HMN C40

Chapter 40

“For once—just once—please, think before you speak. I’m begging you.”

At that, Go Chiwoo let out a short sigh and stepped back. Daeyoung, his legs suddenly weak, leaned against the locker and covered his mouth. Whatever happened, he had to protect himself—no matter what.

“What, you can’t even speak now? As if it isn’t bad enough that I can’t kiss your lips, I can’t talk either?”

“Yeah, you can’t.”

“Then you shouldn’t have been born this pretty.”

“Is your tongue physically incapable of behaving?”

“Nope. Wanna find out? I could use your tongue on mine.”

“Ah!”

Daeyoung flinched violently, utterly appalled. There it is again— those words, that infuriating grin. He shook his head hard, face flushed from a mix of exasperation and disbelief, while Chiwoo—though his mouth kept spouting nonsense—wasn’t exactly calm inside either.

He’d thought of Ahn Daeyoung all weekend. Not every waking second, no—but enough that it was ridiculous. His mind kept conjuring flashes: Daeyoung’s pale cheeks, the soft curve of his neck, the fingers that twitched when he concentrated, the wrist covered in medical patches. Sometimes he wanted to see him so badly it ached. He’d even waited for a message, though he knew full well Daeyoung had never promised to call. Still, he’d hoped.

“Why’s your face red? Were you imagining something?”

“It’s because you won’t stop saying disgusting things!”

Rustle.

Still covering his mouth defensively, Daeyoung took a cautious step back, watching Chiwoo like a startled animal with its fur bristling. Then, tugging his jacket up over his shoulders, he moved to stand. The way he did it—flustered, jittery, with that red face and darting eyes—was enough to make Chiwoo’s chest tighten. Too damn cute.

“Say something before you go. How are you going to take responsibility for this?”

“What—what does that even mean? You’re the one who should be taking responsibility!”

He was so dizzy from the whiplash of it all—from “you’re pretty” to “I want to kiss you”—that his words came out jumbled and half incoherent. His eyes flicked aimlessly, anywhere but at the other man.

“If we’re being technical, this all started with hypnosis. You should take a break from school.”

“Taking a break’s a later problem. I need to fix this first. I couldn’t even sleep all weekend. Do you want me to tell you exactly what kind of things I imagined?”

“No! Absolutely not!”

His desperate retort only made Chiwoo smirk. Daeyoung turned, fumbling to open his locker again, grabbing his bag with a hand that brushed against his overheated forehead.

“Then how am I supposed to fix falling for you?”

There was no such thing as reversing hypnosis. No undo button. Daeyoung swallowed hard, still avoiding his eyes.

“And besides… forget it.”

Truthfully, he didn’t believe Chiwoo’s feelings were genuine—but he couldn’t shake the question either. How could something as flimsy as hypnosis create this kind of obsession? It wasn’t like he’d done anything serious—he’d just half-assed a method from a book he’d skimmed.

Watching him think, Chiwoo finally said, cool and simple:

“Do it again.”

“…What?”

“The hypnosis. This time, make me lose interest in you.”

“…Huh?”

Daeyoung blinked, confused, meeting his gaze. It was a simple solution. If hypnosis had caused this, hypnosis could end it. If it worked, great—problem solved. And if it didn’t, well, that would prove Chiwoo’s feelings weren’t artificial. Either way, Daeyoung figured, it’d be a good hit to his ego.

“…Fine.”

He swallowed, nodding. Being alone in such a tight space with someone who’d just said things like kiss you was dangerous. His heart felt like it could burst at any moment. He slung his bag over his shoulder and strode out first.

“Heading out, boss.”

“Mm. Good work today.”

Bowing politely, Daeyoung stepped outside. The early dusk had already draped the alleyway in quiet shadow. It wasn’t one of those busy streets where drunk college students crowded after dark; this stretch was still and empty.

Tap, tap.

“…Why’re you following me? You live right above the café.”

“How do you even know where I live?”

‘You know that big new building near the main gate? The café’s on the first floor, and the top floor’s a penthouse. He lives there.’

Hae-gyeom’s voice echoed in his head. Damn it. I should’ve never asked.

“I didn’t even want to know. Why are you following me?”

Daeyoung stopped mid-step and turned sharply. Chiwoo, unsurprisingly, was right there behind him. The street was darker and cooler than the storage room, which at least made it a bit easier to breathe.

“What, you think I’m out here walking my dog? I’m going with you.”

“God, with that mouth, how are you supposed to survive the rest of your life?”

For once, it was genuine concern.

“Like it or not, you’ll just have to put up with it until the hypnosis is undone.”

“It was a mutual experiment, remember? You deal with your own mess. And take that leave of absence while you’re at it.”

He was proud of how steady that sounded—maybe even a little impressed with himself. But as soon as he tried to walk away, Chiwoo moved in front of him again, matching his pace backward as if deliberately taunting him.

“Then hurry up and undo it. If I didn’t see you for the whole weekend, do you think I want to be acting like this? You think I like being pathetic?”

Daeyoung scowled.

“I told you to stop saying stuff like that.”

His cheeks burned again. If it really was hypnosis, then fine—liking him, wanting him, that could be chalked up to suggestion. But saying things like that out loud, with no shame, no filter—it was too much. Being seen together was enough to feed rumors; he didn’t need Chiwoo setting them on fire. He glanced around, checking for people. Thankfully, the alley was still empty.

“When the hypnosis is undone, this’ll all be over.”

Chiwoo’s reply came lazily, his hands shoved deep in his pockets as he walked backward. Daeyoung’s face was on fire now, his whole body buzzing with heat. I need to end this before I combust. He swung his bag around to the front, thinking about how to handle it—then suddenly froze.

“Ah…”

“What.”

Chiwoo tilted his head slightly, eyes resting on his neatly shaped brows—damn, even those were delicate.

“I left it at my mom’s house. The necklace.”

To be precise, the bag containing it—taken by his father for that hiking trip. He wouldn’t be back till the weekend.

“Can’t you do it without it?”

“I probably could, but it’s better to keep the conditions the same. It’ll only take a week—I go home every weekend.”

As he explained, adjusting his bag, Chiwoo caught his wrist. His hand clasped higher, above the spot where the pain patches still clung.

“Then how are you going to take responsibility till then?”

“…I’ll just re-hypnotize you next week—”

Even in the middle of explaining, the word responsibility threw him off. He blinked at Chiwoo, confused. But Chiwoo cut him off, shaking his head.

“Right. That’s next week. What about this week’s me?”

Daeyoung stared at him, dumbfounded.

“What does that even—”

“You said it was mutual, right? But look at me now. You did this to me. Until it’s fixed, you should at least cooperate.”

With that, Chiwoo took a step forward.

“If you have any.”

Another step.

“Conscience, that is.”

So he did want something. His expression was unreadable, equal parts frustrated and expectant. Daeyoung narrowed his eyes, folding his arms.

“What exactly do you want?”

Chiwoo’s jaw tightened. He was already irritated—he was the one struggling with emotions he didn’t even understand, while Daeyoung just stood there, tilting his pretty head and talking about “next week.”

He’d always hated eating with others. Watching people chew with open mouths, talking through half-swallowed bites—it disgusted him. Even in high school, he’d eat alone in the cafeteria after everyone left, just to avoid the sight of others.

But that day outside the snack shop—watching Ahn Daeyoung perched on that plastic chair, nibbling one piece of gimbap at a time—hadn’t been disgusting at all. It had been… adorable. The way his cheeks puffed out when he chewed, the way his words came out muffled—like some cartoon character from a kids’ show. He’d watched for a long time, unable to look away. Not once had the thought gross crossed his mind.

Instead, he’d wanted to pinch those soft lips, touch them, bite them.

It had shocked him—this simple truth that overturned everything he thought he knew about himself. Daeyoung had shattered a certainty he’d held his whole life without even realizing it.

Chiwoo exhaled slowly, forcing the breath back down his throat. His Adam’s apple bobbed once—then settled.