Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 29

Chapter 29

“…What?”

At the man’s call, Garam, who had frozen, barely came to his senses and muttered that single word.

Sa Muheon spoke as if he already knew Garam’s identity, but Garam wanted to believe that couldn’t be true.

He wanted to believe that it was just because he looked young, and the man had accidentally used that term. However, no matter how much he wished to believe that, the undeniable feeling of unease made Garam’s eyes tremble slightly as he looked at Sa Muheon.

Noticing Garam’s surprise, Sa Muheon chuckled. That laugh only amplified the anxiety spreading through Garam. As the ominous thoughts began to overflow, Sa Muheon, still grinning, opened his mouth.

“Are you planning to keep pretending not to know?”

“Th…”

I don’t understand what you mean.

Garam had intended to say this, but before he could speak, another car quickly pulled up behind the one Sa Muheon was leaning on.

Screech!

The heavily tinted windows made it hard to tell who was inside, but the car had stopped so abruptly that Garam’s gaze instinctively shifted toward it. Sa Muheon’s eyes followed his.

Before long, the driver’s side door swung open. The person who appeared was someone both Sa Muheon and Garam knew well.

“…Ha.”

Garam couldn’t say anything upon seeing him. He just widened his eyes and tightly bit down on his lips, which had been trembling moments earlier. However, Sa Muheon, seeing him, smirked and chuckled mockingly.

“It seems like you’ve been followed…”

His muttered words were quiet enough for Garam to hear alone. But that quiet remark triggered something in Garam’s mind. The strange sound he had heard just before arriving here, right before entering the building, had sounded like a camera shutter. It seemed that this was the source of that noise.

Garam bit his lips even harder. He felt that his carelessness had led to this situation. However, despite Garam’s reaction, the man who had gotten out of the driver’s seat stepped into the tense standoff between Sa Muheon and Garam without hesitation.

“…Haha. I see Mr. Lee here again.”

“Yeah. Was I supposed to have an appointment with Director Hong?”

The man called Director Hong, Ryu Beomju, didn’t hide his displeasure at Sa Muheon’s mocking question but quickly regained his composure and responded with a smile.

“Haha, actually, I came here because I heard the person I’ve been looking for was here… What a coincidence, meeting you here as well, Mr. Lee.”

“Oh, really?”

Sa Muheon still didn’t wipe the smirk from his face as he responded to Ryu Beomju. Ryu Beomju seemed irritated by Sa Muheon’s tone, but he barely managed to hide his frustration and extended his hand.

Garam, who was standing in front of Sa Muheon, watched the approaching hand but didn’t move to avoid it. He didn’t want to touch that hand, but if he rejected it now, he had no idea how Ryu Beomju would react. He also didn’t know how Sa Muheon would respond.

Garam, still biting his lips, subtly lowered his head, but just before Ryu Beomju’s hand could reach his shoulder, a shadow appeared in front of him. Then, there was the sound of something being swatted away.

Slap!

“Where do you think you’re putting your hands?”

The voice that had been calm until just now was filled with irritation. Garam slowly lifted his head.

The first thing he saw was Ryu Beomju’s face, which couldn’t hide the shame and surprise.

Although Garam hadn’t seen Ryu Beomju very often, in his memory, he had always worn a sneaky smile, acting arrogantly as if he were the leader of a group. Seeing him like this was unfamiliar. The one person Ryu Beomju seemed to fear the most was his mother, his grandmother, but even in front of her, he never made such an expression.

But now, it was clear that Ryu Beomju was being overwhelmed by Sa Muheon. Garam couldn’t tear his eyes away from Ryu Beomju’s face, which was still stunned. After a while, when Ryu Beomju noticed Garam’s gaze, his face twisted like a demon’s.

“What….”

Ryu Beomju tried to shout something at Garam, but his words were interrupted before he could finish.

Sa Muheon had forcefully swatted Ryu Beomju’s arm away and blocked his gaze as he walked toward Garam. Garam, suddenly faced with Sa Muheon’s back, slowly lifted his head.

Although Garam couldn’t see the expression on Sa Muheon’s face, judging by the stiffened expression on Ryu Beomju’s face, it was easy to tell that Sa Muheon was putting pressure on him. Garam quickly turned his head and hid behind Sa Muheon before his gaze could meet Ryu Beomju’s again.

For a moment, the conversation between them stopped. From behind the figure of Sa Muheon, Garam could hear Ryu Beomju grinding his teeth. His body tensed up slightly. Perhaps sensing the tension, Sa Muheon glanced over his shoulder at Garam, and their eyes briefly met.

It was only for an instant, but for some reason, the brief eye contact seemed to carry a hint of a smile. But before Garam could study it further, Sa Muheon turned his head back toward Ryu Beomju.

“Don’t you dare lay a hand on the kid, and now you’re trying to shout too?”

“What does that have to do with you?!”

Ryu Beomju seemed to be getting increasingly irritated by Sa Muheon’s constant interruptions. His tone, which had been polite just moments ago, was now filled with hostility. The growl-like quality in his voice made Garam feel terrified, but Sa Muheon, who was facing Ryu Beomju, showed no signs of fear or confusion.

With an unreadable expression, Sa Muheon calmly looked at Ryu Beomju and spoke.

“What does it have to do with you?”

Before Ryu Beomju could react, Sa Muheon continued.

“You’re yelling at my boyfriend—am I just supposed to watch?”

A longer silence followed.

From behind Sa Muheon, Garam could see Ryu Beomju’s dumbfounded expression. Trying to process the absurdity of Sa Muheon’s words, Garam attempted to look at his expression, but without turning his head, Sa Muheon spoke in a nonchalant tone.

“Why are you trying to touch someone else’s boyfriend? Do you think Director Hong would be happy if he were in my position?”

“What…?”

Ryu Beomju, who had been staring blankly at Sa Muheon, managed to say those words. Sa Muheon chuckled and stepped aside.

Only then could Garam properly look at Ryu Beomju’s face. Ryu Beomju, as if not believing it, alternated his gaze between Garam and Sa Muheon. Garam was just as bewildered by the situation. He unconsciously shook his head, but before he could react, Sa Muheon’s hand reached out.

“Looks like Director Hong didn’t understand even after I said it like that.”

“Pardon?”

Ryu Beomju’s gaze, which had been on Garam, shifted to Sa Muheon’s face, then to the hand that was now resting on Garam’s shoulder.

“I told you not to try to touch him, or even look at him.”

Sa Muheon’s tone, which was similar to the way he usually spoke to Garam, was soft, but the underlying intimidation in his voice was something Garam hadn’t experienced before. It made him instinctively shrink back, but because Sa Muheon’s hand was firmly gripping his shoulder, he had no choice but to face Ryu Beomju while half-leaning into Sa Muheon’s embrace.

Hearing the threatening tone, Ryu Beomju finally lowered his gaze. Trying to hold back his anger, Garam could see him clenching his jaw, but he raised his head again and, instead of looking at Garam’s face, answered while lowering his head.

“I’m sorry.”

“Hm… Well, since you said that much, I guess I’ll accept it.”

Sa Muheon responded as if mocking him. Garam could see Ryu Beomju’s jaw twitch, but Sa Muheon smiled as if he hadn’t noticed anything.

“So… you’re looking for someone here?”

“…Yes.”

“Could it be our little one?”

“…Pardon?”

Ryu Beomju’s head snapped up in an instant. Frowning as if trying to confirm what he had just heard, he alternated his gaze between Garam and Sa Muheon. Perhaps because of the warning he had just received, Ryu Beomju’s gaze only lingered on Garam’s face for a brief moment.

Seeing Sa Muheon’s continued smirk, Ryu Beomju must have realized that he wasn’t joking, as he reluctantly nodded with a sour expression.

“…Yes. That’s right.”

In that short time, Ryu Beomju seemed to have thought things through, and then he chuckled and continued.

“I mentioned before, didn’t I? I was going to introduce you to a squirrel shifter. Do you remember?”

“Ah, right.”

At Ryu Beomju’s pitiful question, Sa Muheon nodded as if remembering.

“I was going to introduce you, but I was a little surprised to find out that you two already knew each other, haha!”

“We’re not just acquaintances.”

Sa Muheon said this and pulled Garam’s shoulder a little closer.

“I told you, he’s my boyfriend.”