“I despise and detest humans, but you, young master, simply haven’t properly tasted yet.”
“I have tasted.”
“Ah. Are you referring to that with your cat tongue?”
“……”
“It would be different if you properly smelled the scent of blood.”
For a moment, the scent of Jin Surim’s blood came to mind in Song Hanyeong’s head. When the rich scent of blood beneath pale skin brushed past his nose tip, Song Hanyeong had felt an unbelievably intense appetite. It was last week when he’d unexpectedly encountered Jin Surim.
However, Song Hanyeong ignored this and declared.
“…Anyway, there will never be a time when I desire Jin Surim.”
Nasol shrugged his shoulders.
“I pray that those words will be kept. Otherwise, the one caught by the bait won’t be Song Chanhyeok but you, young master.”
* * *
On the first day of dispatch, checking the parts handed over and examining the pantry, sleeping room, and lounge for any problems, the quitting time arrived in an instant.
‘I didn’t even do much!’
So on the second day, Surim came to work a little early. Because he wanted to look around the office side when no one had come to work yet to see if there was any broken equipment, whether the blinds were intact, where would be good positions to place some plants, and so on.
It wasn’t important work, but while he was at it, he also wanted to see Song Hanyeong’s desk. Would there be many personal items? Or would it be a bleak desk with nothing except the notebook issued by the company?
Even though he hadn’t eaten properly, he felt good enough not to feel hungry. He hadn’t been this excited even on his first day at work.
“Jin Surim-ssi?”
It was just when he’d swiped his card at the gate entering the company. The security guard who was always looking at the computer next to the gate called him.
“You’re the general affairs staff of Research Lab 5. There was a message asking you to stop by the package storage room for a moment.”
“Yes, thank you…”
He had an ominous feeling. Surim moved to the package storage room, suppressing his uneasy feeling, and soon faced a tremendous amount of packages befitting the ominous feeling.
The package storage room employee who confirmed Surim’s employee ID brightened and said.
“They arrived last night, and since there were many frozen foods, I asked the security office staff to please tell the person in charge when they came. It’s fortunate you came to work early.”
“How did you know about me…?”
“Yesterday, Lee Myeongho from Research Lab 5 said that from now on Jin Surim-ssi would be in charge, so please hand over the packages to Jin Surim-ssi.”
“I see…”
“You must return the cart after using it!”
“Yes.”
Surim nodded blankly and moved his steps again, pushing the cart the package storage room employee handed out. About a dozen boxes were neatly stacked on the cart.
Suddenly, what Lee Myeongho had said yesterday flashed through his mind.
‘Actually, yesterday too, I indulged richly one last time. Since I have to part with this now.’
So that’s what those words meant.
The plan to secretly peek at Song Hanyeong’s desk as soon as he went up was canceled. He had to return the cart right away, and he also had to move the contents inside the styrofoam boxes to the refrigerator.
After moving the cart to Research Lab 0’s pantry and lowering the boxes from the cart to the floor, returning the cart and arriving back at the pantry, Surim was already exhausted. It was because of the beverage boxes with stickers in foreign languages stuck on them, making it impossible to know what they were at all. Moving bundles of glass bottles, he couldn’t help but sweat.
Surim loosened his tie loosely and unbuttoned two buttons, fanning himself with his hand through the open collar.
He was resting for a moment when he bent down to open the styrofoam boxes this time. He felt a presence from the pantry entrance side.
‘It’s Song Hanyeong.’
Surim stared blankly at the man walking slowly into the pantry. Song Hanyeong headed straight for the coffee machine with languid eyes as if tired. Every time he moved his steps, the well-fitted suit pants created pleasing wrinkles. The buttons of his shirt and vest were fastened without gaps, but rather than giving a neat feeling, it gave off an atmosphere of not being easy. No, perhaps that was because of his sharp-featured face. In contrast to his relaxed eyes as if everything in the world was boring, his gaze, his pupils, were endlessly cool and had the power to make people tense.
The man standing in front of the coffee machine stood with his weight on one leg. Observing carefully from behind his back, he could tell that his shoulders were wider than expected and he had a solid body. The outline of his shirt revealed every time he moved his arms was surprisingly masculine. Solid and rich…
Surim, who had been thinking that far, squeezed his eyes shut. What indecent thoughts am I having with a person right in front of me? This wasn’t the time for that.
“…Hello…”
The moment Surim opened his mouth to greet him, the coffee machine began making a grinding sound with the beans. The timing was unfortunate. Surim, who had been rolling his eyes around, decided to continue what he was doing for now.
He split the side of the first styrofoam box to open the lid and check the contents, when he heard the sound of pressing buttons again. It seemed Song Hanyeong was the type to drink strong coffee. That certainly suited his impression. Didn’t he have the kind of face that wouldn’t put sugar in black coffee?
Surim, who had been unknowingly staring quietly at Song Hanyeong’s well-groomed back of his head, hastily turned his eyes away. It was because of his habit from college days that he kept staring intently without fear. Having looked at him for years without being conscious of it, his gaze followed like a habit.
‘If I get caught for what happened in college…’
Surim squeezed his eyes shut with a pale face. From Song Hanyeong’s perspective, he would be nothing more or less than a gloomy stalker. Perhaps he might even level up to a creepy stalker who, not satisfied with stalking in college, followed him even to work. It wasn’t a joke—if the college incident was discovered, it could really become that.
Surim, whose face had lost its color, hung his head deeply.
‘I absolutely must not get caught.’
Surim, who had firmly resolved, turned and sat with his back completely toward Song Hanyeong. At least this way, he couldn’t send glances unconsciously.
It was when he was quietly concentrating on cutting the tape on the box. Song Hanyeong, who had finally filled his cup with 3 shots of coffee, began to move. It was strange. He’d decided not to look, but after that, he became even more conscious of Song Hanyeong. It felt as if not only his ears but all the fine hairs on his body were focused on Song Hanyeong’s movements.
Song Hanyeong, who turned his body slowly, stopped while trying to move his steps toward the pantry entrance. And then.
‘Is he… looking at me, right now?’
A sticky, intense gaze passed over the back of his head and swept over his neck and shoulders. The gaze grazed Surim’s shoulder blades and back as he crouched with his waist bent, and reached his buttocks below. Silence continued. His heart felt anxious about how long the burdensome silence would continue, to the point where it was hard to breathe.
Beep. It was then that a sound rang from Song Hanyeong’s phone. Surim bounced his shoulders like a startled mouse and carefully looked back. Song Hanyeong was looking at his small phone that didn’t suit his large hands, checking something.
‘It was… my imagination, right?’
It was certain. There was no reason anywhere for Song Hanyeong to look at him like that. Then was that strange sensation from earlier self-consciousness? Surim, whose cheeks had suddenly heated up, urgently took out contents from inside the styrofoam box and brought it to his cheek. The frozen cream rice cake bag rustled.
He wanted to be alone quickly. If he was alone, he wouldn’t have anguish like now, nor half-baked self-consciousness.
Fortunately, Song Hanyeong put down his phone before long. Thinking that if he just waited a little, he would leave the pantry, Surim held his breath.
Soon, Song Hanyeong’s dress shoes began to move slowly. Usually researchers changed into slippers or comfortable shoes after coming to work, but Song Hanyeong didn’t seem to be that type. Come to think of it, when he saw him earlier, he was wearing a suit vest even inside his white coat. He must dislike loosening his attire.
It was when he’d thought that far. Surim became conscious of the fact that he could no longer hear the sound of the dress shoes that had passed behind him a moment ago. Why…
At that moment, something touched his nape. Fingertips so cold they were chilling pressed firmly on the protruding vertebrae of Surim’s neck as he bent his head, then slowly went down. Firm fingers went further inside his clothes and groped the bone where his neck and back connected.
And during the time such a thing was happening, Surim was frozen stiff, unable to move. No, to be precise, he couldn’t understand what was happening to him.
“You’re thin.”
“…What?”
It was then that his body moved with a thud. Regardless of Surim’s expression as he looked back with an unbelieving face, Song Hanyeong frowned around his eyes. The fingertips that had just groped Surim’s neck and back this time pressed firmly under his chin to lift his head up more.
