“See you next week then,” Hyukjae gave his goodbye to his co-worker, his shift finished and he was ready to head back home after a long day.

“Yeah. Ah, that reminds me, that bizarre guy came by again today.” His co-worker turned around from next to one of the taxis.

 “Bizarre,” Hyukjae wondered for a while before a familiar face flashed in his memory.  Ah… he felt the breeze from the trees behind him not hitting him anymore and shadow mixing with his.

“Yo, Hyukjae. I got bored so I’m here to pick you up,” Hyukjae turned in bewilderment as Jongwoon had announced his presence, dressed yet again in a black suit   

Does he not feel hot in those clothes? Hyukjae pondered, watching the older man opened his mouth.

“Let’s have some fun today too,” Jongwoon gave him a small smile and turned around, expecting Hyukjae to follow him. Hyukjae watched him with a twisted gut and followed him not long after.

A few weeks back, I saved the boss of the Kim Organization, Kim Jongwoon who goes by Yesung and known by his enemies as the Mad Dog. Because of him, my calm everyday life shattered in an instant. He tried to repay his debt to me and initiated a physical relationship with me.

Which is still going on.

“You’re turning into something really y…” the bed creaked under the weight of the men as their bodies were joined. Sweat was covering their bodies and euphoria going through their veins. 

“Ah-ah, stop joking,” Hyukjae felt lightheaded from the dampness and hotness in the room while getting closer to his . 

Jongwoon got up from the younger man as they finished, lighting a cigarette and sitting on the edge of the bed.“Hm? It’s not a joke,” Hyukjae buried his head in the pillow, his chests heavy with something he didn’t want to put a name on, didn’t even want to acknowledge its existence. He cursed in his head, he cursed the smoke that was going to stench his clothes again, he cursed the older man and mostly he cursed himself.

“You’re free tomorrow, right, let’s go on a date,” Jongwoon brought him out of his thoughts with a light voice.

“….Yeah, I am,” Hyukjae started “But if I have to be honest, the places you’re bringing me to are a bit too much for me,” he confessed as he remembered the last few places they went on “dates”. Hyukjae was pretty sure that they weren’t places for dates, any normal dates anyways. “You brought me to a mahjong parlour last time…” but there was nothing normal in the older man.

“It’s super exciting there!” Jongwoon ruffled Hyukjae’s hair as he stood from the bed, trying to cheer up the younger man.

A few weeks ago, at their second meeting for drinks

“How come you chose to work as a taxi driver? Do you like driving?” The older man started curiously, wondering why Hyukjae would choose a job that middle-aged or older man usually occupied. 

“Yeah, I guess,” Hyukjae stated “I like to admire the town’s nature while I drive, and everyone here is a good person…” he continued confessing, realizing all the reasons he liked about his job as he talked “I like talking to people too, so maybe this is my calling,”

“What are your days off like then?” Jongwoon asked, sipping on his drink.

“Hm…I clean my room, do laundry…Go shopping when needed to,” Hyukjae tried recalling everything he does on his days off, which weren’t really that eventful or exciting but they were ideal for him. 

“Ah, you have a really mundane routine. We should add some variety to it.” Hyukjae got surprised by the loudness that came from the older man’s mouth. He looked at Jongwoon and pouted slightly.

Things are to my liking the way they are. Why should they change?  He narrowed his brows continuing to look at Jongwoon. The older man looked and propped his head on his hand, looking seriously at Hyukjae.

“What do you think about falling in love with me?” Hyukjae tried not to spit his drink that he had sipped on just before this ridiculous question came out of nowhere.

“Huh?!” Hyukjae’s brain went haywire. What was Jongwoon thinking? 

“If you add me to your activities you won’t be sorry. It’ll be exciting as hell.” Jongwoon turned his body away from the bar towards Hyukjae, amusement playing in his eyes, but his voice serious.

“I-I think I’m fine,” Hyukjae swallowed thickly. How did Jongwoon want him to answer? There was literally no sensible way of doing it. Why would he ask in the first? Was he mad?

“What was that?” The older man’s eyes suddenly darkening, but his lips turning upside. He was of course mostly joking with the younger man, having Hyukjae actually fall for him would lead to complications Jongwoon wasn’t ready for.

“Well for now, clear all your weekends for me,” of course that didn’t mean they couldn’t they good time and if the younger man actually relaxed around him would be beneficial for both of them.

Since then we have gone to all sort of places together – gambling on games, golfing which was probably the sanest one, strip clubs and whatnot.  Hyukjae reminiscence all the unusual places he had been dragged to, he had enjoyed some of them more than others. Being with the older man certainly brought all kinds of emotions in Hyukjae. 

Present

Which part of me he likes…  Hyukjae pondered, lying on the bed as he watched the older man put out his second cigarette when he noticed something.

“That scar – it’s from when we first met, right?” Hyukjae asked. Jongwoon curiously looked at his abdomen and traced his fingers over it feeling the texture.

“Yeah,” 

“Why-why were you stabbed?” 

“Ah, well, I happened to sleep with the lover of some gang group leader which as you can imagine it wasn’t to her liking,” Jongwoon admitted, trying to recall the situation, which by now was a bit hazy. 

 “Huh…so you mess with people’s lovers?” Hyukjae was taken aback by the fact but tried playing it cool as he chuckled. 

“Not my usual thing, I did only because he was pretty cute,” Jongwoon explained. The truth was that getting involved with people that have partners is too troublesome whether they know it or not. He preferred not to, most of the time.

“My involvement with women is usually on the more pleasurable side. It’s quite rare for me to get stabbed by a woman,” he continued and laughed softly. 

What am I getting all bothered about?  Hyukjae thought as he clenched the pillow under him his gut in a twist.  In the end, he’s fine with anyone as long as he finds them amusing.  He tried rationalizing with himself but wasn’t sure it was working.

“But if you weren’t there to rescue me, I may have been gutted,” he turned and smiled brightly at Hyukjae, the heaviness on Hyukjae’s chest returning. 

I’m nothing more than that to him.  Hyukjae cast his eyes to that side, dropping his head back on the pillow.

“Thanks for that,” Jongwoon thanked him sincerely, reached Hyukjae’s face and caressed it tenderly.  

I have to accept that the fun we are having now it’s just temporary.

The next day

“Hyukjae, yo!” Hyukjae turned towards the direction of Jongwoon’s voice. The older man was dressed down. The first time since Hyukjae had met him and he looked good with his simple black tee and black jeans.  Does he have a hidden fan on his body or was he a reptile?  Hyukjae pondered the colour choices or lack thereof that the older man always made. 

“You surprised me…I didn’t recognize you for a moment,” Hyukjae gawked at Jongwoon as the older man came closer. 

“I just wanted to match with you a little today,” he laughed good-naturedly. Hyukjae had probably thought that the man didn’t own any other clothes so Jongwoon had decided to show that it wasn’t so. 

“Match with me you say,” Hyukjae narrowed his eyes at the older man, not sure how to feel. Jongwoon swung his arm around Hyukjae’s neck and pushed him along.                  

“Come, let’s go,”

“Where are we going?” Hyukjae asked wide-eyed. They walked for a few minutes before reaching a corner where an unknown car was parked.

“I’m going to drive today,” Jongwoon stated, moving forward the car to get inside.

“You can drive?” Hyukjae asked suspiciously.

“Yup!” Jongwoon answered happily as he got inside, followed by Hyukjae. 

“You’re the one that’s always driving. I should show you what I can do once in a while.” Jongwoon explained while they were putting the seatbelts on.

“But I have to confess that it’s been some time since I last drove. If we do get into an accident, we’ll be going into the afterworld together, so there’s that.” Jongwoon said humorously while gripping the wheel and glancing at the worried Hyukjae.

“…Now, I’m kinda troubled,” the younger man confessed with a lump in his throat.

“But maybe if I receive some good luck from a driver that’s as skilled as you, perhaps we’ll be able to avoid any collisions.” Jongwoon shifted closer and Hyukjae could feel his face heating up.

“W-what do you mean?” The younger man asked coyly, avoiding eye contact with Jongwoon. 

“I mean this,” Jongwoon closed the distance between them by grabbing Hyukjae’s head and connecting their lips in a deep kiss. Butterflies erupted in Hyukjae’s stomach and his face burned hot.

“Hey, don’t just do that,” he yelped when Jongwoon pulled away.

“You really are so cute,” the older man grinned widely, finding the younger man’s reactions amusing. “Now if we do get into an accident, I’ll be sure to curse you for the rest of my existence,” Jongwoon’s face suddenly changing and Hyukjae turned his head to watch the road.

“W-whatever,” Hyukjae grumbled, Jongwoon’s laugh filling his ears and his seat vibrating from the starting engine. 

What am I blushing for?

“Come on!” Hyukjae watched Jongwoon cursing under his breath as the team he was cheered for and betting was losing. They were sitting in the best place for watching a game or that was what Jongwoon assured him of. Hyukjae wasn’t particularly interested in basketball but the game was more fun because of the older man. It certainly made difference when someone so into it was sitting beside you. “Gahh, dammit, this wasn’t my day,”

He’s like a little kid  Hyukjae smiled unconsciously, his body getting warmer as he watched the older man with adoration. 

“Pfft, haha, sorry. With the way you’re right now, it’s really easy to confuse you for a normal citizen. It feels kinda…weird,” Hyukjae gulped, slowly realizing his feelings and how he totally he shouldn’t have them for this man.

“That’s because of where we’re right now,” Jongwoon started, not aware of Hyukjae’s turmoil.

....How do I calm myself down?

“In your hometown, I’m known as nothing more than a mafia member,” the older man continued the topic but Hyukjae’s mind was thinking of other things.

As I thought, things can’t go on like this… If I can’t keep us from being alone then-  Hyukjae pondered what to do when the chance came upon him

“We should go party somewhere, so I can get my mood up,” Jongwoon said feeling as if he was the one that had lost the game. 

 “Yeah…shall we go to the first bar you brought me to?” Hyukjae was aware that it wasn’t the best choice but he was going to work with whatever he had.

“Didn’t you feel uncomfortable there?” Jongwoon turned to look a bit troubled. 

“It should be fine to drink with some girls once in a while,” the smile that Hyukjae tried to give Jongwoon for assurance strained his face, the uncomfortable feeling setting deep inside of him.   

 “Yesung-ssi is here,” the hostesses came looking bright and pretty, perfectly dolled up and charming. 

“Welcome! It’s been so long,” Hyukjae watched as Jongwoon pulled each of them closer to him, giving each of them a kiss on their cheeks.

“You’re right,” they continued to act lovely-dovely, Hyukjae staying behind while their figures disappeared.

If we’re here, he’ll surely be more interested in the girls  perhaps he would forget about Hyukjae and he could sneak away while Jongwoon gets occupied with the girls

This is fine  Hyukjae told himself ignoring the sting in his chests.

For the next hour, Hyukjae watched the older man focus his full attention on the two girls beside him, talking and laughing about things Hyukjae didn’t know anything about.

The girl next to Hyukjae noticed his far-away look and offered him more drinks but Hyukjae had to confess that he wasn’t a good drinker. She politely watered-down his drink without any back comments and Hyukjae thanked her. 

For a while they talked with each other, sharing this and that for themselves before Jongwoon appeared out of nowhere and got between them.

“Look at you two, you look like you’re having a good time,” the older man nudged Hyukjae and laughed “Can I join in?” 

Why did you come here?  Hyukjae glared at Jongwoon

“Didn’t you already have a fabulous company that you were drinking with?” Irritation was overtaking Hyukjae.

“What? Shouldn’t I have not come over?” Jongwoon raised an eyebrow, wondering why was the younger man getting irked about, it was his idea to come here after all.

“Did you want the pretty lady for yourself, Hyukjae?” He hugged the girl, keeping eye contact with Hyukjae.

Hyukjae watched as Jongwoon and the hostess laughed. The older man snuck between them and Hyukjae needed to get away.

“I’m going….to use the restroom,”

He stepped away, his feet heavy while listening to the chatter and laughter behind him as he was getting closer to the toilet.

…Just what is wrong with me?  He leaned against the wall, colder than expected it created goosebumps on his warm skin. 

It hurts to be here.

Why…