Erotomania (Killing Stalking fanfic)*DISCONTINUED*

Chapter 6

"Have fun on your date, Bum," Hye called after him.

"It's not a date," Bum said, for what felt like the thousandth time that day. He couldn't have been more exasperated. Though, if he was being honest with himself, Sangwoo was quite attractive, but any feelings that may have been there were brief and fleeting. At this point, Bum only wanted to thank him for bothering to help him out when no one else would.

About five minutes later, a silver car pulled up beside him.

Strange, Bum thought. It looks like that one car that's been sitting outside my apartment for the past month or so. But, it was probably a coincidence. Seoul was a big city. Of course, people would drive the same model of car. He felt better, however, when the window rolled down, revealing Sangwoo, who was sporting a pleasant smile.

"Hey, Bum," he said. "Can I call you that?"

Bum nodded and wordlessly entered the car.

"You look nice today, Bum."

"Thanks," he replied, though he was wearing an old striped jumper that was too big, and worn shoes and pants. To complete the look, a dull green jacket that had seen better days. Bum was sure that he was just trying to be nice, but the truth was that he looked underdressed compared to Sangwoo, who was clad in a black turtle neck that only accentuated his muscles and made him look dark and imposing. He flinched when a large hand found its way to his bony shoulder.

"I'm serious," Sangwoo said, trying to get Bum to meet his eyes and failing.

"Maybe we should get going."

"Right."

The rest of the ride was filled with an uncomfortable silence, at least in Bum's point of view. Sangwoo kept stealing glances at him every so often, making him want curl up on himself. Bum hoped he wasn't making a mistake, hoped that he didn't make Sangwoo believe that all of this was a waste of time. After all, Sangwoo probably had better things to do than to be seen in public with a freak like him.

Finally, they stopped at an extravagant looking restaurant. Alarmed, Bum turned to Sangwoo.

"What's the matter?" he asked, his voice laced with delight.

"I-I thought we were just getting coffee, Sangwoo."

"I wanted to do something nice with you."

"Oh."

If the outside of the place was expensive looking, the inside was even more so, complete with tables draped in white cloth and black couches and dark ambient lighting. Bum obviously didn't belong in a place like this and wondered if Sangwoo felt ashamed to be here with someone like him. He would have looked much better with a beautiful girl on his arm. It was clear that everyone else thought so too; as they made their way to their seats, Bum could feel the stares of the other patrons burning holes through his body. This was such a bad idea, he thought. Why did Sangwoo bring them here?

His anxiety was only exacerbated when he saw the prices on the menu. It surely cost more than what he had with him now; he'd only brought enough to buy the two of them coffee. And now, he wouldn't even be able to pay for his own meal.

"Bum," Sangwoo's voice interrupted his internal tirade. "Are you alright?"

"I can't pay for any of this, Sangwoo."

Sangwoo's worried look melted off his face, only to be replaced by a fond smile.

"It's okay," he said. "I'll pay for it. Honestly, you're so pure, Bum."

"I can pay you back," he began to say before he was interrupted.

"That's not necessary."

"But-"

"You can pay me back by letting me take you out on more dates."

Sangwoo smirked, like it was the greatest idea on the planet. Bum felt guilty, but he'd have to let him down somehow.

"I never meant for this to be a date, Sangwoo," he said, eyes trained on his glass of water. Sangwoo's proud smirk fell, and he looked almost like a kicked puppy.

"I-I thought it was."

"I'm sorry." Bum fidgeted in his seat. "I wanted to thank you. Th-that's why I invited you to get coffee. I would have paid and everything, even though it wouldn't have been much. But I needed to show my gratitude somehow."

"Bum..."

"You're probably really confused. We were in the military together, active duty. And, well, I was being assaulted, and," he paused, willing himself not to break down at the memory. He took a deep breath and continued.

"And you saved me. And I only remembered who you were a week or two ago."

He looked up, trying to keep his hands from trembling. Sangwoo's face was filled with such emotion and Bum felt almost trapped by his intense gaze. Wasn't he supposed to be the one getting emotional here?

"So, thank you."

"Don't thank me. You didn't deserve to have gone through something like that."

Bum nodded. The two of them sat in heavy silence for the rest of the meal.

Afterwards, the pair found themselves in a nearby park, wandering around with no real destination. Their conversation wasn't anything out of the ordinary. In fact, Bum had been speaking about a book that he'd been reading during the past week. So, he was surprised when Sangwoo grabbed him by the hand and pulled him to a secluded area that was enclosed by a grove of willow trees.

"Sangwoo?" he asked. "What are you doing?"

"I've been wanting to tell you this for a while, but Bum, I love you." His grip tightened, and he had that same intense stare. Bum tried in vain to get him to relinquish his hold on him.

"S-Sangwoo, what are you doing?"

"I love you so, so much. You honestly have no idea," he continued. Sangwoo rolled down the sleeve of Bum's captive arm, revealing the cuts that he'd tried so hard to conceal. Bum could feel tears begin to build in his eyes due to a mix of shame having something so private being so exposed to a near stranger, and mounting distress.

"Please, why are you doing this?" he asked as Sangwoo lips began to caress his exposed wrist. It was like he wasn't entirely there, like he was so caught up in this moment that he'd forgotten that Bum was a living, breathing person.

"I'd give you everything you could ever need. You'd never have to work another day in your life."

"But we barely know each other. Why are you doing this?" he asked again, his voice a near whisper.

"How about we get to know each other a little better?"

Sangwoo pulled Bum closer, craning his head so he could reach his neck. At first, his kisses were light and slow, but they quickly became more desperate. Bum whimpered as Sangwoo sucked delicately on his throat.

"You like that, baby?" Sangwoo panted. "I can do so much more. I'd do anything to please you, Bum. You'd just need to tell me what you want."

Sangwoo brushed away the tears which were now freely falling down Bum's face.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he cooed. "Please don't cry."

Bum went rigid with realization.

"Shh, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Fuck!" Sangwoo cursed as a hard punch landed on his jaw.

"Bum!" he called, but the other man had already run off to God knows where. Crestfallen, he made his way back to his car, nursing his bruised face, and scolded himself for letting something so precious slip between his fingers. Next time, Sangwoo told himself, he wouldn't make that same mistake.