Chapter 43: A Soft Landing

As soon as he entered the studio apartment, Chaewoo’s brow furrowed.

Because the sofa that had been in the living room was gone, replaced by the king-size bed Euigeon had mentioned.

“How is it?”

“What do you mean, how is it?”

He bluntly took off his shoes and walked into the living room, and Euigeon followed with the cushions tucked under both armpits.

The sight of a bed one would only see in a hotel squeezed into a college student’s studio apartment felt incredibly out of place.

Moreover, its purpose was so blatantly obvious that it was mind-boggling.

‘How on earth did this bastard think of putting a bed in the living room just to have s*x?’

“It suits the place well, as expected.”

Euigeon muttered with satisfaction after placing the cushions on the bed.

“I want to cancel giving those to you. Since I won them, return them to me. Let’s just throw them away.”

“Once given, it’s final. I’m going to keep them here.”

As Chaewoo reached out to throw them away, Euigeon quickly blocked him.

His anger only flared up more.

He felt like an idiot for winning these instead of the air purifier and feeling proud, even if just for a moment.

It made no sense to give something to a guy who already had money to burn.

‘How is this any different from a beggar worrying about a prince?’

Chaewoo irritably shook off the hand that held him back from touching the cushions on the bed.

“Let go! Hey, let go, Beom Euigeon!”

While he was struggling as if in a physical fight, those impolite hands suddenly let go of him.

“Ah!”

Chaewoo tumbled onto the bed.

What was more annoying was that his face was buried in the damn cushion.

“Beom Euigeon, you really…!”

“You told me to let go.”

When Chaewoo picked up the cushion and threw it at Euigeon, the man annoyingly caught it and placed it neatly back on the bed.

And then he climbed on top of Chaewoo, who was still lying down.

Trapping him with his arms so he couldn’t escape, Euigeon’s lips curled up as if he were the victor.

“As expected, a bed suits you much better than a sofa. On the day this was delivered, I almost came just imagining Senior Seol crying while lying face down here.”

“Stop talking nonsense and move.”

Having no intention of moving, a hand slipped under Chaewoo’s clothes.

Just as Euigeon was fumbling over his waist to pull off his shirt, a phone rang from somewhere.

Pausing briefly as if realizing it was his, he eventually climbed off the bed and searched his pocket.

Even in the midst of this, Euigeon did not let go of the cushion he was hugging.

With a sour expression, Chaewoo once again regretted his foolishness in choosing this as a prize with the mindset of a beggar.

While Euigeon was checking his phone, Chaewoo sat awkwardly on the edge of the bed and checked the time.

Then he glanced at Euigeon.

In order to make it to his evening part-time job, they had to have s*x now for the timing to work.

If they delayed and started late, he might barely arrive on time or be late for work.

However, Euigeon, whom he expected to do something immediately upon arrival, was hugging the cushion and rolling around on the new bed while staring at his phone, wasting time.

Since it was his first time being wholesomely in the same space with him like this, Chaewoo was at a loss for how to start the conversation.

He’d rather die than be the first to suggest they have s*x.

“Don’t you like the bed?”

Euigeon asked, belatedly noticing Chaewoo sitting in an uncomfortable posture.

“Why did you buy something so big anyway?”

“I bought a big one because Senior Seol went out of his way to leave in the early morning, perhaps because the sofa was uncomfortable.”

“Huh?”

“I’m telling you to sleep over if you’re sleepy. I’ve never chased you out, but seeing you leave in a rush every time bothers me. You even refuse when I offer to drive you home.”

“So picky,” Euigeon added.

“…I’ve never left in a rush.”

‘Isn’t it because we’re s*x partners, so we should sleep in our own homes?’

Chaewoo was confused.

Was he saying this because he was genuinely okay with Chaewoo sleeping over?

In fact, waking up in the early morning and leaving without fail every time wasn’t easy for Chaewoo either.

Some days, he was so exhausted that he could barely stand straight, and he just wanted to close his eyes and fall asleep.

If Euigeon was going so far as to say this, maybe it was fine to stay until morning occasionally.

Chaewoo toyed with the edge of the blanket while checking Euigeon’s expression.

“Why are you looking at me so coyly?”

“…When are we having s*x today?”

“Do you want to?”

“It’s not that… ahem. Because I have to go to work later. I also need to work on assignments and prepare for my lessons in between… If we’re going to do it, we have to do it now so I can do other things.”

“Work?”

Euigeon tilted his head to the side.

Chaewoo swallowed hard.

“Didn’t you quit?”

“I haven’t told the store yet.”

Not knowing how Euigeon would react, he felt slightly cowed.

“Why? Was the card limit not enough?”

Chaewoo shook his head.

“It’s not that issue, it’s just awkward to say I’m quitting right away. It’s not even my card, so using it carelessly makes me uncomfortable. Anyway, if we want to avoid delaying what I need to do later, we have to… do it now.”

“Hmm.”

‘Is he going to get annoyed?’

“Do you really have that many assignments?”

Euigeon asked, as if genuinely curious.

“Yeah, after all, midterms are coming up soon. I think I’ll be really frantic starting next week.”

Although he spoke calmly, he was in a state where a fire had indeed been lit under his feet.

He had to write individual reports, study for the exam scope, prepare for lessons, and even handle the competition.

What was the point of pride; why did he sign up for the competition when he didn’t even have enough sleep as it was?

He still regretted that decision, but persisting without canceling was foolish of him.

He could have just canceled the petty competition and endured being laughed at once.

Who was watching him so closely that he couldn’t give up?

He thought about closing his eyes, canceling it, and staying as quiet as a dead mouse, but when he imagined Euigeon hearing the news.

“Then let’s do it now. Before you go to work.”

“Ah, okay. I’ll wash up first then.”

“No, not s*x. I’m telling you to do your assignments.”

Chaewoo asked back, thinking he had misheard.

“Here?”

“Don’t you want to? If you go home to study, there’s travel time, which is inefficient.”

“Then what about… s*x?”

‘Surely he isn’t saying we should do it while I’m doing assignments, some crazy nonsense like that.’

“We can do it another day.”

Wondering why he was being like this and if he was playing a prank out of boredom, Chaewoo glanced at him several times, and Euigeon pulled a chair from the kitchen and placed it in front of the desk.

Seeing that the pheromones he usually released ruthlessly before s*x were quiet now, almost non-existent, he seemed sincere.

“You can download the lecture materials from the school website, can’t you?”

“True, but…”

Did he really have to do assignments here?

Suddenly studying in a place where he used to only have s*x immediately upon arrival, lie down exhausted, and then quickly leave?

It was as baffling as being told to perform an art song in the library.

Though Euigeon himself didn’t seem to realize what was strange.

“…Then I’ll borrow your computer. Can I print?”

“It’s connected, so you can just press print right away.”

Sitting at the desk in a daze, Chaewoo turned on the computer and accessed the reference room on the school website.

While downloading the files and printing them, he couldn’t stop wondering if this was right.

If this was the case, maybe he should say he’d go home instead.

He felt like he wouldn’t be able to focus because of the discomfort.

But if he said he’d go home, he was afraid Euigeon might act on a whim and push him onto the bed, so he couldn’t easily speak up.

It seemed like he was constantly looking for an opportunity to use the newly bought bed anyway.

Glancing at the wide bed, Chaewoo bit his lip.

Even if it felt like a bed of thorns, he decided he’d better just work on his assignments.

As Euigeon said, in terms of efficiency, it was better to do his assignments here and go straight to work.

“Are you going to study too?”

Euigeon put in his wireless earphones and sat next to Chaewoo.

The desk was wide enough for two people to use.

“I have nothing else to do, so I’m going to choose my competition song.”

“You haven’t chosen it yet?”

“I’m still deciding.”

Judging by his momentum on the day he applied, he would have chosen it in advance.

Chaewoo stared at Euigeon, who sat beside him with sheet music and a notebook, in surprise.

Well, lessons for the competition hadn’t even started yet.

Although Euigeon was still annoying when he recalled blindly agreeing to participate that day, the choice was his own after all, so he couldn’t entirely blame him.

“Hey, you can listen through the speakers.”

Chaewoo lightly tapped Euigeon, who was holding sheet music and listening to music through earphones to choose a song.

Seeing a high-end speaker in the corner of the living room, he seemed to usually play music and listen to it.

Chaewoo also preferred that method.

In vocal music, how the voice resonated externally also had to be considered, so instead of earphones, it was important to directly sense the sound and feeling spreading in the room.

“It will interfere with your assignments.”

“I have a habit of listening to music while studying too, so it’s fine.”

When Euigeon tapped his phone a few times, an art song flowed from the speaker moments later.

The sound quality was rich and clearly defined.

Chaewoo focused on the voice for a moment.

The deep voice echoing from the speaker somehow felt detached from this space.

Because he was always in a state where his mind was completely out of it, to the extent that he couldn’t even grasp the structure of the interior while rolling around with him.

Now that he carefully looked around, the studio apartment’s structure and size were quite ordinary.

Of course, meaning “ordinary” here was by comparison to a spacious and nice apartment, but as a college student’s studio, it was perfectly fine.

The kitchen was separate, the dining table and desk were separate, there was another room besides the living room, and it even had a small balcony.

Although it was the same view he had seen the day after his memory was cut off by alcohol, everything his gaze landed on felt new again.

‘Come to think of it, when is the next heat cycle?’

Suddenly worried, Chaewoo began counting the days on his fingers and then paused.

‘No. Does calculating the heat cycle even matter anymore?’

Since he was sleeping with Euigeon whenever the man wanted, the possibility of pregnancy existed at any time, not just during his heat cycle.

“Did you tell your family?”

“About what?”

Euigeon, who was busy choosing music, turned his head toward Chaewoo.

“That we don’t have to try artificial insemination at the hospital…”

“Ah. I gave them a rough explanation. You don’t have to go to the hospital anymore.”

“What did you say?”

“I handled the explanation well.”

‘I mean, what exactly does “handled it well” mean?’

Chaewoo glared at Euigeon in frustration, but the man only gave an ambiguous, evasive reply as if teasing him, refusing to give details.

It made him even more anxious.

Seeing as there was no separate contact from Park Myeong-seon, it didn’t seem like he had spoken complete nonsense.

Just what kind of excuse had he made?