Chapter 25

Evening of Day 4, Jun Shin interview.

Earlier, it looked like you and Woo Seok Jung were talking together in front of Park Jaekyung and Hee Jun Kang’s lodging?

“Ah, that? I was joking around, and Woo Seok hyung reacted way funnier than I expected. The audio didn’t catch it?”

It was raining, and your voices were too quiet, so we couldn’t hear.

“Really? That’s a shame. It was seriously hilarious. But it wasn’t anything important.”

It seems like you’ve gotten pretty close with Woo Seok Jung too?

“Yeah. Woo Seok hyung is a really interesting person.”

What does Jun Shin think of Woo Seok Jung?

“Someone whose thoughts are completely transparent. Haha.”

***

Evening of Day 4, Woo Seok Jung interview.

Earlier, it looked like you and Jun Shin were talking together in front of Park Jaekyung and Hee Jun Kang’s lodging?

“Yeah, well. He was saying a bunch of nonsense.”

Nonsense?

“He kept hyping me up, saying I’m naturally funny. Seriously, I’m in trouble since even Alphas are falling for me now.”

What does Woo Seok Jung think of Jun Shin?

“Uh, well....... More ordinary than I expected?”

Ordinary?

“Even the leader of Moving wasn’t that special. He just feels normal.”

That sounds a little dangerous. Can you handle the Moving fans?

“Ah! That’s not what I meant. You know how when someone’s too perfect, they stop feeling human? Jun Shin is a P-brand ambassador and everything, so I thought he was some untouchable celebrity from another world, but he’s more human than I expected. You get me? Moving fans? I was saying something nice.” (continues rambling) “...Ah, please just edit this part out. I think that’d be best.”

***

The sensation of his lower body being tightly pressed down left Gyeol completely frozen.

The only thing separating them was a thin layer of swimwear.

Yo Han Sung had not done it intentionally. If anything, this was closer to a mistake on Gyeol’s part, someone unaccustomed to bathing like this.

Regardless, it had already happened. The instant he became conscious of it, blood rushed violently below his stomach and his head spun. Bracing a hand against Yo Han’s chest, Gyeol desperately tried to think of anything else.

The fact they were filming. SAVE ME, which had collapsed so miserably. The moment Yo Han Sung humiliated him on the drama set. Yuli running toward him. The child’s adorable babbling voice.

But once desire had ignited, it was not easy to suppress. The harder he tried to shake it off, the more all his nerves concentrated below.

At the very least, he prayed Yo Han Sung would not move even slightly. He desperately wished their lower bodies would not accidentally rub together and create even more stimulation, and Gyeol bit down hard on his lip.

“Mr. Gyeol?”

Did he not realize what state Gyeol was in? Yo Han Sung remained perfectly calm.

“Don’t bite your lip. You’ll hurt yourself.”

Holding Gyeol’s jaw, he pressed his thumb against Gyeol’s lower lip. The soft flesh dragged free against Gyeol’s upper teeth and swelled slightly.

Gyeol flinched, his jaw twitching back. His oversensitive body treated even the smallest contact like overwhelming stimulation. Heat surged violently downward again, and Gyeol squeezed his eyes shut.

Yo Han Sung wrapped one large hand around Gyeol’s waist and lifted him.

Startled, Gyeol reflexively grabbed onto the edge of the tub.

Contrary to his fears, nothing disastrous happened. As though it were no big deal, Yo Han Sung lightly turned Gyeol around and settled him between his legs. Now they sat facing the same direction.

What is this?

He was confused.

Did Yo Han Sung not realize Gyeol had reacted physically? Or had he noticed and turned him around because he was disgusted?

Whatever the reason, it did not matter. Relief flooded over him at having escaped the immediate crisis.

Pretending to act naturally, Gyeol hugged his knees. Parting the rose petals floating in the water, his pale knees emerged like small islands.

As long as he acted like nothing was wrong, it would gradually calm down. Without looking at Yo Han Sung’s face or body, the visual stimulation dropped considerably as well.

“Mr. Gyeol?”

“Ah, uh. I’m okay.”

The reply came far too late.

How would they edit this scene? Regret washed over him belatedly, but thinking back on the split-second panic of the moment, he doubted he could have reacted differently.

“...I’m embarrassed.”

He added the excuse afterward. Pretending to be shy seemed like the only possible solution.

“I thought that might be it. Is it better now that we’re not facing each other?”

The gentle voice vibrated against his back. Gyeol curled in on himself further and rested his chin completely atop his knees.

“Yeah. ...Yo Han Sung. Is your head really okay?”

Even now, he remained bothered by the fact Yo Han Sung had hit his head against the tub. It had made a pretty loud sound. Regardless of personal feelings, it had happened while trying to help him.

“You’re worried I might be hurt?”

“Yeah, since it happened because of me....”

The sensation of bare skin against his back caused Gyeol’s voice to trail off. Holding Gyeol from behind, Yo Han Sung rested his chin on Gyeol’s shoulder.

Then, almost like talking to himself, he murmured,

“That’s not a bad feeling.”

Underwater, Yo Han Sung’s hand wrapped around Gyeol’s calf. The sensation of their bodies completely overlapping caused Gyeol to stiffen again.

“Uh, Yo Han Sung......?”

“Mr. Gyeol, should we start speaking casually?”

Every single word and action from Yo Han Sung detonated like a bomb inside Gyeol’s head.

Speaking casually with Yo Han Sung. He had never even imagined such a thing. Gyeol usually dropped formal speech with people easily enough, but doing so with Yo Han Sung felt unrealistically difficult.

“I’m kind of shy around new people, so I think speaking casually might still be difficult for me....”

As he stumbled through the reply, Yo Han Sung’s hand slipped between Gyeol’s legs.

The touch brushing his thigh made his body jerk for an instant.

Then the hand stroking the soft flesh of his inner thigh covered his groin.

Underwater, Gyeol instantly grabbed Yo Han Sung’s wrist. Heat shot violently up his throat. Startled, he turned around too quickly and nearly brushed their lips together. Alarmed again, Gyeol jerked his head backward.

“What’s wrong?”

Yo Han Sung asked in a flat tone.

“That. No.”

He could not move carelessly. If he struggled too obviously to remove the hand, it would certainly look suspicious. His head spun, and even as blood rushed painfully back into the part of him that had only just begun calming down, he remained conscious of the cameras.

Yo Han Sung’s hand moved slowly.

He wrapped his hand around the shape that had already hardened.

Gyeol’s toes curled tightly. A thin gasp escaped him.

Yo Han Sung’s reddish lips appeared close before his eyes. Number one Alpha people wanted to kiss. He had once seen that ranking somewhere in passing and scoffed at it, but for some reason it surfaced in his mind now.

Instinct urged him toward something.

It reminded him of the moment those lips had touched his own. Even though he had been angry, disgusted, resistant. Even though that moment had terrifyingly cornered him and melted his thoughts into nothing.

“Do you hate the idea of speaking casually with me that much?”

As though completely unaware of what was happening underwater, Yo Han Sung asked in the same ordinary tone. It was the kind of flawless acting one could only admire.

Pressing his cheek against Gyeol’s shoulder as he looked up at him, Yo Han Sung’s eyes reflected the reddish lighting all the way to their depths. Moisture clung to his long eyelashes every time his eyes slowly opened and closed.

Where were the cameras? Where were the blind spots? How should he move his lips so the cameras would not catch it, yet Yo Han Sung would still understand what he meant?

Even failed idols had once been idols, and Gyeol possessed an almost supernatural ability to locate cameras instinctively. But even he could not defeat the infamous R-Connect production staff.

— “If the cameras are placed too obviously, the cast becomes conscious of them. The common theory says that after a few days, people stop caring whether cameras are there or not, but R-Connect is different. We have to win through ‘maximum stimulation.’” (laughs)

— “Producer Yoo is right. After the camera setup is finished, Producer Yoo personally inspects everything first. If she finds all the cameras within five minutes, we completely dismantle everything and start over from scratch. It can’t be helped. What is R-Connect? R-Connect is dopamine.”

Recalling the interview with Producer Yoo and the staff leading R-Connect, Gyeol wet his dry lips with the tip of his tongue.

Then he noticed Yo Han Sung staring at his mouth.

Gyeol immediately sealed his lips shut and swallowed once.

“...It’s not like that. You’re such a senior actor that I get nervous.”

Gyeol had no choice but to continue acting as well. Maybe it was clumsy, but there was no other option.

Meanwhile, Yo Han Sung’s hand continued stroking the distinct outline beneath the fabric.

A dizzying sensation crawled up Gyeol’s spine. Merely having that hand rubbing over his swimsuit made one corner of his brain feel as though it were turning to mush.

“Senior actor? We’re both contestants on R-Connect now. You can treat me comfortably.”

“Yeah....... Slowly. I’ll try.”

His breathing gradually grew ragged.

He should have hated this. He should only have hated it. Yet strangely enough, Yo Han Sung’s touch did not feel unpleasant.

“You have no idea how happy I was to see you again, Mr. Gyeol. Remember? We filmed a drama together before.”

“Of course, I do. How could I forget....”

“We had a scene like this back then too. We were wearing clothes, though.”

His mind was growing hazy.

Without realizing it, Gyeol pushed against the bottom of the tub with his toes. His footing slipped again, and his body tilted into the water. The tip shoved deeply into Yo Han Sung’s palm and was firmly squeezed once.

“......!”

Drawing in a sharp breath, Gyeol lowered his head.

This was dangerous.

Gyeol’s pale back repeatedly rose and fell.

But the crisis did not end there.

Yo Han Sung’s fingers slipped beneath the loose hem of Gyeol’s swim shorts.

“Actor Go, wait a second.”