TIN 17

It wasn’t long after that the child had brought me to the villa. The child, who had been taking care of my clothes and food and staying by my side this whole time, gradually showed a more familiar side. One of those things was occasionally confiding their innermost thoughts to me.

‘I don’t actually live here.’

The child said they had come to the seaside for recuperation. This grand mansion was just a vacation home, and they would return home once they had fully recovered. That was the reason why they would sometimes gaze longingly at the vast sea before quickly turning their eyes away.

What could possibly be ailing them? At first, I was curious about such matters. But the child’s face was so full of vitality that it didn’t seem like they were stricken by any illnesses at all. Their eyes shone brightly, and their pale cheeks had a rosy glow. A random passerby would have thought I was the one who was ill, not them.

‘Where did you come from, brother?’

The child was at that age where they had a better grasp of the language. It was amusing how they would call out to Logan, who was constantly following them around, but refer to me, a peer just a little taller, as ‘brother.’  The child, who usually spoke in a haughty and arrogant manner, now asked me this question with such innocent eyes.

‘Don’t you want to go back?’

I couldn’t quite recall how I responded then. I might’ve simply remained silent, lips completely sealed. Perhaps the child wasn’t even bothered by my lack of response, as they soon whispered in an unusual, hushed tone.

‘This is a secret…but I actually don’t want to go back.’

It was almost like a confession of a secret. Or perhaps the words were due to a touch of sullenness in their character. I had always thought the child did as they pleased, but it seemed even they had encountered situations where they had to do things they disliked.

‘Home is just so boring.’

Around that time, the child’s eyes had a distinct golden hue. I remember being fascinated by it, not realizing it was a sign of being a dominant Alpha. The intensifying golden color was quite captivating, even to my young eyes.

‘But…I think it would be fun with you around.’

It wasn’t hard to discern the meaning behind that whispered remark. It was nearly half a year later when the child took me inland. They didn’t bother to ask if I wanted to come along, nor did they insist that I must go with them. They simply grabbed my hand tightly, like gathering their belongings, and headed in the direction of their family home.

‘If you get scared at night, tell me.’

I wasn’t sure if I should be grateful that they didn’t ask where I would be staying, but instead worried about my sleep. Or should I find it shameless that they slept in my bed every night even though I was brave enough to sleep alone?

‘…Can’t you sleep?’

When the sleepless nights became frequent, the child asked me with a troubled expression on their face. Somehow, they knew I was struggling to adapt to the new environment, and their small hands would firmly hold mine.

‘Do you want to go back?’

Perhaps it was a mistake that I couldn’t bring myself to shake my head. Before I could find a way to correct their assumption that I wanted to go back, the child hit the mark with just one question.

‘Do you miss the sea?’

‘…’

I couldn’t deny it. While I didn’t miss much else, the vast open scenery was what I longed for. This place, no matter which way I looked, was all just so oppressive—it was vastly different from the environment I was familiar with.

‘Okay, I’ll show you.’

The child stared at me intently, then nodded his head as if they had decided something.

Sadly, I never found out what that decision was, for it wasn’t long before I fled the child’s home on my own.

That was the last memory I had of the child.

***

It had been a few days since Joo Do-hwa brought me here. After the initial commotion on the first day, the days had been surprisingly peaceful and quiet. Joo Do-hwa didn’t touch me at all, and there were no particular incidents in the mansion. Occasionally, when guests visited, I was allowed to go up to my room and spend time alone there.

I had breakfast with Joo Do-hwa, but I wasn’t with him all day long. After meals, Joo Do-hwa would disappear somewhere, and he would only seek me out whenever he felt like it.

In the evenings, Henry would come and apply medication to my wounds, but the problem was that I would instinctively feel on guard whenever he got close.

“Well done.”

That gun he had given me back then was probably still tucked into his waist. The fact that he carried it even during our peaceful breakfast meant that he always had it on him. Although Joo Do-hwa had used it as his own, the main owner of the gun was likely Henry.

Of course, my wariness didn’t change anything, so Henry simply applied the medication and left, pretending not to notice my unease. I thought it was all an act because his touch had become more cautious. It wasn’t out of kindness, but rather because he likely didn’t want the treatment time to be prolonged if I became uncomfortable.

Well, it wasn’t without its benefits. Thanks to that, the pain from Henry’s treatment wasn’t as severe as it was on the first day.

Perhaps as a result of the treatment, my complexion had visibly improved day by day. The bruises still needed some more time to fully heal, but the wounds and swelling had subsided significantly. Thanks to the boss’s well-aimed blows, it looked like I wouldn’t even be left with any scars.

“…”

And so, today too, I was blankly waiting for Joo Do-hwa as soon as I woke up. Lying in bed made my limbs itch, so I settled on the windowsill, holding the cube Joo Do-hwa had brought me in my hands. By the time the day was fully bright, the cube had already been solved on all sides.

Joo Do-hwa had brought various items to my room, perhaps to keep me from getting bored—from this cube to coloring books and small puzzles. He even had storybooks, and said he would read them to me if I wanted.

The funny thing was that all the items he brought were things from my childhood that I used to play with as a child. In fact, the storybooks he brought were mostly the ones he had read to me when I was young. It was clear that he still thought I couldn’t read.

“…The weather is nice.”

I rolled the cube in my hands as I turned my gaze up to the sky. It had been a while since I had seen such an expansive view. I had become weary of looking through the small window, but seeing this boundless landscape was a rare treat. The bright blue sky with the solitary sun floating above started to remind me of someone.

“This place hasn’t changed at all.”

I could see the gardener up on a ladder, trimming the branches with large shears. Apart from the mysterious seascape that had appeared out of nowhere, there was no other visible change to the mansion. Of course, the internal situation was a different matter.

I couldn’t remember all the staff, but a quick glance showed that there wasn’t a single familiar face, aside from Henry. Since they were all young, they likely weren’t employees from back then.

Maybe they had done a complete overhaul and had replaced all the staff.

Well, that might be a good thing. If any of them had tried to awkwardly claim they had known me, I might have crossed an unnamed river, just like the boss of that pharmaceutical company. In that case, it was better to just turn a blind eye and pretend I knew nothing.

“What are you doing there?”

As I was considering whether to mix the cube again, a familiar voice came from behind. Turning around, I saw Joo Do-hwa standing at the door.

“Trying to jump?”

Joo Do-hwa glanced at me sitting on the windowsill and curled his lips slightly. If I answered affirmatively, he might just say, “Go ahead and try it.” But of course, I had no such intention, so I denied his statement and stepped down from the windowsill.

“No, I was just looking around.”

This would eventually be a house I would leave, but not in that way. Furthermore, with the odd height of the floors, jumping out would likely end badly—too high to escape, yet too low to be fatal, making it a perfect place to imprison someone.

“Did you come to call me?”

But why did he come here himself? Normally, he would have one of the staff come and summon me, yet today he had come up in person, dressed casually instead of his usual half-unbuttoned suit.

“Well…I had some business here.”

Joo Do-hwa leaned against the doorframe, stretching his lips into a long smile. When he stood still, his usually sharp gaze appeared languid and relaxed, creating a loose aura.

I had noticed these past few days that he had grown up quite a bit. His features were similar, but with the baby fat gone, his face had become much more refined. His golden eyes were even more vivid than before, and his long lashes fluttered prettily like a butterfly’s wings every time he blinked.

‘Big brother.’

Back then, his pronunciation had been clumsy. But now, his voice had matured into a definitive male timbre. His slow, soft-spoken tone was almost drowsy as if his words were caressing my ear with feathers.

“Would you like to go outside?”

Ah, yes, like this.

“Don’t act like a house cat. Go for a walk at least. Anyone would think you’re being kept locked up this whole time.”

Wasn’t that exactly what was happening? Henry had clearly told me not to wander around.

“Am I allowed to go outside?”

“As long as it’s just beyond the front gate.”

I asked with some hope, but Joo Do-hwa firmly confirmed the boundaries. His kind tone stood in stark contrast to his strictness.

“We can’t have you getting lost, can we?”