Seo Eui-woo stared quietly into the steaming pot.
His eyes, usually indifferent when looking at food, held a faint glimmer of curiosity today.
“Wait… don’t tell me—”
As if caught in a trance, Kwon Jae-jin followed an old habit.
He picked out a well-cooked piece of meat, cooled it down, and held it out to Eui-woo.
The rib was offered right in front of his lips, and Eui-woo didn’t refuse.
He simply parted his lips, accepting the bite without hesitation.
He took his time chewing, savoring the juices and texture before swallowing it down.
His throat moved subtly as his Adam’s apple bobbed once.
Jae-jin unconsciously held his breath, watching every second of it.
Seo Eui-woo’s three deeply ingrained imbalances.
The first was insomnia. The second was lack of appetite.
He had started sleeping properly fairly early on, but there had been no progress—none at all—when it came to eating.
Jae-jin had vaguely assumed it would happen before six months passed, but now, here it was.
By constantly guiding him, by being together through it all, they had finally reached the second threshold.
“Haa…”
Eui-woo exhaled, almost in awe.
Something that had been chronically out of sync inside him had finally settled into place, like a puzzle piece clicking into its rightful spot.
For him, eating—something so natural to every living creature—was nothing short of a miracle.
His lips trembled faintly, and his gaze softened.
The delicate slant of his long lashes curved downward, melting into pure, radiant joy.
For the first time in his life, he felt hunger.
He didn’t want to let this moment slip away. Not even for a second.
Eui-woo turned to Jae-jin, his expression brimming with awe and exhilaration.
The morning sunlight streamed in at an angle, forming an almost ethereal bridge of light between them.
“Jae-jin, I… right now…”
“Yeah, right now…”
“Wow… ha, haha… This is incredible. Eating didn’t feel like a struggle. It actually tasted good.”
“It… Wait, what?”
It didn’t feel like a struggle.
Had it been that bad for him before…?
“I mean, it’s nothing. Back in training, I was forced to empty my tray at every meal. That’s just how it was.”
“Ah…”
“When I was a kid, I used to throw up in secret. Even when I got older, it still happened sometimes.”
His body rejected food, but survival required forcing nutrients down.
On top of that, letting anyone find out about it had never been an option.
Even from this brief glimpse into his past, it was painfully clear—Seo Eui-woo’s childhood had been bleak, exhausting.
“…I didn’t know. I had no idea it was that bad.”
Jae-jin had always instinctively handed Eui-woo bites of food during meals, like it was second nature.
Now, he regretted it.
He had assumed Eui-woo simply lacked an appetite—he never realized it had been outright agonizing for him.
If he had known, he wouldn’t have forced him to eat a single thing.
And yet, despite everything, Eui-woo had volunteered to learn how to cook—for him.
And he had never once shown any sign of reluctance.
If his past experiences with food had been so awful, then cooking itself must have been…
No, food in general must have been…
Absolutely repulsive to him.
“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Jae-jin asked, unable to hide his shock.
His brows furrowed, lips parting slightly.
Lately, it felt like he was failing to control his expressions more and more.
“Not only that, but why the hell did you decide to learn how to cook? Why go that far?”
“Do you really need to ask?”
Eui-woo chuckled under his breath, lazily undoing the black apron tied around his waist.
He hung it on a hook by the counter, then turned to the sink to wash his hands.
After drying them off, he slowly rolled down his sleeves, one at a time, before stepping closer to Jae-jin.
“It’s nothing compared to what you’ve been through. What’s the big deal?”
Eui-woo reached out, running his fingertips along the curve of Jae-jin’s ear, tracing over its rounded edge.
The touch was light—too light. It sent an acute shiver down his spine.
“You’re the one who always insists we shouldn’t keep secrets from each other… So why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because I didn’t hate it.”
“There’s no way.”
“It’s true. I enjoyed it.”
Eui-woo pressed his fingernail lightly against Jae-jin’s earlobe, almost pinching it.
The soft skin gave way, leaving a faint crescent-shaped mark.
Seeming satisfied, he repeated the motion two, three more times, as if marking his territory, a hint of smug delight in his expression.
“I liked feeding you. I liked being fed by you. I still do.”
“…”
“I’m happy that I finally have an appetite now… But more than that, I’m happier that I’ve become more like you.”
“…”
“Ah, now I get it. I finally understand why you always seem so at ease at mealtimes. Why people actually look forward to eating. I’ve always wondered what that felt like.”
“…That so.”
Jae-jin exhaled.
There was no winning against him.
Kwon Jae-jin gave a silent nod before replying simply,
“Then let’s eat together this morning.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
As if sensing the complicated thoughts running through Jae-jin’s mind, Seo Eui-woo let out a small laugh and slowly pulled his hand away from his ear.
Then, with a practiced ease, he straightened the collar of Jae-jin’s slightly disheveled shirt, smoothing out the wrinkles.
“Let’s eat together. I want to have exactly what you’re having.”
***
After breakfast, Jae-jin cautiously brought up his thoughts.
Shouldn’t they pay a visit to the Center?
Eui-woo immediately frowned, his nose scrunching in clear displeasure, but at the very least, he didn’t throw a fit about locking Jae-jin up and keeping him from leaving.
“Do you really have to go? Today of all days?”
“…Dragging this out won’t do us any favors. We need to assess the situation before we can figure out how to respond.”
“Then I’ll go alone. You stay home and wait for me.”
“No. This concerns me too—I have to go. We’ll go together.”
Jae-jin made an effort to convince him, keeping his guard up.
There was no telling when Eui-woo might snap and cause a scene.
His heart pounded as he braced himself for resistance, but unexpectedly, Eui-woo gave in without much fuss.
“Haa, fine. Let’s go.”
That said, his answer might have been compliant, but his burning gaze told a completely different story.
His eyes were practically seething with murderous intent.
It was obvious—he wanted nothing more than to tear down the entire Center and drag Jae-jin back home to spend the rest of eternity wrapped around him.
If this had been before, he would’ve outright refused, flipping the entire house upside down with his raging psychic energy, demanding that they had to stay together.
But not anymore.
Eui-woo had already passed the point of no return.
At this stage, stopping wasn’t an option. Destroying everything wasn’t an option.
Even if his teeth ground with possessiveness, even if his eyes burned red with jealousy—there was nothing he could do.
“Fine. But stay right next to me. Don’t go near any other Espers.”
Eui-woo clenched his jaw, trying to suppress the twisted desire clawing at his insides as he laid out his conditions.
It was a vicious trap.
A sickness without a cure.
“Don’t look at anyone else. Just look at me. And if anyone so much as tries to touch you, I won’t bother giving them a warning—I’ll crush them on the spot. I’m telling you now, so don’t act surprised.”
“…Alright. I’ll be careful.”
“And about guiding…”
“Yeah…?”
“I get it. I understand you want to verify it. And I know the creature wave is coming.”
“Yeah…”
“I know exactly what you’re trying to accomplish… But if you’re really going to go through with it, you need to be prepared.”
Prepared…?
“I’ll try. I really will. I’ll do my best to hold back… but honestly? Right now, I have no confidence in that at all.”
Seo Eui-woo wrapped one arm tightly around Jae-jin’s waist, yanking him in with bruising force.
His grip was crushing, his expression dark.
His perfectly sculpted features, sharp and refined like a statue, twisted with something feral, something violent.
“If you actually go through with guiding… I don’t think I’ll be able to stop. Even if I do every single fucked-up thing you hate… Ah, I don’t know.”
“Uh, well…”
“Even if I fuck you until you’re on all fours, sobbing, begging—it still won’t be enough.”
“…What—”
“Even if I go at you nonstop, day and night, burning through twenty healing factors at a time, fucking you stupid, I still might not cool down.”
“Uh…”
“So, if you’re fine with eating your meals while stuffed full of my cock, pissing yourself while getting fucked—if you’re okay with having a rod shoved up your hole while I slap your ass raw—”
“If you’re that prepared—then go ahead. Guide.”
“…”
“You want this, after all. What else can I do?”
“This is the best compromise I can offer.”
“…Uh.”
“Yes, Jae-jin?”
“Do you… really think compromise is the right word here…?”
“Isn’t it?”
Eui-woo blinked, tilting his head slightly.
“I am holding back, you know. I’m not killing anyone. I’m not locking you up. I’m not wiping your memory.”
“I mean… when you put it that way…”
“Then what else do you expect me to do? There’s no other way.”
“…”
“I love you, Jae-jin. What the hell do you expect me to do?”
Jae-jin had no answer for that.
Eui-woo was out of his mind, that much was obvious.
But at the same time… this was his version of a sincere effort.
He really believed he was holding himself back.
And in a way, he was.
What he was saying was clear: If you’re not ready to go through hell, don’t even think about guiding.
Jae-jin’s lower lip trembled slightly.
He had already resolved not to back down.
But now, it was no longer just a matter of resolve.
Backing down simply wasn’t an option anymore.
After a long, heavy silence, he exhaled slowly and gave his answer—his voice steady, unwavering.
“…Understood.”
