It had already been quite some time since his heart had throbbed with anxiety because of Lee Jaeram.
The ominous feeling he had felt was fleeting.
Nothing in particular had happened since then.
“Why don’t we start commuting to work together from now on?”
Though he occasionally saw Asher Delveron standing outside his front door, waving with a strangely persistent grin, Suhyeon’s days had been relatively peaceful.
He blinked at Hajin’s whispered suggestion.
Hajin’s blue eyes, which held nothing but Suhyeon’s reflection, sparkled more than usual in the sunlight.
“I’d like that.”
It wasn’t a difficult decision.
Suhyeon tilted his head for a moment before answering readily.
Lately, Suhyeon’s life had been the definition of leisure.
He woke up late whenever he felt like it, ate simple meals when he was hungry, and spent his time lounging around until Hajin returned from work in the afternoon to cuddle and provide guiding.
A wealthy unemployed person.
Having unintentionally realized the dream of every office worker, Suhyeon enjoyed being immersed in this comfortable life, but he also simply enjoyed being with Hajin.
Hajin, who at one point had refused to go to work just to stick by Suhyeon’s side, had been quite busy lately and was heading to the Association every day.
Naturally, their time together had decreased a bit, so it was a welcome proposal.
Preparations were finished quickly.
Leaving the house with Hajin, Suhyeon felt a strange sense of emptiness before getting into the car and tilted his head.
—Good morning, Suhyeon!
He let out a small, dry laugh when he realized the emptiness came from the absence of Asher, who had been loitering outside the gate every morning recently.
Hajin would have grumbled if he could read his thoughts, but Suhyeon was surprised that he had started taking Asher’s presence for granted because he had shown up so often.
Hajin had initially tried everything to get rid of the lingering Asher, but eventually seemed to give up in the face of the man’s persistence.
At any rate, while it was a close call, Asher hadn’t actually entered the house or crossed the line.
At least, not yet.
“What are you thinking about?”
“……Oh, it’s nothing.”
Hajin would definitely pout if he knew.
Suhyeon instinctively avoided his gaze and leaned into the embrace as Hajin hugged him.
He wasn’t particularly worried about Asher’s absence; the man was a strong Esper, just like Hajin.
With that final thought, Suhyeon put Asher out of his mind.
Arriving at the Association for the first time in a while, Suhyeon followed Hajin, swiped his card with practiced ease, and got into the elevator.
The place Hajin led him to was the office he had visited on the day he first went to a Gate site.
“Team! Lead-er? You’re here!”
“Gasp, Team Leader!”
As soon as the door opened, loud voices pierced his ears.
Perhaps he had visited when the office was empty last time, because today the room was bustling with people.
The tone of the voices welcoming Hajin was a bit bizarre—they almost sounded like they were cracking—but Suhyeon figured that was just how they were and let it go.
The Espers, who had greeted him so loudly, immediately sat back down and began pounding away at their keyboards.
‘Espers work hard at office tasks, too.’
It was natural for an organization to function, but it seemed closing Gates wasn’t the only part of their job.
Aside from the fact that they were “Specials,” it felt like looking at the ordinary company where Suhyeon used to work.
“Suhyeon, come this way.”
“Ah, yes.”
Seeing this scene reminded him of his past social life, when he had entered a company as a clumsy new recruit.
A late wave of embarrassment at entering someone else’s workspace pricked at him, but Suhyeon snapped out of it at Hajin’s voice and followed him.
“Hick.”
He looked up at the sound of someone sharply catching their breath. He saw a familiar Esper.
His name was Lee Jeonghyeon, right?
The teleportation Esper, looking out from behind Hajin’s back, gave a bright smile and a deep bow.
“Suhyeon?”
Suhyeon gave a small nod in return and hurried into the connected private office as Hajin called him urgently.
Click.
As the door closed, the clacking sounds of work from outside were cut off as if by magic.
Suhyeon blinked and looked around the private office he had visited once before.
‘Something… feels very different.’
Last time, it had been a clean, monochromatic space similar to Hajin’s room at home, but now…
Swish.
Suhyeon instinctively ran his fingers over a cream-colored blanket lying on a white sofa.
The texture was incredibly soft, fluffy, and fresh against his skin.
While it was still neat, Hajin’s private office—except for the desk area where various documents were organized—had been transformed into a cozy and warm space.
It was filled with cushions, blankets, and all sorts of soft things.
To be precise, it was exactly Suhyeon’s taste, as he loved being wrapped in blankets.
Suhyeon reflexively picked up a small cushion from the sofa.
It yielded perfectly to his touch, changing shape in his hands—a high-end item costing well over a million won.
In fact, everything in this room was like that.
Had he known, he would have dropped it in horror, but unfortunately, as a commoner, Suhyeon didn’t recognize the value, and that wasn’t likely to change.
Suhyeon simply felt that he could lounge around here just as comfortably as he did at home.
“Is this a decent enough place to spend some time?”
Suhyeon, who had been absent-mindedly pressing and touching the soft things like a cat mesmerized by something fluffy, snapped out of it at Hajin’s words.
Hajin was watching him, observing his reaction.
“Did you decorate this yourself?”
Hajin nodded, looking somewhat proud that his effort was being appreciated.
He looked quite cute, and Suhyeon stared at him blankly before readily leaning into Hajin’s arms as he approached.
Chu.
As had become a habit, Hajin’s lips lightly brushed against Suhyeon’s ear.
“Thank you.”
He could never quite get used to that ticklish sensation.
Suhyeon whispered as he felt heat rising from the spot where Hajin’s lips had touched.
Stimulated by that, Hajin sat on the sofa and pulled Suhyeon tightly into his lap.
“U-uh, Hajin?”
“E-excuse me!”
Even if it was a private office, it was still a workspace.
While Hajin held Suhyeon’s waist and nuzzled his shoulder with his lips, a tense voice rang out from outside the door.
Suhyeon’s shoulders flinched.
Since it wasn’t something Hajin had ordered, he also frowned and looked toward the opening door.
Entering the room was Lee Jeonghyeon, carrying a tray.
The scent of bitter tea wafted through the air.
Suhyeon was grateful for the tea, but for some reason, a faint rattling sound continued.
Suhyeon tilted his head and soon realized that Lee Jeonghyeon’s arms, holding the tray, were trembling violently.
“?”
Lee Jeonghyeon seemed to sense Suhyeon’s gaze fixed on him; as he leaned down to set the tea, he stopped awkwardly and turned his head toward Suhyeon.
Rattle.
The tray in his hands began to vibrate even harder.
Suhyeon was about to speak, worried he might spill it, when—
“What are you looking at so intently?”
Hajin barked in a fierce voice, pulling Suhyeon closer.
“H-hick!!! I’m sorry!!!”
Because Hajin was behind him, Suhyeon couldn’t see his face.
However, he must have been making a terrifying expression, because Lee Jeonghyeon turned pale as if he’d seen a monster.
With impressive manual dexterity, he set the tea—which had been on the verge of spilling—down neatly in front of them and bolted.
“……Uh…….”
“I saw…….”
He thought he saw several pairs of eyes through the gap in the door as Lee Jeonghyeon left, but maybe he was imagining it?
In the silence that returned once the door closed, Suhyeon stared blankly at the teacup.
Then, as Hajin let out a long sigh and stood up, Suhyeon moved aside and followed him with his eyes.
Hajin returned with a small case.
Placing it in his hand, he picked Suhyeon up again, sat on the sofa, and pulled him back into his lap.
A small clicking sound came from behind.
“Suhyeon.”
“Yes?”
Suhyeon leaned against Hajin’s chest with a metaphorical question mark over his head.
He answered promptly, but Hajin didn’t respond.
Instead, he silently covered Suhyeon’s hand with his own firm hand, tracing the spaces between his fingers and then interlacing them.
Just as Suhyeon thought it was their usual hand-holding, he saw something sparkle between their fingers.
At the same time, he felt cold metal touch his skin and something being slid onto his ring finger.
As if his goal had been achieved, Hajin’s hand pulled away simply.
Only then could Suhyeon see what was on his finger.
A thin, simple ring shimmered faintly, reflecting the sunlight coming through the window.
It was an elegant ring, not too flashy or over-the-top.
However, the intricate details engraved all over the band made it look like a luxury item to anyone’s eye.
“Will you put mine on, too?”
Suhyeon looked at his hand, then received a ring from Hajin, who was whispering in his ear—a ring with the same design, just a different size.
As Suhyeon gently slid the ring onto Hajin’s finger, Hajin buried his lips against Suhyeon’s neck with a satisfied hum.
“Pro…….”
……It’s definitely not a proposal, right?
Suhyeon swallowed the words that nearly escaped his mouth as a reflex upon seeing the rings and turned his head to look up at Hajin.
“Are these couple rings?”
“Yes. I told you I’d give you a gift.”
‘Had he?’
Suhyeon remembered Hajin asking him what he liked.
He hadn’t expected him to prepare rings.
Suhyeon looked at the matching rings on his and Hajin’s hands once more.
He had never gotten couple rings in his previous relationships.
Do Yejun had never asked, and Suhyeon wasn’t the type to obsess over such things, so this was a first.
A pair of matching rings, shining faintly.
Suhyeon stared at them for a long time, blinking as his heart began to feel ticklish.
The fact that they were wearing the same rings felt as if they were claiming each other.
As if they were telling the world: Shin Hajin belongs to Chae Suhyeon, and Chae Suhyeon belongs to Shin Hajin.
He felt his face heating up.
His heart suddenly started to thud as if it had caught fire.
And there was another heartbeat just like it.
“This… feels better than I expected…….”
Perhaps they were two of a kind, because Hajin seemed to be having the exact same thought.
Hajin’s murmur sounded particularly sensitive in his ear.
He felt he understood why so many couples in the world were obsessed with matching items.
Suhyeon looked back at Hajin with a blushing face, and in an instant, their blue and light brown gazes became tangled.
Without a word, their soft lips met.
