The Leash of the Pair and the Shattered Bouquet

In the midst of it all, Yoo Se-rim turned to look at me. A faint joy lingered on his pale face. My mind found that smile revolting, but my heart began to thrum with a pleasant beat.

I closed my eyes, feeling a suffocating tightness. When I opened them again, Yoo Se-rim was standing right in front of me.

“You took a long time to wash.”

“…….”

“I couldn’t do anything while I waited.”

He started to say more, but I cut him off to ask the only question that mattered.

“……The Pair. How do I break it?”

Yoo Se-rim’s smile vanished for a moment, but he soon replied flatly.

“It ends by mutual agreement, or if one of us dies.”

I wanted to tell him to drop dead, but—perhaps due to the Pair’s influence—the words wouldn’t leave my mouth. I clenched my fists and spoke as calmly as possible.

“Then…… how about…… we end it?”

“We like each other. Why should we end it?”

“…….”

“There are many advantages to being Paired. We share a portion of experience points, and when we’re in the same party, our attack power increases. Think of it as having a constant buff.”

“…….”

“We can share each other’s locations, and if one is in danger, you can summon the other to your side if they’re within range.”

I chewed on his words, realizing why he had forced the bond. It was a massive buff. But…… who was going to compensate me for this horrific feeling?

Yoo Se-rim reached out. I tried to reject him, but my resistance amounted to a weak shove, and I ended up pulled into his embrace. He kissed my damp hair and whispered.

“Most of all, it feels good. I can feel you no matter where you are.”

I decided it was time to shatter his delusions.

“I don’t…….”

“Pardon?”

“I never wanted to be Paired with you.”

I wanted to tell him exactly how disgusting this felt—how I had just brushed my teeth until my gums bled to scrub him away—and I wanted to be as cruel as possible. But Yoo Se-rim spoke as if he were explaining a simple fact.

“A Pair is a binding spell that cannot be formed unless both parties love each other.”

“What……?”

“The fact that the bond formed means that, deep down, you want to be loved by me.”

Shocked, I denied it. “No. I never…… I never felt that way.”

“I’m sorry for making you drink the truth serum. But I didn’t use anything else.”

Yoo Se-rim touched the back of my neck. A tingle shot through me, and my heart began to pound even harder. He delivered my death sentence.

“You have to want to be loved by me, to want me, for the Pair to form. That’s why I tried it. I wanted to trust your words more.”

“…….”

“Isn’t this a good result in the end? Aren’t you just forcing yourself to think you can’t forgive me for the truth serum?”

I wanted to deny everything. I wanted to scream that there was no way I could like someone like him. But on the other hand……

‘Se-rim!’

If you had only looked back at me then…….

“Why now…….”

“What?”

“Why now……!”

I grabbed his collar and slammed my forehead against his, gnashing my teeth. Yoo Se-rim didn’t even flinch, but I kept striking his chest with my fists.

“Why are you saying you like me only now?!”

Yoo Se-rim looked into my bloodshot eyes, appearing flustered and unable to answer.

I changed into my outdoor clothes. Surprisingly, Yoo Se-rim didn’t stop me when I suddenly decided to bolt out of the house.

‘We can share each other’s locations…… you can summon the other to your side.’

He was likely letting me go because of that ridiculous tracking feature. I was already a rat in a trap. As I put on my shoes, Yoo Se-rim spoke in a dry voice.

“Be home by midnight.”

I scowled. “I have my own home.”

“Then I’ll go there.”

“What—”

“A Pair bond stabilizes and develops the more the partners engage in physical contact. I think you’re a bit unstable right now, Han Sol.”

It was a declaration that he intended to touch me tonight. Shuddering, I told him honestly.

“Physical contact with you feels terrible. It’s not that you’re unskilled. You’re just……”

Barbaric. I tried to say it, but he beat me to it.

“I apologize for biting your lip. It was the first time I lost my self-control like that. I believe I’ll improve over time.”

He’s a total lunatic.

Realizing I was dealing with a psychopath who couldn’t be reasoned with, I shut my mouth. Yoo Se-rim took my silence as compliance. I slammed the front door shut with all my might and left.

‘Where do I go……?’

The only person on my mind was Baek Hee-do. But I had no idea what Yoo Se-rim would do if he found out I was with him. I eventually returned to my lonely house and turned on my phone. I dialed Baek Hee-do’s number.

Ring—

[What’s up? Why the call?]

He picked up on the first ring. His casual, rough voice brought me a strange sense of relief. Tears welled up, but I didn’t wipe them. I raised my voice to hide the tremor.

“Baek Hee-do, do you know what a ‘Pair’ is?”

[A Pair? Yeah, I know it.]

I bit my lip hard. “……Can you look into how to break it?”

[……Break a Pair? You have to agree on it, or one of you has to die.]

He said exactly what Yoo Se-rim had said.

“…….”

I couldn’t respond. I was in despair.

‘You have to want to be loved by me…… for the Pair to form.’ ‘Aren’t you just forcing yourself to think you can’t forgive me?’

[What happened?]

“I didn’t want this…….”

[…….]

I murmured weakly. Baek Hee-do went silent. As the silence stretched, a painful question arose: If Baek Hee-do found out I was Paired with Yoo Se-rim, would he think the same? Would he think I claimed to hate Yoo Se-rim while actually craving his love?

The thought that he might see me as such a pathetic person made my jaw ache from clenching it.

Then, Baek Hee-do spoke. [If the rank difference is huge, it could be forced.]

“……What?”

[The Pair. Since Yoo Se-rim is R-rank, he might have used a different method to bind you while you couldn’t resist.]

“……!”

[Are you crying again? I told you not to.]

I was startled by his intuition. He continued in a soft voice.

[Don’t worry. There will be another way. I’ll find it for you.]

“……How? How?”

Before I could hear an answer, someone knocked on my front door. I froze, knowing no one should be visiting me at this hour.

“Baek Hee-do, wait a second.”

[Okay.]

I approached the door and looked through the peephole. It was Yoo Se-rim. He was standing there, incongruously holding a bouquet of flowers. The brief moment of relief I’d felt vanished instantly.

“……Go away.”

I only refrained from swearing because of the Pair effect; in my head, I called him a madman a thousand times. But Yoo Se-rim simply broke the locked door and walked in.

“What do you think you’re doing—!”

“I told you to be home by midnight.”

I glanced at the wall clock. It was 12:05. A cold sweat broke out. I tried to end the call, but Baek Hee-do kept calling back immediately.

Ring! Ring! Ring!

“Is that Baek Hee-do?”

Yoo Se-rim asked without expression. I hid the phone behind my back, but he snatched it away instantly.

[Shaman……!]

“Don’t contact my Pair ever again.”

[What? Are you serious, Yoo Se-rim—]

Click.

He didn’t just hang up; he threw my phone against the wall, shattering it. He set the flowers on the table and pushed me down onto the bed.

As he began to kiss my neck, panting like an animal, I closed my eyes and pushed him away. But his next words cut deep.

“Don’t even call Baek Hee-do from now on.”

“……!”

“Unless you want him dead.”

He was huffing like a dog, but he wasn’t the dog. I was. The dog on the leash he called a ‘Pair’.

As I prepared to lash out, he kissed me, and the rage surging through my mind was quieted by a violent thrumming of my heart. Body over mind. I had to plead with him as he tried to undress me.

“Stop…….”

“Doesn’t it feel good?”

Yoo Se-rim glanced down and spoke. I felt nothing but shame and despair, but I managed a weak shake of my head.