Yu's pencil glided with practiced ease, guided by Joy's commentary like a conductor to a symphony.
"No, no, make that curve softer!"
She insisted, leaning so close to her camera her nose nearly fogged it.
"Winter romance isn't stiff—it's flowy, dreamy. Yes, like that!"
On the sketchpad, a full silhouette took form: a long white coat that brushed the ankles, cinched at the waist with a crimson sash reminiscent of a ribbon-wrapped gift. Rose motifs peeked faintly from the hem, embroidered as though frozen under frost. Yu added a fur-trimmed hood, wide and draping, to frame the face like a halo.
"Voilà!"
He whispered with a little flourish, tilting the pad toward his camera.
"Another complete look."
Joy gasped dramatically, clutching her cheeks.
"Yu! That's perfect! Ugh, I want to wear it right now. You're a genius!"
Meanwhile, Izan, half-hidden behind his stack of notes, cleared his throat.
"While you two are playing designer and muse, I've finished one of the slides."
He angled his laptop screen:
Roman Courtship Traditions – Slide 1. At the top:
"The Gift of Doves as Symbols of Loyalty." Below:
Sketches and bullet points, neatly aligned.
Yu quickly typed, merging his own design sense with Izan's precision. He swapped the plain background for marble-textured frames, adding roses in the corner. A matching title font in elegant cursive pulled it together.
He turned his screen around.
"Slide one finished."
Joy clapped her hands.
"Winter Paris couture and Roman romance? Honestly, feels like love just follows wherever you go, Yu."
For a brief moment, all three of them sat there, smiling into their cameras, the synergy almost tangible.
But then Izan glanced at the clock, his expression flickering.
"I should go. Work's calling, and if I'm late again my manager will skin me alive. I'll call again tomorrow. Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Izan!"
Joy and Yu chimed together before his square blinked dark.
Joy lingered a little longer, her sparkle dimming.
"I've got to go too. Theo's still stuck at home—sick."
She pulled a face.
"Which means house arrest for me, because Rin won't let me out unless Theo gives him the okay, ugh."
Yu's stomach twisted at her words, the guilt sharp as glass.
'He's "sick" because of me.'
Joy brightened, blowing him a kiss.
"Goodnight, Yu. I'll call again tomorrow—we'll nail this assignment, don't you worry!"
Yu smiled faintly, lifting a hand in a small wave as the call ended. The screen went black, the silence of his room pressing in.
Then, before he could stop himself, the words spilled out of his mouth like a curse.
"I fucked Theo and made him unable to leave the bed."
He froze, eyes wide, heat rushing to his face. His own hands shot up to cover it, muffling a groan of mortification.
"Damn it, Yuvin!"
He muttered through his palms, half embarrassed, half furious. The compulsion to confess to Joy—every time, every secret—was going to kill him.
Yu stayed slumped in his chair, palms pressed to his burning face. His heart thudded painfully against his ribs, as if the words he'd just blurted were still echoing in the air.
'Why? Why do I have to be like this?'
DK01's screen flickered to life in his mind's eye, its pixelated eyes blinking unnecessarily like a patient metronome.
[You've identified the problem correctly. This compulsive truth-telling with Joy is a hazard. Manage it. If another slip of that scale occurs, the mission could destabilize.]
Yu groaned into his hands, muffled.
"Yeah, well, maybe you try having to stay in character against your will, huh?"
[Excuses are irrelevant. You must up hold the character profile set for your role. If you cannot, you risk—]
"—resetting and dying. Yeah, yeah, I know."
Yu dropped his hands with a sigh, rubbing at his swollen lips and sore jaw.
"Gods, I hope nothing else slips…"
He pushed himself upright and forced his body into motion, stretching his arms overhead until his spine popped. Movement grounded him. Chores grounded him.
The kitchen lights glowed warm as he tied on his apron. Pots clinked, water hissed, rice simmered. Even though it was the middle of the night, the amount of energy he still had made it impossible for Yu to relax enough to sleep.
'I can use this time to make tomorrow's food for the boys.'
He cut and stirred with mechanical efficiency, crafting light, digestible food again—broths, soft vegetables, congee—things the two men could stomach in their sore and battered states.
When the food was ready, he carefully put the food in containers and labeled them. Enough soups and soft foods for Callen's and Adrian's breakfast and lunch when tomorrow arrives.
After, Yu washed the dishes, the warm water calming his frayed nerves, then turned to the last task of the late night—laundry.
The smell of freshly dried fabric filled the apartment. Yu folded Callen's shirts and sweats into neat stacks, placing them into drawers Callen had probably forgotten he owned. Then Adrian's—folded crisply, sorted by color. He lingered for a second on a black button-up that smelled faintly of Adrian's cologne before tucking it away with the rest.
Finally, with everything in order, Yu drifted back to the kitchen. The men were asleep, full and exhausted, leaving him in blessed solitude. His own hunger, however, gnawed sharper after expending all that extra energy. He pulled out odds and ends, his cravings in control:
Rice mixed with pickles, peanut butter spread over fruit, even a dash of hot sauce where it didn't belong. He plated it without shame, sat at the table alone, and ate bite after odd bite, sighing with the strange satisfaction only pregnancy cravings could bring.
The quiet clatter of his fork against porcelain felt like punctuation at the end of a long, tangled sentence.
When he was finished, Yu cleaned up after himself then finally felt relaxed enough to try and drift to sleep.
Yu lay sprawled in his bed, the blankets tangled around his legs. His belly, still only just beginning to swell, felt like a stone pressing uncomfortably against him whenever he tried to curl on his side. Flat on his back left him restless; on his stomach was impossible.
He shifted, sighed, shifted again. Nothing fit.
His cravings clawed at him—sweet, salty, sour all at once. He'd already eaten, but his tongue itched for pickled plums, chocolate, and maybe…chips? He groaned softly, dragging a pillow over his face.
'This body is going to be the death of me.'
[Technically, if you let these cravings spiral without restraint, you may accelerate health complications for both yourself and the child. Sleep is more valuable at this stage than indulgence.]
"Yeah, well, easy for you to say."
Yu mumbled under the pillow.
"You're not the one with your guts screaming for chocolate-covered cucumbers at midnight."
DK01 was silent for a beat before it blinked back into his vision.
[I'll make note of this craving for…reference.
Yu barked a laugh despite himself, then sighed, letting his exhaustion finally drag him down. His dreams that night were fragmented—warmth, arms around him that seemed to ease his unrest, whispers of promises he half recognized. Faces blurred. Names like ash on his tongue. He woke several times, clutching his aching belly, then dozed again until dawn.
---
Across the city, in the sprawling Kingsley estate, Theo leaned back against the mound of pillows propping him upright in bed. His body screamed every time he shifted—hips, thighs, the ache along his lower back a dull throb that stole his breath when he moved too suddenly.
And yet…he smiled.
Each sting, each flinch, was a reminder. A reminder of Yu beneath him. Around him. His sweet lips, his sharp tongue, the way he begged and defied in the same breath.
Theo reached for the stack of work documents on his nightstand, skimming without focus. He flinched again as he tried to adjust his posture, biting back a curse.
A knock sounded at his door. Measured. Too measured.
"Enter."
Theo called, his voice cool.
Rin stepped inside, nervous as ever, clutching a slim tablet. He bowed.
"Mr. K-Kingsley…your grandfather wishes to speak with you."
The words froze Theo to his core. His body stiffened, muscles locking despite the pain it caused. The ache in his hips roared sharp, but it was nothing compared to the ice in his veins.
"My…grandfather?"
His voice was low, steady, but his blood ran cold.
Rin bowed again.
"Yes, sir. As soon as possible."
Theo's grip on the papers tightened until they crumpled.
---
The next morning, Yu stirred awake with sunlight spilling across his floor. He sat up with a groggy sigh, stretching until his spine popped. For a moment, it almost felt like a normal morning—until his phone chimed.
One new message. From Joy.
Joy: Yuvin!! My brother wants to talk to you!! 📲😳 Here's his new number!! ✨🔥💞 Don't ignore him!! 😘🔥💖💗💫
Yu stared at the digits she sent after, a chill running through his body. His belly twisted—not just with the nausea of early pregnancy, but with dread.
He had a bad feeling.
A very bad feeling.
Yu sat at the edge of his bed, phone in hand, staring at the number Joy had sent him like it was a live wire. His thumb hovered above the screen, then retreated, then hovered again.
[Contacting the Tragic Target while your mental state is unstable could jeopardize the mission. I advise postponement until you've stabilized your stress levels.]
Yu snorted softly.
"What, and have Joy blow up my phone all day until I cave or worse, I accidentally let something slip again? No chance. I'll take the risk."
[…You're unusually reckless when it comes to him.]
"Shut it."
Yu muttered, pressing the call button before he could second-guess himself again. His pulse quickened as the ringing echoed in his ear.
It clicked.
"Yu?"
Theo's voice was low, velvet-rich even over the phone line.
Yu nearly choked on air. His own voice came out sharper, nervier than he intended.
"Yeah, it's me. Don't get weird about it. Joy gave me your new number."
On the other end, Theo's lips curved, though Yu couldn't see it. His heart fluttered at the simple sound of Yu's voice, alive and near, flowing into his ear like honey.
"So it really is you."
He murmured, softer, almost to himself.
Yu's chest ached unexpectedly. A tug—sharp, hollow, unbearable—like something inside him had been pulled toward a memory he wasn't supposed to have. He thought of Yukio, of a blurry boy on the other end of a different line, the nervous yet endearingly soft voice of Taichi during their very first call. He somewhat remembered what his heart could not, the sting searing, the faces and warmth blacked out as if censored by cruel hands. He recalled the scene, the action but none of the warmth or the face and that hurt him more.
His throat tightened. He shoved the memory down.
"Are you going to talk, or just sigh into the phone like some creep?"
Yu snapped, annoyance covering the sting in his chest of having it blocked out. His free hand had already drifted unconsciously to stroke his still-flat belly, a soothing rhythm against the quiet storm inside him.
"I'm very busy these days, so hurry it up and say what you want."
On the other end, Theo's smile only deepened, his tone low with amusement and hunger.
Theo leaned back against his pillows, the ache in his body muted by the warm haze Yu's voice left in his ear. Rin, stationed quietly nearby with a notepad, lifted his brows when Theo chuckled—a rare, almost boyish sound from the usually ice-cut heir.
The Love-o-meter ticked up:
45 - 46
"I need a favor…"
Theo said smoothly, as though it were the simplest thing in the world.
"No questions asked. And in return, you can ask for anything. Whatever you want, and I'll give it."
Yu's brows rose, caught off guard despite himself. The words hummed like bait, an offer dripping with power and temptation. He leaned back against the wall, balancing his phone on his shoulder.
"…Anything?"
Theo's lips curved, the weight of Rin's sideways stare ignored.
"Yes. Anything."
His thumb idly traced the glossy edge of one of Joy's scrapbooks, flipping a page. A dozen photos of Yu stared back up at him—long-haired, short-haired, dolled up, skirts, dresses and blouses clinging in different ways. He looked down at them like he was scanning a menu.
"The condition is this: you come dressed like this."
Yu's eyes narrowed, caught between offense and curiosity.
"…Like what?"
"Like when you and Joy play runway."
Theo replied nonchalantly, letting one photo linger—Yu in a pastel blouse and pleated skirt, smiling so easily. His voice dipped, smooth but deliberate.
"Something cute. Conservative. Nothing too daring. You'll… look perfect like that."
There was a pause.
Yu's lips twisted, somewhere between a smirk and disbelief.
"So this is a date?"
On the other end, Theo froze. His ears burned crimson, his throat caught on a cough.
The Love-o-meter ticked up:
46 - 48
"It… it could be considered as one."
He admitted at last, the words oddly shy for a man used to commanding entire rooms.
That tug in Yu's chest returned—part irritation, part intrigue, part something deeper he couldn't name. He let the silence stretch just long enough before answering.
"…Fine. Send me the time and day, and I'll get ready."
And without waiting for Theo's reply, he hung up.
Theo sat there a moment longer, staring at the silent phone pressed against his ear. Rin tilted his head, muttering under his breath.
"Who is this person?"
'No way he's the same Theo Kingsley who can silence men twice his age with a glance!'
Theo's smile returned, softer now, dangerous in its quiet certainty.
Theo let the phone slip from his hand onto the bedspread, the echo of Yu's clipped tone still ringing in his ears. He leaned back against the headboard, the ache in his body flaring, but it didn't matter—nothing mattered right now except the image of Yu in a skirt again.
Rin shifted uneasily at the foot of the bed.
"Sir, you… sounded like someone else just now."
Theo ignored him, fingers still resting on Joy's album. His thumb brushed over one photo, then another, lingering on each captured smile.
"A date…"
He murmured under his breath, the word both foreign and thrilling. But it wouldn't just be a date. This was an opportunity.
His grandfather had been pressing him harder than ever lately—about legacy, about family, about marriage. Theo clenched his jaw. The idea formed almost naturally:
He'd take Yu dressed as a girl, delicate and perfect, and introduce him under the guise of a potential bride. His grandfather would see what Theo saw—how Yu fit. Not just into his home, but into the Kingsley line.
Theo's lips curved faintly.
"I'll prove it."
He whispered, more to himself than to Rin.
"To him, to the world, to Yu."
Rin, unsettled by the gleam in his employer's eyes, quietly noted something in his pad and excused himself. Theo remained there, staring at the album until his lids grew heavy, already envisioning Yu walking gracefully beside him, dressed just for him.
---
Two days later, the text came.
Yu glanced down at his phone between classes.
Theo: This weekend. After class. At the gates. Remember, wear something cute.
Yu's heart gave a heavy thud. DK01 dinged a quiet warning about his stress levels, but Yu shut it down with a roll of his eyes.
'"Cute," huh?'
He almost scoffed aloud.
Still… when the final lecture ended, Yu slipped into his room and began rifling through his closet.
A pale cream blouse. A high-waist skirt, not too short, not too long. Stockings with a faint shimmer. He laid each option out across his bed first before changing into them, frowning critically, fingers brushing the fabrics.
'Joy would probably say go for bold, maybe pastel pinks, lace, bows. But Theo had said conservative.'
Yu stared at his reflection in the mirror, long brown hair framing his flushed face. His lips pursed as he tugged the skirt higher on his hips, adjusted the blouse so it hugged but didn't cling. He spun once, testing how the outfit flowed.
Hazel eyes, faintly glinting red, blinked back at him.
"Don't get carried away. Control. I'm in control."
He muttered at his reflection. But he couldn't deny the shiver running down his spine at the thought of Theo's reaction.
Yu smoothed the cream blouse against his stomach again, fingers brushing the faint swell. Barely there, almost imperceptible unless someone stared too long — but to him, it felt glaring. He tugged at the skirt's waistline, adjusting it higher, then lower, testing the mirror again.
"Hmm…ugh, too tight."
He murmured, chewing his lip. DK01 pinged softly.
[Host, your stress levels are increasing too much, too often. It's just an outfit. There's no need to fuss over it. Be careful with managing your stress, as it could hurt the developing baby which could end with you also being terminated.]
Yu rolled his eyes.
'Of course it would.'
He set the skirt aside and tried another, a softer fabric with more give. This time, when he looked at himself, the faint plumpness seemed disguised beneath the subtle flare. Better. Safer.
The next half hour vanished into hair and makeup — sweeping his long brown locks into a half bun, the rest cascading loose around his shoulders, giving his reflection a soft, balanced charm. His hazel eyes, brightened with just a touch of liner, held a faint glow. His lips, tinted naturally pink, parted as he gave a small spin in front of the mirror.
His phone buzzed.
Joy: I heard you're going on a date with Theo!! 😆😆🤭 Good luck!!! 💕💕 Remember—tell me everything that happens! 💋❤️🔥 Especially the juicy bits hehe!! 😉😏🙈
Joy: And send me pics of your outfit!!!📸❤️👀 Wanna add them to my scrapbook!! 😇💌📚💫
Yu's face flared red as he held the phone in both hands and began taking pictures.
"Manage your expectations."
He muttered, shooting back a teasing voice note before spending an hour going back and forth with Joy.
Still warm from the call, he slipped into the kitchen for a quick snack, forgetting he was still dressed as a girl, his makeup done and hair styled.
The sound of a couch creaking drew his eyes up.
Both Callen and Adrian were there—they managed to drag themselves onto the couch, bruised pride masked under sore movements. Neither wanting to admit how thoroughly aching they truly felt, needing to appear feeling better than the other. Their gazes landed on him at once.
Yu froze mid-step, the packet of crackers in his hand.
Callen blinked, then let out a low whistle.
"Well, damn…"
Adrian's stare was quieter, but sharper—his dark brown eyes scanning every detail of the half bun, the delicate makeup, the blouse that hugged just enough. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, fingers curling into fists against his thighs.
Yu's pulse skipped, heat crawling up his neck as he realized what they were seeing.
Callen's breath caught before he could stop it. Yu standing there, half bun loose around his face, lips faintly glossy, eyes wide in startled innocence—it was a sight that slammed into him harder than any fantasy he'd let himself spin. His mind instantly betrayed him with an image of Yu in a French maid outfit then a sexy nurse then bunny lingerie, flushed and clinging, calling his name in that sweet voice. His groin twitched, aching even through the dull soreness still lingering in his muscles.
'Fuck… if this is how he looks just walking into the kitchen, what's it going to be like when he dresses up for someone else?'
Jealousy roiled sharp in his gut.
Adrian, on the other hand, froze for a different reason. The softness in Yu's features with the makeup, the curve of his lips, the faint nervous tuck of hair behind one ear—it all tugged mercilessly at his chest. He didn't see a maid or a fling; he saw a bride, a wife. The picture of domestic perfection, only this time dressed in elegance instead of loose home clothes. His tattoos burned with sudden shame—could hands inked with violence really hold something so delicate? Still, the thought clawed at him.
'I need to make him mine before anyone else does. Before Theo, Callen—hell, even France—takes him away again.'
The silence thickened. Both men stared.
Yu shifted on his feet, blinking rapidly. His fingers fumbled with the cracker packet until it crinkled too loudly in the quiet.
"...What?"
His voice came out sharper than he meant.
Neither answered.
He huffed, lowering his gaze, then raising it again, cheeks flushed.
"Ah!—Uh, don't look at me like that. I can explain! I—It's just a little makeup. J-Joy wanted to see something. I'm gonna wash it off. A-and umm, she wanted to see me in this outfit for, er…c-class!"
Callen's lips twitched into a grin, but the hunger in his eyes betrayed it.
"Cute."
He said simply.
Adrian said nothing—his stare alone was heavy enough to make Yu fidget harder, shifting his weight from one leg to the other, like a shy girl caught dressing up for the first time. His free hand tugged at the hem of his blouse, fussing with a wrinkle that wasn't there.
Yu rolled his eyes, heat crawling up his neck.
"Stop staring! I said it's nothing."
But his voice wavered, betraying just how much their gazes rattled him.