“The hot water’s not working again! I’ve already shampooed my hair but I can’t even rinse it out. What is this!”

Only then did Hae-wan realize that Yu-jun was in the middle of boiling water in a pot. The boiler had been acting up for several days, and it seemed there was another problem with the hot water pipes.

Knowing well that pouring cold water on yourself in a bathroom without heating on a winter day felt like your heart might stop, Hae-wan first wrapped Yu-jun in a blanket and sent him into the bathroom to warm his body as soon as the water boiled, then hurriedly took out another pot, filled it with water, and turned on the gas.

The sound of Yu-jun sneezing continuously came from inside the bathroom, and worry crept up about what would happen if Yu-jun, who already had weak respiratory health, caught a cold.

The landlord, recently obsessed only with selling this house due to the redevelopment boom, was reluctant to spend money on any problems with the house. That was why he hadn’t come to check even once despite Hae-wan mentioning the boiler issue once a day for the past week, making various excuses.

Bathing could be done at a public bathhouse, so not having hot water was manageable, but if the boiler completely broke down and there was no heating, they probably couldn’t survive the winter in this drafty house. In that case, it might be wiser to rent a motel or inn room nearby.

“Hyung! Isn’t the water done boiling yet?”

Snapping to attention at Yu-jun’s voice, Hae-wan entered the bathroom with the pot, mixed the boiling water with cold water in a large rubber basin to adjust the temperature, and immediately poured a bowlful over the shivering Yu-jun’s head. 

Yu-jun’s scrunched face as he whined about soap getting in his eyes was no different from the five or six-year-old kid in his memory, so Hae-wan grinned and roughly tousled Yu-jun’s hair before coming back out.

He thought of Kang-hyun again after frantically boiling water, both Yu-jun and Hae-wan barely managing to wash themselves, and lying down to sleep.

Lying in one corner of this shabby, small room that smelled musty no matter how much he cleaned, the things that happened in Kang-hyun’s surreal workshop with its beautiful courtyard felt distant.

What happened there could never follow him here. Why had he acted so foolishly flustered?

With that thought, Hae-wan unconsciously let out a small laugh toward the darkness and quietly closed his eyes.

* * *

“What’s wrong? Is it strange?”

Seeing Hae-wan’s face after smelling the fragrance sprayed on the scent strip, Kang-hyun burst into laughter.

“…It smells exactly like excrement…”

Hae-wan put the scent strip Kang-hyun had handed him down on the table and rubbed his nose. Kang-hyun returned the fragrance bottle he had sprayed on the strip to its original place and spoke matter-of-factly:

“It’s civet. Also called civet musk. It’s made by dissolving secretions from the reproductive glands of civet cats. It smells disgusting when smelled like this, but the feeling changes completely depending on how you control the mixing scents and concentration. When used as a base note, it has good fixative properties and increases the fragrance’s longevity.”

Despite Kang-hyun’s explanation, Hae-wan tilted his head, unable to imagine making perfume using such a smell.

A week had already passed since he started helping with work at Kang-hyun’s workshop. Perhaps noticing that he had been extremely tense after that day that had startled Hae-wan so much, Kang-hyun maintained an appropriate distance like they were truly work colleagues.

However, his suggestion about taking up perfumery as a hobby seemed sincere, as Kang-hyun would tell Hae-wan various stories about fragrances and perfuming methods. Before he knew it, Hae-wan found himself unconsciously looking forward to what stories Kang-hyun would tell each time he headed to the workshop.

The more he learned about various fragrances and became able to categorize them, the more differently he sensed the pheromone scents of passersby. Just like Kang-hyun had once said, it seemed like all the scents encountered in daily life could become a new hobby.

With that thought, Hae-wan frowned but smelled the civet scent sprayed on the strip once more. When Hae-wan realized Kang-hyun had become quiet and looked at him, Kang-hyun was watching Hae-wan with an interested expression and a faint smile.

Before Hae-wan could ask why at the inexplicable gaze, Kang-hyun spoke first:

“Mr. Yoon Bori seems really good at listening to people.”

Kang-hyun often gave sudden compliments like this. Unaccustomed to praise, Hae-wan muttered awkwardly:

“Ah… I’m not very good with words, so I’m more comfortable listening than talking.”

“That seems like a great ability too. Making me feel like I’m telling the most interesting story in the world, whatever I talk about.”

Then Kang-hyun spoke casually like it was nothing:

“Didn’t you say you had no hobbies before? If you had a hobby, it would be making other people feel good.”

This was the first time he’d been complimented for being quiet in this way, so Hae-wan’s face inevitably grew hot.

Certain his ears must be embarrassingly red too, he tried to redirect his thoughts to depressing things like the broken boiler or the unresponsive landlord, but it didn’t work well with Kang-hyun sitting right in front of him with a round smile on his lips.

“In that spirit, won’t you hang out with me this weekend?”

“…What?”

“I don’t have many friends. From what I can see, you don’t seem to have many either, so let’s hang out together, people without friends.”

Hae-wan just blinked before lowering his gaze and saying:

“You know I work on weekends too.”

“That day you only have one part-time job at the barbecue place. We can meet in the evening.”

“I’m sorry. Work is tiring, so I’m usually very tired after and it would be difficult.”

“Then let’s at least eat dinner together. I’ll buy you something delicious.”

“No. I think it’s better not to.”

At Hae-wan’s unconsciously strengthened tone, the smile on Kang-hyun’s face slowly faded. He hardened his expression and touched his thick eyebrows, which seemed to be a habit when he was uncomfortable.

“Why?”

Kang-hyun asked quietly. Hae-wan cleared his throat and forced himself to speak:

“Just… I’d prefer if we only met here.”

He knew he wasn’t in a position to make demands and that it was shameless.

Nevertheless, just like he had thought last night, a strong necessity pressed on Hae-wan that everything with Kang-hyun must be kept confined within this place.

At those words, Kang-hyun fell into thought for a moment, then spoke in a calm voice:

“That’s what you want, but what I want is different.”

“…”

“But if I do what I want, I’d become a bastard using money as bait to force you, so in the end there’s nothing I can do. Right?”

Unlike his voice, the content had an edge to it. Hae-wan bit his lips without saying anything.

Heavy silence flowed while Hae-wan couldn’t answer. Glancing up at Kang-hyun’s face, which showed no particular expression, only made it feel more awkward.

But then, the doorbell rang.

Startled, Hae-wan’s gaze reflexively turned toward the entrance. Kang-hyun, who had also looked in the same direction, seemed to have no clue about who might visit at this time.

However, soon checking his phone like something had occurred to him, Kang-hyun frowned with a troubled expression.

“Sorry. Just a moment.”

Unable to wait even a brief moment, the doorbell kept ringing, so Kang-hyun stood up and left the reception room without giving Hae-wan a chance to respond.

The bell stopped and quiet silence filled the space briefly, but then an unfamiliar voice began approaching as someone seemed to enter the building.

Thinking he shouldn’t be there when a guest arrived, Hae-wan stood up and began gathering his things. However, before Hae-wan could finish putting on his outerwear, a young woman burst into the reception room, raising her voice:

“No, why on earth did you tell me not to come in…”

The woman who entered with long, flowing black hair was a beauty with pale skin and distinct features drawn like charcoal, and she resembled Kang-hyun somehow.

The moment the woman made eye contact with Hae-wan, her gorgeous face showed obvious surprise. Her thick eyebrows twitched as she spoke in a tone full of curiosity:

“Who are you?”

Not knowing how to introduce himself, Hae-wan hesitated.

“I’m, well…”

“My friend.”

Fortunately, Kang-hyun’s voice rescued Hae-wan from the difficult question. Hae-wan’s eyes reflexively turned toward Kang-hyun like meeting a savior, then widened at seeing the creature following behind him.

It was a very sturdy-looking Border Collie. The Border Collie, with long fur mixing golden-brown and white and intelligent black eyes, immediately sat down when Kang-hyun gave the command, stuck out its tongue halfway, tilted its head, and looked at Hae-wan.

“Friend? Since when do you have friends?”

At the woman’s voice rising in utter bewilderment, Hae-wan, who had been captivated by the dog’s sparkling eyes, snapped back to attention. Glancing at Kang-hyun, he responded with an indifferent attitude like it was nothing:

“You talk like I need your permission to make friends.”

Hearing Kang-hyun call her ‘noona,’ Hae-wan’s ears perked up. While close friends could call each other noona, given their overly casual way of speaking and the similar atmosphere both clearly shared, he was inwardly certain they were blood relatives.

The woman snorted and said:

“Look back at how you’ve lived your life so far before saying such things.”

Then she whipped her eyes around to look at Hae-wan. Flustered by her gaze that moved up and down like she was evaluating him, Hae-wan unconsciously lowered his head diagonally.

Seeing Hae-wan’s reaction, a crooked smile appeared on the woman’s lips like she was saying ‘see?’ Turning her gaze back to Kang-hyun, she asked in a playful tone:

“Wait, so you forgot to take Bori and were playing with your ‘friend’?”

Bori? At the name that came from the woman’s mouth, Hae-wan jerked his head up and looked at Kang-hyun.

“I didn’t forget because I was playing. I was busy with work. That doesn’t mean you had to bring her here.”

“It’s not just about Bori, I came to check on what I commissioned. It’s gifts for important clients, so they absolutely cannot be late.”

“If you’re talking about the diffusers, I said I’d have them ready by next Friday. Mr. Yoon Bori here is helping too, so don’t worry.”