As both of my legs lifted off the ground, I instinctively leaned forward and wrapped my arms around Raum's neck.
“Raum, I don’t think this is going to work. I don’t think you can-” Before I could even finish my sentence, Raum started running.
Cold air brushed past my face and tousled my hair. I could feel soft fur gently brushing against the soles of my feet. Tap tap tap.
I could vividly sense the strong four legs hitting the ground and launching upward. Right before I mounted Raum's back, I was surprised by the sheer speed, it was far beyond what I had vaguely imagined.
Just as I started getting used to the wind slapping against my ears, Raum slowed down. My hair, which had been flying wildly, gently fell back into place.
Blinking in confusion, I lifted my previously bent upper body.
The familiar front door was right before my eyes.
“That was fast.”
"..."
“Thanks.”
I reached out and stroked Raum's neck and chin. Raum slightly lifted his head, enjoying my touch, and then lowered his body to make it easier for me to get off.
As soon as I stepped inside the house, I checked Raum over first. Other than a little dirt on his paws, thankfully, he wasn’t injured at all. I even checked inside his ears and mouth to be sure, only after confirming everything was fine did I finally relax. The tension in my body melted all at once, and I collapsed right there.
Just ten minutes ago, I felt like my whole world was falling apart. But now, the simple fact that Raum had returned home safely brought complete peace to my heart, making me feel drowsy with relief.
Raum nudged my forearm with his head, gently, but firmly. Even though it was a light nudge, my upper body moved in the direction he pushed.
“Sigh.”
After wiping my face, I stood up.
“I’m going to wash up real quick. Can you behave while I’m gone?”
Was our bathroom always this far away? With feet full of tiny cuts, even taking one step wasn’t easy. Gritting my teeth against the stinging pain, I somehow made it to the bathroom.
“I look like a complete mess.”
The reflection in the mirror gave a hollow laugh. My sweat-soaked hair stuck out in all directions, and my face was streaked with dried tears, as if bragging about how much I’d cried. Let’s just count the dried-up ones as tears, too.
My feet were completely scraped up, and my hands were covered in dust. Not a single spot on me looked unharmed.
It was almost funny how I’d ended up in this state in just an hour, but considering it was the price for Raum making it home safe and sound, it wasn’t a big deal.
“Ow, that stings.”
Every time water touched the thinly scraped skin, the pain made me flinch.
After much trial and error trying to keep the water off my soles, I finally sat on the bathroom floor with my butt down and rested both feet on the toilet seat to shower.
Washing my feet meant I couldn’t avoid the water, so I had to take deep breaths. I hypnotized myself. I am Guan Yu, the man who played Go in peace even while getting his bones scraped.
“Ik!”
Unfortunately, I was just a weakling. My face twisted with pain as I let out a groan. Despite having taken a shower, beads of sweat gathered again on my forehead. By the time I finished washing my feet, I found tears welling up in my eyes without even realizing it.
Ugh, seriously. This hurts like hell.
After drying my hair in the bathroom, I walked into the bedroom completely drained. Forget Guan Yu, I looked more like a defeated soldier.
Flopping facedown onto the bed, I heard Raum's footsteps approaching. Still buried in the mattress, I sluggishly shifted to make room for him to lie beside me. But even after waiting, Raum didn’t climb onto the bed.
“Raum, come on! I’m lonely!”
Something wet gave a big lick to the sole of my foot. I reflexively tried to pull it away, but something heavy clamped around my ankle like a shackle.
I lifted only my upper body and looked back. Raum's front paw was pressing down on my ankle.
“Don’t do that! That’s dirty!”
Despite my protest, Raum buried his head into my foot and carefully licked it with his tongue, from my toes to the sunken middle of my foot.
His tongue was soft and warm, gliding across every part without missing a spot.
“Aagh, it tickles.”
But the embarrassment only lasted a moment.
Maybe it was just in my head, but ever since Raum started licking, the throbbing and stinging pain had gradually faded.
“Are you… treating me?”
Raum didn’t answer, instead focusing more intently on my foot.
Well, the bleeding had already stopped, and I’d cleaned my feet thoroughly… It shouldn’t be a big problem. The sensation of his saliva soaking into my skin was a little strange, but not enough to make me recoil.
He’ll probably stop soon anyway.
I let my body go limp again. I had used up all my energy searching for Raum, and drowsiness hit me fast. The soft licking sounds even began to sound like a lullaby. Without even attempting to fight the sleepiness, I let my body sink into the bed. And naturally, I drifted into a deep sleep.
---
I fell asleep without even realizing it. But I must not have been out for long, Raum was still licking my foot. Without opening my still-drowsy eyes, I turned onto my side.
“Raum…”
It had only been a short nap, yet my voice came out deep and sluggish, like I'd slept forever.
I felt one side of the bed dip under Raum's weight. Instinctively, I stretched out my arms. That large body settled into my embrace as naturally as ever. I lowered my arms and pulled Raum close. The soft fur slipped between my fingers...
"...?"
At least, it should’ve been soft.
Instead of the fluffy fur I expected, I felt something completely unexpected, curved, firm, and smooth. What is this? Before my brain could process the situation, my eyes flew open.
"..."
A pair of beautiful golden eyes were staring straight at me. Yes, those eyes did belong to Raum.
“Raum?”
But that voice, it wasn’t Raum's. Raum doesn’t speak Korean!
I reached out and touched the face resting on my arm. It wasn’t Raum's round, black nose I felt, but a tall, straight, sharp nose. And those lips, fleshy and red. Even the skin was smooth and gleaming.
None of this was Raum.
Which meant, there was a man in my house, in my room, in my bed, curled up in my arms like Raum.
"...!"
It was as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped on me from head to toe. I snapped fully awake and shot up, rubbing my eyes in disbelief.
A foreign-looking man with black hair and the exact same golden eyes as Raum was staring up at me. And worse, he was naked! In my entire life, I had never been so flustered. I couldn’t scream. I could barely breathe.
The man casually sat up, muscles shifting under his skin like armor.
“Ah!”
Suddenly, he grabbed my ankle and pulled it toward him.
“Still hurts?”
"..."
“Looked like it healed on the outside, but I guess it wasn’t enough.”
He parted his red lips and started lowering his head toward my foot again. What the-
My eyes widened in shock at the man’s outrageous behavior. Driven by the singular thought that I had to stop him, I grabbed the nearest thing I could and threw it.
A sky-blue pillow hit him in the face and tumbled off the bed. The man, long lashes fluttering, rolled his golden eyes upward to look at me.
“Is this animal abuse?”
If this was a dream, I desperately wished to wake up now. Without hesitation, I kicked him in the chest with all my might.
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