Jaeyel thought it was over.

He thought he had done his part—apologized, suffered, and paid for the ridiculously large flower order.

But the universe clearly wasn’t done tormenting him.

Because the next morning, when he walked into his parents’ yard, expecting a peaceful lunch, he stopped dead in his tracks.

Under the large old persimmon tree, on the wooden platform where his family always enjoyed meals outdoors, sat Bo, calmly eating like he belonged there.

Jaeyel’s brain glitched.

Bo.

Bo, who was supposed to be in Seoul.

Bo, who was now very much in Mokpo, sitting cross-legged at the low table in his parents’ house, casually sipping soup like he did this all the time.

And Bo, who was now staring directly at him, chopsticks paused midair, with that same not-obvious-but-definitely-obvious teasing smile.

Jaeyel just stood there, his stomach twisting into knots.

His mother, seated next to Bo, frowned. “Jaeyel, why are you just standing there? Come eat before it gets cold.”

He barely registered her words. He was too busy looking at Bo, then at his parents, then back at Bo.

“Why… is he here?”

His father chuckled, taking a sip of his tea. “Ah, funny story! We’re negotiating a flower deal for a big project, and guess who the photographer is?”

Jaeyel felt dread creeping in.

“Bo!” his mother answered excitedly. “Isn’t that such a good coincidence? And to think you two already know each other! Why didn’t you ever mention you had such a handsome friend in Seoul, hmm?”

Jaeyel let out a choked, awkward laugh—one that was very much filled with suffering.

Bo, meanwhile, had the audacity to look completely unbothered, taking another bite of his rice while watching Jaeyel squirm.

Jaeyel exhaled sharply. “Can I borrow him for a second?”

His mother waved a hand. “At least let him finish his food—”

Nope.

Not happening.

Jaeyel grabbed Bo’s wrist and pulled him up.

Bo barely had time to put down his chopsticks before being dragged off the wooden platform. “Excuse me,” he said politely to Jaeyel’s parents before Jaeyel yanked him away.

---

Jaeyel stormed into the house, dragging Bo behind him by the wrist. His grip was tight, probably tighter than necessary, but he wasn’t exactly in the mood to be gentle.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing at my parents’ house?” he hissed under his breath, glancing back at Bo.

But Bo wasn’t listening.

Instead, he was watching.

Watching the way Jaeyel’s fingers wrapped around his wrist, the way his grip tightened every time he got more flustered. The side of Jaeyel’s face, his slightly furrowed brows, the curve of his exposed nape as he marched forward.

Jaeyel was saying something—something annoyed, something sharp—but Bo barely processed it.

His focus was elsewhere.

And then Jaeyel stopped.

He turned to Bo to snap at him again, but before he could say a word, Bo moved.

In a swift motion, Bo spun them around, pressing Jaeyel against the nearest wall. His arm came up, bracing against the wall beside Jaeyel’s head, effectively caging him in.

Jaeyel’s breath hitched.

Bo was close. Too close.

“What—” Jaeyel started, but his voice cracked embarrassingly, so he cleared his throat and tried again. “What are you doing?”

Bo’s lips curled slightly. “You’re the one who dragged me in here.”

Jaeyel scowled, trying to push him back, but Bo didn’t budge. “I dragged you here to ask what the hell you’re doing at my parents’ house.”

Bo tilted his head slightly, eyes flickering with amusement. “It’s just a coincidence.”

Jaeyel narrowed his eyes, skeptical. “Coincidence?”

Bo nodded. “I realized it yesterday when I saw the logo on the flower shop’s packaging, it was the same one from the contract.”

Jaeyel let out a slow breath, still trying to process the situation.

Of all the people his parents could be working with… why did it have to be Bo?

Bo studied him for a moment before asking, “Are you uncomfortable that I’m working with your parents?”

Jaeyel scoffed. “Obviously.”

Bo smirked. “Why?”

Jaeyel glared. “Why do you think?”

Bo leaned in just a fraction closer, his voice dropping slightly. “Because it means you’ll be seeing me more often?”

Jaeyel’s mouth opened, then closed. His face burned.

Bo was enjoying this. He was teasing him on purpose.

Jaeyel cleared his throat, looking away. “Just… don’t say anything weird to my parents.”

Bo chuckled, finally stepping back. “Sure.”

The moment Bo stepped back, Jaeyel sucked in a sharp breath, his chest rising and falling as he tried to shake off whatever that was. He barely noticed how tense his shoulders had become until he exhaled, forcing himself to relax.

Bo, on the other hand, looked completely unbothered—amused, even. His lips curled slightly, like he knew exactly what effect he had on Jaeyel.

Jaeyel scowled. “Wipe that look off your face.”

Bo raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Instead, he turned on his heel and strolled back outside, leaving Jaeyel standing there, still pinned to the wall by the memory of what just happened.

It took him a solid three seconds to snap out of it before he begrudgingly followed.

---

Back under the shade of the tree, his parents were still eating, chatting about business and flowers like nothing had happened. Bo eased himself onto the wooden platform again, slipping seamlessly into the conversation. He answered his mother’s questions politely, even made his father chuckle at some offhand comment.

Jaeyel, meanwhile, sat stiffly across from him, absently picking at his rice. His appetite was suddenly nonexistent.

Mostly because across the table, Bo was still smirking.

And Jaeyel hated that he was letting him win.

---

Jaeyel’s head throbbed.

After lunch, Bo had stayed at his parents’ house far longer than necessary, chatting casually. Jaeyel didn’t understand why. And when he tried to escape by saying he needed to head to the flower shop, Bo had simply shrugged and said, “I’ll go too.”

That had been the start of Jaeyel’s long, exhausting afternoon.

Bo lingered in the shop until closing time. He didn’t exactly help, nor did he get in the way. He just stayed, watching, occasionally making quiet comments that Jaeyel couldn’t tell were meant to be teasing or sincere.

Either way, it left him flustered.

This wasn’t the same Bo from their first meeting. The quiet gentleman he met that night had been replaced by someone far more… playful.

Was this revenge? Was Bo secretly enjoying watching him suffer?

Now, after shutting off the lights and locking up, they were walking side by side down the dimly lit street.

Jaeyel shot him a look. “You do know you can go home now, right?”

Bo hummed, keeping pace with him. “I am going home.”

Jaeyel narrowed his eyes. “You live around here?”

Bo’s lips twitched. “No.”

Jaeyel groaned. “Then why are you still here?”

Bo glanced at him, a knowing glint in his gaze. “Why? Do you want me gone that badly?”

Jaeyel huffed. “I just don’t get why you spent your whole day like this when you’re obviously busy.”

Bo tilted his head, considering. “Hmm. I am busy,” he admitted. “But I’ll take this as a good break. I got to enjoy my day.”

The way he said it made Jaeyel’s skin heat.

He looked away, clicking his tongue. “I already apologized and paid for the flowers. Can’t you stop annoying me now?”

Bo let out a quiet chuckle.

But then, suddenly, he stopped walking.

Jaeyel barely had a second to react before Bo stepped in front of him, blocking his path.

His usual teasing expression was gone. In its place was something unreadable, something that made Jaeyel’s breath hitch in his throat.

Bo didn’t speak right away.

He just gazed at him, studying every little shift in Jaeyel’s expression, every nervous flicker of his lashes.

The air between them grew thick, charged with something Jaeyel couldn’t name.

His heart pounded. “W-what?” he finally muttered, cursing how unsteady his voice sounded.

Bo didn’t hesitate. Didn’t waver.

The words left his lips as easily as breathing, as if the thought had been sitting on the tip of his tongue all day, just waiting for the right moment.

“I’m interested in you.”

Jaeyel’s brain short-circuited.

Bo took a step back, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. “So… expect to see me around more often.”

Just like that, he turned on his heel and walked in the opposite direction, leaving Jaeyel standing there, completely and utterly wrecked.

It took a full five seconds for his brain to catch up.

Then—

“What?!”

His face burned as the words fully registered. He groaned into his hands, cursing Bo, himself, and whatever the hell just happened.

This was not how he expected his day to end.