By Zephyria Tae-jun opened the door to his room, feeling more than just uneasy, his nerves stretched taut. He turned on only a few lights and sat on the floor, running his hand roughly through his hair. He couldn’t stop sighing.
Tae-jun had always lived maintaining a strict distance from others. He was moderately friendly with his high school classmates, and at university, he tried not to get too close to his Sunbae or classmates. He tried to maintain an image of kindness and fairness to everyone, while ensuring others didn’t influence him.
How dare that little brat ruin my mood?
He acted familiar without permission, held my hand, and showed excitement at random times, only to draw a line today saying he didn’t like me.
“Hoo….”
Tae-jun went to the bed and collapsed onto it. Hyeongseop had given him a couple’s room, complete with pink bedding and lace decorations all the way up to the ceiling. The double bed was also very cute and looked perfect for lying down with a lover.
Come to think of it, Go Yumin earlier… his ears were flushed red as he looked around. He pressed down on the mattress and even went into the bathroom. He suddenly got shy, so I wondered if he was having some sort of suggestive thoughts, but it might have been true. If he were a promiscuous guy, he would have been in places like this countless times.
“Ha….”
His thoughts inevitably led back to Yumin. Tae-jun felt disgusted with himself. No matter what he did, his irritation wouldn’t subside, so he went back outside.
“I’m done eating.”
“Are you full?”
“Yeah. I’m completely full.”
Juwan had been so attentive that Yumin was genuinely full. He’d also drunk a lot of water while hiccuping, so his stomach was truly bloated. Any more and he might have indigestion.
Still, only Tae-jun’s retreating back filled his mind. Yumin’s slightly upturned eyes drooped. Just then, Hyeongseop, the treasurer, and the first-year class representative walked out from a corner of the garden.
“Today’s highlight! It’s talent show time!”
Hyeongseop shouted, and the students cheered.
Ah, right. There was a talent show. I practiced singing to look good in front of Tae-jun, but it’s all useless now….
Yumin sighed softly. But the student council and he had already discussed everything, and he was even participant number 1.
“Now, we have some people who will surprise you all, one after another. We invite first-year student Go. Yu. Min.”
“Yumin, you’re doing the talent show?”
“You’re participating?”
Juwan and Hyeon-seok’s eyes widened. Yumin scratched his cheek sheepishly.
“Yeah.”
“I can never figure you out.”
Juwan chuckled and patted Yumin’s back.
“Do a good job!”
Despite receiving plenty of encouragement from his friends, Yumin felt only dejection as he stepped onto the makeshift stage built from stacked beer crates. He didn’t pay much attention to the treasurer and class representative holding their phones like spotlights on either side of him, nor to the dense crowd before him.
In a way, it was a good thing. If he had sung while conscious of Tae-jun as originally planned, he might have gotten too excited and hit the wrong notes. He might have even dropped the microphone out of nervousness.
There were no separate sound systems, so the student council played the accompaniment on a Bluetooth speaker they brought. The prelude of a melancholic melody began to play. It evoked the lonely image of a solitary wildcat crying out, “Kyaong, kyaong,” in the cold rain, perched on the edge of a cliff. Yumin instantly immersed himself in the song, his eyes filled with longing.
Yumin began to sing, holding a fake microphone hastily cut from paper by the treasurer.
“I don’t know love. Foolish me, I don’t know love.”
Yumin’s voice was a clear, beautiful falsetto. It was the opposite of the original singer’s, who sang with a breathy, flowing tone mixed with a nasal hum. Strangely, the dark melody and the boyish voice created a peculiar harmony. Like a boy regretting having let go of his first love foolishly, Yumin sang with a calm sadness.
His pitch was unstable, and he kept faltering when trying to add syncopation as a flourish, but his good voice covered everything.
‘Was his voice always this good?’
‘I know, right? It’s clumsy, but pleasant to listen to.’
As Yumin sang passionately, the audience applauded wildly. Yumin became even more immersed in the song, gripping the fake microphone tightly, closing his eyes, and rushing towards the climax.
Tae-jun was at the very back of the audience. He hadn’t come looking for Yumin, and he didn’t even know Yumin was participating in the talent show. He had just come out because he felt stuffy in the room. But he was drawn by the singing coming from somewhere. It was a clear and beautiful voice.
And to think it was Yumin.
Tae-jun let out a hollow laugh.
As the song neared its end, Yumin opened his eyes, which he had closed. Then, he spotted Tae-jun in the audience and froze. Their eyes met directly. Neither looked away first.
“Hey, Go Yumin’s doing great.”
“Yumin, you’re so cool.”
Hyeon-seok and Juwan, who occupied the front row, cheered enthusiastically. Only then did Yumin tear his eyes away from Tae-jun and wave at Hyeon-seok and Juwan. The two men mimicked falling backward with their arms raised, like fans who had just met their favorite singer.
“Encore!”
“Encore!”
The applause and encore requests were fervent. But as Tae-jun turned and walked away, Yumin grew desperate. He handed the fake microphone to the treasurer and quickly descended from the stage.
Yumin, who had tumbled off the stage, looked around. He felt he couldn’t let Tae-jun get away. He wanted to talk about what had happened earlier again. He felt he had to.
Did he go back to the room? Yumin ran towards the annex, far from the yard. His stomach was full, the alcohol was making him tipsy, and his heart was pounding. He was breathless by the time he reached the end of the run.
True to his Black-footed wildcat nature, Yumin was a fast runner. Within minutes of running, he arrived near the annex. But he stopped dead a few dozen meters away.
‘Wait. If I go into the annex now, I’ll be face-to-face with Tae-jun. Then what will I say?’
Yumin wanted to discuss what he had said earlier, but he didn’t have a concrete, clear answer. It wasn’t like he could say, ‘After thinking about it, I like you.’ Nor could he ask, ‘I don’t know, but Tae-jun, please don’t make that cold expression with your handsome face.’
He felt it would be pointless to barge into the room without any plan. It would only create a more awkward atmosphere.
Yumin fell into thought. He didn’t want to be awkward with Tae-jun. But he felt he was lacking the ability to smoothly initiate a conversation right now. He also didn’t know how Tae-jun would react.
What was the way to be with Tae-jun without awkwardness, yet receive his warm gaze?
Yumin suddenly looked down at his own palm. Squeeeze, squeeze. He repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fist.
‘Tae-jun likes cats. If I were a cat, I could lower Tae-jun’s guard! Yes. I’ll transform into a wildcat right away.’
The excited Yumin was out of his mind. What was the appearance of Kkangi, a cat, doing at a pension in Gapyeong, tens of kilometers from Seoul?
But Yumin had no time for rational judgment. Overexcitement was Yumin’s weakness; he lost reason, common sense, and composure. But Yumin just wanted to be next to Tae-jun. He was curious about what he was doing and wanted to receive his affectionate gaze. If he was lucky, he might even overhear his thoughts.
Behind the annex, there was a dark space where no one could see him. Yumin looked around and quickly transformed into a wildcat. His lemon-colored hoodie and jeans collapsed, and the wildcat’s body took shape. Yumin whimpered and crawled out from between the clothes. Then, pitter-patter, he walked quickly towards the entrance of the annex.
Now all that was left was to cry pitifully and get Tae-jun’s attention.
As he thought this, Yumin was about to open his small mouth when Tae-jun’s voice was heard.
‘Huh? Is someone inside?’
Wondering who had come to this room, Yumin looked at the shoe rack. Only Tae-jun’s shoes were there.
Listening more closely, Tae-jun was on the phone with someone. Yumin, in his wildcat form, had incomparably sharper hearing than humans. So, he focused all his attention with his triangular ears and listened to Tae-jun’s call.
“Grrr…”
The voice coming from beyond Tae-jun’s phone was that of a young woman. High-pitched and thin, it was clear.
“No. It’s not like that.”
Tae-jun said briefly.
“Haa… I see.”
Yumin couldn’t understand the woman’s words fully, so he couldn’t grasp the context of the conversation at all. However, he was startled. It was because Tae-jun laughed out loud intermittently.
Tae-jun laughed so loudly!
Yumin had seen Tae-jun smile many times. And every time he transformed into a wildcat and infiltrated his apartment, he had seen Tae-jun’s bright smile. But he had never seen him laugh so loudly, so comfortably, and without any reservation.
Who was the other person? What kind of lady was making Tae-jun laugh like that?
‘Could it be… a girlfriend?!’
The sensitive Yumin unconsciously extended his hook-like claws and scratched the ground.
A few days ago, when he had rummaged through Tae-jun’s house, he hadn’t found any trace of a woman. It was certain that he hadn’t brought any outside women into his home. But what if they had dated outside? For example, what if he had done everything with a goddess from the art department outside and then came back?
Yumin’s already narrow shoulders slumped.
‘Maybe I was barking up the wrong tree. I didn’t have the courage to formally ask Tae-jun if he had a girlfriend, so I just searched his house, but maybe it was a waste of time.’
Yumin felt lonely. Tae-jun was still on the phone, and the conversation with the woman seemed like it would be quite long. He doubted Tae-jun would even come out if he waited here and cried pitifully, and even if he were lucky enough to get into the room, he wouldn’t feel particularly happy.
Let’s quit.
Yumin decided to turn back into a human and turned towards the back of the annex. But there was a can at his feet. Yumin, who hadn’t noticed it, made a crunch! clatter-clatter sound. Startled, Yumin yelped and quickly ran away. But Tae-jun, who was standing near the entrance, had already opened the door.
“Wait a minute.”
Tae-jun took the phone away from his ear and looked at the cat’s retreating back. Although it was a dark night, the spots on its body and its tail were too familiar.
Could it be Kkangi?
Tae-jun?
“Uh-huh.”
Why did you stop talking all of a sudden?
“It’s nothing.”
No, why would Kkangi be here? He’d be in Seoul. Because he disappeared from my house.
Tae-jun raised his phone again but paused. He remembered his second encounter with Kkangi. The day he tried to get Kkangi neutered. Kkangi had disappeared without a trace. A cat couldn’t have opened the door lock and left, yet he vanished as if he had soared into the sky or sunk into the ground.
Looking back, wasn’t that really strange?
His mind was filled with Kkangi. More precisely, with questions about Kkangi.
Yumin returned to the back of the annex, sweating. His heart was pounding from running too fast.
He sat up straight, closed his eyes, and prayed to his ancestors.
Please let me become human Go Yumin.
One second later, he returned to human form. But the problem was that he was naked.
“Ugh. It’s cold.”
Yumin immediately grabbed the clothes he had thrown aside next to him. In his haste, he skipped underwear and put on his jeans first. Then he quickly put on his shoes. He decided to put on his white socks later and stuffed them into his pocket. Finally, he picked up his hoodie and was about to put it on.
“Who’s there?”
Tae-jun’s voice was heard from just a stone’s throw away. Yumin held his breath in shock. Tae-jun’s footsteps grew closer. He seemed to be right around the corner.
Yumin pulled the hoodie on in one go. And just as he finished dressing, Tae-jun appeared. Yumin congratulated himself for overcoming the crisis by a hair’s breadth.
“What? It’s you?”
“Ah, yeah.”
“What were you doing here?”
“Uh… I had some things to think about.”
“Oh, really?”
Yumin put on a serious expression and adopted a melancholic gaze. He felt he needed that concept to be alone in the dark space behind the building. He thought it would look natural to be here alone if he pretended to be troubled and have many things to ponder.
But that was just Yumin’s thought.
To Tae-jun, Yumin’s appearance was highly suspicious. First of all, he was breathing too heavily for someone who was supposedly contemplating. He was panting as if he had just been running. Also, he had put his shoes on the wrong feet, and the hood of his hoodie dangled from the front of his body.
It was common to wear a t-shirt inside out, but it was difficult to wear a garment with a large hood on backward. It was incomprehensible, and he was puzzled, but Yumin seemed completely unconcerned.
“Sorry, Tae-jun. But could you leave me alone for a bit?”
“…Sure?”
“Yeah. I’m a bit flustered.”
Yumin spoke in a serious voice and bit his lip. He thought this would convey the feeling of solitude perfectly.
But Tae-jun’s expression was strange. He scanned Yumin from head to toe, furrowing his brows. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, and gestured as if carefully choosing his words.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen Tae-jun make this expression. Could Tae-jun also be troubled because of me? Maybe he was bothered by the cold atmosphere earlier, or maybe he has something to say to me.’
He might be able to reopen the conversation with Tae-jun. Then, his ruined mood seemed to recover.
“Go Yumin, you.”
“Yeah. What? Do you have something to say?”
“First, your shoes.”
“Huh?”
Tae-jun pointed at Yumin’s feet. Yumin flinched when he saw his shoes were on the wrong feet. No wonder his feet felt a bit sore.
“Wh-why are they like this? That’s strange.”
Yumin mumbled and put on his sneakers correctly.
“There’s more. Did you put your clothes on like that on purpose?”
“What’s wrong with my clothes?”
As Yumin looked at Tae-jun as if he couldn’t understand at all, Tae-jun let out a hollow laugh and tapped Yumin’s hoodie.
“Aargh!”
What kind of Beastman wears a hoodie with the hood in front? Yumin grabbed the hood of his hoodie and squeezed his eyes shut.
With the hood dangling on his chest and his shoes on the wrong feet, he looked utterly ridiculous. Forget mating, he felt like he could faint from shame.
Should I just die? Should I end the lineage of the Black Cat Beastfolk? Or drop out of school?
As Yumin was about to fall into absurd thoughts, Tae-jun patted him on the shoulder.
“You can change them.”
At his mature and calm voice, Yumin stopped his outburst.
Right. Let’s put them on the right way quickly.
Yumin began to take off his clothes in a hurry. He moved so frantically that his head got buried in his clothes, and he couldn’t see anything. It was hard to tell which was the front and which was the back.
As Yumin struggled to turn the hood around, his pale waist and back were exposed under the moonlight. Tae-jun’s gaze was captivated by Yumin’s smooth skin, slender waist, and firm sides.
‘It’s not just his feet that are pale; his body is too. It looks soft and moist.’
Tae-jun swallowed.
“Is… is this the front?”
Yumin, still fumbling, threw his clothes off. As a result, his pure white upper body was fully exposed. Although it was dark at night, the protruding bumps on his chest were noticeable. That part had a slight pinkish hue, drawing his gaze even if he tried not to look.
Tae-jun stared at that spot as if mesmerized, then quickly averted his gaze as Yumin put his clothes back on properly.
“Hoo. That’s better.”
Yumin, now wearing his hoodie correctly, pushed back his sweat-soaked bangs.
‘I’m embarrassed. I’m mortified. I want to hide right now!’
Instead of acting charismatic, he looked like a fool who couldn’t even put on his clothes properly. Yumin felt the moment with Tae-jun was too burdensome.
“Ah, thanks for telling me. Well, I’m off then.”
Yumin shrugged, trying to act cool. But unfortunately, Yumin’s mistakes weren’t over yet. Tae-jun’s face stiffened severely.
“Go Yumin. Your… zipper’s open.”
“Z-zipper?”
Tae-jun pointed at Yumin’s crotch. Yumin gasped and lowered his head.
Good heavens. His zipper was wide open, and his penis was slightly exposed. Yumin hastily tried to pull the zipper up. In doing so, Yumin’s penis got caught tightly by the sharp zipper.
“Aargh!”
Yumin’s was as fragile as it had never been used. For the first time in his life, as his penis was forcefully grabbed, the pain was immense, and Yumin threw away his composure and let out a shrill cry.
“Go Yumin, are you okay?”
“Aaaah! Ugh!”
“Calm down. Take your hand off the zipper.”
“Tae-jun, Tae-jun! Help me, help me!”
“Be calm. I’ll help you.”