By Zephyria 
* * *
In the dimly lit afternoon, the softly rising moonlight passed over the window frame.
Tae-hwon was lying in bed, nestled in his arms, and the two hadn’t been apart for a single moment. Fortunately, the shoulder wound hadn’t festered too badly, and the bleeding had stopped. The pain wasn’t severe anymore. Kwon Rae-i had washed his cum-soaked body and re-bandaged the wound, so the injury should be fine.
Exhausted, Tae-hwon raised his eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling.
‘Come to think of it, where is this?’
He hadn’t been able to pay attention in his daze, but the bedroom Tae-hwon had woken up in was an unfamiliar place. The furniture was all new, and the room’s layout was different.
‘Did they move the hideout?’
Well, the location of the house they were staying in had already been exposed. And they had killed so many people. With such a big incident, it was only natural that they would have moved to another safe house.
Tae-hwon let out a soft sigh and lowered his eyelids. As he gathered his languidly fading senses, he began to feel a sense of urgency.
‘I don’t know how much time I have left.’
So far, he had been fortunate enough to maintain consciousness as twenty-year-old Woo Tae-hwon, but he didn’t know when or how things might change. In the worst-case scenario, he could get a headache and his memories could return at any moment. Thinking about it made his lips dry with anxiety.
After much deliberation, Tae-hwon lifted his chin and looked at Kwon Rae-i. He was staring intently at Woo Tae-hwon, as if he hadn’t even considered any other thoughts. The gaze looking down at him was hotter and more possessive than ever. He felt like he was being sucked into the piercing gaze.
“…Hey.”
Before Tae-hwon could even finish his sentence, Kwon Rae-i quickly replied.
“Yes, Tae-hwon.”
“Um. There’s something I want to ask.”
After pausing for a moment, Tae-hwon, having sorted out his thoughts, asked him again.
“I was wondering if there was anything you usually felt was lacking with me.”
“Lacking?”
“Anything you wanted to do, or anything you wanted to say… I’ll listen.”
He felt a sense of impatience, as if he didn’t have much time left. His body was heavy like a waterlogged sponge, and he felt languid as if he would fall asleep soon, but he still cherished the passing time. He felt like he had to hold onto his consciousness, and he couldn’t waste even a single second.
“Or anything you wanted me to do for you.”
At those words, Kwon Rae-i’s eyes widened. A faint smile seemed to flicker across his lips, but it vanished as quickly as snow melting.
“Are you that short on time?”
He asked, as if he was pressing him. He must have guessed why Tae-hwon was acting like this.
“Do you feel like your memories are already coming back?”
“I don’t know. But it’s definitely not far off. My head’s already throbbing a bit.”
“Is that so? You have a headache? Should I call a doctor?”
“No, not like that. Instead, tell me if there’s anything you’ve been wanting.”
It was like throwing a pebble into a calm lake.
He tried to act as nonchalant as possible, but he couldn’t help but feel a ripple in his heart. Like concentric circles expanding on the water’s surface, his heart trembled and spread wider and wider.
Kwon Rae-i stared intently into Tae-hwon’s serious black eyes, then smiled again. He chuckled and poked Tae-hwon’s side with his finger.
“I appreciate you giving me the opportunity, but there’s too much to tell you everything.”
“Is that so?”
Too much…? Maybe.
But he didn’t know what would happen right after this. Shouldn’t he listen to what he could?
“Still. Just tell me what comes to mind right now.”
Tae-hwon poked his side with his index finger, just as he had done. Kwon Rae-i flinched greatly and bent over. The perfectly defined abs rising and falling were quite surprising. It seemed Kwon Rae-i was very ticklish.
“Ugh. If I tell you, will you really do everything, Tae-hwon?”
He followed Tae-hwon’s side with his finger, not wanting to lose. He scanned each rib as if searching for a weakness, then wedged his fingertip into his armpit. Tae-hwon was still able to endure it, so he replied bluntly.
“I have to hear it first.”
“Alright then.”
A smile spread across his lips. He must be ticklish after all. Kwon Rae-i gave a docile answer to Tae-hwon’s question with a languid smile.
“There’s a lot of things. Going out with Tae-hwon, eating delicious food, watching movies, playing games. Well… exercising, hiking, fishing, camping, shooting? And other things like that. Spending time together, always having Tae-hwon by my side when I turn around, sticking together in the heat or cold, summer or winter, picking fallen leaves off Tae-hwon’s hair, wiping off sauce if I get it on me, drinking coffee and reading books when we’re free. Yeah… that’s right, going on trips too. Arguing over trivial things while traveling. And also, let’s see. Jealousy? I want to see Tae-hwon get jealous. I’d like you to nag me not to take care of other people.”
“…That’s definitely a lot.”
“What’s this compared to everything? I’m not done yet. I’d like Tae-hwon to call me first. And in the morning, I’d like Tae-hwon to wake me up. Opening my eyes and starting the day listening to Tae-hwon’s voice. And my name… I’d like you to call me more often. I’d like you to pay attention to me. Contact me often. Smile at me… I want to see Tae-hwon’s smiling face. You never smile.”
Kwon Rae-i, with his long eyes curved into a smile, gently tickled the inside of Tae-hwon’s armpit. Tae-hwon twitched his lips. It was ticklish, but he couldn’t smile as naturally as Kwon Rae-i. He only sent a dazed look. It was as if he had forgotten how to smile comfortably.
‘A smiling face, huh.’
Would that include forcing a smile?
It would only be awkward. Would that still be okay?
While he was pondering, Kwon Rae-i had already moved on to the next thing.
“Falling asleep together, showering together, holding hands, kissing, we’ve done these often. But I still want to do more. Besides that, there’s just… dating like crazy people. Couple activities that commonly appear in novels or movies. Picking me up with an umbrella on a rainy day, bringing me a coat on a cold day, asking when I’m coming home, saying I miss you, waiting for you, saying I love you, things like that…”
“Uh…”
“If you include sex from these things, it would really be endless. Tae-hwon, you can probably guess what I’m lacking in that area, right?”
Kwon Rae-i, who had been persistently tickling his armpit, pinched his chest instead, as if he was sulking that Tae-hwon remained as unresponsive as a stone.
“Ugh!”
Tae-hwon, startled by the twisting of his plump nipple, reacted sensitively. Just like Kwon Rae-i had flinched a moment ago, Tae-hwon gasped and heaved his chest.
Only then did he smile in satisfaction and lower his hand. He wrapped his arms around Tae-hwon’s waist, pulled him close, and kissed him on the cheek.
“That’s how I feel. In the end, I want to date Tae-hwon.”
Tae-hwon exhaled in embarrassment and frowned. He hugged him back and lightly tapped his back as if scolding him.
“Dating, you’re really asking me to do that? When there’s no time?”
“Is it really that urgent? You never know. Tae-hwon is still Tae-hwon right now. Maybe we can stay like this for a little longer? And even if my memories do come back, I can convince myself to stay like this.”
“…I don’t think so. I don’t think I will.”
“Why? Is thirty-year-old Tae-hwon saying that? That once all my memories come back, I’ll chop off the head of a rude brat like me and kill him?”
“I don’t know…”
His furrowed eyes became even more distorted. Tae-hwon repeatedly let out a troubled breath and gently stroked Kwon Rae-i’s hair. Feeling the texture of the soft hair flowing smoothly through his fingers, he lingered over his round ear. The soft earlobe now seemed only endearing.
Tae-hwon fiddled with Kwon Rae-i’s ear for a while, then lowered his voice and murmured softly.
“Killing was easy. Too easy.”
It was as if the vivid sensation still remained in his hands.
The droplets of blood spurting red before his eyes.
The dying screams.
And the black bodies falling like logs.
The memories that had been sinking to the depths were slowly resurfacing.
“With just a knife in my hand, I felt like there was nothing I couldn’t do. My body moved like a machine to achieve my goal. …To kill Kwon Hyeon-oh.”
The overwhelming, no, the dominating feeling that he could do anything for that.
The thought that his blade could be turned towards Kwon Rae-i made him feel dizzy.
Kwon Rae-i, who had been listening silently, kissed the other cheek as if comforting Tae-hwon. He kissed him repeatedly, making soft sounds, and whispered sweetly.
“First of all, I’m not Kwon Hyeon-oh.”