Chapter 17: Behind a Locked Door

“What? Colonel?”

“…”

The colonel said nothing.

Still, considering that an esper who could easily avoid him wasn’t leaving his seat, this could be called a relatively compliant attitude.

He might even have been considering receiving guiding.

When Juju subtly brushed against the colonel’s hand, the man didn’t pull away.

Instead, he looked down at Juju with a strange expression, and that gave Juju a little more courage.

When Juju carefully took Shan’s hand, the colonel flinched and stared down at their joined hands.

Because he was wearing gloves, proper contact guiding wasn’t possible, but the intent must have gotten across.

‘That should do it, right?’

The more he looked into those pitch-black eyes, the more impatient Juju became.

He wanted to lower the colonel’s guard and start guiding as soon as possible.

“Juju.”

Shan’s voice was slightly hoarse.

‘Yes!’

Juju smiled brightly.

“Yes. Shall we move somewhere else?”

Shan Pei openly examined Juju’s face, still staring at their joined hands.

There was worry in his gaze, concern that Juju might suffer if they proceeded with guiding.

Realizing why the colonel had refused guiding and avoided him, Juju allowed Shan to keep looking.

Why was this man so cautious, so slow to move forward?

Not all espers were hot-tempered, of course, but it was still frustrating.

‘Is he going to be like this even when we try to make progress later?’

The colonel hadn’t given that any thought at all, but Juju couldn’t help worrying about it.

“Receive guiding after your vacation ends.”

“I don’t want to.”

What kind of thinking led to that suggestion?

Juju cut him off irritably.

“I wandered all over looking for you just to get here. Why do you think I even took this vacation?”

“…”

It was rare for a guide to cling to an esper like this.

The colonel wouldn’t know that, though.

In the end, Shan Pei had no choice but to follow behind Juju.

He noticed the soldiers exchanging meaningful looks behind their backs, but there was nothing to be done about it.

“Aren’t we going to the infirmary?”

“No. I’m on vacation.”

When Juju headed toward his room instead of the infirmary, the colonel’s steps naturally slowed.

When Juju turned back and glared at him, Shan followed with a look of resignation.

Juju waited with his hand on the doorknob until the colonel was fully inside the room, then twisted it shut.

Click.

The door locked.

****

It wasn’t like Juju intended to devour the colonel.

It really was purely for guiding.

At first.

At first, it was.

What Juju hadn’t accounted for was the roughly month-long buildup of unfulfilled desire, caused by involuntary time travel and struggling to adapt in a completely unfamiliar place.

Realizing he was alone in an enclosed space with an excessively handsome colonel made his heart start pounding on its own.

That both of them were men wasn’t much of an obstacle.

The higher the matching rate, the more natural it was for bodies and minds to be drawn together, regardless of gender.

At least, that was how it worked in the era Juju came from.

“Please sit comfortably.”

He would have preferred the colonel to sit on the bed, but of course, Shan sat in a chair instead.

Juju shot the chair a displeased look.

‘I should’ve gotten rid of it.’

Because so many people visited, he’d asked Michael to bring over a spare desk and two chairs, and now that was coming back to haunt him.

Ignoring the possibility that, without chairs, the colonel might’ve sat on the floor, Juju clicked his tongue inwardly and sat across from him.

Facing the colonel with the desk between them felt strangely new.

He was definitely different from when they first met.

The colonel continued to look at Juju with a blank expression.

When Juju slowly extended his hand, Shan stared at it for a moment, then suddenly grabbed it.

The instant his large, solid hand enveloped Juju’s, Juju’s body shuddered as if shocked by electricity.

“…Juju?”

“Yes.”

Blinking as he looked up, Juju caught Shan’s suspicious gaze.

He shrugged, as if he’d never trembled at all.

“I’ll… start guiding.”

Shan Pei was a cold, rigid man, but his hand was warm.

For no reason at all, Juju felt short of breath.

As of today, men with big hands and warm hearts were officially his type.

The moment guiding began, an icy chill swept in as if the warmth had never existed.

The point of contact felt both burning hot and painfully cold, like touching raw ice.

Focusing on plunging straight into Shan and calming his chaotic pathways, Juju quickly forgot the metallic stench rising in his throat.

Gradually increasing the pace of guiding, as if crushing a massive glacier, Juju felt Shan tighten his grip.

It hurt a little, but Juju didn’t show it.

Having rested properly the day before helped immensely.

As Juju pushed his energy into Shan, it was immediately sucked out at full force.

How long had he been guiding?

Even now, Shan’s body still wanted more.

Juju realized it faster than anyone.

‘How much guiding does he plan to take?’

It was frightening.

The amount of energy Shan was drawing was enormous.

‘H-hands alone might not be enough…’

When Juju looked up to check his eye color, Shan, who’d been silently staring at their clasped hands, met his gaze.

The once pitch-black eyes, glossy and dark, now held a deep blue hue.

This won’t work.

Juju decided.

“Ahem. Colonel.”

“Is it over?”

“…”

Was it his imagination, or was there regret in the colonel’s voice?

The words let’s continue next time died on Juju’s lips.

He couldn’t even think of mocking him for running away before.

There was no way he could tell an esper looking at him that desperately that guiding was over and he should leave.

Not even as a joke.

“That’s not it.”

“…”

The moment Juju denied it, the colonel’s expression remained neutral, but the atmosphere softened oddly.

He seemed genuinely relieved.

It was like watching an animal’s drooping ears perk back up.

‘Wait, that’s not it.’

Now wasn’t the time to think the colonel was cute.

At this rate, Juju would get drained dry and collapse, while the colonel would go back to his daily routine with nowhere near enough guiding.

What did a high matching rate mean?

It meant contact had to be efficient.

Juju decided this was the point to build toward the next stage.

“Ahem, so…”

But what could he say to this blockheaded colonel to attempt efficient yet intimate contact guiding?

Normally, when a guide brought things this far, the esper handled the rest naturally.

The guide wouldn’t be left to say something as embarrassing as, “Shall we try something on the bed?”

But this was the colonel’s first time guiding, and he looked unfamiliar even with something as simple as holding hands.

There was no way he’d take the initiative on his own.

As Juju hesitated and fidgeted, the colonel suddenly reached out.

‘Yes, exactly!’

As Shan moved closer, Juju smoothly pulled his hand free and wrapped his arms around the colonel’s neck.

Shan looked thoroughly flustered, but somehow, he still lifted Juju up.

Because the room was small, Shan didn’t have many options.

The next thing Juju felt was the soft cushion of the bed beneath him.

One could say the colonel carried him off to the bed without warning, but Juju was genuinely happy.

He could relieve a month’s worth of pent-up desire, build a good relationship with a man exactly to his taste, and solve the guiding issue all at once.

It was a triple win.

“Good work.”

Triple-

Juju’s eyes wavered.

The colonel turned away again.

“Get some rest.”

“It’s not over yet!”

Grabbing the colonel’s dress shirt to keep him from escaping, Juju glared up at him.

Shan turned back with an awkward expression.

Juju tightened his grip.

What was this supposed to be?

Was he really just going to leave like that?

Juju enunciated carefully.

“I’ve rested enough already.”

“But-”

The colonel looked at him, clearly flustered.

From Shan’s eyes, Juju read the unspoken thought.

‘He thought my hesitation over what to say next meant I wanted to end the guiding.’

That realization made his blood boil.

He had been thinking about the next step-

While the other man had been thinking about stopping.