By Zephyria 
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Eun-won, thinking about how Cha Se-jin would sigh and ask if that even counted as sleeping together if he heard it, secretly stole a glance at Cha Se-jin’s face as he slept, while pressing down on his own rapidly thumping heart.
How could someone be this handsome even while sleeping? Looking at the quiet, sleeping face reminded him of the long kisses they shared yesterday. Whenever Eun-won felt like he couldn’t breathe properly, Cha Se-jin would pull away, and once he recovered, he would press his lips back and rub his tongue against Eun-won’s. It felt so good and ticklish that Eun-won hid the feeling of suffocating several times. Of course, hiding it didn’t really work, as he was caught almost immediately.
He knew that Cha Se-jin had been very considerate. Honestly, Cha Se-jin was in a position where he didn’t have to accommodate him. Even his father had repeatedly urged him to follow Cha Se-jin’s word unconditionally and stay on his good side, constantly walking on eggshells around Cha Se-jin and the Sewon Group. It was the kind of marriage where everyone at the wedding praised his father and stepmother, asking how they had managed to make “such a marriage” happen.
Of course, neither Cha Se-jin nor his family had ever made him feel that way, but even so, his father’s and stepmother’s words—that he had to behave well on his own—kept echoing in his head. Since the marriage was finalized, they had told him several times a day, almost like brainwashing, until it was etched into his mind.
He wasn’t in a position to dare hope for consideration. And Cha Se-jin likely knew that better than anyone. Yet, Cha Se-jin never forced anything. He was considerate, looked after his situation, stepped back, and waited.
Even though he knew he didn’t have to.
“…….”
He felt a warm, fuzzy sensation in his heart. Eun-won shifted slightly, moving closer to Cha Se-jin. Perhaps because he was asleep, Cha Se-jin’s pleasant pheromone scent drifted out faintly. Moving closer, Eun-won rested his face on the edge of the pillow Cha Se-jin was using and closed his eyes again. His mind felt hazy, and he felt a flushing heat rising in various parts of his body.
Perhaps that was why, despite having already slept for over twelve hours, drowsiness began to wash over him again. It was a pleasant drowsiness he hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
Waking up shortly after four, Cha Se-jin stretched his stiff body, which had been lying down for too long. He checked the time on the phone he had left by the bed, but he checked it several times, unable to believe it.
It wasn’t that he disliked sleeping, but recently—no, in his entire life—this was the first time he had slept for so long, as if he had been knocked unconscious. Even when he overslept, there was always a reason. Either he had stayed up until dawn and fallen asleep in the morning, or he had chosen to sleep an extra hour or two because he wasn’t feeling well, or it was his Rut.
Moreover, being a Dominant Alpha, the number of times he had been sick or in poor condition, excluding his Rut, was so few he could count them on one hand; he had never spent an entire day just sleeping.
Furthermore, he had almost never slept with someone else. He was quite sensitive, making it nearly impossible to sleep with another person, so he was the type to be extremely particular about his sleeping arrangements.
“…….”
Yet, contrary to that, Eun-won was beside him. No, “beside” was an understatement; he was asleep within his arms.
Cha Se-jin was quite confused. He knew that Eun-won gave him a special feeling and a different impression than others, but it was surprising that he could even sleep with him.
He clearly remembered intending to go to another room to sleep yesterday.
Lifting the slipped blanket and pulling it over Eun-won’s shoulder, Cha Se-jin recalled the previous night. Thanks to coming up to the room early, they had washed, eaten a leisurely meal, cleaned up, and talked—even continuing the conversation in bed—and it still wasn’t very late.
It was a day where he felt more fatigued than usual, but since he typically fell asleep at dawn, he remembered that he hadn’t fallen asleep immediately even while watching Eun-won drift off.
Eun-won’s sleeping face was so excessively pretty that he thought he would admire it a bit more before going to another room to sleep, but he had no memory after that.
Though he couldn’t remember, seeing as he had slept for over ten hours next to Eun-won, it seemed he had fallen asleep while staring at that face. And very comfortably, without feeling any disturbance.
In fact, he had prepared two rooms in the annex where he would live with Eun-won. Having slept alone for so long, he thought sleeping together might be difficult even if he tried, so he prepared two bedrooms. Since they both had to go to work and school, there was no need to force sleeping together and feel uncomfortable. And to be honest, he didn’t want the way he had lived his life to be disrupted because of the marriage. Even if it was selfish, it couldn’t be helped.
“Ummm….”
A small sound pierced through his thoughts. Eun-won, who had been sleeping with his head on the edge of the pillow, woke up and rubbed his eyes.
“Did you sleep well?”
When he greeted him, Eun-won, not yet fully awake, nodded. Finding that cute, Cha Se-jin smiled and lifted the arm resting on Eun-won’s body to stroke his hair.
“Do you know what time it is?”
Hearing the low, sleep-thickened voice close by, Eun-won lifted his head. Thanks to the light from the lamp that had been left on, his eyes met Cha Se-jin’s immediately. Surprised by how close they were, Eun-won fidgeted and pulled his body back toward his own pillow. The moment their gazes locked, heat surged from his toes, warming and spreading through his body.
“…What time is it? When I woke up briefly earlier, it was around three….”
“Four thirty. It’s the first time I’ve slept this long. I didn’t dream, and I didn’t wake up once. I was a bit tired yesterday, but not to this extent.”
Sitting up, Cha Se-jin slowly stretched his neck and then stepped off the bed to loosen his shoulders and arms. Seeing Cha Se-jin’s upper body exposed since he wasn’t wearing a robe, Eun-won slightly turned his head to avoid looking. Until a moment ago, his inside had been hot, but now a sudden chill ran down his spine.
Did he catch a cold? Or maybe a body ache? He tried to think of a reason why his body temperature was fluctuating so suddenly, but nothing came to mind.
“Shall we wash up and eat something? Or you can rest more. Are you tired?”
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Cha Se-jin lightly tapped the cheek of the somewhat dazed Eun-won and smiled as he saw Eun-won’s focus return.
“I slept a lot, so I’m not tired anymore.”
“Okay, then I’ll order something while you wash up. Shall we eat something light?”
“Yes.”
Nodding, Cha Se-jin playfully ruffled Eun-won’s already messy hair a bit more and left the bedroom. Eun-won also headed to the bathroom, tidying his hair.
By the time he finished washing and drying his hair, sandwiches, juice, fruit, and salad were laid out on the living room table. After waiting on the sofa for a bit, Cha Se-jin emerged from the bathroom wearing a knit sweater. After dressing and shaking his hair a few times to naturally style it, Cha Se-jin sat down next to Eun-won.
“Let’s eat.”
“Yes, please enjoy your meal, Director.”
“Yeah, you eat a lot too, Darling.”
Since he had just woken up, he didn’t have much of an appetite, but after eating a piece of refreshing and sweet mango, his appetite returned a bit. Eun-won slowly ate the salad and grilled sandwich. He liked that it was light, savory, and fresh, so it didn’t feel heavy in his stomach.
As he finished his first meal, which was also an early dinner, the day began to fade. Seeing it grow dark again after barely seeing the sunlight, he realized once more how long he had slept.
“Ah, I want to loosen up my body.”
Still feeling a bit stiff and frustrated, Cha Se-jin, who was stretching, suddenly craved swimming. Recalling the hotel pool, Cha Se-jin looked at Eun-won, who was drinking juice.
“Darling, I want to loosen up my body by swimming. Do you want to come along? Or would you rather stay in the room?”
Just the thought of getting into the pool water made him feel chilly. While the hotel pool water wouldn’t be freezing, he had felt a strange chill even while showering with warm water earlier, so the idea of entering the water wasn’t appealing. It seemed he might be coming down with something.
“Um, you look like you’re not feeling great. It’s better if you just stay.”
“…Then I’ll be studying.”
“Studying? Ah, you mentioned an exam.”
“Yes…. I think I need to look over it at least once before the exam….”
Cha Se-jin cupped Eun-won’s cheeks, which looked flushed despite the room not being hot, and then let go. He went inside to get ready for the pool and checked on Eun-won one more time before leaving.
“Will you be okay alone? Are you feeling alright?”
“I’m fine. Nothing hurts. I can be alone.”
“Okay, got it. Keep studying. Call me if anything happens.”
“Yes, have a good time.”
After saying goodbye to Cha Se-jin as he left the room, Eun-won pressed down on his heart, which was fluttering for an unknown reason. It was a strange feeling he had never experienced before. He felt hot, then cold, then hot again. He had heard that some people fall ill once their tension releases, and he worried if that was what was happening.