Joo Tae-hyun instinctively hid behind a decoration. It was an unconscious action, but he felt he had done well. If he had gone a little further, they might have found him first.
Seo Baek-han was standing near a statue in Gyeongbok Palace, a slightly more friendly and cute rendition of Haechi. With several decorations placed in a row and chiffon curtains surrounding it, it wasn’t a bad place to avoid people’s attention. How many more places like this does he know about?
Joo Tae-hyun had a bad feeling that Seo Baek-han might have received more confessions than he knew.
“Um, do I have to give you an answer right now?”
“……Yeah. I want to hear it.”
As expected. Judging by the voice, it wasn’t the person who had called Seo Baek-han out earlier. It seemed someone else had snatched him on the way back and asked for some time.
“……Umm.”
“Baek-han. I’ve really liked you for a long time. 〈Haechi〉 activities were really overwhelming for me in my current situation, but I ran only looking at you. It’s not sudden. I didn’t say anything because you had a girlfriend until now-“
“Ah, I see.”
Seo Baek-han cut off the other person’s words gently but firmly. It was a firm refusal that he could tell even without hearing more.
Joo Tae-hyun curled up further behind the pillar, and even that wasn’t enough, he hunched his shoulders as much as possible. He knew it wasn’t directed at him, but hearing the rejection directly from his mouth made him feel strange.
“Thank you, but I’m sorry. I’m too busy right now to meet anyone. Do you understand?”
“……”
“If you have nothing more to say, I’ll go first. Happy New Year.”
“Baek-han, Baek-han… Baek-han!”
What stopped Seo Baek-han, who had turned around refreshingly, or perhaps coldly, wasn’t the pitiful voice calling his name, which even Joo Tae-hyun felt a moment of pity for.
“…Still, don’t you need a Rut partner?”
It was because the person confessing had made a proposal so rude that it made Joo Tae-hyun’s jaw drop.
From where Joo Tae-hyun was hiding, Seo Baek-han’s face wasn’t clearly visible. Could he barely see the curve of his ear? But even though he couldn’t read Seo Baek-han’s expression, he could definitely feel that the atmosphere had completely changed.
“I heard that when an Alpha has a heat, a Rut, they need a partner to relieve their sexual desire.”
Even Joo Tae-hyun, who was far away, could feel that his atmosphere had changed, but the person right in front of him didn’t seem to notice. Seo Baek-han’s new confessor was starting to cling to him in the worst possible way to him, no, to a Trait.
“If I can meet you that way, then yes. I’m okay with being your partner.”
“……”
“I’m not a Trait, so I don’t know much, but I looked up a lot of things because I wanted to help you. I heard that when Rut comes, it’s so painful that Suppressants don’t work? I can help you.”
Joo Tae-hyun blinked, looking at the distant ceiling for no reason. What kind of day is it today? Why is everyone around here scratching the nerves of Trait?
And Seo Baek-han was, indeed, Seo Baek-han.
Even after hearing those words, he stood there calmly. Without a single tremor in his fingertips, showing no agitation at all. As if that kind of nonsense had no effect on him.
After a moment of silence, Seo Baek-han replied casually, “I see.” He must have decided that this person wasn’t even worth getting angry at.
If you ask what the most insulting thing to say to a Trait is, it would be the question, “Don’t Suppressants not work?”
The fact that Trait can reproduce regardless of gender has been praised as a new form of human evolution, but in conservative Asian countries, it is often condemned as a life of madness driven by sexual desire, giving up on being human. The Korean Empire was like that until just over a decade ago.
Second Prince has been at the forefront of removing such prejudices from the public, and Seo Baek-han was being called Second Prince’s political successor. That means he’s in a position to fight off that kind of nonsense at the forefront.
Okay, let’s say they lack basic knowledge about Trait. Even if they urge people to complete compulsory education, many people listen carelessly, and deep-rooted prejudices can’t disappear overnight.
But how can you say such a thing so casually while saying you like him?
For Joo Tae-hyun, who liked Seo Baek-han so much that he had just formed a new dream, it was an incomprehensible turn of events.
I wouldn’t do that. If it were me, if I were to confess to Hyung…
“Hey, Baek-han.”
“Um. I don’t know where you saw it, but Suppressants always work when the cycle comes. And I’ve never thought about having a partner. Then I’ll go first.”
The other person, who belatedly noticed that the atmosphere was unusual, called out to Seo Baek-han, but he had already left.
Joo Tae-hyun was worried that he might come this way, but fortunately, Seo Baek-han strode in the opposite direction and soon disappeared.
The voice muttering Seo Baek-han’s name soon turned into a small sob.
He had witnessed Seo Baek-han being confessed to from afar several times, but the confession just now was by far the worst.
It was true that Joo Tae-hyun was also offended by that person’s remarks, but apart from that, he could somewhat sympathize with the heartbroken feeling of being rejected. The feeling of regretting and blaming himself for why he said those things… It’s what he always thinks after sending Seo Baek-han silly messages.
In any case, it was his fault for stealing a glimpse of a moment that he wanted to keep secret from others, so Joo Tae-hyun moved away, making as little noise as possible.
‘I see.’
A mechanical answer with no emotion in it.
It wasn’t said to him, but every time Seo Baek-han’s voice came to mind, his legs lost strength.
When Joo Tae-hyun saw a decoration that he could sit on, he gave up moving further and plopped down on it.
This also seemed to have some important meaning. It wasn’t meant to be used as a bench like this… But he was so exhausted that he couldn’t get up.
Where did Seo Baek-han go? Maybe someone else snatched Seo Baek-han again. If that happened, he hoped that it wouldn’t give him fatigue this time, at least.
If Seo Baek-han gets a new girlfriend… he would be very upset. Considering that he’s at an age where it wouldn’t be strange to have a fiancé, even more so.
But rather than Seo Baek-han hearing that kind of story from someone who likes him, he would rather he hear a lovely confession from someone he has in mind, a confession that would suit his taste, and feel good.
Joo Tae-hyun knew very well that he could never be that person.
Seo Baek-han likes lovely women with distinct curves… Regardless of Trait, his gender alone isn’t his type.
He’ll never catch Seo Baek-han’s eye in his life, so he hopes he’ll be happy with a girlfriend who anyone can see is good enough.
And he’s going to Pyongyang University to become Seo Baek-han’s junior. He needs to experience firsthand what a Trait-friendly atmosphere is like, internalize it, and establish a good foundation.
That’s how he’ll stand behind Seo Baek-han.
He hopes that when Seo Baek-han looks back, he can catch a glimpse of him working hard to stand out.
In this situation, it seems impossible to talk to Seo Baek-han. He’s this tired, how much more tired must he be? He wouldn’t want to spend his energy on something like a child’s college counseling. He’ll send him a message later, and use that as an excuse again…
“Joo Tae-hyun?”
As he was planning to continue the conversation with Seo Baek-han, twisting his stiff body this way and that, a voice calling him dropped from above his head. It was Seo Baek-han himself, whom he had been so curious about just a moment ago.
“Ah, uh, Hyung…”
“You, your clothes.”
“Yes?”
Seo Baek-han beckoned Joo Tae-hyun. At first glance, it was a rude gesture as if calling a puppy, but he didn’t dislike it when he did it. Enough to run to him so quickly.
‘Seo Baek-han is treating someone else’s precious child like a mutt!’
Joo Yun-woo once saw it and went wild, but since he had never felt bad about it, it was clear that he had steel-clad glasses in the shape of bean pods on his eyes, as his sister had clicked her tongue.
“Why…?”
His heart pounded, wondering if he had been caught eavesdropping on the confession scene until just now. He didn’t mean to do it on purpose. He was quietly holed up because he was worried about creating an embarrassing situation for each other, he was practicing excuses in his head.
“You, what’s with your clothes?”
Seo Baek-han gently grabbed and pulled Joo Tae-hyun’s Tailcoat jacket, smoothing out the wrinkles. They were wrinkles that had been created when he was hiding in the corner, watching Seo Baek-han earlier, and he had crumpled the fabric with all his might because he was so happy.
“What were you doing and playing that you look like this?”
Perhaps because he had been crumpling the Tailcoat for quite a while, no matter how hard Seo Baek-han tried to smooth it out, it didn’t return to its original state.
He knew he had no friends, so who would he have been playing with? He was about to try a playful retort.
But when he glanced at Seo Baek-han’s expression, well… he somehow felt different than usual.
His unique expression and the fact that not a single strand of hair was out of place were the same as usual, but, um… If he seemed strangely depressed, was it his Imprinting?
“Didn’t you know when you left the house?”
“…No, it was fine until then.”
And every time his arm gained strength, he felt a somehow familiar scent.
It was the peach scent that Joo Tae-hyun remembered, the one that had rushed over him when he first met Seo Baek-han on a summer night when he was twelve years old.
It was Seo Baek-han’s pure Pheromone, untouched by anyone else’s interference.
“It doesn’t matter what brand of clothes you wear. Of course, they’re good clothes, you’re Joo Tae-hyun.”
“……”
“So before you go out in front of people, you should pay more attention to whether there are any wrinkles or stains.”
It was something Seo Baek-han often told his younger siblings. Even if he couldn’t take care of the girls himself, he often straightened the boys’ clothes like this.
So he knows that there’s nothing special to keep in mind about him taking care of him now.
He also knows that it’s a care without heart, that no meaning should be given to it.
But, unlike other times, his heart fluttered at his touch, which had a little more strength in it.
Seo Baek-han, who hates showing his emotions in his attitude, was strangely excited that he was showing his discomfort from the previous confession a little more comfortably in front of him.