“Waa. Ahjussi really doesn’t seem to not know anything.” Eunho looked up at Yi-beom with a bright, clear face.
Maybe because the weather was warm, three buttons of his shirt were undone. Bronze-toned skin showed through the opening, and Eunho pressed his lips together.
Is it okay to be this exposed this early in a relationship…?
But if he said anything, Yi-beom might button it up. That could happen. Changing his mind, Eunho held out the lunchbox.
“Ahjussi, you haven’t had lunch yet, right?”
“Yeah.”
With a grin, Yi-beom accepted the lunchbox. When he opened the lid, he saw rice balls mixed together in complete chaos.
Yi-beom’s body stiffened. On top of the rice-ball-like lumps were olives stuck everywhere, along with carrots, squid, and something white mixed in.
What is this? Rice? Or porridge…?
“It’s an old-style lunchbox.”
“Ah, no, it isn’t.”
At Yi-beom’s words, Eunho’s shoulders slumped. An old-style lunchbox? The one where you throw in fried kimchi and sausage and shake it around was on a completely different level from his rice balls.
“I-it’s tiger rice balls…”
At the unexpected claim, Yi-beom’s brow twitched. In what world did this look like rice balls? What sat in the lunchbox wasn’t rice balls—it just looked like rice that had been punched down with a fist.
“Oh, is this the eye?”
“That’s the mouth.”
“This is the nose?”
“Ears……”
Not a single guess was right. Pouting, Eunho quickly snatched the lid from Yi-beom’s hands and closed it, then tucked it back into his bag.
“I’ll make them prettier next time.”
“It’s fine.”
Picking the bag back up, Yi-beom replied.
“Even if you just pack dried carrot strips, I’ll like it.”
A large hand touched Eunho’s head. Just as he waited to be patted, the hand stopped midair. When it didn’t move, Eunho lifted his head.
Yi-beom stood there with his hand awkwardly hovering, brows furrowed.
“What are we?”
“Huh?”
When Eunho asked back in confusion, the crease between Yi-beom’s brows deepened.
“Are we close enough that I can pat your head?”
“……”
“If not, I’ll take my hand away.”
Yi-beom looked down at him, as if waiting for an answer. The moment their eyes met, Eunho’s heart started pounding like it had broken. Thump, thump—afraid the sound might spill out of his mouth, he bit his lower lip.
A breeze blew. Their hair swayed in the same direction. A tiger was asking permission from a rabbit ten times smaller than himself.
“Ah…”
After staring blankly at Yi-beom, Eunho finally spoke.
“I think… we’re close enough to do that.”
The moment he finished speaking, the large hand ruffled his hair messily. “Uha,” Eunho burst into laughter like a child.
His hair was completely ruined, but his smiling face was cute. Watching the way his ears kept twitching, Yi-beom had to suppress the urge to bite and swallow him whole.
Fuck, I’m not even a real carnivore.
Thinking he’d have no regrets if he could just suck on those flushed cheeks once, Yi-beom licked his lips.
“You shouldn’t look at me like that during work hours.”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing.”
Suppressing the urge to leave work early, Yi-beom lowered his head. Peck, he pressed a kiss to Eunho’s hair.
“Come pick me up.”
“Okay, I’ll be at the café.”
It really felt like they were a couple in their first relationship. Sneaking out to meet at lunchtime, then meeting again after work—fresh, youthful lovers.
For an ordinary couple, there were a lot of men in black standing behind them, but Eunho, lost in love, saw nothing at all.
“See you later!”
Waving his hand, Eunho trotted off toward the opposite side. The spring breeze wrapped around their hearts.
***
Finding a café wasn’t easy.
Everywhere he went, there were signs posted: Carnivore Beastmen Prohibited. And in places without signs, the part-time staff checked right away whether someone was a carnivore or herbivore.
“How is that even a thing…”
With a sigh, Eunho plopped down onto a bench.
“What does diet even matter…”
He just wanted to drink coffee like a normal person, but even that wasn’t easy. It felt as hopeless as the first day he went to school after his parents passed away.
It was like the emptiness he felt when he saw the seat behind him left empty on observation day, or when all his classmates received commemorative gifts given only to those whose parents joined the Green Mothers’ Association—everyone except him.
It was something that couldn’t be fixed no matter how hard he tried. Just like he couldn’t bring his parents back to life, he couldn’t turn Yi-beom—who had become a tiger—into a rabbit.
After sending a message that he was at the park, Eunho quietly looked down at the walking path.
Even after the world turned upside down, there were still many couples strolling together.
Cherry blossom trees lined the path. Green buds clung to each branch—give it a few more days, and the blossoms would probably be in full bloom.
Maybe I’ll walk a bit. Just as Eunho stood up, someone grabbed his hand.
“Ah…”
When he turned his head, Yi-beom was there. His shirt was wrinkled as if he had run all the way here.
Following Eunho’s gaze down toward the path, Yi-beom’s expression hardened. A cold chill flowed from him.
“Even so, I can’t let you go.”
“……”
“No matter how much the world changes, I won’t let you go.”
Only then did Eunho realize that all the couples walking along the path were herbivore Beastmen. Just as he was about to deny it, Yi-beom tightened his grip as if he might crush Eunho’s hand.
“Just try saying you want to break up now.”
From the moment he had come in as a “product,” Jung Eunho had belonged to him. During the time they spent together, Eunho had become completely tame, and Yi-beom had never learned how to release prey.
“I’ll make us a fucking miserable pair if you do.”
That heavy gaze settled on Eunho. He had been frozen stiff, but soon relaxed. Yi-beom had a habit of saying “I like you” in a terrifying way.
“What kind of brand-new couple says stuff like that…”
Eunho muttered softly, and the tension left Yi-beom’s hand.
“You said that before too.”
“You mean calling you hopeless at dating?”
“Yeah. When you were twenty.”
Did I? They’d been together so long now that he barely remembered.
“You got mad back then.”
“No, I said I couldn’t help it. Told you to take responsibility and live with me.”
“You were mad……”
“I told you I wasn’t.”
“Ah.” Letting out a small exclamation, Yi-beom pulled out the bag he had brought. Jinwon had shoved it into his hands, saying dates needed beer.
“Waa.”
As he took out the beer cans, Eunho’s eyes sparkled. Back when he was twenty, he used to say it was too bitter and hated it, but at some point he’d started loving beer.
Come to think of it, the first time he drank alcohol had also been with Yi-beom. Just like now, during a spring with cherry blossoms blooming, sitting side by side in the breeze, tilting back soju together for the first time.
“You said… it’s a date.”
Handing over an opened beer, Yi-beom spoke.
“Then there should be drinks too.”
His face grew hot. He couldn’t tell whether the beer felt cold or if his body temperature had risen. “Okay,” Eunho replied softly, accepting the can.
At that moment, the scent of beer reached his nose—
“Ugh……”
A gagging sensation rose in his throat.
I love ❤️ reading it every time