Chapter 2: Chul-soo

Beep-beep, beep-beep.

“Haa—”

A sound that started as a moan ended as a short sigh.

It seemed the alerts always went off when the mood was just right.

Hyung, who had been biting my nape, pressed his glittering wrist watch and let his eyebrows droop.

Before Hyung could apologize, I pushed his shoulder away.

“Hurry and go.”

“I’ll call you.”

Getting up from the bed immediately, Hyung gave me a deep kiss and laid me down properly.

He didn’t forget to pick up the pillow sprawled on the floor and even tucked me into the covers.

I was already wide awake, but I stayed still because I liked the meticulous way he spread the blanket.

“Don’t just leave, eat something before you go! Shove it in your mouth and chew on the way.”

Worried he might go to work on an empty stomach, I pointed toward the distant kitchen.

Hyung chuckled and gave me another kiss, his way of saying he understood.

My Hyung loved to do everything with his mouth.

“You eat well too. Don’t forget to send pictures. You’ve been slacking lately.”

Hyung checked what I ate every day.

Due to the nature of his barrier work, which often kept him away from home, he would peek into my daily life through photos or video calls.

Even if eating was a hassle, I had to force myself to eat three square meals a day because of him.

After a final peck on my forehead, Hyung walked backward, blowing a kiss into the air.

Looking genuinely hungry, he headed to the kitchen before even getting dressed.

Hyung took an apple from the fridge, popped one of the rice balls I’d made earlier into his mouth, and made a heart with his thick arms.

All these small actions took place in just five seconds.

“Chul-soo.”

I stared blankly at his back as he rustled around in front of the fridge, then called his name out of boredom.

As I repeated, “Chul-soo, Mr. Kim Chul-soo,” a pleasant laugh drifted over from the distance.

“At least put on some underwear before you eat.”

“Yeees.”

With his mouth full of food, Hyung returned to the bedroom in the blink of an eye and put on his underwear.

I literally blinked, and he was standing right there.

“I’m getting dressed now, so get a good look.”

“Ugh, you pervert.”

Though he had many perverted quirks, my Hyung was a precious A-rank Barrier Specialist and a multi-talented individual who could even teleport.

As skilled as he was, Chul-soo Hyung was needed in many places.

Lying comfortably in the bed that still held Hyung’s warmth, my eyes darted around quickly.

My gaze busily followed him as he moved between the bathroom and the closet, opening and closing doors.

After finishing his preparations for work in just five minutes and even adjusting the bedroom air conditioner’s temperature, Hyung gave me one last kiss and disappeared.

Left alone, I rolled around until Hyung’s wavelength and scent faded, then leisurely left the bedroom.

Despite telling Hyung to put on underwear, I strutted around the living room stark naked.

It was just me here, after all.

“Ugh—sweet.”

I downed a pouch of grape juice Hyung had gotten from somewhere in one shot and looked around the quiet living room.

My schedule for today was to eat three square meals, do some housework, and then rest well.

Today was going to be a very busy day.

“Ah, the picture.”

Holding the just-finished grape juice pouch, I went to find my phone to take a picture and send it to him.

While I was at it, I grabbed some clothes and sent a photo of the shriveled pouch along with a “hang in there” emoji.

It was my breakfast.

After sending the proof shot to Hyung, I turned off the bedroom air conditioner and went back out to the living room to grab the mop.

Cleaning was a daily chore I took very seriously, and also a hobby.

“What’s with this weather?”

Tying back the living room curtains and throwing the window wide open, I briefly glanced up at the sweltering summer sky.

Breathing in the humid air, I stuck my head out the window and watched the people below.

Where was everyone going in such a hurry in this weather?

There seemed to be an unusual number of people moving about diligently today.

“Is it Monday?”

I peeked at my phone’s lock screen in my pocket; it was Tuesday.

It had been a long time since I’d lost my sense of the days of the week, so I often got the date wrong.

The day Hyung, who worked without distinction between weekdays and weekends, came home was simply our holiday.

While I had my phone out, I checked if Hyung had replied, but the ‘read’ receipt was still there.

He must be busy today, too.

Remembering Hyung rushing out after being called, I also started to move diligently.

First, I need to finish cleaning.

My day started by opening the windows upon waking, lightly sweeping the floor with a mop.

I would also wipe the dust from the window frames and furniture, and on days when Hyung had slept over, I’d do the laundry and run the vacuum.

I always felt refreshed after cleaning.

You could call it the thrill others feel after a sweaty workout.

Even if that weren’t the case, our house needed to be dusted frequently.

Because we have a lot of kids.

“Kids, time to eat.”

As I took out the bag of pet food from the kitchen, the sound of paws gathered as if they had been waiting.

With a bright smile, I waited for the owners of those footsteps and placed the cleanly washed bowls on the floor.

“Did you sleep well?”

Behind Shiru, a gray short-haired cat who came running busily, Baekseol, who scattered her long white fur everywhere, walked slowly.

Shiru didn’t even look at me and buried her nose in her bowl, while the leisurely Baekseol rubbed her face against my ankle once before crunching on her food.

I watched my admirable little ones, who came out on time at the sound of food, with a pleased expression, then picked up a small bowl and headed to the room.

It was a room dedicated to the kids, with Hyung’s exercise equipment and a cat tower.

I had deliberately chosen the room with the largest window and the best view.

“Ms. Yeong-i.”

Sitting gracefully in the VIP seat of the cat tower with the best view of the outside, Yeong-i was a Korean Shorthair.

Unlike Baekseol and Shiru, who were adopted from a shelter, Yeong-i was found and picked up by Hyung when she was a kitten on patrol.

Yeong-i, who had been in a critical condition on the verge of starvation, had now put on a healthy amount of weight and was very healthy.

Hyung named her himself.

After my name, he called her Yeong.

Such a tasteless name.

“Please have your meal.”

Perhaps because she took after me, Yeong-i didn’t eat much.

As she got older, her appetite seemed to shrink even more.

Worried she might become as thin as she was as a kitten, I always made sure to pay special attention to Yeong-i’s meals.

Vzzzzt.

Just as I was stroking the nape of Yeong-i’s neck and listening to her purr, a call came from Hyung.

It seemed he had just seen my message.

–What are you doing?

“I’m feeding the kids.”

–What about your food?

“Didn’t you see my message?”

Seemingly satisfied with my massage, Yeong-i stretched languidly, finally got up, and looked for her food bowl.

She crunched on one or two kibbles, glanced at me, then put another one or two in her mouth and ate slowly.

Even the way she ate was just like me.

–Grape juice is breakfast?

“Yeah.”

From the sound of Hyung’s voice, he seemed displeased with my breakfast.

–That’s just something you drink while you’re breathing. You need to eat a real breakfast.

“There you go again with your weird talk. This is breakfast too. Do you know how many calories it has?”

–Have an apple at least. Something you chew, not a liquid.

Hyung, who didn’t even consider soy milk a meal, nagged me to eat an apple or cereal.

–What are you having for lunch?

“Whatever I feel like eating later. You?”

–A stark naked Seo Yeong-u.

“Just starve then.”

Hyung would say things like that without a second thought, even while on duty and outside.

The embarrassment was all mine to bear.

I don’t know why a team leader would act like that.

“Work well. And be careful.”

–Okay, say hi to the kids for me. I left without seeing their faces again.

“Let’s video call later. Yeong-i ate well today, so praise her.”

–Okay. I’ll call around lunchtime.

Just as we were about to hang up, we both made a smack sound, kissing our respective phones.

I’d caught it from Hyung; I too had come to love doing everything with my mouth.

Returning to my daily routine, I played with the kids after they ate and gathered the bedding from last night’s romp with Hyung to wash.

I also tidied up the fridge that Hyung had emptied and did some online grocery shopping, and before I knew it, it was time for lunch.

“He must be busy.”

Checking the clock, which had passed one, I was about to send a message but stopped.

Worried that a busy Hyung might fret over my contact, I gave the kids some snacks and prepared my own meal.

Today’s lunch menu was kimchi fried rice with lots of egg.

A dish Hyung often made for me.

“Gotta fry it in scallion oil.”

As I cooked with the secret tip Hyung had passed down, I was reminded of the sweet dream and drifted into old memories.

Back when I was the dedicated Guide for Barrier Team 3 and lived in the team’s common waiting room, I didn’t know how to cook at all.

Hyung, horrified to see me skipping meals out of laziness and only eating a single microwavable rice bowl when I thought I would starve to death, forced me to learn how to cook.

My Hyung is a good cook, too.

The me who used to burn even fried eggs could now whip up kimchi fried rice in no time.

I plated the food nicely, took out the ketchup, and drizzled it appetizingly.

I wrote ‘Chul-soo’ with the red ketchup and even added a heart after it.

Smiling to myself in satisfaction, I sat down at the table.

Fiddling with the loose-fitting pajama shirt I’d put on for the video call with Hyung, I stared at my phone.

I thought a call would come soon.

“Baekseol, try sending a telepathic message to your dad. Ask him, ‘Father, are you buuusy~?'”

I met Baekseol’s eyes as she jumped onto the table and stroked her head.

Whenever I ate, Baekseol would climb onto the table and watch, as if to check if I was eating well.

Hyung would praise her, saying that Baekseol acted just like the eldest she was.

Meow—.

I asked the leisurely meowing Baekseol, “What’d he say, is he busy?” but it seemed she was telling me to just eat, so I obediently picked up my spoon.

I dawdled for a long time, picking at my food as if counting the grains of rice, avoiding the ketchup.

I waited for Hyung’s call throughout my meal, but the black screen of my phone showed no signs of lighting up.