After so much turmoil, it's always nice to lie down on warm, soft bedsheets and let your mind empty all the negativity and weight of everything that happened. The body felt exhausted, but with all that affection from the sheets... It would soon be fine.

It wasn't his house, not really. It was a different place. This different place was really cozy despite being a little cold and lonely. The walls were as lifeless as the cold, smooth floor and there was more life outside, but it seemed to be beyond the limits that guests could go.

Mine, the guest, slept with his hands curled up against him, warming them from the cold night and waiting for the first ray of sunlight to touch his skin to relax and do like a flower blooming... but the sun didn't come because the curtains got in the way. Although, in terms of heat, there was something close to the guest that was also hot. In fact, that thing- or rather, someone, had an arm pulling the guest closer, warming him.

With a sigh, that specific someone, Addai, also let out a brief snore, which made the guest open his eyes and look at him – still drunk with sleep.

In the guest's mind, there were many words and many acid phrases that appeared like obsessors stalking a sinner.

Don't put yourself through this again.

Get out of there.

Don't get too attached.

Don't get any closer than you should.

More ‘no’ appeared as advice, or rather, as orders. As they surrounded and numbed Mine's ears, arms, and eyes, the environment slowly turned dark, and only Addai was visible in front of them...

... until an invisible ice wall formed between them.

Mine just stared at it, still motionless and very sleepy.

He touched the wall, and all the words took form wherever his hand touched. But his hand, before being burned by the acidic words, was carefully snatched away by his friend. When Addai’s hand touched his back, slowly stroking him up to his neck and head, the ice wall gave a slight but perceptible shudder.

Mine lazily blinked, indulging himself to enjoy the warmth.

You’re perfect the way you are.

It resonated like velvet near Mine's ear, and he couldn't help but feel warm inside and out. More phrases incorporated into him, enveloping him in deep comfort, and the same hand on his back continued gently touching him.

Mine let out a faint chuckle, silent but strong enough to hit the ice wall and break it to shards. His hair faintly glowed, sometimes golden and other times pink, but never ceasing to irradiate his core’s new warmth and peeling every single layer of debris around it.

Mine woke up when his body no longer wanted to sleep, and his eyes no longer wanted to remain closed. The first thing he did was... guess what? Yes, take his cell phone and sit on the edge of the bed.

Meanwhile, his friend was dead asleep – he slept so well that he even snored.

The Pub message group was in an uproar, and it wasn't for less. The big night was approaching, and Mine had missed the rehearsal that morning – not that he didn't know the choreography by heart – but thanks to Talia, the rehearsal moved to the evening, as many of the girls had unforeseen events that morning.

At least the day seemed to be smiling with luck.

In addition to the group messages, Mine saw that someone had sent him many messages early in the morning, and they were from none other than Younri.

[YOUNRI – 7:20 A.M.] Hey sweetie~ Good mornin’!

[YOUNRI – 7:20 A.M.] *Cute Sticker*

[YOUNRI – 7:22 A.M.] Did you sleep well? Are you feeling alright? Did Addai treat you well?

[YOUNRI – 7:24 A.M.] Rest a lot because tonight is our last rehearsal!

[YOUNRI – 7:25 A.M.] *Cheerful Sticker*

Mine could picture his boss's joyful voice and couldn’t help but chuckle before replying.

[MINE – 8:23 A.M.] Mornin’ Younri! Thank you for texting me! I’m fine <3

[MINE – 8:23 A.M.] *Cute Sticker*

[MINE – 8:25 A.M.] Addai brought me safely to his place, and I slept like a log. He’s always grumbling, but he’s treating me nicely.

[MINE – 8:26 A.M.] Don’t worry! <3 <3

As he typed, his ears started blushing as well as his cheeks, not only about the message's content and the situation he was in – and carefully starting to ponder about it – but also because his friend approached and nuzzled on his shoulders.

“Why are you awake this early?” Addai asked with his raspy and deep voice from someone who just woke up.

HOLY SHIT. Mine almost lost it. “I-It’s j-just my boss worried about m-me,” he tried to not stutter but failed miserably.

Addai sniffed Mine's neck and pondered out loud. “Hm… Younri, right? He's not only a friend then…”

Mine shivered entirely from that sniff. "Y-Yeah," he tried to move Addai away from his ticklish neck, but that man was too heavy!

“Hm… I knew that,” Addai mumbled and frowned a bit, like someone who had just solved a complex puzzle in a few seconds and was very proud despite his sleepiness.

Suddenly, a realization made Mine's hair stand: Addai had just, very casually, confessed something last dawn! Mine's heart immediately started pumping blood, adrenaline, the chaos inside him! His once sleepy and droopy eyes turned very much attentive!

Wasn't this guy his sworn frenemy at the campus?!

What had happened along the way?!

Mine was sure he did his best to be an excellent pain-in-the-ass tutor, but damn… well, he couldn't blame himself because he knew his charm… but who could guess that guy would be casually clinging onto him like that? Jesus Christ! What trouble he got himself into!

“Hm …?” Addai sniffed Mine's ear.

God damn, since when did he got the balls to do such bold moves?! Mine shivered from head to toe and quickly covered the affected ear. His flushed face was already steaming, and he could feel his fingers turning colder as well as his toes covered in the borrowed socks Addai put on before he fainted from exhaustion.

Gods… Heavens… What's going on with my life right now? Someone, please answer me because all my plans have failed! I turned a straight-faced guy into a gay guy, and now he's clinging onto me, and, of course, I can't forget how he fucking sucked the oxygen from my lungs yesterday and… Mine casually touched his own swollen lips before finishing his thought. My lips! My lips are still sore! He gasped.

Mine’s mind was a mess! Well, his mother always told him to let the universe take care of complicated things… but this was, at least, insane! He needed to wash his face and breathe fresh air outside.

“You’ll really wake up now?” Addai yawned, his face still close to Mine’s ear.

“Y-YES!” Mine yelped, startling Addai a bit. “I-I… lend me clothes. Now,” he demanded, a lot flustered.

“I’m still waking up… damn…” Addai grumbled, covering his face in the pillows.

“Gimme clothes now, or else I'll walk around the house naked!” Mine fumed, but his mind was made of jelly.

Addai’s ears turned red, but he didn’t react.

Mine’s jelly mind made wrong connections and fumed more. “Pervert!” he accused Addai and started nudging his ribs, causing the poor falsely accused man to bend to the opposite side from the nudges.

“Shut up! I'm not a pervert!” Addai said, also flustered.

“CLOTHES. NOW,” Mine demanded like a bratty child.

Come to think of it... Mine really needed new clothes. When Addai laid his now focused eyes on Mine, how could both forget Mine was wearing only a baggy shirt and underwear? His bare thighs seemed soft to touch, and they were shamelessly showing – as well as the dark underwear he was wearing. Someone could say his looks were quite… suggestive.

Addai averted his eyes and hurriedly came with fresh clothes for Mine to wear, and, hopefully, the shorts fit him enough.

“Thank you,” Mine bowed, feeling fresh and clean again.

Addai brushed his hair and tied the loose strands with a hairclip. “I’ll make breakfast for us.”

Addai acting like a handsome prince was getting unbearably heart-touching, and Mine couldn't help but blush a little bit and let his mind work and run wild.

He was really nuts.

“Ok…” Mine couldn’t help but fall for those dynamics.

Deep inside, he quite liked that. Being taken care of in his home was one thing, and being taken care of in Addai's home was something very different. Mine was in the tiger's den, and he saw and felt the tiger attacking at the last dawn! He thought Addai could be a domestic cat, but that man was a beast when he wanted.

Mine needed to be careful not to trigger the beast.

“Here,” Addai placed the bowl in front of Mine.

Mine's eyes widened in awe, and his stomach rumbled at the sight of the perfectly done breakfast. Okay, he lost the notion of time but in that short time… Addai had done all of that for him to eat?! Two slices of exquisite homemade bread with an exquisite kind of jam on it; a rolled egg (a tamagoyaki?!) with green onions over it; a small white and delicate flan with a piece of plum on the top…

“Marry me!” Mine pleaded, grabbing Addai’s sleeves and catching him by surprise.

Addai choked on his breakfast, his face flushed while Mine patted his back and fanned his face in desperation as his jelly-minded speech was more nonsense like ‘I can wear women's clothing! I'm good with makeup and disguises!’

Umbra watched them from afar, interrupting her morning meal while looking at the hopeless duo. She wandered away and headed to the shrine in the backyard with a very delicate flower in her mouth.

Placing the small offering on the shrine's stones, she purred until a single cherry blossom fell from the tree and landed on the top of her head.