Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 119

Chapter 119

***

Bzzz—.

Ever since what happened a few days ago, Garam had been keeping a slight distance from Sa Muheon. But it wasn’t as if he was deliberately avoiding him—he was just maintaining a small degree of space.

“Why are you sitting so far away?”

“I’ve always sat here.”

“Hmm….”

Garam responded nonchalantly, but Sa Muheon narrowed his brows slightly, clearly dissatisfied. Technically, Garam wasn’t wrong. There was a time when that seat had been his usual spot.

But not recently. At some point, he had started sitting right next to Sa Muheon, at the seat closest to the window. And ever since Sa Muheon had been discharged from the hospital, he had always stayed close, keeping an eye on him. More than once, Sa Muheon had let out a chuckle at how he hovered over him, almost like someone looking after a newborn baby.

Yet ever since that kiss, things had been like this. He kept this ambiguous distance, still watching Sa Muheon, still responding properly whenever spoken to—never avoiding him, but clearly thinking about something with that small head of his.

Sa Muheon had no idea what was going on in Garam’s mind, which left him feeling frustrated. At least he wasn’t being outright avoided, so there was that.

“Baby.”

“Y-yes?”

When Sa Muheon called out to him and lifted himself halfway up from the couch, Garam flinched, straightening his posture as if he were about to run off to his room. Clicking his tongue internally, Sa Muheon leaned back again, making it seem as though he had only moved to get comfortable. Seeing that, Garam relaxed again, settling back into place.

The question only grew. He wasn’t avoiding him completely, so why was he acting like this?

Sa Muheon, unable to hold back his curiosity any longer, was about to ask Garam directly when his phone vibrated again.

Bzzz—.

He ignored it and tried to speak to Garam, but Garam had already sent him a questioning look.

“Seems like someone’s trying to reach you?”

“I can check it later. More importantly, baby—”

Bzzz— Bzzzz—.

As if to argue against his words, the vibrations continued. Garam’s gaze turned even more skeptical.

Are you sure you can check it later? His expression seemed to ask. Even in front of that silent question, Sa Muheon couldn’t just ignore it and keep talking.

Clicking his tongue irritably, he ran a hand through his hair before picking up his phone. There weren’t many people who would contact him at this hour, and considering the persistence, it was probably something important.

Lifting the phone he had tossed onto the table, he saw Han’s name on the screen. That made him suppress some of his annoyance as he checked the messages.

[Han: A tiger shifter was spotted at Nocturnal again today.]

[Han: The features are blurry, but they bear a strong resemblance to Hong.]

[Han: (Photo)]

It was hard to believe. He had assumed it was just bait to lure him in, but a tiger shifter with similar features to Ryu Beomju? Ryu Beomju was an only child. At least, Sa Muheon had never heard any rumors about his mother giving birth to another tiger shifter.

He quickly opened the photo Han had sent.

The background was similar to last time—probably taken in the club’s back alley. The dim glow of a streetlamp was the only light source, casting faint illumination over the dark passage. But unlike before, when the face had been completely unrecognizable, this time the profile was visible. And it bore a striking resemblance to Ryu Beomju. Sa Muheon’s eyes widened.

“…What’s wrong?”

Garam, who had been watching him, cautiously moved closer and asked. Sa Muheon quickly closed the zoomed-in photo and turned to Garam with a casual smile. But Garam’s face was already filled with concern.

“It’s nothing, just Cheif Han contacting me.”

“Ah….”

Judging by the photo alone, it looked as if Ryu Beomju had survived and returned. But nothing was certain yet. And until the facts were confirmed, Sa Muheon didn’t want to worry Garam unnecessarily, so he smoothly lied.

“It’s really nothing, right?”

“Yeah.”

“If something is going on, please tell me. And don’t go running off to weird places alone.”

The phrase weird places almost made him laugh. It was as if Garam already knew he’d end up at the club alone. Seeing him glare suspiciously, Sa Muheon chuckled lightly.

“Where would I go without my baby? I still need to get better so we can do things together.”

With that, he playfully tapped Garam’s nose.

Instantly, Garam’s face turned bright red. The distance he had carefully maintained vanished in an instant as he instinctively recoiled. Watching him pull away, Sa Muheon clicked his tongue softly.

But there was still something to gain from this.

It seemed that the kiss from that day had been quite the overwhelming experience for the young Garam. Even now, his face had flushed red, and he was keeping his distance while fidgeting in awareness of Sa Muheon. There was no doubt—his words had made Garam recall that kiss.

With a chuckle, Sa Muheon leaned in closer to him.

“But… if I do go somewhere strange, what will you do? Will my baby come with me?”

Garam, who had been gripping the sofa armrest as if ready to spring up and escape, looked at him strangely. Then, as if Sa Muheon had just asked something ridiculous, he answered matter-of-factly.

“Of course, I’d go with you. How could I let a patient go alone?”

“Really?”

It was a surprisingly touching response.

There wasn’t a hint of deceit in Garam’s expression—it was filled with pure sincerity. He looked so incredibly lovable that Sa Muheon, without even thinking, leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“W-what was that for?!”

Garam, who had been caught completely off guard, turned even redder, his face practically on the verge of combustion. He flailed, scrambling away from Sa Muheon, while Sa Muheon simply burst out laughing.

“Hahaha!”

“Ugh, seriously….”

Annoyed that he was the only one embarrassed, Garam rubbed at the spot where he had been kissed. Then, as if coming to a decision, he suddenly strode toward Sa Muheon.

The unexpected movement made Sa Muheon stop laughing and stare at him. Garam closed the distance without hesitation. His face was still flushed, but his expression was resolute.

And in the very next moment—

Smooch.

Garam pressed his lips against Sa Muheon’s cheek.

It was a brief, fleeting kiss, but for Sa Muheon, it felt as if time had slowed to a crawl. He watched, almost in slow motion, as Garam moved toward him.

Without thinking, Sa Muheon raised a hand. It hovered near his cheek, the spot where Garam’s lips had just been, but he hesitated to touch it, his fingers lingering uncertainly around the area.

“Uh…”

Sa Muheon let out a dumbfounded sound and stared blankly at Garam. Garam wore a triumphant expression, but his face, along with his neck, had turned so red that it was impossible to tell who had initiated the kiss first. Though he felt embarrassed about being the one to make physical contact with Sa Muheon first, he also seemed to find it amusing that his actions had left Sa Muheon flustered.

“You keep calling me a baby and teasing me, but I’m a full-grown adult, you know?”

“Uh….”

“And if the person I like says they’re going somewhere dangerous, I’ll go with them no matter what. Of course, it would be best if they didn’t go at all, but sometimes there might not be a choice.”

Before Sa Muheon could even process what Garam meant, Garam had already scurried away into his room, as if he had said everything he wanted to. From inside, his voice rang out.

“I have my last exam tomorrow, so I need to study now! Good night!”

With those final words, the sound of the door closing followed. Right after that, there was a click, as if Garam had locked it to keep Sa Muheon from coming in. But Sa Muheon had no room in his mind to care about such things.

“Ha….”

His hand, which had been hesitating in the air, carefully touched his cheek—right where Garam’s lips had landed. It hadn’t even been on his lips, just a light peck on the cheek, something even children did. And yet, his heart was pounding so hard that he wondered if he had aged in vain.

“Seriously….”

But he didn’t dislike it. A smile slowly crept onto Sa Muheon’s lips. Garam’s last words before he ran away kept echoing in his mind.

‘If the person I like says they’re going somewhere dangerous—.’

The person I like.

It wasn’t as if he didn’t already know Garam’s feelings. But hearing them confirmed directly from Garam’s own mouth—it didn’t feel bad at all. No, more than that… truthfully, it felt incredibly good.

He had the urge to chase after Garam right this instant and cover his face with kisses. But then he remembered that tomorrow was Garam’s last exam, so he barely managed to restrain himself.

There would be plenty of chances, and plenty of time, in the days to come.