“They said to go ahead with treatment and send all the bills to them later.”
“Well, that’s a relief. Sounds like things ended on a good note.”
“Yeah, really.”
Go Hoon gave a small nod, then hesitated before speaking.
“Thanks. I think things went a lot more smoothly because of you.”
If it hadn’t been for him, even filing the accident report with the police might’ve been a nightmare. He’d never done anything like that before, and just trying to figure out the process would’ve given him a headache.
He’d ended up relying on Bae Jung-yoon far more than he’d intended. How was he supposed to repay all this? With the weight of that debt hanging over him, Go Hoon’s mind felt uncomfortably crowded.
“No need to thank me.”
But Jung-yoon just replied with a gentle smile in his eyes. There wasn’t even a hint of arrogance in his demeanor. Then, without another word, he went back to the book he’d been reading before.
From there, the rest of their day passed by slowly and peacefully.
Whenever Go Hoon needed something, Jung-yoon always picked up on it right away and helped him without a single complaint. The rest of the time, he quietly tended to his own work.
It was the same for Go Hoon. With nothing urgent to do, he sprawled out on the couch and ended up dozing off. If Jung-yoon hadn’t woken him for dinner, he probably would’ve slept straight through until dawn.
Since turning back into a human, this was the first time he’d had such a relaxing day. Every time he came to this place, he got a taste of a calm and peaceful life. And if he said he didn’t feel like just settling down here forever… that’d be a lie.
He needed to get a grip.
Scolding himself for softening up after just one day, Go Hoon firmed up his resolve.
***
“Dude… what the hell happened to you?”
It was Monday morning, in front of the elevator on the first floor of the Business Administration building, when Jo Seong-il spotted Go Hoon and blurted that out.
“Seriously? That’s what you say when I’m standing right in front of you?”
Go Hoon answered flatly as he pressed the elevator button with his left hand. Seong-il, clearly intrigued, cast a glance at the arm Go Hoon had strapped up in a sling.
His legs were at least hidden under his pants, so they didn’t draw attention, but he’d chosen a short-sleeved shirt—because he couldn’t stand anything brushing against the injury—and as a result, his injured arm was completely exposed.
In short, even if he didn’t want to look injured, there was no hiding it.
“What happened to you? And why are you limping?”
Of course that question was coming. Go Hoon scratched his cheek awkwardly before replying.
“Fell off my bike.”
“What the hell were you doing—bike stunts? How’d you manage to mess up both your top and bottom like that?”
Clicking his tongue in disbelief, Seong-il then stared seriously at Go Hoon.
“Hey… you think you’re cursed or something?”
“Nope.”
Go Hoon had actually looked up whether his zodiac sign was going through a unlucky cycle—but no, it wasn’t.
“For real? Then what’s going on with you and Bae Jung-yoon?”
Yeah, I’d love to know too. What kind of bad juju was tailing them that life had turned into such a disaster? Could it actually be… a cat ghost?
He wasn’t even joking. Go Hoon was genuinely serious.
Looking back, everything had started that day.
The day he’d suddenly turned into a cat.
Frustration welled up again, and he frowned, letting out a long, tired sigh.
“But seriously, how’d you even get to school like that?”
Seong-il’s eyes widened. Then he raised his voice.
“Wait, don’t tell me—you walked?”
It sounded like a question, but it wasn’t. The look on his face already screamed, Are you insane?
He clearly knew Go Hoon well enough to assume that, being the cheapskate he was, Go Hoon wouldn’t have paid for a ride.
Go Hoon let out a dry chuckle, unsure whether to feel proud or embarrassed, and quickly cut him off before the scolding could start.
“I took a taxi.”
Seong-il’s wide eyes lost their edge at the unexpected reply. He blinked, looking genuinely surprised.
“Wow. Go Hoon, of all people, actually took a cab?”
Well… that was a lie.
It wasn’t a taxi—he’d gotten a ride from Bae Jung-yoon.
And not just that. Jung-yoon had washed his hair for him that morning. Helped him wash his face too.
At least he’d insisted on dressing himself.
He couldn’t bring himself to ask for help with that, especially since he didn’t want Jung-yoon to see the scar on his left knee.
While Jung-yoon was in the shower, Go Hoon had broken into a sweat just trying to change clothes on his own. He couldn’t help but curse Yoon Seong-gon for picking the worst possible time to go on an overseas trip.
But reality was reality.
He didn’t have a choice, so he’d asked for help—and Jung-yoon had offered it without hesitation.
For the time being, they’d agreed to stick together as much as possible.
Because of the condition of Go Hoon’s leg, walking or taking public transport wasn’t really an option.
Unless their schedules completely clashed, they’d try to go home together every day.
And they made one more agreement.
The fact that they were—more or less—living together? That was to stay their little secret.
At first, Bae Jung-yoon had looked at him like, Why keep that a secret? But when Go Hoon earnestly pleaded with him, Jung-yoon simply smiled and said, “Alright. If that’s what you want.”
Go Hoon had a straightforward reason for wanting to keep it quiet—he just didn’t want the headache if people found out.
Especially this guy standing right in front of him. If Seong-il caught wind of it, he’d definitely say he wanted to hang out at Jung-yoon’s place too and start badgering both the owner and Go Hoon nonstop.
“Hey, Hoon. You hear the news?”
Just imagining the chaos made Go Hoon shudder slightly. He looked toward Jo Seong-il, who scooted closer and lowered his voice dramatically.
“Park Ki-cheol filed for a leave of absence.”
“…Park Ki-cheol?”
“Yeah. You know Lee Jung-ah, right? Our junior who works as a TA in the admin office? She told me—it came straight through official channels, so it’s 100% legit.”
At first, Go Hoon narrowed his eyes, wondering if this was just another baseless rumor. But hearing it came from someone in admin made it sound credible.
And truthfully, he’d been expecting it. With how often Ki-cheol had been skipping class, it was only a matter of time.
As the elevator arrived, Go Hoon stepped in. Seong-il followed him in and let out a low whistle.
“Still, what made the guy suddenly take a leave?”
What do you think? He probably realized things were about to blow up. He stirred the pot, then bolted because he couldn’t deal with the consequences.
Go Hoon kept those thoughts to himself and remained silent.
But that silence must’ve seemed suspicious, because Seong-il narrowed his eyes.
“You wouldn’t happen to know why Park Ki-cheol took time off, would you?”
“If you don’t know, how would I?”
Go Hoon replied coolly. Overreacting would just look guilty. One wrong word and Seong-il’s curiosity would go up in flames.
Even so, it was clear Seong-il still believed there was something going on.
“I mean, you worked on that group project with him, right? That’s why I asked.”
Go Hoon gave a casual shrug, pretending not to notice the pointed look. Fortunately, Seong-il didn’t dig any deeper.
After that, they traded a few more random comments, parted ways, and Go Hoon sat through a three-hour lecture.
As soon as class ended, he met up with Bae Jung-yoon and headed to the hospital.
He had the sutures cleaned and redressed, then returned home.
“When can I get the stitches removed?”
“You’ll need to wait at least another week.”
Remembering the doctor’s words, Go Hoon clicked his tongue in frustration.
The sooner he healed, the sooner he could get out of this house.
He sat on the living room couch, staring blankly into space, then suddenly felt thirsty and got up.
He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water from the dispenser.
As he turned around, his eyes drifted to the liquor cabinet. And just like that, a memory flashed—months ago, when he’d shattered one of Jung-yoon’s bottles.
“You got your eye on something?”
He’d been standing there lost in thought when Jung-yoon quietly approached and spoke up.
He hadn’t been staring at it for that reason exactly, but Go Hoon didn’t bother denying it.
The truth was, he’d once looked up the prices of every bottle in that cabinet with his phone.
He figured they were expensive, but the actual prices had floored him.
Some of them were nearly impossible to find in Korea. Even if you had the money, they were so rare people called them “liquid gold.”
Where do you even get this stuff?
With that kind of reputation, of course he was curious how it tasted.
If Jung-yoon ever offered him a glass, he knew he wouldn’t be able to turn it down.
But still, how could he just come out and say he wanted a taste? Even he had some shame.
Of course, sharp as ever, Jung-yoon seemed to take the silence as a yes.
With a thoughtful hum, he responded firmly, “Not now.”
Figures.
Not just now—he probably meant never.
The way those bottles were lined up so perfectly, they might as well have been display pieces.
It didn’t look like he intended to drink them himself, let alone share.
“I know, I know. Just admiring from afar. Let me enjoy the view.”
Go Hoon murmured with his lips to the rim of the cup.
Gets a guy’s hopes up, then shuts him down immediately.
Maybe that’s why his voice came out sounding a little sulky.
Not that it mattered. It’s not like those kinds of drinks suited someone like him anyway.
What business did he have sipping expensive whiskey in his condition?
If anything, tasting that stuff would just ruin his palate. Cheap soju was more his speed.
Quickly shaking off the craving, Go Hoon glanced over at Jung-yoon and asked,
“You buy all this yourself?”
“Some I bought. Some were gifts. You like alcohol?”
“Eh, it’s alright. What about you?”
“I…”
He trailed off, then gave a quiet chuckle and nodded.
“Yeah, I like it.”
Well, that explained the collection.
Which made Go Hoon wonder:
“Then why don’t you ever drink it? You’ve got all this stuff lined up, but you never touch it.”
Why go through all the trouble of collecting so much liquor just to let it sit behind glass?
Okay, sure—maybe the super high-end stuff was too valuable to open.
But some of those bottles were reasonably priced. He could definitely drink those, couldn’t he?
And yet Jung-yoon never did.
He said he liked alcohol, but Go Hoon had never actually seen him drink.
Even that time with Park Ki-cheol at the bar—he only drank just enough not to stand out. He didn’t seem to enjoy it at all.
And yet here he was, hoarding whiskey like it was treasure.
From Go Hoon’s perspective, alcohol was meant to be consumed, not collected.
So yeah—he was probably looking at Jung-yoon like he was some kind of strange specimen.
But instead of being put off, Jung-yoon’s dark eyes lit up, as if he’d been waiting for that exact question.
“How’d you know I never drink any of it?”
