BHB 127

Feeling the gaze of people around them, the other person forcibly pulled him down. Yeowon continued to look at him with a surprised face.

“Shh.”

Covering his mouth with his hand and pressing close, he glanced quickly at the reporters by the entrance. Crouched in his arms, Yeowon also slightly raised his head to look in the reporters’ direction. Fortunately, no one seemed interested in them. 

Finally relieved, Yeowon asked quietly with a distorted expression, “Why are you here?”

It was Lee Taegang, who should still have been in his hospital bed. Moreover, he wasn’t wearing hospital clothes but the outfit he had on when he was injured, along with a cap pulled low that he must have gotten from somewhere. Both of them were similarly bundled up.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

He nodded toward the entrance as he spoke, and Yeowon retorted with displeasure.

“You still have days left before discharge.”

“I’ve been fine for a while. Those people are just trying to make money.”

“Hey. You weren’t just slightly injured.”

“If you’re worried, you should have stayed with me all day.” Lee Taegang lightly tapped the brim of Yeowon’s cap and smiled faintly. While he was serious, he seemed completely relaxed. “Give me the car keys.”

When he held out his hand, Yeowon spoke with a still displeased face, “No matter what, you still…”

“I really appreciate your concern, but…”

“…”

“If we stay here, we might get caught soon.”

Since he was right, Yeowon hesitated but finally handed over the car keys. He naturally got into the driver’s seat, and Yeowon also got into the passenger seat, looking at the reporters standing around like they were wasting their time.

“Did you see the news?”

When he asked Lee Taegang as he started the engine and pressed the pedal, he shook his head.

“Taejoo contacted me at dawn. Said articles and broadcasts would be coming out.”

“…I guess there are some things even your father can’t stop?”

“The situation is too big.”

“So that’s why they wanted to send you away quickly.”

“They probably considered disowning me too.”

“Don’t tell me they were documenting each of your problematic behaviors for that purpose?” He didn’t bother to answer what seemed like an obvious question. But Yeowon, appalled, continued with an irritated expression, “So they could later claim you were beyond help if those issues came up?”

To assert their legitimacy that way? Yeowon found it exhausting how these people always considered their outrageous behavior normal.

Instead of answering, Lee Taegang snorted and shrugged his shoulders. It was as if he was saying he didn’t care either way.

“Let’s end this boring conversation here.”

The car slowly stopped as the light turned red. Only then did Lee Taegang turn his head toward the passenger seat.

“…You’re wearing my clothes.”

His examining gaze had seemed strange, but that was apparently what he wanted to say. His voice was quite pleased.

“Ah, I was in a rush when I left.” Yeowon answered casually, looking down at the clothes that were one size too big. 

At that moment, he heard the sound of a seat belt unbuckling, and his face suddenly approached his chest. With his head tilted at an angle, half of his face was visible under the cap.

“What are you doing…”

“You smell like me.” Taegang whispered softly after tracing his neck area with his nose. 

Heat rushed to his neck and ears from his voice tickling his ear. “W-what… what smell?”

“Even the shampoo is the one I use.”

“…Well, that’s because I’m staying at your place now.”

“Exactly.”

“…”

“And I love it.”

After casually throwing out those embarrassing words, he started moving the car again. Yeowon’s face, which had been twisted with worry and concern until just now, was completely dumbfounded.

“What do you mean you love it…”

Han Yeowon exhaled in surprise and turned his head toward the window. Resting his elbow on the window sill and covering his mouth, he could see his reflection in the window. A strange version of himself, extremely embarrassed.

Ashamed of how he looked, Yeowon hurriedly changed the subject, “…So where are we going now?”

“The place where we’ll stay.”

“Suddenly?”

Lee Taegang simply smiled faintly and turned the steering wheel instead of answering. After driving for quite a while down Yongsan Boulevard, he stopped at what appeared to be a newly constructed low-rise apartment building. Moving confidently into the underground parking garage, he handed the car over to an employee for valet parking and pulled Yeowon, who was standing with a bewildered face, by the hand. His profile, unusually flushed with excitement, caught Yeowon’s eye.

He seemed uncharacteristically excited… He kept noticing new sides of him. Making his heart feel strange over and over again.

The place he led him to was in front of a door on the top floor. The apartment was a residential space with a system where only one household could live on each floor. It was a massive home where a family could settle down, not just a simple luxury villa like where Yeowon and he had lived before.

Lee Taegang opened the door with a key card and pulled him inside, his face still dumbfounded. A long passage connecting the entrance and the interior came into view. The ceiling was higher than in ordinary living spaces, and the smell of something new pricked his nose.

“Hey, what is this?”

Though he asked in confusion, Lee Taegang gripped his hand more firmly and strode down the hallway leading to the living room. Then a magnificent living room connected to the dining room appeared, and at the end of the living room, a circular staircase leading to the second floor was visible. Most spectacular of all was the glass window occupying an entire wall of the living room. The road lined with cars and the Han River cutting through Seoul spread out before his eyes.

“…This is amazing.”

Yeowon stared, momentarily losing himself at the sight more impressive than any hotel view. The wide-open scenery made him feel refreshed to his core.

“Drinking while watching the night view would be killer.”

“Having sex while watching the night view would be insane too.”

Yeowon’s expression, which had been straight, crumpled in an instant at Lee Taegang’s response, which directly applied his exclamation.

“Did you have to say that…”

“I got this place planning for us to move in together later.” Lee Taegang stood next to Yeowon’s shoulder and looked beyond the window. His face, visible beneath the cap, momentarily sank as if lost in thought.

“…When did you even think about living together?”

“Every day.”

“…”

“Every time.”

“…”

“Always.”

The meaning was that he had thought about living with him every day, every time, always. Yeowon, who had been unaware of these every day, every time, and always, smoothed his lips and calmed his churning insides.

“But I was going to sell it to Taejoo since I thought I wouldn’t need it, but I’m glad I didn’t.” Lee Taegang finally smiled faintly and slightly turned his head to look down at Yeowon. 

As his rather gentle gaze settled on him, Yeowon’s heart pounded. Feeling flustered by his rapidly accelerating heartbeat, Yeowon turned his head away to avoid his gaze.

“…It’s nice.”

As he awkwardly looked around at other places to change the subject, Lee Taegang’s arms entangled him from behind. He hugged Yeowon with arms that came down over his shoulders and rested his chin on top of his head.

“What are you doing?”

It was a posture only someone taller than him could manage.

“Do you like it?” He asked somewhat playfully while squeezing him more tightly. Then he slowly lowered his face to Yeowon’s shoulder and pressed close. 

Yeowon swallowed hard at the proximity, their cheeks touching.

“…Um, well… I-it’s nice, but it seems too big… for just the two of us.” Yeowon tried to answer as normally as possible, but his words kept breaking off.

“You like big things.”

“…”

“Whatever is good, comfortable, and big.” Lee Taegang recited his preferences one by one. He knew them all so well, he had nothing to say.

He tried to stay close like this whenever he had the chance. Like a child being affectionate, he would constantly pull him into his arms or press against him or rub his face so close that his breathing was completely audible.

“Okay, I get it, so… step back a bit.”

Every time he did this, Yeowon felt like he was going crazy, thinking his heart wouldn’t survive intact. In reality, this close proximity had always been normal when they were friends. But perhaps because he was now conscious of it, his breathing and voice felt so viscous it was unfamiliar. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the other person’s trembling felt at such close range, or because he clearly recognized that his feelings toward him were now so different from before.

Yeowon awkwardly pushed him away and needlessly rubbed his heated neck vigorously. 

Lee Taegang, pushed away, briefly looked down at his empty hands and clenched and unclenched his fists several times. Then he watched Yeowon looking around at other places and followed his steps.

“But we only have a few days left in Korea anyway, wouldn’t it be a waste to just leave it like this?”

After looking around all the rooms, Yeowon asked quite seriously, and Lee Taegang, who had been quietly following behind, tilted his head and stroked his chin.

“If you like it, we can just stay here.”

“…What?”

“I told you. There’s no need to leave. Do what you want to do.”

“…If we stay in Korea, you’ll…”

“No. I’m asking what you want to do.”

“…”

“I’m not important.”

“…”

“What you want is important to me.”

He could see his eyes watching him through the shadowed space under the brim of his cap. His stubborn demeanor was evident. Though he had clearly said it was fine, the fact that he kept asking made his thoughts obvious. It was a problem when you knew someone too well.

To be truly honest, going abroad wasn’t really something he was happy about. He wasn’t confident about establishing roots in a place with no connections and filled with unfamiliar languages. But despite his reluctance, he had decided to accept it willingly. Because now he was prepared to follow Lee Taegang.

“…Persistent guy.”

Nevertheless, the fact that he had even found a home and kept repeating the question meant that Lee Taegang had read him well enough.

“So what do you want to do?”

“The discussion is already over.”

“What?”

Seeing Yeowon’s reaction, Lee Taegang continued calmly, “I’ve already compromised on the condition of staying in Korea.”

Then he headed to where the liquor display was and pulled out the brandy that Yeowon liked best.

“No way.” Yeowon followed him with a serious face.

“I agreed to help with what that man is doing, obediently.”

“What?”

“And to get rid of all the evidence I have.”