Kim Min-seok staggered toward his room, but as soon as he reached the door, Cheol and Soon, who had been wandering around the house, slipped inside ahead of him. The two men who had followed him stood side by side at the end of the hallway, watching him in silence. Kim Min-seok glanced at them once before closing the door. Then, he walked to his bed and collapsed onto it.
***
“What are you staring at like that?”
Seo Ha-yoon asked as he lay diagonally across the bed, idly playing with Cheol’s belly fat. Ha Jun-seo, who had been resting his head on one arm while watching him, reached out and ran his fingers through Seo Ha-yoon’s hair. Both of them were naked. They had just finished having sex, but there was no awkwardness between them.
“You’re just so pretty.”
Ha Jun-seo answered with a smile in his eyes. Seo Ha-yoon let out a small scoff, but there was a subtle defiance hidden in his expression.
“Why? You don’t like being called pretty?”
At Ha Jun-seo’s question, Seo Ha-yoon frowned as he ran his fingers over his own face.
“I just don’t like my face. Being too good-looking doesn’t do me any favors.”
This time, Ha Jun-seo let out a chuckle.
“Funny, coming from someone who scowls the second he sees an ugly face, calling them a squid.”
“I can’t stand ugly people. Especially when ugly guys hit on me—it makes me want to puke.”
Seo Ha-yoon pouted as he spoke, looking much more like someone his age in that moment.
“So you don’t like handsome guys, and you don’t like ugly guys either. Then what are people supposed to do?”
Ha Jun-seo teased, lightly pinching the tip of Seo Ha-yoon’s nose.
“I just… prefer plain. Not too handsome, not ugly. Just perfectly average-looking.”
“Hmm… Then I guess I’m out of luck since I was born handsome.”
“Good that you know.”
Ha Jun-seo tilted his head and pressed their lips together. They shared a brief, light kiss.
“Meow—”
Cheol let out a loud cry, seemingly dissatisfied that the hand rubbing his belly had stopped.
“Stay over tonight.”
Ha Jun-seo whispered after the kiss, his voice laced with quiet temptation.
“No. I have to sleep at home.”
Despite having just shared a sweet kiss, Seo Ha-yoon refused him flatly.
“Do you realize you’ve never once spent the night with me? Isn’t that a little harsh?”
“Either way, no sleepovers.”
Seo Ha-yoon was firm. Ha Jun-seo’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Then what about me coming over to your place? Is that still off-limits?”
“No.”
At his continued rejection, Ha Jun-seo’s smile faded slightly. He let out a small sigh and ran a hand through his hair. Seeing that, Seo Ha-yoon couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
“Not allowed to sleep over. Not allowed to visit your place, even though you live alone. I can’t do this, I can’t do that. Don’t you think you’re being a little too much? Ha-yoon, am I just a casual fuck to you? Is that all I am to you?”
Ha Jun-seo asked seriously. He had been holding back for a long time. Seo Ha-yoon knew that, which was why, for once, he couldn’t immediately say no.
“I’m not asking you to tell me you love me. But I need to ask—Ha-yoon, do you even like me? Do I mean anything to you?”
Seo Ha-yoon couldn’t open his mouth so easily. The same mouth that always spat out words without hesitation was now completely still. Seeing that, the smile disappeared from Ha Jun-seo’s face.
“Ah, seriously…”
He let out a frustrated sigh and started to sit up. At that moment, Seo Ha-yoon grabbed his wrist.
“Daytime is fine.”
Ha Jun-seo froze and looked at him. Seo Ha-yoon hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“You can stay at my place until the evening. I can’t do more than that, but…”
“You’re inviting me over to your house?”
Seo Ha-yoon nodded. Ha Jun-seo narrowed his eyes slightly. He still hadn’t regained his smile.
“Then what about my question?”
Ha Jun-seo pressed. Seo Ha-yoon let out a small sigh, hesitating before mumbling something under his breath.
“…I like you.”
“Hm? I couldn’t hear that.”
Ha Jun-seo tilted his head, pretending not to have heard him.
“I said I like you!”
Seo Ha-yoon shouted, his face clearly saying, Do I really have to spell this out for you? At that, a sweet smile finally returned to Ha Jun-seo’s lips. Seeing it, Seo Ha-yoon let out a subtle breath of relief.
“Do you really like me, Ha-yoon?”
Ha Jun-seo asked again.
“Yeah. I wouldn’t be stuck to you like this all the time if I didn’t. I don’t have a hobby of hanging around and rolling in bed with people I don’t like.”
Seo Ha-yoon’s tone was grumpy.
“What do you like about me?”
Ha Jun-seo, clearly pleased, pushed further. Seo Ha-yoon shot him a look that said, Enough already, but Ha Jun-seo, too excited to stop, begged for just a little more.
“Hm? Just tell me. What do you like about me?”
“…You’re kind. Gentle, sweet, always wanting to be around me whenever you have time. You put up with my shitty temper… and when I’m with you, it’s just… comfortable.”
“And on top of that, I’m rich, handsome, great at buying you gifts, and amazing in bed?”
Ha Jun-seo grinned, shamelessly listing his own merits. Seo Ha-yoon let out a small laugh and flopped onto the bed, pulling a protesting Cheol into his arms. Watching him, a soft warmth filled Ha Jun-seo’s gaze.
“You like me that much?”
Seo Ha-yoon suddenly asked.
“Huh?”
Ha Jun-seo asked back.
“I’m asking if you really like me that much. You’re looking at me with those eyes—like I’m the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen.”
“It’s not that I think you’re beautiful to death. It’s that I find you utterly lovable.”
Seo Ha-yoon’s hand, which had been stroking Cheol, suddenly halted.
“I’m… lovable?”
Ha Jun-seo nodded. Seo Ha-yoon blinked, as if he had just heard something completely foreign. Then, after a brief pause, he let out a small laugh.
“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s just… I’ve never heard that before.”
“No way.”
Ha Jun-seo looked at him in disbelief. Seo Ha-yoon stopped laughing and gave a faint, almost amused smile.
“It’s true… I always hear things like ‘You’re so pretty,’ ‘You’re sexy as hell,’ ‘You make me hard,’ ‘You’re a beauty,’ ‘You should be a celebrity.’ But no one’s ever called me lovable before.”
After saying that, Seo Ha-yoon fixed his gaze on Ha Jun-seo and asked,
“Why would someone like me, who’s rude as fuck and a total materialistic bastard, be lovable? What part of me is?”
“Do you really need a reason to love someone?”
Ha Jun-seo’s response left Seo Ha-yoon momentarily speechless. He looked slightly taken aback. Seeing that, Ha Jun-seo reached out and gently stroked his hair, his touch full of affection.
“Don’t treat me like a kid.”
Seo Ha-yoon pouted.
“I’ve never treated you like a kid. Do you think I’d do this kind of thing with a kid?”
“This kind of thing?”
“Yeah. This kind of thing.”
Ha Jun-seo murmured as he leaned in and pressed his lips against Seo Ha-yoon’s. The kiss quickly deepened, passionate and consuming. In their fervor, the cat slipped away, unnoticed. Their bodies tangled as they rolled across the bed, tongues entwining, legs locking together. The heat that had completely cooled moments ago flared up once again.
Meanwhile, Kim Min-seok stirred awake. Without even opening his eyes, he raised an arm to cover them and muttered,
“You’re fucking insane, Seo Ha-yoon.”
There was utter disbelief in his voice.
Just earlier, he had thought Seo Ha-yoon loved Choi Sang-hyuk. That’s what he had seen in his dream. Even as he was falling from a building, Seo Ha-yoon had called out Choi Sang-hyuk’s name.
But now, this dream was telling a different story.
Whether Seo Ha-yoon actually loved Ha Jun-seo was unclear. But he definitely liked him. That much was obvious. In the end, it was just a matter of degrees—both of them were real lovers to him.
Of course, this wasn’t Kim Min-seok’s problem. It had nothing to do with him whether Seo Ha-yoon truly loved someone or if he was cheating. It wasn’t his business.
And yet, he couldn’t shake the feeling of unease.
Damn it, he had let it slide before. But things were different now. Kim Min-seok was actually Seo Ha-yoon, which meant he couldn’t just ignore this problem anymore.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake…”
Kim Min-seok groaned and rolled around on the bed, praying that this was all just a dream. Maybe when he woke up, he’d be back in his tiny goshiwon room, and he’d laugh it off—chalk it up to nothing more than a weird, absurd dream.
“Meow—”
But the sound of a cat crying shattered that illusion. In his restless tossing and turning, he had woken up Cheol and Soon, who had been sleeping beside him.
Just like in his dream, Kim Min-seok reached out and kneaded Cheol’s belly, trying to calm himself down. But it wasn’t working. Not at all.
