Lim Haeyul’s head felt like it was splitting open. It was no surprise that he had a hangover, considering he had drunk excessively on an almost empty stomach. He struggled to open his eyes, piecing together fragmented memories. He knew his memory would gradually return with time.
As he opened his eyes, he found himself in the familiar setting of Cha Jae-woo’s room. He vaguely wondered how he had ended up there. Perhaps the driver had brought him home? As he was about to close his eyes again, he suddenly realized that he shouldn’t be sleeping there.
‘It’s weird to be sleeping here when Cha Jae-woo isn’t around.’
Had he become so accustomed to sleeping in Cha Jae-woo’s room? The thought was absurd. Sleeping in this room was only acceptable when the owner was present; otherwise, it felt strange.
“I must be crazy…” he muttered.
Did he miss Cha Jae-woo so much that he was acting like a stalker? The thought was unsettling, and his desire to sleep vanished. He needed to get back to his own room before Cha Jae-woo returned.
“What… what is this?” he exclaimed.
However, as he tried to get out of bed, he realized he was naked. Why was he not wearing any clothes, not even underwear? Had he lost his mind?
He quickly wrapped himself in the blanket, feeling the need to cover himself despite being alone. He looked around the room, searching for his clothes. What had he been doing alone in there? This situation was bizarre, and if Cha Jae-woo saw him like this, it would be mortifying.
“Why aren’t they…” he started to say.
Instead of finding his clothes, he noticed strange marks on his body, from his shoulder to his chest. They were reddish bruises.
“Ah, Cha Jae-woo…!”
“Don’t be clingy.”
Suddenly, a forgotten memory surfaced in his mind. He froze, his eyes wide with shock. What was this memory? Did it really happen?
‘No way. It can’t be.’
He couldn’t believe he had acted that way with Cha Jae-woo, and Cha Jae-woo wouldn’t have said such things to him. Maybe it was just a dream? After all, Cha Jae-woo wasn’t there now—
But then, he heard the sound of water running in the bathroom. Someone was taking a shower.
It couldn’t be anyone but Cha Jae-woo. Who else would be showering in his bathroom? This meant Cha Jae-woo was home, and the memory was real.
His heart began to race. Before he could process the situation, more memories flooded back.
“I like you. I really, really like you…”
He remembered the words he had spoken, the soft breaths, and the emotions he had felt in that moment. He remembered the impulse that had led him to wrap his arms around Cha Jae-woo’s neck and kiss him.
“Let’s get some water first—”
Cha Jae-woo had responded willingly, holding him close. But as the kiss deepened and Lim Haeyul clung to him, Cha Jae-woo carried him into the house, perhaps trying to help him regain his senses.
“No… I don’t want to let go.”
Lim Haeyul had wrapped his legs around Cha Jae-woo’s waist, refusing to let go.
“I must be crazy…” he muttered again, his mind racing with the realization of what had happened.
Lim Haeyul swallowed the curse words that were about to escape his mouth. The thought of Cha Jae-woo overhearing his mutterings made him cringe with embarrassment.
He decided the best course of action was to flee. He couldn’t face Cha Jae-woo right now, not after what had happened. Whether his clothes were in the room or not didn’t matter; the fact was, Cha Jae-woo had seen him undress, and that was mortifying enough.
He wanted to bite his tongue but resisted the urge. He needed to get to his room and figure out how to apologize. Only then could he face Cha Jae-woo. Right now, he couldn’t even look him in the eye.
‘Take it step by step,’ he told himself, though he knew it would take more than a few days to feel comfortable again. Maybe he never would, but he had to at least escape the current situation.
He wrapped the blanket tighter around himself, silently apologizing to Cha Jae-woo. He remembered a similar incident before, but that time, Cha Jae-woo hadn’t been in his right mind. Why had he repeated the same mistake? He had no excuse; he had been drunk and acted foolishly.
He moved quickly towards the door, ignoring the slight ache in his legs. Just as he was about to leave, he heard Cha Jae-woo’s voice behind him.
“Just stay.”
He froze, unable to move. Cha Jae-woo’s voice had a paralyzing effect on him.
“Just rest a little longer. Why are you trying to leave?” Cha Jae-woo asked calmly.
“I… I…” Lim Haeyul stammered, turning around to face Cha Jae-woo, who looked at him with a calm expression. Their eyes met, and Lim Haeyul felt his face flush with embarrassment.
“You… you said I overdid it. What do you mean?” he managed to ask, his mind racing with inappropriate images at the mention of “overdoing it.”
Cha Jae-woo remained unfazed by his outburst. “I meant you drank too much,” he explained, a slight smile playing on his lips. “You really overdid it.”
Lim Haeyul felt his lips go dry. Why was he overreacting to every word Cha Jae-woo said? He knew he had drunk too much, but Cha Jae-woo’s words seemed to have a double meaning. Every memory that surfaced only reinforced his embarrassment.
“Why are you so slow?” he remembered saying, and Cha Jae-woo had laughed, asking if he wanted to go faster. He had been carried to the second floor, still babbling nonsense. His drunken self had no consideration for the sober him who would face the consequences the next day.
“Should I go faster?” Cha Jae-woo had asked, and he remembered hesitating, unsure of what he wanted.
They were already in Cha Jae-woo’s room by then. “Until you want to stop,” Cha Jae-woo had said, and he had eagerly nodded, thinking it was a good idea. The problem was, he had no idea what his limits were.
He soon found out. As his clothes hit the floor, he panicked and pushed Cha Jae-woo away. “This is enough,” he had said, suddenly shy after encouraging him. He could understand if Cha Jae-woo felt frustrated.
But Cha Jae-woo had stopped immediately, pulling away and whispering in his ear, “Happy birthday.”
With those words, he had fallen into a happy sleep. That was his last memory of the night, and he was sure of it.
Despite Lim Haeyul’s attempts to provoke Cha Jae-woo, nothing serious had happened. They hadn’t ended up in a drunken mess together, so he figured it was as if nothing had occurred.
‘Did I overdo it?’ he wondered, lost in thought about the previous night’s events.
Suddenly, Cha Jae-woo was right in front of him. He reached behind Lim Haeyul to close the door and then lifted him up effortlessly.
Startled, Lim Haeyul’s vision shifted abruptly, and he squirmed in surprise. However, the blanket began to slip, forcing him to quickly still himself.
“Lim Haeyul,” Cha Jae-woo said softly.
“…Yes,” Lim Haeyul replied, his voice barely above a whisper.
Cha Jae-woo gently placed him back on the bed. He leaned in, placing a hand next to Lim Haeyul’s head, and looked directly into his eyes. Feeling a mix of embarrassment and shame, Lim Haeyul struggled to meet his gaze and could only manage a faint response.
“Do your legs hurt?” Cha Jae-woo asked, seemingly out of the blue. Lim Haeyul was puzzled by the question.
