#1
“You can’t go again?!”
Tae-in’s voice resonated loudly through the phone. Ha-min couldn’t hide his awkward expression as he spoke.
“…Sorry.”
“Hey, how many times is this now?”
At Tae-in’s voice that couldn’t hide his disappointment, Ha-min bit his lower lip firmly and glanced at Tae-rim who was attached to his back. Looking askance as if checking his reaction, he let out a small sigh.
“I’m really sorry…. You know… how hyung is…”
Ha-min couldn’t finish his sentence with the person in question right there and let his words trail off. Tae-rim, closely attached to his back, restrained Ha-min with his legs while kissing various spots around his neck. Smack, smack. Ha-min was anxious that these inappropriate sounds might be heard through the mobile phone.
“That hyung, hyung, hyung of yours. You’ve completely changed since you started dating that guy, haven’t you?”
Tae-in vented his frustration, seething as if he had exploded. Seeing how angry he seemed, Ha-min nervously bit at his fingernails.
“No, Tae-in. It’s not like that, it’s just that trips are—ah.”
Tae-rim, understanding Ha-min’s awkward predicament, immediately snatched the phone. Ha-min turned around with a surprised expression to retrieve his phone, but Tae-rim was unyielding. He grabbed Ha-min’s outstretched arm and pressed his lips to the back of his hand, showering it with more light kisses.
“Hyung… Tae-in seems really upset. Please, the phone…”
Despite the sweet kisses, Ha-min looked restless. Tae-rim smiled gently, saying it was fine, and put the phone to his ear instead.
“Why do you keep calling in the middle of the night?”
Tae-rim, who had been smiling gently, coldly threw out the words. Ha-min, worried that Tae-in would get even angrier at Tae-rim’s sudden behavior, anxiously grabbed Tae-rim’s arm tightly.
“What? Why are you answering?”
“Is there a problem with me answering?”
“Ah, put Song Ha-min on!”
“Why are you whining like this? If it’s not possible, just accept it.”
“Who are you to say no to everything! We won’t even be able to hang out after graduation!”
“Exactly. You should focus on studying before graduation. Why think about wandering around?”
“You just went to Hawaii with Ha-min recently! I want to hang out with Ha-min too! No MT, no graduation trip. Overseas travel is even more out of the question. Not even going to see the ocean for a bit. Why is everything a no?”
Tae-in poured out all the frustration he had been holding back.
The situation was as follows. Ha-min, who was now entering his 4th year, and Tae-in, who was about to graduate, had made grand travel plans before their school life ended. They were thinking of taking their close classmates and juniors like Chae-rin, Eun-soo, and Hee-gyeom to a villa owned by Tae-rim. They planned to grill meat, swim excitedly, and relieve all the stress accumulated from graduation preparations. But there was an essential condition. Song Ha-min had to be part of that plan. Why? Because in the past few years, Song Ha-min had never once joined any of Tae-in’s travel plans. Whether it was a club MT or just a light trip to the outskirts of Seoul, Song Ha-min always declined. The reason was obvious.
“No. I don’t like my partner staying out overnight.”
Because of Song Ha-min’s boyfriend, Tae-in’s brother, Lee Tae-rim. Due to that personality that was particularly fussy only towards Ha-min, Ha-min couldn’t go anywhere with friends throughout his relationship with Tae-rim. He didn’t particularly like setting up drinking appointments either. And if that wasn’t enough, Tae-rim would always come to pick Ha-min up towards the end of gatherings. Not just once or twice, but always throughout these years of dating. Despite Tae-rim being busier with his company than Ha-min was with school, he never failed to come pick him up.
“Ah, everyone wants to hang out with Ha-min too! Just once before I graduate. Huh?”
“Hang up. And don’t call late at night anymore.”
“What? What’s late about now? It’s only 10 o’clock!”
“Look outside. The sky is pitch black.”
“…Ha, really. Isn’t hyung ruining all of Song Ha-min’s school friendships?”
“Is that so? Great. College connections aren’t really useful anyway.”
“Ah, Lee Tae-rim!”
Though Tae-in’s voice could be heard shouting from afar through the phone, Tae-rim unhesitatingly pressed the end button firmly. Ha-min, who had been watching this awkward scene, took his phone back with both hands and looked at Tae-rim anxiously.
“What did Tae-in say…?”
“He said he understood.”
“Is he very angry…?”
“If he gets angry at you, tell hyung. I’ll scold him.”
Tae-rim held Ha-min’s cheeks with both hands and smiled smoothly, as Ha-min acted like a frightened puppy. While smiles didn’t leave Tae-rim’s face, on the contrary, Ha-min’s face was full of dark clouds. He had always clashed with Tae-in over going out. The first few times, Tae-in thought his brother was just being overly fussy and let it slide, but as this continued for years, it seemed to have gradually piled up.
Dating Tae-rim was good and still felt like a dream, but school life with Tae-in was also enjoyable. His relationship with Tae-in, his only friend, was important to Ha-min. And it was unavoidable to be concerned since Tae-in seemed to be feeling quite disappointed lately.
“Hyung… Can’t I just go once…?”
This might really be the last chance. Tae-in had been busy even before graduation. His internet broadcast, which he did alone, had been a great success, and Tae-in had even signed a contract with a music recorder company. It was a remarkable company known for nurturing famous idols, rappers, and solo singers. If he was this busy before graduation, after graduation, Tae-in would begin his professional music activities in earnest. Then it would be even harder to see each other, and both Ha-min and Tae-in knew this.
“…Like Tae-in said, it’s the last one before graduation, and it’ll be harder to see each other in the future…”
“Ha-min.”
The eyes that had shown a gentle light became subtly subdued. At first, Ha-min couldn’t notice it at all, but after dating for several years now, it was impossible not to know.
“Hyung doesn’t understand.”
“……”
“Why you need to hang out overnight with both men and women gathered together.”
It was a gentle voice, but the words felt somewhat coercive.
“…I understand what you’re saying… But you know, everyone has partners and we’re all really just friends… really…”
“Having a goalkeeper doesn’t mean you can’t score a goal.”
“……”
“Don’t you remember?”
“……”
“Hyung broke up with his girlfriend because of you.”
At the gentle pressure, Ha-min closed his mouth without retorting. When Tae-rim acted this extremely, Ha-min really didn’t know what to do. Chae-rin and Eun-soo were girls Tae-rim had known for several years already, and Tae-in was his own younger brother. Even the other friends were all people Tae-rim knew well, so it was incomprehensible why he couldn’t trust them. But Ha-min couldn’t bring himself to argue. Conversely, if Tae-rim were to stay out overnight for days with a mix of men and women, Ha-min would dislike it too. If he would dislike it, then naturally the other party would too.
“…Okay. I’m sorry for being stubborn…”
Ha-min lowered his tail and agreed. He felt sorry for Tae-in, but he had learned through dating. If your partner particularly dislikes something, then you shouldn’t do it for their sake. Besides overnight stays, there were a few more things Tae-rim extremely disliked.
The thing he hated most was overnight stays, followed by drinking until losing consciousness. He also disliked keeping distance in public due to people’s gazes. In fact, there were too many things he disliked. He disliked slow replies, not answering calls, having part-time jobs, and having other appointments.
Those around Ha-min who knew of Tae-rim’s tendencies were shocked. Chae-rin and Eun-soo seriously worried if he was being too restrictive. Of course, there were times when Ha-min felt uncomfortable too, and sometimes he couldn’t understand Tae-rim’s attitude, but he had no complaints. Ha-min was still so happy and grateful that Tae-rim, hyung, was his partner that it seemed unbelievable. So he could accept all of Tae-rim’s unreasonable demands.
“Shall we take a bath together after a long time?”
A deep smile formed on Tae-rim’s lips, seemingly pleased with Ha-min’s docile answer. Then, naturally removing Ha-min’s sweater, he kissed around his lips.
“…It tickles…”
As Tae-rim rubbed Ha-min’s bare chest, now exposed after removing the sweater, and kissed his cheeks, the tip of his nose, and the edge of his chin, Ha-min trembled slightly from the ticklishness. Tae-rim traced Ha-min’s bare skin with his lips and whispered sweetly.
“Let’s float bubbles in the bathtub and warm our bodies in hot water. How about it?”
“…Hmm…”
Tae-rim didn’t remove his lips even as he whispered. At the sensation on his bare skin, Ha-min couldn’t answer and just shrank his body.
“Shall we drink wine too? And put in the toy you like.”
“…When, when did I ever like that…”
“You do like it, the duck. So damn cute.”
Tae-rim whispered in his ear, raising the corners of his mouth up to his cheekbones. Ha-min lowered his head deeply, blushing with an embarrassed face. Even after dating for several years, Ha-min still found such natural skinship embarrassing. It was better than at first, but still not familiar. Maybe it was even more so because it was him. Tae-rim was an idol and an aspiration to Ha-min, and the only presence in his life. When he saw such a person desiring him like this, he still felt incredibly excited, and it was so thrilling that it gave him goosebumps in his heart.
“Arms.”
Tae-rim demanded briefly. Ha-min shook his head with a reddened face. He refused because he knew too well what that simple directive meant, but Tae-rim was adamant. He forcibly pulled Ha-min’s arms and settled them around his nape.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
