“Aigoo, you fell asleep here again.”
Whenever I dozed off while spending time with Rai beyond the barrier, my parents—who were constantly monitoring us—would immediately come to get me. Without fail, Rai would bare his teeth and go on alert the moment he saw them.
That hostility would always peak when they tried to lift me into their arms to carry me away.
-Grrrr!
Naturally, their appearance would stir up enough noise to wake me. As I opened my eyes, I looked around at my flustered mother and father.
“Mom? Dad…?”
“Suho, you’re awake?”
They shifted their attention away from Rai and focused on me, rubbing my eyes. The moment they showered me with affection—kissing, hugging, petting my head—only then would Rai back down and let go of his killing intent.
So… it was after witnessing those moments that Rai gradually started to loosen his wariness toward my parents. The hugs, the playful teasing, the affectionate gestures.
Maybe it was easier for a beast to understand physical expressions of closeness and affection, rather than verbal explanations.
“Seo Suho.”
Sun Woosung called out to me.
I snapped back to reality. He seemed puzzled by how I had suddenly fallen silent, lost in memory. I stared blankly at him as he checked my expression, then turned my gaze to Cat, who loomed above us, quietly watching.
Physical contact, huh. That wasn’t something I had even considered before—and even if I had, it wouldn’t be easy to carry out.
“…Colonel.”
“Yes?”
“Would it be alright if I held your hand?”
Gaining the other person’s consent was essential.
But what was supposed to stay a thought somehow escaped as a question.
Sun Woosung paused at my abrupt request.
“You mean… my hand?”
Once the words were out, there was no taking them back. I nodded, and a rare flicker of emotion crossed his dark eyes.
“I think Cat is reacting to the distance between us. I’d like to confirm something.”
When I explained honestly, Sun Woosung shifted his gaze to Cat.
The creature had lowered the forepaw that had been resting against the barrier and was still watching us. Its eyes widened in response to the Colonel’s gaze, casting a sideways glance filled with unmistakable hostility.
Without the slightest trace of hesitation, Sun Woosung turned back and silently extended his hand to me. I gave a small nod of thanks.
“……”
“……”
His hand was hard and rough—his life had clearly been far from smooth.
The moment we stood close, hands firmly clasped, a reaction came.
-Kiwooo! Kiiing!
Cat pressed his round nose against the barrier and began whining, the sound saturated with disapproval.
It wasn’t jealousy. More like confusion and rejection at seeing me form a close bond with someone else.
“Is it judging relationships based on physical contact?”
Sun Woosung seemed to have noticed it too, his brow lifting.
“It seems to hate it. Isn’t this just backfiring?”
“No.”
I could feel it instinctively.
This kind of behavior would act as a powerful catalyst in loosening the creature’s defensiveness toward others.
It might be throwing a fit now, unable to accept it—but just like Rai had with my parents, there was a good chance Cat’s hostility toward Sun Woosung would eventually start to soften.
I glanced at the Colonel.
Whether he was naturally sweaty or just unfamiliar with physical contact, I couldn’t tell—but despite his dry expression, his palm was growing damp.
His eyes were on Cat, but there was a faintly unfocused air about him. I figured anything more than hand-holding would be pushing it for today.
***
“Researcher.”
I gave a slight nod to Yeo Wonjin, who greeted me with a gentle smile.
“Captain.”
“It’s been a while.”
I hesitated, wondering if it had really been long enough to call it a while, but considering everything that had happened since I last saw him at the research facility, I quietly nodded.
“Have you been well?”
“……”
I knew it was a routine question, but regardless, the recent string of events flashed through my mind.
“…Researcher?”
Yeo Wonjin cautiously examined me as I struggled to respond right away. I forced the intrusive memories back and met his gaze.
“Yes. I’ve been well. And you, Captain…?”
“Of course, I’m doing fine too. Just a bit busy dealing with one thing after another.”
…Hmm.
I looked at his composed smile with a vague expression. I wasn’t sure what had happened since I last saw him, but he looked a bit thinner, as if he’d been under some emotional strain. If it was purely due to being overworked, as he said, then that would be a relief.
Since our last parting had been somewhat awkward, I carefully observed his demeanor. But he showed no signs of resentment or guardedness toward me.
As I sat down at the seat he offered, I glanced around. Today’s meeting location was in a building where the Captain and other senior officers lived or worked. The reception room was quite spacious for just the two of us, with a dark, subdued floor that pulled my gaze downward.
“May I ask why you wanted to meet?”
“Why don’t we start with a meal first? It’s around the time you’d be hungry.”
Yeo Wonjin gestured to the food with a pleasant smile. I wasn’t particularly hungry, but I picked up my chopsticks in silence.
After taking a few bites and wiping my mouth, I noticed Yeo Wonjin watching me with concern. I must have looked like I had no appetite.
“I should have taken you to the same place as last time. Is the food not to your taste?”
“No, it’s not that.”
I glanced at the utensils he had already set down before I even started.
“You don’t seem to be eating much yourself.”
“Ah, I had a late lunch. I’m fine.”
He responded smoothly, then stared quietly at my face.
“If anything is troubling you… please tell me. You helped me, and I want to return the favor.”
“……”
I avoided his overly sweet gaze and lowered my eyes to the tableware.
It sounded like he was telling me not to hesitate to open up, since I’d once helped him. But I couldn’t understand what I had done that warranted him feeling so indebted.
“I told you, didn’t I? That thanks to you, I was able to pull myself together. You really underestimate how much that meant to me.”
Despite his worn-out face, he managed a twinkling smile. I had gotten used to his style of tagging on jokes like that.
“I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine. I’ve just been focused on my current tasks.”
“I see.”
He gave a small shrug, visibly disappointed. Realizing I wasn’t about to open up, he seemed to accept it.
“Hmm… Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about today.”
He furrowed his brows, looking somewhat apologetic.
“You’re in charge of the survivor brought in from the surface, right? I feel bad that I might’ve ended up adding to your workload.”
So he had been worrying about that. I tilted my head slightly.
Technically, it was Sun Woosung who had assigned me that responsibility. The task had been reported to and approved by the Captain, but it wasn’t something Yeo Wonjin had directly given me. There was no real reason for him to feel guilty. He must be softer-hearted than he seemed.
“There’s no need to apologize. My working hours are the same either way.”
“…Pardon?”
He blinked, surprised by my unexpected response.
Then he laughed—this time, louder than before. It was the first time I’d seen him laugh like that.
“Hearing that really lightens my heart. I was worried it might’ve been a bad decision to keep the survivor at the research facility, especially since I heard the other researchers don’t even want to go near him.”
“I heard he was too aggressive and couldn’t be sedated, so even the hospital was at a loss. His physical strength is far beyond that of an average adult male. I also believe the research facility is the better option for his containment.”
A hospital wasn’t suitable for someone with that kind of physical power. If he ever tried to escape, who knew what kind of harm might befall the other unguarded patients or medical staff.
Yeo Wonjin nodded at my words and then asked,
“How is he doing now?”
He looked at me with curiosity, knowing that while regular reports had been promised, none had been submitted yet. I lowered my gaze and mentally organized the survivor’s current condition.
“His health is stable, and he’s picking up language skills fairly quickly. He already knew some basics, so the teaching process has been smooth.”
“You’re already teaching him to speak?”
“His psychological instability and violent tendencies have calmed significantly, so we started a few days ago.”
Yeo Wonjin’s eyes lit up with interest.
“I thought you were only popular with monsters…”
“……”
“Alright, I’ll stop here.”
He laughed again as he watched the light vanish from my eyes.
