# Chapter 44
‘What is this core power doing.’
As the nearly dying Jiho began actively moving, Jaeha’s first thoughts were irrelevant. It might have been avoidance thinking, but as soon as Jiho’s face touched his neck, he felt the same pulling sensation as when their hands touched. More precisely, he was actually being sucked.
“Hey, what are you doing…!”
Jaeha was about to get angry but looked up at the sound coming from the monitor. The graph line that had been sharply pointed even while holding both hands had changed to a curve. Though still rough and uneven, it seemed to have dropped one level from the worst state.
— If we maintain this condition, 12 hours should be enough.
Even though they were told not to speak unless there was a problem, the researcher quickly conveyed the information. Jaeha, who was creeped out by the sensation of his neck being bitten and sucked, tried to raise his upper body to avoid it, but instead another part made contact, forcing him to raise his waist.
“Oh, seriously. If you keep doing this, I’ll stop.”
Although it might be cowardly to threaten someone in pain, Jaeha was desperate to get rid of the unfamiliar, embarrassing, and creepy sensation on his neck. The feeling of rapidly losing strength through all points of contact clouded Jaeha’s reason.
“Stop it, I said.”
Though he should be patient considering Jiho’s serious condition, the sensation of being helplessly drained from where their skin touched was unpleasant. No matter how rationally he tried to think, he couldn’t hide his irritation.
“Haa… I’m sorry, Sunbae.”
Even in his difficult situation, Jiho removed his lips and spoke softly as soon as he realized Jaeha genuinely disliked it. Quick to act but sensitive to others’ emotions – that was typical Kyun Jiho.
“Ugh, this feels gross. Let’s let go of hands for 10 seconds.”
He wanted to wipe his wet neck and tried to let go of his hands, but that wasn’t going to happen. Jiho knew the difference between what Jaeha truly hated and what he could tolerate despite being uncomfortable.
“Sunbae, we have to stay like this for 24 hours, right?”
“Yeah. No matter what you say, I’m only holding hands, so give up and just sleep.”
“Hmm… then can I hear an explanation about guiding?”
Jiho seemed to have no idea what guiding was. It just looked like he was instinctively trying to make more contact because it made him feel better when they touched. Although it was necessary knowledge, Jaeha didn’t want to share information that would disadvantage himself right now.
“What good would knowing do? I already said I won’t do more than this.”
“Since I don’t know anything, I keep having strange thoughts. I want to touch Sunbae more. I want to pull your waist like this and then Sunbae…”
“Researcher! Please explain guiding!”
Jaeha raised his voice, giving up because he was afraid of what Jiho might say next.
Afterward, the researcher carefully explained about guiding.
When they mentioned hypotheses about the effects of stage-by-stage guiding, Jaeha wanted to somehow prevent Jiho from hearing, but faced with Jiho’s insistence on his right to know, Jaeha could only endure the embarrassment and squeeze his hands tightly.
After hearing all the explanations, Jiho looked up at Jaeha with sparkling eyes.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Jaeha Sunbae, they said if we do it with lips, I could get up in 30 minutes.”
“Why would you need to get up? Since you’re already lying down, just sleep well for 24 hours and then get up.”
“It’s just one kiss, Sunbae.”
“You call it ‘just one.’ Are you going to die from not being able to breathe for 30 minutes?”
At Jaeha’s gruff response, Jiho asked cautiously, looking puzzled.
“Sunbae, don’t tell me this would be your first kiss?”
“What does that have to do with you… no, do you think I’d fall for that kind of provocation? I’m not a kid.”
Jaeha’s already sensitive reaction revealed the answer. In response, Jiho tilted his head slightly and acted casually.
“That’s a shame. I can’t steal someone’s first kiss in this kind of atmosphere.”
“Whether it’s the first or hundredth kiss, it’s all the same, so don’t even dream about it.”
“As expected, Sunbae is cute… ugh…”
Jaeha, who had been grumbling, looked up at the noise from the monitor when Jiho squeezed his hand tightly. Once again, the waves became disturbed, crossing the danger threshold.
He was about to demand why stability wasn’t being maintained, but it was certainly better than the initial graph. Seeing Jiho grinding his teeth and suddenly breaking into a cold sweat, Jaeha’s deliberation was brief.
“Since it’s already been slobbered on, go ahead, do it.”
Mumbling, Jaeha sighed and offered his neck. When he lowered his upper body and placed it in front of the gasping Jiho’s lips, Jiho bit down as if to devour it, even in his painful state.
“Hey, hey, don’t bite. Oh, seriously, what am I doing here.”
At least it’s better than the lips, better than the lips.
After resisting the urge to push away several times and enduring, even the body contact became familiar. Above all, in a situation where energy was being drained in real-time, it became difficult to separate and resist due to fatigue. When he relaxed, thinking of it like lying on stone, it seemed much better than actual stone, even if it was firm.
But the constant licking and biting of his neck made him nervous because it was ticklish and creepy.
After allowing his neck to become wet, he wondered if he should just kiss for 30 minutes, but then shook his head, saying no.
‘Is this the ultimate choice? Am I really the only one who can do this?’
* * *
Jaeha, who had fallen asleep in an uncomfortable and unsettling state, woke up to a familiar alarm sound. He habitually tapped the heavy arm around his waist, demanding it be removed.
“Yawn… heavy, jerk.”
Sometimes when waking up in the morning, Dojoon’s arm would be wrapped around his waist. Thinking it was the same today, he tried to remove the arm but was pulled closer instead.
“What? Stop being annoying… huh?”
Opening his eyes, Jaeha was shocked to find himself in a white room, not the dormitory.
“Jaeha Sunbae, did you sleep well?”
“Huh? What, what…”
Confused, Jaeha remembered yesterday’s events when he saw Jiho hugging his waist with both arms and resting his chin on his shoulder.
His last memory was grumbling that he was tired to death while guiding with his hands held and neck exposed.
“Hey, your hands.”
Jiho’s face, smiling while hugging him with arms and legs that had been restrained at some point, looked as relaxed as a well-fed beast and somehow sly.
“What’s with that disgusting expression?”
“I heard everything.”
“What?”
“That Sunbae rushed here for me.”
He had only come to repay a favor. But when Jiho said it languidly with a meaningful expression, it sounded like there was some special meaning.
“I didn’t rush. I walked normally.”
“Thank you. Without Sunbae, I would have become a bomb.”
At Jiho’s words as he rubbed his face against Jaeha’s shoulder and neck like a child, Jaeha’s heart sank.
‘Was the meaning of going berserk to explode and die?’
Looking for the familiar researcher he had seen during each test to find out the truth, he saw the isolation room was full of researchers due to the emergency being lifted.
Being embraced by a male junior in front of all these people—Jaeha’s face flushed anew. But Jiho clung to him casually, rubbing his face like a cat.
The uncomfortable sensation that had been so electric whenever their skin touched was no longer felt. He could be relieved that Jiho had definitely stabilized.
“That’s enough now, right? I’m leaving.”
When Jaeha pushed Jiho away and stood up, surprisingly, his arms released easily. Though his expression was as pitiful as an abandoned puppy, he didn’t forcibly hold on.
After barely enduring without kissing yesterday, despite thinking it might have been better to just do it considering how persistent Jiho had been, it was strange that he let go so willingly.
Going outside, the corridor that had been empty when he arrived yesterday was now full of people coming and going. People who normally would have just glanced at him now greeted him.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Rest well today. You shouldn’t overdo it.”
“I was moved.”
“Fighting!”
From concern to inexplicable encouragement, everyone showed goodwill.
As he was leaving the corridor sheepishly, the older man he had seen in the control room yesterday, identified as a team leader, blocked his way. Despite his low eye level due to his short height, his forearm was as big as a head, naturally making Jaeha bow.
As Jaeha bent his waist in greeting, the team leader extended his hand for a handshake. When Jaeha placed his hand on the pot lid-sized hand, the man gripped it lightly but didn’t let go. Wondering why he was holding his hand for so long, since there was no particular feeling indicating he was an Esper, Jaeha looked up to see the team leader’s eyes rippling with emotion.
“Thank you.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you…?”
Although he had saved Jiho, Jaeha was puzzled why the team leader was thanking him, but the following words were profound.
“Every Esper who entered this room left nothing behind, not even their form, and was buried in an empty coffin. Thanks to you, Seo Jaeha, for the first time an Esper was able to walk out of here.”
Jaeha was flustered by the team leader’s attitude, firmly holding his hand and expressing gratitude again. He had pushed it away as much as possible, feeling embarrassed and disgusted, even though it could have ended faster. The guiding, which had only been embarrassing, now felt like a noble act. His heart seemed to tickle.
Only after receiving repeated thanks from the team leader did Jaeha return to the dormitory and became angry looking at the mirror. He vented all sorts of frustration seeing the mottled areas around his neck in the bathroom mirror, but the sense of elation he had felt didn’t disappear.
Just by holding hands and hugging, he had saved a person. It was unbelievable, but the graph was evidence, and the team leader’s emotional eyes were sincere.
“It’s a bit uncomfortable, but it’s not bad if it helped.”
Feeling proud, Jaeha lay down again to relieve his not yet fully recovered fatigue, unaware that he had been sent back after only twelve hours.
* * *
In the isolation room that Jaeha had left, Jiho was deep in thought, surrounded by researchers.
Last night. As soon as Jaeha fell into a deep sleep due to thirst for him, Jiho had asked for his restraints to be removed. Once his arms were free, he fully embraced Jaeha’s body and caressed his skin.
Every time he touched the sensitive skin not exposed to the outside, the mana that had been surging as if about to burst found its place. That sensation was a special stimulation beyond stability. If he hadn’t experienced it countless times before, it would have been a desperate sensation, making him want to devour Jaeha on the spot, blinded by momentary pleasure.
It didn’t matter that someone was watching. The reason he had endured that moment was because Jaeha had shown genuine dislike. But that was something he could work on. Seducing someone with strong moral values was also a pleasure. Above all, Jaeha, who had walked in on his own to save him, felt more lovable than any other being.
“I wonder who he tested with…”
The researcher checking the monitor’s shoulders trembled slightly at the eerie voice flowing from Jiho.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
