He’s a Fox Ch 114

Chapter 114 Side Story 9

“There could’ve been something prowling around there.”

The hand extended into the air fluttered as if to say “go on, take it.” Watching that motion only a moment, Hohyun finally registered the man’s attire. His eyes widened at the crisp suit, pressed without a single wrinkle.

It was rare to see someone in a suit outdoors in midwinter. The Eastern chill was no joke for a thin dress shirt and jacket to withstand. The conspicuous state of his clothing gave Hohyun a small clue to the man’s identity. The spikes he’d raised like a chestnut burr dulled at the tips. Lowering his eyes from their wary tilt, he asked carefully,

“Um… are you perhaps someone the boss sent?”

“What?”

It was a deduction made while eyeing the narrow alley that barely let a compact car pass. Even seeing the man’s puzzled reaction, Hohyun didn’t change his mind. He still couldn’t make out the face clearly enough to be sure, but if the man had been sent by Kangwoon to pick him up, the clothes and the outstretched hand both made sense.

But the other only let out a breath, neither confirming nor denying. At that, Hohyun formed another hypothesis.

“Could it be… someone I know?”

He furrowed his brow in earnest concentration, but the streetlight glare hadn’t dimmed, nor had the alcohol worn off, so he still couldn’t make the face out. He could at least tell the man seemed rather incredulous, but for the life of him, Hohyun couldn’t think of any reason for such a reaction beyond that.

It had been some time since he’d set foot in the tiger’s den, but he didn’t interact with everyone who worked there. Unlike those staying in the outbuilding, Hohyun lived in the main house, so unless something specific came up, there was little chance for conversation.

As such, there were few candidates. The most likely was the crocodile, so Hohyun glanced past the man’s shoulder. Not seeing the reptile’s thick, long tail, he figured it wasn’t him.

While Hohyun mentally cycled through the faces of the big guys he knew, the man peered down with a faint crease in his brow. He wouldn’t have noticed at a glance, but from the way the fox spoke, he apparently couldn’t even make out a person’s face. With a sigh, the man asked,

“How many bottles did you have?”

Hohyun paused to answer. Thinking back to the last quick survey before they left, there had been eleven empty bottles on the table. Two to Ihyeon, five to Suhyeon… that meant his share was— Even for simple arithmetic, he couldn’t help being a beat slow. As soon as he finished calculating, he snapped his head up.

“Four bottles.”

“Four? …That’s a lot.”

From the looks of him, you’d think he couldn’t finish a can of beer. The man muttered with a touch of admiration at the unexpectedly strong tolerance under that soft, neat appearance, then exhaled. So that was why he’d been prickly—too drunk to recognize faces.

He moved to lift the lushly intoxicated drunk who couldn’t even distinguish a face. He had plenty to say, but this wasn’t the time; first, get him on his feet.

Seeing the hand reach for his shoulder, Hohyun shook his head at once. As if to prove he could stand on his own, he grabbed the utility pole and sprang up. But he was in a weakened state in both body and mind; in an instant, strength drained from his legs. The one who saved him at the last moment was the very person who had been watching beside him all along.

Thump. A large hand caught him around the waist and drew him in. Before Hohyun could startle and pull away from the overly close contact, the man set him upright as lightly as pulling a radish from a field and murmured first,

“Hyun.”

The low voice, burrowing like it would dig into the ground, was familiar. The moment he heard his name, it felt like all the noise around them fell away. Sirens and horns from the distant road receded a step, the restaurant door swung open, and a group spilled outside. Light pouring out from inside lit the man’s right side. Only then could Hohyun recognize him.

“…Boss?”

“Now you recognize me?”

The warm light pooled over his face, carving clear shadows. Hypnotized by the slight lift at the corner of his mouth, Hohyun snapped back to himself. Heat flooded his face, both at how he’d failed to recognize such a face and at what he’d just said.

Pretending not to notice, Kangwoon stepped back, lost in brief thought. After a moment’s consideration, the hand still at Hohyun’s waist carefully slipped away. Before Hohyun could spring back, suddenly aware of how close they’d been, Kangwoon held his hand out again. Startled by the unexpected offer, Hohyun reflexively took it.

Unaware that the gesture was to keep a fox too drunk to see faces from stumbling, Hohyun only felt nerves spike at the sudden nearness of a chance. His palm felt sweaty. Sweat, in this cold? Ridiculous.

At least the relief was that Kangwoon was in human form. Lacking the insulating fur, he wore black gloves. If not for those…

While Hohyun entertained the dizzying what-ifs, Kangwoon, still holding his hand, strode forward and made a phone call. He seemed to be speaking to someone, but trailing just beside him, Hohyun caught not even a quarter of the words. Partly because all his nerves were focused on their joined hands, partly because the passing lamplight kept feeding his eyes with fresh distraction.

With each long stride, the streetlights shifted the look of him moment by moment. Even the breath that smoked from his lips with every exhale seemed handsome. While Hohyun stared in a daze, Kangwoon finished his business, hung up, and looked down.

“The alley’s too narrow—we’ll need to get out to the street. Can you walk?”

“Y-yeah…”

That much was expected. When he nodded, Kangwoon’s gaze lingered briefly on his face. After a moment staring at cheeks and a nose tip reddened by the cold, he moved on in silence. Hohyun kept pace, only to stop abruptly. At the sudden halt, Kangwoon glanced over, but Hohyun’s eyes stayed fixed on a shopfront.

Through a glass pane fogged with dust and fingerprints, several pairs of glittering eyes stared out—rabbits, cats, ducks… Of the plushies trapped in the claw machine, what caught his eye was a black puppy peeking from a far corner.

As with most claw machines of dubious provenance, the origins of the toys inside were unclear, and all of them had slightly skewed features. Maybe the deep black fur hid the distortions? Compared to the subtly ugly others, the puppy plush didn’t look bad at all.

Black fur, triangular perked ears… The uniformly black tail tip was a slight shame, but it looked like just the sort of thing the baby tiger—already in dreamland at the family home—would love. After only a moment’s wavering at the sparkling eyes reflecting the machine’s internal lights, Hohyun slid his hand from Kangwoon’s.

Curious what he was up to, suddenly distracted right at the end of their walk, Kangwoon loosened his grip without protest. Regaining both hands, Hohyun fished a card from his pocket, strode straight to the claw machine, and slid the card into the slot. With a cheerful chime, the once-still claw stirred to life.