Predator Alert chapter 19

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There were only five days left until the midterm exams.

With the exams looming, the classroom was quieter than usual.

Many students, including Jeongseo, were studying at their desks.

Normally, the moment the bell rang to signal the end of class, Jeongseo would immediately pack up his books.

But today, he was holding his head and groaning.

Her notebook was filled with incomplete English sentences, with blank spaces scattered throughout.

He tapped the paper lightly with his mechanical pencil, then glanced up.

As soon as he made eye contact with a pair of yellow eyes, Jeongseo flinched and quickly fixed his gaze back on his notebook.

…Contrary to his outward appearance, Pyo Yoontae was a strict teacher.

So strict, in fact, that it bordered on perfectionism.

Not only did he tutor his after school, but he didn’t let his rest even during breaks.

‘I didn’t sign up for this…’

Even though he was pretending to focus, he could feel his sharp gaze prickling him. Feeling pressured to write something, Jeongseo jotted down random English words that came to mind.

“Jeongseo.”

He instantly knew from his low voice. He must’ve gotten it wrong. As his large hand approached the notebook, Jeongseo’s eyelids fluttered.

“Hey, private tutor.”

A curt voice interrupted. Jeongseo had never been so grateful to hear that voice before.

He quickly looked up and saw Hayan smirking down at Pyo Yoontae.

As usual, Pyo Yoontae ignored his as if he hadn’t heard anything.

“With only five days left until the exams, I thought you were bluffing about tutoring Jeongseo, but you’re actually serious? Are you saying he already knows everything?”

“I’m hearing some nonsense. What about you, Jeongseo? Do you hear it?”

Pyo Yoontae’s voice was soft, but Hayan scoffed.

“Maybe you don’t know, but in small towns like this, internal grades are everything.”

Finally, Pyo Yoontae looked up at Hayan, his expression saying, ‘And so what?’

Hayan’s lips twitched in irritation, but he just exhaled sharply.

“Don’t get cocky just because you did well on mock exams. I was always number one in every school before you got here. You’re so busy tutoring him, you’re falling behind…”

“Oh, why don’t you stop yapping and focus on your own studies?”

Pyo Yoontae waved his hand dismissively.

Annoyed, Hayan’s face flushed as he glared at him, then he turned to Jeongseo, who was sitting silently.

His black eyes shifted to his notebook.

When he saw the answer he had written, his brow furrowed.

“Why did you use the past tense here? And your spelling…”

Before he could finish his explanation, Pyo Yoontae’s low voice cut his off.

“Didn’t I tell you to memorize this grammar at least five times yesterday? Maybe Jeongseo’s not even listening to me.”

Though his tone seemed gentle, there was a cold edge to it.

Jeongseo looked at Hayan with pleading eyes, hoping for some help.

Hayan glanced at him, then at Pyo Yoontae, but shrugged his shoulders and left the classroom without saying a word.

“Jeongseo, look at me. You should be looking at me, right?”

Pyo Yoontae gently cupped his left cheek, guiding his gaze back to him.

“Y-Yoontae…”

“It’s okay, Jeongseo. We still have plenty of time today.”

Jeongseo couldn’t say anything in response, but Pyo Yoontae smiled warmly, as if he was enjoying this.

It was Friday, and not only was Jeongseo going to Pyo Yoontae’s house after school as usual, but tonight, he was going to stay over and study until dawn.

It was his first time sleeping over at a friend’s house, but instead of feeling excited, he felt light-headed.

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“I told you to memorize this much two hours ago, and you’ve only done this? Do you have rocks in your head, Jeongseo?”

Pyo Yoontae waved an A4 sheet that wasn’t even completely filled with notes.

Jeongseo, feeling wronged, pressed his lips together and glared at him.

“…It wasn’t two hours. It was one hour and 39 minutes.”

“How can you only remember this much? Are you a fool, Jeongseo? How did you even pass the middle school qualification exam?”

“……”

Pyo Yoontae was good at studying, but maybe it was because he was naturally smart that his standards were too high.

And more importantly, he had the serious issue of generalizing his own standards to others.

Jeongseo had asked his to teach his in the first place, so he held back until now, but he was at his limit.

How could anyone memorize the entire chemistry midterm exam content in just 1 hour and 39 minutes?

“I did my best! You’re just too smart! It’s so unfair!”

He wanted to sleep!

Jeongseo flopped down onto the floor.

He hadn’t even changed his clothes after dinner, and all they had been doing was studying.

The clock on the wall already pointed to 11 p.m.

No wonder he felt like he was dying from exhaustion.

Pyo Yoontae would make a great camp instructor someday.

Pyo Yoontae, resting his chin on his hand, looked at Jeongseo lying on the floor with dissatisfaction.

“Let’s study for just one more hour, then you can wash up and sleep.”

“One hour? I’m seriously so sleepy! I feel like I’m going to pass out! And I’m not even aiming for first place, I just need to get a few subjects in the fourth rank!”

Jeongseo started feeling emotional.

Sure, he had asked Pyo Yoontae for help with studying, but he had only expected his to give his a few summaries now and then.

He hit the brown rug with a thump, thump.

The sound was so harsh that Pyo Yoontae sighed and stood up.

“Fine, then. Go wash up and sleep.”

Jeongseo immediately jumped up.

The frustration on his pale face disappeared in an instant.

He rummaged through his bag to find the pajamas and underwear he had packed.

“Jeongseo.”

“Yeah?”

Pyo Yoontae handed his a black t-shirt, which he had pulled out from who knows where.

“I brought clothes to sleep in, I’m fine.”

“Save that for tomorrow when you leave. Wear this to bed.”

Since tomorrow was the weekend, Jeongseo could have just worn his regular sleepwear.

But Pyo Yoontae seemed to think it was gross to wear the same clothes he’d slept in out the next day.

“Thanks!”

Jeongseo put his own clothes back in the bag and took his shirt.

Pyo Yoontae smiled contentedly as he stood up.

“The bathroom’s right outside the room. Go wash up first. I’ll get the bed ready.”

“Okay!”

“You don’t need me to tell you which is the shampoo and which is the body wash, right?”

At his teasing question, Jeongseo scrunched his nose and responded grumpily.

“I know that much! Do you think I’m really that dumb?”

He stomped out of the room and went straight to the bathroom.

But after standing still in front of the bathtub for a moment, he poked his head back into the room.

“Hey.”

Pyo Yoontae, who was folding up the table, glanced over at him.

Jeongseo, pressed against the wall with only the top half of his face showing, asked shyly.

“Can I use the bathtub?”

“……”

Pyo Yoontae covered his mouth with one hand as he folded the table.

His eyes narrowed into crescent shapes as he smiled.

“Sure, do whatever you want.”

With his permission, Jeongseo beamed and ran back to the bathroom.

There had been a bathtub in their old Seoul home, but it was gone after they moved, and she’d missed it ever since.

He hadn’t been able to go to public baths because he couldn’t hide his tail and ears, so it had been a while since he could soak in the water.

He looked forward to the warmth and comfort of a hot bath.

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Jeongseo hummed softly to himself as he came out of the bathroom.

His head had felt like it would explode earlier, but now he felt refreshed.

As he dried his hair with a towel, he looked down at himself.

He was wearing his green sweatpants, but the t-shirt came down to the middle of his thighs, almost like a dress.

It even looked like his chest might be exposed if he wasn’t careful.

He realized the size difference between himself and Pyo Yoontae.

Maybe it was because of the difference between their species, but still, wasn’t this a bit too much?

As he thought about it, he caught a faint scent and sniffed the air.

He pressed the towel to his arm and brought the black t-shirt closer to his face.

The cool, slightly sweet scent grew stronger.

Was it because it was Pyo Yoontae’s shirt?

It felt like he was wrapped in his pheromones, which gave his a strange feeling.

Lately, whenever he caught Pyo Yoontae’s scent, he felt a slight tightness in his chest.

“Hm, what are you doing, Jeongseo?”

“Ah.”

Startled, Jeongseo dropped the sleeve he had been smelling.

Pyo Yoontae, his hair still damp, was leaning casually against the door frame, watching him.

Feeling embarrassed, Jeongseo began to awkwardly brush off the black t-shirt.

“Oh, it’s nothing! Anyway, where should I sleep?”

Pyo Yoontae didn’t say anything for a moment, but eventually, he pointed to his room without saying much.

‘Oh, I guess he set up the bedding.’

In webtoons, when friends slept over, they would usually lay a blanket on the floor.

Jeongseo’s heart raced with excitement at the thought of staying over at a friend’s house, and he quickly walked towards the room.

“There’s no blanket.”

But to his surprise, there was no bedding on the floor.

Confused, he felt Pyo Yoontae gently wrap his arm around his shoulders.

“Yeah, because we’re sleeping together over there.”

Pyo Yoontae pointed to the bed—the only bed in the room.

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