LA0S | Chapter 35

“Where do you think you’re going? You know if you leave me like this, you’re officially heartless, right?”

Before the words had even fully left his mouth, Lee Jinha was already back out of the bathroom, tossing a dry towel straight at him. The towel flapped through the air before landing perfectly over Kim Chayoung’s face. Without complaint, he simply used it to wipe himself down.

“Me? Unlike someone else, I happen to be a very conscientious person.”

At Jinha’s remark, Chayoung let out a short chuckle. His shoulders shook slightly, sending stray droplets trickling down his cheek from his damp hair.

Jinha turned away, still holding his empty cup. Great. Now he had to go refill his water.

“…Hey, Lee Jinha.”

“What?”

“…”

“What is it?”

Chayoung hesitated—uncharacteristically so.

“If you don’t have anything to say, then forget it.”

“…Did I say anything weird?”

His voice, barely above a murmur, carried an unusual carefulness. Even between words, the sound of his exhaled breaths mixed in, a clear sign of nervousness.

Something weird?

“You did.”

Jinha saw Chayoung’s shoulders twitch slightly. Keeping his face turned away, he brought the cup close to the water dispenser and continued.

“You mumbled something about regretting not eating both drumsticks. If you were that desperate, you should’ve just eaten them instead of giving me one.”

“…You’re saying I actually talked about drumsticks?”

“Yep.”

Halfway through refilling his cup, Jinha pressed the ice button. Ice cubes tumbled out, clattering loudly—too much. The cup overflowed.

Shit. He let out a sharp breath of surprise.

“You okay, Jinha?”

Chayoung, eyes widening in alarm, started to rush over, only to relax when he saw it was just ice spilling over. His previously tensed shoulders slumped back down.

“For someone who hates the cold, why do you keep drinking ice water?”

“Because just looking at you makes my blood boil.”

“Ah, so where has our dear Jinha’s good manners gone this time?”

“Never had any to begin with. And don’t say our—makes my skin crawl.”

Chayoung pouted in a way that was neither agreement nor disagreement, then bent down to pick up the fallen ice and tossed it into the sink. Jinha grabbed a dishcloth and wiped the remaining water off the floor.

“Still, that nap helped. I feel refreshed. Gotta get back to my manuscript.”

“I’m going to bed.”

“Sleep well.”

Jinha barely registered Chayoung’s casual send-off as he walked into his room. The moment he shut the door behind him, he gulped down a mouthful of water. His throat had been dry, like the feeling right before a cough.

The sensation of those strong arms holding him tight. The heady, intoxicating warmth. The husky whisper brushing against his ear.

I missed you.

…Chayoung must have mistaken him for someone else.

Who? Shin Yoona? No, given the way it happened, that didn’t seem likely.

But even if it wasn’t her, it could be someone else he had feelings for. Or maybe even a girl he used to date.

After all, it wasn’t strange that things had changed in the years they hadn’t seen each other. Chayoung was the type who drew people in—regardless of gender.

“…Hah.”

He let out a breath, only to be surprised by how heavy it sounded.

Who Chayoung had dated, or who he would date in the future—what did that have to do with Jinha?

Just having these thoughts felt ridiculous. It was just because they were sharing the same space again, that was all.

Not that he could just leave. That wasn’t realistic either.

“Stop thinking about it.”

He shook his head, trying to push away the unnecessary thoughts creeping up on him.

Lying down would only make his mind wander more.

Might as well work on the synopsis.

Forcing himself to focus, he sat back at his desk and opened his notebook.

—

Jinha slowly opened his eyes.

So I passed out while working on the synopsis.

One moment, he’d been deep in thought, writing. The next, everything had gone blank.

“Ugh…”

He groaned as he stretched, his neck and shoulders stiff from falling asleep at his desk. Just a few nights of proper sleep had spoiled him—now his body protested against uncomfortable naps.

Interlocking his fingers, he stretched his arms overhead before rolling his neck from side to side as he stood up.

It was 7:30 AM.

Early for a weekend morning, but for Jinha, this was normal.

Chayoung was nowhere in sight.

Since his shoes were still by the door, he hadn’t gone back to his family’s place.

“Probably crashed in the studio.”

Despite the late-night binge-eating session, Jinha was already feeling hungry.

If it weren’t for the fact that he usually overslept, Chayoung wasn’t one to turn down breakfast either. Might as well cook something while he was at it.

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, he opened the fridge, considering his options.

“…Wow. Even with a family home, this is way too much.”

The fridge was practically decorative at this point.

Half the vegetables had rotted from neglect. The eggs had expired long ago.

Even back when Jinha lived in a dingy basement studio, his fridge had been more stocked than this.

It was impossible to make breakfast with this. Might as well do laundry instead.

Shutting the fridge, he went to his room, grabbed the box of clothes, and carried it out. Flipping the box over, he dumped all of them into the washing machine.

Maybe Chayoung has laundry too?

Standing in front of the closed door, he hesitated before knocking.

The guy had stayed up past 2 AM working.

He probably hadn’t gotten much sleep.

Well, he is the landlord, after all.

Jinha decided to be considerate—for now.

After setting his laundry to wash, Jinha stepped out of the house.

There was something that had been on his mind ever since he moved in, and now seemed like the perfect time to check it out.

The path from the front door to the gate led past a small patch of soil in the backyard.

If it were a flowerbed, buds would have already bloomed by now. But instead, there were only tiny green sprouts just beginning to push through the earth.

So if it wasn’t a flowerbed…

“A vegetable garden?”

Jinha crouched down in front of what seemed to be a garden. Bright green shoots had emerged from the soft, damp soil, and even in the past few days, they had already grown noticeably taller.

“They’re so tiny.”

Still, they were only about the size of his pinky finger.

What kind of sprouts were these?

Jinha didn’t know much about plants, so he had no idea. If he had to guess, they didn’t seem like flower seedlings—maybe herbs? The delicate little leaves looked fragile, as if they might tear just from being touched, so he observed them with only his eyes.

Did Chayoung plant these?

Kim Chayoung and seedlings—visually, the combination suited him, but personality-wise, it felt oddly mismatched.

As far as Jinha knew, Chayoung wasn’t the type to grow plants on purpose. That guy was a pure interest-driven type—he only cared about things that fascinated him, pouring all his energy into them while remaining ruthlessly indifferent to everything else.

“Is there a watering can around here?”

Jinha glanced around but didn’t see anything big enough for watering the garden.

Guess I’ll have to make do with a cup for now.

Just as he was lost in thought, a loud BANG! echoed from inside the house.

What the hell? Did something explode?

Jinha shot to his feet and rushed toward the house.

Chayoung—did he get out?!

His hurried steps came to a sudden halt.

Right in front of him, Kim Chayoung stood, chest rising and falling as he caught his breath.

“What happened? Did a thief break in or something?”

He was wearing a loose T-shirt with a tiny sports brand logo on the chest, knee-length shorts, and had the swollen, puffy eyes of someone who had just rolled out of bed. His hair was a tousled mess, and his face was still soft with sleep—but in contrast to his drowsy expression, his eyes were sharp, serious.

The moment he spotted Jinha, he strode toward him in long, urgent strides.

“Where were you? You weren’t answering your phone.”

The grip on his shoulder was tight. Jinha gave his arm a small shake, signaling him to let go, but instead, Chayoung’s grip only tightened.

“I was checking out the garden. My phone… I didn’t bring it, so I didn’t hear it ring.”

Even as he explained, he wondered why he was bothering with excuses.

Chayoung’s sharp gaze scanned him up and down—like he was looking for evidence, something out of place. It was as if he was examining him down to his very pores. His eyes lingered even on Jinha’s bare feet in his crumpled slippers.

Whatever conclusion he reached, his grip finally loosened. Jinha rubbed his sore shoulder absentmindedly.

“Next time, tell me if you’re going out. Don’t just disappear.”

“I wasn’t going out—I was literally just in the yard. What, are you gonna make me report every time I go to the bathroom too?”

“That’d actually be even better.”

Does he seriously have time for jokes right now?

Jinha narrowed his eyes at him.

Strangely, Chayoung wasn’t smiling.

His expression was blank.

“…Worried I might run off with your valuables or something?”

“Just don’t run. If you want something, ask for it.”

He added, “Whatever it is, I’ll give it to you.”

Jinha had only meant it as a joke, but the unexpectedly serious response threw him off.

What the hell am I supposed to say to that?

“…Then why did you come out here?”

“Going for a walk.”

“In that outfit?”

Jinha gave him a once-over.

“What’s wrong with it? Did my overwhelming handsomeness shock you?”

Grinning, Chayoung cupped his hands under his chin in a mock flower pose.

Irritatingly enough, it suited him.

Now this—this was the Kim Chayoung he knew.

But then, what was that anxious, on-edge version of him from just now?

The question lingered uncomfortably in Jinha’s mind.

“…You’re definitely still half-asleep.”

Tsk, tsk. Clicking his tongue, Jinha turned and headed inside.

He could hear Chayoung following behind him.

For breakfast (or, really, brunch), they made instant rice and ramen.

If last night’s choice had been soup ramen and jjajang ramen, today’s menu was jjajang ramen with Neoguri broth mix added in.

Neither of them was a light eater, so they cooked six packs at once.

Naturally, they finished every last bite.

—

After getting some rest in the afternoon, Jinha got ready for his tutoring sessions.

During his last session, he had accidentally glimpsed a message on one of his student’s phones.

He hadn’t meant to see it—the student had stepped out to use the restroom, and the message had just popped up on the screen.

[Lee Juhui: Isn’t the class boring as hell??]
[Friend: But you said he’s good-looking, so that makes up for it…]

He hadn’t seen the rest, but just that preview was enough to be a gut punch.

Is my teaching really that boring?

Was he explaining things in a way that was too complicated?

Or maybe his tone was too stiff?

Either way, he decided this couldn’t continue.

Determined, he practiced speaking aloud as if a student were in front of him, adjusting his tone and delivery.

Right as he was deep into his imaginary lesson, a knock came at the door.

“What.”

The door creaked open slightly, and a familiar head peeked inside.

Kim Chayoung.