By Zephyria 
“Ah, again.”
Lee A-gon muttered. Hae-jun squeezed his already closed eyes even tighter.
Water from his backside flowed down his perineum and dripped. At times like this, he truly wished he could disappear. His body was strange. He couldn’t even call it fingerprint recognition anymore. He had only touched the area near the opening, and his finger hadn’t even reached it, yet he had already gotten excited and was leaking clear fluid on his own.
“No one knows about this, right?”
Lee A-gon ran his finger over the drops of fluid falling from Hae-jun. Hae-jun felt so ashamed and sad that he thought he might cry.
“Answer me. Who else knows that hyung leaks water from his hole besides me?”
“No. No one.”
His voice was nasal. Hae-jun sniffled. Leaking water from his hole. It was an accurate description, but it was so embarrassing he wanted to cry.
Lee A-gon played with Hae-jun’s hole, from which water was flowing, for a long time. He blocked the water hole with his thumb, making the opening that had absorbed water bulge, then suddenly pulled his finger away, watching with interest as streams of water spurted out with a ‘poo-poo’ sound.
Hae-jun’s hands, braced on his knees, trembled. He was ashamed and embarrassed that Lee A-gon was playing with a part of him he couldn’t control at will… He eventually started to cry.
“Hyung, are you crying?”
“No.”
“Why are you crying? Do you dislike me examining you?”
“I’m not crying.”
But his voice was crying. It was a voice filled with sorrow that rose to the back of his throat.
“Hyung.”
At Lee A-gon’s gentle call, Hae-jun finally burst into tears.
He liked Lee A-gon. He loved him. But at times like this, he was so infuriating. He felt hurt, embarrassed, and angry. Yet, he couldn’t hate him. It was a mess.
“I’m sorry. I’ll stop now.”
A gentle touch wiped away his tears. It was the same hand that had just been caressing and playing with Hae-jun’s hole. Lee A-gon used that hand to embarrass Hae-jun, make him cry, and then comfort him. Truly, Lee A-gon at times like this was…
‘Charming.’
Hae-jun thought, crying. Lee A-gon played push and pull, making people cry and laugh. He made Hae-jun’s heart ache even more by keeping him guessing. When had he learned such skills? He felt like he would get sick if he couldn’t have this man.
Moreover, his appearance had been improving recently. Perhaps it was infatuation, but he didn’t seem as ugly as before. Not that he was handsome, but he felt quite attractive.
Especially his body. Now, he couldn’t say anything negative about his body, even with empty words. Tall stature. Broad shoulders. Developed pectoral muscles and a beautiful waistline. It was amazing.
Lee A-gon held Hae-jun on his lap and comforted him for a long time. “Were you that embarrassed? I’m sorry. But you don’t have to be embarrassed. You’re always cute. What’s wrong with a little water coming out? I like it every time you leak. It means you want to have sex with me, right? It’s all because you’re so sensual.”
‘Is that so? Was I leaking that water because I wanted to have sex?’
Although Lee A-gon was trying to comfort him, Hae-jun became even more embarrassed by his words. It was his body’s fault. This body that got excited and leaked fluid without Lee A-gon even intending it.
“You must never show it to any other man.”
“I’ll never show it.”
He wouldn’t even think of asking anyone. Who could he ask if he leaked water every time he felt like having sex with a man? He had had enough of such experiences from the internet.
After posting a question on a gay community forum and receiving strange messages, Hae-jun resolved never to ask anyone about this matter again.
“Shall we have dinner now?”
“Yes. Go wash up.”
While Lee A-gon washed, Hae-jun prepared the meal. This also wasn’t much work. He just had to take out the side dishes prepared by the Helpers and boil some soup.
“Are you done washing? Then…!”
Seeing Lee A-gon appear, drying his hair with a towel, Hae-jun turned off the induction stove. Today’s menu was mushroom hot pot.
As Hae-jun was transferring the boiling broth to eat the warm soup at the table, he accidentally dropped the pot.
The hot broth spilled. Hae-jun cried out. He was barefoot, wearing only light slippers. The broth splashed over his instep.
“Huh?”
But it wasn’t hot. Hae-jun touched his instep. It didn’t hurt. It was just wet from the broth; he wasn’t injured.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Lee A-gon rushed over, knelt down, and touched Hae-jun’s foot. Hae-jun replied, bewildered.
“Yeah. It doesn’t hurt at all.”
“Let me see.”
Lee A-gon placed Hae-jun’s foot on his knee, examined it for a long time, and then brought a cold towel to meticulously wipe it dry.
Hae-jun looked at his foot strangely. He had clearly been doused with boiling broth, so how could this be?
“Be more careful. What would you have done if I wasn’t here?”
“What are you talking about? It’s not like I wouldn’t get hurt just because you’re here.”
After a little while, a sense of relief washed over him. He didn’t know why he was okay, but it was fortunate that he wasn’t hurt.
Hae-jun found it amusing that Lee A-gon spoke as if he had prevented the accident. It wasn’t as if accidents wouldn’t happen just because he was present.
That night, Lee A-gon carried Hae-jun in his arms the entire time. “I’m so worried because you’re so clumsy, hyung,” he said, not putting Hae-jun down.
“You know, I was thinking of going out tomorrow.”
He felt happy being held in Lee A-gon’s arms, who treated him so preciously. He was glad that Lee A-gon was holding him warmly like before. So, Hae-jun gathered his courage and brought up the topic he had been hesitant to mention for days.
“Where are you planning to go?”
“There’s a senior from school named Jin Ah-reum. She’s the one who found me the extra job for the historical drama. She’s having a birthday party, and she invited me.”
“Ah.”
Lee A-gon responded indifferently while gently massaging Hae-jun’s ankle. Hae-jun explained more earnestly.
“She said she was grateful for Professor Seok’s matter and really wanted me to come. I also owe her a favor, so I feel like I have to go.”
“Is that so?”
Lee A-gon replied with interjections. His attention was still focused on Hae-jun’s foot. He was still checking if there were any injuries, even though he had already looked a hundred times.
“Yes. We’re supposed to meet at five in the afternoon tomorrow and hang out, then come back around ten.”
Hae-jun looked at Lee A-gon’s expression and asked.
“Can I go?”
“Of course.”
Lee A-gon looked up and smiled.
“I’m not imprisoning you. You can go out whenever you want. Of course, as long as you don’t lie to me.”
“I won’t lie. I’ll never lie again.”
Hae-jun replied hastily. He tightly grasped Lee A-gon’s hand.
“Believe me. I won’t lie to you anymore.”
“Yes, I’ll try to believe you.”
He didn’t say he would believe him. He implied he was leaving room for doubt with the ambiguous phrase “I’ll try to believe you.”
Hae-jun gripped Lee A-gon’s hand. This time, he wouldn’t mess up. Never. Never.
The venue for Jin Ah-reum’s birthday party was a small bar in Sangam-dong. Hae-jun prepared a baseball cap of a suitable brand as a birthday gift. A cap was the best item for hiding greasy hair on site, and the more, the better.
He had also considered preparing a gift for Yoo Min-ju, in case she attended, but unfortunately, she would not be there. After Professor Seok’s situation became public, she had brightened considerably, but it seemed she still found it difficult to meet many people outside. He decided to arrange a separate meeting with Yoo Min-ju and one other person later.
“You’re here! My proud junior!”
Upon arriving at the meeting place, a slightly drunk Jin Ah-reum greeted Hae-jun boisterously. Behind her, he also saw the face of Senior Jo.
“You’re here? Man, it’s really hard to see your face.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve been busy with other things. How have you been, Senior?”
They patted each other on the shoulder and took their seats. Immediately, a glass of alcohol was placed for Hae-jun, and Jin Ah-reum poured beer.
“Say hello. These are my friends. They all work in film.”
Jin Ah-reum introduced her friends to Hae-jun. About fifteen or sixteen people offered their hands for a handshake, and among them was someone Hae-jun knew. It was Seo Ji-hoon.
“Seo Ji-hoon?”
“Hae-jun, how did you end up here?”
They looked at each other with bewildered expressions. Jin Ah-reum squeezed between them.
“What? You guys know each other?”
“Yes… a little. How do you know Ji-hoon, noona?”
“We worked together on an independent film before. Anyway, this is funny. You two know each other.”
Then Jin Ah-reum added that it wasn’t surprising, as everyone in this industry knew each other within three degrees of separation, and another friend chimed in, saying she once met her ex-boyfriend while filming, which drew outrage from the others.
Immediately, the conversation heated up. As filmmakers, they shared stories of past encounters with ill-fated connections while shooting.
“Don’t even get me started. I once worked on a movie where my ex-boyfriend, who had switched to my friend, was the male lead, and my friend was the female lead. I was a third assistant in lighting, constantly being yelled at, and imagine having to endure that in front of my ex-boyfriend and the friend he switched to. I couldn’t quit, and I cried so much.”
Then came the ultimate story. Everyone forgot what to say to comfort the storyteller and just patted them on the back.
Hae-jun, who had been empathizing, went outside the establishment to answer his phone, which vibrated in his pocket. The caller was, of course, Lee A-gon.
“Oh, A-gon.”
“Did you arrive safely?”
“Yes. I arrived safely.”
“Are you not hurt anywhere?”
“I just took the subway, what could I possibly hurt?”
His overprotectiveness, Hae-jun chuckled. Ever since the broth incident, Lee A-gon wanted to care for Hae-jun like a baby.