PEN Vol 3 Ch. 11 

Cheon Sejoo looked up with a puzzled expression.

Even though it was the first time he’d brought a guest home, he couldn’t believe Kwon Sejin was so considerate of others. If he were usually like this, it would have shown by now. There had to be something else behind Sejin’s unusually kind behavior.

“You… did you have midterms or something?”

Convinced that Sejin was acting this way because he’d done something wrong, Cheon Sejoo put down his chopsticks and asked with a cold expression. Sejin, looking offended at his accusation, snorted and lifted his spoon. He ate his rice and soup as if nothing was wrong and replied.

“I did. I already told you, I did fine.”

“Well, we’ll see if you did fine once the report cards come out.”

But Sejin was confident. In East Seoul Boys High School, even as a third-year, less than ten students in their entire grade were actually serious about studying. In such an environment, it was almost impossible not to rise in rank with a bit of effort, so Sejin believed he’d make it into the top five in his class. After all, on the last day of the midterms, there were only five students, including him, who hadn’t dozed off and had finished solving the test papers.

However, Cheon Sejoo still didn’t believe him. He tapped the table with his fingers as he questioned Sejin further.

“You must’ve done something wrong to act like this. What is it? Did you break something while cleaning? It’s alright, so tell me honestly.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong so what’s there to tell? Just eat your food.”

“What is it then? It’s strange. You’re offering your room to someone you don’t even know.”

Cheon Sejoo was persistent. He pestered Sejin, convinced that he was up to something. But Kwon Sejin, on the other hand, truly wasn’t hiding anything.

It was just… he couldn’t let Cheon Sejoo share the same bed with that guy. Cheon Sejoo was tall, had broad shoulders, and muscular, while the man he had carried in was even smaller and frailer than Sejin himself.

What if, while sleeping in the same bed, Cheon Sejoo accidentally crushed the guy in his sleep?

What if he suffocated him?

Sejin simply couldn’t live in a house where someone had died. The thought of that poor guy turning into a ghost after being squashed to death by Cheon Sejoo terrified him. That was it. After all, this was Cheon Sejoo’s house. Sejin was just a guest, merely a hired hand, so it was only right for him to give up his room for a guest when needed. It was the proper thing to do.

“I don’t mind sleeping in the living room. So, don’t make the guest uncomfortable, and let him sleep comfortably in my room.”

Sejin said this with genuine conviction, but then, an unexpected answer came from Cheon Sejoo. After staring at Sejin, still suspicious, he sighed and spoke.

“That’s your room. I’m not going to kick you out of it. I’ll sleep in the living room, so let’s leave it at that. Now, eat.”

“……”

Sejin opened his mouth as if he had more to say, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak further and lowered his head. Cheon Sejoo had called it his room and claimed himself as the owner, so Sejin couldn’t argue anymore. In the end, Sejin had to agree to let Cheon Sejoo sleep in the living room, but he still couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that lingered.

Even after cleaning up the dishes, tidying up the kitchen, and doing some studying with Cheon Sejoo in the living room, Sejin couldn’t settle his mind. They exchanged their goodnights, and Sejin retreated to his room, but something still didn’t feel right.

After taking a shower and drying his hair, Sejin lay down in bed, pulling the blanket up to his chin as he stared at the ceiling.

Was it really right for Cheon Sejoo, the owner of the house, to be sleeping in the living room without a proper blanket?

If his mother found out about this, she’d probably smack his back and yell at him.

…But then again, Cheon Sejoo was the kind of person who often lazed around on the sofa, even napping there during the day. If he said he was fine with it, there shouldn’t be any reason for him to worry this much. Still, why does that nagger’s words bother him so much?

He couldn’t figure out why, but as he lay there with his eyes closed, Sejin thought to himself that at least Cheon Sejoo wasn‘t sharing the bed with that guy. Somehow, that thought calmed him, and he eventually drifted into a light sleep.

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

And in the deep of the night, Sejin suddenly woke up, feeling a wave of heat. Annoyed, he kicked off his blanket and let out a sigh. It felt like the heating was on. Sejin soon sat up, got out of bed, and went to check the room’s heating panel.

However, the room temperature was the same as it had been when he checked before going to bed. The boiler wasn’t running, nor was the heater on. It was just Sejin who was feeling hot. Realizing this, Sejin instinctively placed his hand on his forehead and furrowed his brows.

It felt like he had a fever, but without any warning signs, it was hard to tell if it was a mild fever or a high one. Either way, he decided it would be best to take some medicine, so he headed back to his bed. He also thought he could grab his blanket for Cheon Sejoo while he was at it. With this fever, he didn’t need it anymore.

Click.

The hallway outside his room was silent as he clicked the door shut. The soft glow of the moonlight filtered through the windows, casting a pale light over the white marble floors. The silence of the night was deep, and Sejin walked slowly, careful not to disturb it.

However, when he reached the living room, he found that Cheon Sejoo wasn’t there. The only thing on the sofa was a single, empty pillow. Turning his head, Sejin checked the clock on the fridge.

4:42 AM.

 It wasn’t yet time for Cheon Sejoo to go out for his morning workout.

Did he go to the bathroom?

But the bathroom next to the living room had its door wide open, and the light was off. Sejin tilted his head in confusion and made his way to the kitchen. He took the first-aid kit from the cabinet, grabbed some fever reducers, and then took a bottle of water from the fridge, swallowing the pills with it.

The cool water seemed to soothe the heat inside him, and he felt better. Sejin quietly crumpled the empty water bottle and tossed it into the recycling bin before turning back toward his room.

But just as he was about to head back, he heard something.

“…sob.”

From somewhere in the otherwise silent house, he heard the sound of someone sobbing. The sound was very faint, but since it came during the brief silence when the refrigerator’s mechanical hum paused, Sejin couldn’t miss it.

What was that?

He stopped in his tracks, scanning his surroundings as he narrowed his eyes.

But there were no other signs of movement. The sound hadn’t come from the living room or the kitchen. It seemed to come from somewhere else in the apartment. Cheon Sejoo’s house had five rooms, but only two of them were in use. Aside from his bedroom and Sejin’s room, Cheon Sejoo left the remaining three rooms empty and unused.

Could the sound have come from one of those?

Imagining the three empty rooms with nothing in them, Sejin’s expression hardened as he took a step forward. The man Cheon Sejoo had brought home came to mind. Maybe he had gone into one of the empty rooms and was now throwing up. The idea of such a mess made Sejin worried about cleaning it.

However, when he checked the empty room opposite the living room which was closest to the kitchen, no one was there. Sejin entered the room, confirmed that even the balcony was empty, and then closed the door.

Did I mishear it?

He wondered as he turned to finally head back to his own room.

“Ugh…”

He heard a faint groan of someone trying to suppress their pain. Though it was barely audible, Sejin had a feeling he knew who the voice belonged to.

In the living room shrouded by the night, he turned his gaze to the empty sofa where Cheon Sejoo had been lying earlier. The pillow without its owner was there, and so was the blanket Sejin had placed for him. And finally, his eyes drifted to the bedroom door, which was now occupied by someone else other than its owner.

Is Cheon Sejoo sick?

The thought suddenly came to Sejin, and as if hypnotized, he moved forward.

Maybe something was wrong with what they had eaten for dinner. Perhaps that was why Sejin had a fever, and Cheon Sejoo was also feeling ill. Maybe Cheon Sejoo, in a feverish daze, had wandered into the bedroom looking for his bed. Deciding he should get some medicine for him, Sejin quickly went to the kitchen, grabbed some fever reducers, and filled a bottle of water.

Standing in front of Cheon Sejoo’s bedroom, Sejin placed his hand on the door handle and slowly turned it.

“Hng…”

A faint moan seeped out through the slightly opened door. Along with the sound, Sejin heard a wet, squelching noise, and he froze in place, momentarily forgetting to breathe.

“It hurts, hyung, ahh…”

An unfamiliar voice reached his ears. Then, as if to soothe and coax the man who was groaning in pain, Sejin heard Cheon Sejoo respond.

“Doyoon-ah, relax. Haa, yes, it’s okay, you’re doing well…”

Sejin had never thought Cheon Sejoo could speak in such a voice. Calling out to Doyoon gently, Cheon Sejoo whispered in the sweetest tone, as if he had become the most affectionate person in the world.

Sejin’s heart began to pound wildly in his chest. It felt as if his entire body was heating up like a heater had been turned on inside him. He didn’t need to see it to know. The sounds alone painted a vivid picture of what was happening in his mind.

Sticky, slippery flesh pressed against each other.

Cheon Sejoo’s low laughter followed by the sound of his lips as he kissed the man, only to pull away again. Sejin found himself pushing the door open wider, his body acting on its own.

The sight hit him all at once. The soft glow from the dressing room light illuminated the bed, casting an orange-like sunset hue over the room. Cheon Sejoo’s broad back came into full view, bathed in that warm light. It was as if Sejin’s mind had been struck by lightning.

“It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt, right? Breathe… haa, yes, just like that…”

The tiger tattoo covering Cheon Sejoo’s back seemed to ripple as if it were alive. Beads of sweat glistening in the moonlight, trickled down the deep contours of his spine. His muscles, perfectly sculpted and flawless, flexed and tightened as he moved. Each shift of his hips caused the powerful muscles of his backside to contract, coiling and releasing with every motion.

It felt like watching a scene from an art film—an act that walked the line between what one might call art and what another might call obscenity.

“Hng, ah…! Hyung, it hurts, it hurts….”

When Doyoon’s voice trembled beneath Cheon Sejoo, large hands, rough yet gentle, stroked his skin as if to soothe the pain. Sejin’s eyes followed the movement of the veins on the back of Cheon Sejoo’s hand as it caressed Doyoon’s body, his throat tightening as he swallowed hard.

“Haa, come here. Bite me.”

With a moan that sounded almost like a sigh, Cheon Sejoo let go of Doyoon’s legs and bent down to him. Lifting Doyoon’s small frame in his arms, he brought his neck close to Doyoon’s lips, whispering softly for him to bite. His sweet voice, gentle and filled with care sent chills through Sejin’s entire body, forcing him to step back instinctively. He swallowed hard, the sound too loud and he thought it might be loud enough for Cheon Sejoo to hear.

His trembling hand grabbed the doorknob as he slowly, carefully, closed the door without making a sound. Only then did he release the breath he had been holding.

Haa, haa, panting softly, Sejin stood there, listening to the sound of his own breathing as he lowered his head. With a pale face, he made his way back to his room. His steps were almost like he was running.

As soon as he reached his room, Sejin collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath. His cheeks were flushed red as if they were going to burst. It wasn’t just physical heat. It felt as if a fire had ignited somewhere deep inside him, burning everything, consuming all of his thoughts and emotions.