[in-yeon]

𝐈 𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 ° 𝐈𝐈 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 ° 𝐈𝐈𝐈 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐒

[in-yeon]

037. at the edge of a serene forest lake under a starry sky. / from ikki!

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐄𝐍𝐕𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐏𝐒 𝐓𝐖𝐎 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖 𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐒 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐊𝐘. the sounds of the nearby party residing, now barely an echo of rustling leaves & cold wind. all they have now is each other, & those who know, they know in silence. neither of the men have decided to make their secret escapade public yet ── let it be due to reputation or mere inconvenience ── so the maids keep on cleaning & the night guards quickly turn the other way, pretending that the darker shadows near the forest lake are only just that, shadows.

they meet each other here quite often. perhaps, too often. the game has been stretching for months on end after all & each time it's always the same, with ties yanked loose, suit jackets & dress shirts flayed open, their tongues mingling like sleek snakes trapped together in wetness & warmth. while said time is of no consequence to either, sae-byeok, for his part, has done everything necessary to stay close to ikki. all of the supposed late night studies, missed calls, missing dates & dinners, & the humble series of apologies that followed, all of it was for none other than him.

as such, when ikki looses himself in heat of their shared passion & lets sae-byeok pin him roughly against the tree ── kissing, licking & suckling 'pon that sensitive neck ── it surely must have been devastating to feel him slowly pull away, only to whisper breathlessly against the ear, ❝ i'm sorry, 내 왕자. ❞ then, without any ceremony, be released as the korean man steps back to fix his own black suit back into that flawless image of wealth & elegance. no longer making eye-contact as he does. ❝ i thank you for your time, truly, but this dance has... unfortunately come to an end. ❞ & just like that, he states more plainly, as if pushing a dagger into his heart: ❝ we are done. ❞

[jeongyunho99]

i'm absolutely losing my mind!

[mangachi]

[spectralhunter]

Fingers laced, palms pressed together in a quiet vow as their hands shared mutual warmth in a forbidden matrimony. Takumi flashed a playful wink, it slipped from him like intoxicating nectar waiting to make the target drunk. ❝ Alright then, cute and a catch, huh? Guess I'm the lucky one for snagging you as the guest of honour. ❞ Without warning, with no care for personal space, Takumi yanked the young man closer, just so the contact of chest to chest lingered enough for his arm to slip over the guest shoulder, pulling him in closer.

Our investigator's pace guided the two down the dirty path layered in shattered marble stone slabs. Meanwhile Takumi waved his free hand towards the van, as if the blind jerk would somehow summon someone from within. ❝ Matt, open up! ❞ At his command, willing or not, a fairly large young man slammed open the van's side door, unleashing a bath of lights that swallowed any imminent darkness up. The inside was any nerd's dream, screens blinking and cameras laid on the floor waiting for a master to configure their settings.

This was the real deal, or so Takumi wanted it to look like. ❝ Here's the guy I was talking about, not bad ey? ❞ Matt slipped his middle finger under the rim of the ragged glasses, pushing it up in order to find some comfort. ❝ Pretty sure that's not what you were saying before Takumi. ❞ His unbothered gaze landed on sae-obyok, feeling almost sorry for him being dragged into this.

[in-yeon]

𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐄 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍, 𝐒𝐎 𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐍𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐂 & 𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄, just like on pictures. for years he'd wondered whether it was real, having collected around two thousand & thirty-five of them, along with six different posters, three t-shirts, twelve audio clips & fifty-nine downloadable recordings only for all of them to pale in the end. takumi sakata's natural charm couldn't ── shouldn't ── be captured through some camera lens or tape, but personally experienced. the sudden pull of his arms & the following embrace merely reinstate such a fact, stealing away sae-byeok's very breath, his air. it's nothing short of surreal & extraordinary, like magic.

❝ a-ah... ❞ releasing a little breathless chuckle, unsure how to react, he hugs back briefly before allowing the other male to guide him. the vermillion eyes looking at just about anything else. who would have imagined that a single e-mail, a mere shot in the dark, could allow sae-byeok to walk on air not even two weeks later? to meet the one who possessed him without knowing? certainly not many, but the gentle warmth around own shoulders & that distinctive scent of citrus are anything but illusive, making the musician's pale cheeks bloom in colour. thank goodness for the cold wind, he thinks.

by the time they reach the parked van & its uncanny driver, sae-byeok calms own heart enough to look up with the usual flair of confidence & grace, being fortunately nowhere near as bashful. ❝ 안녕하십니까, mat. ❞ so he greets, giving a slight yet polite nod of head just as they enter the would-be base of operations. it's been upgraded quite decently, he notices, all the while glancing from the ghost-hunting equipment to the mounted screens on the opposite side, all of which are still turned off. ❝ thank you for waiting, you two, ❞ he quietly adds before glancing back at the boys, clenching the plastic handle of own travel case perhaps a bit too tightly. ❝ i will do my best not to... ah, disappoint. ❞

[in-yeon]

🌺 send this to ten blogs you think are wonderful 🌺

𝒐𝒐𝒄: awe, that's so sweet !! thank you so much !! i think you are honestly wonderful too, & so are your muses, your writing, & your overall ability to create just so many interesting things ♥ i simply adore interacting with you, even if i happen to be slower than a turtle. lmao

[in-yeon]

𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐄-𝐁𝐘𝐄𝐎𝐊 𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐄, unable to take his gaze off the young woman with a china doll's complexion & teary eyes, the saddest eyes he has ever seen.... all because of pokémon. if it were anyone else, sae-byeok would have simply turned around & just left, or perhaps offered some pitiful manner of ' motivational support ' but maeve belmont is neither a stranger, or a classmate. she is something greater. precious. something which the musician still does not quite dare to name yet, even as he budges from within the shadow of the doorway & approaches slowly with black oxfords tapping against the old wood.

❝ let me see, ❞ he murmurs, reaching out to gently pry the phone away from her trembling fingers. the electric screen light sweeping a pale glow across his chiselled face & dark hair, only for sae-byeok to take a seat right beside her 'pon the bed. it takes no more than a few seconds of idle scrolling to find a live auction. ❝ this one, 그치... ? ❞ the highest bid is currently $78,500 & still going strong, it seems. that's when he decides to take out his own phone from within the black overcoat & after just few more taps of a gloved thumb, the price jumps straight to $85,000 instead.

@xiaoue || cont.

[seisuji-deactivated20260531]

live footage of sei becoming a cup noodle holder :

BONUS:

he is also like: 𝒊 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒖𝒚 ( @in-yeon )

[seisuji-deactivated20260531]

𝐋'𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐋 𝐃𝐔 𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄, ever heard of it? It is the bow of his violin shaped soul; constantly gliding over the strings — off sound, for it is a cursed one. From tip to the frog, a soft lulling of malediction begins to play just to lull the gaze of the poor lamb towards what should not be seen, what should not be heard or worse yet, what should not be told, not even whispered. For the cost of breaking the rule is very dear. It is bone-scarring, eye devouring. And if you asked him, he would say the act of staring at what everyone else would avoid is an act of that: the void's call. Just as how waiting till its end and then nonchalantly finding a shelter at one of sleepless, fluorescent-lit shops is the echo of it. Ah yes, who cares about what brand of noodle cup is in his ice-cold hands at 2 am?

This guy does, apparently. This guy, of velvety grace and luminous perfection. Like one of the finest sculptors scattered about art galleries. Too perfect, perhaps that is why beyond those golden vermilions lurks the ghost of the same void, which so whimsically tugs at his soul strings. At the very least, beneath that velvety tone Sei can swear he has heard the same tune. But maybe, yeah definitely, it is just the taste of aftershock sizzling in his veins; circuiting the wires of his brain at this very moment. But nonetheless, the serene exterior of him finally cracks with a smile, which soon enough coats the blue hue of his eye as well.

        ❝ Oh? Is that so? 「 天使だよね、君って？」 ❞ Pitch black strands do an excellent job at hiding the missing blue even when his head dips to the side a little bit, to check if the Korean letters will magically whisper to him which of the cups they are talking about. Indeed, he has yet to master the language. Sort of embarrassing, isn't it? But at the very least, slowly, his nerves are calming. He is certainly more in control when one of his slender fingers points at the array of cup noodles. ❝ I definitely have no wish of dying tonight. So could you show me which one you are talking about, 天使 ? — please ? ❞

[in-yeon]

𝐒𝐀𝐄-𝐁𝐘𝐄𝐎𝐊 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍, still staring at him with that flamboyant expression, pleasant, bemused, charming: the oriental eyes sharp & soft lips curled into a sultry smile. it's a look for the camera, for those billboards which seize the city streets. it's a look to win any audience over. practiced. immaculate. utterly relentless in its own unsuspecting way. ❝ eo? you're... japanese? ❞ giving a curious head tilt of his own, sae-byeok's smile widens at corners. ❝ かわいい. ~ ❞ is this perhaps for the boy, or what he said? god knows. leaving others speechless is a craft only good musicians know how to pull off & when. ❝ like i said... ❞ trailing off, the korean man slowly pushes away from the cupboard to glance at the rows of cup noodles instead.

❝ this one is ' 오뚜기 진컵라면, ' a cup ramen with much milder flavour. light & easy on the stomach, ❞ he plucks it off the shelf & then as nonchalantly as one may, thrusts it into sei's arms. ❝ ' 농심 신라면 컵, ' another good one. always good to have for emergency, or when you just can't sleep. ❞ so he picks not one, not two, but three of those & without even sparing a glance adds all three into the pile. ❝ ah, last but not least, ' 팔도 펀앤얌 치킨 누들. ' the spicy chicken with cream... my favourite. ❞ sae-byeok admits with a chuckle, retrieving a pair. the vermillion eyes glaze over plastic covers briefly before falling right back on sei, glimmering like blood-red diamonds underneath the pale light. he also adds them into his arms, only to gesture for the boy to follow.

❝ ja, 가자... ~ ❞ slowly walking past as if he didn't just impose a whole bunch of noodles, the korean man approaches the counter & its clerk, soon to take out his wallet from within the inner pocket of his suit, shooting but a single glance at sei that silently states: i'm paying. which is not even a question.

[hikikomoriheadphonegirl]

[in-yeon]

𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊𝐒, the old chuwonjae ( the old hall of the autumn field ) was shrouded in complete mystery. nobody could properly explain what it is that they think they heard or saw, especially at night when the entire mansion should have been asleep ── should have ── but the reports spoke different. it begun with simple things, like strange creaking noises coming from within the attic or old books appearing rearranged in the library. then it escalated, for the maids swore that certain items, such as silverware, disappeared from inside the cupboards as if by magic & that they found some of the windows left wide open in empty rooms.

sae-byeok tightened the security as a response, but when family portraits disappeared, he sacked at least 3 maids even as they cried & begged him to reconsider. he didn't. he only kept tightening his grip until the little thieving mouse finally made an appearance & got herself caught, leaving a rather sour taste 'pon the young master's tongue. ❝ you've cost me quite a bit, you know... ❞ speaking in a low, husky voice, sae-byeok stands before the kneeling girl with a cigarette in hand, his pale, chiselled features illuminated by the dim light of the opulent study room. ❝ the family silverware, vintage books, wine, colognes, jewellery, ❞ he nonchalantly counts all the while looking at the smouldering end, ❝ any of those, i can forgive. but the portraits? from my childhood? cham-na... ❞

a slow, deep drag of the cigarette is given, & then an equally slow exhale as sae-byeok's vermillion eyes suddenly glance over at the girl whose wrists are bound behind her back. ❝ i think we're going to have a problem, agassi. ❞

@ashendivinity || ( meixiang. )

[tigermcth]

⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄𝐃 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄

⠀⠀ evening had settled over seoul with a cool breeze, heralding the start of je-oh's personal hellscape. tonight, it began in a bar called 참소주 (cham-soju), a modest establishment wedged between a weary-looking pojangmacha and a place peddling cheap appliances. outside, the bar wore the stains of the city’s exhaust; the entryway sagged with quiet fatigue, its chipped red-pine door set beneath a rectangular sign whose black letters had long since faded with age. it a was a fitting announcement for one that had seen better days, struggling, like most older bars, against the draw of newer, glossier spots nearby. yet, despite the lonely exterior and lack of booming business, inside a handful of regulars defied the bar's decline. clattering glasses and overlapping conversations rose as drinkers shook off the weight of the day. the place carried just enough life to keep its lights burning, if not its spirit.

⠀⠀ tucked beside a narrow hallway that slipped away toward the restrooms and back office, je-oh kept to himself. a bottle of soju rested at his elbow, untouched, while he scratched at a napkin with a pencil he had pilfered from the bar. beneath the sharp graphite, a stick figure appeared, its tiny limbs soon engulfed by roughly detailed flames. whether the stick figure was him, burning in a fiery boredom, or ( a certain ) someone who’d forced him along on this venture, the interpretation was anyone’s guess.

⠀⠀ jong-seok had called it a quick ‘ pit stop ’ to ink a new debtor, but je-oh knew better than to believe him. in the world of loan sharks, a ‘ few minutes ’ rarely meant just that; the art of the deal could stretch endlessly. while je-oh hadn’t a clue who was currently being exploited back in the office, the specifics hardly mattered. understood the system for securing a signature, the practiced dance of persuasive charm and offhanded menace. if it was taking this long, the outcome, however, seemed inevitable.

⠀⠀ the impulse to fire off a provoking ‘ .ᐣ ’ text flickered across his mind but quickly died. interrupting a delicate process was the fastest way to sour jong-seok’s mood, & the night was still far too young for that.

⠀⠀ then, movement brushed je-oh’s periphery, pulling him back to his surroundings before something dropped onto the seat besides him with a resonant thud. annoyance sparked— company was the last thing he wanted —so he turned, a sharp retort poised on his tongue, only for it to wither as his gaze set upon the violin case resting there. his attention lifted to its owner: a man standing close by, seemingly unaware of je-oh’s presence altogether. what he noticed next was the impeccably tailored suit the other wore. . . the kind reserved for students at yonsei or korea university. that contrast was impossible to miss; wealth stitched into every line of fabric, a shadowed expression carved into features, all set against the shabby backdrop.

⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀( 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 )

⠀⠀ ❝ 길을 잃으신 모양이네요, ❞ he said, loud enough to cut through the bar’s steady buzz. je-oh shifted, elbows covering his napkin sketch, hands clasped under his chin. eyes dropped to the unfortunate stains marring the man’s shirt, his lips twitching in sympathy. ❝ 소다수면 잘 빠지던데. ❞ with a loose gesture towards the bar, he rose out of his seat. ❝ 내가 바 뒤에서 좀 가져올까 .ᐣ ❞

@in-yeon

[in-yeon]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐑𝐔𝐒𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐅𝐀𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐂 𝐒𝐔𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐋𝐘 𝐂𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐀𝐓 𝐉𝐄-𝐎𝐇'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 & 𝐒𝐀𝐄-𝐁𝐘𝐄𝐎𝐊 𝐒𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐒 𝐀 𝐆𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄, first in mild confusion, then astonishment. a cup of soda... of course! how could he forget? the bubbles & slight acidity in soda water should help lift some pigments from the fabric before they set, but he has to be quick. ❝ 네, 부탁드립니다! ❞ a small ray of hope lights up the vermillion eyes as the korean man smiles & turns in place, releasing his already loosened tie in order to bow ever so slightly. ❝ 당신은 천사 같아요.. ❞

reaching for the violin case just then, he takes hold of its strap before hoisting over the broad shoulder with practiced ease, only to smile a little wider when je-oh raises & makes his way over to the bar. sae-byeok follows him like a fox in a heartbeat, the whole crowd gradually fading into one seamless background where only the two of them seem to exist & somewhere between waves of music & an occasional brush of a shoulder, he cannot help but to let own eyes wander ── trailing down full length of that slender body ── finally taking a good look at the supposed angel.

pretty, is sae-byeok's first thought. the skin on the back of his neck is smooth & pale, almost translucent, framed by tresses of black hair which shine like polished onyx underneath the fluorescent lights. then lower is his waist, delightfully slim, hourglass-shaped, his hips supple & round in all the right places as they move with a captivating rhythm of their own. sae-byeok feels his throat go dry, focused perhaps a bit too much on that specific area. with some effort he forces himself to glance higher & luckily just in time too, because they are already at the bar.

it's quite stunning how quickly sae-byeok can bring back his smile & make it appear completely natural, as if he wasn't just checking out je-oh's behind like some lecherous beast. ❝ 내가 낼게요. ❞ he reaches for the university jacket, only for the long fingers to pause right above own chest. shit. the jacket. mentally scolding himself for getting so distracted sae-byeok chuckles & quickly adds in english, ❝ ah.. one moment. ❞ in a smooth turn, he walks back over to the seats on the other end & reaches for the abandoned top, but just as he does, a sudden thump rattles the nearby door, followed a muffled groan that makes the korean man freeze in place.

he glances at it subtly, watching the old wood rattle again as someone gets brutally pummelled on the other side. his vermillion eyes sharpen at the sight but, that's about it. no sudden gestures, no visible panic. the university jacket is retrieved as per normal & from inside the wallet, all the while sae-byeok returns back to je-oh. ❝ 활기찬 밤이네, huh? ❞

[mangadore]

[tenderlypressed]

[in-yeon]

❤️ RED HEART — what are three of your oc's positive traits?

🤍 WHITE HEART — what are three of your oc's neutral/questionable traits?

💔 BROKEN HEART — what are three of your oc's negative traits?

𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐂𝐒 ⵑ

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄:

committed. sae-byeok is the kind of person who never wavers once he sets his mind on something, let it be self-improvement, life-goals, work, or a relationship. he will always follow through any given promise, & demonstrate his reliability through actions rather than just words. you can rely on him virtually for anything.

thoughtful. whenever talking to someone, sae-byeok is careful with the way he sounds & phrases himself, not only taking the other person's feelings into consideration but also their overall circumstance & mood. the same goes for gifts of any kind. sae-byeok never offers something on a whim, especially to those he cherishes. whereas you may think he is just sharing a little red sweet with you, he might actually be gouging for your reaction.

sympathetic. perhaps the most disliked trait in him by those dwelling in elite circles. for all his picture-perfect smiles & composure, seeing someone suffer is... painful. he may have been brought up in a world reeking of wealth, vanity, & power, yet he almost always refuses to turn his cheek the other way whenever someone is deeply troubled or in dire need. the vultures call it a weakness which will become his downfall one day, & perhaps, it shall, but sae-byeok much rather go down with a clean conscience than one of a bastard.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐔𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐋:

analytical. he constantly analyses both himself & the people around him, scrutinizing personal actions & motivations as much as he observes those of others. sae-byeok notices the overall inconsistencies, strengths, & weaknesses, using them to adjust how he interacts & anticipate outcomes. this self-awareness makes him precise & disciplined, but it also leaves him overthinking decisions, sometimes hesitant to act.

independent. sae-byeok relies on his own judgment, rarely waiting for approval or guidance from others. socially, he is self-sufficient, able to entertain himself & pursue own personal interests without needing constant companionship or validation. professionally, he tends to handle things on his own, seeking advice only when absolutely necessary, & he is pretty consistent in following through on commitments without supervision. so much so, should someone else go ahead & take the reigns, sae-byeok may become bewildered if not downright flustered. ( lol )

perfectionist. from the way he stands, the way he dresses, to the way he speaks & smiles, everything is perfectly orchestrated. no different than korean movie actors or singers, sae-byeok is expected to deliver a certain image & so he does, all the way down to his signature. he's been doing it for so long that it feels almost completely natural most days, but much like any perfectionist, even a slightest error can sour the mood. he needs to do things in order, on time, & just the way he likes it, otherwise you'll have one very grumpy sae-byok.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄:

dishonest. sae-byeok life is defined by his compulsive lying. he lies about small everyday things, like being late because of traffic when he actually overslept & escalates to bigger deceptions, such as own sexuality & the reason for avoiding marriage with prestigious women. even when caught red-handed, he rarely admits to the truth before quickly spinning another story to cover up his previous one. sae-byeok's habit has made it difficult for him to stop, as if telling the truth feels unnatural or threatening in some way. the lies give him a certain sense of privacy & control, but like a double-edged sword, they also steadily isolate him. sae-byeok struggles to be open & hence, truly himself.

ruthless. while he always presents himself to be polite & unassuming, a man who listens more than he speaks & offers help without asking for much ( if anything ) in return, it all changes once he grows tired of maintaining the prince-like façade. his patience vanishes, replaced by a cold, calculating ruthlessness. in those rare moments sae-byeok becomes unapologetically blunt, dismissing anyone he deems incompetent or redundant with sharp words & a piercing stare. his decisions also become more harsh & merciless, driven purely by efficiency & self-interest, revealing a side of him that few see & fewer can confront.

jealous. sae-byeok watches others move through life with a freedom he feels he can never have, & the resentment builds inside him until it shapes every thought. when someone he admires shows attention or affection to another, that jealousy turns sharp & possessive, making him suspicious & controlling without even realizing it. he critiques himself quietly & feels a constant tension between wanting closeness & resenting the very people who have what he desires. his jealousy drives him to sometimes act impulsively, sometimes even sabotaging situations or relationships just to reclaim that sense of control.

[shoujo-dump]

Museru Kurai no Ai o Ageru

[in-yeon]

🧡 ORANGE HEART / sorry for the spam but I want to know!

𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐂𝐒 ⵑ

does your oc tend to prioritize family or friends?

it all comes down to the level of his bond & what manner of priority we are talking about. after all, sae-byeok is friendly with many people, but not many people can be considered a ' friend. ' regardless of the ongoing monopoly between him & his parents, sae-byeok is still respectful of their hard work & everything which they have given him ── including means of personal space ── so i'm more inclined to say family, unless you really are genuinely close to him. if so, then things change.

just imagine having a terrible day & he suddenly calls you out of nowhere despite the fact that he said he would be very busy that day, or him straight-up leaving in a middle of dinner / business meeting just to run after you in the pouring rain. no umbrella, no even a jacket. just him getting completely soaked to catch you & draw back into own arms, not even caring what other people may think. you either have all of him as a friend, or merely a mask. there's never any real ' in-between. ' if your bond is anywhere near like that, then he'll choose to say friend in a heartbeat.