Bae Jung-yoon had been clocking in somewhere every single day lately. Word was, he was attending business training at his maternal grandfather’s company. Though it was described as a “class,” it felt more like an apprenticeship than a lecture.
Go Hoon reminded himself once again that Bae Jung-yoon’s family background was far from ordinary. At the same time, a creeping sense of urgency stirred inside him. While someone else was already stepping into the corporate world, he was still scrambling to meet his graduation requirements. He knew full well that the comparison was unfair from the start, but the stark contrast was undeniable—it made him resolve to stay sharper and more focused.
He usually left the house around 8:30 a.m. and returned by 6:30 p.m. And come nightfall, it was as if he needed to compensate for the long, busy day—by wearing himself out all over again.
Thanks to that, muscle aches had become a frequent visitor. And of course, medicated patches were now a given.
He could feel someone staring. There was no mistaking where those pitch-black eyes were aimed. Most likely at the palm-sized pain relief patch stuck to his neck. Ignoring the lingering gaze with effort, Go Hoon picked up the phone resting on the table.
As expected, the notification bar was flooded with spam and useless promotional texts. Still no message from Woo Gun-hyung today, either.
After their first and last phone call, there had been complete silence from him. It continued to bother Go Hoon, but he couldn’t bring himself to initiate contact.
Later, he found his phone had slipped under the bed. When he checked the call history, he sighed deeply. The timestamp showed more than enough time had passed for Woo Gun-hyung to overhear not only his conversation with Bae Jung-yoon but everything that came after, too.
Still, it wasn’t as if he had listened in on purpose. Judging by the timing of the hang-up, he had probably checked in to make sure there weren’t any issues and cut the call at a suitable moment. Putting the whole picture together, unless he was someone who got off on eavesdropping, there was no other logical explanation.
Go Hoon stepped up to the window and looked outside. It looked like it might rain. The sky beyond the glass was thick with gloomy clouds.
“How’s the academy? You managing alright?”
While he stood there, silently staring into the murky sky, Bae Jung-yoon came up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist. The sharp bridge of his nose brushed the back of Go Hoon’s neck, making his shoulders twitch.
Go Hoon briefly considered pushing him away, but decided against it. He didn’t want to be the only one acting overly sensitive.
Having just come out of the shower, his skin was probably still scented with body wash. Bae Jung-yoon seemed to like it—he took a long breath through his nose and continued.
“No one’s trying to chat you up or anything, right?”
Go Hoon’s brow twitched slightly. Every time he got questions like that, he never knew how to respond. Was he supposed to take it as jealousy? Or was he the one overthinking a throwaway comment? Shaking off the trivial thoughts, he answered bluntly.
“Everyone’s too busy studying to even look at each other.”
It had already been a week since he started attending the language academy, just as planned. The first time he brought it up to Bae Jung-yoon was right after a long, drawn-out round of sex.
“Wanna go on a little getaway together?”
Still draped over Go Hoon’s worn-out body, lazily groping wherever he pleased, Bae Jung-yoon had suddenly suggested a trip. Naturally, Go Hoon refused—he already had plans lined up.
Bae Jung-yoon didn’t seem pleased with that answer. He asked why Go Hoon had to take in-person classes when there were so many online options these days. But Go Hoon had no intention of budging.
Online lectures made it way too easy to slack off. The focus and discipline just didn’t compare to being in a classroom. He preferred certainty over ambiguity. If he took the test unprepared, he’d only end up suffering twice—and spending more money, too.
To avoid wasting time and effort, he had decided to dedicate the entire vacation to preparing for the TOEIC exam. After doing some research, he found an all-day intensive course that fit his needs perfectly. Classes in the morning, supervised self-study in the afternoon.
Once he reviewed the curriculum, he signed up without hesitation. Thankfully, classes ended at 6 p.m., so it didn’t interfere with his agreement with Bae Jung-yoon.
After a long stretch of persuasion, even Bae Jung-yoon gave in with a nod.
“If that’s what you’re set on, I guess I’ve got no choice.”
That said, he naturally crawled back into Go Hoon’s arms—and at the time, Go Hoon hadn’t stopped him. Because he knew exactly what that nod had meant: Bae Jung-yoon had relented on something he hadn’t truly wanted.
Truthfully, he could’ve carved out a day or two for a trip. But he didn’t want to. Going on a trip alone with him… it would’ve made him start getting the wrong idea. Like they were actually in a relationship.
Hadn’t Bae Jung-yoon made it perfectly clear? That what they had now was already enough. Go Hoon didn’t want to pretend to be lovers. Even though he reminded himself of that fact dozens of times a day, over and over, he wasn’t sure it was working.
The cool rain made the air chilly, so he threw a thin shirt over his short-sleeved tee. Once both of them were ready, they left the house together, just like always.
Their schedules lined up pretty well, so Bae Jung-yoon would drive him to the academy every morning. The return trip was usually the same.
As the car pulled away from the building, raindrops began to tap against the window in a soft rhythm. Listening to that sound, Go Hoon dozed off for a while. By the time he opened his eyes again, they had already arrived in front of the academy.
“Thanks for the ride. See you tonight.”
He reached for the door handle, umbrella in hand—only for his arm to be caught. When he turned around, Bae Jung-yoon was pulling him back.
As the distance between them closed, tension pricked at the air. These days, he touched Go Hoon at the drop of a hat, so it had become a reflexive reaction.
But unexpectedly, his touch was gentle. Bae Jung-yoon simply straightened out his crooked collar, then looked him in the eyes.
“When class is over, don’t wander off. Come straight down to the parking lot.”
Immediately after, long fingers slipped beneath his collar and pressed firmly against the patch stuck to the nape of his neck.
“You understand, right?”
The way Bae Jung-yoon spoke, like he was demanding a response, made Go Hoon shoot him an annoyed look before replying.
“Yeah. Ease up with the babysitting.”
Bae Jung-yoon simply smiled, wide and wordless.
Stepping out of the car, Go Hoon headed straight toward the building ahead. After shaking off the rain from his umbrella, he climbed the stairs—only to come to a sudden stop.
He rubbed at his chest slowly with one hand. For some reason, his stomach had been unsettled for a while. Maybe it was from Bae Jung-yoon’s unexpected touch earlier. But no… it didn’t feel like that.
He’d felt something like this before… though surely, not again. Right?
Go Hoon shook his head, trying to brush it off. He didn’t feel particularly sick today. No way something like that would happen again.
But of course, it always happens when you least expect it. As time passed, the discomfort only worsened. And then, his body began to crash—fast.
“That’ll be all for today’s class.”
As soon as the instructor’s closing words fell, Go Hoon quickly gathered his things and rushed out of the classroom. Normally, he would’ve gone straight to the self-study room—but this time was different.
He hurried into a bathroom stall, slammed the door shut, and locked it behind him. Gripping the toilet, he gasped for air in rough, uneven breaths. But even though he felt ready to vomit, nothing came up.
Instead, he spat out the bitter saliva pooling in his mouth.
“…This is hell.”
A groan escaped his lips without thinking. His stomach churned, and his head was spinning. He flushed the toilet, slumped down against the partition, and crouched on the floor.
Something was wrong. It felt like the strength was draining out of his entire body, pouring down through his feet. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping to quell the dizziness—but instead, the headache worsened.
“Haa… ha…”
His breathing was getting shallower by the second. Brow furrowed, Go Hoon buried his face into his crossed arms. Painful, stifled groans kept slipping out between clenched teeth.
He squeezed his eyes shut again—then opened them. That’s when it started. A strange sensation began creeping over his entire body. It was all too familiar. He’d definitely felt this before.
“No… not now…”
The words left his lips in a desperate murmur. But there was nothing he could do to stop it.
That bizarre feeling swept up his spine and through his limbs, pulling his mind into a haze. As cold sweat slid down the back of his neck, his legs gave out—and his vision went black.
When he came to, an all-too-familiar scene greeted him.
Shaking his head free from under his clothes, Go Hoon gave it a few quick shakes. His once-blurry vision snapped into perfect focus. The dizziness was gone—completely. As if all those earlier symptoms had been nothing more than a prelude to this exact moment.
He turned his head and looked down at himself. A thick gray tail and soft white fur came into view.
Just as he suspected—he’d transformed into a cat again.
Damn it. Why the hell did his body have to pick now to go haywire?
It was jarring, yes—but not unmanageable. All he had to do was shift back into human form.
Go Hoon shut his eyes tight and focused, trying to change back. But no matter how hard he tried, his body refused to respond. There was nothing. Not even the slightest movement.
…What’s going on?
A spike of panic rose in him. He tried again—nothing. His body remained completely still.
Sure, he’d transformed involuntarily before—but never once had he failed to change back. This was the first time he’d felt truly stuck.
His mind went completely blank from the shock.
Why was this happening? No way… Was he really not going to turn back?
A wave of fear crashed down over him.
