Strategic Mating Partner Chapter 130 - Epilogue

Why would he even think that? Having a separate preferred gender sexually is a preference of the past. Now, Joo Sejin himself has become all of his standards, so what others think, or who he used to date, are all completely useless stories. No, in the first place, the one I love, and the one I have loved, in my entire life, is only you, okay? Taehyun swallowed the urge to snap back immediately and replied.

“You’re thinking all sorts of strange things. I like you because you are you. I like you the best. Joo Sejin, right here in front of me, is perfect as he is. Never mind you being a man or an alpha, I just like you. Isn’t that enough to reassure you?”

There was no way it wasn’t. Sejin once again desperately lifted his head to face Taehyun and said.

“But…!”

“But what.”

“It’s just…. I want to go back seven years and be the very first person to meet you, hyung.”

“Suddenly?”

What kind of sudden acceleration is this now. Taehyun was so flabbergasted that only a hollow laugh came out.

“It’s not sudden, I’m really annoyed. The fact that he liked you since before I even knew you, hyung….”

“Hey, what does the number of years matter? In the end, the one who signed the papers and walked into the wedding hall with me was you.”

At that, Sejin protested, looking on the verge of tears as if he was genuinely wronged.

“It might not have been! You only started to really see me since May of this year, hyung….”

Taehyun was even more dumbfounded, unable to even form proper words.

“Hey, no…. Ha…. Why are you saying such nonsense so earnestly. We should be thinking about the time we will spend together from now on.”

Before Sejin could spout any more nonsense, Taehyun cut him off first.

“Excuse me, Mr. Joo Sejin. You once said you were my best choice, where has all that confidence gone? Huh? It’s good that you’re cute, but is it okay to be so different before and after entering the wedding hall?”

Then, he squeezed Sejin’s soft cheek and pulled, and Sejin looked at Taehyun with a dazed expression. Taehyun, not letting go of his momentum, added.

“Now that you’re a father-to-be, you think I’m a fish you’ve caught? Are you not going to be on your toes?”

What was this about now. Sejin furrowed his brows and asked back at the question that had not just deviated from the point but had completely drifted off course.

“What in the world are you talking about, hyung? How could I treat you like a fish I’ve caught.”

“Then why are you thinking such strange things. If you’re worried I might turn my eyes to someone else, you should be thinking about how to keep seducing me, why are you thinking about me being stolen by someone else. If someone asks for your gold medal, are you just going to give it to them?”

“Why is that….”

And Sejin’s words once again failed to come out elegantly until the very end. Because Taehyun had abruptly cupped Sejin’s soft cheeks and sealed his mouth with his lips, Sejin’s hands were left to flounder aimlessly in the air before landing very carefully on Taehyun’s shoulders. Fortunately, the first-class seats today were empty except for the two of them, and with no one to give them disapproving looks, Taehyun did not refuse the tongue that slyly slipped between his parted lips. It was so sweet that laughter kept leaking out. In the end, unable to hold it in, Taehyun let out a poof of air between his lips, causing Sejin to pull away with a deep frown and protest.

“Ah, hyung, come on…!”

“Ahaha, oh, this is crazy. Really, how can you be this cute, how.”

Regardless of whether Sejin was angry or not, Taehyun threw himself over the armrest and hugged Sejin with his whole body, bursting into hearty laughter. Sejin muttered again in a discontented voice.

“It’s annoying that you’re so popular, hyung.”

Taehyun replied with a laugh.

“I can’t help that. It’s the fate of outgoing handsome men. But do you think anyone else would even catch my eye besides you? You’re cute, handsome, pretty, and even sexy all by yourself.”

Then, he cupped his hand to Sejin’s ear and whispered secretly in a very small voice.

“I can’t get off by myself just using the front anymore. Whose fault do you think that is?”

At Taehyun’s provocative sentence, Sejin was instantly dyed scarlet as if he had been dipped in a hot bath. Oh, really, come on. What am I supposed to do if you say things like that in a place like this. Feeling like he was about to get a reaction down below in an instant, Sejin quickly pushed Taehyun away and took refuge by pressing his body firmly against the opposite side from Taehyun. To anyone watching, his reaction was like he had been subjected to some wicked harassment, which made Taehyun burst out laughing once more.

“Ah, you’re so cute it’s annoying. You know you’re cute and you’re doing this on purpose, right, huh?”

Sejin did not answer the question, which was clearly meant to tease, and instead turned to sit facing the window. Whether he did or not, Taehyun planted a short kiss, smack, on the white nape of Sejin’s neck that was exposed because he had turned away.

“……!”

Startled, Sejin turned his head to protest again. Just then, with perfect timing, a flight attendant drew back the curtain and entered the first-class section to serve the in-flight meal.

“We are preparing to serve your meal, would it be alright to explain the menu?”

“Ah, yes, yes.”

At the flight attendant’s words, both Sejin and Taehyun hurriedly straightened their reclined seats and tidied their disheveled clothes. There were still nearly five hours left until they reached their destination. How am I supposed to resist touching him until then when he’s this cute. Taehyun cleared his throat with a hmm and accepted the menu booklet the flight attendant handed him. Nothing he could choose or what they were serving registered in his eyes. All he could think about was wanting to get to the hotel quickly and throw his cute alpha onto the bed.

🤺

By the time the long flight ended and they finally arrived at their destination airport, more than seven hours had passed since they had departed from the airport. What kind of glory and riches was I hoping to enjoy by coming here. At least the seats were incomparably more comfortable than the economy class he used to take for overseas competitions, but his body was different now, so his stamina was bound to be different as well. My belly hasn’t even grown much yet, but if it’s like this, it must be an ordeal for pregnant women with smaller builds to even walk around for a bit. As he finally stretched his stiff body to loosen up, Sejin, holding the luggage he had picked up, looked for the guide who was waiting for them in advance.

“Ah, he says he’s at that gate over there.”

The direction Sejin pointed to was a gate at the edge, a little distance away from where the two were standing. It seemed the vehicle was waiting for them there.

“Okay.”

As Taehyun nodded and started walking, Sejin, holding a suitcase in each hand, quickly followed. At the end of the long wait, the place they arrived at was an island in Thailand where dazzling sunlight poured down as soon as they opened the gate doors.

As it was the middle of winter, their options were not that plentiful to begin with. At first, Sejin had considered Southern Europe, thinking a familiar place would be good, but it was rejected due to the colder-than-expected weather. He didn’t want to go to a very cold place in this condition and purposely suffer, so that was a pass. A moderately cold place? Why bother? So the choices naturally narrowed down to Southeast Asia or Oceania, and wanting to rest for about a month while enjoying the leisurely scenery, the place he chose was a resort located on a quiet island in Thailand.

‘They said the resort itself is small, and each room has a private pool on the beach, so it’s a good place to rest quietly.’

On top of that, it was not that far from the nearby downtown area, so by taking the shuttle that departed every hour, they could easily come and go without having to rent a car or take a taxi. After finally arriving at the accommodation chosen after considering various conditions, his body felt sticky from the humid and hot weather, and Taehyun threw off his shirt as soon as he entered the room.

“Ha, it’s hot. First, I need to shower….”

And no sooner had Taehyun taken off the t-shirt he was wearing than a startled Sejin whipped his head around, avoiding his gaze.

“……?”

What’s with him again? Didn’t we resolve everything on the plane earlier? At the strange reaction, Taehyun furrowed his brow and asked.

“Why? What is it now?”

Tap, tap, as Taehyun tapped Sejin’s foot with the tip of his own and asked, Sejin covered his flushed face with his arm and mumbled.

“It’s nothing.”

“What do you mean, nothing.”

Ah. I felt sticky on the way here and wanted to wash up first. Taehyun clicked his tongue inwardly, tsk, and abruptly pushed Sejin towards the bed.

“Ah, hyung, wait….”

“What do you mean, wait.”

Sejin was momentarily flustered and tried to get up, but there was no way Taehyun would just stand by and watch. What get up. Get it up instead. The moment he was about to climb on top of Sejin’s body and say something playful, Sejin shouted again.

“Wait, really, just a moment!”

As he resisted with all his might, as if he were about to let out a blood-curdling scream, Taehyun had no choice but to get off Sejin’s thigh, feeling dejected.

“……?”

And what Sejin did to Taehyun then, was to neatly put the t-shirt he had just thrown off back on him.

“……?”

What the. Are you saying let’s not do it? As Taehyun glared at Sejin in bewilderment, Sejin cleared his throat, ahem, ahem, and said.

“I-It’s okay now.”

What in the world is he doing. What kind of strange thoughts did he have on his own again to be doing such a trivial thing? Taehyun’s eyes narrowed again. Taehyun, determined to make him confess this time as well, abruptly pushed Sejin back onto the sheet.

“What is it now. You have to tell me clearly for me to know. Why do you only think for yourself and not tell me?”

Then, pressing down firmly on Sejin’s thighs with his knees, he began to tickle the places that he was particularly shy about and reacted sensitively to when touched, like his neck, sides, and wrists. It was a childish act with no mood whatsoever, solely intended to get him to surrender, but that did not matter. It was more urgent to find out what kind of strange thoughts were making Sejin gloomy again.