#102
Jaeha took a large step into the house, dimly filling the narrow entryway. He first examined Eunhong’s face and furrowed his brow. His cold, sharp gaze scanned Eunhong, then the belongings scattered around the house, and finally Woohyun.
Having immediately grasped the situation, Jaeha grabbed Eunhong’s shoulder without even taking off his shoes at the entrance. With his eyelids lowered gently, his pupils remained hidden, making it impossible to know what he was thinking. When they were alone, he usually let his pheromones flow freely, making it somewhat easy to read his emotions, but Jaeha’s current mood was unreadable. He had mysteriously contained his typically intense pheromones, not letting even a drop of scent be felt, emitting only a piercing coldness.
“Go wait in the car.”
“…”
The words “I’ll handle this” simply wouldn’t leave his mouth. Though his expression toward him was gentle, there was an atmosphere that was difficult to defy. Instead of answering, Eunhong shook his head and grabbed Jaeha’s arm. He had a premonition that leaving Jaeha here alone would lead to something terrible. Jaeha sighed again and tried to persuade Eunhong.
“Nothing will happen. I’ll make sure of it,” Jaeha reassured him with a quiet sigh, subtly tightening his grip on his shoulder.
“You being here will only make things worse. Go wait in the car.”
“You’re so good,” he whispered, leaning close to the top of his head. Somehow, all his strength drained away. Not missing the opportunity, he pushed his car keys toward his face, urging him to take them. Eunhong nodded slightly, hastily slipped on his shoes, and walked past Jaeha toward the outside.
As the heavy entrance door closed and he stepped into the hallway, his held breath burst out. His chest felt tighter than when he’d been fighting with Woohyun. He could hear Woohyun shouting from behind the closed door. He exhaled a long, deep sigh, distressed about why he kept showing such pathetic sides of himself and why Jaeha had to experience such things.
After leaving the narrow alley, he saw Jaeha’s familiar silver car. He must have been in a hurry, as he’d parked illegally again. As he habitually scanned the surroundings, he noticed a man lingering around the car.
Worried he might be a reporter, his feet froze to the ground. He debated whether to go back to the apartment or to his own car, then remembered he’d left his phone, bag, and everything else in the apartment. With no other choice, Eunhong hid in the shadow of a wall and waited for the man to leave.
After watching several passersby and crouching until his legs cramped, the man finally entered the convenience store across the street. Eunhong quickly stood up and practically jumped into the passenger seat. His heart was pounding.
The subtle spread of Jaeha’s pheromones inside the car released his tension, making his body relax. He curled up like a squirrel hiding in its burrow and leaned his head against the heavily tinted car window.
As the tension eased and everything quieted down, he wondered what Jaeha and Woohyun might be discussing. He’d hoped he would just collect his scattered belongings and leave, but as time passed, he grew increasingly anxious. He wanted to look cool, but kept showing his inadequacies. How pathetic. It was all his fault. Eunhong had been sighing deeply since earlier.
With his arms crossed, staring intently toward the alley, he finally saw a large figure striding down. It was Jaeha. Carrying his luggage bag in one hand, he quickly came down, loaded the belongings into the back seat, and got into the driver’s seat. The car swayed as cold outside air rushed in, along with his intense pheromones. Eunhong shivered and took a deep breath.
“Come here, Bunhong.”
“…Huh?”
Jaeha started the engine but didn’t immediately drive off, turning his body toward Eunhong. As he just stared with wide eyes in confusion, he added, “Let me hug you.”
When he leaned fully into his embrace, his solid body hugged him tightly as if about to crush him. The suit jacket against his cheek was cold. His scent, mixed with body heat, gently enveloped him. He cradled the back of his neck with his large hand and patted his back.
“…”
“You hit him quite fiercely.”
After waiting for his first words, Eunhong burst into weak laughter. Jaeha comforted him, saying he did well, then rested his chin on the top of his head. After laughing senselessly for a while, he cautiously asked:
“How… It doesn’t seem like you just came out with the bag. What did you talk about?”
“Talk? I gave him money.”
Eunhong, who had been leaning quietly, abruptly pulled away in surprise.
“What money? Why did you give him money?”
“It’s the fastest way. He was excited to take it and seemed satisfied.”
“Why give him money?! He should be the one paying me back!”
He was furious that he’d given more money when he must have noticed something was missing while collecting his belongings. When he pressed him about how much he’d given, he said he didn’t need to know, making him dismayed.
“Time is more expensive, Bunhong. Let’s stop worrying about An Woohyun now, okay?”
Saying they’d be late for their restaurant reservation, Jaeha turned the steering wheel. As the car merged onto the main road and picked up speed, Eunhong decided not to bring up Woohyun anymore.
Though he said not to worry, Eunhong’s heart wasn’t at ease. He should just thank him for resolving things neatly and move on, but he felt angry and resentful that Woohyun seemed to have benefited from the situation. Yet he couldn’t complain to Jaeha about why he was making him so frustrated. He was so angry at Woohyun, but being told not to think about it made him feel even more stifled and upset.
“I’ll try to find the watch. None of them are common models, so it’s not entirely impossible. If you want, we can also file charges against An Woohyun.”
Wondering if he had read his mind, Eunhong’s eyes widened. It seemed there was nothing he didn’t know. He blushed with embarrassment at how completely his inner thoughts were exposed. Could alphas sense such things through pheromones? But the pheromone alarm on his wrist had remained quiet all this time.
“How did you know I was upset about that?”
“I knew as soon as I saw your punches.”
“You’re completely transparent,” Jaeha said, showing his teeth in a smile. Eunhong stared at his profile for a moment, then moistened his dry lips.
“I’m sorry… for this. For making you experience this.”
He was sorry for making Jaeha go through emotional drain he didn’t need to experience or see. He was also sorry for losing all the gifts in such a way. Eunhong awkwardly offered his apology.
“This?”
“…The messy stuff. I’m sorry for losing all the gifts.”
“Hmm…”
Instead of answering, he reached out his right hand and grabbed Eunhong’s left hand. He interlocked their fingers, squeezed them painfully tight, then released. Jaeha turned to Eunhong with a broad smile that revealed his canine teeth.
“You can do anything to me, and it’ll be okay.”
“…”
“So in this world, at least don’t worry about my feelings. Sundungi.”
Eunhong, who had been listening quietly, puffed out his lips.
“First ‘Bunhong’ and now ‘Sundungi’? Really. I’m not a puppy you’re raising.”
Jaeha, stopping mid-laugh, reached out to touch Eunhong’s cheek. He stroked his cheek with his thumb, then moved to his earlobe, pinching and playing with it.
“What puppy could be this sensual?”
Normally, this would be the moment Eunhong would flare up, but he remained quiet. Jaeha received this changed signal, made a left turn at the traffic light, and briefly glanced toward the passenger seat, startled.
Leaning back in his seat, slightly turning his head to look out the window, Eunhong’s eyes were brimming with tears. The droplets, filled to the brim above his round eyes, shimmered with the car’s movement before falling with a plop.
Oh no…
Jaeha wrinkled his nose and looked away, but finding it impossible to pretend he hadn’t seen, he quickly pulled over to the side of the road. With the car stopping without warning, Eunhong nervously hurried to wipe his eyes with his sleeve. Tsk. He clicked his tongue, displeased at seeing his pale eye area quickly turning reddish.
He gathered his mochi-like cheeks in his hands, but Eunhong turned away, saying he was fine. Jaeha took out a handkerchief and pressed it into his hand. As he was about to start the car again, Eunhong’s awkward movements, unlike his usual self, strangely bothered him.
“…”
“What?”
Jaeha frowned. Eunhong had placed the handkerchief on his knees and was docilely offering him his left hand while staring blankly up at him. His right hand, awkwardly hidden under his sleeve, bothered him.
“Aren’t you going to drive?” Eunhong spoke first, confused by his questioning stare.
“What’s wrong with your right hand?”
“Oh, I think I sprained it earlier…”
Though his right pinky finger was so swollen it looked twice its normal size, Eunhong casually claimed it was just a sprain. He couldn’t even lift it and had it resting on his thigh… did he think no one would notice? Wondering how badly he was hurt, he lightly touched his wrist, but Eunhong let out a pained “ugh.” Jaeha momentarily felt a heat rise to his eyelids and closed his eyes tightly.
Was he so dull that he didn’t realize his bone might be broken… or was his heart so hurt that he couldn’t even feel the pain in his hand? Neither option was appealing, and Jaeha put his hand to his forehead.
Whatever An Woohyun had done, what was that watch worth anyway? Even the tens of millions of won he’d thrown at him for medical expenses and hush money hadn’t put a crack in his finances. But seeing the blue-swollen finger made something burn hot under his sternum, igniting instantly.
Jaeha called Professor Choi and sharply turned the car around.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
