LM 71

The other man’s words were right on target. Indeed, nothing could be hidden from Woo Hyunse. Kwon Siyul smiled awkwardly, then lowered his heels and hugged Woo Hyunse’s waist. He looked up, pressing his cheek against Woo Hyunse’s back until the shirt wrinkled.

“Hyung. Can I go out today? Without a bodyguard this time?”

“No.”

It was a sharp rejection. Kwon Siyul became dejected for a moment there, but quickly gathered himself and tried again.

“I really need to go. It was a prior engagement.”

“Only if you have a bodyguard.”

“Ah, come on, it’s not right to have a bodyguard when meeting a friend. I’m not some rich young master. How would I explain it to my friend?”

“Mr. Kwon Siyul, it seems you have forgotten your situation. Who was in danger again?”

His lips puffed out in a pout. Kwon Siyul tried to remove his arms from Woo Hyunse’s waist. Woo Hyunse grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward. Kwon Siyul buried his nose in Woo Hyunse’s back. Woo Hyunse chuckled softly. The vibration of his laughter spread through Kwon Siyul’s cheeks and nose.

“Are you that disappointed?”

“…Yes.”

It was a sulky response. Woo Hyunse turned around. He embraced Kwon Siyul face-to-face and swayed him slowly from side to side as if soothing a child.

“Then I’ll tell them to watch from a distance. Not having anyone is too dangerous. I’ll tell them not to interfere, so you’ll have to compromise on that.”

Woo Hyunse took a step back. It wasn’t quite giving in, but he had made at least a minimal effort to compromise. Although it was only half of the freedom he wanted, Kwon Siyul had to be satisfied with what he got. He hugged Woo Hyunse tightly and rested his chin on his chest, looking up.

“Thank you, hyung.”

Woo Hyunse kissed various spots on Kwon Siyul’s brightly smiling face. As Kwon Siyul was happily receiving the kisses, he suddenly froze at an unexpected question, though his smile remained on his face.

“So, who’s this friend? It can’t be Kwon Yuwon.”

He could have easily said it was Woo Taeju, but for some reason, he was reluctant to reveal his existence. Above all, the circumstances of their meeting were problematic. They had met intending to spend a night at a motel. Given that he had claimed to have experience, and had confessed to trying to sleep with someone else before his first night with Woo Hyunse, what was there to hide?

“A friend from the orphanage.”

He lied shamelessly without changing his expression. His heart was pounding in his chest, afraid of being caught out on a lie, but fortunately, Woo Hyunse let the matter pass without further questioning.

Before leaving through the front door, Woo Hyunse earnestly asked Kwon Siyul to send a text message every time he changed locations. It seemed he wasn’t fully reassured even with a bodyguard assigned. Kwon Siyul, excited just by the thought of going out, nodded vigorously in agreement and showered Woo Hyunse with kisses.

“Why are you making it so hard for me to leave?”

“Would you take a day off if I asked?”

“I might consider it if Mr. Kwon Siyul cancels his appointment.”

If it weren’t for the prior engagement, he would have accepted on the spot. Woo Hyunse taking a day off was certainly worth skipping the appointment. Kwon Siyul hesitated for a moment, but then imagined a tearful Woo Taeju and shook his head.

“No, it’s okay. You’re the CEO. How can you not go to work? Hurry and go. You’ll be late.”

“How cold.”

He didn’t want to let him go either. But fearing that Woo Hyunse would dislike it if he acted too childishly, Kwon Siyul suppressed his desire to whine.

Looking at Woo Hyunse’s back, he already felt regretful. Kwon Siyul hesitated, then called out, “Hyung.” Woo Hyunse turned around.

Kwon Siyul bit down on his lower lip, then released it, hesitating for a long time. He didn’t prolong his deliberation. The words that had risen from his stomach to his chest, to his throat, past his Adam’s apple, and to the tip of his tongue were heavy. Feeling like his insides would burn red-hot if he swallowed those words, Kwon Siyul blurted out without thinking, “I like you.”

Woo Hyunse paused. His lips, which had been loosely curved upward, settled into a straight line. As if he never expected Kwon Siyul to say such a thing, Woo Hyunse, who had always been composed no matter what he heard, stared at Kwon Siyul without even blinking.

“I really like you.”

Saying ‘I love you’ was still too difficult. Kwon Siyul started with ‘I like you.’ It was quite a passionate confession, yet Woo Hyunse stood frozen in place like a wooden statue. Wondering if it was too burdensome, and feeling a belated wave of embarrassment, Kwon Siyul scratched the back of his head. He was about to wave his hand, saying it was just a passing remark, nothing to take seriously.

The half-open front door closed with a thud. Woo Hyunse stepped forward and cupped Kwon Siyul’s cheeks in his palms. Their lips were close enough to touch.

“Again.”

“Pardon?”

“Say it again.”

The whispering voice sounded parched. His usually calm pheromones rippled like wind-swept waves. It really seemed as if he would devour Kwon Siyul. It wasn’t mere lust. It was a darker, fiercer torrent.

“I like you.”

“Once more.”

“I like you, hyung…”

Kwon Siyul repeated like a parrot. He had no idea how to make his sincerity reach Woo Hyunse. Even as he spoke, his chest felt tight. The words “I like you” seemed too small a vessel to contain his feelings.

I like you.

I like you so much, hyung.

I like you so much it sometimes takes my breath away.

Kwon Siyul repeated only the blunt phrase “I like you” among countless facial expressions. Woo Hyunse covered Kwon Siyul’s rounded lips with his own. Though they had kissed countless times before, the gently placed lips felt as cautious as if it were their first time.

It felt like an answer. Without needing words, Kwon Siyul understood. The sweet and gentle pheromones enveloping him like air, the feather-light touch of lips—these were the answers Kwon Siyul had wanted.

In the end, Woo Hyunse took a half day off. Not wanting to waste time moving elsewhere, they consummated right in the entryway. With his back against the door and one leg hooked over Woo Hyunse’s arm, Kwon Siyul bit his wrist like a gag to keep from making noise that might leak to the outside world.

Woo Hyunse urgently removed that hand. Instead, he covered Kwon Siyul’s mouth himself, stifling both his voice and breath. Kwon Siyul clung tightly to him, returning the kisses, suppressing his worry that embarrassing moans and cries might echo beyond the door. Though they had the whole floor to themselves, someone in the elevator might hear them.

Only after his body had turned to jelly did Kwon Siyul separate from Woo Hyunse. Woo Hyunse embraced Kwon Siyul, who had just collapsed to the ground, and kissed all over his body. He asked about taking the day off three times and said he didn’t want to leave six times. Kwon Siyul also didn’t want to let Woo Hyunse go, but he couldn’t interfere with work just to satisfy his own selfish desires.

Intending to rest briefly in bed, he ended up falling asleep. He barely woke up as the appointment time neared. In the past, he would have been out until the next day, but Woo Hyunse’s coaxing and nourishing medicine had paid off.

There was also a missed call from Woo Taeju. Kwon Siyul hurriedly washed up, got ready, and dashed out of the house. But he was taken aback by the hulking figure that appeared as soon as he opened the front door.

“I’ll escort you, sir.”

“I’ll just take the bus.”

“I was told not to let you go alone.”

No matter how much Kwon Siyul insisted that he could go alone, the other party was as unyielding as a brick wall. It might have been better to yell at an actual wall.

“He said he’d have you watch me from afar…”

Kwon Siyul muttered dejectedly, wondering if those had been empty words to placate him.

“I won’t interfere while you’re with your friend.”

The man stood guard, seemingly unwilling to budge an inch until Kwon Siyul accepted. Left with no other choice, Kwon Siyul got into the car the man was driving. He shook off the feeling of being under surveillance, telling himself that at least he was saving bus fare and getting to the meeting place comfortably.

True to his word, the man dropped Kwon Siyul off and disappeared somewhere. He hadn’t completely vanished—if one looked carefully, he could be seen standing not too far from Kwon Siyul. Although it felt uncomfortable having someone tailing him, as Woo Hyunse had said, Kwon Siyul himself was in danger, so it couldn’t be helped.

“Siyul hyung!”

Woo Taeju waved his hand high. Though Kwon Siyul hadn’t thought much of it when seeing him regularly at the bar, he was glad to see him after so long. Kwon Siyul raised his arm and waved back.

Dressed up for the occasion, Woo Taeju looked more dashing than he did at the bar. His coat, shoes, and shirt inevitably reminded Kwon Siyul of Woo Hyunse from that morning. With his hair styled up, he resembled Woo Hyunse’s aura even more. Though highly unlikely, one might believe it if he claimed to be a distant relative.

Kwon Siyul looked down at his own appearance. Though he had dressed up for the concert, standing next to Woo Taeju made him feel like a beggar next to a prince.

“Is it okay for me to go like this?”

He should have worn a coat. Worried that his outfit might be excessively informal, Kwon Siyul asked with a deliberately serious expression on his face.

“Of course. As long as you’re not going in naked, it doesn’t matter. Besides, hyung, you look cute.”

“Cute?”

This guy had no filter with his elders. Kwon Siyul furrowed his brow at the impudence, but Woo Taeju smiled brightly as if even that was cute. Kwon Siyul soon smoothed out his deliberately furrowed brow and smiled back. In truth, he wasn’t bothered by anything said to him, happy to be out after such a long period of time.

Woo Taeju clenched and unclenched his sweat-damp fist. While Kwon Siyul seemed the same as usual, Woo Taeju did not. He had been bustling about preparing for this long-awaited meeting since the night before. Unable to find satisfactory clothes even after turning his closet inside out, he had rushed out to buy new ones.

Throughout the meal, Woo Taeju couldn’t take his eyes off Kwon Siyul. His hair was a bit longer. His skin still looked fair and his cheeks soft and plump. But there were also differences from before.

He exuded a languid atmosphere. As if he had just finished an intense session of lovemaking. His white, straight neck, his ear lobes reddened from the cold, and his downcast gaze were particularly alluring. Although Kwon Siyul wasn’t emitting pheromones, and even if he were, Woo Taeju wouldn’t be able to detect them, he sensed a strange energy coming from the other man.

As they were leaving after the meal, Kwon Siyul yawned widely. Teardrops dangled from his eyelashes. Seizing the moment, Woo Taeju rubbed Kwon Siyul’s eye area with his hand. Kwon Siyul shook his head weakly as if brushing off an annoying insect.

“Hyung, are you sleepy?”

“Ah…I didn’t sleep well last night.”

It was actually due to his passionate activities with Woo Hyunse, but Woo Taeju had no way of knowing that. Kwon Siyul yawned again, opening his mouth like a bird’s beak. He wanted to forget about the concert and become one with his bed at home.

But he soon widened his eyes. No, that wouldn’t do. This was his first outing in so long—he couldn’t let it fizzle out like this.

“Shall we hurry? We’ll be late.”

Woo Taeju shook off the persistent sense of déjà vu and put his arm around Kwon Siyul’s shoulders. Kwon Siyul flinched and furrowed his brow, but when Woo Taeju wheedled, calling him “hyung, hyung” over and over again, he reluctantly went along with it.