By Zephyria 
Cha Jeong-won’s eyebrow moved ever so slightly.
“Tell Seo-jun first, then Kim Hyun-gyu, then the other people in the department…”
“Why?”
At Cha Jeong-won’s question, Haon closed his mouth.
“Are you worried about my reaction?”
“Well… I thought you might be upset if I didn’t say anything. And last time, I was the one who suggested hiding it…”
His words kept trailing off.
Even if they broke up later, he could just tell them then. In the past, he would have wondered why he needed to say anything now, but for some reason, he didn’t feel that way now.
All these thoughts had come to him at the bar.
He couldn’t shake the thought that Cha Jeong-won might have someone else besides him.
No matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn’t figure out who it might be. But he felt uneasy about continuing to monopolize Cha Jeong-won without any resolve.
Cha Jeong-won had truly loved that someone. So much so that even if he gave his all, it wouldn’t be enough.
Was he, Haon, becoming an obstacle to Cha Jeong-won’s happiness?
Though they called it a relationship without a set expiration date, it might end without Haon even knowing. That wasn’t something he could control.
“So this time, I want to be clear about it. That way, I can be openly jealous, and it’ll be perfect, right?”
After saying it, he wondered what exactly he wanted to be clear about. What Haon needed to sort out was his own feelings.
Cha Jeong-won’s eyes narrowed.
“I see.”
It was a short reply.
“I wasn’t planning to hide it this time either. I was just waiting for the right moment.”
As Haon muttered softly, Cha Jeong-won leaned in slightly. The wind seemed to pause for a moment. Under the convenience store light, Cha Jeong-won’s pupils looked darker.
“So you’ll be more committed to your role as my boyfriend.”
“Of course I… Ah!”
Mid-reply, Haon suddenly remembered something and shot up from his seat.
Staggering slightly from the alcohol, Cha Jeong-won grabbed his arm.
It was warm.
It felt like nothing else would happen now.
“I won’t hesitate anymore.”
He would pull Cha Jeong-won in without fail.
“Let’s go home quickly.”
Haon urged Cha Jeong-won.
＊ ＊ ＊
Ding.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, Haon grabbed Cha Jeong-won’s hand and ran.
It was only a few steps, but Cha Jeong-won let himself be pulled along.
Haon quickly entered the passcode and swung the door open.
Turning around, Haon clung to Cha Jeong-won as if possessed. Cha Jeong-won’s rough breath brushed against Haon’s nose and lips.
Blinking at the sudden surge of heat, Haon stood still, not trying to kiss him. Cha Jeong-won tilted his head.
It was the perfect angle for their lips to meet. He spoke.
“Why are you just standing there?”
“Uh…”
This seems like a misunderstanding.
“I’ve been thinking.”
He laid the groundwork first.
“Speak.”
Cha Jeong-won gave him a chance, perhaps planning to pounce after hearing him out.
“Since you told me to speak, I will. I’ve been thinking a lot.”
Cha Jeong-won’s upper body leaned back slightly.
We can’t create distance already.
“To prevent whatever might happen to us, we might need something bigger.”
“Bigger?”
His expression wasn’t bright either, as if he couldn’t guess.
“We’re touching like this. If that’s not enough, should we go to the bedroom right now?”
Haon shook his head.
“Of course, I like being close to you, but since we’re at it, let’s try various methods.”
Cha Jeong-won’s gaze turned sinister.
What are you thinking?!
Alpha pheromones poured out in waves.
Haon raised his voice abruptly.
“Let’s try a ouija board!”
“……”
It felt as if someone had poured cold water over both their heads.
For a moment, the air seemed to freeze. Of course, that couldn’t be true, but did the pheromones just stop?
Cha Jeong-won looked at Haon.
It wasn’t a glare, but it wasn’t indifferent either. It was an expression of utter disbelief.
His eyebrow rose ever so slightly and then fell, his lips pressed thin before slowly relaxing. The change was so subtle it was almost embarrassing to call it one, but Haon felt he knew what Cha Jeong-won was thinking.
“I’m serious right now.”
His reply was quite calm, but the muscles in his jaw were tight.
“Yes. I’m serious too.”
“So. You’re saying we should do a ouija board.”
“Yes. Haven’t you tried it when you were in school?”
A sound that could have been a sigh or a laugh escaped his throat briefly. Is this what it means to laugh without laughing?
Seeing Cha Jeong-won’s eyes sharpen, Haon quickly changed his words.
“Let’s try to push away the bad luck clinging to us.”
“And that method is a ouija board?”
He seemed unwilling to believe the situation until the end.
“It’s about communicating directly.”
Cha Jeong-won closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.
Crossing his arms, he muttered.
“So that’s why you rushed over…”
“Yes!”
＊ ＊ ＊
A white A4 paper was spread in the middle of the dining table.
On it, Haon drew a circle and densely wrote numbers and letters around the edges.
“Wow. I never thought I’d take this so seriously back in school.”
At Haon’s words, Cha Jeong-won let out a short sigh. He seemed to feel the same way. Perhaps that’s why he only let out a frustrated groan, as if at a loss for words.
“Now that we’ve come this far, there’s no turning back.”
“This is insane.”
Cha Jeong-won looked genuinely displeased. Honestly, it was understandable.
He must have felt unlucky all his life, so of course he’d hate doing something like this.
But what could they do? They had to.
Haon was serious in his own way. If he could find a way to completely remove the bad luck—something that didn’t exist in the original story—wouldn’t his fate change too?
In the end, it was Cha Jeong-won who stood the pen upright in the center.
They sat facing each other. They deliberately turned on only one section of the kitchen light. Even though it was bright, shadows seemed to stretch long for some reason.
“Alright. Let’s begin. Place your finger on it.”
Lightly touching the pen tip to the paper, they both gently placed their index fingers on it.
Haon took a deep breath. Ouija board. Ouija board.
“Spirit in this house. If you’re here, please answer.”
The moment those words ended, the kitchen seemed to fall silent. Only the sound of the refrigerator running could be heard.
A feeling as if wind was blowing from far down the hallway.
Goosebumps rose on Haon’s arm.
“Did you hear that just now?”
“I didn’t hear anything.”
“You heard it, but you’re pretending not to.”
Just as Cha Jeong-won was about to deny it, the perfectly fine fluorescent light flickered once.
It darkened as if the light had gone out briefly, then came back on. Both looked up at the ceiling simultaneously.
“Looks like someone’s here.”
“The light just went out.”
Cha Jeong-won cut him off firmly.
Their gaze returned to the paper.
That’s when it happened.
The pen tip trembled slightly. Haon warned Cha Jeong-won.
“Relax your hand. Don’t press too hard.”
“I didn’t move.”
“But why is it shaking?”
“Because you’re shaking, so it’s shaking along.”
Haon narrowed his eyes and stared intently at the pen tip.
If it wasn’t him or Cha Jeong-won?
Then there was only one answer.
“Please briefly tell us how to escape this bad luck.”
“That question is too irresponsible.”
Cha Jeong-won muttered softly.
“It’s a spirit. If it were human, I’d have asked for a descriptive answer.”
The slight trembling found direction.
The pen made a creaking sound as it slid across the paper.
A short line was drawn on the white paper.
It soon connected into a curve.
K.
Only one letter remained clearly.
“……”
It was a moment when all sound seemed to vanish from the world.
Both stared at the paper with expressions as if they’d even forgotten to breathe.
Haon was the first to speak.
“This house spirit knows trends.”
“What are you talking about.”
“K means K-culture.”
Haon looked so confident that Cha Jeong-won was momentarily speechless.
Haon was already riding his own train of imagination.
“Then there are several candidates. K-pop. K-food. K-campus. K… K-Omega?”
At the last word, the corner of Cha Jeong-won’s eye twitched.
“Stop it.”
“No, I’m serious. It might be a K-Omega specialized spirit sent by Earth to wash away the misfortune clinging to your pheromones.”
“Why would Earth send a spirit.”
“Labor shortage. There aren’t enough celestial civil servants.”
It was a conversation impossible to follow.
This time, a short stroke was drawn next to the K a little faster.
Haon gasped.
“Oh. Like KD or KY.”
“Shut up.”
The pen moved in a circular motion and went to another random spot. Then it stopped abruptly.
I.
“……”
Haon was the first to burst out.
“Ki… Kiki? The spirit is laughing at us.”
“Stop joking.”
“Who? The spirit? Or you?”
“You.”
It was a firm accusation.
Haon widened his eyes in indignation.
“I really didn’t move. You felt it too. The force isn’t in our direction. It’s not your handwriting. Handwriting analysis would prove it.”
“Why would we do handwriting analysis here.”
Cha Jeong-won still looked irritated, but his voice was slightly strained, as if trying hard to stay calm.
“Exactly. Starting with K and writing I clearly means it’s a spirit.”
“Stop organizing it.”
“It’s good that it’s funny. Much better than a gloomy spirit. What you need now isn’t K-horror but K-comedy.”
Haon grabbed the paper.
“Look. Doesn’t it feel like this house has a brand now? K-House. A house where even the spirit laughs.”
“We don’t need that kind of brand.”
“We do. For us, a laughing spirit is much better than a curse.”
Though he said it jokingly, Haon slightly hunched his shoulders, as if nervous the pen might move again.
But his mouth didn’t stop.
“But there might be one more K.”
“What is it.”
“K-Jeongwon.”
Cha Jeong-won narrowed his eyes and turned his head.
“Don’t put K in front of my name.”
“It’s cool though. K-Jeongwon. Feels like a global debut.”
“That’s not it.”
Cha Jeong-won gave a firm look, as if he knew the answer.
“What is it then?”
“Kiss.”
…Why is this connected to what we couldn’t do earlier?