Chapter 7

"Where are you going." A foreigner who was talking to Minjun approached.

"That Asian saw everything, didn't he?"

A creepy gaze turned towards Dohwa. He put his hand in the pocket of his jacket, took out a gun, and pressed it against Dohwa's head without hesitation.

"Let's kill him."

Kill him? Dohwa's heart clenched tightly.

"I... I... I didn't see anything..."

He lifted his head in a hurry, trying to stand up. But, unfortunately, Minjun's face was close by. As a result, their lips accidentally collided, unintentionally turning into a kiss. This is crazy. What are you supposed to do, kissing in a situation like this? Dohwa panicked at the devilish coincidence and quickly pushed away.

"T-this was a mistake."

Embarrassment and fear mixed together. In a rush, he took off his slippers and was about to run when he heard the foreigner's voice.

"He's trying to escape! It'll be trouble if he calls the police!"

"I'll handle it. Just stay put."

"What?"

"It's my problem."

Minjun stared at Dohwa, touching his own lips. His blue gaze felt like a bondage. Terrified, Dohwa couldn't understand why Minjun was saying and expressing such things, but for now, he need to ran away. Unaware that the accidental kiss had touched Minjun's heartstrings, not just his lips.

----

"Haah, haah..."

Dohwa ran barefoot, his mind racing. Though there was a carpet on the floor, the impact on his ankles was significant. However, what was more troublesome was the fact that there seemed to be no accessible exit at the moment. His breath became heavier, and running became more difficult. So, he slowed down, leaning against the wall, and caught his breath. Tears threatened to burst out, but he swallowed them forcefully. Crying now wouldn't solve anything. He needed to calmly assess the current situation. Dohwa held his pounding heart and looked back. However, there was no sign of Minjun or the foreigner who could have followed closely.

"Whew..."

At least, that was a relief. But the temporary sense of relief only intensified the growing fear.

"This is insane..."

The images of the bloodied men, Minjun's chilling gaze, and even his sweet scent lingered in Dohwa's mind. To Dohwa, Minjun was just a nice beta junior. However, he turned out to be an extreme right-wing alpha, a merciless murderer. Fate had made Dohwa witness that scene.

"Ha..."

In general, the ways to silence a witness were either persuasion or eliminating the person. Considering the foreigner had pointed a gun at his head without hesitation, it was likely the latter.

Dohwa's eyes, which had dried for a moment, became warm again. Despite enduring a difficult life full of hardships and scars, he never expected his life to end like this. Dohwa tried to hold back his tears, but as emotions intensified, they resurfaced. He quickly covered his mouth with his hand, wiping away the tears.

At that moment, a firm arm wrapped around his waist. Dohwa felt the sensation of his heart dropping and looked at the source.

"You're here."

It was Minjun.

"Huk..."

Surprised, Dohwa quickly pulled away. When did he come? It sent shivers down his spine.

"Let's talk."

Minjun's expression remained the same as Dohwa remembered, with mature and affectionate eyes. However, he had hidden his true identity and lived a deceptive life until now. There was no room for deception anymore. Dohwa pushed Minjun's hand away and fled again.

"Haah, haah..."

He ran and ran, but the same corridor continued endlessly. Strangely, despite running noisily, there was no sign of any guests or staff. It felt as if the space itself had been suppressed into silence, making it eerie.

"Damn..."

Encountering another dead-end wall, Dohwa felt trapped. While searching for a way to escape, he saw a new door across the corridor. Despite the discouraging results so far, he couldn't give up hope just yet. Dohwa opened the door with his shoulder. A staircase appeared. The lower stairs were cluttered with various items, but the stairs leading up were clean.

Descending would have been the logical choice, but the circumstances forced him to go up. Dohwa closed the door quickly, climbed the stairs, and faced another door.

"Huh?"

Unexpectedly, the space revealed behind the door was an indoor swimming pool surrounded by transparent glass walls. There were scattered construction materials, indicating that the pool was under renovation. The pool was filled with water, unexpectedly clear, but there was no one around. It was natural not to have people at this late hour if it was not the operating hours.

"Now, trying to escape is useless."

"Sunbae?"

Minjun had come closer without him noticing. Dohwa, feeling frightened, finally threw himself into the pool. Originally, he should have stretched first, but now was not the time to be picky.

Although the indoor pool water was supposed to be warm, it felt quite cold. Dohwa's body shrank, and he shivered, but he quickly adjusted his posture and attempted to swim freestyle. Despite not having swum for a long time, the effects of his years of swimming quickly became apparent.

Chaminjun, who claimed to be bad at swimming due to beer bottles, would definitely not be able to keep up. Dohwa swam vigorously, creating a considerable distance between them. Soon, Minjun took the lead, reaching the other side and climbing out of the pool.

Dohwa felt a gloomy mood. It was a moment that showed no matter how hard he tried to escape, it was futile.

"Take your time coming up. It's slippery."

Completely out of the pool, Minjun extended his hand towards Dohwa. It meant for him to take it. The fingers of that hand, pointing towards him, seemed unusually long. From the knuckles to the nails, everything was perfectly shaped. Even in this situation, Dohwa found himself admiring it.

Yet, he couldn't just yield to Minjun. Dohwa turned away from his hand and approached the safety bar on the opposite side. It was too early to give up, and he quickly climbed up, taking his steps carefully.

"Ugh!"

As if he had applied oil, his feet slipped, and he fell, his forehead hitting the floor.

"Sunbae!"

Minjun hurriedly approached and sat down.

"Ah... Ugh..."

Dohwa felt his skull throbbing as he struggled to get up. However, Minjun held him tightly, so Dohwa ended up in a kneeling position, his head against Minjun's chest.

"Are you hurt? Your face is red."

Minjun lifted Dohwa's wet bangs and gently touched his forehead.

"I... I'm okay..."

Completely surrounded by Minjun, Dohwa felt intimidated and tried to be polite.

"I... I... my mouth feels heavy... ugh."

Dohwa finally burst into tears. Tears flowed, and even mucus came

out as he sobbed. Despite being three years older, the dignity and pride of a senior meant nothing now. All that mattered was not provoking Minjun's anger.

"My mouth is really heavy! I swear I've never told anyone that it was a secret that I cried all night because I got into a fight with my first love, who left a mark on Jihoon's butt!"

"That senior had such a secret. I didn't know."

Dohwa felt embarrassed at Minjun's voice. He just wanted to emphasize his own taciturn nature, but he ended up blabbering.

"No, I mean..."

"By the way, how do you know about that mark on Jihoon's butt?"

Minjun's voice sank, and an air of severity surrounded him. Frightened, Dohwa hesitated before opening his mouth.

"When I was in elementary school, I saw it in a public bath."

"Well, that guy did it first."

Minjun expressed his annoyance, then swept his bangs aside. Thanks to that, his Western-style nose became more prominent. Dohwa didn't understand Minjun's reaction. He had been the one to get punched in the eyes for looking at Jihoon's butt. Why would he be uncomfortable as if he himself had been seen?