Projection Novel (Completed) - Chapter 32

Cheon Sejoo took off his jacket, removed his belt and tidied it, then unbuttoned his shirt. Even though it was still chilly in the evening, Doyoon wasn’t wearing anything under his shirt. Cheon Sejoo looked at his bare body, then took his own T-shirt and put it on him. After that, he took off the rest of his clothes, leaving only his underwear, covered him with a blanket, and left the room.
Sejin was leaning against the sink, having finished preparing dinner. He was looking down at the floor with a sullen face, but when Cheon Sejoo came out, he glanced at him, then scooped rice into a bowl. Cheon Sejoo naturally took water from the refrigerator and sat opposite Sejin. It was now a familiar dinner routine.
“Who is it?”
However, it was different from usual, where they ate almost in silence, or with only nagging. As soon as Cheon Sejoo sat down, Sejin placed a rice bowl in front of him and asked. Cheon Sejoo glanced at him and shrugged.
“My younger brother.”
“Your younger brother?”
“…No, just someone I know, a younger acquaintance.”
He hadn’t expected Kwon Sejin to show interest in a visitor. Still, since they lived together, should he have contacted him beforehand? Would it be uncomfortable? But after pondering for a moment, Cheon Sejoo thought that the house was wide enough that there wouldn’t be much inconvenience, and besides, they were both men, so what was the big deal? He closed his mouth. Then Sejin asked again.
“Are you letting him sleep in your bed?”
“You’re curious about everything. Should I make him sleep on the floor?”
“…Are you sleeping together in your bed at this hour?”
Cheon Sejoo, who was about to pick up his chopsticks, raised his head at the inexplicable retort. Sejin was looking at him with a heavily furrowed brow. Cheon Sejoo was the one who wanted to frown. Was that question what he thought it meant? Cheon Sejoo stared intently at his face and asked back.
“Do you like men?”
“…Why do you keep saying such ridiculous things lately?”
As soon as he posed the question, Sejin glared at him and retorted. His fair face was flushed crimson again, seemingly out of irritation. Cheon Sejoo shrugged, as if to say, “Suit yourself,” and explained,

“What’s wrong with two men sleeping together in a bed at this hour that you’d ask a question like that? I almost misunderstood, thinking your mind was going in that direction.”

“B-because you’re trying to sleep together and make the guest uncomfortable!”

“Anyone would think he’s your guest.”

Cheon Sejoo snorted in response. He wasn’t usually one to hide his sexual orientation from others, but minors were an exception. He had no desire to come out to a child who wasn’t even an adult yet. And of all people, it was Kwon Sejin. Just thinking about how he would react if he found out Sejoo was gay, living in the same house, was already exhausting.

At Cheon Sejoo’s words, Sejin chewed on his lip, glaring at him. He remained like that for a long time, seemingly deep in thought, then spoke with a magnanimous air.

“It’ll be uncomfortable if we sleep together, so you can sleep in my room. I sleep well on the floor, so I’ll sleep on the floor.”

At the unexpected offer, Cheon Sejoo raised an eyebrow in surprise. To think Kwon Sejin was capable of such consideration for a guest. However, despite his surprise, he wanted to decline Sejin’s thoughtfulness.

“That’s very honorable, but I can just sleep in the living room.”

Cheon Sejoo couldn’t trust himself when he wasn’t sober. He was the type to hug whoever was next to him in his sleep, so even if it was a slim chance, there was a non-zero probability he’d end up at the police station tomorrow if he slept in the same room as Kwon Sejin.

At his answer, Sejin’s lips tightened, as if displeased again. He watched Cheon Sejoo quietly eat his meal, then spoke, as if to offer even greater generosity.

“Then let that guest sleep in my room. I’ll sleep in the living room.”
What’s wrong with this brat? Cheon Sejoo looked up with a perplexed expression. It was the first time he’d brought a guest home, but even so, if Kwon Sejin had been the type to care so much about others, it wouldn’t have gone unnoticed until now. There had to be a reason for Sejin’s kindness.

“You… didn’t take your midterm exam, did you?”

Convinced that Kwon Sejin had done something wrong to be acting this way, Cheon Sejoo put down his chopsticks and asked with a chilling expression. At his suspicion, Sejin snorted in disbelief and picked up his spoon. He calmly mixed his rice and soup and replied,

“I did. I told you I did well.”

“We’ll see how well you did when the report card comes out.”

But Sejin was confident. Due to the characteristics of Dongseoul Boys’ High, even among third-year students, there were fewer than ten who actually studied in the entire grade. It was an environment where even a little effort could significantly boost one’s rank, so Sejin thought he would be in the top 5 of his class this time. That’s because on the last day of the midterm exam, only five people sat and solved problems until the very end without falling asleep.

However, Cheon Sejoo didn’t believe him. He tapped the table, grilling Sejin.

“You did something wrong, didn’t you? What is it? Did you break something while cleaning? It’s okay, just tell me honestly.”

“What is there to admit when I haven’t done anything wrong? Just eat your rice.”

“What is it? It’s weird. Offering your room to someone you don’t even know.”

Cheon Sejoo was persistent. He bothered Sejin, convinced that he had some ulterior motive. However, Kwon Sejin himself wasn’t giving it much thought.

It was just… he felt Cheon Sejoo shouldn’t sleep in the same bed with that man. Cheon Sejoo was tall, broad-shouldered, and well-built. In contrast, the man he had carried in was smaller and more slender than Sejin. So what if Cheon Sejoo crushed the man in his sleep and suffocated him if they slept in the same bed?

Sejin truly didn’t think he could live in a house where someone had died. He was afraid the man crushed to death by Cheon Sejoo would reappear as a ghost. That was why. This house was Cheon Sejoo’s anyway. He was merely a temporary resident, just an employee, so he could offer a room when a guest came. He was in a position where he should.

“I don’t mind sleeping in the living room. So don’t make the guest uncomfortable; let him sleep comfortably in the room I’m sleeping in.”

That’s what he said, but Cheon Sejoo’s reply was unexpected. He listened to Sejin’s words, still gazing at him with a suspicious look, then sighed and answered,

“It’s your room, how can I kick out the owner? I’ll sleep in the living room, so know that. End of conversation. Eat your rice.”

“……”

At that, Sejin moved his lips as if he had more to say, then eventually lowered his head without a word. Cheon Sejoo said it was his room, that he was the owner, so Sejin couldn’t add anything more.

Although he eventually conceded to Cheon Sejoo sleeping in the living room, Sejin couldn’t shake an uncomfortable feeling. After finishing the dishes and tidying the kitchen, he studied with Cheon Sejoo in the living room, exchanged goodnight greetings, and went into his room, but a corner of his mind still felt uneasy.

After showering and thoroughly drying his hair, Sejin lay in bed, pulling the duvet up to his neck, and stared at the ceiling. Even so, Cheon Sejoo is the homeowner, is it right for him to sleep in the living room without a blanket? If Sejin’s mother knew this, she would loudly scold him and hit his back.

…But Cheon Sejoo was originally someone who often sprawled on the sofa and slept well during naps. Since he said he was fine, it shouldn’t be something to worry about to this extent, yet why was he so concerned about that nagging guy? Sejin couldn’t figure out the reason and closed his eyes, resting his head on the pillow. At least Cheon Sejoo isn’t sleeping with that man, so it’s fine…. He fell into a doze, thinking that without realizing it.

Then, in the deep hours of dawn, Sejin suddenly felt a wave of heat and woke up with a start. He kicked off his blanket in annoyance and sighed. It seemed the heating was on. Sejin soon got up from the bed and checked the individual boiler panel.

However, the room temperature hadn’t changed from when he checked it before bed. The boiler wasn’t running, and the heater wasn’t on. Sejin was just hot by himself. Realizing this, Sejin suddenly placed a hand on his forehead, frowning.

He felt like he had a fever. But a fever that rose without any premonition made it difficult to tell if it was a mild fever or a high one. Sejin decided he should take a fever reducer and headed back to bed. He planned to cover Cheon Sejoo with his blanket on his way out to the living room. He no longer needed it since he had a fever.
Click, the hallway he stepped into after closing the door was quiet. The faint moonlight of dawn illuminated the pristine white marble hallway, where a dim silence lingered. Sejin walked across it with quiet steps. But Cheon Sejoo was not in the living room. Sejin saw only an empty pillow on the sofa, then turned his head to check the clock on the refrigerator.

4:42 AM. It wasn’t time to exercise yet. Then, did he go to the bathroom? But the bathroom door next to the living room was wide open, and the lights were off. Sejin tilted his head and headed to the kitchen. First, he took out the first aid kit from the cupboard, grabbed a fever reducer, then took a bottle of water from the refrigerator and drank it with the medicine. As the cool water went down, he finally felt the heat subside a bit. Sejin quietly crumpled the empty water bottle, put it in the recycling bin, and turned around. It was then, as he was about to go back to his room.

“…Hmph.”

Someone’s sobbing could be heard from somewhere in the quiet house. It was a very small sound, but it came during a momentary stop in the refrigerator’s hum, so Sejin couldn’t miss it. What was that? He stopped walking and frowned, looking around. But he didn’t sense any other presence. It seemed the sound came from somewhere other than the living room or kitchen.

Cheon Sejoo’s house had five rooms, but only two were in use. Cheon Sejoo left the other three rooms empty and unused, apart from his bedroom and Sejin’s room. Could the sound have come from there? Sejin thought of the three completely empty rooms, his expression hardening, and took a step. The man Cheon Sejoo had brought home came to mind. He worried about hygiene, thinking the man might have gone into one of those rooms to throw up.

But there was no one in the empty room across the living room, closest to the kitchen. Sejin went inside, confirmed that even the veranda was empty, and closed the door to the empty room. Did I mishear? Just as he was thinking that and about to truly return to his room,

“Ugh…”

He heard someone stifling a groan. It was faint, but Sejin felt like he knew who the voice belonged to. In the living room, darkened by night, he turned his head and stared at the empty sofa where Cheon Sejoo had been lying. The ownerless pillow and the blanket he had brought. And his gaze sequentially fell on the bedroom occupied by someone other than the owner.

Is Cheon Sejoo sick? At the sudden thought, Sejin walked as if possessed. Perhaps something they ate for dinner was bad. That could be why Sejin had a fever, and Cheon Sejoo was sick too. Did Cheon Sejoo also have a fever and, in a daze, went into the room looking for the bed? Sejin thought about getting him some medicine and went back to the kitchen, taking the fever reducer and water in his hand. He then stood in front of Cheon Sejoo’s bedroom door. He placed his hand on the doorknob and slowly turned it.

“Hhh-eut…”
A moan escaped through the slightly opened door. Along with it, the wet, squelching friction sound made Sejin instantly stop breathing, frozen in place.

“It hurts, Hyung, ahh-ugh…”

An unfamiliar voice was heard. And Sejin heard Cheon Sejoo soothing and comforting the man, as if responding to the groans he was making.

“Doyoon-ah, relax. Haa, unh, it’s okay, you’re pretty…”

Sejin had never imagined Cheon Sejoo could make such a sound. “Doyoon,” the way Cheon Sejoo called the man, his voice was sweet, as if he had become the kindest person in the world.
His heart pounded. He felt a great heat rising throughout his body, as if a heater had been turned on inside him. He didn’t need to see to know. Just hearing it brought the situation before his eyes.

Sticky, slick skin met skin. Cheon Sejoo chuckled softly, and a sound like lips pressing against and detaching from skin was heard, as if he was kissing the man. Sejin unconsciously pushed the door open. Then Cheon Sejoo’s bed came into full view. Cheon Sejoo’s back, illuminated by a sunset-like light as if the dressing room lights were on, struck Sejin’s brain.

“It’s okay, it doesn’t hurt, hooh, right…”

The tiger tattoo covering his broad back seemed to move, alive. Beads of sweat, sparkling in the moonlight, flowed down his deeply grooved spine. His perfectly sculpted muscles were taut and swollen with exertion, and his deeply cleft buttocks twitched with each movement of his hips. It was like watching a work of art. No, it was a lovemaking session that straddled the boundary between what some would call art and others obscenity.

“Hngh, ahh-ugh…! Hyung, it hurts, it hurts…”

As Doyoon, pinned beneath Cheon Sejoo, cried out in pain, a large hand gripping his leg gently caressed his skin. Sejin’s eyes followed the trajectory of Cheon Sejoo’s veiny hand as he swallowed dryly.

“Haa, come here. Bite.”

Cheon Sejoo groaned like a sigh, let go of Doyoon’s leg, and bent his upper body towards him. Cheon Sejoo held the man’s small body in his arms, offered his neck, and whispered for him to bite. At that gentle, sweet voice, Sejin felt a chill run through his body and took a step back.

Gulp, the sound of him swallowing seemed loud enough for Cheon Sejoo to hear. Sejin gripped the doorknob with trembling hands and turned it. He then closed the door silently, and only then did he let out the breath he had been holding. Haa, haa, hearing his own gasping breaths, Sejin lowered his head. Soon, he walked towards his room with a pale face. His steps were almost a run.

As soon as he arrived in his room, Sejin collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath. His feverish cheeks were fiery red, as if they would burst. It wasn’t mere physical heat. An amorphous, raging inferno, as if fire had ignited somewhere inside his body, was burning all of Sejin’s thoughts and mind.

Sejin eventually tossed and turned all night. It took him a long time just to calm the uncontrollable heat. It wasn’t simply physical arousal from witnessing a stimulating scene. Lying on his side in bed, gazing out the window, the more he recalled the sight he had seen, the more he was consumed not by excitement, but by anger.

Yes, Kwon Sejin was angry. He didn’t know why. He just felt pissed off. He was just annoyed at Cheon Sejoo. He just disliked Cheon Sejoo. He was just disappointed, just upset, just confused. Muttering about his inexplicable feelings, Sejin spent the night raging and cursing to himself.

Amidst all this, when he finally succumbed to fatigue and fell into a doze, Sejin even had an unpleasant dream.

In the dream, Sejin was on the bed with Cheon Sejoo. Cheon Sejoo stroked Sejin’s cheek with a strange smile, and Sejin turned his head to kiss the top of his foot. It was possible to assume such a position, not unlike a bizarre yoga show, because Cheon Sejoo was beneath Sejin. Just as he had seen the night before, Cheon Sejoo, with his knees bent, was spread-eagled beneath Sejin, just like Kang Doyoon had been.

What the hell is this? The moment he felt extreme panic, Sejin woke up. With his underwear soaked.

He simply couldn’t keep up with the changes in his emotions. Getting angry at Cheon Sejoo and that man’s sex, and then dreaming of a similar situation and having a wet dream, was an incomprehensible flow of events for Sejin at the moment.

And so, morning came. Sejin washed his underwear and hung it to dry, then left his bedroom in a state of confusion. One thing was certain, though: he didn’t want to face Cheon Sejoo today. Sejin quickly headed to the living room, planning to leave for school before Cheon Sejoo returned from his workout.

But as he entered the kitchen, he saw someone sitting there. It was that man from yesterday. Sejin, who hadn’t expected to encounter him, stopped, his face rigid, and stared at the man eating cereal with milk. Doyoon, feeling his gaze, also turned to look at Sejin with a sleepy face.

“……”

“……”

A brief silence fell between the two. Doyoon, who was more sociable than Sejin, spoke first. Doyoon smiled brightly and greeted Sejin.

“Hi, so you’re the kid Hyung mentioned?”

His voice was slightly hoarse. It was understandable, given how much he had cried and sobbed. Sejin wrinkled his nose at the scene unfolding before him and headed to the kitchen without a word. As he took outside dishes for himself and scooped rice into a bowl, Doyoon, with a milk mustache on his lips, spoke to Sejin.

“Mine is fine. My stomach doesn’t feel good after drinking and then eating…”

It was a shameless thing to say, as Sejin hadn’t even thought of preparing anything for him. His insides boiled at the milk thief’s brazenness. Sejin snorted softly and set his own meal. He sat across from Doyoon and picked up his spoon and chopsticks, pretending everything was normal.

Eating in silence, Sejin frowned. A breeze blew in through the open window in the living room. The smell of the shampoo and body wash Cheon Sejoo used wafted from Doyoon. Sejin felt a surge of inexplicable irritation again. He used the same products, but the scent coming from Doyoon felt unusually unpleasant today. I need to change all my shower products, Sejin vowed, and continued eating.

“Mmm…”

And on the opposite side, Doyoon was looking at Sejin with a very serious face, resting his chin on his hand.

Doyoon also knew that Cheon Sejoo had a cohabitant. He had tried to visit the house last time but had met him outside because he was told Cheon Sejoo was looking after a child. However, he had never dreamed that the child would be so stunningly beautiful. Doyoon worriedly scrutinized Sejin’s body.

“Hey…”

When he asked Cheon Sejoo who he was living with, he said that the cohabitant was neither his younger brother nor someone he worked with, nor a relative. He only rambled that it just happened.

Remembering that, Doyoon quietly called Sejin. Sejin ignored him, chewing his side dish heartily. Looking at him, Doyoon carefully asked,

“Are you close with Sejoo Hyung?”

At the sudden question, Sejin stopped chewing and looked up. Seeing his face head-on, Doyoon gasped internally. It was an unbelievably beautiful face. Doyoon thought he was handsome himself, but he couldn’t compare to the boy in front of him. His heart sank.

Coincidentally, Doyoon knew exactly what type of bottom Cheon Sejoo liked. He preferred smaller, pretty bottoms, like Doyoon himself. He liked cat-like beauties, around 175cm tall, fair and slender. The boy sitting across from him was different in that he had a more prominent masculine build compared to Doyoon, but with that face, the difference in build wouldn’t be much of an issue.

It might be an overthinking, but as Doyoon also knew Cheon Sejoo’s profession, he couldn’t help but worry about the current situation. The child in front of him was relying on Cheon Sejoo, a complete stranger, even though he could have sought help from an orphanage or welfare system. What was the reason? Doyoon opened his mouth, hoping that the reason wasn’t that Cheon Sejoo had coerced him.

“Just in case, I’m not very close with Sejoo Hyung! So you don’t have to worry about your very important, secret, and difficult concerns leaking to him.”

“……”

At Doyoon’s words, Sejin lifted his head. He stared at Doyoon with an unreadable expression, then asked, as if to confirm,

“If that’s not being close, then what kind of relationship do you two have?”

At Sejin’s question, Doyoon’s heart felt like it would leap out of his mouth. Could Hyung really be touching this boy? Since I came in with Sejoo Hyung, he must feel uneasy, so he’s asking to confirm, right? Doyoon widened his eyes to clear his swollen vision and met Sejin’s gaze.

“Just, we meet occasionally for drinks. Without any other feelings for each other. To put it simply, we sometimes do each other favors to live a peaceful life… f-friends?”

“…You seemed pretty affectionate for that.”

“Huh?”

Affectionate? Doyoon tilted his head, puffing out his cheeks. However, he didn’t imagine Sejin had seen their lovemaking in the early morning, so he assumed Sejin had seen them when they came home yesterday, and replied,

“Sejoo Hyung is always like that. He was gentle from the first time we met. So don’t think it’s anything special, and if you have something you need to talk about, tell me. My older sister is a police officer. She can help.”