DASH-Chapter 147

“Candy?”

Jaekyoung suddenly wondered why Jiheon was craving candy out of nowhere.

‘I don’t know. I think that would help.’

Jiheon held back the words on the tip of his tongue and just mumbled:

“I just suddenly wanted to eat that.”

“Alright. What flavor can I get you?”

“Anything. Whatever looks delicious to you. It’s fine as long as it’s not too sweet.”

At that, Jaekyoung tilted his head as if asking, “Is there any candy that isn’t sweet?” but then he turned around, saying okay.

Seeing Jaekyoung leave the bench, one of the high school athletes sitting far away flinched and raised his head. He stared blankly at Jaekyoung’s back as he headed toward the convenience store, and this time he turned his head to look at Jiheon. When their eyes met, he was startled and quickly bowed his head again.

Jiheon smiled at the student, then lowered his hand covering his mouth and spoke a little louder.

“You’re going to be participating in the selection rounds, aren’t you?”

“Y-yes. But sunbae-nim, please don’t speak too formally to me.”

The high school student looked shocked as he waved both hands. Seeing that, his friend sitting next to him also raised his head and smiled brightly.

Jiheon briefly chatted with the two of them while waiting for Jaekyoung to return. The two were so excited that they moved to the bench directly across from Jiheon and quickly introduced themselves.

Jiheon didn’t doubt Jaekyoung when he said they were high school students, but turns out, they were both freshmen scheduled to enter physical education college this year. Besides, the names were all wrong. The guy Jaekyoung called Jong was not Jong, but Junhwan. And the guy he called Taewon was actually Haejung.

Jiheon had felt this when Jaekyoung called Minwoo Minho for a long time, but he was really a guy who only listened to what he wanted to listen and called anyone what he wanted to call them.

The funny thing was, even though the names and ages were all wrong, Jaekyoung knew these kids’ main sports right. Junhwan was in the 50m freestyle, and Haejung was in the 100m. Both were in high spirits, maybe because they had beaten the Olympic qualifying time for the first time during this training camp.

“I heard that Coach Shin would definitely show the results of this training camp. It seems that there was a reason he said that.”

At Jiheon’s words, the two youngsters gave a thumbs up together and said:

“Yes, this training camp was really good. The place we stayed was super nice, and the pool was warm and comfortable.”

“That’s right. And it was even cooler because Kwon Jaekyoung sunbae joined us in the middle. We were in the same training group as him.”

Haejung’s words got Junhwan all excited, and he stomped on his feet.

“Oh, yeah, yeah! We used the same lane, but I spent most of my time watching sunbae-nim practice his kick. Wow, he almost goes 10 meters at a time. I wondered if it was even possible when I ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) watched it on video, but seeing it in person, I couldn’t keep my mouth shut.”

Beside the overly enthusiastic Junhwan, Haejung said with a shy smile:

“We watch sunbae-nim’s videos a lot.”

“But it’s definitely different when you see it in person, right?”

As soon as Jiheon said that, the two of them nodded simultaneously.

“Yes, yes, really. We swam 10,000-meter per lane every day on a first-come, first-served basis. But thanks to Kwon Jaekyoung sunbae, we always finished 20 minutes faster than other groups.”

“So we always got to eat first.”

The two of them laughed and stomped on their feet again as they chatted about it. They were going on and on, almost not giving Jiheon a chance to speak. Maybe because they were young, they were just bursting with energy.

‘But aren’t they just two years apart from Jaekyoung? But why do they still look like babies?’

Jiheon looked at the two people across from him with a new feeling.

‘Well, they’re 20 years old. I guess they would’ve still been wearing school uniforms until two months ago.’

Follow curr𝒆nt nov𝒆ls on fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com.

Even though he realized it belatedly, he felt a cold sweat for no reason when he thought about Jaekyoung being the same age as them just two years ago. Once again, he realized that Jaekyoung was not only young but also very young.

“Hyung.”

Of all things, while Jiheon was in the midst of his turmoil, his little lamb returned.

“Here you go.”

Jaekyoung sat down next to him, offering a sports drink and a bag of candy. Junhwan and Haejung looked surprised. The chatty kids nearby suddenly hushed, their eyes glancing non-stop. Jiheon could tell they were thinking, ‘Kwon Jaekyoung sunbae is even offering drinks and snacks even though Jung Jiheon sunbae is his OB and no longer an athlete. Jung Jiheon sunbae might not seem like it, but he’s quite a prankster....’

Jiheon felt a bit embarrassed, thinking that he might come off as a bossy senior ordering his juniors around to them. However, he was in no position to make excuses, so he shamelessly accepted what Jaekyoung offered.

“Thanks.”

Jiheon placed the sports drink on his lap and questioned:

“Why did you get this?”

“It’s just... it has a lot of different flavors. Pick what you like, hyung.”

Jaekyoung explained the reason simply.

“Alright, good job.”

Jiheon smiled, opening the candy bag. His stomach situation had actually settled while waiting and he didn’t really need to eat it, but he still grabbed one, considering Jaekyoung’s thoughtful gesture.

“Do you want one too?”

Putting candy in his mouth, Jiheon asked Jaekyoung, who glanced inside the candy bag.

“Hyung, what flavor did you pick?”

Seemingly eager to try it himself, Jaekyoung was ready to take what Jiheon chose as well.

“Just go for whatever you like.”

Jiheon extended the bag, feeling a bit uneasy with the kids across from him. Jaekyoung rummaged through the bag for a bit and took a banana milk-flavored candy.

It was adorable that he chose banana milk. Jiheon resisted the urge to pinch Jaekyoung’s cheek and turned to the kids.

“Want some candy?”

“Oh, yes! Thank you!”

Junhwan and Haejung exclaimed, sitting up straight. Jiheon grabbed a bunch and handed it over. The two bowed as if they had received a treasure.

With Junhwan and Haejung now right across from him, talking with Jaekyoung became a bit tricky. It wouldn’t have mattered in a regular conversation, but Jiheon, feeling a bit numb, deliberately avoided looking at Jaekyoung and only talked to the kids.

While they were chatting for a while, Jaekyoung suddenly took the sports drink from Jiheon’s lap, opened it, and offered it.

“Hyung, drink some.”

“Huh? Okay, thanks.”

Jiheon accepted the drink with a side glance, but their hands accidentally bumped, spilling a bit of the drink.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

Jaekyoung quickly set the bottle aside.

“No, no worries, it’s fine.”

Jiheon wiped the drink off his shirt sleeve.

“It’s just a sports drink. I’ll just wash it off and it’ll be good.”

When Jiheon assured him not to worry, Jaekyoung suddenly grabbed his arm and insisted:

“There’s a bathroom over there. Let’s go clean it up.”

“No, it’s fine—”

Ignoring Jiheon’s protests, Jaekyoung got up and spoke to the juniors across from them.

“The luggage.”

With just that, the kids promptly stood up, bowed their heads, and said:

“Yes, we’ll keep an eye on it.”

“Have a safe trip.”

Even as Jaekyoung practically dragged him away, Jiheon couldn’t help but worry.

“Are you gonna boss around your juniors...?”

“They’re juniors I’ve never even talked to. Why would I boss them around?”

Jaekyoung sighed and ushered Jiheon into the bathroom.

Secluded as it was, the bathroom looked more like a hidden spot than an airport terminal. It was so empty.

“Try giving it a wash, hyung.”

Jaekyoung turned on the sink, and Jiheon chuckled, dabbing at the stain on his shirt with water.

“All cleaned up?”

“Yeah, kind of.”

Jiheon rubbed his sleeve with his hands.

“It’s mostly water, so it comes off easily when you wash it.”

Reassuring Jaekyoung not to worry too much, he proceeded to wash his hands. Jaekyoung stood silently beside him for a moment even after he was done. When Jiheon turned off the sink, however, Jaekyoung leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Hey, don’t do that.”

Jiheon was startled and pushed Jaekyoung away.

“No one’s around.”

“But what if someone walks in?”

“Let’s go somewhere they can’t see us, then.”

Jaekyoung suggested that, and before Jiheon could respond, he pushed him into a private compartment at the very back of the bathroom. Standing by the door, Jaekyoung locked it with a padlock and popped the question:

“Hyung, can I kiss you?”

“What...?”

With Jiheon giving him a puzzled look at the sudden comment, Jaekyoung clarified:

“You said we shouldn’t have sex. Can’t I even kiss you?”

Jiheon, finally catching on, didn’t even have time to laugh.

“Guess I’ll go for it anyway.”

Jaekyoung immediately hugged Jiheon and kissed him. Leaving light pecks on Jiheon’s lips several times with smooching sounds, he asked:

“Can I kiss you?”

“Keep it down....”

Jiheon barely muttered. Jaekyoung immediately hushed his voice and whispered.

“Tell me. Can I kiss you?”

Then, without waiting for an answer, he started sucking on Jiheon’s lips. Slipping his tongue through open teeth, exploring Jiheon’s mouth, and nibbling on his lip, he asked again:

“Can I suck on your tongue? Bite your lips?”

Only then did Jiheon realize Jaekyoung was just teasing him. The guy grinned and kissed Jiheon even more passionately when the latter pulled his hair hard out of annoyance.

After playing around with Jiheon’s lips and tongue, Jaekyoung smirked while keeping their lips locked.

“Tastes like candy. Apples?”

“...Green grapes.”

After Jiheon’s quick answer, their tongues tangled into a mess. Jaekyoung sucked on Jiheon’s tongue so hard that the base tingled, then whispered softly.

“Oh, you’re right. It’s green grapes.”

Delving into Jiheon’s mouth as if savoring the taste, Jaekyoung abruptly broke the kiss and asked:

“Hyung, did you get a fever?”

“What...?”

Instead of answering, Jaekyoung casually explored Jiheon’s mouth again. And only belatedly did he say it with a slightly worried tone.

“Your mouth feels much hotter than usual.”