Chapter 3: Found Out

‘Is he looking at me?’

Ever since the day he fell, Jun-ho had been catching his eye unusually often. Just now, the moment he’d casually glanced toward the student center, he’d made eye contact with Jun-ho standing right there—so it probably wasn’t just his imagination.

The photography department’s major classes were mostly concentrated in the media building and lecture halls, and they shared some overlapping courses, so running into him from time to time wasn’t unusual. But it had never been this frequent—strangely, over the past few days, Jun-ho appeared several times a day.

He’d never even managed to strike up a conversation, let alone exchange a proper eye-contact greeting—he always looked away quickly. But Min-hyeon couldn’t stop thinking about Jun-ho. Even these chance encounters made him read meaning into them.

‘No, maybe he’s just looking at me because I keep staring at him too much…’

If you keep feeling someone’s gaze and turning around to see the same person every time—well, that could be the case, couldn’t it? That was far more plausible than Jun-ho actually being interested in him and looking his way.

‘Ugh. That would suck…’

The thought of being seen as some kind of stalker, with my gaze following him everywhere I go… But I’ve never followed Jun-ho around overtly enough to be called a stalker—if he actually thought of me that way, that would be so unfair.

Min-hyeon sighed. He’d been sighing a lot lately. Back in high school, he’d thought everything would be great once he got to college, but reality wasn’t quite like that.

His studies were boring, he was awkward with his classmates, and in front of Jun-ho—whom he admired—he’d made a complete fool of himself by falling and embarrassing himself in every possible way. If that were all, it might be bearable, but if Jun-ho really did misunderstand him as a stalker…

“This sucks, seriously.”

He felt depressed. About everything. Even the unusually bright, beautiful weather today seemed to only deepen his gloom.

Min-hyeon let out a long, held breath. Then he sent a message to Min-woo, letting him know that his last class had been canceled.

Min-woo hyung
It’ll take about 30 minutes, so don’t wait outside—stay inside the school and come out when I call.
15:02

Min-hyeon replied with just two “okay” marks and casually rolled his eyes to check the spot where Jun-ho had been. But no one was there anymore. Even if he had stayed, Min-hyeon probably wouldn’t have been able to do anything besides sneak glances—but still, he felt a little disappointed.

“What should I do in the meantime?”

It was awkward. Thirty minutes was too short to really do anything, yet too long to just stand around doing nothing.

“Maybe I’ll go to the student center.”

With nothing else to do, he might as well grab a drink at the student center cafeteria.

The library was too far and he couldn’t be bothered. Maybe it was because the sun was so bright today, but his throat felt a little dry…

Min-hyeon mentally listed all the reasons he should go to the student center. As if to insist that he definitely wasn’t going there with any other intention.

The cafeteria was quiet. Scattered people sat here and there, but Jun-ho wasn’t among them. Min-hyeon dropped his head in slight disappointment. Then he noticed tiny red stains dotted along the hem of his T-shirt.

“When did this get on here?”

He must have spilled something during lunch earlier. It wasn’t like he was really that thirsty anyway—he might as well try to clean this off while he waited. Min-hyeon trudged toward the restroom.

As he opened the restroom door, he heard a small, suppressed sound. Min-hyeon thought nothing of it.

The men’s restroom was structured so that you couldn’t see inside immediately upon opening the door—you had to step through and walk a short corridor before the interior came into view.

Rounding the corner, Min-hyeon saw two people standing against the restroom wall, kissing fervently. Only then did he realize what the sound had been. Freezing in place, his eyes locked onto one of the figures.

Dark brown hair that softly veiled the gentle corners of his eyes. A white dress shirt with sleeves loosely rolled up, and black slacks that fit so well they emphasized his long legs even more.

‘No, it’s a stranger.’

Min-hyeon denied it. That person—with skin so pale it made his flushed eye area stand out even more—couldn’t possibly be Jun-ho.

Min-hyeon denied the scene before him, squeezing his eyes shut and opening them again. But nothing changed.

Is this a dream?

That was the first thought that crossed his mind—the scene before him felt so utterly devoid of reality.

Except for the fact that the setting was a men’s restroom in the student center, in broad daylight when anyone could walk in at any time, it was like a scene from a sensual film.

Min-hyeon’s eyes were fixed on the man who was showering the other with fervent kisses. The afternoon sunlight shattered across his lowered long lashes, a sight so painfully beautiful it was almost unbearable.

Unable to step further in or back out, Min-hyeon stood frozen. He simply couldn’t process it as real.

Then, for a moment, his eyes met with the person who had been facing his direction. His pupils, reflecting the hot afternoon sunlight, seemed to gleam a faint blue.

Maybe the eye contact was just his imagination. He paid no attention to Min-hyeon’s presence and remained absorbed in the kiss. The hand that had been tenderly cupping his partner’s nape slid down to embrace their back. Then, as if suddenly parting his lips, he deliberately turned his head toward Min-hyeon.

The lips that had briefly parted soon pressed together again, as if even that fleeting gap was too long to bear. The delicate face, tilting to deepen the kiss, was one he knew all too well.

How could he not recognize that face? No matter how much he tried to deny it, there was no escaping it now.

‘So he was… gay.’

Min-hyeon spun around to flee. He couldn’t bear to watch any longer.

But before he could take even a single step, he heard a thud from behind—the sound of something collapsing. Startled, Min-hyeon turned back.

“Oh!”

What had fallen was the man who had been sharing a deep kiss with Jun-ho just moments ago. The man lay on his side, his face hidden. One arm lay sprawled carelessly on the floor, impossibly pale.

Min-hyeon wanted to rush to him immediately. But he couldn’t. Without so much as a glance at the fallen man, Jun-ho was staring straight at Min-hyeon. Captivated by those eyes that held only him, Min-hyeon couldn’t move a single step.

I’m being devoured.

The thought struck him in an instant. Min-hyeon could barely breathe, held captive by his gaze. Even the early cicadas crying loudly outside failed to reach his ears—he was so wholly focused on Jun-ho.

Jun-ho slowly raised his hand. Min-hyeon’s gaze followed.

His thumb touched the slightly upturned corner of his mouth, moving so languidly it was almost tantalizing to watch.

Min-hyeon watched, mesmerized, as he leisurely wiped his own lips. A dry swallow went down his throat.

His beautifully shaped lips were pressed and distorted beneath the finger that crept slowly up to his lip line. Between his parted lips, a flash of red… Min-hyeon’s heart raced.

Only after the thumb descended as slowly as it had risen and left his lips did Min-hyeon realize he’d been holding his breath. He exhaled the built-up air. Seeing him do so, Jun-ho seemed to smile faintly.

Jun-ho’s gaze finally left Min-hyeon. He looked down at his own thumb. Min-hyeon followed his eyes.

On the smoothly extended white finger, a red stain clung as if the color of his lips had transferred. Jun-ho brought his finger near his lips once more. A crimson tongue slipped out between his lips and licked it.

Min-hyeon squeezed his eyes shut. Then he turned away. If their eyes met again, he felt he wouldn’t be able to escape that relentless gaze.

Only after turning his back on Jun-ho did he manage to open his eyes and scramble away from the spot. The rough slam of the door echoed loudly through the corridor.

Min-hyeon ran. He ran so frantically that before he knew it, he was in front of the main gate.

“Choi Min-hyeon!”

Min-hyeon stumbled so badly he nearly fell over his own feet. Min-woo spotted him and rushed over, grabbing hold of him.

“H-hyung?”

“Watch where you’re going! What if you fell?!”

“When did you get here?”

“Hey! Why weren’t you answering your phone?!”

“Phone? The phone. Ah… you called.”

Min-hyeon was completely flustered. There were over twenty missed calls. It was already past four o’clock.

“Sorry. I was lost in thought and didn’t hear it.”

“You! Do you know how worried I—! Hoo.”

Min-woo looked ready to explode, but he suddenly stopped, gritted his teeth, and let out a deep breath. After repeating several deep breaths to calm himself, he asked in a low voice.

“Are you hurt?”

“Huh?”

“Did you sprain anything? Are you in pain anywhere?”

“No, I’m fine.”

Not entirely satisfied with that answer, Min-woo crouched down and firmly pressed Min-hyeon’s ankles to check. Sweat beaded on Min-woo’s forehead and trickled down his cheek. His complexion was pale, almost blue-tinged.

Min-hyeon cautiously apologized again.

“I’m really sorry, hyung. I didn’t ignore you on purpose—I genuinely didn’t hear it…”

“Get in the car first. We’ll talk at home.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Min-woo was the type to act as if the world was ending if he couldn’t reach Min-hyeon for just five minutes—how much must he have been worrying? Min-hyeon could only watch his brother’s reactions nervously.

Despite Min-woo’s heavy breathing, the car started off very gently. Min-hyeon apologized once more, sincerely.

“I’m truly sorry for making you worry. From now on, I’ll really answer my calls.”

“Did something happen?”

“Nothing happened. I was just lost in thought for a bit.”

“Thinking so hard about what?”

“Just… various things…”

“Pay attention to your surroundings and be careful. Don’t run. You’re not at an age where I should have to tell you these things one by one.”

“Mhm.”

He’d expected to be scolded more, but surprisingly, Min-woo fell silent after that. Min-hyeon turned his head to look out the car window. The indistinct scenery rushed past in a blur.

‘What was that…’

Jun-ho’s persistent gaze clung to his mind, refusing to leave. Sighs kept escaping him. Yet even after sighing, not a trace of relief came. His chest felt tightly blocked. No matter how deeply he exhaled, there was no way to ease the suffocating feeling.

Min-hyeon pressed his forehead against the car window and closed his eyes. Min-woo watched him carefully.

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