By Zephyria 
Even though Julу wаs just around thе cornеr, thе night аir wаs quitе сool. Fоrtunаtеly, it wasn’t rаining, but the humid air left а chill аgainst thе skin. Hоlding a соnvеniencе storе bag in one hаnd, Do-hyun gentlу swung his other hand, whiсh was intеrlаced with Woo-yеon’s.
“Did you hаvе fun tоdау?”
His voiсe wаs sоft, blending well with thе dаrk surroundings. It was sweet, tеnder, аnd рossessеd thаt раrtiсular kindnеss оf Do-hуun’s that Woo-yeon lоved. Woо-yeоn nodded without hеsitatiоn.
“I think both of thеm аre so funnу.”
Though Wоo-уеon’s sосial сirсle wаs nаrrоw, he knew thаt Gа-ram аnd Sеоn-kуu were kind people. To the point where he felt it would have been better if he had met them sooner. Daniel was also a good friend, but since their starting points were different to begin with, he was an exception.
“That’s a relief. As long as you had fun.”
Do-hyun nodded and checked the watch on his wrist. He had already checked it more than five times since leaving the convenience store. Does he have to go home? While Woo-yeon was thinking this, Do-hyun spoke slowly.
“Today…”
Perhaps it was just his imagination, but their walking pace slowed down. Woo-yeon didn’t rush him and simply gazed at Do-hyun. Under the light of the streetlamp, the straight bridge of his nose looked smooth.
“Since you can’t sleep at Mungaram’s house…”
“….”
“Do you want to come to my place later?”
Wait, he didn’t understand those words for a moment. However, the instant their eyes met, Woo-yeon immediately nodded.
“Yes.”
It was late anyway, and at this point, it wouldn’t matter where he slept; no one would suddenly contact him. No, in the first place, they probably didn’t even know that Woo-yeon wasn’t home.
“I want to sleep at Hyung’s house.”
Upon hearing that answer, Do-hyun winked and curled the corners of his lips upward. Seeing the expression of pure happiness, Woo-yeon’s mood began to lift instinctively. No, in truth, he was already halfway there. He had been with Do-hyun last night, and he could be with him today as well. Just the thought of it made him happy.
“Ah, about the day we drank champagne.”
Because Do-hyun’s pace had slowed, it took quite a while to reach the villa. It felt like it took almost twice as long as it did to go to the convenience store. Only after arriving in front of the building did Woo-yeon ask about the part he had been curious about.
“Back then… why did I have muscle pain?”
The day Woo-yeon had woken up wearing a robe. The day, according to Do-hyun, he had spoken about Daniel of his own accord. There had clearly been nothing between him and Do-hyun, yet his lower back had hurt vaguely. Of course, it was a pain too slight to be considered an aftereffect of intercourse.
“Ah… muscle pain.”
Do-hyun winked and murmured slowly. Then, he shrugged playfully.
“So you did have it. I just threw that out there to see.”
“…To see?”
“Yeah, because there was a loud noise coming from the bathroom.”
Woo-yeon gave him a bewildered look, but Do-hyun didn’t mind at all. He simply narrowed his eyes playfully and pulled Woo-yeon’s hand toward his face. Chu, the lips that touched the back of his hand pulled away with an embarrassing sound.
“Forgive me just this once. I did it because I was feeling grumpy.”
“…What is there to forgive at this point?”
To think his mood could be smoothed over by a single kiss. Even he thought he was far too simple.
“It was either a hangover, or you fell in the bathroom without me knowing. It had to be one of the two, right?”
Saying so, Do-hyun took out his phone. 12:01. After checking the time, he frowned as if calculating something. Then, looking at the screen, he began to press the entrance password.
“Did Ga-ram Noona tell you?”
“Yeah, she told me to press it and come in.”
Isn’t this a bit dangerous? Even if it’s a house where she lives alone. Just as Woo-yeon thought that, he suddenly tilted his head. He felt like he had heard something similar from Do-hyun once before. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t remember.
“Watch your step.”
Until they passed the stairs they had walked by earlier and reached the third floor where Ga-ram’s house was, Do-hyun said only those words. Since it was night, they naturally had to be quiet, but for some reason, the silence felt awkward.
“…Did she give you the front door password too?”
Woo-yeon stood close behind Do-hyun and lowered his voice to a whisper. Seeing how Do-hyun pressed the front door password without hesitation, it seemed that was the case.
Soon, with a beep-beep-beep sound, Do-hyun stepped aside. His softly curved eyes were full of mischief. Woo-yeon blinked with a dazed expression.
“Yeon-ah.”
“Yes?”
For some reason, he felt strange. He felt nervous, and perhaps a bit shaky. The moment Do-hyun opened the door felt unnervingly long.
“Happy birthday.”
He didn’t even have time to respond to those words. Because through the gap of the door that swung open, Pop! the sound of a party popper exploded. Woo-yeon widened his eyes and slowly turned his head.
“Happy birthday, Seon Woo-yeon!”
“Happy birthday, Woo-yeon!”
Pop! Pop! The sound of party poppers exploded twice more. Unlike the dim hallway, inside the brightly lit room, Seon-kyu was holding a cake with lit candles. Ga-ram quickly approached Woo-yeon and placed a cone hat on his head.
“Hey, hey, close the door first. The other neighbors will complain.”
Woo-yeon stepped inside as if possessed, led by Ga-ram. Do-hyun closed the door, and Seon-kyu held the cake out in front of him.
“Make a wish, make a wish!”
“Hurry up and wish, then blow them out. The wax is going to drip everywhere.”
“Woo-yeon, make a wish!”
The candlelight flickered before his eyes. One pink candle and one yellow candle atop a cake loaded with strawberries. To the still-dazed Woo-yeon, Do-hyun spoke tenderly.
“You have to blow out the candles.”
Only then did everything make sense. Ga-ram’s unnatural behavior in kicking him out, Seon-kyu’s awkwardly stiff face, and Do-hyun repeatedly checking the time.
“This is…”
“Ugh, Woo-yeon. The candles first.”
Unable to withstand Ga-ram’s urging, Woo-yeon blew out the candles in a daze. Faint smoke scattered over the extinguished flames. At that, Seon-kyu shouted with a look of regret.
“Ah, the wish is the important part!”
“Forget it, man. What if we can’t eat the cake?”
Ga-ram cleanly removed the candles from the cake. Woo-yeon looked around with an expression that still lacked a sense of reality. Amidst the delivery food spread out as it was, the confetti from the party poppers they had set off was scattered messily everywhere.
“…Ha.”
A short breath escaped him. It sounded like an exclamation, and half like a sigh. After making a similar sound a few more times, Woo-yeon covered his mouth and burst into laughter.
“What is all this…”
Everything about the situation was just funny. Ga-ram being unconsciously nervous, Seon-kyu regretting the extinguished candles, and Do-hyun quietly observing his reaction.
“…How did you know it was my birthday?”
It was a birthday he had never told anyone. It was also a birthday he had never once been congratulated on in his entire life. Today was the anniversary of his mother’s death, and Soo-hyang had always left Woo-yeon alone. He would receive more than enough gifts, but this was the first time he had received sincere congratulations from someone.
“How could I not know your birthday?”
Saying so, Do-hyun reached his hand over Woo-yeon’s head. After clearing away the paper scraps from the party poppers, he straightened the cone hat. Finally, gently stroking the reddened edges of his eyes, he gave a smile that was nothing less than radiant.
“Thank you for being born.”
Ah, what should he call this feeling? Should he say he wanted to cry, or that he wanted to laugh? What was certain was that either way, his eyes stung.
“Hey, hey, I acted frantically so he wouldn’t cry, but he’s doing all the cool stuff by himself.”
“That’s right, they say if you cry on your birthday, your luck goes away.”
It was a clumsy consolation, but Woo-yeon forced himself to swallow his tears. Fortunately, no tears fell, and Seon-kyu thrust his phone forward, saying he would take a photo. Woo-yeon had to take a commemorative photo holding the cake with an awkward expression that was neither crying nor laughing.
* * *
To Woo-yeon, a birthday was simply the day he was born, nothing more and nothing less. Around this time, the rainy season was always in full swing, and on rainy days, his mood would steadily trend downward. That was why, as a child, he had hoped and hoped that this day would never come.
But on his twentieth birthday, for the first time, he felt that it was a good thing he was born. An anniversary celebrated by people he liked was a more precious experience than he had imagined. Woo-yeon remained intoxicated by happiness the whole time, and as soon as he entered the house, he dove straight into Do-hyun’s arms.
“What’s wrong, hmm?”
Do-hyun soothed Woo-yeon with a gentle, soft voice. When Woo-yeon rubbed his cheek against him, Do-hyun took off his shoes and lifted him up like a small child. Normally, Woo-yeon would have struggled, but today he leaned into Do-hyun quietly.
“How old is Woo-yeon?”
“…I want to get down.”
“I’m joking.”
Laughter tinged his voice. Without showing any sign of struggle, Do-hyun carried Woo-yeon to the living room. In his home, which he returned to after a long time, a scent of dry pheromones filled the air.
“It’s late, you should wash up and sleep.”
He shook his head. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to wash, but that he didn’t want to be separated. Instead, pressing himself closer, Woo-yeon spoke pleadingly.
“Let’s wash together.”
He didn’t know when the clothes had come off. By the time he came to his senses, he was kissing Do-hyun in a bathroom thick with steam. Water poured from the showerhead, and because of the densely blooming pheromones, even the air had turned sweet.
“Hng, ah…”
Woo-yeon wrapped his arms around Do-hyun’s back, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. His hands kept slipping, but the tongue entering his mouth was relentlessly persistent. Whether it was water or saliva, a wet, messy sound echoed every time their lips overlapped.
It was hot, soft, and his head felt melted as much as he was out of breath. Even the breath that seeped through their momentarily parted lips was filled with a heat that felt like it would burn.
“Yeon-ah, look at me.”
Do-hyun cupped Woo-yeon’s face with both hands and kissed the area around his cheeks. Chu, chu, every time the lips touched, Woo-yeon’s eyelids fluttered. Beyond his blurred vision, he could see Do-hyun’s gaze shimmering with desire.
“I’m hot…”
“You’re hot?”
They had clearly entered the bathroom to wash, but the shower was an afterthought, and they were only rubbing their lips together. If he was going to be like this, why had he held back so much last night? Gasping for air, Woo-yeon leaned his forehead against Do-hyun’s shoulder.
“I’m standing right here… are you just going to leave?”
As he spoke, Do-hyun gently gripped Woo-yeon’s penis. He had only held it, but Woo-yeon’s shoulders trembled. Since he had been erect for a long time already, it felt like he might come from even a small stimulus.
“Ugh, hng…”
The large hand slid, stimulating the shaft. Because his whole body was wet, the sensation was different from when he was touched before. How should he put it—it was more stimulating, and he even felt a slight sense of fear.
“Should I do it with my mouth?”
It was a temptation like a devil’s whisper. Do-hyun smiled kindly, but Woo-yeon swallowed hard and shook his head. It was clearly an expression of refusal, yet despite that, Do-hyun knelt before him.
“Wait… ah!”
Do-hyun stuck out his tongue and lightly rubbed the rounded glans. Woo-yeon hurriedly grabbed his hair, but before he could push him away, his penis was swallowed. The member pushed deep inside, reaching the back of Do-hyun’s mouth.
“…!”
It was a sensitive spot even when touched by hand. But since it was being rubbed by soft mucous membranes, the pleasure was indescribable. His thighs trembled, and his entire body was thrown into a climax as if falling.
“…Hng…”
Woo-yeon closed his eyes tightly and ejaculated into Do-hyun’s mouth. While he poured out semen, Do-hyun did not pull his head away and drank it all. Twitching in thin spasms, Woo-yeon’s posture collapsed weakly.
“Haa…”
Watching Woo-yeon slump down, Do-hyun swallowed the remaining semen with a gulp. He didn’t seem to mind Woo-yeon’s resentful gaze at all. His softly curving eyes were quite seductive.
“I told you I was okay…”
“As long as it felt good, that’s all that matters.”
Woo-yeon grabbed Do-hyun’s arm and stood up, trembling. His strength kept failing him, but he was fine thanks to Do-hyun supporting him firmly. Embraced in that broad chest, Woo-yeon let out a voice like a breath.
“…I want to do it too.”