A soft voice rang by his ear. Sobin, meeting his gaze, added gently, kindly.
“Eunho-ssi, if you want to get rid of it, I’ll help you.”
“……”
“We’re both rabbits, after all.”
“Get rid of… it?”
“Yes.”
He pressed a business card into Eunho’s hand. It was the same one he had given him when they first met.
“Contact me here. My personal number’s written on it too.”
“……”
“You need to let me know within a month. Beastman pregnancies don’t always last ten months.”
After that, Sobin explained what kind of procedure it would be, but Eunho couldn’t hear a single word.
He simply lowered his gaze to his stomach, where there might be a child—whether a tiger, a rabbit, or something mixed between the two.
He wanted to see Yi-beom.
***
He was on his way back from visiting one of the business sites.
Sitting in the back seat, looking down at his phone, Yi-beom’s expression hardened. A red dot was blinking on the screen.
“……There’s no reason for him to be there.”
“Pardon?”
Jinwon, who was driving, asked back.
“Aren’t you heading home?”
“Not you.”
Answering shortly, Yi-beom furrowed his brows. Did Eunho have a friend living in that neighborhood? He tried recalling the background information he had dug up on Eunho, but no one connected to him lived there.
For several hours now, the dot hadn’t moved from that neighborhood. It meant he was staying somewhere. Words like motel and hotel, scattered across the map, caught Yi-beom’s eye.
Hmm.
Swallowing a low sound, Yi-beom made a call. His eyes sank darkly.
[Ahjussi……?]
“Yeah.”
His brows twitched. The slight rasp in Eunho’s voice—it sounded like someone who had just cried hard. Without showing it, Yi-beom asked as usual,
“You at home?”
[Y-Yes, yes. I’m home.]
At that moment, the sound of a car horn came from beyond Eunho’s voice. Drawing in a breath, Eunho hurriedly added an excuse.
[Ah, ah. Not home, I mean…… I just stepped out to buy ingredients for rice balls.]
“Is that so?”
[Yes. I was going to get sausages and some other things……]
Sensing something off, Jinwon glanced at the back seat through the mirror. Yi-beom’s terrifying face was reflected there.
His mouth was smiling, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all. Which meant Yi-beom was angry.
He’s pissed.
Pretending not to notice was better for one’s mental and physical health. Quietly turning the mirror away, Jinwon increased the speed.
“Sounds good.”
Zooming in on the map, Yi-beom smiled thinly.
“I think I’ll be a bit late.”
[……Are you busy?]
“Yeah. I was about to get off work, but something urgent came up.”
[Ah……]
Adorably enough, Jung Eunho was lying. Even after getting caught in his first lie, he had the nerve not to come clean.
Yi-beom’s mood plummeted in an instant. Just this morning, when Eunho had seen him off, he had felt good. Clutching his phone as if it might shatter, he spoke.
“See you at home.”
[Yes. Come back safely.]
Hearing the quiet farewell, Yi-beom ended the call. It was the first lie he had ever heard from Eunho. A vein throbbed across his forehead.
“Turn the car around.”
His cold voice filled the vehicle.
“To Clear Animal Hospital.”
The air inside the car sank heavily. Yi-beom’s eyes flashed like a hunting beast’s.
It was time to pull the leash.
***
He had refused Chanwoo’s offer to drive him and was on his way out. If he went home, it felt like his heart would grow even more unsettled, so Eunho walked aimlessly.
“What should I do……”
After ending the call with Yi-beom, Eunho looked down at his phone. Seeing the name Kwon Yi-beom on the black screen only made his head spin more.
If he told Yi-beom the truth, he would immediately call Professor Hwang. Just like Sobin had said, Professor Hwang would also insist that childbirth was far too dangerous…
Then Ahjussi will definitely make me get the surgery.
Unconsciously, Eunho placed a hand over his lower abdomen.
He’ll prioritize my life over anything else.
Imagining Yi-beom taking him straight to the operating table without a moment’s hesitation, Eunho let out a sigh. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to give birth—but he didn’t want the surgery either.
Before meeting Yi-beom, Eunho’s dream had been to build a warm, happy family. To have a couple of rabbit-like children and live a long life with a gentle wife—that had been his only goal.
He had wanted a family like the ones he’d seen at friends’ or relatives’ houses. The things he himself never had, since his parents had passed away early. Taking family photos to hang at home, helping his child with homework—living while doing those ordinary things.
For as long as possible.
Not dying young like his parents, but staying by his child’s side.
Of course, after meeting Yi-beom, he had given up that dream. But sometimes, whenever Yi-beom whispered lewd things in bed, he would think about it. About building that warm family he once dreamed of—with Yi-beom.
“What am I supposed to do with you?”
Stopping in his tracks, Eunho murmured as he stroked his stomach.
“If you hadn’t come to me…… you would’ve been welcomed.”
In a book he once read, it said that a fetus feels even its mother’s emotions and moods. Thinking that maybe it had even heard the talk of recommending surgery, Eunho bit his lip.
At that moment, as if answering his words, the sound of children laughing rang out. When he lifted his head, he saw a playground off to one side.
Children were running excitedly between the swings and the seesaw. Behind them, a familiar car was parked.
“Ha—”
The color drained from Eunho’s face. The sedan visible on the main road behind the playground was the same model as Yi-beom’s.
No way……
How does Ahjussi know I’m here!??
The closer the car got, the more labored Eunho’s breathing became. However Yi-beom had found him, avoiding him was the priority right now.
Pop— With a soft sound, Eunho’s clothes fell to the ground. Ugh. A rabbit poked its face out through the T-shirt with difficulty. After finally pulling his body free, he hurried toward the playground.
I absolutely can’t see him right now!
No matter what happened, he had to prevent that. Reaching the playground in a rush, Eunho looked around frantically.
There’s nowhere to hide near the seesaw, a-and there are too many people by the slide!
If he clumsily hid under the stairs or the slide, the kids might notice and try to approach him. Shaking his head rapidly, Eunho’s eyes caught sight of a sign.
Animal Farm. A small rabbit pen attached to the playground.
That’s it!
Eunho quickly ran in the direction the sign pointed. Beside a long cage, he saw a fenced area where rabbits were gathered cozily together.
His ㅅ-shaped nose twitched. The fence was too high for an ordinary rabbit to cross—but he wasn’t an ordinary rabbit. Widening his eyes, Eunho put strength into his hind legs.
Like when he had lunged at the dog Beastman in the movie theater restroom, his body leapt high into the air.
The moment he landed safely, he heard footsteps from behind.
Hng—.
They were slow, steady footsteps. First the heel struck, then the front of the foot hit the ground—two distinct sounds.
It was Yi-beom.
Like a hunting beast, he was deliberately making noise so his presence would be known. As the net tightened around him, Eunho’s eyes wavered, unable to settle anywhere.
N-No. He’s probably just looking around this side.
There’s no way he’ll recognize me. How would he know which one I am?
If I pretend to be a rabbit, he won’t know.
Eunho glanced at the rabbits around him. Every single one was sitting with its hindquarters down, chewing grass leisurely. They didn’t seem to have noticed at all that he had entered.
Hurriedly, Eunho picked up a blade of grass in his mouth as well. Then he began chewing.
“Ha.”
Stopping in front of the rabbit pen, Yi-beom let out a disbelieving laugh.
Is this for real?
He looked down at the pale pink rabbit. Unlike the rabbits that lived in the pen, one rabbit stood out from the start—its coat was especially glossy, shimmering faintly. That pale pink rabbit’s fur gleamed on its own. All thanks to the carrots and apples Yi-beom personally peeled and fed it every morning and evening.
And as if the grass it was chewing didn’t taste good, it would occasionally stick out its tongue while chewing.
Then it would sneak a glance at him before chewing again.
This fucker……
The fact that Eunho wanted to avoid him so badly that he would go this far only fueled Yi-beom’s anger even more.
“Is this your home?”
Eunho’s body flinched. He’s not talking to me, right? After hesitating for a second, Eunho resumed chewing the grass.
“Your home’s gotten fucking tiny. Huh?”
“……”
“Looks like you’ve got more roommates, too.”
His cold gaze swept over the other rabbits.
“Planning to screw around with rabbits now, is that it?”
“……”
“Fuck, leaving someone to sleep alone for days. You like it here. Yeah?”
Is he talking to me right now? Eunho’s eyes rolled around in confusion. If he wasn’t talking to him, then Yi-beom was picking a fight with innocent rabbits.
No way.
Forcing his anxiety aside, Eunho subtly shuffled his backside and plopped down among the other rabbits. Watching him stubbornly keep up the act, Yi-beom ground his teeth.
“Fine. If that’s what you want, there’s no reason I can’t indulge you.”
