“That’s…! That’s, I mean…”

Black Cat’s loud voice faded to a whisper like someone had turned his volume down.

Watching him stumble around like a confused robot, Won stifled a chuckle. She could see why some female patients call him ‘cute.’ A serious, handsome man who stumbles over his words every time he is teased; he really is cute.

“I’m just kidding, I know you aren’t like that, Gyeom.”

Won was surprised, not offended by the lightheartedness of his touch because it wasn’t tinged with perverted thoughts. In fact, she found herself wishing he would do it more.

After a moment of silence, Black Cat spoke up.

“Let me tell you something.”

He glanced around the hallway.

“There is no such thing as a man who ‘wouldn’t do’ anything in the world, Won. It’s a dangerous thing to conclude that a man is safe. Not just for me, but for anyone.”

He gave Won an unreadable look.

For the first time, alarms went off in her head in response to him. They weren’t ringing, but they were ready to go off at any moment.

He was right. No matter who she was dealing with, it wasn’t a good idea to let her guard down unless it was a completely trustworthy ally.

“Well, I guess we shouldn’t go to your room then.”

Won’s response turned him into a statue.

“Wait, this is…”

After trying to talk her out of leaving, Won pushed the sliding door open and entered the room. Realizing she was teasing him again, he chuckled in the doorway.

There was no difference between Won and Black Cat’s rooms. All single rooms had a similar layout, but Black Cat did have fewer personal items than she did.

‘He’s organized.’

He cleaned up after himself with more care than others, but there was something about it that didn’t feel right. The quilt, without a single wrinkle, was angled like a knife and things were lined up in rows at regular intervals. It was beyond the normal sense of ‘neat.’

Won remembered the information she heard from Ju-hee.

“I don’t know, but here is why he was hospitalized.”

She scribbled “Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder” in her notebook with the pen.

‘Does he really have OCD? Or is he just pretending?’

If it were an act, Black Cat would be a very driven character. Anyone can “pretend” for a moment, but keeping it up for a year or more in front of 24/7 surveillance without getting caught is a challenge, even for a professional actor.

“You sit there. I’ll sit here.”

Won did as she was told and sat on a circular stool. Black Cat, perched on the edge of the bed, fiddled with his hands before speaking.

“First, I want to apologize.”

Before she could ask him about what, he continued.

“I didn’t realize that was a generally unfavorable confession. In my defense, it’s the way I’ve seen it done in movies, so I figured if I did it, I’d get halfway there…”

Won became curious about the last time he saw a movie. Ten or twenty years ago? Anyway, it was clear that he hadn’t been updated in the cultural sphere for a long time.

‘He must have only looked at a wall to study.’

It was like one of those cliche movies where the smart, talented, small village kid moves to the big city, studying day and night and paying attention to nothing else, only to get a job and maintain a heavy workload to find success. He wouldn’t even spare the time to watch the latest movie. It’s no wonder he has never been in a relationship even with those looks.

Before she knew it, Black Cat was rattling off movie titles and where he had seen that kind of confession before. He stopped rambling when Won made a gesture to calm him down with her hand.

“You don’t have to apologize, Gyeom. I know it wasn’t on purpose.”

An act of ignorance can be forgiven. After all, he publicly confessed but now he knew better.

“I’m glad you feel that way, but I have a question.”

With a bold declaration, Black Cat glanced around the deserted room. Then, with a look of determination on his face, he took Won’s hand in his own.

Her heart skipped a beat at the unexpected contact. She couldn’t even think to pull her hand away.

When Won remained still, Black Cat gathered courage and wrapped both hands around hers, squeezing.

His large hands covered hers completely. Far from a forceful squeeze, it felt more like a gentle, protective touch; like a shield.

Won held her breath as the question marks multiplied in her head.

‘Why is he doing this? There has to be a reason.’

Black Cat is not Top Dog. Unlike Top Dog, who is a dog in heat without trying, the man in front of her is innocent and polite. There is no way a man who can barely make excuses for himself is going to grab her hand intimately.

Make no mistake, she didn’t think he had feelings for her. It would be narcissistic to believe so.

Won tried to calm her heart, which was beating fast in the aftermath of the surprise. Was it just a surprise, or everything? Her thoughts were tangled.

It’s been said that humans can’t tell if their hearts are beating in fear, surprise, or excitement. That is exactly where she was. She couldn’t tell where this trembling was coming from.

Black Cat’s hands were long and smooth, like the kind of hands you would find sitting behind a desk and holding a pen. They were a far cry from the calloused Top Dog’s hands.

‘He could be a hand model.’

Won never saw such beautiful hands in her life. Elegant and beautiful, they should be playing the keys on a piano. Of course, real piano players have calluses on their fingertips.

Anyway, it was embarrassing to see Won’s own hands sandwiched between his.

Conversely, she was concerned about how her hands were making him feel. She never had been particularly ashamed of her hands, but now she felt so small.

Her hands were far from pretty. They weren’t dirty, but they were scarred and rough. There were calluses here and there, and a few of her fingers were deformed with slightly bent tips. She always rationalized that it was part of her job, but today she was insecure.

Unable to bear the shame, Won decided to sneak her hands away. She felt a tickling sensation in her palm that was facing the floor. His fingers were moving, writing something on her palm.

Won’s eyes widened slightly for a moment before returning to their normal size.

His left hand is cupping the back of her hand from above, and his right hand is cupping her palm from below. From the perspective of the ceiling-mounted CCTV, it would appear that he is holding her single hand with both hands. But he was moving his fingers stealthily from below, leaving a mark on her palm. She focused her attention so she wouldn’t miss it.

Kindly, Black Cat repeated the same thing three times.

‘The, next, night, with, only, me’

‘Next night’ was referring to the night she could hear the snakes slithering and the CCTVs were turned off.

As a sign of understanding, Won lifted her unclasped hand and placed it over the back of his, then released it. She felt him flinch in surprise.

“What do you want to know?”

Won reminded Black Cat that they were not only talking with their hands but also with their nature. He let out a low groan when he realized it, and with a determined look on his face, he blurted out his rehearsed line.

“Why not me?”

“Huh? What…”

“I can do it better than he can.”

‘Ah…’

Won groaned internally. She wished someone would show him some of the latest movies so he could establish sensibilities within the twenty-first century. In terms of accomplishing their goal, though, this will do. It may have been crude, but they succeeded in creating a situation where it wouldn’t be weird to hold hands.

“I’ll be better than him.”

Black Cat added, firmly squeezing Won’s hand. A light bulb went off in her hand.

‘This is an invitation to join hands with you.’

It wasn’t just a fake confession. He just needed to add the words ‘as a partner.’

He was saying he could be a better partner than Top Dog.

‘But do I really have to choose between them?’

Pondering, Won bluntly conveyed her intentions to Black Cat.

“Well, it’s hard to just choose one, so why don’t the three of us meet together?”

“Three?”

Black Cat raised an eyebrow, and after a short silence, relented.

“… I mean, if that’s what you want to do, fine. There is no law that says you have to choose just one.”

“You’re right, there is no law.”

“Yes, it would be nice if you chose me, but if you want both of us, then we’ll have to make do with the three of us.”

Luckily, Black Cat understood what she was getting at and walked a fine line. He has a good head on her shoulders.

Won chuckled, imagining how slutty she must look on CCTV.

Kofi