By Zephyria 
July.
Time flew by like an arrow, and today marks the third week since Jeong-ju entered the Tiger gate.
Yoon Tae-hee had been spending his recent days in a state of utter satisfaction.
At 8:00 AM, the morning call rings on the phone placed by his bedside. Feeling the vibration, Yoon Tae-hee opens his eyes and quickly moves his hand to turn off the alarm. He did this for fear that Jae-gyeom might wake up.
Since the two of them were left alone, Yoon Tae-hee and Jae-gyeom had been falling asleep in the same bed every night. Fortunately, Jae-gyeom was still sound asleep. Yoon Tae-hee looked down at the sleeping Jae-gyeom for a moment before quietly rising from the bed, making sure not to make a sound.
The first thing Yoon Tae-hee does upon waking these days is “cooking rice.”
He puts the rice, which he had soaked the night before, into the rice cooker and presses the start button. Then, he goes to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth, and while waiting for the rice to finish, he puts on an apron and begins preparing the meal. Today’s breakfast menu was multigrain rice, dried radish leaf soybean paste soup, steamed eggs, and grilled mackerel—dishes that Jae-gyeom particularly liked.
Once the meal preparation is finished, he heads back to the sleeping Jae-gyeom.
Jae-gyeom was fast asleep, curled up and hugging the blanket. His habit of sleeping with his belly exposed remained unchanged. Yoon Tae-hee lay down, hugging Jae-gyeom from behind, and whispered softly into his ear.
“Kissy.”
As he did, he slid his hand under the hem of Jae-gyeom’s T-shirt. As he stroked his stomach, the vivid, living warmth was transmitted to his palm. Yoon Tae-hee caressed Jae-gyeom’s flat stomach and whispered again.
“Kissy.”
Only then did Jae-gyeom’s ears seem to open, as he mumbled and rolled over.
“Time to eat.”
Tossing and turning, Jae-gyeom opened his eyes blearily. Yoon Tae-hee opened his arms wide toward him. At that, Jae-gyeom leaned into his embrace, half-asleep. Looking at the dazed expression caused by the lingering sleep, Yoon Tae-hee smiled brightly and planted a kiss on Jae-gyeom’s cheek. Then, he pulled Jae-gyeom snugly into his arms and gently kneaded various parts of his body that his hands could reach. He was helping him wake up naturally.
Burying his face in the crook of Jae-gyeom’s neck and smelling him, Yoon Tae-hee spoke.
“Shall we get up now?”
Since they were left alone, Yoon Tae-hee’s daily routine was completely centered around Jae-gyeom.
When he wakes up in the morning, he prepares the breakfast Jae-gyeom will eat. He wakes the sleeping Jae-gyeom and feeds him. Once Jae-gyeom goes in to wash up after the meal, he tidies up and does the dishes. He takes out the clothes Jae-gyeom will wear from the wardrobe and helps him get ready to go out. Once Jae-gyeom is ready, he grabs the car keys and they leave the house together.
Having registered for the elementary school equivalency exam in June, Jae-gyeom had entered full-blown exam mode a while ago. There was now just over a month left until the test. It was a routine of eating well, sleeping well, and studying hard.
For the past three weeks, Jae-gyeom had been accelerating his studies by repeatedly solving problems from previous exams. As a result, most of his subjects were already within a safe passing range. Of course… except for one particular subject.
The biggest obstacle for this exam was English.
English was truly a hopeless cause. His scores hovered around 20 to 30 points every time. Deciding that this wouldn’t do, after consulting with Yoon Tae-hee, they decided to get help from an academy for English alone.
The academy was a 30-minute drive away, and Yoon Tae-hee drove him there every morning.
Humming softly while driving, Yoon Tae-hee came to a gentle stop near the academy.
“Have a good day.”
Jae-gyeom nodded as he unbuckled his seatbelt.
“Yeah. I’ll be back.”
Yoon Tae-hee lightly held Jae-gyeom’s cheek as he tried to get out of the passenger seat and kissed him. Jae-gyeom received the kiss habitually and stepped out of the car. Only after watching Jae-gyeom enter the academy building did Yoon Tae-hee turn the car around and leave. The English academy Jae-gyeom was attending was a short-term intensive course for just one month, with morning classes. The classes ran from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM. He had to return exactly when the classes ended.
While Jae-gyeom attended class at the academy, Yoon Tae-hee drove to a nearby fitness center. Working out for about two hours while waiting for the class to end had become his recent routine. After showering, he would sometimes drink tea and read a book quietly at a nearby cafe, or visit the library.
By then, it would be almost time for the class to end.
Feeling refreshed, Yoon Tae-hee headed back to the front of the academy. Sometimes the class ended about 10 minutes early, and since Jae-gyeom might be waiting, it was better to go early. While he waited for a moment with the hazard lights on, he would soon see Jae-gyeom trudging out of the academy building.
Immediately after coming out of English class, Jae-gyeom’s mood was often low (?), so one had to be careful.
“Good job. Did the class go well today?”
“Yeah.”
“What did you learn today?”
“Something about nouns and singular? Plural? Things like that.”
“That must have been hard.”
Yoon Tae-hee rubbed his forehead against the nape of Jae-gyeom’s neck and praised him with all his might.
Since it was exactly lunchtime when class ended, they would go to a nearby restaurant to eat lunch together. Sometimes they would pack things like sandwiches from a cafe and eat in a park. When asked what he wanted to eat today, Jae-gyeom replied that he wanted seolleongtang. They decided on the restaurant based on the menu Jae-gyeom thought of that day.
After finding a highly-rated seolleongtang place via his phone, Yoon Tae-hee started the car again.
While driving with one hand, he held Jae-gyeom’s hand with the other. They would chat and play with their hands, and whenever the car stopped at a signal, he would fiddle with Jae-gyeom’s cheeks, arms, and the rim of his ear.
However, today, a small, unexpected event occurred.
“The kid next to me gave me this today.”
Jae-gyeom rustled in his pocket and pulled something out to show him. It was a few bite-sized chocolates wrapped in foil. The moment he saw them, he felt displeased, but Yoon Tae-hee didn’t let it show and asked.
“Did you make a friend?”
“Not exactly a friend. We just exchange nods.”
“Boy or girl?”
“Boy.”
“How old is he?”
“I don’t know. He looked about the same age as you. He said he’s taking the GED too. The high school course.”
“…Is that so?”
It was the unwelcome appearance of a stranger. Throughout the drive, Yoon Tae-hee interrogated him on whether that person gave chocolates only to him or to others as well, if anyone else had talked to him, what he would do if the person gave him chocolates tomorrow, and whether he was handsome. Meanwhile, the car had already arrived in front of the restaurant.
Scanning the menu, Yoon Tae-hee ordered on his own before Jae-gyeom could say anything.
“One seolleongtang, one large seolleongtang, one extra bowl of rice… and please give us the assorted boiled pork platter too.”
Once the food arrived, they ate while chatting amiably. After finishing the meal, they would sometimes take a walk in the park or drink tea at a cafe. On the way back, they would stop by the mart to do some grocery shopping.
By the time they returned home, it was past 2:00 PM.
While Jae-gyeom took a short nap, he started the washing machine and went out to the yard. He mowed the lawn and watered the plants and trees. He vacuumed and finished mopping. Then, he would either put the finished laundry in the dryer or, if the sunlight was good, string up a clothesline in the yard and hang them personally. Occasionally, Jae-gyeom would wander out and ask if there was anything to help with, but usually, he finished everything during the hour-long nap Jae-gyeom took every day.
If there was time left after the housework, he would prepare side dishes for dinner in advance or read a book while waiting for Jae-gyeom to wake up. When Jae-gyeom woke from his nap, they would lounge around together while watching TV.
Eventually, it would be time for dinner.
For dinner, they would sometimes order delivery or cook using the ingredients they bought. Since they had gone shopping today, they decided to cook. The menu was dak-bokkeum-tang. While Yoon Tae-hee cooked, Jae-gyeom helped by prepping ingredients or setting the table. They sat at the table together to eat and did the dishes together.
After the meal, Jae-gyeom went into the room to review what he learned at the academy today and began self-directed study. Yoon Tae-hee sat beside him, explaining the parts Jae-gyeom didn’t understand and correcting the wrong answers one by one. With occasional kisses. Thus, today’s studying was successfully completed.
The two went out for their final routine of the day: a night walk.
Today, they went a bit further. On the way back, they stopped by a convenience store and bought an ice cream each. Yoon Tae-hee chose a bar, and Jae-gyeom chose a cone. However, at the counter, the clerk told them, “Cone ice creams are 2+1, so if you buy one more, you get one for free.” The moment Yoon Tae-hee replied without hesitation, “It’s okay, I’ll just buy one,” Jae-gyeom quickly ran over and brought back two more cones.
“They said if you buy one you get another, why waste it? Let’s just buy three.”
“It’s hot, so I think they’ll all be melted by the time we get home…”
When Yoon Tae-hee expressed reluctance, Jae-gyeom spoke with a bewildered face.
“Can’t we just eat them all before they melt?”
“…….”
After a moment of silence, Yoon Tae-hee asked cautiously.
“Then you’re saying you’ll eat a total of three ice creams on the way home? And cones at that?”
“Yeah. Why can’t I do that?”
“…….”
I see… I’ve learned something new again today…
Jae-gyeom, who always followed through on his words, devoured the three cones in the blink of an eye on the way back. Yoon Tae-hee was once again captivated by that spirit. In that way, the two of them successfully finished their night walk today as well.
After returning from the night walk, they bathed and prepared for bed.
“Are you all washed up?”
“Yeah.”
And then…
“Hng, ah… ngh, hng!”
“Tell me you love me… please? Tell me you love me.”
While hugging Jae-gyeom, dripping with sweat, he engaged in persistent, slow sex. Every time he thrust deeply, the bed made a creaking sound. Jae-gyeom gripped the bedsheets in his hands, panting breathlessly.