The two ate their sandwiches in silence for a while. Despite everything that had happened yesterday, the atmosphere was strangely comfortable.
It was probably because of Ha Jun-seo’s naturally warm and easygoing presence.
And maybe also because, no matter his personal preferences, Kim Min-seok knew Ha Jun-seo genuinely loved Seo Ha-yoon.
“What should we do for fun today?”
“Don’t you have things to do, Ha Jun-seo?”
“I don’t have any schedules today, which is why I’m here, hanging out. It’d be nice if we could go watch a movie or something…”
Trailing off, Ha Jun-seo tapped at his bruised, swollen face.
“But thanks to this, I can’t exactly go out in public.”
Looking at the nasty bruise on Ha Jun-seo’s face, Kim Min-seok thought it was a relief that at least his cheekbones weren’t broken.
He also made a firm resolution—never give Choi Sang-hyuk a reason to hit him.
“Well, considering you’re famous enough that just typing your name online pulls up your face everywhere, yeah, stepping out like that would definitely start some weird rumors.”
“Exactly. Thankfully, I’m on a break right now. If I had any work scheduled, this would’ve been a real problem.”
Ha Jun-seo sighed before flashing a playful smile.
“So, I was thinking… Why don’t you come over to my place again today? We can watch movies, eat delicious food, and play with Cheol and Soon. What do you think?”
The idea of playing with Cheol and Soon was tempting—especially after the warm welcome he’d gotten from Cheol yesterday.
But after what happened, there was no way he was going back.
Just thinking of Ha Jun-seo’s house immediately brought that room to mind.
“I won’t do anything like yesterday,” Ha Jun-seo coaxed.
“No. Absolutely not.”
“Come on, don’t you want to see Cheol and Soon? Cheol’s been crying ever since he met you yesterday. He’s been looking for you.”
Kim Min-seok hesitated for a moment at that, feeling his resolve waver slightly.
But on second thought, there was no way Cheol would be looking for him. It wasn’t like they had lived together or anything.
“No, I still don’t want to go.”
“…Hmph.”
At his firm rejection, Ha Jun-seo’s expression fell.
“You really don’t trust me at all?”
“After what happened yesterday? Of course, I don’t. You even drugged me.”
“I only mixed in a mild muscle relaxant so you wouldn’t get hurt if you tensed up. Since it was your first time, I was worried. But… Yeah, I shouldn’t have given it to you without permission. That was my mistake. I’m really sorry. I won’t do it again.”
Ha Jun-seo looked genuinely remorseful as he apologized, which softened Kim Min-seok’s heart just a little.
“…It wasn’t some weird aphrodisiac or anything, right?”
Kim Min-seok asked cautiously, his voice no longer as sharp.
Ha Jun-seo chuckled softly and shook his head.
“Come on now. Do you really think I’d use some cheap drug like that on you? It was just a mild muscle relaxant to help you loosen up. But wait… You’re not actually thinking that the reason you got so turned on yesterday was because of the drug, are you?”
Kim Min-seok froze.
He had assumed that the drug had played a part in how aroused he had been despite being tied up and subjected to that. But if it wasn’t an aphrodisiac, that meant he had been genuinely turned on by the experience itself.
Which meant… he was the kind of person who got off on that sort of thing.
As he remained silent, Ha Jun-seo traced his thumb meaningfully over the small beauty mark under Kim Min-seok’s eye.
“This body of yours is incredibly lewd. I told you, didn’t I? Seo Ha-yoon definitely has a masochistic streak. You were turned on yesterday not because of the drug, but because you wanted it.”
“That’s… That’s just perverted.”
“And so what if it is? It’s not like we’re hurting anyone or doing anything wrong. Just because the way we have fun is a little unconventional, does that make it a problem?”
“Well… I mean…”
“Tell me. Is it so bad that I’m a sadist? Do you find me disgusting? Do you hate me for it? Do you want to avoid me because of it?”
“…No. I don’t.”
Kim Min-seok answered cautiously.
A smile spread across Ha Jun-seo’s lips.
“Then that’s all that matters. Next time, I’ll make sure to go at your pace—start from the basics and teach you step by step. Like introducing vanilla to their first taste of spice.”
“Vanilla?”
“Yeah. ‘Vanilla’ is what we call people with regular, mainstream sexual preferences—those who’ve never experienced anything beyond that.”
“Then I’ll just stick to being vanilla forever.”
At Kim Min-seok’s firm declaration, Ha Jun-seo looked at him with an amused expression.
“With that body? That insatiable, masochistic body? There’s no way you’ll manage.”
“You don’t know that. If my soul changed bodies, maybe the body will follow my soul.”
“Nope. That’s not how it works. Humans are physical beings first—the soul follows the body, not the other way around. Just think about yesterday. Do you really think a ‘vanilla’ body would have reacted like that?
“You were scared because it was unfamiliar, but let’s be honest—it felt amazing, didn’t it?”
“That’s…”
Kim Min-seok pursed his lips, unable to find a counterargument.
Because Ha Jun-seo was right.
It had been overwhelming—so intense it felt like dying for a second.
But even amid his fear and panic, there had been a thrill—a twisted, electrifying pleasure.
Maybe, as long as he was in this body, there was no escaping it.
“Alright then. Let’s do this—first, let’s come up with a safe word.”
“A… safe word? What’s that?”
“It’s a word we agree on beforehand. If you ever feel uncomfortable, scared, or just don’t want to continue, you say the safe word, and everything stops immediately. No matter what.”
“Or… I could just not do this at all.”
“Come on now, don’t be like that. So, what should our safe word be?”
“What was Seo Ha-yoon’s?”
“Ha-yoon’s safe word was ‘Jun-seo hyung’.”
“Jun-seo hyung?”
“Yeah.”
Ha Jun-seo nodded.
Kim Min-seok thought for a moment before asking, “Then what did he usually call you? I mean, with your age difference, wouldn’t he have normally called you hyung anyway?”
“He just called me Ha Jun-seo.”
“Wait… Even though you were lovers, he addressed you so formally?”
Kim Min-seok was a little surprised. They were close enough that Seo Ha-yoon had cheated on Choi Sang-hyuk with Ha Jun-seo, yet he didn’t even use an affectionate nickname? With their age gap, ‘Jun-seo hyung’ would’ve made more sense. But just Ha Jun-seo? That sounded more like the way you’d call an enemy than a lover.
“Ha-yoon was never the affectionate type. He was sharp and temperamental, so honestly, just hearing him say my name at all felt like a privilege.”
“I really can’t picture him at all. This Seo Ha-yoon guy.”
Kim Min-seok tried to piece together an image of him in his head. The more he learned, the stranger Seo Ha-yoon seemed.
What was even more baffling was that, despite all his flaws, he was deeply loved by two different men.
“So… I guess looks really do matter the most, huh…”
Kim Min-seok muttered, and Ha Jun-seo chuckled.
“Well, Ha-yoon’s looks are top-tier. With this face and a body this pretty, no matter how bad his personality was, even that seemed attractive.”
“Must be nice. Some people are just born good-looking and get love handed to them, while others are born average and stay single forever.”
Kim Min-seok pouted slightly.
“Well… You gain some, you lose some. Maybe Seo Ha-yoon was actually jealous of you.”
Kim Min-seok frowned as if the idea was ridiculous.
“Seo Ha-yoon? Jealous of me? Why? How? That makes no sense. I was an orphan, dirt poor, never dated anyone in my life, and I look average at best. There’s literally nothing about me worth envying.”
“I mean, I can’t claim to know exactly what Ha-yoon was thinking… but if there was something he envied, maybe that’s the reason you exist now.”
There was something strangely ominous about Ha Jun-seo’s words.
“What do you mean? I exist now because of his envy? What are you trying to say?”
“It’s nothing. Just talking nonsense.”
Ha Jun-seo dismissed the thought and stood up from his chair, taking the empty plates to the sink. His body language made it clear he didn’t want to continue the conversation.
As Ha Jun-seo began washing the dishes, Kim Min-seok couldn’t shake the words from his mind. He sat there for a moment, deep in thought, before finally pulling out his phone.
Opening his messages, he slowly began typing.
[Is the person who has this phone right now… Seo Ha-yoon?]
He stared at the completed message for a moment before pressing send.
For some reason, his heart pounded.
What if Seo Ha-yoon replied?
Half worry, half anticipation.
“Who are you texting?”
Before he even realized it, Ha Jun-seo had come up behind him.
“Who are you texting?”
“Ah… My old phone. I send a message once a day just in case.”
“Can I see?”
Ha Jun-seo asked. Kim Min-seok hesitated for a moment before handing over his phone.
Ha Jun-seo’s gaze turned serious as he skimmed through the messages. There weren’t many, just a few texts sent daily. After reading them all, he handed the phone back.
“You still haven’t given up? On going back to Kim Min-seok’s body. I thought you said you were fine living like this. I told you to just stay as you are.”
“I do want to… but I can’t shake the feeling that I should find Seo Ha-yoon.”
“Hmm…”
Ha Jun-seo studied him with a strange look before masking his expression. Then, as if deciding something, he nodded and smiled.
“Well, do whatever you want. No matter what happens, I’ll always be on your side.”
He sounded completely sincere.
“…Thanks.”
“If you’re really grateful, how about a kiss?”
“Yeah, no.”
“Wow. Harsh.”
Ha Jun-seo made a show of looking hurt, but Kim Min-seok wasn’t falling for it. Yesterday’s events were still too fresh in his mind. Fortunately, Ha Jun-seo didn’t seem to be seriously expecting a kiss and quickly changed the subject.
“Then how about a movie?”
“Sounds good.”
Kim Min-seok nodded and sat down beside Ha Jun-seo on the living room couch. Then, he turned on the TV and started browsing for a movie.
