Rainbow City Chapter 10

The household of Seokhwa was native to Jeju Island. It was said that all of the great-grandparents were from Jeju Island, and even his grandmother married a man from Jeju Island.

“That day was truly dreadful. The sailors from the mainland were pulling the boat towards the port of Jeju Island, and the military warned them to turn back by firing warning shots. But those people came to survive; would they turn back? At the verge of becoming a war, the military shot them all with guns. Not just those who died as casualties but countless others as well. The sea that was so blue turned a ghastly shade of gray.” 

It was the year Adam appeared when a national Level 1 disaster was declared, and all ships and maritime activities around islands like Jeju and Ulleung were temporarily paralyzed under military control.

It was a desperate effort to safeguard areas untouched by the virus, yet in equal desperation to survive, countless people who sought refuge on the islands also perished. Grandma often said they were lucky to have survived.

Seokhwa’s mother was the precious daughter her grandparents had almost lost. Due to complications during birth, she had to be placed in an incubator, but the hospital had long lost its former functionality. Seokhwa’s grandparents devotedly saved the dying baby, but perhaps because of that, the mother remained frail until her death. Everyone considered it a miracle that she had given birth to Seokhwa.

“Observing, it seems Seokhwa lacks emotions. Haven’t special people been born for some time now? People are slightly different from the ordinary… Seokhwa showed exceptional academic performance, so the research center placed him in the S-class, but even there, many had similar opinions to mine. I wonder if Seokhwa might be deficient in emotions…”

“That’s rude. Seokhwa, like others, thinks and acts with emotions. It’s just that due to their vulnerability, they avoid forming deep relationships with others. Deep connections might burden others. I appreciate your words, but please leave now.”

“Aunt, after completing the S-class, Seokhwa will be transferred to the Rainbow City Research Center. Looking at the current situation, it’ll take at most three months for Seokhwa to master everything. What we need is nothing but talent. You know, even Seokhwa needs to leave Jeju Island. Right now, with you here, Seokhwa, despite being fragile, can live without issues, but in Seoul… no, after moving to the Rainbow City Research Center, Seokhwa will have to build relationships with people who can help them.”

“You think Seokhwa is living without issues because of me? You’re mistaken, Doctor. It’s actually the opposite.”

His head swirled. Following Grandma’s voice, the voices of the doctor in charge of the Jeju Island Education Center and Mother intertwined in a chaotic manner, echoing like waves in an empty sea. Then, abruptly, the sensation of someone cutting hair, snip-snip, could be felt.

“Seoul will be very dangerous. Don’t leave the Green Zone. Understand?” After tidying my hair, Mother patted my shoulder.

“You shouldn’t sacrifice yourself to save others. Your safety comes first.” 

“…That’s not true.” 

“When you go up to Seoul, make sure to build relationships with people at the research center who can help you. Remember how you suddenly collapsed not long ago? You had a concussion, even though you’ve improved since then…” 

“I’ll do that.” While Mother worried about Seokhwa, it was Seokhwa who worried about Mother in return.

Suddenly, nausea surged. It felt like the ground was swaying, reminiscent of the day they left Jeju Island by boat. As the body tossed and turned, a cold sensation pressed against the forehead and body, relieving the discomfort.

Seokhwa slowly regulated his breathing, placing a hand on his forehead. It was a damp towel. Opening his eyes, he scanned the area where their pupils rolled.

A room with a blue ceiling, no windows, a bathroom near the entrance, a familiar layout. However, the position of the desk and table was different from their room. Looking at the stack of books on the table, their gaze shifted to the bedside. There sat Kwak Soohwan.

Kwak Soohwan sat in a chair, engrossed in a book. No, from the way he turned the pages, he was precisely in the midst of reading. The sound of flipping pages was soothing. After about ten pages, Kwak Soohwan raised his head. As their eyes met, he widened them slightly. He was about to offer to change the towel.

“Awake? How are you feeling?”

“…I’m okay.” Seokhwa replied while still lying down, unable to easily sit up.

“Wanna… read?” Kwak Soo-hwan closed the book with a thud, holding it in one hand.

“Does it seem weird for an ignorant person to read? Drop the bias.”

Placing the book on the table, Kwak Soohwan took the towel and rinsed it with cold water again. Unlike before, where he’d neatly unfold and cover the body, this time he just tossed it over. Seokhwa thanked him and placed the cold towel on their body.

“It’s true that I’m here to guard Dr. Seok, but this feels somewhat odd, doesn’t it?”

Seokhwa leaned against the headboard of the bed, struggling to sit up. It was only then that he realized the state his body was in. Still, being covered entirely by the towel, there was no embarrassment despite their exposed state.

This time he handed him lukewarm water. Seokhwa slowly sipped the water, which filled half of the glass. Kwak Soohwan, dressed comfortably in military-issue black patterned t-shirt and pants, wore an identification tag around his neck, not typically visible in his usual attire.

While drinking, Seokhwa glanced at the tag on Kwak Soohwan’s neck. He raised the identification tag attached to his military number. On one side was the mark of Rainbow City, a sparrow, and on the other side was his identification information.

[Korean Army Code Major – 3121, Kwak Soo-hwan] 

It also served as an identification tag used to confirm a soldier’s identity.

“Earlier… what were you looking at?”

“Doesn’t Dr. Seok have any pride?”

Seokhwa sighed and placed the cup aside.

“I do.”

“I’m younger than you, you know? Yet, I use informal speech while the doctor keeps addressing me formally?”

“…”

“If you want me to address you formally, should I?”

“Don’t bother. Since the time we met in Jeju, I’ve always thought of you as a youngster compared to me.”

He was about to tell him to speak formally now, but he lost the energy and just sighed. Seokhwa, who had moved toward the wall, stretched out and lay down again.

“You might not have slept because of me. Sleep here.”

Although it was a double bed, it was quite cramped for the two of them to lie down together.

“No intention of going back to your room?”

“…No.”

“Want me to carry you?”

Seokhwa didn’t respond anymore and turned toward the wall. With his whole body turned, his back was visible, showing the buttocks. There was no intention to cover up—it seemed everything was just bothersome. Especially as sleep was lacking. Kwak Soohwan crossed his arms, took off his shirt, and lay down on the bed. There was a small gap between them, not enough for their bodies to touch, and Seokhwa was covering himself with the towel. It felt damp and warm where Seokhwa had lain.

Kwak Soohwan looked at Seokhwa who had turned his back toward him. Or rather, his gaze reached the buttocks, which looked plump, and he chuckled before saying anything.

“It seems like there might be an issue with the suppressant Dr. Seok investigated, don’t you think?”

Seokhwa, who didn’t want to answer, turned around with interest, causing Kwak Soohwan’s erect penis to brush against his bare thigh.

“When did you consume the… suppressant?”

“Time-wise, it was yesterday?””

Seokhwa blinked slowly, pressing his palms against the bed and raising only his upper body. Seeing his erection, Kwak Soohwan playfully rubbed it with his hand.

“I told you there were side effects.”

His dark eyes lacked emotion but were immersed in contemplation. Briefly, he pondered the possibility of an issue with the inhibitor before voicing his thoughts.

“Let’s see.”

“What?”

It was Kwak Soohwan who teased, and Kwak Soohwan who was surprised.

Seokhwa’s eyes were serious and he crawled out of bed. He gestured for him to sit up, and he sat down on the floor.

“Dr. Seok.”

Kwak Soohwan’s panicked voice came out as he sat up in bed, but Seokhwa was quicker to reach down and unzip his pants.

“You’re not a urologist, you’re looking at my dick.”

Pop! Seokhwa, who had been teasing his hand uninhibitedly even as he spoke, pulled down his briefs. His cock, which had been growing steadily harder at the touch, jerked up in release. Seokhwa rubbed his chin lazily.

“Major Kwak Soohwan, your penis…just hit my chin.”

“Who doesn’t know?”

Fuck. Kwak Soohwan flicked his hair back.

“Can you ejaculate?”

Seokhwa sounded federally serious. A mutant virus researcher who gets drunk, passes out, wakes up, and pulls out someone else’s dick…You’re the one who pulled it out anyway, and there’s something wrong with your inhibitors being useless. Although he appeared to be fine, it was clear that Dr. Seok still had some alcohol in him.

“I don’t know.”

Nodding his head in understanding, Seokhwa was about to pull his briefs back up when Kwak Soohwan squeezed his wrist.

“Do you want to suck on it first?”

The ambiance light kept flickering repeatedly, over and over.Seokhwa’s face appeared intermittently before gradually revealing his parted lips.

“…I hate it because it’s dirty.”

Then the mood light went out completely.

The word “dirty” made Kwak Soohwan’s hard-on go down a notch, and he thought about grabbing it by the hair and shoving it into his mouth to see how it tasted. Kwak Soohwan lay on the bed with his zipper still open. He had been standing upright and was gradually steadying himself, when Seokhwa crawled back down to his original position. Kwak Soohwan clicked his tongue in disbelief.

It was not like he was a rock, and it was not like he was going to be able to help himself over. Judging by the way he was sagging, he couldn’t even get around the bed to climb out. If it weren’t for the fact that the electricity was completely out, he would have been able to squeeze his hand over his exposed ass.

“I’m sure Dr. Seok has one too.”

“Everyone has an excretory system.”

“If you think it’s dirty, you can’t have sex.”

I thought he was going to say something, but after a while, his voice broke through.

“Jellyfish and anemones have the same mouth and anus, so maybe they’re not dirty, come to think of it.”

Kwak Soohwan didn’t know what he was thinking to come to that conclusion.