relieved to see no blood.
But the teeth marks were clearly visible.
This guy really bites.
“Damn…”
“Well, you shouldn’t have seriously tried to beat a frail Omega like me in the first place. You dominant Alpha.”
At those words, Jaehyuk laughed. It was the third time in his life he seemed to have lost his mind.
What nonsense is this megalodon punk saying?
“You, you really need to be taught a lesson today.”
Just as Jaehyuk was about to get angry, saying that a person should know when and where to act appropriately, a small voice echoed in the quiet pool.
“Excuse me, customer. Please refrain from disturbing other guests in the pool.”
At the uncertain voice of an employee who was clearly forced to speak up after hesitating whether to warn them or not, Jaehyuk finally came to his senses and looked around.
A chill ran down his spine.
The previously empty pool now had quite a few people in it.
Adults and children.
As Jaehyuk’s face gradually turned pale, the employee looked at the two of them, lips trembling as if unsure whether to say this or not, and finally, with hands clasped together, earnestly requested:
“Also, we would appreciate if you could refrain from displays of affection in the pool.”
While the atmosphere had clearly been that of a thriller from their perspective, it seemed it appeared as erotica from the other side.
Both interpretations were too strange, but since it was his mistake, Jaehyuk apologized politely.
“I apologize. We caused too much disturbance.”
“We would appreciate your attention to this matter, sir.”
“We’ll be careful from now on.”
Though he felt like dying from embarrassment, Jaehyuk apologized as calmly and gracefully as possible, while Junghyun, who had already left the pool, was heading to the shower room with lightning speed.
After confirming this, Jaehyuk also immediately left the pool and followed Junghyun.
Without hurrying, leisurely, ignoring the gazes from behind, Jaehyuk removed his swim cap, brushed back his hair, and strode out of the pool with his long legs.
Vowing to kill Junghyun by the end of the day.
* * *
“Humiliating…”
Despite having thick skin, Jaehyuk couldn’t stay at the pool any longer, so after hurriedly finishing his shower, he came to the restaurant and was muttering with a serious face.
With his hood pulled up, hiding his face as much as possible.
Though wearing all black made him look even bigger and more noticeable.
“Don’t be so embarrassed. I won’t remember it well anyway. But hyung will.”
Junghyun gave him a sympathetic look, suggesting they should eat quickly and leave.
Despite feeling a mix of shame and rage at that look, with a strong desire to lash out, Jaehyuk decided to hold back because they were in a quiet restaurant in the hotel.
There were no familiar faces, but most people would probably know who he was.
Not Junghyun though, as he had said.
“May I take your order?”
As the two were sitting seriously, a staff member approached their table and handed them menus. Jaehyuk unhesitatingly pointed to a line on the menu.
“From here to here, everything. For drinks, two iced Americanos, two fresh fruit juices, and all the desserts too.”
Even at a glance, there were seven main course items. With drinks and desserts, it would cost at least 400,000 won.
Junghyun’s eyes widened at his unconscionable order.
“Wow, you’re really milking this. People might think we’re a sports team on an away game.”
As Junghyun protested that this was too much even though he had said he would pay, Jaehyuk called back the employee who was about to take the menu.
“Menu again, please.”
At his momentum that suggested he might order all the set menus in addition to individual items, Junghyun hurriedly raised his hand.
“No, that’s enough. I can’t eat any more than that.”
“Why? You eat quite a bit and so do I?”
“No matter how much we eat, main dishes…”
About to say “seven,” Junghyun remembered the portion sizes of hotel food and stopped himself.
Honestly, they could eat that much. He ate quite a lot, and that person had to eat a lot to maintain that body. Plus, they had just finished swimming.
Though they had never eaten together except for breakfast because this person was too busy, Director Jang had said he ate quite well.
Apparently, he used to eat five servings per meal during puberty.
That’s why he needed to protect his wallet.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
