"Y-yes…!"
The screen, which had harbored such unwholesome curiosity and desire, went black in an instant, as if it had never been otherwise.
From drying his wet hair to putting his slippers on his feet.
In just a few hours, there was nowhere on Seo Eunwon’s body that Cha Muyoung’s hands hadn’t touched.
Having filled his belly warm with home-cooked food, Seo Eunwon must now be full of nothing but traces of Cha Muyoung. Combined with the pheromone showers he’d secretly been lavishing on him all along, it might even create a synergy effect.
Overflowing with that satisfaction, humming as he went, Muyoung did his best washing Eunwon, feeding him, dressing him, and putting him back to sleep. It was exactly like a "newlywed-life beta test" he’d been longing for day and night.
Granted, "putting him to sleep" took up the biggest share, since the weary-in-body-and-heart Seo Eunwon spent all of Saturday sleeping like he’d passed out. Though holding and patting the kid who trusted him enough to sleep so deeply was plenty enjoyable too.
He’d heard somewhere that when you adopt a stray cat that’s suffered outside, it sleeps for a whole week once the tension drains away. Seo Eunwon looked exactly like that.
How shocked and exhausted he must have been, to sleep like this all day.
Feeling sorry for him, he held the thin body tight and kept stroking it. Of course, fighting the dark desires surging up as a dominant alpha was no easy thing, but showing such signs to an exhausted, struggling kid would be pathetic, so he held it firmly down.
By the time evening had nearly passed and he’d woken the still-motionless Eunwon to force a bowl of porridge into him, wash him, and rock him back to sleep, Muyoung found himself lost in a silly thought amid the aching fullness rising in his chest.
Who knew waiting on someone could be this fun, this suited to him. Maybe in a past life he’d been Seo Eunwon’s servant. He’d loved washing, feeding, and dressing his cute young master with his own hands so much he couldn’t give it up in this life either—
Even he found it an absurdly fawning thought. Chuckling, careful not to wake the soundly sleeping Eunwon, he slipped away to wrap up this momentous first day himself.
He washed with the same shampoo and body wash as Eunwon, put on the same brand of underwear and same-design pajamas, slipped on the couple slippers he’d prepared, and burrowed in beside Eunwon — still sleeping soundly in his bed, under his blanket — pulling the warm body close and closing his eyes.
And the result:
He slept well.
Perfect, deep sleep.
So perfect that Cha Muyoung — who was usually so fond of sleep that opening his eyes each morning was torture — snapped awake in the early dawn with not a shred of reluctance or regret.
"Did you sleep well?"
And the start was perfect too. Seo Eunwon — no telling when he’d woken — had his eyes wide open, not a trace of sleepiness, yet stayed nestled quietly in Muyoung’s arms, movingly becoming the first scene of Muyoung’s day.
"Baby… when did you wake up? You should’ve woken hyung — were you playing by yourself?"
Asking kindly in a low voice, Muyoung naturally kissed Eunwon’s forehead — smack. As his lips parted, he saw Eunwon blushing shyly, biting his lip.
"…Why do you keep doing that to me?"
It had been just two days since he’d trembled asking that after a single kiss. Then he’d run off, seen terrible things, come back cowed — and after being scooped up and held all day yesterday, showered with some thirty-two kisses, it seemed he’d adapted to this level of physical affection in a single day.
Of course, there was no knowing what odd thoughts he was having alone in his head. What that tiny head was so busy with.
He was so sly and cute that even as Muyoung kissed him until his nose was squished flat, Eunwon only let out little "ngh…" sounds, showing no sign of running. Muyoung chuckled and asked mischievously on purpose.
"When I did the ‘hyung’s nose~’ thing, what were you thinking?"
At the playful baby-talk, Eunwon blinked a few more times, then — oddly solemn — gave a very earnest answer.
"That you’re… really kind, sir, as always."
"You’d give me such a flattering review?"
"And I thought… you’d be an amazing dad someday too…"
Hey, he’s only saying completely true things, so why do his words trail off and his eyes look so wistful?
Well, he’d never been the type to say such things shamelessly. Praising the man who’d be his husband, the father of the baby in his belly — no wonder he was shy.
At the all-the-sweeter praise, Muyoung laughed — kheuheu — and pulled his cute omega close as if binding him with arms and legs, burying his nose in the fragrant hair and sniffing. Eunwon, embarrassed, hid his face right into the blanket.
Anyway.
Why had he suddenly thought that? He didn’t seem to have noticed the pregnancy yet. Maybe it was an instinctive train of thought — that he needed to "prepare" something to welcome the baby.
Either way, a praiseworthy thing.
For Muyoung, who’d been agonizing over how to tell Eunwon — without startling him —that "the alpha who rolled around with you that night was me, and my baby is in your belly," it was a very welcome sign.
He decided to take the opportunity to plant the image even more firmly in Eunwon’s head: "Cha Muyoung is the perfect man to have as a lifelong partner — world-class father material."
"I think so too. I’m going to be a really great dad. That’s what I’ve been gritting my teeth and living for all this time, and I’ll keep doing my best. So I can be the best, world-class, number-one dad you could show off anywhere."
"For one, I’m capable, and as a dominant alpha I’ve got stamina to spare. Diapers, bottles, baths, bedtime — I’m confident I can handle it all on my own, and then some."
"……."
"Ahh, I want to hear ‘daddy’ soon. How pretty and cute will it be? Holding that tiny, squirming baby, it’ll feel like I have the whole world. A man’s life… only becomes complete after becoming a father."
His eagerness to appeal strongly made his words embarrassingly fawning and overlong, but Muyoung meant it sincerely.
It was also a firm resolve melted together with a love serenade to Seo Eunwon: "So, Seo Eunwon, your hardships are over and happiness begins. After all, I endured that hated studying and business to pamper you. I’ll take responsibility — you and our baby will live without lifting a finger — so just do what you want, don’t worry about a thing, and live prettily lolling about like yesterday. Got it?"
Little did he know that his confidently delivered rosy future plans sounded somewhat different to Eunwon, whose heart had been complicated since seeing the "Special Marriage Contract" yesterday.
"That really would be so happy…"
Picturing the scene of them as a cozy family together, Muyoung — drunk on sweet dreams — simply stroked Eunwon’s cheek tenderly for a long while with prettily curved eyes.
Like yesterday, Muyoung tended Eunwon devotedly. Whether the ample rest was working, Eunwon stayed awake for quite a while today, and Muyoung was grinning all day, cooing in baby talk.
Eunwon accepted the doting care without pulling away, which excited him more. After all, it takes two hands to clap crisply, and a mother bird only feels rewarded when there’s a baby bird chirping and opening its beak right on cue at every feeding.
Emboldened, he stamped his lips on him even more diligently than yesterday — by the time lunch was over he’d already passed yesterday’s record of thirty-two — but Muyoung was still thirsty.
He was satisfied that mere kisses had become no big deal in a single day, yet felt a pang of alpha desire to mesh with Eunwon more deeply, more seamlessly.
But that didn’t last long either. Eunwon — who’d spent the whole day squirming in his arms like a docile koala — carefully opened his mouth as he lay down for the night: "Sir…" —delivering results that swept even that regret away.
"I’m really sorry to impose… but could I… ask just one favor?"
Finally, finally!
Seo Eunwon had finally made the long-awaited "request for help." Muyoung answered readily.
"Anything."
Sorry to impose, indeed — Muyoung could do anything, just as he’d said. Pay off all the debt? Smash the loan sharks? Get rid of that annoying uncle so they’d never see him again?
But unlike Muyoung’s resolve, braced for every scenario, the favor Eunwon brought up was so like him. Kind and modest — and tiresomely timid.
"Yiwon’s abroad so I think he’s fine… but I’m worried about Mom. I hope my uncle or those people from yesterday don’t go to Mom’s hospital…"
In fact, that was something Muyoung had already taken care of yesterday. While putting people on the unpredictable villains, he’d hired a private security firm to guard his mother’s hospital.
Our sweet boy.
Silly Seo Eunwon.
If he’d known he’d agonized so much just to work up the nerve for this tiny favor, he’d have told him yesterday. Reflecting on his own lack of sensitivity, Muyoung kissed Eunwon’s forehead deeply — smack.
"Hyung already took care of that. I’ve got security posted and gave word to the hospital, so those bad guys will never get near Teacher."
"You already… did?"
"Yeah. I was already furious watching them pull that shit on you in a moment I let my guard down — did you think I’d let them go after Teacher too? So don’t worry, baby. Hyung will protect our family."
"…Thank you."
Soothing and coaxing the dazed, blinking Eunwon, Muyoung probed for anything else he might need, but Eunwon never once mentioned anything more for his own comfort — like asking him to pay off his debts or get rid of the villains.
Honestly, that foolish stubbornness —
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Muyoung was still satisfied that Eunwon had opened his heart to him, however slightly, and leaned on him — and decided not to push.
Relieved that his mother was safe, color finally bloomed red in Eunwon’s cheeks — pale ever since he’d been brought here. To Eunwon, looking up at him with reddened cheeks, Muyoung gladly gave the forty-fourth kiss, and fell asleep happy.
Warm body heat, sweet apple scent.
Savoring those welcome things, he slept — the second night of living together. Muyoung dreamed something unusual.
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