* * *
‘University MT trips are fun!’
Jeongseo grinned proudly, sitting beside the box of soda he won from the earlier treasure hunt.
As expected of a department full of physically active students, the entire itinerary had been packed with movement.
It was practically a mini sports tournament.
Jeongseo had performed quite well, earning praise from his seniors, and his chest swelled with pride.
He was already thinking about bragging to Pyo Yoontae when he got home.
Just as he was watching a senior grill some meat, his phone vibrated in his pocket.
It was a message from Pyo Yoontae.
[Black Cat: Jeongseo, don’t transform into a weasel just anywhere.]
6:21 PM
What the hell was that about?
Jeongseo tilted his head in confusion and quickly typed back.
“I don’t! I’m really good at hiding my ears and tail now!!!”
He added multiple exclamation marks for emphasis.
Not that it mattered—Jeongseo rarely revealed his true form unless it was in front of Yoontae or his family.
As the night progressed, the drinking party escalated.
Shin Junhee, still embarrassed from the last time he drank too much, paced himself carefully.
Meanwhile, Im Woohyeon sat across from Jeongseo, watching him instead of mingling with others.
“Hyung, why are you staring at me like that? Got something to say?”
Jeongseo popped open a can of soda and met Woohyeon’s gaze.
Woohyeon frowned slightly before lowering his voice.
“Jeongseo, that black bastard…”
“Huh? What?”
The surrounding noise was too loud for Jeongseo to catch the words.
He instinctively leaned forward, lifting his hips slightly off his seat.
But the moment he did, Woohyeon flinched hard and pulled back with a deep scowl.
Jeongseo’s scent had hit him.
Not just any scent—but an Alpha’s pheromones.
It wasn’t overpowering, but it carried a possessive edge, enough to make Woohyeon’s skin prickle just from contact.
If this was just the lingering scent left behind after a considerable amount of time, then Jeongseo’s partner must be an insanely dominant Alpha.
Woohyeon, being more sensitive to pheromones than most Alphas, had been keeping his distance from Jeongseo all night because of it.
There was no doubt in his mind—the one who had marked Jeongseo so thoroughly was that bastard from before. The massive, intimidating guy who had suddenly shown up in a taxi.
Woohyeon crossed his arms and leaned back against his chair.
The shift in his attitude was noticeable, and Jeongseo blinked in confusion.
“What?”
The question was asked so casually, like Jeongseo had no clue what was happening.
It only annoyed Woohyeon further.
His lips parted as if to retort, but he held back, barely restraining the sharp words on the tip of his tongue.
Instead, he abruptly stood up and left.
Both Jeongseo and Shin Junhee were taken aback.
“Junhee, did I… do something wrong just now?”
“…I don’t think so? I have no idea.”
Then why was he acting like that?
Jeongseo was puzzled but quickly pushed the thought aside, reaching for a freshly grilled sausage.
“Son of a bitch!”
A sharp curse rang through the air.
Jeongseo’s head snapped toward the commotion.
A furious-looking guy had another student, Nam Seungho, by the collar.
The man’s skin flickered with reptilian scales, revealing just how agitated he was.
Seungho wasn’t exactly calm, either. His tail had fluffed up in irritation, twitching aggressively from side to side.
But unlike Jeongseo’s, Seungho’s tail was bushier, and the tip wasn’t black.
Even accounting for his raised fur from anger, the difference in form was obvious.
While Jeongseo was staring at Seungho’s tail, Shin Junhee cursed under his breath and rushed over.
“Ugh, not again.”
Among all the people Jeongseo knew, Nam Seungho had the worst temper.
It was no surprise that he was constantly getting into fights.
The atmosphere grew tense, and people whispered amongst themselves.
“What’s going on?”
“No idea. Heard Seungho cussed out a senior first.”
“Ugh… This is why I hate weasels.”
One of the whispering students glanced sideways—only to lock eyes with Jeongseo.
It was Park Doyoung, a fellow freshman.
He knew Jeongseo was a weasel shifter, too.
Realizing his mistake, Doyoung forced an awkward laugh and quickly tried to explain.
“Oh, no! I didn’t mean you! You’re different, you know? Not really… weasel-like? I was just talking about Seungho…”
Before Jeongseo could respond, Doyoung hurriedly slipped away.
‘Not really weasel-like.’
It was probably meant as a compliment, considering the usual perception of weasel shifters.
But Jeongseo had never heard that before, not even once before coming to university.
And for some reason, he found himself repeating the words in his head.
Then, out of nowhere, a thought surfaced.
‘If my parents were still alive, would I be like that, too?’
‘Were my parents also rough and aggressive like that?’
MT had ended, and Jeongseo finally returned home in the afternoon.
Since Pyo Yoontae only had morning classes on Fridays, Jeongseo barely dropped his bags at his own place before heading straight to Yoontae’s apartment.
Just as he was about to press the doorbell, the door swung open.
Yoontae immediately pulled Jeongseo inside, wrapping him tightly in an embrace.
He rubbed his face against Jeongseo’s hair, his cheek, and everywhere else he could reach, making Jeongseo burst into laughter.
“What the hell, Yoontae! That tickles!”
“Nothing happened, right?”
“Of course not! MT was so much fun. You should’ve come too.”
“What would I do there without you?”
His voice was low and subdued.
Jeongseo fell silent for a moment, suddenly feeling guilty for having so much fun without Yoontae.
He hesitated before blurting out, “I… I missed you too, you know…!”
At the clumsy excuse, Pyo Yoontae let out a self-deprecating laugh. He wondered what exactly he had been hoping for when he said that.
Seeing his reaction, Jeongseo became even more flustered and glanced at him for cues.
In response, Yoontae deliberately put on a playful smile and pressed Jeongseo’s cheeks.
“Next time, you’ll go to Gapyeong with me, right? And I didn’t go because I don’t like those big group gatherings anyway.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. You must be tired, so should we get some sleep together? You have to visit your family tomorrow, after all.”
“I am a little tired.”
As Jeongseo took off his shoes, Pyo Yoontae let his ears and tail show, flicking them playfully.
His black tail lightly tapped against Jeongseo’s thigh, and Jeongseo, amused by the subtle display of affection, soon broke into a grin.
With his black panther ears out, Pyo Yoontae really looked like a big, adorable cat.
As late April approached, both Jeongseo and Pyo Yoontae were overwhelmed with midterms.
Since Jeongseo was in the Department of Physical Education, practical skills made up a significant portion of his curriculum, so he often went out to train.
In truth, he had chosen a school as close to Pyo Yoontae’s as possible and had enrolled in this department on the recommendation of his homeroom teacher.
But as time passed, he realized he was more suited for this field than he had expected.
He found not only the practical classes but also the theoretical ones interesting.
Unlike in high school, where he had always sat at the back, he now preferred sitting in the front, paying close attention in lectures.
Even now, after coming over to Pyo Yoontae’s place, he was silently immersed in studying, meticulously reviewing the notes he had organized himself.
Sitting across from him, Pyo Yoontae had been staring at Jeongseo for the past fifteen minutes, but Jeongseo showed no signs of noticing.
Resting his chin on his hand, Yoontae flicked his black tail on the floor and kept his gaze fixed on Jeongseo.
There was a time when Jeongseo claimed he couldn’t concentrate with him around, but now it seemed like he didn’t even register his presence.
He felt the urge to poke him but held back.
In the past, Jeongseo wouldn’t last even ten minutes before giving up, but seeing him so focused now was oddly endearing.
Like a cat watching the world outside a window, Pyo Yoontae observed him with interest.
It was only when Jeongseo flipped a page in his notebook that he finally noticed the intense stare directed at him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just… you’re really focused. You said your exam ends on Friday, right?”
“Yeah! And yours is over on Wednesday?”
When Pyo Yoontae nodded, Jeongseo groaned with envy and slumped over the desk, stretching his arms toward him.
When Yoontae playfully tapped the back of his pale hands, Jeongseo perked up, his brown ears twitching, before suddenly getting up and moving closer.
“I need a short break.”
Settling beside him, Jeongseo leaned against Yoontae and gently played with the black tail resting beside his leg.
“You like touching my tail?”
“Yeah, it’s soft. I like it.”
Then, Jeongseo pulled his own tail close and placed it next to Yoontae’s.
From color to thickness to texture, everything about them was different.
“Oh, did I ever tell you that there’s a weasel in my department?”
“You mentioned it before. Said you cursed the moment you saw him.”
“Yeah. But I saw his tail during the MT trip, and it was even fluffier than mine. It was fascinating.”
“…You saw his tail?”
Pyo Yoontae’s brows furrowed slightly.
“Yeah. Apparently, he picked a fight with a senior, and in the middle of it, the senior’s skin started changing like a lizard’s, and the weasel guy’s tail popped out. They must’ve been really angry.”
“Oh.”
That was a reasonable enough explanation, so Yoontae relaxed and simply agreed.
“Yeah, sounds like they were pissed.”
“But his ears didn’t come out. I’m kinda curious. If I asked to see them, would he hate it? It’s a shame. I wanted to get closer since I’ve never met another weasel before. But Nam Seungho really seems to hate me.”
Yoontae’s relaxed expression hardened in an instant.
But Jeongseo, still playing with his tail, didn’t notice.
“Was it just me, or was that test ridiculously hard?”
As soon as the exam ended, a student groaned.
Next to him, Park Doyoung also agreed, complaining about how difficult it was.
But Jeongseo, who felt he had done fairly well, didn’t say much.
More than anything, he just felt relieved that his first set of midterms as a freshman was finally over.
Just as he was about to say his goodbyes and head home, a familiar voice called out to him.
“Jeongseo.”
Turning around, he saw Pyo Yoontae smiling and waving at him.
* * *
