BP 27

It seemed he was having a nightmare. It felt like it would be better to wake him up. Jae-il gripped the tightly curled shoulders, patted them, and shook him slightly.

Seung-hyun’s eyelids, which had been suffering with a pained face, slowly rose. His eyelashes were soaked, and tears that had filled up without room flowed down along his eyes. It took quite a long time for Jae-il’s silent face to be captured in his pupils.

“…”

Only after confirming that Seung-hyun had fully regained consciousness did Jae-il get out of bed. His steps toward the door paused.

“You didn’t make any mistakes.”

At the added words, in case he was worrying about it, Seung-hyun’s shoulders slumped as he wiped the damp area around his eyes with his t-shirt.

“I’m glad.”

“Let’s take the medicine first. You have a fever.”

“I’m… okay. This kind of thing…”

He was about to say it was nothing, but Jae-il was already leaving the room.

Jae-il gave Seung-hyun lukewarm water, an antipyretic, and one multivitamin.

* * *

The next day, sitting at the dining table, Seung-hyun felt overwhelmed seeing the food that looked like a customized diet just for him. He already felt terribly apologetic for being given medicine in the early morning, and now he had been provided with porridge for breakfast.

“I’m always in your debt.”

Seung-hyun, who wasn’t particularly fond of sleeping in, always woke up later than the man, and whenever he did, breakfast was already prepared. Just how early did he wake up? And where did the porridge come from? As Seung-hyun hesitated, Jae-il picked up his utensils first.

“It’s my house; how can you be in my debt? Besides, I’m the one receiving help.”

“…”

Seung-hyun’s earlobes instantly flushed as he sat before the porridge, hesitating. As the redness quickly spread to his clear cheeks, Seung-hyun rubbed his cheeks with the back of his hand. He thought that Jae-il was saying far too much to an incompetent Guide.

“Thank you so much for saying that.”

Jae-il simply focused on his meal without saying much. Following his quiet movements, Seung-hyun pushed a spoonful of warm, soft porridge into his mouth and calculated the time in his head. If he prepared diligently, it seemed there would be some [Read on Read BL Novels]time left. visit our siteAfter a few more spoonfuls while gauging the mood, Seung-hyun swallowed what was in his mouth cleanly and spoke up.

“Esper Ha Jae-il.”

“Yes.”

“Before we go to the Center, could we practice finding the channel just one more time?”

Jae-il, who was about to eat the porridge, paused with his mouth open. He put the spoon back down and wrinkled the bridge of his nose.

“If you intend to have another nosebleed this time.”

It was a way of saying he had seen enough unsightly things. Seung-hyun shifted his hips and urgently persuaded him.

“I-I’ll only do it for ten minutes. I’ll set a timer. Or how about I block my nose in advance before starting?”

At Ji Seung-hyun’s overflowing enthusiasm, Jae-il waved his hand. Was he planning to bounce up like this every time if a line wasn’t drawn?

“That kind of thing…”

Blinking once, Jae-il suddenly turned his head and blocked his own mouth. He had imagined Ji Seung-hyun Read on Read BL Novelsconcentrating with tissues stuffed in his visit visit our siteour sitenostrils. Flustered by the mere imagination, Jae-il gave a small cough.

“How is your fever?”

“I’m okay, thanks to you,” Seung-hyun said, touching his forehead. His voice was full of energy and his complexion had improved. Seeing him recover in a single day, Jae-il thought his basic physical strength was quite good.

“Then let’s do that. Only ten minutes.”

“Yes. Ten minutes.”

Just the permission made Seung-hyun’s mood lift, and the corners of his mouth curled up.

Unable to just keep receiving, Seung-hyun insisted on taking over the dishwashing. Then he quickly finished showering and roughly dried his hair. Thanks to his diligent preparation, he had about twenty minutes of spare time. Feeling that his skin was a bit dry, he borrowed Jae-il’s lotion and applied it. It was a touch where it was hard to tell if he was applying lotion or just messing up his face with lotion-covered hands. As he approached, rubbing his entire face vigorously, the man sitting on the sofa looked up.

“A facing position is best.”

There were many theories on the fastest and most effective way to open the channel widely—pressing bellies together, taking a facing position, etc.—but in the end, it was nothing more than a metaphor for the missionary position in sex. Unaware of this fact, Seung-hyun took Jae-il’s words in a one-dimensional way. Jae-il also had no other thoughts. He had simply suggested it so they would at least be facing the same direction.

“In that case. I can do it like this.”

The deliberation was short. Having set the timer, Seung-hyun knelt between Jae-il’s legs. His hands, visit stolen contentour sitereaching out without hesitation, were placed on [Read on Read BL Novels]the chest where firm muscles resided. He seemed completely unaware that it was a strange posture. If he became conscious of it, the atmosphere would likely become even stranger. Jae-il straightened his back, looking at a distant mountain for no reason.

“Excuse me.”

With those words, Seung-hyun closed his eyes tightly. His senses became acute, and the man’s breathing and scent were felt intensely. Having done it once, he easily found the fluttering sensations he had felt yesterday. His pride lasted only a moment before he began searching through the detailed textures with an urgent heart. It was because time was tight. To find all these things within ten minutes, it seemed that even pouring out all the energy he would use today would be insufficient. Seung-hyun pressed firmly against the man’s heart and pressed his upper body close.

I will definitely find it.

Fishing line, fishing line. That was the only thought in Seung-hyun’s head. Something transparent, thin, yet tough. The corners of the concentrated Seung-hyun’s eyes twitched. The pupils hidden behind his eyelids rolled busily. Like yesterday, Seung-hyun placed his other hand on the man’s chest and dug deep. He clung blindly, having no idea what physical effect that was having.

After wandering for a while, a certain sound suddenly thrummed from the center of his body. It wasn’t heard with the ears, and it was awkward to even call it a sound, but Seung-hyun murmured what he felt as if talking to himself.

“Heartbeat…”

“…”

Tilting his head as if listening, Seung-hyun’s cheek softly touched the area of Jae-il’s collarbone. Jae-il’s chest, swallowing a sigh, swelled slightly and then sank.

“What is this?”

While struggling in every way to find a clue, Seung-hyun suddenly flinched his shoulders.

“Oh.”

As if seeing something strange, he frowned as much as possible, his mouth opening slightly before he bit his lower lip. Just a little, just a little more.

The thread Rowan described was thinner and faster than expected. Just when he thought he found it, it disappeared, and when he reached out to grab it, it fled like an arrow. As the game of hide-and-seek, where it almost touched but didn’t, repeated, the strength in his whole body tightened and then loosened repeatedly. Only about one minute remained on the timer.

“Ha, Esper Jae-il!”

Since he suddenly raised his voice, Jae-il was the one startled this time, casting his gaze down toward Seung-hyun. With eyes wide and sparkling, Seung-hyun tilted his head to meet Jae-il’s eyes. His pupils, like black go stones, shimmered as they reflected Jae-il’s bewildered face. The hand that had been resting on Jae-il’s heart was now clenched into a tight fist. After staring at it for a few seconds, Seung-hyun lifted it and thrust it right in front of Jae-il’s nose.

“I caught it!”

Unaware that he was practically wrapped in Jae-il’s arms, he beamed with pure joy. Boasting his empty fist as if he had captured something, he looked like a fisherman who had landed a trophy catch. He seemed so thrilled that he opened and closed his hand repeatedly, muttering to himself, “It actually works.”

“…….”

Jae-il looked down at the flushed Seung-hyun, his expression remaining neutral. Instead, he slowly raised his large palm and rested it atop Seung-hyun’s head. It was an unexpected touch. Seung-hyun’s eyes drifted upward. Though the man’s face was expressionless, it seemed strangely softened.

“You… did well.”

Fingers entwined through hair that was still slightly damp. The fingertips, awkward as if the man had never praised anyone before, were excessively hot. A belated sense of embarrassment washed over Seung-hyun, and he scrambled backward on his knees. His cheeks were vividly flushed, regardless of his will. I should call Joy on the way, he thought, trying to force other thoughts into his mind to suppress his turbulent heart.

“Let’s go.”

A heavy voice dropped from above. Seung-hyun glanced at the man’s back as he stood up and walked toward the entrance, then paused while grabbing his bag. He remembered the sneakers on the side table, but decided to leave them. He didn’t know when they might be needed again.

They remained silent all the way down to the underground parking lot. They didn’t know of any suitable topic for conversation, nor were either of them the talkative type. At first, Seung-hyun had considered throwing out a few words because the atmosphere was so awkward, but he quickly gave up on the idea. Doing something that didn’t suit his personality was, as expected, distressing. The man didn’t seem particularly uncomfortable either, and as they stayed together, the shared silence felt decent enough, so he decided to leave it be.

Jae-il sat in the driver’s seat, and Seung-hyun sat in the passenger seat. As soon as he sat down, Seung-hyun pulled out his phone. He wanted to quickly tell Joy the news that he had succeeded in the first task of opening the channel.

It was the moment he pressed the call button. A sharp mechanical sound rang out several times from Jae-il’s gear. Thinking that the gear had all sorts of functions, including making noise, Seung-hyun quietly shifted his eyes to observe Jae-il.

The man’s face crumpled into a serious frown as he read the codes flashing across the small screen.