It had been hard when I first became a Cremon, but I endured it well. And if I really couldn’t hold back, then simply not seeing Yu-geon for a while might be the best option.
— I don’t know if it’ll help, but if the craving gets too strong, try chewing something like candy or gum. Or maybe drink blood that tastes similar to Yu-geon’s.
“There’s no way there’s blood that tastes like Baek Yu-geon’s…”
I started to reply, thinking how ridiculous that sounded, but my voice faded out. I remembered the handmade chocolate shop in front of the center I’d visited like I was possessed after first tasting Yu-geon’s blood.
The chocolate sold there smelled remarkably similar to Yu-geon’s blood. The taste wasn’t even close, but it could probably serve as a substitute.
“Alright, got it. Thanks for looking into it, Emily.”
— Oh please. You’re coming over to ‘eat’ today, right?
“Yeah. I’m going with Baek Yu-geon, but keep the imprinting thing a secret from him. Please.”
— Of course.
I set a time with Emily and ended the call. My head was a mess. How many times had I drunk Yu-geon’s blood?
There was the first time, during the matching rate test. Then again, when we fought at his place and I ended up forcefully drawing in his blood. The most recent was at my place, when we did guiding together.
Only three times. Just three times, and this is happening? Talk about bad luck—like falling backward and breaking your nose. That was exactly me.
Or maybe it wasn’t just about the number of times. Maybe the amount mattered too. During the matching rate test, I didn’t drink that much. But the second time, I drank so much that Yu-geon’s face turned pale. The third time, I must have drunk a lot in my sleep because I felt like my body was overflowing with life energy.
Or… could it be related to our matching rate? No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t understand how I got addicted and imprinted after just three times.
“Sigh… What can I even do if I don’t get it? It’s already happened…”
I muttered in frustration, and before I knew it, Yu-geon came running over from afar, waving his hand after finishing disinfection. He was still covered in blood.
Once I became aware of it, I could sense his sweet scent even from a distance. Even though there had to be creature blood on his clothes too, only Yu-geon’s blood scent pierced my senses.
Without realizing it, I covered my nose with my hand, frowning more as he got closer.
“What the heck? Why are you covering your nose again? Stop it. I’m gonna get traumatized.”
Yu-geon looked at me with hurt in his voice. I had covered my nose the first time I met him too.
If only I had realized back then that I was starving like crazy for this guy’s blood… maybe I wouldn’t be in this mess now. If I had refused when he offered his blood so casually, could I have avoided imprinting?
Now it was all useless speculation.
“Go wash up.”
“Huh?”
“I said go wash.”
Either way, it was good that I realized this now. Especially since Yu-geon didn’t like giving blood related to my core, the timing couldn’t be better.
From now on, I just won’t drink it.
“There’s no time. We’re supposed to go to Emily’s place today, right? Can’t I just wash up there?”
“No. Go wash now. If you don’t, I’m going alone.”
He looked sulky as he turned back toward the center’s shower room. Watching his back as he walked away, I felt chills down my spine.
Now that he was farther away, I even felt a sense of longing.
“You’ve really lost it, Gu Sa-weol.”
* * *
Because I’d rushed out, I had no idea what state I was in or if I’d forgotten anything. My mind was all over the place. On top of that, I hadn’t even stopped by my place and ended up sleeping over at Emily’s house, so I was still in the same uniform.
The outerwear was fine, but the T-shirt underneath made me feel grimy and uncomfortable.
“Come here. Your hair’s sticking up.”
“Where?”
“Just come here. I’ll fix it for you.”
Yu-geon reached out and gently combed through my hair with his fingers, fixing it for me. It was well past work hours, so we were alone in the elevator.
Since joining Alpha Team, I’d never been late. But today, for some reason, the elevator felt painfully slow. I stared anxiously at the floor numbers ticking by.
“You should’ve at least set an alarm.”
“Sorry. I forgot.”
“Never drinking again.”
This all happened because I got roped in by Emily and Yu-geon last night.
As usual, they started drinking, but I guess they got bored drinking alone because they started pestering me. Said stuff like, “You can just detox by going creature-form,” or “It’s safe to get drunk since we’re at home.” Every excuse in the book to get me to drink.
In the end, they mixed some kind of creature blood with a couple of unknown liquors. After drinking that, my memory blacked out.
I didn’t even get the chance to shift and detox the alcohol. My head felt fuzzy, and then it all went dark.
When I opened my eyes again, we were all in the living room, and Yu-geon and I were… cuddling.
To be more accurate, it wasn’t Yu-geon who was holding me. I had buried myself into his arms. I’d been biting down on his shirt, almost obsessively.
“Yeah, you’re definitely not someone who should drink in public.”
“You guys mixed something weird, didn’t you? I’m not usually that weak.”
“No way. You just haven’t drunk in a while, so it hit hard. We had the same stuff.”
“Liar…”
“Your hand’s all healed, huh?”
“Yeah.”
Right after waking up, I felt awful, so I went into creature-form to cure the hangover. I guess it healed during that time. The wound was deeper than expected—deep enough to leave a scar on a normal person.
Still, to get drunk off one sip? Could it be because I’m addicted and imprinted to Yu-geon’s blood?
Before drinking, I hesitated looking at the mix of creature blood and alcohol. Then Yu-geon placed his hand over mine on the wine glass and brought it to my lips. He was so close, and his scent hit me hard.
Ever since drinking his blood, everything else tasted bland. I was already thinking of it as his blood when I drank it. If my body absorbed it thinking it was Yu-geon’s blood, that would explain a lot.
There’s research showing that awakened ones with imprints have better absorption just by thinking of the imprinted one’s energy. If that’s true, then my body’s just being a fool, getting ready like that without any actual intent on his part.
I’ve never gotten so drunk that I blacked out before. Feeling anxious, I glanced at Yu-geon and asked:
“…I didn’t say anything weird last night, did I?”
“What kind of weird?”
Yu-geon continued stroking my hair, which should’ve already been neat by now, answering with that usual innocent look of his.
Feeling like I was revealing myself, I quickly changed the subject.
“Never mind. As long as I didn’t do anything stupid.”
“Well… it wasn’t exactly stupid, but you did say something.”
“What?”
“Hmm.”
Yu-geon made a low sound, pausing dramatically. While I was all nerves, unable to remember anything from last night, he stayed calm and relaxed.
Espers often had external duties due to gates, so he didn’t seem too worried about being late.
“What did I say?”
Unable to bear the suspense, I asked again. A sly smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
“Curious?”
He seemed a little too pleased, and that made me suspicious. The way he teased me like that meant I definitely said something last night.
“Forget it. I’m not curious. Don’t tell me.”
Annoyed by his playful tone, I turned away, pretending not to care.
“Alright.”
Since I didn’t push for it, he stayed quiet.
If I just drunkenly babbled, hearing about it would only make me embarrassed. And even if I did say something about imprinting, it wouldn’t change anything.
Yu-geon hadn’t wanted to give me his blood lately, and now I had a reason to avoid it too.
I probably tried to drink his blood last night, bit his clothes because I was craving it, but since I couldn’t shift in my drunken state, I couldn’t drink it. In a way, that was a relief. What’s done is done, but from now on, I just need to stay sharp and suppress the thirst.
Still, the fact that I couldn’t even control my own body frustrated me. I had no choice—my body responded instinctively to his blood.
Letting out a sigh internally, feeling overwhelmed, I realized the elevator had reached the 13th floor—Alpha Team’s office. As the doors opened, I stepped out first.
“Anyway, we should probably find another way.”
I was just about to bring up the idea of setting aside the imprint problem and discussing a new approach to catch the culprit, when someone stepped in front of us.
“So you’re just getting here?”
It was Han-gyeol. With a tablet PC in hand, he looked like he was on his way to a meeting.
“……”
“Good morning, Captain.”
Unlike my stiff posture, Yu-geon greeted him casually. It was almost 11 a.m.—well past what you’d call morning.
“Yes… Hello. I’m late. Sorry, Captain.”
I mumbled a belated apology, trying to walk past, but I felt Han-gyeol’s gaze on me. He tilted his head, turning to face our direction.
“Guide Gu Sa-weol.”
“Yes, Captain.”
The moment he called me, I felt my neck stiffen.
“Esper Baek Yu-geon.”
“Yes.”
We both stopped and turned to face him.
“Let’s have a quick chat.”
“Separately?”
“No, together.”
Terrible timing. Han-gyeol always spoke formally at the center, but now he was using informal speech. That alone gave me a bad feeling.
“Busy?”
“No, sir. Which meeting room shall we use?”
“Follow me.”
In the end, Yu-geon and I didn’t even make it into the Alpha Team office and had to turn back. Trailing behind Han-gyeol, I felt like a student being dragged to the principal’s office.
We’d met with Guk-hyeon in secret without reporting to Han-gyeol and even followed another branch’s mental-type Esper after work. So it wasn’t wrong.
Maybe he was calling us out for something else entirely, but judging by his demeanor, it didn’t seem like a good reason at all.
