[Incheon, **-dong, **Inn, Room ***. No bank transfers—cash and goods only.]
The message was short. No time, just a location and a straightforward request.
Kim Min-seok hesitated for a moment before dialing Seo Chang-seop’s number. The call didn’t go through—his phone was turned off.
Just as expected. Seo Chang-seop was on the run. He was in a situation so precarious that leaving his phone on for too long risked being tracked. But by whom? The police? Maybe an illegal gambling den had been raided.
If bank transfers were out of the question, it meant he didn’t even have the means to withdraw cash from his account. That meant he was being monitored so closely it was practically airtight.
Kim Min-seok thought this was a perfect opportunity. If Seo Chang-seop was truly this desperate, then the only person he could turn to was Seo Ha-yoon. And in a situation like that, he wouldn’t hesitate to hand over the files.
[I’ll be there by morning. Have all the documents ready. Let me make this clear—there’s no money until I get them.]
After sending the text, Kim Min-seok slipped his phone back into his pocket. If Seo Chang-seop was turning his phone on and off intermittently to avoid tracking, he’d likely see the message soon.
The worst-case scenario would be if Seo Chang-seop called him there without actually having the documents—just to rob him for money. But Kim Min-seok had no intention of walking in unprepared. Even though Seo Ha-yoon was on the smaller side overall, he was still a man. He wasn’t going to be easily overpowered by an aging Seo Chang-seop.
The real problem is how I’m going to get out of here and make it there…
With that thought, he quickly deleted all traces of their messages. He couldn’t risk Ha Jun-seo seeing them. Then, mechanically, he flushed the toilet and turned on the faucet to wash his hands.
Luckily, his mind felt calm.
Meow—
Scratch, scratch, scratch—
From outside the bathroom door came the sound of a cat meowing, followed by the distinct scratching of claws against wood.
When he opened the door, Cheol was standing there with his tail raised high, letting out a small, demanding meow.
“Did you come to greet me?”
Kim Min-seok asked gently, scooping Cheol up into his arms. As he walked toward the living room sofa, Soon, who had been watching from a short distance away, quickly trotted after him.
“Come sit down already. It’s an important scene, so I paused it for you.”
Ha Jun-seo gestured toward him.
Kim Min-seok sat back down and leaned against Ha Jun-seo’s shoulder, just as he had before. A soft scent of fabric softener drifted up to him—a warm, comforting smell.
The movie resumed. His eyes were fixed on the screen, but his mind was already elsewhere.
Choi Sang-hyuk’s words and Ha Jun-seo’s actions made it clear—they wouldn’t allow him to go out alone. But he couldn’t just walk out the door either. He still needed to stop by home and grab his wallet. To do that, he had to shake off Ha Jun-seo first.
‘But…’
Kim Min-seok glanced up at Ha Jun-seo, who was resting against his shoulder. This persistent man wouldn’t be easy to slip away from with normal means.
‘What should I do…’
As he mulled over his options, he noticed that the movie was nearing its end. He opened his mouth.
“Beer would go well with this. Do you have any?”
He casually asked, secretly hoping that there wasn’t any beer in the house. That way, he’d have an excuse to go out alone, just like last time.
“Oh, you should’ve said so earlier. Of course, I have beer.”
Ha Jun-seo replied easily and got up from his seat. Kim Min-seok quickly pulled him back onto the sofa.
“No, it’s fine. You stay here, Jun-seo. I’ll get it.”
“But—”
“You always do things for me. I can at least grab some beer.”
Saying that, Kim Min-seok hurried to the kitchen.
Upon arriving, he opened the fridge first. The neatly organized shelves were surprisingly full, including several types of beer.
He scanned the contents quickly, pretending to pick one. He looked around the fridge, but there wasn’t a single sign of any pill bottles. Considering that Ha Jun-seo had once drugged his drink, there had to be some kind of medication in the kitchen. But no matter how hard he searched, he couldn’t find anything.
He picked out two cans of beer and set them on the sink. Then, using the excuse of looking for beer glasses, he started opening cabinets here and there, moving around busily. But aside from neatly arranged dishes and cups, there wasn’t a single pill bottle in sight.
“Ha-yoon?”
Had he taken too long? Ha Jun-seo called out to him.
“Oh, I’m done. Coming now.”
With no other choice, Kim Min-seok hurriedly answered, grabbing two glasses and the beer before heading back to the living room.
He popped open the cans and poured the beer into the glasses. Handing one to Ha Jun-seo, he asked,
“Jun-seo, what’s your drinking limit?”
“Me? I’m not that strong. Just enough to keep up with people, I guess?”
Ha Jun-seo answered in a deliberately vague manner. When Kim Min-seok hesitated for a moment, Ha Jun-seo smiled and lifted his glass.
“Come on, let’s toast.”
Clink—
Their glasses met in midair.
‘I just have to drink as little as possible and make him drink as much as possible.’
Resolving himself, Kim Min-seok took a small sip of beer.
***
“Hoo…”
Seo Ha-yoon buried his face in both hands and let out a long sigh. His body swayed slightly—he was clearly drunk.
“Ha-yoon, are you okay? Did you drink too much?”
Ha Jun-seo asked as he gently rubbed his back. Seo Ha-yoon suddenly lifted his face, looking aggrieved.
“No, why is your alcohol tolerance so high? Why am I the only one who’s drunk?”
Seo Ha-yoon spoke with an unfair expression. Ha Jun-seo glanced at the empty beer cans stacked high on the living room table. He had long noticed that Ha-yoon was trying to get him drunk while drinking as little as possible himself. He played along, pretending to drink, but the problem was that Ha Jun-seo had never once gotten drunk from beer.
“Yeah, I guess I’m not getting drunk today. But you, Ha-yoon, seem a little tipsy, huh?”
Ha Jun-seo pulled Seo Ha-yoon into his arms, resting his head on his shoulder. The warm scent of alcohol wafted from his breath. As he already knew from before, Ha-yoon’s drunken habit was simple—whenever he got drunk, he just fell asleep.
“You must be tired. Aren’t you? Why don’t you take a quick nap?”
“Mm… No… It’s not even nighttime yet.”
Though he said no, Seo Ha-yoon instinctively burrowed into Ha Jun-seo’s embrace. Ha Jun-seo chuckled softly and carefully lifted him into his arms. Carrying him into the bedroom, he laid him down on the bed and patted his chest gently.
Cheol and Soon trailed after them and jumped onto the bed. Realizing that Ha-yoon was about to sleep, they each curled up—one by his head, the other near his legs.
“I’m not gonna sleep. I’m really not… But why is everything spinning? My vision keeps swirling. Did you drug me again?”
Seo Ha-yoon looked up at him with suspicious eyes. Ha Jun-seo swallowed his laughter and shook his head.
“Alcohol and drugs together are bad for your body. Why would I ever do something harmful to my Ha-yoon? Just take a short nap. One hour, and you’ll feel better.”
“But…”
Ha-yoon struggled to keep his eyes open, blinking rapidly. His effort was oddly endearing.
“I’ll wake you up. How’s that?”
At Ha Jun-seo’s words, Seo Ha-yoon thought for a moment before nodding. Then, he pulled the blanket up to his shoulders, let out a long yawn, and closed his eyes. It hadn’t even been a few seconds before a soft, rhythmic snoring sound filled the room.
Ha Jun-seo gently stroked his hair for a moment before leaning in and whispering,
“Ha-yoon.”
There was no response. He lightly poked his cheek, but still, there was no reaction. Once he confirmed that Ha-yoon was deeply asleep, Ha Jun-seo carefully slid his hand under the blanket.
Reaching into Ha-yoon’s pants pocket, he slowly pulled out his phone.
“Sleep well.”
He pressed a soft kiss to his cheek before silently slipping out of the bedroom. As he closed the door, he glanced back at the bed—Seo Ha-yoon and the two cats were curled up together, sound asleep.
Ha Jun-seo stepped into the dressing room and shut the door behind him. He pulled out Seo Ha-yoon’s phone and examined it. The most recent call log displayed the name Seo Chang-seop, but all the exchanged messages between them had been deleted.
“Hmm…”
Narrowing his eyes, Ha Jun-seo lowered Seo Ha-yoon’s phone and instead picked up his own. He pressed the call button.
rrrrr—
The line barely rang a few times before the other person picked up.
“What?”
Choi Sang-hyuk’s voice came through, sounding irritated. Ha Jun-seo absentmindedly fiddled with Seo Ha-yoon’s phone in his hand and spoke in a slow, measured tone.
“Our Ha-yoon, you see… was about to do something very adorable.”
