Haon’s heat lasted a long time once again.
During this period, Inho couldn’t get a wink of sleep. The moment he stepped out of the bedroom, even briefly, Haon would somehow wake up like a ghost and start whining, leaving Inho unable to take his eyes off him for even a second.
The heat symptoms that had started on Thursday only began to subside on Tuesday, meaning Inho had gone more than five days without proper sleep. No wonder he ended up falling asleep while preparing food.
At first, he had simply intended to pick up a fallen potato. But the moment he bent down, his vision went completely white, and he collapsed on the spot. If Haon had seen it, he probably would have been even more startled than the one who fell.
Yet Inho merely let out a small, wry laugh at his own condition. He hadn’t intended to fall asleep. He had just planned to close his eyes for a moment, wait for the dizziness to pass, and get up before Haon woke. Of course, it hadn’t gone as planned.
“Inho-ssi.”
Haon gently shook the sleeping Inho awake, whispering that they should go upstairs and lie down properly. Inho, however, simply hugged Haon tightly and immediately drifted back to sleep. The familiar scent of Haon only deepened his drowsiness.
“Haon-ssi, are you cold?”
Still with his eyes closed, Inho nuzzled his cheek against Haon’s warm neck as he asked. Haon shook his head, saying he wasn’t cold.
“Then let’s stay like this… just a little longer.”
Inho whispered, tightening his arms around Haon to lock him firmly in his embrace.
Even though he worried about Haon’s lingering fever, the heat of Haon’s body only made him want to cling to him more. He held onto him so tightly, as if afraid that if he let go, Haon might disappear. Even though he knew that, clear-headed or not, Haon would always stay close by his side.
“Inho-ssi… aren’t you cold?”
Haon tentatively stretched out a leg and rubbed the marble floor with his heel as he asked. Though he was sitting on Inho’s thigh and felt fine, he worried about Inho, who was sitting directly on the cold floor.
“I’m cold.”
Inho used the excuse of being cold to pull their already pressed-together bodies even closer.
The way Haon didn’t tell him to go upstairs but instead hugged him even tighter made Inho’s heart ache with overwhelming love.
Gently lifting his head, Inho playfully nipped at Haon’s lips.
Haon, who had been struggling to wrap his arms around Inho’s much larger frame, eagerly welcomed the unexpected kiss and offered up his lips.
The soft tip of Haon’s tongue pressed against Inho’s lower lip, gently coaxing it open. Their tender exchange deepened… if only for a moment.
“Inho-ssi, are you hurt…?”
Haon’s eyes flew open, and he pulled back slightly to stare at Inho’s face.
A small scratch marred Inho’s cheek.
“Here… what happened?”
It looked like he had been scratched by something small and sharp—perhaps a fingernail.
“Was it me? D-Did I do that…?”
“No,” Inho replied softly.
Realizing what Haon was referring to, Inho answered immediately. Haon seemed startled after seeing the scar scratched by Jang Eun-young’s ring.
“It’s just a scrape from a bad scratch. It’s not really an injury.”
The convincing lie came out naturally. Seeing Inho’s calm expression, Haon didn’t press further and simply looked upset.
“Did you put some ointment on it?”
“I’ll do it soon.”
“And put a bandage on too. Otherwise, it might leave a scar.”
“Okay, I will.”
Haon examined the small wound under Inho’s eye with a face that looked on the verge of tears. It really wasn’t anything serious, but he worried as if Inho had suffered a major injury—despite the fact that Haon himself had been hurt far worse.
Gently caressing the skin around Inho’s scratch, Haon leaned in and placed a soft kiss just below the red mark.
Smiling warmly, Inho rubbed his entire cheek against Haon’s soft, tender lips, feeling as if even the hidden wounds inside him were being healed.
Buoyed by the comfort, Inho lifted Haon into his arms and headed to the bedroom. It was time to remove the IV needle, so he carefully took it out.
At the sensation of the needle slipping out from the back of his hand, Haon shivered and clung tightly to Inho.
Soon, Inho laid down on the bed with Haon cradled in his arms. Out of habit, he immediately checked Haon’s condition.
“Your throat hurts, right?”
Haon gave a small nod.
“It’s probably because you vomited so much. If you get thirsty, tell me right away.”
Thinking that if Haon’s fever spiked again he would call the primary doctor, Inho tucked the blanket up around him. Haon, having answered with an “okay,” glanced over at Inho as he lay close beside him and asked shyly,
“Are you going to sleep with me…?”
Inho hesitated for a moment, then smiled with his eyes. When he asked if Haon would really prefer to sleep alone, Haon immediately shook his head and added,
“I’m worried you might catch my cold….”
“I don’t catch colds easily.”
Inho reassured him, planting a soft kiss on Haon’s forehead. He then gave Haon a pillow with his arm and hugged him tightly.
Though Haon likely didn’t realize it, Inho’s pheromones were already soaked into every inch of Haon’s body. Haon’s scent was so filled with Inho’s own that it felt as if they were one and the same.
Thinking that even the deepest parts of Haon’s body carried his scent put Inho at ease. Still not fully satisfied, he quietly released a very subdued amount of pheromones—just enough that it wouldn’t affect Haon.
“Haon-ssi.”
As he wrapped his dry body around Haon with his pheromones, Inho gazed tenderly at his pale face. Another bruise had already appeared on Haon’s once-clear cheek. His hands, his feet, even his knees hidden beneath his clothes were all a mess. Haon had already been hurt even before they met.
“You don’t remember, do you?”
Haon blinked slowly and gave another faint nod.
“Can I tell you?”
Waiting for Haon’s answer, Inho began explaining the situation—only within the bounds of what Haon seemed ready to hear.
“The convenience store…?”
Haon looked dazed and startled. It seemed he had told the taxi driver the address of his old goshiwon instead of Inho’s home.
Lowering his gaze, Haon wore an expression of bitter embarrassment. He had thought he was fine up until getting in the cab, but clearly, he hadn’t been at all. When exactly had he started losing his grip on reality?
“Haon-ssi.”
Inho paused for a moment, then gently plucked a stray hair stuck to Haon’s eyebrow. He also brushed back the hair covering Haon’s beautiful forehead. It was all so he could see Haon’s face more clearly, not missing even the subtlest change in expression.
“Is there anything you want to tell me?”
At the unexpected question, Haon parted his lips but only looked up at Inho hesitantly. Inho’s expression wasn’t serious in the slightest. In fact, he was smiling softly, his eyes warm.
“Anything you remember, just tell me. Anything at all.”
Despite Inho’s kind and patient gaze, Haon couldn’t easily bring himself to speak. He needed to tell him about losing his phone… but the thought of explaining how it happened made him falter.
“Right now… I can’t…”
Haon tightly shut his eyes, signaling that he couldn’t bring himself to say it. He buried his face against Inho’s chest, avoiding the answer. He still wasn’t ready to talk.
What would Inho say once he found out? When he realized Haon had slept with a man who already had a family…?
Haon swallowed thickly against the burning in his throat, only to be wracked with a dry cough. Inho patted Haon’s back and tried to get up to fetch some water.
“I’m okay.”
Instead of letting him go, Haon clung even tighter to Inho’s body. He didn’t want to be separated from him.
And like that, desperately clinging to Inho’s embrace, Haon drifted off to sleep. Maybe because he was so sick, but the moment he closed his eyes, he quickly fell into a deep slumber.
In contrast, Inho couldn’t fall asleep.
He continued gently stroking Haon’s back as he slept, and after about an hour, he quietly got up from the bed. He moved silently, careful not to disturb Haon’s sleep.
Fortunately, Haon didn’t wake. The way he slept so deeply after already resting so much made it clear that his body was still completely worn out. He would probably continue struggling for a while longer.
Inho lingered, watching Haon’s steady, faint breathing, before finally leaving the bedroom. Before crossing the threshold, he glanced back one last time at Haon’s sleeping face. Haon slept soundly, as if he wouldn’t be waking for a long time.
Inho went down to the living room and pulled out his phone. He took a pair of earbuds from the drawer of the sofa table and plugged them in. He was about to call his secretary but first opened the message thread he had with him.
A video file had arrived earlier from his secretary. Inho had already watched it that afternoon—after calming Haon down, bathing him, and dressing him in fresh pajamas, he had replayed the video over and over again.
He had studied the faces and clothing of the passersby in the video until he had every detail memorized.
Inho replayed the video he had already watched dozens of times. Since there was no sound, he put the earbuds back into their case.
Click, click.
He absently opened and closed the earbud case while staring intently at the small phone screen.
The video the secretary had sent was footage from a large supermarket’s CCTV.
People pushing carts or carrying shopping baskets passed by, each focused on their own business. No one paid any attention to one another. They simply looked ahead and moved along.
Among the crowd, the back of Haon’s figure appeared.
The moment that familiar back of his head came into view, Inho paused the video. His hand, fiddling with the earbud case, began opening and closing it a little more roughly.
Slowly, Inho turned his head and resumed playing the video.
In the next scene, Haon was being dragged away by a large man. Even within the small phone screen, it was clear how desperately Haon struggled to free his tightly gripped wrist. The look in Haon’s eyes—pleading silently for help from the indifferent passersby—was painfully obvious to Inho.
Inho stared fixedly at Haon’s terrified face and the broad back of the man dragging him away.
