BL REBIRTH: You Were Mine (MPREG)

Chapter 25

UNEDITED

Chapter 25

Kim Jae-soo stood in front of the bathroom mirror, running his hand through his shoulder-length black hair. He had just splashed water on his face and now stared at his reflection, lost in thought.

"They must be gone by now, right?" he muttered to himself. His round cheeks weren't as noticeable thanks to the shadows cast by the big-sleeve brown shirt he wore, which made his body appear smaller than usual.

He pulled out his phone and checked the time. He had been hiding in the bathroom for ten minutes to avoid meeting them. With the thought that they had probably left, he stepped out of the bathroom and rushed towards the faculty entrance, carefully avoiding the students passing by.

As he got farther from the faculty, his pace slowed. His tense shoulders relaxed, and he let out a relieved breath. He had escaped once again.

'Kudos to you,' he mentally patted himself on the back as he stood at the shuttle bus stop between two faculties.

Meanwhile, An Na-ri hadn't waited for his friend. He sensed that Kim Jae-soo was always avoiding something whenever Sung-ho or Ji-Hu's names were mentioned. With this thought, he had pulled Man Sung-ho away from the front of the faculty to where cars were parked beside it. Ji-Hu, bored but calm, waited beside his best friend, following as Na-ri dragged Man Sung-ho away since he had driven his friend here at his insistence.

"For once, I'm lucky to meet someone who's not scheming or a white lotus, or even trying to get to you through me," Man Sung-ho said righteously, like a single man who had finally escaped loneliness.

Ji-Hu could care less, but he was used to his friend's dramatics, so he calmly walked behind the couple, almost looking lazy but still handsome. He had a free day today, with finals in a week's time, before he would be forced to intern at Baek Holdings, even though he wanted to pursue something completely different.

"Isn't that your friend?" Man Sung-ho pointed at a familiar figure in the distance. Though he didn't know Kim Jae-soo personally, he recognized the silhouette from earlier that morning.

Alarmed, An Na-ri quickly denied it. "No, that's not him. How would I even know what he looks like from here?" he said, trying to brush off Man Sung-ho's suspicion.

Man Sung-ho let it go, and they climbed into the car. He left Ji-Hu to drive while he sat in the back seat with his fiancée, Na-ri, who grew shy under Man Sung-ho's teasing.

Kim Jae-soo stood waiting for the shuttle bus when he heard a familiar name. "It's Dumpling," a voice called out. His heart skipped a beat as he turned to see Man Sung-ho stepping out of the car that had stopped in front of him.

'Chotto matte,' Kim Jae-soo thought, flinching as he forced a smile. What kind of luck was this? Who was playing with him today? Na-ri waved apologetically from behind Man-ho, but Jae-soo reassured him with a glance that it was fine.

"Where are you going, Dumpling?" Man sung-ho asked, standing before him with a wide grin.

"Places," Kim Jae-soo replied dryly. His confidence returned, thinking that Baek Ji-Hu wasn't with them since the sports car's tinted windows revealed no one else.

"Follow us then, we're going to places too," Man Sung-ho suggested enthusiastically.

'Who wants to go places with you?' Kim Jae-soo thought but politely declined, moving towards the shuttle bus that had just stopped behind the sports car.

"But your friend will be lonely," Man Sung-ho insisted, pulling Na-ri closer and signaling him with his eyes to persuade his friend. Na-ri kept his head down, silent and uncomfortable.

Kim Jae-soo ignored them and continued towards the bus, which was unloading a few students who glanced curiously at the scene by the sports car. He felt a mix of relief and anxiety as he approached the bus doors, eager to escape the uncomfortable encounter.

Man Sung-ho was holding onto An Na-ri, the ger he was engaged to, and he was the one doing most of the talking. The scene they created quickly attracted the attention of passing students, which was exactly what Man Sung-ho intended. He aimed to draw attention to the obviously shy, chubby boy he had met twice before – once during Kim Jae-soo's confession to Ji-Hu and another time in the library about a month ago. Although Man Sung-ho wasn't particularly interested in Kim Jae-soo, he always felt a compulsion to force his friend and "dumpling" together.

'Tch, this is definitely going to end up on the school's microblog, and it won't be good,' Kim Jae-soo thought as he noticed some people already typing away on their phones while others took photos.

'Nice way to avoid attention,' he mocked himself, stepping into the front seat absentmindedly. It wasn't until he turned to fix his seatbelt that he noticed the quiet Ji-Hu. Seeing the stoic face of the man next to him made Kim Jae-soo flinch. He quickly turned away, his heart skipping a beat in both fear and anxiety. He focused on the passing scenery outside the window, doing his best to avoid thinking about being in the same car as Ji-Hu.

"Ji-Hu, remember Dumpling?" Man Sung-ho's words caused Kim Jae-soo to flinch again, but Ji-Hu remained silent.

After an awkward ride, they finally reached a place that had always been Kim Jae-soo's saving grace – the café where he had recently secured a part-time job.

"Please stop here," he said politely but firmly, causing Ji-Hu to abruptly halt the car. They all watched as Kim Jae-soo rushed out of the vehicle and into the simple-looking café, which seemed humble compared to the ones near their university.

"Find a place to park," Man Sung-ho instructed Ji-Hu as he and Na-ri followed Kim Jae-soo into the café.

Ji-Hu sat in the car for a moment, feeling slightly annoyed at being relegated to the role of a driver. Nevertheless, his curiosity got the better of him. After finding a safer parking spot across the road, he decided to follow them into the café as well.

Immediately upon entering, Ji-Hu saw his friend Man Sung-ho waving at him like a madman, with Na-ri seated beside him. However, there was no sign of "dumpling." As he sat down, Ji-Hu let his eyes roam around until he finally caught sight of Kim Jae-soo, wearing the store apron and heading their way with pastries and coffee on a tray.

Kim Jae-soo knew he couldn't chase them away, so he decided to help his boss attract new customers. He figured that having rich patrons like Man Sung-ho and Ji-Hu could draw more attention to the café, potentially increasing traffic from younger gers and girls.

It wasn't lunchtime yet, so the café wasn't too busy. Kim Jae-soo insisted on helping to avoid sitting with them by all means. He placed the three cups in front of them. Na-ri, with his sweet tooth, had ordered cheesecake and strawberry milk. Man-ho had opted for twisted donuts and iced coffee.

Ji-Hu's favorites, cinnamon ginger punch and matcha cake, were placed before him. Kim Jae-soo had forgotten he wasn't supposed to know Ji-Hu's preferences, so he casually placed the plate containing a slice of the cake and a cup of cinnamon ginger punch in front of him.

After Kim Jae-soo left, Ji-Hu stared at the items before him and then looked at Man-ho, as if to ask if he had ordered for him. But Man-ho, being himself, spoke again.

"See, dumpling is attentive," he said, going back to enjoying his donut and chatting with his fiancée.

Ji-Hu turned and saw Kim Jae-soo signing to a younger-looking ger who bore a resemblance to him. Ji-Hu's mind raced with thoughts.

'How did dumpling know?'

Curiosity piqued, Ji-Hu couldn't help but watch Kim Jae-soo interact with the younger ger. Their conversation in sign language seemed fluid and natural, indicating a close bond.

A/N: Thank you my lovelies, have I told you guys you are awesome cos you guys are... I laughed at some comments...
Thank you for your time and have a lovely time ahead depending on when you read this.

Baek Ji-Hu: wife loves me too much
Kim Jae-soo:... You are thinking too much (⁠ノ⁠｀⁠Д⁠'⁠)⁠ノ⁠彡⁠┻⁠━⁠┻