MW 12

THUMP THUMP!

“Hey, Kang Jaeha! You’re in here! I know you are, so open up right now.”

The violent noise, as if threatening to break the door down, made Yijae’s tears vanish. As he flinched, letting out a sharp, hitching breath, Jaeha’s brow furrowed.

THUMP THUMP!

“Hey, Kang Jaeha!”

At the renewed banging and shouting, Jaeha pressed a hand to his forehead, looking vexed. Yijae’s face, terrified by the loud noise, grew paler by the second. Watching him, Jaeha immediately got up, placed a hand on his head, and said.

“Yijae, wait here for a moment.”

After confirming the small head nodded up and down, Jaeha turned his back on Yijae and walked away. The knocking didn’t stop, oblivious to the fact that Jaeha’s expression had turned icy, his fists clenched so tight that veins popped out.

“Hey, open the door, Kang Jae—.”

“Yoo Chaekyung.”

“I knew it. And you were pretending you weren’t here.”

Chaekyung, worried Jaeha would chase her away, quickly stuck her foot in the gap of the door and continued speaking.

“Let’s just get some hangover soup and sleep for 2 hours. I pulled an all-nighter yesterday too, I’m dead tired.”

“Then who told you to drink so much? No, go home.”

“How could I refuse when they were looking for me so desperately. And Yoojin said the club room would be empty today because of the photo-shoot. Don’t be so cheap and open the door, you son of a—.”

Jaeha’s face twisted savagely as Chaekyung approached, reeking of alcohol. If Yoo Chaekyung found Yijae, she would undoubtedly, true to her personality, act all chummy and pry into his personal information.

Besides, Yijae was still wary of people and uncomfortable with the attention of others. He didn’t want to create a situation that Yijae would dislike.

“Get lost.”

“Ah! Why are you being so cheap today! I even ordered lunch to be delivered here.”

“Why would you order food to someone else’s club room in the first place. Whether you eat somewhere else or not, that’s your problem.”

Jaeha stomped on Chaekyung’s foot that was wedged in the door gap and pried her fingers away. After a struggle, the door slammed shut with a bang. Her booming voice, shouting curses and banging on the door, could be heard through the thick wall.

Shouldn’t you open the door?

Isn’t she a fellow club member?

What if that person reports you?

In that short time, his questions, scrawled in a panic, filled the notebook. Jaeha read each of Yijae’s writings and gently squeezed his startled shoulders to calm him down.

“This happens sometimes. She’ll go home after a while, so don’t worry about it. Anyway, where were we?”

Despite Jaeha’s words, Yijae’s eyes, nervously glancing towards the entrance, trembled weakly. Jaeha tried to calm him, but seeing Yijae panting, not even drinking more of his favorite chocolate drink, he finally made a decision.

Picking up his phone, Jaeha sent a text to someone. Soon after, a reply came saying ‘got it,’ and in less than 10 minutes, the ruckus of banging on the door subsided.

“It’s quiet now.”

Jaeha spoke as if he knew nothing, smiling at Yijae’s reaction as he let out a breath with a visibly relieved expression.

However, Yijae’s face soon twitched. Jaeha’s gaze fell on the notification that popped up on the phone screen with a small vibration. Yijae’s complexion sank into gloom as he watched Jaeha and pressed his lips tightly together.

“Ah. Next class?”

Nod, nod.

Watching him slowly nod his head, Jaeha felt quite disappointed.

“Can I have your phone for a second?”

When the old model phone was placed unhesitatingly in his palm, Jaeha’s low spirits seemed to lift a little. With quick fingers, he entered his own number and immediately pressed the call button.

Beep beep.

After a single ring, the 13 digits of Yijae’s phone number appeared on his screen, and Jaeha ended the call.

“This is my number. Contact me anytime you need something. And Professor Kim Sangjoong’s class is 100% project-based with no exams, so let’s start as soon as the topic comes out next week. As for the date, like we said, starting from 2 p.m. on Wednesday or Friday. Is that okay?”

Nod, nod.

“Alright. Let’s decide on the date when the topic is announced. Your next class is about to start. You should get going.”

Yijae, who had been looking back and forth between the clock and Jaeha, grabbed his pen and began to write quickly.

Okay. Thank you. I enjoyed the chocolate drink, too. I’ll buy you one next time. ^_^

His small fist, raised over his chest, tightened as if to show he really meant it. At that sight, Jaeha let out a chuckle. He had been wondering what he wanted to say, and to think it was something so cute. Noticing his smile had broken free, he quickly rubbed his mouth and spoke.

“Okay. See you next time, Yijae.”

Creek. The door closed, and he was left alone in the club room. In the space that somehow felt empty, he looked at the sofa where Yijae had been sitting.

It was only for a short time, but he thought he had enjoyed talking with the reunited Yijae. It wasn’t like they had a proper conversation, but just being with him was nice.

Is this what it feels like to see a cute younger brother or a small animal?

Jaeha, feeling this sudden ticklish emotion, rested his chin on his hand and muttered to himself.

“I wanted to feed him before sending him off.”

Perhaps because of his small frame and their first encounter, he couldn’t help but worry and want to help him. Jaeha rubbed his lower jaw, feeling awkward with this unfamiliar emotion even to himself.

He closed his eyes and opened them, his gaze landing on a photo hanging on the wall. It was the first one he had taken after joining the photography club. He remembered the memory of struggling for days and nights to capture the pouring stars in the clear night sky.

Jaeha thought of Yijae, who hadn’t taken his eyes off the photo he had taken for a long time, and smiled pleasantly.

⁺₊❆₊⋆

‘My legs hurt.’

The maids, who definitely made eye contact with him but didn’t say a word to Madam Lee, felt somehow cruel. Yijae waited for Madam Lee to come out, having lost track of how much time had passed. Just as his legs were getting heavier and his tightly sealed lips were about to part.

“Geez, you scared me. How long have you been standing there?”

Having drunk late into the night, Dohae had been lying in bed all day even after his morning hangover cure. Then, persistent calls from a friend finally got him out of bed. Yijae caught his eye as he was coming down to the first floor to get some water.

Seeing him standing there, foolishly watching his surroundings, Dohae quickly approached Yijae and spoke.

“Ah, you went to school today, right? Was it nice? You didn’t cry your eyes out from being scared, did you?”

Yijae was frightened by the nasty smile and the look that scanned him up and down. It felt just like last time, as if Dohae was going to lock him in the school warehouse.

Swallowing dryly, he held his breath and shook his bowed head from side to side. But just then, a heavy pain landed on his head with a thud.

“Ugh.”

“Idiot. You’re lying. Hey. You wanted to make friends, didn’t you. Ah, that’s fucking hilarious.”

Remembering what was written in Yijae’s diary on his desk a few years ago, Dohae twisted his lips and let out a snickering laugh.

“Right, who would want to be friends with a disabled orphan bastard? If there was one, they’d be a retard just like you.”

Yijae felt bad because Dohae’s words sounded like he was cursing Jaeha. The fact that Jaeha was getting cursed for no reason just because of him made something well up inside him.

While Yijae was biting his lip under his lowered face, Dohae continued speaking with a twisted smile.

“Hey, and from now on, wear a mask or glasses, cover your face. Fuck, I’m sick and tired of being mistaken for the same person as a bastard like you. Do you understand?”

The memory of last time, when Hanjoo Group’s Oh Seokmin’s friend, Yoonchan, had mistaken him for Yijae, came to mind, and Dohae’s mood soured. In a fit of anger, Dohae hit Yijae’s nodding head once more.

As Yijae, with tears welling up from the physiological pain, was taking small, shallow breaths, Dohae’s phone rang.

He squinted one eye in annoyance at the name that appeared on his phone screen.

“Hello.”

—Gu Dohae, are you really not coming?

“Ah, I said I’m not going.”

—Kang Jaeha might be there.

“Kang Jaeha?”

At Dohae’s voice, Yijae’s gaze turned to him. Dohae’s brow furrowed when he met the black eyes. Who the hell does he think he is, making eye contact with me. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed a handful of Yijae’s hair and shook him.

—Yeah. It’s Kang Jaeha’s friend’s birthday party today. Kang Jaeha will definitely be there, so don’t regret it later.

Dohae had planned to rest at home today, but if Kang Jaeha was coming, that was a different story. Their engagement was planned, but it had been postponed for years now, and he was getting annoyed. It had been months since they had properly met, to the point he was forgetting his face. The more that happened, the more his possessiveness over Kang Jaeha grew.

Dohae was confident that as long as the promise between their families wasn’t cancelled by mutual agreement, Kang Jaeha was bound to become his alpha. He thought that his adoptive parents were very greedy people and would never miss such a good opportunity. Dohae immediately checked the clock, let out a breath, and spoke.

“I’m coming. Text me the address.”

He was short on time if he wanted to stop by the salon for a treatment by 7 and then head over. “Should have said so sooner,” he muttered to himself, then squinted at Yijae, who was shedding silent tears without letting out a single groan.

“Hey. I’ll tell Mom, so stop standing around being an eyesore and get lost to your garbage dump.”

Dohae was even annoyed by the way Yijae was foolishly enduring it. That innocent-looking face was detestable. Gritting his teeth, Dohae kicked Yijae’s thigh hard with a thud.

He pushed the staggering Yijae’s shoulder, making sure he fell over.

Thump. After sneering at Yijae, who had fallen to the floor, Dohae immediately turned and went up the stairs to his room.

Left alone, Yijae felt his heart sink at the name ‘Kang Jaeha’ that had just come from Dohae’s mouth.

‘It must just be someone with the same name.’

No, Jaeha’s house that he went to last time was also very big and nice. Jaeha, who lives in a place like that, wouldn’t be from an ordinary family either. They said that chaebols all know each other with just one degree of separation, so the Jaeha that Dohae mentioned could be him.

But whether his thoughts were right or wrong, there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t even identify this feeling himself, but Yijae felt somehow dejected.

Biting his lip with a bitter expression, he slowly turned and headed for his own space, which Dohae had called a garbage house.

“Haah.”