25 – TDG 25
The second place that captured my heart was the bedroom.
Sharing a floor-to-ceiling window with the living room, this room was remarkably spacious, yet the presence of a single large king-sized bed right in the center made it feel almost overwhelming.
“Ji-hyuk, look at that bed! From now on, you get to sleep here all by yourself!”
“…By myself?”
“Yeah! Alone!”
I shouted excitedly. Just imagine rolling around in something that huge. It would feel amazing!
As the arms wrapped around me slowly loosened, I immediately dashed forward and dove onto the bed. The soft elasticity coming from the mattress was beyond my stolen contentimagination. The duvet was also visit our sitequite unauthorized copythick and cozy, giving me a blissful sensation as if I were floating on a cloud.
As I hugged the fluffy duvet close and rubbed my cheek against it, I noticed Han Ji-hyuk still standing blankly at the entrance.
“Ji-hyuk, what are you doing! Come lie down too. It’s so fluffy and wonderful!”
Instead of approaching, Ji-hyuk crossed his arms and leaned crookedly against the doorframe. Perhaps because he was so tall, simply standing there made it feel as if he filled the entire doorway, leaving no gap.
“Are you going home?”
“Huh? Of course I have to. You need to rest, and if I stay too late, you won’t be able to.”
“Why wouldn’t I be able to rest just because Hyung is here?”
His voice was blunt, as if he were picking a fight. I felt bewildered by Ji-hyuk’s attitude, which now radiated dissatisfaction—where had the person who was enjoying himself with me just a moment ago gone? Why did he suddenly seem upset?
“Well… you probably want to be alone for at least today.”
When we lived in the dorms, there was almost no privacy. Now that he had finally been recognized for his abilities after all that hardship and had a wonderful home, wouldn’t he want some time to himself for once? I thought he would be pleased… Did I misread the situation?
Ji-hyuk remained silent for a while, making me nervous, before he finally uncrossed his arms, stepped closer, and reached out his hand.
“Then at least have dinner before you go.”
The expression he wore as he looked at me was the same as usual. Was the tension from a moment ago just my imagination? Relieved for reasons I couldn’t quite grasp, I quickly took Ji-hyuk’s hand and pulled myself up.
The only thing inside the grand refrigerator in the kitchen was water. It seemed too late to order delivery, so I went to the convenience store on the first floor of the building and bought several things to eat, including triangle kimbap.
Sitting in the middle of the living room of such a luxury penthouse, looking down at the midnight view of the Han River while opening triangle kimbap and retort meatballs… the balance of this scene was somehow hilarious. Looking at the atmosphere of the house, it felt like I should be doing some fancy knife work.
As I was diligently setting the table with the food heated in the microwave, Ji-hyuk placed something down beside me with a thud.
“…Wine?”
Ji-hyuk pointed over his shoulder toward the wine cellar with his thumb.
Right, that’s true. This house had something like that too. The lineup was quite diverse and rich, with a good variety of wines, whiskies, brandies, and distilled spirits.
A formal dinner consisting only of convenience store food for such a monumental first move-in would have been a bit disappointing, but with good alcohol, that regret faded. When else would I get to feel this kind of vibe?
Holding the wine bottle, I inserted the opener I received from Ji-hyuk into the cork.
Beep, beep, beep—.
An alarm bell was ringing incessantly, sounding like a rural train in the distance.
Stop it. I feel like my head is going to split. The sound is vibrating through my entire skull. Unable to even open my eyes, I groaned and reached out, groping everywhere the phone might be, but I couldn’t even feel a nightstand. No matter where I touched, the duvet and sheets seemed endless.
What is this wasteland? Was my bed always this wide?
Feeling a strange sense of unfamiliarity, I forced my eyelids open.
Lifting my face, which had been squashed from sleeping face-down, I looked around and realized I was in a place I didn’t recognize at all. Panicking, I tried to bolt upright, but I finally relaxed upon discovering Han Ji-hyuk sleeping beside me.
This was the master bedroom of the penthouse from yesterday. And I was on that super large king-sized bed I had admired so much.
“Damn… I ended up not going home…”
A cracked voice leaked from my throat. My mouth felt tacky, and my throat was as scratchy as a desert during a sandstorm. It was because I had overdrank last night.
The homeowner had stayed calm, but the guest had gotten carried away by the mood and drank recklessly. The wine was sweeter than I thought… and why did the liqueur taste so good? I was paying the price the next morning for drinking a reckless mix of everything. The sound of a gong clanging near my temples since a while ago was my own doing.
Damn, this hangover… is brutal. It’s killing me. While I was clutching my head and groaning, I noticed Ji-hyuk lying diagonally across the bed and tilted my head.
‘Huh? But why is this guy shirtless?’
Don’t tell me he’s completely naked? My heart sank, and I hurriedly pulled back the duvet, only to be instantly relieved.
‘He’s wearing pants…’
Of course. What was I thinking? Honestly.
What’s the big deal if two guys are naked?
As for Han Ji-hyuk’s missing top, it seemed I was wearing it. No matter how I looked at it, the color and the star-pattern print on it were identical. He must have changed me while I was asleep; to make sure Hyung didn’t catch a cold, he put the top on me and kept the bottoms for himself. His thoughtfulness is incredible; I’m truly touched.
I told him I’d let him rest, but I ended up making him take care of a drunken mess of a Hyung. I’m so ashamed. I hope I didn’t make a scene while drunk. If I did that, I’m truly a failure as a human… Fearing I might wake the sleeping boy, I tried to crawl out of the mattress as quietly as possible, scooting my hips back, when something snatched my waist and violently yanked me backward.
“Aaagh!”
A scream burst out naturally as my body was flipped over. While I was still dazed from being thrown down, Han Ji-hyuk wrapped both arms around me, rested his chin on the crown of my head, and muttered in a sleep-laden voice.
“Where are you going…”
“I-I have to… wake up, it’s seven o’clock!”
“He said it’s fine as long as I’m out by 12.”
“Who? Esper Song Hyun-ho?”
“Mm-hmm…”
“I didn’t hear that?”
“A message came to the watch while Hyung was drinking.”
Only then did I stop struggling. Come by 12? That meant the other Espers were coming out then too. Trapped in Ji-hyuk’s arms like [unauthorized copy]a model prisoner caught during an escape attempt, I smacked my lips and asked cautiously.
“By any chance, last night… I didn’t… make a scene while drunk… did I?”
“……Yeah.”
Why did it take three seconds to answer that? What was with those suspicious three seconds, what was it!
…I did.
I did.
I made a scene!
To get drunk and make a fool of myself in front of a younger one, and even black out… what a disgrace. I’m too embarrassed to live.
I’m usually a light drinker, so I’ve Read on Read BL Novelsalways paced myself, but this time I seem to [Read on Read BL Novels]have lost all restraint.
I’m never drinking again.
I stroked Ji-hyuk’s hair and reasoned with him.
“Then you rest and come out at twelve. Hyung has work, so I have to go to the office.”
“What work…?”
“I need to stop by the office to greet the Seonbaes after a long time and handle some paperwork…”
“Is it urgent?”
“It’s not urgent, but…”
“Then don’t go.”
Now, look at this guy.
Does he think everything works just because he begs with that handsome face?
“Uh-uh. Don’t be like this. Hyung has to go.”
“Don’t go…”
“Noooo…!”
I tried pushing with enough strength to make my arms tremble, but Ji-hyuk’s arms, which entwined my body, didn’t budge an inch. Moreover, I was at a disadvantage because he was burying me into the mattress with half his body. Unlike me, who was struggling so hard my face turned red, Han Ji-hyuk looked completely unfazed, keeping his eyes closed peacefully as if he were still sleeping, which was the more infuriating part.
Good grief… this is unbelievable. This brat thinks his Hyung is a joke… just because I treated him with love because he was cute… Hey, Han Ji-hyuk, you punk! You’re going to be this disobedient? Once Hyung gets angry…!
The moment I decided to glare and [Read on Read BL Novels]raise my voice, Ji-hyuk pushed [visit our site]his face close and pleaded pitifully.
“Don’t go, please…?”
Kugh. This is driving me crazy.
Unable to defeat Han Ji-hyuk, who was employing his ultimate clinging technique, I eventually lay there for another 30 minutes before succeeding in detaching him using desperate persuasion and negotiation skills. No, actually, it would be hard to say I “detached” him.
“Are you… really coming with me?”
Ji-hyuk replied as he pulled his head through his shirt.
“Yeah. How could I let Hyung go alone?”
I managed just fine on my own for five years while you were gone.
In the end, he insisted on coming to work with me and followed me out.
I felt that if I tried to stop him from following, I might end up unable to leave the house myself, so I decided to take him along. I figured I could just drop him off at their office once we arrived.
…That plan of mine was derailed by something absurd.
- Haha, sorry! I forgot to register Ji-hyuk’s information in the security system!
What is he talking about? Of all things to forget. I stared at the silent door of Esper Team 1 and asked into my watch.
“Then how do we get into the office?”
- You can’t! Someone from our team will arrive by 12, so until then, please have Guide Seo Joo-won protect him! I’m counting on you!
“What? What did you say? Esper Song Hyun-ho! Song—”
…He hung up.
A red “disconnected” screen blinked on the watch face.
Seriously, this man just spoke cheerfully by himself and hung up! I’m not dealing with a lost child, what do [Read on Read BL Novels]unauthorized copyyou [unauthorized copy]mean “protect him,” seriously!
Looking at Han Ji-hyuk, who seemed perfectly satisfied just holding my hand, completely indifferent to whether the office door was open or closed, I went through a moment of intense internal conflict.
‘What should I do. Is it okay to have an Esper sitting in our office?’
I haven’t worked at the Center for long, so I don’t know the detailed regulations. But since we use the same building, is there any reason it wouldn’t be okay? Since worrying alone wouldn’t give me an answer, I decided to just take him in.
As I scanned my card and entered, Seonbae Yoon Soo-jeong casually poked her head out from behind her monitor, then jumped up in surprise.
“Oh my, Joo-won!!”
“It’s been a while, Seonbae. Have you been doing well?”
Soo-jeong Seonbae threw down the documents she was holding and rushed over to grab both my hands tightly.
“My goodness! It’s been so long! Isn’t this the first time since Read on Read BL Novelsyou left for your dedicated assignment?”
“Haha, I stopped by the team at least once a week, but you were never there whenever I did.”
“Yeah, I heard from the Team leader or Ho-jin. I guess our timing just never matched, right?”
“Unfortunately, that was the case. Nothing special happened in the meantime, right?”
“Me? Same as always. You look like you’ve lost some weight. Your eyes look hollow. Did you not sleep?”
That’s because I drank my head off last night…
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