PAO 71

Junghoo answered as if it were obvious, and Seowon asked again.

“You said you’d be a supportive husband, and now you’re saying you’ll revere me too?”

“Yeah.”

As Junghoo nodded again without any major change, the spectating Yoo Taeha also became curious as to how Seowon would react.

“Then…”

Seowon paused for a moment.

“You’re not going to squeeze my juices, right?”

“…”

This time it was more of a demand than a question, but there was no answer from Junghoo.

“Juices? What juices.”

While Yoo Taeha muttered with a completely clueless face, Junghoo absolutely did not say he wouldn’t. There was no need to explain that he could roughly think of those ‘juices’ as stamina.

Seowon sighed.

“You said I was your sky…”

“White snow falls from the sky, and so does clear rain.”

“Don’t mention the colors.”

“Okay. The rain hasn’t fallen yet, but I’ll try harder on that front.”

Sensing an atmosphere that suggested he probably shouldn’t understand this conversation anymore, Yoo Taeha quietly got out of the car.

When the two were left alone, Seowon looked resentfully at Junghoo before asking.

“You’re really not going to date me, are you?”

“How could I dare to…”

Junghoo was vehemently shaking his head as if he couldn’t even dream of it, but under Seowon’s direct gaze, his movements gradually slowed, and he cautiously broached the subject.

“Can I call you darling?”

“Wow… You really are a kid I can’t let my guard down around.”

Seowon simply gave up on reacting. The question of what their relationship was had come up a few times, but it was always like this.

And so today, once again, Seowon pondered whether to accept Junghoo as his alpha, or to leave him as Junghoo-mon, a crazy bastard, a rock, or a loon.

“I’m leaving.”

Seowon got out of the car and walked away with long strides. He went into his house without a single glance back toward Junghoo, a very cool and casual reaction that suggested they would see each other again anyway.

Junghoo’s gaze toward such a Seowon was gentle.

The fact that he could enjoy lighthearted banter without his heart feeling heavy, unlike in the past, was a happiness that left nothing more to be desired for Junghoo now.

“Are you really not going to date him?”

Yoo Taeha, who hadn’t understood Junghoo’s behavior earlier, couldn’t hold back and asked.

“Do you really think you can’t dare to date Seowon because he’s your sky?”

“If I were healthy, I would have confessed to Seowon countless times.”

“Hey, you…”

Realizing why Junghoo had mentioned words like ‘dare,’ Yoo Taeha looked at him with a sad expression. He had thought they weren’t dating because they hadn’t truly exchanged their feelings for each other.

“It’s enough that Seowon doesn’t turn away from me.”

“You seem to have forgotten all about your confession at the playground.”

“I needed confirmation back then.”

Because if Seowon did love him, he might be much sadder if he were to die. Fortunately, Seowon had defined their relationship as something closer than friends. So Junghoo felt a little relieved. It was a relief that Seowon only liked him and didn’t love him.

It was when Seowon, having returned home, was just taking off his shoes at the entrance. He sensed a presence and lifted his head, and his father was standing right in front of him.

“Oh… You haven’t left yet.”

Seowon, who had been wondering what to say, offered a neutral remark. He’d been away from home for quite a while, but he said it remembering that today was a weekday.

“I received a call that you would be coming today.”

“Ah, from Mister?”

The number of people who would call could be counted on one hand, so he could deduce it quickly.

“Yes. And I also heard that you said you would stay with Junghoo during the vacation.”

Come to think of it, he hadn’t called his father to explain the situation. As Seowon smiled awkwardly, Han Soochul didn’t scold him further and asked with a placid face.

“Do you have a moment to talk?”

“Yes.”

Seowon, guessing that it was unavoidable, obediently went and sat on the sofa. He didn’t complain, as he hadn’t seen his father in a while.

Instead, he held his shoulders and tilted his head from side to side. He hadn’t done much, but he was tired. It was probably less from the long car ride and more…

‘I was drained until this morning.’

It must be because he had been drained from the front and the back by Junghoo until they got out of bed.

‘I wonder if Junghoo got there okay.’

He picked up his phone, thinking of contacting him, but then put it back down. Because if he contacted him, Junghoo might turn the car around and say he was coming back. That would put someone in a difficult position, so he just left it.

“Are you not tired?”

His father served him coffee and sat across from him, and Seowon picked up the coffee and drank.

“I think I’ll be fine after a little rest.”

Seowon shook his head, indicating it wasn’t anything to worry about, and put down his coffee. Likewise, Han Soochul also drank his coffee, and a quiet moment passed.

This kind of atmosphere wasn’t awkward. He had felt it often after his mother passed away and it was just the two of them left.

Even though Seowon was the type to liven up the mood when they were out, he didn’t try to force more conversation when he was with his father.

In a way, that had made the father-son bond even stronger. Because by being in their most comfortable state with each other, they could be conscious of the fact that they were the only family left.

However, today was a little different.

Unlike usual, there was a conversation they absolutely had to have.

“Father.”

As soon as he thought he had to say it, Seowon didn’t hesitate and called his father. He figured it would only get more awkward if he postponed it anyway. Thinking it’s better to get the beating over with, Seowon looked back at Han Soochul.

“I slept with Junghoo.”

“Ahem.”

Han Soochul cleared his throat, briefly averted his gaze, then met his eyes again. At that reaction, Seowon also looked at him with slightly flustered eyes. It was because he couldn’t guess why his father was so much more flustered than he had expected.

“I heard Junghoo was sick.”

“Ah…”

I should have started from there.

For him, although Junghoo being sick was an issue, the fact that they had a physical relationship had left a stronger impression on his mind, so he blurted that out first.

“Junghoo was sick because of his pheromones, so we slept together.”

Seowon rephrased and informed him again. Unaware that it didn’t make for a better explanation.

“Yes. I heard that Junghoo was very, very sick.”

“Yes.”

“How is he now?”

“We’ll have to see after the tests, but we have to hope it’s not as serious as before.”

At his words, which were said while recalling how Junghoo’s pheromones had become quite stable, Han Soochul swallowed his coffee instead of answering.

“Honestly, if I were to talk about Junghoo, I could say so, so much. But most of it is resentment, so I can’t.”

Within a faint smile, Seowon unabashedly showed his troubled heart.

“I know why you couldn’t tell me Junghoo was sick. But wow, my mind was a mess.”

It was regrettable to think that if he had been told earlier, the time they spent apart would have been shorter, but perhaps because of that, there was also an element of becoming more affectionate when they met again.

Having been apart served as a chance to realize how precious he was, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t regrettable.

He thought that whatever the emotion, he had to let it all go now. He said it with the intention of not being angry at Junghoo and not holding onto the past, but the listener, Han Soochul, seemed to have other thoughts.

“Seowon.”

“Yes?”

“What if, just suppose. What if what happened to Junghoo happened to Changho?”

“Changho? You mean Lee Changho?”

He was an old friend, in a different sense from Junghoo. He was one of his few friends, enough that they had met up when he returned from the sea.

“Yes. If Changho were sick like Junghoo, would you be able to cure his illness?”

Until now, he had thought countless times about ‘what ifs’ that left him with regrets, like ‘if it had been like this’ or ‘if it had been like that,’ but being asked to substitute Changho for Junghoo was a truly unexpected question.