By Zephyria Kwon Tae-hee’s persistent Rut finally subsided. Seo Jeong-won forced his heavy eyelids open and looked around. The chaotic bedroom was clean, and the damp bedding had been replaced with fresh linens. Moreover, he wasn’t filled with Kwon Tae-hee’s essence. He had been connected to him as one, losing and regaining consciousness repeatedly…
“Ah.”
He moved his hand, trying to soothe his throbbing headache, but something cumbersome got in the way. Passing over the marks that made him feel like he had some kind of infectious disease, he followed the transparent tube connected to his arm and saw an Intravenous drip. Seeing that more than half of the liquid in the bag was gone, he figured someone would be coming in soon if he just waited.
Seo Jeong-won groped around for anything he could touch, then frowned at the sensation below his waist, which felt as if it had been cleanly severed. Even a small cough made all the muscles around his navel ache as if they were tearing apart. Was he really okay? Was that part… alright?
He wanted to lift the blanket and check between his legs, but he hesitated, fearing further humiliation. Seo Jeong-won did his best to ignore the pain that became clearer as his mind sharpened, and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath, steadying his breathing.
Kwon Tae-hee’s Pheromone lingered in the air like residue, and the soft, sweet scent of fabric softener floated around as well. There was none of the musty smell that was unique to after-sex. And his body didn’t feel sticky. He was so focused on the pain that he was only now realizing that there was nothing flowing out of him, for once.
Did he clean me up? He slipped his hand under his waist to check around his buttocks when he heard the door open. Seo Jeong-won flinched for no reason, even though he hadn’t done anything wrong. He reflexively squeezed his eyes shut and quietly pulled out the hand that had been groping below.
“You’re awake.”
He thought he had completely fooled him, but he had been caught pretending to be asleep, so he had no choice but to open his eyes.
“When did you wake up? How’s your body?”
“…I woke up a little while ago. My body—”
Before he could finish speaking, a large hand reached out. Kwon Tae-hee stroked Seo Jeong-won’s face, checking his temperature, then smiled, saying that his fever had gone down.
“You get a fever as soon as you overdo it.”
“Ah.”
“I’ll take the Intravenous drip out, shall we have lunch? I have something to talk about, as it happens.”
Seo Jeong-won felt his heart drop at his words that he had something to talk about. He barely managed to hold back what he wanted to ask right away, and when he met his gaze, Kwon Tae-hee gently stroked his hair. Then, he took out a pre-prepared alcohol swab. His touch was very skillful as he pressed it firmly against the crook of his arm and pulled out the needle.
“Thank you.”
“I’ll press it for a moment. Does it hurt?”
“No, it doesn’t hurt. But…”
In the end, he couldn’t hold back and opened his mouth.
“What’s the thing you want to talk about, why are you doing this… Can’t I ask you now?”
Kwon Tae-hee chuckled softly at the question, as if he was carefully asking if he had done something wrong. His gaze slowly rose from the arm that looked like it would break if he put a little force on it, and finally reached the dark eyes. Is he anxious? Is it because he’s been caught hiding something? I don’t intend to act like I know.
“No, you can’t. Eat something first.”
“…Yes.”
Kwon Tae-hee put a round bandage on the crook of his arm and lifted the lying Seo Jeong-won up. He carefully examined Seo Jeong-won’s expression, who was groaning without realizing it, and supported him as if he were moving a precious object.
“Is it uncomfortable down there? Is nothing flowing out today?”
“…”
“When I looked, it was a little swollen, but it was fine. It wasn’t injured either.”
Seo Jeong-won’s face turned bright red in an instant. He stopped his awkward walk and looked up at Kwon Tae-hee with surprised eyes, then quickly averted his gaze.
“I-It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt.”
“Show me after you eat. I think I need to apply some medicine.”
“…It really, doesn’t hurt.”
Suddenly, a memory flashed through Seo Jeong-won’s head as he shook his head. His mouth fell open, and his face turned red in an instant.
“Why?”
“…Yes?”
His face, which was so neat that it was elegant, looked down at Seo Jeong-won with an expression full of doubt. He lightly touched his cheek and worried that he was turning red again. He muttered that he sometimes got nosebleeds when blood suddenly rushed to his face, and rubbed under his nose. Seo Jeong-won looked at his unusually beautiful face today and recalled the words he had heard from him throughout the Rut.
‘I want to meet a baby who looks like Seo Jeong-won, I wonder how pretty it will be.’
‘You promised to give me a baby. You have to get pregnant to give me a child who looks like you.’
He talked about pregnancy and babies so persistently that Seo Jeong-won eventually nodded and had no choice but to answer as he wished. He pushed away the fingertips that were gently stroking his cheek and muttered that he was okay.
‘Did you take the suppressant again? I can’t smell your scent.’
It was then. Seo Jeong-won’s gaze turned to Kwon Tae-hee in surprise at the voice that suddenly became clear in his head. He was looking at him with soft eyes, as if asking why. How… does he know? Seo Jeong-won, flustered, averted his gaze and shook his head.
“It’s nothing. I’m… I’m hungry.”
Kwon Tae-hee lowered his hand at the softly spoken words. He held the wrist with the clear bite marks and slowly moved his feet. It was difficult to walk properly because he had been overworked for several days. Seo Jeong-won had to put a lot of strength into his trembling legs so that he wouldn’t stagger and be supported by him.
As soon as he left the bedroom, the savory smell stimulated his salivary glands. Seo Jeong-won swallowed the saliva that was pooling in his mouth. He felt pathetic and sad that he was feeling hungry even in this unsettling situation.
“Jeong-won didn’t eat much during the Rut, so I asked them to prepare porridge.”
“Ah… Thank you. It smells delicious, delicious.”
“Head of department Kim is very skilled. I heard you’ve exchanged greetings several times.”
He barely nodded at the smooth words. Seo Jeong-won started moving his feet again, which had stopped for a moment in response to Kwon Tae-hee’s movements. He tried to be careful with every step, but he staggered in front of the dining room, so he had to be supported by him in the end. Kwon Tae-hee released his tightly held body only after reaching the table.
“Be careful when you sit down.”
“Yes? Why…”
Seo Jeong-won asked what he should be careful about and sat down casually as usual, then frowned at the pain that rang through his tailbone. It hurt so much that tears welled up in his eyes. He must have anticipated this and told me in advance. But I was too stupid to understand.
“Are you okay?”
Fingertips softer than tender leaves gently brushed under his eyes. Seo Jeong-won nodded roughly at the touch that was removing the moisture. Kwon Tae-hee’s lips, which he glanced at, were raised higher than before. He couldn’t laugh out loud, so he cleared his throat and suppressed his laughter.
“It’s hot.”
There was porridge on the table, steaming as if it had just been served. The savory smell of sesame oil seemed to have originated from here.
“I’ll eat well.”
“Eat a lot.”
Seo Jeong-won picked up the spoon, but quietly put it down when he saw that Kwon Tae-hee hadn’t sat down yet. Kwon Tae-hee’s gaze turned to Seo Jeong-won at the small sound.
“You can eat first. Eat comfortably.”
“I want to eat together.”
Seo Jeong-won shook his head slightly. He wasn’t so hungry that he couldn’t stand it for a moment. He stared blankly at the bowl of porridge in front of him and secretly swallowed the saliva pooling in his mouth.
Kwon Tae-hee picked up his spoon as soon as he sat down. The way Seo Jeong-won was waiting for him was similar to a puppy practicing waiting in front of his food. In fact, it looked more pathetic than that. When he took a spoonful of soup with a spoon and put it in his mouth, Seo Jeong-won also picked up a spoon and stirred the porridge.
His chapped lips parted. Even though he had warned him in advance that it was hot, Seo Jeong-won carelessly put the porridge in his mouth. Then, he was startled and dropped the spoon.
“Ah, it’s hot…!”
Seo Jeong-won’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit as he put his lips on the back of his hand. He jumped up to pick up the spoon that had fallen on the marble floor with a loud noise, then bent over, holding his waist. Kwon Tae-hee felt like a play was unfolding in front of his eyes. The only thing to see was the face of the main character.
“Ah…”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m, sorry. I’ll clean it up quickly.”
Kwon Tae-hee sat Seo Jeong-won, who was trying to straighten his back again, back in his chair, checked his lips that had touched the hot thing, and handed him a glass of water. A servant appeared silently in the dining room, which had been empty except for the two of them. She quietly approached, picked up the fallen object, wiped it, took out a new set of utensils, neatly placed them, and disappeared like smoke.
“I told you it was hot. Eat slowly.”
Seo Jeong-won bowed his head towards Kwon Tae-hee, who was putting the spoon back in his hand. He smiled in response and started eating. What Kwon Tae-hee was eating was home-style food. Soup, fish, vegetables, kimchi, and dried side dishes were neatly placed in each bowl.
Seo Jeong-won stirred the porridge and secretly watched Kwon Tae-hee. He ate everything evenly, as if he had never complained about the food in his life. He remembered that he had emptied the meals that he had prepared haphazardly without saying a word that they were not delicious.
Do people naturally stop evaluating the taste when they reach his age? How can he eat so quietly and neatly every time? Seo Jeong-won compared himself, who ate the porridge noisily, to him, who didn’t even make a sound when chewing kimchi.
He sighed deeply at the endless stream of thoughts and put a little porridge in his mouth. Thanks to stirring it while stealing glances at Kwon Tae-hee, it had cooled down nicely. The amount he put in his mouth gradually increased.