Chapter 96 - Sir, Do You Like Alphie? (3)

"But Sir, do you actually love me?" Alpheus asked.

… 

"I—I mean, if Sir Junshik Hyung happens to be Alphie's mate, will you love me back?" Alpheus kept asking the same question repeatedly, hoping that Sir Junshik Hyung's answer would change after he insisted. 

…

Cha Junshik was stunned once more. He wasn't sure of his own feeling. It was very rare of him to like someone, let alone love them. Alpheus wasn't his type either;

His type was similar to his first lover and ex, a studious type who looked more sophisticated in appearance and personality.

Alpheus' body and handsome face were definitely Junshik's type, but his personality differed a lot from his ex…

'Okay, Junshik, you got to stop thinking about him. He will never come back, and it's been years already. Just move on,' Junshik tried to ignore this loneliness inside his heart after his love left the country and never heard from him again. Their relationship never got any closure.

Though it had been years without contact, that man probably didn't even remember Cha Junshik and their years of relationship…

"Sir?"

Cha Junshik returned his focus at Alpheus again. Alphie was looking at him with such a hopeful gaze, even though Cha Junshik raised his voice and yelled at him harshly. 

'Will I love him back if I happen to be Alphie's mate?'

'Perhaps, I'm not sure either. He is not my type, nor do I think I will spend my life with him as a mate. But he is tolerable… and cute. Very cute.'

'But of course, I can't say that to Alpheus. I don't want him to put his hope on me. We're not meant to be together.'

'Everything is just temporary here until that portal opened again, and Alpheus would find his mate in his world.'

After considering the possible cause if he said yes, Cha Junshik decided to take a cruel but necessary approach. 

"Well, aren't we in a relationship now?" Cha Junshik said. "Didn't you say that we're SUPER MEGA BEST FRIEND before?"

"Un," Alpheus nodded, but his mood turned sour again. "But Alphie wants more than just SUPER MEGA BEST FRIEND…."

"You're my one and only friend right now. How about… we become more than just SUPER MEGA BEST FRIEND, can you suggest me a better title for us?" Cha Junshik asked so Alphie would forget about this whole 'love' thing.

"Ohh! Sir, Alphie wants to upgrade our bond!" Alpheus said. 

Just like what Cha Junshik expected, Alpheus had a short attention span. It wasn't that difficult to shift his attention. 

"Sure, what kind of title do you want us to have?" Cha Junshik asked. 

"Ohhh! Hmm… AH! I got it!" Alpheus looked happy again. He looked at Sir Junshik Hyung with sparkling eyes. "Sir! We have been so close. You're also Alphie's only acquaintance, only friend, and also an only best friend!'

"That's why let's upgrade our friendship from SUPER MEGA BEST FRIEND to ULTIMATE SUPREME BEST FRIEND!"

"Whoa, that's a mouthful," Cha Junshik commented while chuckling. "Fine, if that is what you want. We're ULTIMATE SUPREME BEST FRIEND now. You're also my one and only friend and best friend."

"Thank you so much, Sir! I feel honored to be your one and only!" Alpheus said. He jumped on Cha Junshik and hugged him tightly, burying his face on Cha Junshik's shoulder.

Cha Junshik chuckled and patted Alphie's head, "You're such a handful. But I guess it's fun to have you around."

Alpheus smiled with obvious sadness while he buried his face on Sir Junshik Hyung's shoulder.

He might be an idiot, but he knew that Sir Junshik Hyung was just trying to dodge the question. But Alphie had a bit of tact. The more he pressured Sir Junshik Hyung, the more Sir Junshik Hyung refused to answer, and it would anger him even more.

So Alphie decided to play it dumb and hoped that someday, he would be able to touch Sir Junshik Hyung's heart. 

Even after he found his mate, later on, he doubted that he would be able to forget Sir Junshik Hyung until the end of his life. 

'Sir, I feel that we have a connection deeper than just a mate, but I don't know how to tell it to you….'

'I just know that I won't ever forget you, Sir….'

Cha Junshik felt Alphie's hug tighten, "Alpheus?"

"Sir, I am your only ULTIMATE SUPREME BEST FRIEND, right?"

"Yes, you're my only one," Cha Junshik replied. He patted the back of Alphie's head. "Don't think too much about it, be happy that we're living together right now, okay?"

"Un…"

**

After they had late lunch, Alpheus slept on the couch, putting his head on Sir Junshik Hyung's lap, and closed his eyes while Cha Junshik was busy checking on students' online exam scores.

Cha Junshik checked on Alpheus' forehead and found that Alphie's temperature had risen again, probably because he had a long day with Cha Junshik while his body was still weak.

Cha Junshik felt guilty, so he rubbed Alpheus' forehead and asked, "Alphie, go to bed. It's better to sleep there."

"Mmh?" Alpheus opened his eyes hard. "Alphie wants to sleep with Sir Junshik Hyung, mm… zzz…." 

Cha Junshik sighed and gently patted Alpheus' head continuously while he was checking the exam of his students. So Alphie would sleep quicker. 

After making sure that Alphie was in a deep sleep, he closed his laptop lid and put it on the table.

Cha Junshik got up and carried Alpheus' big body to the bedroom. He put Alphie gently on the bed and then went to get that fever gel pad compress in his medicine box.

He put it on Alpheus' forehead to compress his fever down and turned on the AC.

Cha Junshik whispered in Alphie's ear, "Sleep well, I won't go anywhere."

"Mmm… Junshik Hyung… zzzzz…." Alpheus mumbled in his sleep, much to Junshik's relief. He returned to the couch and opened his laptop again. 

He was busy checking the exam until he got a text on his phone.

Ding!

Cha Junshik checked his phone and saw that it was a chat from Laura Lovena, that Romanian student. 

—

Laura Lovena: Mr. Cha, can I talk to you for a second?

Laura Lovena: I want to call you, this is about the assignment you gave. I don't understand a few questions.

—

Cha Junshik clucked his tongue in response. He was annoyed by Laura Lovena's insistence. 

"This woman is goddamn persistent. Is it because she is beautiful? That's why she can't handle rejection well?" Cha Junshik wondered. 

It wasn't that uncommon to see women whom Junshik rejected suddenly become aggressive, and most of them were indeed beautiful women.

Maybe because they had never been rejected or even chasing anyone in their entire life. 

But Cha Junshik wasn't in the mood of pretending to be a kind and magnanimous man. He already made it clear that he didn't have any interest in Laura Lovena.

—

Cha Junshik: You can discuss it with your friends. I don't have much time for a call.

Cha Junshik: You can also open and cite many sources that I have shared in group chat. It's not that hard.

Laura Lovena: But I'm still confused, please, Mr. Cha.

Laura Lovena: I don't want to fail your class. It might ruin my scholarship. Do you want me to leave before I can graduate just because I don't know how to do your paper assignment?

—

With the threat that Laura Lovena might be cut down from her scholarship because of his fault, she finally weighed Cha Junshik.

He might be cold, but he was dedicated to his study and the whole academic environment he was in.

He wanted all of his students to succeed, or at least pass his class without worry.

He was reluctant, but knowing that it was his responsibility to teach, he finally relented and accepted; 

'It's okay, Cha Junshik. This is for the best of her and your dedication to academic study as well," Cha Junshik steeled himself. Honestly, he was already fed up with Laura Lovena, but he couldn't abandon his duty as a lecturer.

—

Cha Junshik: Fine, you can call me now, but you should list what you want to ask first because I don't have time for an unnecessary chat.

Laura Lovena: Yes! Thank you so much, Mr. Cha!|

—

~Like a fever, fever, fever, fever

Neol ango sipeo

Neol ango sipeo~

Cha Junshik heard his ringtone and checked the caller.

Incoming call from Laura Lovena.

He was a tad surprised because Laura Lovena suddenly called him in less than a minute. And she brazenly called his number directly, not through any chatting app like Kakao, Whatsapp, or Line.

"Damn, what kind of student dares to call her lecturer's phone number? I allowed her to call me with Kakao call or Line call!" Cha Junshik cursed. 

But in the end, he took a deep breath to calm himself down and accepted the call;

"Hello, Mr.. Cha, it's me, Laura Lovena, your sweetheart~."