The moment the words left his mouth, Yi-hyeon collapsed inward, screaming in despair to himself.
Just moments ago, Han Jun had been acting like a puppy that had lost its owner—but the instant Yi-hyeon said he’d stay the night, Han Jun sprang to his feet, sprinting off like a Border Collie and shouting,
“Really? Yes! Seriously, I was scared having to stay alone in such a huge house for days. I didn’t realize it because I was always with Louis, but now that he’s gone, it feels so empty. And kind of eerie, too……”
“Ah……”
When he mentioned Louis’s name, Han Jun’s eyes flickered for a brief moment. Yi-hyeon could only feel apologetic.
“Wait here. I’ll grab you some comfy clothes you can sleep in.”
Yi-hyeon reached out, saying it was fine, but Han Jun moved so fast that all he managed to catch was the lingering scent of him dispersing through the air.
A little later, Yi-hyeon stared blankly at the pajamas Han Jun brought back. They were way too small—and plastered with an adorable rabbit print that looked like something a kindergarten kid would love. Han Jun insisted on pointing out the cutest part of all: a rabbit grinding and eating carrots right around the waist and butt area, thrusting the design right in front of Yi-hyeon’s eyes.
Yi-hyeon couldn’t, for the life of him, understand why something this childishly saccharine had emerged from Actress Joo Mi-yeon’s bedroom dressing room.
“What is this?”
“What do you mean, what? It’s pajamas. Super freaking cute pajamas.”
“You’re not seriously telling me to wear something you bought in elementary school, are you?”
“Huh? Ah……”
Han Jun blinked, eyes wide as if he didn’t understand, then seemed to realize something and nodded with a grin.
“Well… yeah, I guess you could say that. Oh—are you going to shower?”
“What? Shower? Why?”
Yi-hyeon’s voice cracked as his shoulders fluttered in visible panic. Han Jun looked down at him as if he were some fascinating creature and asked,
“……Why are you freaking out like someone who’s never been near water in their life? What, are you planning to sleep without washing up? Or are you one of those people who shower in the morning and skip it at night?”
“Oh—uh, yeah, well. I’ll handle that myself. You go first.”
“Suit yourself. What, were you expecting me to wash you?”
“Stop saying insane shit and just go already.”
Yi-hyeon fiddled with the pajamas in his hands before spinning around. After a while of rustling noises—like Han Jun was gathering things—he finally headed into the bathroom.
Yoon Yi-hyeon, are you insane? Why are you even reacting like that……
Sleeping over at a friend’s place. Taking a shower. None of that was strange—so why did his thoughts keep spiraling that way? Cursing himself, Yi-hyeon repeatedly punched his own head with his fist, then clawed at his hair.
Seriously. I’m losing my mind.
Worried that Han Jun might find his behavior weird, Yi-hyeon perched on the edge of the sofa for a long while, deeply regretting everything that had just happened.
Getting a little closer, letting down his guard too quickly—and now being completely swept up by every affectionate gesture Han Jun made. How was he supposed to rein in feelings like this?
It was the first time he’d ever felt anything like it. He honestly didn’t know.
He sat there blankly, fiddling with the pajama buttons, when the bathroom door opened a moment later. Warm steam carrying the scent of body cleanser brushed against Yi-hyeon’s nose. Instantly, countless images of Han Jun’s naked body he’d witnessed before flooded his mind—firm skin, muscles split cleanly along their grain, a thick frame wrapped in strength.
Just as those thoughts surfaced, Han Jun’s voice rang out like tinnitus.
“Yoon Yi-hyeon, can you grab me a towel? I thought there’d be one in here, but there isn’t.”
The image of Han Jun when he was wet—back when Yi-hyeon had been Louis—was enough to make it feel like the word sensual had taken human form.
Thinking he might get to see Han Jun wet again under the excuse of a towel, Yi-hyeon felt his face heat up without realizing it.
“Uh—yeah. Hold on.”
He answered in a barely audible voice as he stood up from the sofa.
Yi-hyeon walked into the powder room connected to the bathroom, opened the fourth shelf, and naturally pulled out a towel. Then he cracked the bathroom door open and held it out to Han Jun.
With colors far more vivid than when he’d seen him as Louis, Han Jun’s wet face felt overwhelmingly stimulating. Afraid his heart might burst, Yi-hyeon hurriedly handed over the towel and lowered his gaze slightly.
But when Han Jun didn’t take it even after a moment, Yi-hyeon glanced up at his face. That was when their eyes met—those black pupils fixed directly on him.
“What? I got something on my face again?”
Using the excuse to avoid Han Jun’s intense gaze, Yi-hyeon turned toward the powder room mirror—only for Han Jun to snatch the towel from his hand and speak in a genuinely baffled tone.
“I didn’t even tell you where the towels were, but you found one right away. I was just surprised. I mean—surprised. Is that weird?”
What the hell is wrong with me?
Seeing his own startled expression reflected in the mirror, Yi-hyeon tried to calm his pounding heart and turned back to Han Jun with a casual face.
“Well, towels are usually near the bathroom. I just got lucky and found one on the first shelf I checked. Nothing surprising about that.”
“Really?”
Seemingly accepting the excuse at face value, Han Jun closed the bathroom door without much suspicion.
Damn it……! Yoon Yi-hyeon, get it together. The night’s still long!
Flustered by how overwhelmingly stimulating Han Jun had looked, Yi-hyeon berated himself for losing his composure and making such a sloppy mistake. His legs gave out slightly, and he grabbed onto the edge of the powder room sink to steady himself.
The sound of water cascading down—shaaah—filled the room, and Yi-hyeon let out a long, tired breath.
He shook his head hard, telling himself he needed to erase every single location inside Chairman Joo’s house from his subconscious. But dizziness suddenly hit him, and after only a few steps, he staggered again, clutching the corner of the powder room.
A short while later, Han Jun emerged from the bathroom, fragrant with a familiar scent, walked past the powder room, and stopped in front of the sofa where Yi-hyeon was sitting.
Worried that Han Jun might bring up the towel incident again, Yi-hyeon lifted his head to check his expression—only to gape, eyes blinking wide in rapid succession.
“The bathroom temperature’s perfect. If you’re gonna wash up, do it now.”
Han Jun spoke while roughly towel-drying his still-damp black hair. Maybe because of the hot water, his pale cheeks were faintly flushed. His lips, heavy with moisture, moved pleasingly every time he spoke.
He was wearing what looked like homewear—a shirt and pants—but water dripping from his not-quite-dry hair made the fabric over his chest slightly translucent. That fleeting glimpse of skin through proper clothing only fueled Yi-hyeon’s imagination more. Maybe that was why Han Jun looked even more indecent tonight when wet.
The see-through shirt was one thing—but why were the pants so thin and floaty? They were already big enough, and with such airy fabric, every step made the shadow of a certain area stand out far too clearly.
No matter how comfy home clothes are supposed to be, that’s way too thin……
Yi-hyeon’s eyes darted everywhere, unable to bear looking directly. Unlike Yi-hyeon, who was frozen stiff on the sofa with his panic written all over his face, Han Jun began wandering around the room like he was rummaging for something. In the end, he returned to the bed empty-handed.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Han Jun leaned back for no real reason and glanced around. When his eyes met Yi-hyeon’s, he cleared his throat loudly once and gestured with his gaze toward the two neatly arranged pillows.
“So…… are you okay sharing a bed with someone?”
There was probably no sleeping arrangement more uncomfortable for Yi-hyeon than lying down beside Han Jun. But in Chairman Joo’s house, the only space Han Jun could use was Joo Mi-yeon’s room. Not wanting to put Han Jun in an awkward position, Yi-hyeon swallowed his discomfort and nodded.
“Yeah, of course. I sometimes sleep in the same bed as my younger siblings too.”
“Younger siblings? Who?”
In an instant, the gentle curve of Han Jun’s mouth flattened into a stiff straight line. Even his voice dropped lower than usual.
“Well, sometimes with the youngest……”
“The youngest—Minseo?”
“Yeah. And Jun-young too—the one you played basketball with before. He’s scared easily, so whenever he has nightmares about ghosts, he comes over.”
“You’re not an exorcist. Why do you put up with that?”
“Huh?”
“He’s kind of overdoing it, isn’t he?”
