By Zephyria 
“Save your strength, Hyung. Look how red your hand is.”
“It’s because it’s cold. Move quickly. Your legs are fine, so why are you so sluggish?”
The impatient voice continued. Strangely, the pain that had been enveloping his entire body felt like it was subsiding. Or rather, perhaps he was being completely consumed by the pain. He felt as if his body were floating and his consciousness drifting. He forced strength into his legs, which kept trying to give out, and took a step forward.
“It’s because I’m matching a patient’s pace. Should I just carry you?”
“Look at yourself. Who looks like the patient here?”
True. Hyung was the one wearing the patient gown. As Gyu-oh let out a chuckle, the ground tilted strangely. Pretending to stumble, he leaned right into Min-ho’s arms, and this time, he wasn’t pushed away or slapped on the back.
“…….”
He felt like he might faint at any moment, but he couldn’t close his eyes until he checked the phone. He bit the inside of his cheek hard to keep himself conscious.
Having finally reached the car, the two immediately departed toward the hospital. Once in the passenger seat, Gyu-oh had no choice but to apply pressure to his wound alone. He missed the touch he had grown accustomed to, but it couldn’t be helped.
“Press down hard.”
“Yeah.”
Even as he answered, his eyes were fixed on the phone. He was sure he had used one before, but the process of opening the flip phone and pressing the keypad felt awkward.
Entering the gallery first, only a few photos of a young Son Pro and a youthful Executive Director remained. Judging by the background, some were taken abroad, and a few were at a golf course. It seemed they had taken quite a bit of care of him when he was young. If he had lived without greed, he would have maintained this relationship. Clicking his tongue, he continued to rummage through the phone.
“What the hell is that? Did he put some kind of data in there?”
“……Just checking in case. Is this my clothes?”
It might be obvious, but he quickly changed the subject. It was a piece of clothing he remembered Min-ho wrapping around his shoulders every time he went for tests at the hospital. Holding the steering wheel, Min-ho glanced at the blood-stained garment and nodded.
“Yeah. I’ll buy you a new one.”
“It’s okay. I liked it; it felt like a ‘boyfriend look’.”
Earlier, with the abandoned building so close, he had been too focused on Min-ho to notice, but seeing him wearing the zip-up that carried his own scent was quite a sight.
Even though there was a fair distance between them, it felt as if he were the one hugging Min-ho. He hadn’t thought the difference in their build was that extreme, but seeing the clothes that were loose on Min-ho honestly felt a bit arousing. He finally realized why people let their partners wear their clothes.
Next time, maybe a shirt……
“Ugh, I think I’m gonna have a nosebleed……”
“Nosebleed?”
Min-ho, who wouldn’t dream that he was having lewd thoughts, asked back worriedly. Looking at Min-ho’s pale face, Gyu-oh grinned.
“Not now, but then. Don’t be surprised……”
His voice trailed off. Hearing the cracking voice, Min-ho reached out his right hand. He then overlapped his hand over Gyu-oh’s, which was clutching the fabric. A sense of relief washed over him at the body temperature that wasn’t purely soft, nor blindly warm.
“Don’t open this.”
“I know.”
He scoured the phone, but nothing related to Min-ho appeared. For now, Son Pro had no information that could threaten Min-ho. Was there a chance he backed it up elsewhere? Knowing that bastard, he might have scattered it everywhere for his own safety. He’d only be able to truly relax after raiding the golf academy and his house.
Recalling the places to check one by one, he shoved the phone into his jacket pocket. Then, he gave Min-ho a stern warning.
“And tell Mu-gyeong Hyung not to bother with sorting the piece-of-shit. Just tell him he can throw it in the trash……”
Min-ho seemed to nod, but Gyu-oh’s strength to verify had run out. Ah, why is this happening suddenly? There are so many places to go. His eyelids grew heavier. His shoulder throbbed, and it felt as if the ground beneath his feet were sinking. Perhaps due to the relief that there was nothing on the phone, his consciousness kept fading.
“Cha Min-ho……”
“What.”
Even though he had tossed aside the title of ‘Hyung’, Min-ho didn’t say anything. He must be letting it slide because he’s hurt, so this is the time to act as equals. He reached out with his other hand and gripped Min-ho’s warmth.
“Min-ho-ya.”
He softly pressed his lips against the palm that had been willingly drawn in. He didn’t smell the hand cream that always lingered on Min-ho. Instead, only the scent of blood that must have flowed from his own body remained.
“Thanks for coming to get me……”
If he had lost consciousness in that field, Won Gyu-oh would have completely lost his cool. Thanks to Hyung, he saved face. He wanted to say it playfully like that, but his mouth moved on its own.
“I really love you.”
“…….”
“Not like, crazily in love or anything……”
But I think I will be soon.
With those words, all the strength left his body. Unable to hold onto his fading consciousness, he went limp. In his darkening vision, he thought he saw a white hand tightly gripping his own lifeless hand.
* * *
Gyu-oh’s condition was so fine it was almost embarrassing that he had fainted. He had some bruises, but nothing was broken or malfunctioning. Perhaps because he hadn’t slept well lately, he had slept for a full day, and as a result, his body felt refreshed.
“Where’s Min-ho Hyung?”
“He’s on the phone. He seems a bit busy.”
After hearing from Hong-ju that the forehead sutures had gone well, Gyu-oh leaped out of bed again. It was because the lingering worry remained even while he was unconscious.
“Where are you going?”
“I’ll be right back, right back!”
He roughly threw a jacket over his patient gown. Seeing him prepare so urgently, a flustered Hong-ju grabbed the hem of his clothes, but Gyu-oh shook him off quite firmly.
“I told Min-ho Hyung that you went headstrong even though he tried to stop you. Well, he wouldn’t say anything even if I didn’t explain it like that.”
“You can’t! Where are you going!”
Patting the two hands of Hong-ju, who was trying quite desperately to stop him, he immediately stepped out of the hospital room. Even though he hadn’t even been awake for five minutes and didn’t fully grasp the situation, Gyu-oh moved without hesitation.
After heading out blindly, he went straight to Son Pro’s golf academy. There were still employees left, but they didn’t enter his sight.
“Who, who is that person?”
“I don’t know, I’m the one who reported it!”
“Reported? The Pro isn’t even here. Ah, this……”
He simply walked toward his destination, dragging along the employee who was clinging to him with all their might. Upon entering Son Pro’s space, which he had visited before, he kicked the computer tower. Not satisfied with that, he stomped on it repeatedly until it was shattered into pieces.
“Again.”
He almost slammed the laptop down but paused. Since this was the one Son Pro mainly used, he needed to examine it thoroughly. With the laptop tucked under his arm, he searched every corner of the office with wide, manic eyes.
He smashed every other device that could possibly hold information. His forehead throbbed a bit, but perhaps because he’d been told he was fine, his body felt light.
He then stormed into the house the Executive Director had provided for Son Pro and repeated the same actions. Only after cutting off any potential sprouts of trouble did his mind finally feel at ease.
Then, he suddenly moved back to the hospital. He wandered for a while, not knowing where his own room was, before finally arriving. Right next to Min-ho’s room. As soon as he opened the door, he locked eyes with Min-ho, who had his hands on his hips.
“You crazy bastard, where the hell did you crawl off to?”
He had a fairly scary face and voice, but why did that look so lovely? How much must he have worried about me to welcome me like this? Drawing his own conclusion, Gyu-oh reached out his arms.
“Hyung!”
He ran straight forward and hugged Min-ho. Perhaps caught off guard, Min-ho didn’t push him away, so Gyu-oh hugged him tight and swayed his body from side to side. Hyung, Hyung, Min-ho Hyung. Calling him repeatedly like a child, he buried his nose deep into the nape of his neck.
“……What is this, are you sick somewhere?”
The voice softened instantly, and a hand cautiously hovered over his back. Gyu-oh closed his eyes tight and dragged out the end of his words.
“Mmm-hmm……”
“You’re sick? Then where did you wander… where did you go?”
The voice that was about to snap at him seemed to be tempered, as the end of the sentence dropped awkwardly. He might look cold, but he’s such a soft-hearted and affectionate person. I wonder if other people know this. Well, it doesn’t matter if they don’t. As long as I know.
“Hah.”
At the sound of a scoff nearby, Gyu-oh tilted his head slightly. Mu-gyeong, sitting on the sofa, was looking at him with an absurd expression, arms crossed. He didn’t know how long he’d been there, but that wasn’t important now. Gyu-oh poked his tongue out at Mu-gyeong with a mischievous look.
“The world has gone mad.”
Muttering loud enough for everyone to hear, Mu-gyeong stood up. Despite his words, he was giving them space. When Gyu-oh silently handed over the laptop he had brought as he passed by, Mu-gyeong took it obediently. He really is great for being quick-witted.
While hugging Min-ho tightly with both arms, Gyu-oh half-turned his body. Facing Mu-gyeong, he winked one eye. In response, Mu-gyeong immediately raised his middle finger and walked out.
“Hey, wait!”
Whether he couldn’t hear Min-ho’s desperate call to the back of his head or not, he left the room quite coldly.
“I had something to say, but he just left.”
“What is it?”
“When delivering to the Executive Director’s side—”
Work talk again. Seriously, he has no ego outside of work. As the conversation naturally shifted toward business, Gyu-oh tightened his grip on Min-ho. He pulled him into his embrace until a groan of pain was heard.
“My ribs are gonna snap, you blockhead.”
“Uh, sorry.”
He loosened his grip on the shoulder slightly. Only then did Min-ho step back and look him up and down.
“So. Where did you go the moment you woke up?”
His voice was low, but not threatening at all. If you’re going to be cold, be cold all the time; if you’re going to be chilly, be chilly to everyone. Why do you keep making me the exception? It makes me expect things.
“I went to clean up all the bastards bothering you, Hyung.”
“Clean up?”
Usually, ‘cleaning up’ in their world involved rather cruel methods. Enough to make Min-ho’s eyebrows twitch and his face harden instantly.
“Just, a little bit?”
He shrugged and replied nonchalantly. It didn’t seem like Min-ho was in the mood to ask for details, but if he did, he’d confess honestly. With that resolve, he took Min-ho’s gaze head-on. Then, Min-ho’s face crumpled, and he finally raised his hand.
“I told you not to run around on your own. No matter how good you are, it’s dangerous alone. Groaning and saying you’re hurt here and there!”
The sound of slaps on his back mixed with every word. This time, there was quite a bit of strength behind them, and he felt a fair amount of pain.
“Hyung! I wasn’t groaning. Please avoid words that make me lose my cool!”
“Does ‘cool’ feed you? This bastard, look at him wandering around wearing this thin thing.”
Min-ho shook the thin patient gown pants, and then began to pummel his thighs with his fists. After several heavy blows, a vibration began to echo in his lower body.
“Uh oh.”
This wasn’t a good signal for the current situation. Every time a fist landed on his thigh, the body temperature and pain strangely triggered arousal.