Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 84

Chapter 84

“Ah…”

Garam squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for the impending impact. However, the pain he was expecting never came. Instead, he felt a cool hand pressing against his forehead, followed by the sound of a soft sigh.

“Hah…”

The sound was faint, but it was enough for Garam to recognize who had caught him. Just the thought of his name brought a silly smile to his lips.

Only moments ago, his eyelids had felt unbearably heavy, making it difficult to open his eyes. But now, knowing who was behind him, they flew open as if that weight had never been there. Garam slowly turned his head to look behind him.

“Heh…”

As expected, the person he anticipated was there. Though his vision was blurry and he couldn’t clearly make out the man’s expression, just seeing his face was enough to make Garam happy. A soft laugh escaped Garam’s lips, prompting another small sigh from the other.

“What’s so funny?”

“Hehe…”

“Do you even know who I am?”

“Yeah…”

Garam nodded. Even that small movement made his head feel like it was spinning, causing him to grimace. Tsk. The sound of someone clicking their tongue was followed by Sa Muheon reaching out to gently cradle Garam’s cheek.

“If you’re dizzy, there’s no need to answer.”

“Mmm…”

This time, Garam responded by blinking slowly instead of nodding. Through his blurry vision, he could see Sa Muheon chuckling softly. Seeing that made Garam laugh as well.

“Heh heh…”

“Why are you laughing? Look at you, getting this drunk when you’re so small.”

Sa Muheon scolded him lightly as he helped Garam to his feet. Despite being unsteady on his feet, Garam obediently let himself be guided.

“Let’s get you to bed.”

“Huh…?”

“I’ll take you to your room, so hurry up and sleep, you little drunkard.”

The words seemed scolding, but his voice was gentle. Even Garam, drunk and sluggish, found it strange. Unconsciously, he raised his head to look at Sa Muheon intently.

“What?”

“…Sa Muheon.”

Perhaps because of their close proximity, Garam could see his face more clearly than before. The sight of Sa Muheon’s lips curving into a soft smile as he heard his name was vividly imprinted in Garam’s mind. In a half-dazed state, Garam stared at Sa Muheon’s face right in front of him.

“Yeah, it’s me. Sa Muheon.”

“…Really?”

“Would I be fake?”

Even though Sa Muheon’s answer confirmed it, the intoxicated Garam felt as though this wasn’t reality but rather a dream. Seeing Sa Muheon smiling so beautifully up close only strengthened that impression.

On top of that, for some reason, Sa Muheon seemed to be glowing more brightly than usual tonight. As if entranced, Garam reached out his hand.

“…Really?”

When his hand finally touched Sa Muheon’s cheek, Garam thought that maybe this wasn’t a dream after all. After all, the cool sensation of Sa Muheon’s cheek under his unusually warm palm was far too vivid for a dream.

And yet, Sa Muheon, smiling so closely in front of him, still felt like a figure from a dream. Keeping his hand on Sa Muheon’s cheek, Garam blinked up at him.

Sa Muheon said nothing, simply holding Garam’s gaze. Meeting his steady eyes, Garam unconsciously leaned closer. At first, Sa Muheon watched him silently, but as Garam continued to approach, his eyes began to widen. Garam couldn’t help but laugh softly at Sa Muheon’s surprised expression.

And then, in the next moment, their lips touched.

Sa Muheon’s eyes widened so much they could hardly open any further. He instinctively grabbed Garam’s arm, but instead of pushing him away, he just froze, unable to move. Garam, noticing the faint trembling of Sa Muheon’s hand gripping his arm, suppressed a small laugh and slowly closed his eyes.

The kiss lingered for a long while. It was a simple kiss, like the playful peck of children, with just their lips pressed together. But for Garam, the moment their lips met, his entire body was flooded with a tingling happiness.

Perhaps it was the overwhelming happiness that caused his tension to melt away. Though he tried to open his eyes again, his eyelids felt heavier than ever. He couldn’t even stay upright. He felt as though he might fall, but he wasn’t worried. After all, Sa Muheon was right in front of him.

With that thought, Garam let go of his consciousness. Just before he fully drifted into sleep, he felt Sa Muheon hurriedly catch his collapsing body. A faint smile lingered on Garam’s lips as he sank into the comforting coolness of Sa Muheon’s embrace and drifted into a blissful dream.

—

His head felt like it was splitting.

“Ugh…”

His eyelids felt unbearably heavy. Though he tried to force them open, the sunlight stabbing into his eyes made him give up and close them again. Even the small movement of turning his body slightly made his head feel like it was being shaken violently.

“Ahh…”

Garam slowly tried to recall what had happened. He remembered going to a drinking party to celebrate Hansoo’s birthday. He had drunk alcohol…

Lying there with his eyes closed, Garam struggled to piece together his memories, but nothing more came to him. All he could remember was drinking more than usual. He had no memory of how he left the gathering. Thankfully, it seemed that Jang Seokgyu, who had been waiting outside, had brought him back. Garam could tell he was lying in his familiar bed. Reaching out blindly, he pulled the blanket over his head. Only when the piercing sunlight was blocked did he finally feel a little more at ease.

“Ugh…”

“The smell of alcohol…”

Garam muttered quietly. Even in that faint mutter, the strong scent of alcohol lingered. Just how much did I drink last night? Yet no clear memories came to mind. After trying to piece together his thoughts and realizing there were no further clues to uncover, Garam let his body go slack. As he sank into the comforting softness of the bed, the pounding in his head seemed to ease slightly.

Only then did a scent, previously masked by the overwhelming smell of alcohol, reach his nose. Garam’s nose twitched slightly. It was a familiar scent. This is…

Before he could finish the thought, the blanket pulled up over his head was suddenly yanked away.

“You’re awake.”

“Ugh…”

Startled, Garam reflexively opened his eyes, only to wince at the sunlight piercing into them. This time, however, instead of closing them again, he tried to adjust to the brightness. As his vision gradually cleared, what came into focus before him was Sa Muheon standing there, holding the blanket in one hand.

“Why…”

Sa Muheon raised an eyebrow, as if not understanding the question.

“What?”

“Why are you here…”

Trailing off mid-sentence, Garam finally realized something was different about the view in front of him. His eyes widened as he scanned his surroundings, his mouth slowly closing as he processed what he saw. When he glanced back at Sa Muheon, who had remained silent until now, Sa Muheon let out a small chuckle and spoke.

“Looks like you’re finally coming to your senses.”

“Why… Why am I…”

Garam slowly moved his hand to pull the pillow closer. Even though he was fully clothed, being under Sa Muheon’s gaze made him feel oddly exposed, as though he were naked. Perhaps it felt even more that way because the bed he was lying in was Sa Muheon’s.

Why am I here? I thought I came home and fell asleep without any issues, but did I actually cause a huge scene instead? Garam’s thoughts began to race. As his eyes wavered with confusion, Sa Muheon finally opened his mouth.

“Don’t you remember anything from last night?”

“Last night?”

Unconsciously, Garam tilted his head slightly. The movement immediately triggered a splitting headache. Wincing at the rush of nausea and pain, fragments of memory surfaced in his mind.

Sa Muheon’s face, incredibly close to his. His eyes widening in surprise as they drew closer. And the feeling of lips touching…

“Ah…!”

Garam hurriedly clamped his hand over his mouth. His heart was racing wildly, pounding so hard it felt like it might burst out of his chest. Frozen in place, Garam couldn’t utter a word and slowly lifted his gaze to look at Sa Muheon. Despite Garam’s sudden reaction, Sa Muheon remained silent, simply watching him.

Gulp.

Beneath the hand covering his mouth, Garam’s throat bobbed as he swallowed nervously. Sa Muheon’s expression didn’t waver, his thoughts unreadable as he stood in a slightly slouched posture. Garam couldn’t tell what was going through his mind. Slowly, he removed the hand covering his mouth. After a long hesitation, he finally spoke.

“…Did I… maybe make some kind of mistake last night?”

No, it couldn’t be. Even as he asked, Garam desperately tried to deny the image in his mind. There’s no way I did something like that. But the faint tremble in his voice betrayed his unease.

Sa Muheon’s expression cracked slightly at the question, but only for a fleeting moment. His face quickly returned to an inscrutable calm as he continued to silently look at Garam. Tense, Garam anxiously waited for the answer that would come from his lips.