* * *

Before long, the unbearable heat coursing through his body began to subside.

His racing pulse slowed, and his restless mind calmed.

As Junwoo had said, the spray wasn’t entirely ineffective.

Feeling much lighter, Jibeom stood up and returned the spray to its place.

Though his sense of smell was dulled, everything else felt normal.

°❀•°❀°•❀°

“Tch, you didn’t want to wear my clothes? Fine, I’ll take them off instead!”

“……”

As his body returned to normal, Jibeom realized he had been too harsh on Saewoo.

That expression he’d seen through the closet door before closing it now haunted him.

Regret settled in as he replayed his outburst, feeling like he had unfairly lashed out at someone so unaware of his own feelings.

He headed to the walk-in closet to make amends but paused when he heard an odd sound.

“Baek Saewoo?”

Looking around, he traced the sound to the laundry room, where the dryer beeped, signaling its cycle had finished. It felt like only five minutes had passed, but it had been thirty.

Jibeom hesitated before turning towards the laundry room.

Though confident the spray had subdued his instincts, he thought it best to talk after finding something for Saewoo to wear.

As he picked up a dry T-shirt and headed back to the closet, the house felt eerily empty, as though he was the only one there.

Dismissing it as a trick of his dulled senses, he opened the half-closed closet door.

“Where the hell did he go…?”

Saewoo and the little sparrow he turned into were nowhere to be found.

Only Saewoo’s discarded clothes were scattered on the floor.

It was clear he had shifted, but no trace of the sparrow remained.

“Don’t tell me…”

Had the little bird taken off and fled?

But all the windows were shut.

A sense of unease that Jibeom had suppressed came rushing back.

“Damn it, I can’t even pick up his scent properly…”

The overwhelming scent of the suppressant made it impossible to track Saewoo.

Left with no choice, Jibeom began methodically searching every nook and cranny of his apartment.

“Hey! Baek Saewoo!”

He rifled through hangers, drawers, coat pockets, and gloves, even double-checking places he’d already looked.

But the tiny bird was nowhere to be found.

Moving to the entrance, Jibeom checked Saewoo’s sneakers.

They lay haphazardly, proof of his hurried arrival. It was clear he was hiding deliberately.

“This little brat… where could he have gone?”

Though his apartment wasn’t large, searching for a bird smaller than his fist was a maddening task.

Opening cabinets and appliances in the kitchen, Jibeom began to feel the absurdity of his actions.

“What am I even doing right now…”

He could only assume Saewoo was hiding to mess with him.

“Hey! You feathered little punk! Come out before I lose my patience!”

Raising his voice with one of Saewoo’s least favorite nicknames didn’t work either.

Though Jibeom couldn’t sense him, he was sure Saewoo hadn’t left the apartment.

His predator’s intuition told him so.

“Fine, if that’s how you want to play it…”

Cracking his knuckles, Jibeom’s expression darkened as he decided to escalate the situation.

“You’ve got no idea who you’re dealing with, do you?”

Striding into the bathroom, Jibeom began muttering ominously.

“Those nosy tiger and old lion guys… Didn’t they just move into the second floor?”

Clunk.

Quickly scanning the shelves in the bathroom and even checking the ceiling hatch, Jibeom moved on to the laundry room.

He rifled through the pile of clothes next to the washing machine.

“So, what’s the plan for the third floor? …Are you here?”

Rummage, rummage.

He searched through the basket meticulously organized by the cleaning lady who came every week.

All he found were cleaning tools and a half-eaten bag of snacks, likely something the lady had set aside.

While touching someone else’s belongings felt impolite, Jibeom even checked inside the snack bag, leaving no stone unturned.

“Sigh… It’s not here. Are you even listening to me, Baek Saewoo?”

Next, it was the veranda’s turn.

He examined every nook, from the stands of potted plants gifted during the housewarming, to the large, hardy flowers thriving with minimal care.

But the elusive bird, Saewoo, was nowhere to be found.

At this point, Jibeom began to sweat.

There were still places to search, but he was starting to recognize how stubborn Baek Saewoo could be, refusing to show up even after all this effort.

“If you keep this up, I swear I’ll move to the third floor! I’ll count to ten, and if you don’t come out by then, I’ll sit there and stay for good!”

Jibeom shouted loudly enough for Saewoo to hear wherever he was hiding.

But even after counting to ten, there wasn’t a hint of movement.

It seemed Saewoo was thoroughly upset.

“……”

Only then, belatedly, did Jibeom realize that searching blindly like this wasn’t the right approach.

Reflecting on his overly harsh behavior earlier, he couldn’t help but regret his actions.

“Baek Saewoo.”

Dragging his feet, Jibeom headed to the bedroom, calling Saewoo in a much gentler tone than before.

“I’m sorry about earlier. I was in a bad mood… I didn’t mean it.”

But there was still no reply from Saewoo.

“What is this… You’re not hurt or anything, right?”

A pang of worry struck him.

The thought that Saewoo might be suffocating somewhere in secret made his heart race with anxiety.

He’s such a tiny thing as it is…

“Damn it…”

With his face growing pale, Jibeom decided to transform into his black panther form.

His sense of smell wasn’t great even then, but becoming an animal would sharpen his other senses, making it easier to track Saewoo down.

“Bee-hee-hee…”

“…!”

At that moment, Jibeom’s ears perked up at a sound like a faint whistle.

It came again, clearly from within the bedroom.

“The audacity to hide here…”

About to check under the bed, Jibeom froze in his tracks.

Something that hadn’t been there earlier was now peeking out from between the pillows.

“…?”

Approaching slowly, Jibeom climbed onto the bed.

Between the pillows, he saw a familiar long tail feather.

“Ha…”

He couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity.

After tearing through the entire house like a maniac, Baek Saewoo turned up in such a blatantly obvious spot.

The tiny sparrow he’d been searching for was curled up, fast asleep in the narrow gap between the pillows.

The whistling sound had come from Saewoo’s light snoring.

Jibeom sat heavily on the bed, caught between exasperation and relief.

He had been ready to lash out in frustration, but now all he felt was gratitude that he’d found Saewoo safe.

“…Sleeping?”

“…”

“How can you sleep like this?”

The commotion should have woken him up, but Saewoo didn’t stir.

Curled up and fluffed against the cold, the little sparrow’s chest rose and fell steadily, showing he was breathing fine.

He must’ve completely worn himself out in the cold winds all day.

Gently leaning down, Jibeom peered at Saewoo to check if he was truly okay.

Then, carefully, he scooped the tiny bird into his hand and set him on his chest.

Saewoo’s head flopped weakly, exposing his crown.

The once-bare patch on top was now covered in soft red feathers.

“Warm enough?”

Even while sleeping, Saewoo seemed to enjoy Jibeom’s warmth, fluffing up his feathers further and wriggling around to find a comfortable position.

He pressed his fluffy silver rear snugly into Jibeom and promptly dozed off again.

“Well, look at that.”

Watching this, Jibeom snorted.

“Maybe I should put a bald spot on your rear this time.”

Even when Jibeom whispered teasingly, resisting the temptation to kiss the fluffy tail, Saewoo remained blissfully unaware, sleeping soundly.

* * *