BOT Chapter 03

Chapter 03

 

“Evan. O-our lips are touching.”

“Really? I don’t really notice.”

“Could you move your hand away, hngh—”

“You’re sitting so dangerously. Come here.”

Evan moved his hand while smiling with his eyes prettily. I inhaled sharply as his fingers trailed up my spine.

“Let’s continue. To solve this part….”

His soft voice cut me off. I quickly averted my gaze from his dark eyes, which stared at me as if he knew nothing. Those eyes—that said, I have no idea what you are talking about.

At first, it wasn’t like this. We kept a normal distance, just as roommates and friends should. But lately, our hands kept intertwining, our legs would brush against each other, and even our lips would graze as if by accident. At first, I thought I was just overthinking things, that these were coincidences. But when coincidences happen multiple times a day…

“Ah!”

His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me in tighter. His cool body temperature was a stark contrast to my overheated skin, making a strange sound slip from my lips. Startled, I shot up from my seat. The chair at my feet toppled over with a loud thud.

“What’s wrong? Do you feel sick or something?”

“That… Ah, I have plans with Carmen today.”

There were no such plans, but I felt like I couldn’t continue like this. He let out a small hum, scrutinizing me with his sharp gaze. The slight curl of his lips made it seem like he already knew I was lying. The sound of me swallowing echoed in my ears.

“Do you really have plans?”

“Y-Yeah. I should get going n—ugh!”

“Your tie is loose.”

My breath hitched. A slight tug at my tie made my head tilt downward, a dull ache spreading through my shoulder. Evan’s delicate features filled my entire field of vision.

“I’ll fix it for you.”

His whisper was sweet. I had thought my tie was fine, but his hands were already untying and redoing it. I stared, mesmerized, forgetting to move. The slow, deliberate friction of the fabric against itself sounded unbearably thick. Each time the fabric brushed against my collarbone, my body shivered. His languid pace stretched each second into an eternity.

“You’re burning up. Are you sure you don’t have a fever?”

“N-No, I don’t—”

“Your face is red too.”

A cold hand pressed against my forehead. My already flushed face deepened into an even darker shade. Was I always this sensitive? No—it was because it was Evan. It was because he was too beautiful, because he was exactly my type…

“Don’t go anywhere today. Stay with me.”

“B-but…”

I don’t think I can handle it.

“I just want to spend more time with you.”

His whisper was intoxicating. My fingers twitched as I forgot the pressure tightening around my throat from the tie. His slightly flushed eyes sparkled with a delicate beauty right in front of me.

Where did things go wrong? I definitely wanted to keep my distance. I just wanted to stay friends.

In the end, we continued studying together. Not that I remembered a single thing from the session. All that remained in my mind was his sweet voice and the warmth of his body pressed against mine.

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Evan had an early student council meeting today, so he left for campus first. It had been a while since I had breakfast alone.

Rubbing my tired eyes, I yawned repeatedly. My shoulders ached, my mind was hazy—today, I felt terrible.

And it was all Evan’s fault.

I barely got any sleep last night because Evan had climbed into my bed, saying he couldn’t fall asleep. He clung to me the whole night, and I couldn’t bring myself to wake him up, so I ended up pulling an all-nighter. My entire body ached.

The sensation of Evan’s soft hair tickling my nape and something pressing against my back was still vivid.

Since when were friends in BL novels this close?

The original Hyle would never have had anything like a friend, and after possessing him, I had been escaping reality for a while and didn’t go outside. There was no way for me to know the standards of physical intimacy between friends in BL novels.

I stared at Carmen, who was chomping away at his sandwich across from me. He looked so carefree.

Then, a thought struck me.

Ah, he’s a friend too.

“Carmen.”

“Mmm. Why?”

“Can you do this with me?”

Carmen tilted his head in confusion. Ignoring his reaction, I reached out and wrapped an arm around his waist.

Under my fingertips, I could feel the faint firmness of his athletic build.

…And for some reason, it felt disgusting.

At the same time, Carmen, who had been in the middle of stuffing a bite into his mouth, spewed out his sandwich.

Right onto my face.

“Hey! That’s disgusting!”

“Y-Y-You…!”

“What?”

“You were after my body all along! You pervert!”

“You crazy bastard.”

“Eat this and shut up.”

I shoved the bread from my plate into Carmen’s mouth.

“Ugh!”

He tried to say something, but I ignored him. The heat that had flared up when Evan touched me cooled instantly.

I lost my appetite. I scrubbed my hands roughly, trying to erase the feeling of having touched Carmen. My furrowed brows refused to relax.

“You did something weird first, so why am I the crazy bastard, you jerk?!”

Even if this were a BL novel, friends still wouldn’t do this kind of thing. Then why did Evan…?

I ignored Carmen’s shouting and pondered deeply, but I couldn’t find an answer.

⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆

When I arrived at the lecture hall, it was empty. A quick glance at the clock told me there was plenty of time before class started.

Maybe because I lived with Evan, who always woke up early, I had developed the habit of rising early, too.

A quiet lecture hall. An empty seat next to mine.

I placed my hand on Evan’s chair, feeling the smooth grain of the wood. The cool touch helped calm my excitement—until a familiar shadow fell over me.

“Hyle.”

“Ah, Evan. You’re here early. Didn’t you have student council work?”

“I finished quickly. I thought you’d be waiting for me.”

I hurriedly pulled my hand away from his chair. My face grew hot, as if my thoughts had been exposed.

For some reason, when I stood in front of Evan, my emotions felt out of my control. I quickly opened a textbook at random.

The warmth radiating from Evan beside me was comforting.

“Did you eat?”

“Well, sort of.”

I had shoved some into Carmen’s mouth, but I still ate, so it counted.

Evan rested his chin on his hand and stared at me. His tilted head caused his hair to sway slightly.

“I didn’t eat.”

“Why? Were you that busy?”

“I wanted to see you.”

I tried to hide my face in the book I was holding, pretending to concentrate.

Evan chuckled softly.

“Hyle, you’re holding the book upside down.”

My ears are burning red.

When his slender fingers brushed against the rim of my ear, a small shiver ran through me. The spot he touched burned like the sun.

His fingertips pressed against my soft earlobe before gliding up my neck muscles, then gently stroked the back of my head.

I flinched. There was no one else around, but I still felt self-conscious.

I suddenly recalled the way his lips had touched me under the pretense of tutoring.

“Y-your hand…”

“Hmm?”

He looked up at me with innocent eyes. 

No. This time, I had to say it.

Avoiding his eyes as much as possible, I mustered the courage to speak.

“Lately, I think we’ve been touching too much…”

Evan widened his eyes and tilted his head in confusion, as if he was completely unaware.

His hand still lingered on my nape, playing with the strands of my hair. A cryptic smile spread across his lips.

“I don’t really notice.”

“But if other people see, they might think it’s weird…”

“Why?”

“Because… it’s not something friends normally do…”

I trailed off, cautiously watching his reaction.

The smile never left Evan’s face, but an unspoken pressure radiated from him.

It felt like if I didn’t say it properly, something unpredictable would happen.

With great difficulty, I finally forced the words out.

“It… feels like we’re lovers.”

The word lovers barely left my lips before Evan’s smile deepened.

His sharp eyes curved in satisfaction.

I couldn’t understand why he was smiling.

But since I had said this much, he must have gotten the message, right?

I was wrong. Completely wrong.

“I like it. Lovers.”

I doubted my ears.

I was so shocked that I couldn’t say a word.

I had no idea what Evan was thinking.

Lovers. Me and Evan.

I chewed over the words in my mind before quickly shutting my mouth.

I fiddled with my sleeve in silence when he suddenly spoke again.

“The word lovers is so much more beautiful and enchanting than friends.”

Evan brushed his bangs back.

His glossy black hair was scattered through his fingers.

In the quiet morning, in the empty lecture hall, Evan shone brighter than the sunlight.

Like leaves blooming in the summer wind, something within me began to take shape in Evan’s image—just as it had when I first saw him at the entrance ceremony.

His unwavering black eyes contained only my reflection.

They were as deep and dark as an unfathomable abyss.

I hurriedly turned away.

“With just one word, that person becomes mine.”

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