Chapter 30

Fortunately, Cherriot still had enough sense to return the atmosphere, which had nearly flowed somewhere strange, back to its place. As Cherriot tilted his head and wondered, Yuri finally turned his eyes away and faintly exhaled the breath he had unknowingly been holding. At some point, his whole body had tensed so much his muscles were stiff. A different kind of thirst rose in him, and Yuri brought the cup in his hand back toward himself.

He was about to drink first and sort out his thoughts when Cherriot made another insane remark.

“But seriously, if we keep staying in the same space like this, I feel like I’m going to cause an accident. What is this, rut? No, it can’t be. I took suppressants before sleeping after we got back yesterday, so there’s no way…”

Yuri’s grip around the cup tightened sharply. The moment he heard the word accident, a strange scene flashed through his mind. Cherriot staring at him from close enough for their lips to touch, Cherriot in the rink with veins standing at his throat, and Cherriot’s blazing eyes as he looked over Yuri’s bare upper body before handing him the shirt all merged together.

The glass broke in his hand.

Feeling the moderately thick glass split and collapse, Yuri flinched. The water trapped inside escaped, wetting his hand and running down to his instep. Cherriot, who had been spouting shameless nonsense, also stared at Yuri in surprise.

“Huh? Wolfie, are you okay?”

Cherriot was more startled than Yuri himself and hurried to his side. Yuri frowned and waved him away.

“Leave it.”

“The cup broke!”

“Leave it. I said leave it…” Yuri clenched his molars and said, “Get ready to go out.”

Continuing to stay together in such a narrow, closed space seemed worse than going outside.

“What? Suddenly? When I begged this morning, you mercilessly said no!”

“Enough. Shut up and get ready.”

Unable to meet Cherriot’s eyes any longer, Yuri stood. Fortunately, the glass had not shattered into tiny fragments but split cleanly into two large pieces, so no shards had scattered. But as always, Cherriot could not leave Yuri alone.

“All right, but show me your hand first.”

“I’m not hurt.”

“Really? What about glass?”

“None.”

Yuri said this and tried to stand, but Cherriot suddenly dragged the sofa backward with a long scrape. Yuri, pulled backward, looked up at him in disbelief, and Cherriot pointed at the floor with a serious face.

“There could be glass fragments, so don’t step there until I vacuum.”

“I’m sure I told you I was fine.”

The glass had not been dropped on the floor; it had split neatly in two. Even so, Cherriot exaggerated his worry. But Cherriot stubbornly denied Yuri’s denial, then went with him to the kitchen to throw away the cup and held out his hand to Yuri.

When Yuri glared at him, Cherriot demanded boldly, “Hand.”

“Why?”

“I need to see if you’re hurt. From what I can tell, you let your own injuries pass as if they’re nothing.”

A hollow laugh escaped him. Yuri turned away, but as he tried to pass, Cherriot caught him. He gently snatched up Yuri’s wet right hand. Just as Yuri thought the level of Cherriot’s presumption was becoming brazen and was about to scold him, Cherriot carefully pressed the center of Yuri’s palm with his thumb. Warmth spread from that center, and his palm opened.

Like his upper body, Yuri’s palm bore many scars made by blades. But Cherriot softly stroked the scars on his palm with his thumb, then, after confirming there was no blood, met Yuri’s eyes and smiled.

“Passed.”

Perhaps he still had some sense left, because Cherriot let go of his hand on his own before Yuri truly hit him. Then he said they would go after he vacuumed, and crossed the living room with energetic movements entirely different from a moment ago. It was enough to make Yuri wonder whether he had deliberately created this situation to make an excuse to go out. If he had planned that, Cherriot was more sly than Yuri expected.

Watching Cherriot get excitedly ready, as if the limp, facedown morning had never happened, Yuri also went into the room. He took the military knife hidden under the pillow, tucked it inconspicuously inside his pants pocket, then took out his phone to check once more whether Alexei had contacted him.

Fortunately, a message had come.

[Infiltration successful. I’m receiving truly spectacular hospitality, so don’t worry. What’s your situation?]

Alexei had apparently gone ahead and infiltrated the Hell’s Watchmen after all. Before telling Valeri about this, Yuri thought he should talk to Heather once. Holding the phone to reply to Alexei, he stood still with his gaze fixed on the screen.

What’s your situation?

Surprisingly, traveling with a man who hated people like him was becoming increasingly comfortable. Rather, as time passed, Cherriot was becoming frighteningly familiar, and as if infected by Cherriot, Yuri himself was becoming a little strange.

Just now, Cherriot touching him had not been unpleasant.

For Yuri, who had never felt any favor toward another Alpha, it was a very strange thing. The fact that Alphas did not often touch even longtime friends was an Alpha trait, and Yuri was more conservative in this respect than anyone.

Yuri stared at the hand holding the phone for his reply. Perhaps because moisture still remained on it, all sorts of sensations spread along his right hand. Heat rose along the trace drawn by the thumb that had pressed firmly into the center of his palm. Yuri bent his brows and frowned as if in pain, staring at his right hand for a long while before finally sending Alexei a reply.

[Nothing is happening.]

Yuri whispered once more to himself that truly, nothing was happening.

As if it absolutely had to be true, the voice repeating it was deep and confused.

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