What’s going on?!
Seol Yu-jin, his face flushed red, looked around in distress. When was Winston coming? He kept glancing in the direction Winston had disappeared, unable to stay still. But no matter how much he tried to distract himself, his gaze kept drifting back to that couple from earlier. They didn’t seem to care about their surroundings at all, clinging to each other intimately while laughing softly.
A new feeling welled up inside Yu-jin.
I’m jealous…
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he jolted in shock and shook his head vigorously. What the hell am I thinking? Am I that desperate? Get a grip!
He was in the middle of scolding himself when—
“What are you doing here?”
A sudden voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Looking up, he found himself staring at a group of unfamiliar men towering over him. Instinctively, Yu-jin shrank back and took a step away, but there wasn’t anywhere to escape.
They were all huge, the kind of guys who looked like they spent their days at the gym. Surrounded by them, Yu-jin felt utterly small and intimidated.
“I’m… waiting for my boyfriend…”
Please, just go away! Don’t pay attention to me, please!
He desperately wished they would leave, but they showed no signs of backing off. If anything, they might have deliberately ignored his plea. One thing was clear—Yu-jin was the only one drenched in cold sweat, growing increasingly flustered.
The men exchanged glances before one of them asked nonchalantly, “When’s he coming?”
Yu-jin hesitated, lowering his head as he mumbled, “I-I don’t know.”
For some reason, saying that made him feel like he was lying—even though he wasn’t. The men must have thought the same because they chuckled knowingly.
“So, you don’t even know when he’s coming?”
“Damn, what an asshole. Leaving someone this cute alone like this, where the hell did he run off to?”
“If it were me, I’d never do that.”
“Obviously. Who’d trust a guy like that?”
They chatted amongst themselves, laughing loudly, while Yu-jin stood there, unable to do anything but glance around nervously.
“Uh, um… I should…”
He tried to say he was leaving, but before he could finish, one of them suddenly blocked his path.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Another man stepped in beside him, grinning.
“If your boyfriend comes back and doesn’t see you, he’ll be looking all over for you. Should you really be wandering around?”
“What if he panics when he realizes you’re gone? Poor guy.”
“I…”
Yu-jin’s eyes darted around in distress. His mind went completely blank, overwhelmed by panic. Winston, where are you?
Tears welled up in his eyes, and as soon as the men noticed, they let out awkward sounds.
“Whoa, hey, don’t cry. We’re just saying…”
“Yeah, we just meant you should hang out with us for a bit.”
“Come on, there’s a pool outside. Isn’t it hot?”
“What’s your name? Come on, let’s go out together.”
The men surrounding Yu-jin started talking over one another, each saying whatever they pleased. But to Yu-jin, their voices were nothing more than noise.
Winston, hurry up.
He tried to hold back his emotions, but the tears welling in his eyes finally spilled over. He hastily wiped them away with the back of his hand—only to suddenly be yanked backward by someone grabbing his shoulder.
“Ah—!”
He gasped in shock as he was pulled away, but the moment he caught a familiar, sweet scent, his tense shoulders relaxed.
“Winnie.”
Lifting his gaze, he saw the man’s face and immediately brightened. Winston smiled down at him but then turned to the other men, his expression hardening in an instant.
“…What do you think you’re doing?”
“W-Winston?”
The men, who had been acting so cocky just moments ago, now visibly faltered.
“Wait… the boyfriend he was waiting for was you?”
One of them muttered, and another turned to Yu-jin in sheer disbelief.
“Then why didn’t you just say so from the start—?”
“Winston, no, don’t get the wrong idea. We really didn’t know.”
“Yeah! He was just standing there alone, so we thought we’d keep him company, that’s all. We swear we didn’t mean anything bad—”
They scrambled to defend themselves, but Winston simply cast a cold, piercing gaze over them.
“…Are you really okay?” Winston asked, as if confirming it for himself.
Yu-jin hesitated before giving a small nod. Nothing actually happened… It was just a little scary, that’s all.
“I was just a bit scared… that’s it.”
At his words, the men immediately switched tactics, puffing up with indignation.
“See?! We didn’t do anything!”
“We were just being friendly, trying to include him!”
“If anything, this is your fault. Why’d you leave your boyfriend alone? He looked completely lost.”
“Yeah, we were actually doing you a favor by talking to him.”
Winston merely furrowed his brows in irritation, clearly unimpressed.
“Now that you know, stay the hell away from my boyfriend from now on.”
His words were blunt, almost lazily thrown out, but they carried enough weight to silence the group. Without another glance at them, Winston turned and led Yu-jin away.
Yu-jin was too stunned to resist as he was ushered into the passenger seat of Winston’s car. Only after sitting down did he finally let out the breath he’d been holding. He watched Winston settle into the driver’s seat before hesitantly breaking the silence.
“Uh… did you finish your business?”
For some reason, his voice had grown small, almost timid. He knew he hadn’t done anything wrong, yet he couldn’t help but feel a little guilty—though he wasn’t sure why.
Winston responded half-heartedly, eyes fixed on the road.
“No. They told me to come back in the evening. Said they’d have everything ready by then.”
“For what?”
Curious, Yu-jin asked, but Winston merely muttered, “Just stuff,” and brushed it off.
The Campbell estate was less than a ten-minute drive away. As soon as Winston pulled up and stepped out of the car—
Only after they arrived did Winston finally explain.
“There’s some medication I need to take, but I forgot to bring it. I went to check if anyone at the party had it or could get it for me.”
“Medication?”
Yu-jin, who had been feeling somewhat down, widened his eyes in surprise.
“Wait, are you sick? Is something wrong?”
His face paled as he anxiously questioned Winston, who hesitated for a moment before breaking into a casual smile.
“It’s not an illness or anything like that. It’s just something I take because of my physiology. You could say it helps balance my pheromones.”
“Oh…”
Hearing that, Yu-jin finally relaxed and let out a relieved sigh.
“Is it serious if you don’t take it?”
“It’s just more comfortable if I do.”
The easy response made Yu-jin nod in understanding.
“Then you really need that medicine… So we’re going to Evelyn’s house tonight?”
“Most likely.”
Yu-jin could only reply with a quiet, “Yeah, okay.” But his tone was far from enthusiastic.
Winston, noticing the hesitation, tilted his head in curiosity.
“Why? Is something bothering you?”
Yu-jin avoided his gaze and mumbled, “No, it’s nothing.”
“Yu-jin, we agreed to be honest with each other.”
That was true. But what could he do in this situation? He couldn’t just say that he didn’t want Winston to meet Evelyn.
“It’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”
Winston studied him in silence for a moment before suddenly asking, “Do you want to go to the party too?”
“Huh?”
Yu-jin was caught off guard and instinctively turned to face him. Their eyes met, and Winston pressed on.
“Was that why you were upset earlier? Did you want to stay at the party, but I dragged you away?”
“N-no! It’s not like that!”
Yu-jin shook his head hastily. I have to clear up this misunderstanding before it gets worse! He let out a reluctant sigh and finally admitted,
“It’s not that… I just don’t like that you have to meet Evelyn again.”
As soon as he confessed, he lowered his head in embarrassment. A heavy silence followed.
“Yu-jin, I’m not meeting Evelyn for the reasons you’re thinking—”
“I know.”
Yu-jin cut him off with a sulky mutter before he could explain any further.
“But I still don’t like it. Honestly, where did you and Evelyn go earlier, leaving me alone? If it was just about that medication, you could’ve talked about it in front of me. There was no reason to go off alone together… leaving me behind…”
I was so scared.
Yu-jin swallowed the last words and pressed his lips tightly together. He felt like a child throwing a tantrum. He should have acted mature about it, but instead, he was whining over something so trivial. A mix of regret and relief swirled inside him, making his emotions a mess.
Winston, who had been silently watching him for a while, let out a quiet sigh before answering.
“…Alright.”
Yu-jin instinctively looked up. Winston was giving him a small, wry smile.
“I won’t go. I’ll tell them I don’t need the medication.”
“Really?”
Yu-jin blurted out, unable to hide his surprise. Winston simply nodded without hesitation.
“It’s good to take it, but it’s not a necessity. I’ll be fine without it.”
