Chapter 8: Unexpected Intimacy

The stronger the physical contact, the more pronounced the guiding effect became. This, in turn, provided Espers with a profound sense of stability, a fact Jungwon was well aware of.

As pleasure often accompanied it, it was not unusual for Espers to demand more intense physical contact during guiding sessions. Some even went beyond mere preference, outright coercing guides to remove their clothes, much like the Esper Jungwon had encountered at a previous scene.

That was why Kang Seokjoo was so peculiar. Jungwon had never before encountered an Esper who explicitly drew such a clear line, especially not one who did so themselves.

Jungwon frowned, scrutinizing Seokjoo’s expression. ‘Was he merely saying it?’ Yet, for a casual remark, his face held no discernible creases of discomfort or insincerity.

Frankly, Jungwon was curious about his reasons. ‘Could he be averse to sexual contact for personal reasons? Or perhaps he had a hidden lover and wished to remain faithful?’

While such cases were exceedingly rare among Espers, it wasn’t impossible for someone to possess a strong sense of chastity.

However, in Jungwon’s eyes, Kang Seokjoo somehow didn’t seem like ‘that’ kind of person. This only deepened the mystery.

Still, Jungwon had no intention of prying into such private matters. It wasn’t out of consideration for him, but rather a profound lack of desire to grow that close.

Jungwon nodded, responding.

“Understood for now. What’s your question?”

At Jungwon’s inquiry, Seokjoo offered a subtle smile. His question came without a hint of hesitation.

“What is your alcohol tolerance?”

This time, Jungwon truly frowned. ‘Did such a question truly hold any meaning?’

It was both pointless and personal, making it strangely awkward to answer. ‘If this continued, Jungwon would have to ask him to stop with these useless, personal questions next time.’

With that thought, Jungwon opened their mouth.

However, before Jungwon could utter those words…

****

“Just how long… are you going to… keep asking these things?”

Jungwon savored the annoyance in their own voice, then abruptly lifted their head. It felt as though a long time had passed, a sensation like a missing segment of time.

Dim lighting enveloped them, and Kang Seokjoo was seated not across, but beside them. This was a bar.

‘Why am I here?’ Jungwon thought for a moment, then clutched their head and sighed. It seemed the alcohol had caused a momentary blackout.

“…What was the question just now?”

Remembering that they had been exchanging questions until just moments ago, Jungwon asked slowly. Kang Seokjoo, gazing at Jungwon’s flushed face, replied.

“Ah, it was nothing much. I was just about to ask what your drinking habits are.”

His tone was similarly slow. Yet, it seemed he had only matched Jungwon’s pace, for he appeared entirely sober.

Through Jungwon’s blurry vision, his face seemed to wear a serene smile.

“Drinking habits…”

As Jungwon mumbled, Kang Seokjoo let out a troubled chuckle.

“I think I can guess without you saying.”

“I’m not drunk.”

Jungwon retorted immediately. They knew that the more they insisted, the drunker they sounded, yet Jungwon refused to admit to being intoxicated.

“Oh, really?”

Despite the unbelievable rebuttal, Seokjoo merely echoed the question blandly, offering no further remarks. In such situations, a dismissive ‘Oh, come on, you’re clearly drunk’ would typically follow.

Yet, his simple act of tilting his glass without another word offered a strange sense of stability. Jungwon mumbled slowly.

“I’m just a little dizzy…”

With that, Jungwon gathered their wits. First, they needed to answer the question.

“I don’t really have any particular habits, I just… fall asleep. I don’t often drink enough to get drunk in the first place…”

Their words came out in fragmented bursts, and their head throbbed. ‘How had things come to this, anyway?’

Belatedly, Jungwon tried to retrace the situation.

What Jungwon remembered was the meal ending with them asking work-related questions, while Kang Seokjoo continuously posed trivial personal ones. Then, on the pretext that their conversation wasn’t finished, they had moved locations.

Jungwon couldn’t understand why Kang Seokjoo had chosen a cocktail bar, nor why they had followed. But it was already done.

It seemed they had misjudged the atmosphere from the very beginning. Pushing the pace too aggressively, Jungwon had become uncharacteristically intoxicated, which was why they were now sitting in such a dazed state.

“It’s your turn now, Jungwon.”

Kang Seokjoo said. ‘Even amidst this, was he planning to continue their question game?’

Jungwon had already asked everything about work. There would be no problem performing the mission even if they departed immediately.

Still, Jungwon didn’t want to end it with only them having answered. To come up with any question, Jungwon diligently racked their sluggish brain.

“Why… do you work here?”

The question slipped from Jungwon’s slowly parted lips without conscious thought. While curious, it wasn’t an unbearable curiosity.

A fleeting worry that the atmosphere might turn strange surfaced, but perhaps due to their sluggish mind, no regret followed.

Seokjoo fell silent for a moment.

“If I answer that, will you answer the same question, Jungwon?”

Having answered all previous questions without difficulty, this time he posed one back. The very act of being questioned back displeased Jungwon, and a chilly response naturally escaped their lips.

“My turn isn’t over yet.”

“It’s a sensitive matter, you know. I’m sure Jungwon understands…”

Kang Seokjoo’s voice softened, trailing off as if to soothe. Jungwon was quick to give up.

It seemed Jungwon hadn’t been *that* curious about why Kang Seokjoo worked for a government agency in the first place. Rather, they had merely wondered if he might be in a similar situation to their own.

Pondering the lingering curiosity and their depleted store of questions, Jungwon suddenly spoke again.

“It’s difficult. Personal questions…”

“Why did you suddenly feel like asking something personal?”

He hadn’t even answered, yet a soft, amused question came back. It was already his second question.

The original proposal of exchanging questions seemed to have lost its meaning, but Jungwon still didn’t reply. It wasn’t their turn yet.

Jungwon’s head felt heavy, so they interlocked their fingers on the bar counter. Resting their chin on their hands and looking up, Jungwon saw Kang Seokjoo awkwardly rubbing the corner of his mouth.

Though not much time had passed, and it was still not their turn, Jungwon suddenly felt like speaking.

“Because… there’s nothing else I’m curious about.”

But was that truly all? Or was it merely the alcohol numbing their reason? Perhaps the novelty of encountering such a person, amplified by the drink, had made their curiosity irresistible.

Jungwon told themself to regain their composure and turned their head.

“Also, you asked if I would answer the same question…”

“Yes.”

“The reason I work here is…”

“Yes.”

“It’s because there’s something I absolutely must do.”

‘Why am I spilling all this?’ Jungwon couldn’t understand it themself. They knew they would regret their foolishness tomorrow morning, yet listening to Seokjoo’s bland replies, they found it impossible to stop.

“This mission, too…”

Jungwon barely managed to clamp their mouth shut mid-sentence. Even then, it wasn’t due to regaining their reason, but rather sheer exhaustion.

As Jungwon leaned to press their face against the bar table from fatigue, Seokjoo stopped them. His hand slipped between Jungwon’s cheek and the cold marble bar.

Jungwon looked down with dry eyes at the hand supporting their cheek.

“Get up, Jungwon. I’ll answer too.”

Perhaps to rouse Jungwon from their stupor, Seokjoo finally decided to speak. Jungwon blinked very slowly, turning their gaze to his face.

“I…”

‘Jungwon needed to hear his answer.’

Their voice grew increasingly faint.

****

Their head throbbed. Jungwon woke up, blinking a few times with a frown. They were sure they had a long dream, but couldn’t recall its content at all. Jungwon stared blankly at the ceiling.

It wasn’t the familiar cream color, but an unfamiliar, stark white ceiling.

Realizing this, their dazed mind cleared instantly. Startled, Jungwon immediately sat upright. They wondered if they had been mistaken, having just woken up, but a quick glance around confirmed it was no illusion. This was truly a place they had never seen before.

Beneath the fallen blanket, Jungwon saw their own body clad in unfamiliar clothes. ‘What happened?’ So, Jungwon had been drinking, then blacked out…

‘No way.’

A chilling sensation ran through them. Jungwon repeatedly murmured ‘No way, no way’ to themself, calmly pulling back the blanket. Then, very slowly, they turned their eyes to the side.

On the bed, which felt a little too narrow for two men, lay a bare back—not their own—facedown right beside them.

“…”

Before Jungwon could hide their wide eyes, they felt him stir. Jungwon hastily moved away from him, but it was of little use.

Kang Seokjoo, whose eyes fluttered open, slowly mumbled.

“…Ah, you’re awake?”

Jungwon couldn’t say anything, their lips sealed tight. They didn’t need to see their own face to know the color had drained from it. They tried to calmly assess the situation, but simply couldn’t maintain their composure.

Unfortunately, only one assumption came to mind. So, this situation meant…

‘Did I… sleep with this man?’