I’m Not That Obsessive

Chapter 27

I’m not food, so how can he eat me?

I stared at Mitchell with the most sparkling eyes I’ve ever had. I barely stopped myself from asking the question seriously.

If it had been in Korean, I would have immediately realized it was a lewd remark, but hearing it in English caused a momentary buffer.

The loading icon blinked in front of my eyes and then disappeared. As if breaking free from a spell, my mouth finally opened.

“Why are you coming at me so directly?”

Even though I had told him I was heterosexual, Mitchell didn’t seem to care.

Wasn’t it the rule in this field not to mess with someone of a different orientation?

…Of course, that was a rule I made up in my haste….

Anyway! I refused Mitchell’s words with a serious face. There was nothing to think about here. Just because he touched my precious thing a bit doesn’t mean we can break through to the next level.

“No! Absolutely not!”

I felt proud of myself for clearly expressing my refusal without hesitation. Surely Mitchell would get the message now.

“You get to do everything you want, so why can’t I do what I want?”

Mitchell counterattacked. But that wouldn’t make me waver.

“You should ask for something similar. I’m asking you for simple contact, but you’re asking for my body. Isn’t the difference too big?”

I felt a twinge of guilt as I said “simple contact,” but it wasn’t completely wrong. I wasn’t asking for long messages or for him to be glued to the phone.

I filtered it in my favor and thought as I pleased.

“Didn’t you say you’d dedicate your life to me? That you’d give your body for me? Were those all lies?”

“Think about it, Mitchell. The body I mentioned isn’t that kind of body. It’s figurative. You know what I mean, right? You just need to give me a heads up. What you’re doing, where you are, that’s all. It would be best to stick by your side all day, but that’s a bit difficult right now. This is what you want too, right? We’re kind of strange people. We should help each other, you know?”

I spoke, panting on my own. Just as my voice was about to get louder, a police car and an ambulance passed by in the next lane, making a loud noise.

That briefly interrupted my speech. I caught my breath and continued.

“And I did give you my body… You touched mine…”

It’s embarrassing. Extremely embarrassing. My legs instinctively closed. I suddenly had a feeling that Mitchell might reach out and grab mine. I hurriedly placed my hands on my lap as a form of defense.

“I just want you to be filled with thoughts of me.”

My true inner feelings for Mitchell spilled out. There was nothing left to hide now.

Mitchell must have known that I’m a bit different from others…

A bit? Is it really just a bit?

…Anyway, he must have known, so I revealed my true feelings. It would have been nice to say this more formally, but given the situation, it just came out abruptly.

Mitchell didn’t say anything in particular. I carefully turned my head to look at him. He was staring straight ahead with an expressionless face. Despite my gaze, his lips remained tightly closed under his high nose bridge.

Just as I was about to add more, Mitchell opened his mouth.

“Isn’t that usually called love? Even though you always deny it.”

‘I’ll fill my head with thoughts of you.’

Yes, that’s usually called love. But not for me.

“I think of it as imprinting. Engraving.”

Honestly, I don’t really know what the feeling of love is. I might have passed by it without realizing, or I might have never felt it at all. It’s difficult for me to define. I didn’t think deeply about difficult things.

“I simply want to imprint myself in your mind. Nothing else.”

I said it as comfortably as water flowing. Mitchell frowned at my words, but I’m not sure what exactly was wrong.

As the car stopped at a red light, Mitchell took out his drink again and drank. As if his throat was parched, he emptied the entire 500mL and tossed the empty container to me.

“I mixed two different flavored drinks. Can you separate them again?”

Caught off guard by Mitchell’s sudden question, I held the empty container and answered awkwardly.

“Huh? Ah, no… Wouldn’t that be difficult?”

“There are two humans. Do you know how to never separate them?”

“…”

“By mixing them.”

“…”

“We need to mix our bodies, yours and mine. Then we can never be separated.”

I was at a loss for words. Despite the strange logic, perhaps because of his confident voice, I found myself nodding as if entranced.

“That’s the way to imprint me in your head. By mixing.”

The car started moving again. I had just heard the sure way to make Mitchell mine. I didn’t want to hear it, but I did.

“I don’t know about other humans, but at least for me, that’s how it is.”

Mitchell’s hand slipped between the seat and my nape. It settled in the narrow space, crossing over as if putting an arm around my shoulders.

He massaged my shoulder while pressing his upper body close to mine. The car had already turned onto the narrow street leading to our house. The road was quiet, and the small iron gate that had been a mere dot was getting closer.

“If you won’t give your heart, at least show your sincerity by giving your body. Then I’ll stay by your side for life.”

Mitchell waves his hand at me. It’s clearly a hand trying to lead me down a bad path. But where else could you find a cleaner temptation?

I felt like I should seriously consider that ‘sincerity’ he mentioned.

No, wait, is he saying he’d accept if I gave my heart?

Exactly what kind of feelings is he looking for?

***

Even after arriving home, the awkwardness didn’t immediately dissipate. At least, that’s how I felt, though I’m not sure what Mitchell was thinking.

After showering, he sat in the living room reading his script. It was no different from his usual behavior.

I too had just finished showering and was wandering around the living room, fiddling with my still-damp hair. We weren’t hungry since we’d eaten the boxed meals provided at the filming location.

Today, due to location scouting, we returned home before 3 PM, but from tomorrow, the real grueling schedule would begin. It meant Mitchell might not come home until dawn. I needed to mend our relationship as soon as possible. We hadn’t really fought, but things felt strangely awkward.

Just as I was watching Mitchell carefully, my phone rang.

“Hello? Ah, yes. Hello. …Yes… Yes. That’s possible. Yes…”

I ended the relatively short call. Though Mitchell didn’t ask, I informed him about the call’s content.

“They want me to come to the gym starting next week. It’s some kind of action school, I think. Twice a week. They say we need to start coordinating action scene movements.”

“Where?” Mitchell asked without looking at me.

“I think it’s near our movie set. They said they’d send me the address. They’re thinking about two hours. From nine to eleven? They’ll provide training and even packed meals if we want. They say there are many specialized action actors there, so there’s a lot to learn. Oh, I got a text. The address is…”

I told Mitchell everything, even details he didn’t need to know. I didn’t leave out a single word from the phone call.

I thought if I did this, Mitchell might reciprocate similarly. We’re in a relationship where we should share everything, after all.

“DK Action School? There?”

“Yeah. Seems it’s famous?”

“It might be tough there.”

“Aren’t all action schools tough? It’s fine.”

“That’s not what I mean. There are a few crazy guys there. Be careful.”

“Ah… Okay, I’ll be careful.”

Wherever people gather, there’s always one or two who don’t fit in with the group. I wasn’t going to dedicate my life there, so there was no reason to be scared in advance.

More than that, I was pleased that Mitchell was worried about me. He didn’t seem angry even though I couldn’t give a positive answer to his suggestion to sleep together. It didn’t seem like the promise to contact each other every two hours would fizzle out either. I felt relieved.

“I’m going to work out.”

Thinking Mitchell might feel pressured if I kept hovering around him, I deliberately left the room. I thought it would be okay since we were in the same house, even if I couldn’t see him, as long as I didn’t close the door.

I needed to build my body more for the upcoming filming. Even if I learn techniques at the gym, basic fitness is my responsibility.

I entered the exercise room and stood on the mat. I lifted my t-shirt and felt my abs and chest. In the past, this would have been satisfactory enough, but compared to Mitchell’s body, it’s child’s play.

I took off my t-shirt completely and lay face down on the mat. Just as I was about to start doing push-ups,

Thud.

I heard a sound from outside. It sounded like Mitchell putting down his script on the table. He must have put it down forcefully because I could hear it despite the distance between the living room and the exercise room.

I stopped my push-ups and listened carefully, still lying face down. What is Mitchell going to do? Where is he going? I tried to figure it out from the sounds.

I didn’t have to try for long.

“Need help?”

Startled by the sudden voice, I lifted my head to see Mitchell already standing at the doorway.