MORE 21

“Why did you act as CEO? You shouldn’t do that. It’s embarrassing for me.”

He is always the one paying for me. From small things like drinks to meals and even alcohol. Regardless of the reason, it was Woo Hyunse who gave me a good job in the first place.

“Is that so? I didn’t mean to make you feel embarrassed.”

“You should have just left it alone….”

With Siyul grumbling in front of him, Woo Hyunse laughed quietly. As his eyes crinkled and the corners of his lips turned up, his handsome face looked even kinder—as if he truly had no impure intentions behind everything he was bestowing upon Siyul right now.

“If you really want to buy me something, why don’t we go see a movie or something together?”

“A movie?”

“Yeah. I don’t feel like going alone. I think it would be nice if Mr. Kwon Siyul came with me. It’d be less boring.”

He spoke nonchalantly, resting his chin on his hand, and there didn’t seem to be any deep meaning behind it. Siyul felt a slight pang in his heart. I could just go with Kwon Yuwon if I wanted to, but it seemed Woo Hyunse didn’t have a single close friend to go to the cinema with. He doesn’t seem to have poor social skills, though….

Suddenly, he recalled their first meeting and nodded, as if it all made sense now. He might have social skills, but his hidden nature might be too nasty to associate with.

“As it happens, I ended up with two tickets.”

Siyul couldn’t even pay for the movie. He insisted stubbornly and barely managed to pay for the popcorn. Even then, Woo Hyunse didn’t seem pleased.

The movie was rated R (restricted for minors). When the staff member at the entrance checked their IDs, Woo Hyunse confidently took Siyul’s ID out of his own wallet. Even though Siyul kept moving his gaze up and down, looking intently at the ID and then at Woo Hyunse, the other man was shameless enough to simply slide both his and Siyul’s IDs back into his wallet.

“Please give that back.”

“I told you to get a re-issuance.”

He replied nonchalantly and strode ahead with his long legs. Since he couldn’t start an argument on a busy path, Siyul simply followed behind him with his lips pursed like a duck’s beak, feeling sullen.

The movie wasn’t bad. In fact, it was on the interesting side. However, the rating was quite high. The old movie he had watched late at night couldn’t even compare to this.

Siyul’s face burned bright red several times while watching the film. No matter how few movies were playing due to the late hour, choosing a movie like this meant Woo Hyunse’s taste might not be all that good.

Unlike Siyul, who was the color of a well-ripened apple on an autumn day, Woo Hyunse looked rather bored. There was no sign of embarrassment or even a smile on his face, let alone a blush. Even though the two protagonists on the screen were in the middle of their nightly deed, Woo Hyunse yawned soundlessly and rested his chin on his hand with a lack of interest. It was obvious he was bored to death.

Only Siyul was restless and on edge. Whenever his fingers accidentally brushed against the other’s in the popcorn bucket, Siyul would flinch up to his shoulders and quickly pull his hand out. The other man’s fingers brushing against his own made him more nervous than the protagonists on the screen who were making all that commotion.

“Is it fun?”

Suddenly, Woo Hyunse whispered in his ear, and Siyul almost jumped out of his seat. Fortunately, he stayed attached to the chair, though he fluttered his body like a bird flapping its wings. It was a good thing there was no one in front or behind them.

“Why are you whispering in my ear….”

Siyul covered his ear, which had been brushed by the warm breath, with his palm and tilted his head away. Woo Hyunse chuckled softly.

“You shouldn’t be loud in a movie theater.”

“Don’t do that in my ear.”

“What did I even do?”

“You blew air on me.”

“Are your ears sensitive?”

He asked, his eyes curving like a fox’s tail. Siyul pressed his palm hard against his cheeks, which couldn’t possibly get any redder, and snapped his head toward the screen. The sex scene had already passed. Siyul sat with his legs crossed and leaned his body as far away from Woo Hyunse as possible.

Suppressing the urge to walk out halfway through, he finished watching the movie safely. As soon as the lights came on in the theater, Siyul jumped up so quickly the seat folded in half. He wanted to go home now. But as he stretched his body languidly, as if he had just had a nap, Woo Hyunse grabbed his wrist, making it impossible for him to just bolt.

“Should we go get some fresh air for a bit? It feels a shame to part ways just like this.”

“It’s too late. I have to get home. Yuwon will be worried, too….”

“Is barely midnight really that late? Didn’t you, Mr. Kwon Siyul, use to go to clubs late at night in the past?”

That was back when I was working hard at deliveries. The situation is different now. Just as he was about to make the excuse that he had to go to work tomorrow, Woo Hyunse looked up at Siyul with a deliberately desolate expression. ‘Desolate’—that expression fit Woo Hyunse horribly, yet there was no word more accurate for that face.

“Mr. Kwon Siyul might have someone waiting for him at home, but I don’t have anyone. If we part ways like this, I’ll feel lonely and desolate. Very much so.”

Just like his claim about being a submissive, it was highly likely that this, too, was a lie. But it felt as if I shouldn’t let go of this hand. It was like walking away from a stray cat that had been looking at me with longing; a corner of my heart stung, as if someone had poked my conscience with a blunt needle tip.

Siyul let his shoulders slump and nodded slowly. I lost. It felt like I’d been deceived, but I didn’t want to send Woo Hyunse back to a dark, gloomy house. If no one else knew, Siyul at least knew well how much the silent darkness could make a person feel depressed.

Wondering where we were going, it turned out Woo Hyunse parked the car near the riverside. Since it was a late hour, there weren’t many people passing by. Only a few people were huddled together under the embankment, unraveling their unfinished stories. The alcohol in their hands seemed to chase away the cold air of early winter.

Woo Hyunse got out first, and Siyul followed. When he asked if they should take a walk, Siyul followed that broad back like someone who had a leash tied around their neck. They also stopped by a convenience store.

Woo Hyunse picked out a few cans of beer for Siyul to drink, a yogurt drink, and bottled water. Siyul added some snacks and took his position at the checkout counter. When the other man tried to step in, Siyul nudged his side and confidently offered his own card. Even doing this wouldn’t even cover the heel of the amount he’d been treated to at restaurants, but one couldn’t live only by accumulating debts.

Woo Hyunse just raised his eyebrows in surprise, let out a “Huh,” and stepped back. Siyul also insisted on carrying the heavy bag himself. Though it was snatched away by Woo Hyunse before he even stepped out the convenience store door.

“I could have carried it.”

“How can you be a freeloader and not even act as a porter?”

He stretched out his arm but only got a flick to the forehead for his trouble. It wasn’t even hit that hard, but because his skin was delicate, the spot where the finger flicked turned red. Siyul rubbed his stinging forehead but still grinned helplessly.

The two found a spot under the riverbank and sat side by side. It was a secluded place. The river breeze blowing in was cool, but not that cold. Perhaps it was because Woo Hyunse was sitting so close—less than a span away.

The man was someone who radiated heat even through his clothes. Despite looking so cold and chilling when expressionless, whenever his hand happened to touch my skin, it was as hot as freshly melted molten metal.

Would his hands be that warm, too? Would they be warm if I held them? Even without touching, it felt like that heat was transferring to me. Siyul curled his flinching fingertips and pulled his body in. Suddenly, Woo Hyunse took off his coat and draped it over Siyul’s shoulders. A flustered Siyul looked up, making a strange nasal sound, “Eh?”

“You looked cold.”

Woo Hyunse’s coat was filled with that familiar scent. Siyul pretended to sniffle and inhaled the fragrance deeply. The inside of the coat, warmed by the other man, was as toasty as a charcoal brazier. Even though he wasn’t so chilled that he couldn’t bear it, Siyul draped the coat—which was too big for him—back over the other man’s shoulders.

“This level of cold isn’t even cold to me. I even went through cold-weather training twice, you know.”

Siyul had to endure the grueling training—which other lucky fellows didn’t even receive once until their discharge—twice. Twice, he had to drive stakes into frozen ground, set up tents, and shiver in the biting cold. Because of that, Siyul hated the cold even more than the heat.

“You served in the military, too?”

He knows my age, so why ask as if it’s news? Siyul puffed out his chest like a pigeon. It was a proud completion of active-duty army service. Orphans were exempt, but neither Kwon Yuwon nor I could make ends meet, so we fled to the military. At least they gave us three meals a day and a warm place to sleep.

I had thought about re-enlisting, but I decided I didn’t want to spend my whole life in an environment where you had to do whatever you were told, even if they provided for your room and board, so I just finished my service and came out.

Siyul almost went ahead and saluted with spirit, shouting “Loyalty!”, but he didn’t want to be the center of attention in the middle of the night, so he lowered his half-raised arm.

“Of course. I did well in the military and even got a reward leave.”

“Really?”

“Where did you serve, CEO?”

Even though he asked, he assumed he must have been exempted. People with money don’t suffer. Even when going to reserve forces training, most young masters from famous families would rather pay fines than attend.

Even if he did enlist, he must have finished his service by playing around in a so-called ‘honey’ (easy) position. Intending to mock him if he said public service, Siyul kept his eyes narrowed and watched Woo Hyunse’s lips.

“Army 2nd Division, Military Police.”

“Pardon?”

“Do they call it Military Police these days?”

Woo Hyunse scratched near his thick eyebrows. He seemed confused. Siyul tilted his head and stared intently at the other’s face. Then, he nodded slowly. The Military Police prioritized appearance and build. No matter how great you were, they wouldn’t pick you if you were short and ugly. If it were Woo Hyunse, even if his preference were different, they would have been the ones to step up first to recruit him.

“To be honest, I thought you were exempted from military service, CEO.”

“Can you skip it when you have all your limbs intact? You have to go.”

“Or maybe special forces?”

“They didn’t pick me. Because of my presentation (secondary sex characteristic).”

“Even though you’re a submissive?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

Woo Hyunse replied with a mischievous laugh, took a sip of water, and smiled blandly. Since he gave me the bottle to drink as well, Siyul touched his lips to the mouth of the bottle and took a gulp. Truth be told, he wasn’t thirsty. He just, well, wanted to touch his lips to the mouth of the plastic bottle.