Whichever of the two it was, the truth was neither was particularly welcome.
Even if I were to be generous a hundred times over, being sex partners with Seo Heejin was fine. Honestly, rolling around with Seo Heejin felt so good that it made me reconsider what the sex I’d been having up until now even was.
But that didn’t mean I wanted to do something like playing at romance with Seo Heejin. Seo Heejin wasn’t my type, and troublesome things weren’t my type either.
“Seo Heejin.”
Around the time the elevator passed the 5th floor, I steeled my resolve and called out to Seo Heejin.
If I’d put up with it for over a week, I’d been patient enough.
“Let’s sort out our situation.”
I’d made up my mind to say it, but Seo Heejin fiddled with his ear as if he couldn’t care less what I said. While I waited for a response he hadn’t even heard, the elevator arrived at the 1st floor, and only then did Seo Heejin’s hand withdraw as if nothing had happened.
“What situation?”
The voice that asked back was gentle for the first time in a while. After hearing nothing but that annoyingly sly voice every day, being asked so gently made me suddenly scared.
But I still had to say what needed to be said. If we were in front of the office, Seo Heejin would watch his words too. As soon as we came out of the building, I stopped dead in my tracks and glared at Seo Heejin, only to be met with an eye-smile that said “I don’t know anything.”
“Why are you acting like this lately?”
Seo Heejin, who had been quietly mulling over my question, gave a clear answer.
“Hyung, you were the one who said you loved my cock first.”
The place where Seo Heejin stood with his clean-cut face saying the word “cock” and where I stood hearing that word was right in front of the office. Even though we’d missed the rush hour, what if someone heard us? My breath caught at why I had to be having this conversation in front of the office.
“Ha… Never mind. Let’s talk later.”
If I left Seo Heejin like this, he seemed ready to follow me to the subway station singing a song about cocks.
“When’s later?”
Seo Heejin asked excitedly, following beside me with long strides.
“I don’t know. Later.”
“This coming weekend? We didn’t meet last weekend because hyung said you were busy.”
Since when had we become the type to meet every weekend? Thinking back, Seo Heejin had made a fuss about coming to my place last weekend too.
When I politely declined, saying I had to go to my parents’ house, he said to go ahead, and that he’d come over and clean in the meantime. As if he were some fairy wife or something.
“I’ll come to hyung’s place on Saturday.”
As if he completely didn’t understand that not answering was a polite expression of refusal, Seo Heejin naturally said he’d come to my place.
“I don’t want you to.”
“Why not?”
“Cleaning up is annoying.”
“Ah,” came a short sound, and then as if wondering why I’d worry about such a thing, Seo Heejin patted my shoulder. If we weren’t outside, what would be patting probably wouldn’t be his hand but his lips, and the place that warmth touched wouldn’t be my shoulder but on my lips.
“Then you can come to my place. I’ll come pick you up.”
I don’t know how much emotion went into slapping away the hand on my shoulder, but it made a smacking sound as flesh hit flesh.
“I said no.”
The hand I’d slapped away crept back up to my shoulder without getting tired, and this time even pulled me toward him. My face automatically scrunched up at the breath touching my ear.
“I can… give you my cock all night long, until you’re sick of it.”
Gulp. Damn imagination. No, it wasn’t imagination. It was this damn memory since I’d already experienced it once.
At the softly whispered voice, Seo Heejin’s cock that I hadn’t seen for over a week came to mind. I thought I’d gotten over my cock obsession, but I was mistaken. Just thinking about it made me swallow.
“Sex with me was really good, wasn’t it? I think we’re really compatible.”
Seo Heejin, who had been openly flirting, now started openly making sexual appeals. The sweet talk coaxing me to do it with him again was a fact I absolutely couldn’t deny. Just thinking about that night made my body heat up.
“Fine. I’ll go this weekend, but instead…”
I had to make a deal that was advantageous to me somehow. If I kept living like this, I might end up quitting rather than giving in to Seo Heejin’s nagging. After all the effort it took to get into this company. I still had student loans to pay off.
Plus, if I lost my job, I might not be able to pay rent and would have to return to my parents’ house.
Making a deal with Seo Heejin would be more profitable than listening to Mom’s nagging.
“Instead, don’t make it obvious at the office like you have been.”
Whether my proposal wasn’t bad, Seo Heejin removed his hand from my shoulder and cleanly stepped back one step, then another half step.
Finally, a normal distance between ordinary coworkers was established between Seo Heejin and me.
Even if the reality was different, at least it would look normal to others.
“Okay.”
With a gentle eye-smile, Seo Heejin waved his hand flutteringly and turned back the way we came, saying he’d take a bus home from in front of the office. I ended up feeling rather deflated, not having expected Seo Heejin to be sorted out so easily.
***
Perhaps because I’d been pushed around by Seo Heejin so much over the week-plus period, I doubted whether Seo Heejin would really stop making things obvious while exercising, while showering, and even while lying down to sleep. I walked to work on high alert, expecting Seo Heejin to suddenly pop out from somewhere, but when I arrived at the office, Seo Heejin was already sitting at his desk working.
While working through the morning half-skeptical, I found myself unconsciously glancing at my phone around 11:30.
It was the time when Seo Heejin would send messages every day asking to have lunch together. Because I was curious whether Seo Heejin would really send a message or not, I couldn’t properly concentrate on work until noon.
And as promised, Seo Heejin didn’t send a message until the end. It was a scarily accurate cleanup.
Until 4 o’clock, Seo Heejin hadn’t contacted me even once today. Now it seemed I could believe that Seo Heejin intended to properly keep his promise.
Only then did a feeling of relief wash over me. It felt like the stress I’d received dealing with Seo Heejin’s pestering last week was being released. Still, being cautious wouldn’t hurt.
As soon as I sent a message to the group chat, the number 3 decreased to 2 as if someone had read it right away. When the 2 became 1, Song Ki sent a reply.
> Convenience store Deputy Go? 4:13 PM
> Song Kihun
> In a meeting 4:16 PM
Then it meant either Seo Heejin or Hyungtae had read it. I stuck my head out and looked around the office.
Seo Heejin wasn’t at his seat, and Hyungtae looked like he was in no position to read messages.
I wondered what he was talking about so intently with his mentor. Then the other person who read it must be Seo Heejin. I had no way of knowing where Seo Heejin was. Either way, it seemed certain that Seo Heejin wouldn’t follow me.
With a happy heart, I went to the convenience store alone and bought my favorite chocolate-flavored ice pop to commemorate this moment. After tearing off the top, I habitually held it out to the side without thinking. Forgetting that no one was there.
Feeling a bit awkward, I glanced at the part-timer and started rotating my shoulders in circles as if I’d been trying to exercise my arms. Even to me, it looked awkward. It felt like it had been a really long time since I’d thrown away an ice cream top into the trash with my own hands.
Sitting on the bench in front of the convenience store eating ice cream leisurely by myself made me feel strange. So this is what it feels like to not have someone to chat with about this and that. What had I done before when I came to the convenience store alone?
Thinking about it, all I did was look at my phone to see if there was anything fun. When I took out my phone from my dress pants pocket, there was a message.
> Kim Hyungtae
> Coming down! 4:32 PM
My heart sank thinking it was Seo Heejin. But the sender was Hyungtae. Even though we’d promised not to make things obvious at the office, not even replying at all… I felt just a little bit hurt, probably because Seo Heejin had been training me all this time.
Even this hurt feeling would surely disappear in a few days once I got used to going around alone.
> Okay 4:33 PM
While tapping out a reply and waiting, I sucked on my ice pop and thought about what to talk to Hyungtae about.
Had I prepared what to say in advance like this when talking to Seo Heejin too? Whatever I said, Seo Heejin would just catch on and accept it all. To erase this strange feeling, Kim Hyungtae or whoever needed to come down quickly and talk to me.
Even quitting time was different from usual. Seo Heejin was getting ready to go home regardless of whether I was leaving or not. He didn’t even ask me once if I was working late today.
I was clearly relieved to be free from Seo Heejin’s obsession, but on the other hand, a feeling of hurt pricked up. I told him not to make it obvious, but when did I say to cut off contact entirely?
Tap tap, after drumming my fingers on the desk, I quickly sent a message before Seo Heejin went home.
