Who knew how long he had been sleeping, but when Kim Min-seok finally woke up, Choi Sang-hyuk was gone again. The man was unbelievably diligent.
Rolling around on the bed, Kim Min-seok absentmindedly touched his lips. After all the kissing they had done last night, they were still swollen and burned with heat, as if they were on fire.
His lips stung, but rather than pain, laughter bubbled up inside him. Thinking about the passionate kisses from last night, he rolled back and forth on the bed, giggling. Just remembering it sent a ticklish sensation through his chest.
After rolling around for a while, he suddenly thought of his phone. Right, he had been wrapped in nothing but a blanket when he was brought here last night. His phone was probably still at Ha Jun-seo’s place.
Out of habit, he reached for his phone to call his own number, but then he stopped and buried his face in the blanket.
“Then just stay like this. Don’t think about going back. Don’t think about disappearing. Just live as you are.”
Choi Sang-hyuk’s words from last night echoed in his mind.
If he was going to do as Choi Sang-hyuk had said, then there was no need to try contacting his old phone. He could just continue living as Seo Ha-yoon. Ha Jun-seo had said the same thing—he had told him it was okay to keep living like this.
Living Seo Ha-yoon’s life. Becoming Seo Ha-yoon.
Thinking about it made his head spin, but deep inside, selfish desires were already taking root. If even the two people who knew and cared about Seo Ha-yoon the most were saying it was fine, then maybe… maybe it really was okay to live like this.
Maybe Seo Ha-yoon was out there, living his own life just fine. Choi Sang-hyuk and Ha Jun-seo had spoken as if they were sure of it, so it was probably true.
If Seo Ha-yoon didn’t want his body back, then this body was fair game for him.
So… could he just forget about Kim Min-seok’s body and life? Could he give everything to this new life and live it to the fullest? Was that really okay?
Feeling the growing greed inside him, Kim Min-seok bit his lip. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted it. His desire was getting stronger.
Ding-dong—
The doorbell rang. It was probably Ha Jun-seo.
Kim Min-seok quickly pulled the blanket over his head and pretended not to hear. But, as always, Ha Jun-seo was persistent.
Ding-dong— Ding-dong— Ding-dong-ding-dong— Ding-dong—
“Ah… seriously…”
With the relentless ringing, Kim Min-seok finally gave up and sat up in bed. Even as he made his way to the dressing room to put on some clothes, the doorbell kept chiming non-stop.
After getting dressed, he trudged to the front door and opened it.
“Can’t you just ring the bell once or twice? This is basically noise pollution.”
The moment he opened the door, he started grumbling.
“I thought you might be asleep and not hear it,” Ha Jun-seo said, swinging the door wide open and stepping inside.
“…Gasp.”
Kim Min-seok sucked in a sharp breath the moment he saw Ha Jun-seo.
Half of Ha Jun-seo’s face was completely bruised, an ugly shade of deep blue. Against his otherwise pale complexion, the injury looked even more severe, making it painful just to look at.
“…Come in.”
Quickly masking his shock, Kim Min-seok spoke curtly and walked toward the living room sofa.
“Here. Your clothes and phone.”
Ha Jun-seo, who had followed him in, held out neatly folded clothes and his phone.
Kim Min-seok silently took them and placed them beside him.
“You must be hungry. I brought sandwiches. Just wait a moment.”
Ha Jun-seo shook the bag he was holding in his other hand, then naturally made his way to the kitchen, taking out plates and setting up the table.
Kim Min-seok turned on his phone and stared at the screen.
His contact list was open to Kim Min-seok’s old phone number. His finger hovered hesitantly over the call button. But in the end, he didn’t press it.
“Come eat.”
Ha Jun-seo called out to him.
Kim Min-seok wasn’t sure how to act around him. He was still angry about what Ha Jun-seo had done, but seeing him act so familiar made it hard to stay cold. Maybe he was just too softhearted.
But then again, Ha Jun-seo had said he loved Seo Ha-yoon.
It felt too cruel to treat him coldly now.
“Ah… ah, ah… damn…”
As Ha Jun-seo pulled out a chair to sit, he suddenly clutched his stomach and hunched over.
“Are you okay?”
The question slipped out before he could stop himself.
Ha Jun-seo lifted his shirt, exposing his stomach.
“…Shit!”
Kim Min-seok gasped at the sight of the massive, dark bruise covering his abdomen.
It wasn’t just painful-looking—it was horrifying. It looked bad enough that he worried whether Ha Jun-seo’s internal organs had ruptured.
“Shouldn’t you go to the hospital?” Kim Min-seok asked, his voice laced with concern.
“I’ll be fine. If my insides were busted, I’d probably be shitting blood by now. Besides, that bastard’s too shrewd to beat me hard enough to actually cause an accident. He’s as calculating as they come.”
Ha Jun-seo’s answer started with I’m fine and ended with him cursing Choi Sang-hyuk. His voice carried clear resentment.
“…Anyway, just in case, if anything seems off, go straight to the hospital.”
Kim Min-seok pretended not to hear the insults and changed the subject.
“What about you, Ha-yoon? Are you okay?”
“Huh?”
“You said you couldn’t pee yesterday.”
“Oh… I managed in the end.”
“That’s a relief. You have no idea how worried I was.”
Ha Jun-seo sighed, genuinely relieved.
“I really am sorry about last night. I meant for it to be just a little play, kind of like warming up… I didn’t think you’d get that scared.”
“…Don’t ever do that again.”
Hearing Ha Jun-seo’s sincere apology, Kim Min-seok felt his anger unexpectedly ease.
His voice softened slightly, and Ha Jun-seo, noticing the shift, smiled as if pleased.
“Alright. I’ll make sure to get permission next time.”
“I’m not going to give you permission.”
“Well, we’ll just have to wait and see about that…”
Ha Jun-seo smirked slyly, looking as if he was already looking forward to their next encounter.
“Ha Jun-seo!”
Kim Min-seok called out in a firm tone, trying to be stern. But right then, Ha Jun-seo suddenly clutched his stomach.
“Ow, ow, ow… I think my insides might be damaged.”
It was obvious he was faking it, but Kim Min-seok just sighed instead of arguing further.
“Anyway… Just don’t do that again.”
“Got it. I’ll make sure to get permission before I do anything.”
His voice was firm, as if he truly meant it. Before Kim Min-seok could say anything else, he quickly pushed a plate toward him.
“Eat up. You must be hungry.”
“…Alright.”
The sandwich was delicious—maybe even more so because he hadn’t eaten properly yesterday. He took big bites, chewing eagerly. It was so good it almost made him happy.
Ha Jun-seo, resting his chin on his hand as he watched Kim Min-seok eat, suddenly spoke.
“Had a hot night with Choi Sang-hyuk yesterday, huh?”
“Cough—! What?!”
Kim Min-seok choked on his sandwich and barely managed to swallow before turning to Ha Jun-seo in shock.
With a knowing smile, Ha Jun-seo lightly tapped his own lips with his finger.
“Your lips. They’re so swollen, I feel like they’d burst at the slightest touch. Just how much kissing did you do to get them that puffy?”
“…None of your business.”
Kim Min-seok forced himself to stay calm, though his voice came out slightly defensive. Ha Jun-seo narrowed his eyes.
“Hmm… It would take at least a couple of hours of nonstop sucking and nibbling to get them that swollen… But your walk looks perfectly fine, so I’m guessing you two didn’t have sex. That means Choi Sang-hyuk must’ve spent hours just making out with you.
“Ah… That makes me so jealous. What should I do?”
“…Just eat your sandwich.”
Kim Min-seok replied flatly, pretending not to care. But he could feel the heat creeping up his face. It was obvious Ha Jun-seo had figured out just how long and intense their kissing had been last night.
“Hah… Are you seriously blushing right now?”
“I’m not.”
“You totally are. Just because I caught you making out? Wow. I might get so jealous that I’ll start acting out, you know.”
Having already experienced what Ha Jun-seo’s “acting out” entailed, Kim Min-seok shuddered.
“Don’t.”
He quickly shut him down, and Ha Jun-seo chuckled, amused.
“You must’ve been really scared yesterday, huh? Just hearing the word acting out is enough to make you panic?”
“Of course, I was scared. I didn’t even know something like that existed. You drugged me, tied me up, and then… did that. If it were you, wouldn’t you be shocked?”
“Ha-yoon was scared too, but he still glared at me and held his ground. Min-seok, you’re really different from him.”
“I’m not Seo Ha-yoon. Of course, I’m different.”
“Yeah… That’s kind of sad.”
Ha Jun-seo’s face fell slightly, his expression turning somber.
Kim Min-seok already carried the guilt of stealing Seo Ha-yoon’s body, and seeing Ha Jun-seo’s disappointed face only made his guilt swell even more.
“Ha Jun-seo, I…”
As he hesitated, struggling with his words, Ha Jun-seo suddenly burst into laughter.
“Look at you, feeling guilty just because I got a little sentimental. How are you supposed to survive in this cruel world with a heart that soft?”
“Ah, fuck. Can you not scare me like that? You know I’m already struggling with this whole situation.”
Kim Min-seok shot him a sharp glare, his frustration evident.
“Alright, alright. I won’t tease you anymore. Just don’t look at me like that. When you glare at me like that, it really turns me on.”
Ha Jun-seo reached out and lightly patted Kim Min-seok’s shoulder.
“See? You’re doing it again.”
Kim Min-seok grumbled, sipping his juice.
Ha Jun-seo chuckled softly, clearly amused.
