I’m Not That Obsessive

Chapter 8

In a quiet room where the silence feels dreadful.

Mitchell opened his eyes. He lay motionless under the window where sunlight poured in like starlight, only blinking. Without even straightening his uncomfortably curled body, he just looked up at the blue sky outside.

Morning is his least favorite time of day. Unless he brought someone home the night before, he’s usually alone in the morning.

Just as the terrible silence and stifling anxiety began to mess with his head, a vibration sounded. He knew who it was without checking.

“Yeah.”

Mitchell picked up the phone placed beside the bed. He got up with his heavy body while continuing the familiar conversation.

They exchange mundane talk about how they slept, what they did, what they’ll do today.

Meanwhile, Mitchell looked at the empty sofa and turned on the TV, breaking the silence that had settled in the living room.

He went straight to wash up, but only placed the phone on the sink while the call continued. Even when only the sound of shower water could be heard, the other person didn’t hang up.

Mitchell came out wearing a hastily put-on bathrobe with a towel on his head. The phone was still in his hand.

Occasionally, voices spread through the speaker. He listened but didn’t bother to answer. Conversation wasn’t the point.

Just some presence. A signal that something was beside him. That was enough.

It took less than 30 minutes to dry his hair, get dressed, and finish preparing to go out. During that time, the call with unclear content continued.

Until Mitchell got in his car and met the people on the street.

“Jeff. I’m hanging up now.”

As soon as the call ended, Mitchell’s breath spread out long. The wind coming through the wide-open door ruffled his hair. The fragrant smell of shampoo wafted along with the blue-tinted breeze.

The first place Mitchell stopped by was Milky Way, the café closest to his home. Even though he had a high-performance coffee machine at home, he always went to cafés. After buying a cup of coffee, Mitchell immediately headed to his second destination.

Mitchell’s next movie was about to start filming. Counting minor roles and dramas, the number of his appearances would be even higher, but this would be his twenty-second film as a lead actor.

He had also recently finished filming his twenty-first movie, and the one he had shot before that was currently showing in theaters.

Mitchell was obsessed with work to a degree that would make even the most dedicated workaholics cry. He couldn’t stand quiet times.

Resting alone at home was practically killing Mitchell. It was the moment he dreaded the most, so he always went out if possible. He constantly sought work and met people or invited them to his home.

For such a Mitchell, a two-month gap had appeared. It was due to failing to coordinate time with the production company ahead of his next film. He didn’t like the long break, but this time there was nothing he could do about it.

Attending press screenings to promote the newly released movie, appearing on various TV programs, and even shooting delayed commercials. Despite piling up schedules, a week of time had still ended up empty. A short time for others, but an endlessly long time for Mitchell.

“Director, I’m here.”

He visited the still quiet studio. Analyzing movie characters with the director and presenting directions accordingly was always something he did.

The upcoming movie was a clean action blockbuster rather than emotion-centered, so there wasn’t much work needed, but he still came to meet the director.

In any case, time passes well when working.

While talking about the movie with the director and some staff members, along with some small talk, Mitchell received a phone call.

After excusing himself and moving away, Mitchell confirmed that the caller was Jeff.

“Yeah.”

“I’ve arrived at the airport and I’m on my way to your place now. Almost there. You’re not home right now, right?”

“I’m out.”

“I thought so. But Mitchell, I think I can only spare two days at most.”

“…Okay.”

“Sorry, I have a lot to do.”

“So you actually do work sometimes?”

Jeff calmly brushed off Mitchell’s sarcasm. This was the kind of relationship they had, and they hadn’t known each other for just a day or two, so it wasn’t a big deal. Besides, what Mitchell said was true.

“I usually don’t. But my father is coming. He’s flying all the way from New York to here to check if the hotel is running well. It’s annoying. How can he distrust his son this much?”

Jeff was running a 3-star hotel in Las Vegas. It wasn’t a hotel everyone knew, but it was quite popular for its affordable prices.

Perhaps because he became the hotel’s representative according to his father’s wishes, Jeff lacked passion for running the hotel. He delegated authority to his subordinates and let things flow. He was truly a 33-year-old young representative who just took the money and position.

Jeff, who trembled at the mention of his father, couldn’t fill Mitchell’s “empty week.” Even for him, who was best at doing nothing and loved sticking with men, his father was an object of fear.

“Alright. I’ll have dinner and then come home.”

“Then, around what time?”

“I won’t be later than 8.”

“Okay. Come quickly. Come quickly and touch me a bit. No, I’ll touch you.”

Jeff started cackling and spewing out lewd jokes. Mitchell, who had been listening quietly, took the phone away from his ear at the timely notification. An unknown number was calling.

“I’m hanging up. I’ve got a call.”

“Okay. I’ll be clean and waiting. Come quickly.”

Mitchell hung up without answering and pressed the call button.

“Hello.”

“……”

“Hello?”

Just as he was about to hang up after a long silence, a voice came through.

“It’s me. Can I come to your house?”

No introduction of who they were. Mitchell should have been unfamiliar with the impolite caller, but he recognized the voice immediately.

“You… are you the guy next door?”

***

Jeff’s car entered the lush forest road. Eventually, it passed through the asphalt road in the middle of the dense forest and stopped in front of the 3-meter-tall iron gate.

Jeff reached out to the barrier and pressed Mitchell’s house bell. An alarm would have gone to Mitchell’s phone. He waited for the gate to open, as only Mitchell could allow access to the opposite side of the land.

The owners of this shared private property, the size of two large soccer fields, were only Mitchell and the owner of the house next door.

Click. Zing.

Soon after, the gate opened.

Although he had been here just a few days ago, the feeling was quite different this time.

This place was supposed to be his and Mitchell’s secret space. He had hoped it would be a secret fortress where only those allowed could enter, but the stranger who suddenly moved in next door ruined everything.

They can no longer walk naked through the forest path. They’ll have to be cautious about their outdoor lovemaking in the woods too. It was quite a delicacy.

“If I had known this would happen, I should have bought that house myself.”

Jeff also thought the house next door was empty. If he had bought the neighboring house in advance, he would have occupied this entire land, and there would have been no problem indulging in debauchery with Mitchell as they used to.

He regretted not doing so earlier. Jeff frowned as he thought of the man who had intruded into his and Mitchell’s space. The man whose face he didn’t even know properly.

“What’s that?”

Profanities flowed from Jeff’s mouth. Someone was standing in front of Mitchell’s front door. It was too far to run to, but close enough to see.

Jeff instinctively thought of the man who was said to live next door. That damn man who had sneaked into someone else’s house and peeped at their intimate acts.

‘Was he Korean?’

He thought about having a chat, but the neighbor quickly left the front door. He seemed to be on a phone call, judging by the phone in his hand.

He turned his head towards Jeff due to the car sound, but the man didn’t do anything particular before returning to his house next door.

“Why is that bastard there?”

Jeff shouted in the empty car. Saliva flew with his indignation.

Jeff and Mitchell weren’t in a romantic relationship. It’s true that Mitchell sought Jeff out, but what Mitchell wanted was only Jeff’s time.

There was no desperate emotion of “it has to be you.” It was just the fact that a human was beside Mitchell. That was all.

Jeff knew this fact too. That’s why he cunningly exploited Mitchell’s abnormal side of extremely disliking being alone. Jeff had to be an important existence to Mitchell.

“Don’t tell me he came to steal my Mitchell?”

He glared at the neighboring house where the man had disappeared with fierce eyes. Jeff parked the car in the outdoor parking lot and immediately called Mitchell.

“Mitchell.”

“What?”

“Did you know that guy from next door was lurking in front of your front door? Why does that bastard keep coming here?”

“Now? Is he gone?”

“He’s gone. Is he a fan or something? Or a stalker?”

“If he’s gone, it’s fine. I’m busy. I’ll call you when I’m about to leave later.”

“Ah! Mitchell, this is… Ah, shit. Alright.”

Even after hanging up, he couldn’t shake off his anger. Although Jeff hadn’t won Mitchell’s heart, he knew how to quell Mitchell’s anxiety.

Because he held onto that method, Jeff could keep Mitchell entirely by his side. He could play around with the famous American star that no one else could approach.

But some crazy person was meddling with their solid relationship. He set foot in this place that should have been their sacred ground, then invaded the house that he should never have entered, and even annoyingly lurked around.

Jeff hadn’t properly heard how Mitchell had handled that incident back then.

“This son of a bitch.”

Forcibly composing his rising irritation, he opened the front door. He went inside, took out a beer from the refrigerator, and downed it in one go. Unlike his thirst, the unsettling feeling didn’t easily disappear.