Absinthe novel Chapter 52

I remembered my health teacher's face contorted in embarrassment as the other boys in my class were asking her about refractory periods.

They were asking her how long this down period for guys were, and if it were bad to have one's penis go hard again immediately after orgasming.

"Each person's refractory period is different. For young people, it is likely to be shorter, lasting only minutes."

And the boys shouted in delight, bragging against each other about how fast they could get theirs to stand up once again.

And here was proof of that.

Jiwoo and I did it four times. I meant, Jiwoo came four times (I only came thrice, though), round after round we had sex with almost no downtime.

The most I had with my previous partners were twice in a row... and that's with a considerable downtime of about fifteen to thirty minutes.

But Jiwoo was... I don't even know how to describe it any longer.

He wasn't an unstoppable machine, though, for we both almost fainted after the last round which lasted the longest. We were both so sweaty I'd have an issue explaining my wet and smelly sheets to the house helper as soon as she comes back to work tomorrow. (I made a mental note to drop them off at the laundry shop.)

And yes, we fell asleep right after that last round, both our bodies sticky and wet with our combined fluids, locked in a weird entanglement of limbs. But none of that mattered. We were exhausted. The good kind of exhausted. And we didn't wake up until...

"I'm hungry! I'm coming in!"

I didn't really have time to register what the words were, but I recognised the fact that Jiwoo and I would be seen in a compromising situation if I don't get up and lock the door.

But I was too late.

"Well, well, well..." Derrick said. "I told you to lock the door and you never listen. I'm beginning to think that you have an exhibitionist side to you."

I felt Jiwoo stir beside me as I grabbed on to a pillow to throw at Derrick.

"Don't you dare throw that at me. Your body fluids are all over that thing. Disgusting."

"Get out," I managed to say. "I'm not in the mood to cook. Just order something."

"What's the sense of having a chef for a roommate, then?" Derrick complained on his way out. "I hate you guys. Anyway, I'm stepping out. See you whenever."

Jiwoo bit my shoulder the moment we heard the door click. "I'm hungry, too."

I raised my eyebrows at him. "And I'm your cook now?"

"No," Jiwoo said, grinning maliciously. "You're my boyfriend."

"I thought we were going to the wet market." I asked, elbowing him to get off of me. The smell of dried cum in the room was beginning to get to me.

"It's your fault for showing me this," Jiwoo said, tapping on my buttocks. "What time is it anyway?"

I pointed at the table clock sitting on the bedside table. It read 12:45.

"We overslept," Jiwoo said.

"Yeah, we did." I answered.

And we both laughed so hard it was kind of refreshing.

"So what's your plan now?" I asked, still recovering from that bout of laughter.

"Since we can't go to the market anymore, how about I take you out on a date?"

"Wow... boyfriend duties this early in the relationship?"

I saw Jiwoo's face break into the widest grin I have seen yet. "You just called me boyfriend!"

I shrugged. "You don't want?"

"No!" Jiwoo said, instantly going for a kiss on my neck. "I want."

I laughed at his straightforwardness and simplicity. "Then go and take a shower now."

"Yes, sir!"

Jiwoo jumped out of bed and headed for the connecting bathroom. I only had to wait for a few minutes before he emerged, a white towel wrapped from his waist down. Jiwoo caught me staring and he gave me a wink.

I threw the pillow at him and told him to remove all the pillowcases and the bedsheets while I'm cleaning up.

I took my time in the shower. My body smelled distinctly like Jiwoo. It wasn't Jiwoo's scent, but rather his taste that I'm smelling now. It sounds weird, but I guess it was Jiwoo's saliva on my skin that I was smelling.

After everything, I went straight to my closet and picked out the most casual things I could wear. The problem was, my wardrobe was all designer and luxury. Even the simplest ones I could find were screaming extravagance, all thanks to Faye's machinations.

I sat down and tried to think about the whole situation, and corporate BJ's brain started working its way to a solution.

If I wear any of these and go out on a date with Jiwoo in his usual plain white t-shirt, tattered pants, and Chuck Taylor sneakers, I was 100% sure everyone would stare at us and make the assumption that I'm Jiwoo's sponsor.

Sugar daddy.

Nope. I can't have that.

I dialed Faye's number and she answered on the second ring. I wasted no time explaining the situation to her and she also wasted no time in giving me a solution.

"Your casual outfits are folded in boxes and stored inside the last stretch of your closet."

"What? How do you know that?"

"Well," she said. "I chose some good ones from your old clothes. I thought you could still wear them but I forgot to have them unpacked when you moved in."

I walked towards the area Faye mentioned and found several boxes neatly stacked on top of each other. I bid Faye goodbye and hung up, hastily opening the first box.

It was full of shirts from cheaper brands like Zara, Codes Combine, Paul Smith, and Bean Pole. I pulled a plain-looking round neck t-shirt in faded old rose, accentuated by a medium-sized pocket on the left breast.

I then opened another box marked pants and pulled out a lovely pair of black chinos that would probably be about 3 inches short of my ankles.

There were two boxes marked shoes and I opened the top one, pulling out a pair of red, low cut sneakers from Converse.

I quickly donned everything and found myself pretty normal. At least, it won't be too different from what Jiwoo would be wearing. But Faye's going to kill me if she seems me looking like this, so I had to wear some subtle accessories to accentuate my otherwise plain look.

I wore a thin chain bracelet from Chrome Hearts instead of a time piece, opted for a black-rimmed, oversized, rectangular glasses from Gentle Monster, and a black, men's handbag from Mont Blanc.

When I came back to the bedroom, the bed was completely stripped off and Jiwoo was nowhere in sight.

I went out to the main hall and found Jiwoo sitting on one of the high stools by the kitchen counter, already dressed up in the same white t-shirt and tattered jeans he was wearing when he came.

"Where are you planning to take me today?" I asked. "I'm starving, so there better be food."

Jiwoo responded with a smile and motioned for me to come over. "Let's take our first pic as an official couple first. I want to post it on Instagram."

I scooted over to where he was and leaned beside him. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and used his left hand to position his phone for the perfect shot. And of course, he kissed me on the cheek just in time for the camera to capture.

@bjmesoftly said yes! It's official now. Going out on our first date! #excited

I saw Jiwoo typing the caption before uploading it on IG. For sure, Gossip Gay and the rest of the metro's LGBTQ scene will have a field day with that.

Jiwoo took my hand and we started walking towards the door.

First date, huh? I still wasn't really sure how this whole relationship thing with Jiwoo would turn out to be but... I do know for a fact that I'm having fun right now. I guess that's what important.