MW 43

He hadn’t had a proper meal in days and had even cried his eyes out, so it was no wonder he was hungry.

“Wait here for a little bit.”

Suppressing a laugh and smiling slightly, Jaeha didn’t want to let go of their clasped hands, but he slowly rose to his feet.

“Ca, can’t I go with you?”

It was when Jaeha was about to turn to get the food he had prepared for Yijae. Yijae, reaching out and grabbing the hem of his clothes, bit his upper lip and looked up.

“Of course, you can. There’s nothing you can’t do in this house.”

He placed his hand over the one that was precariously holding onto him. Jaeha led Yijae to the kitchen. Glancing at Yijae following him like a chick, Jaeha found it cute and took out the porridge he had bought beforehand from the refrigerator. After portioning out enough for Yijae onto a plate and heating it up, he took his hand and led him to the dining table.

“Your stomach might still be sensitive, so eat this until tomorrow, and I’ll switch to regular food the day after.”

“This is delicious too.”

Yijae, who seemed hungry, took a large spoonful and put it in his mouth, mumbling a reply as he chewed. Jaeha, sitting across from him, carefully observed Yijae to see if he needed anything, then spoke as if he had remembered something.

“Shall we go to the department store tomorrow after visiting your mother?”

“The department store?”

“I was thinking it might be good to buy some things we’ll need now that we’re living together.”

It hadn’t been long since he’d moved in, so the dishes and most of the items were new, but he thought there might be other things they needed. He also wanted to buy some things for Yijae while they were at it.

Jaeha, who had brought it up as casually as possible so as not to burden him, saw Yijae nod with a grin and smiled a smile that resembled his.

“Mmmh…”

Jaeha gently lifted Yijae into his arms and carefully walked to the bedroom. He laid him down on the bed softly so as not to wake him, and after gazing at his peacefully sleeping face, he closed the bedroom door and went out to the living room.

“Yes, Attorney Park.”

He had been meaning to call anyway. Jaeha went out to the terrace to take the call and listened for the news he had been waiting for.

“Are you saying the minor guardianship has been changed to adult guardianship?”

In the case of minor guardianship, the need for guardianship ceases as soon as the ward becomes an adult. Therefore, in Yijae’s case, since he had become an adult this year, there was no reason for him to be under guardianship.

But adult guardianship? That would be difficult to get approved unless there was a physical or mental disability…

Jaeha, listening to Attorney Park’s voice over the phone, narrowed his brow at the news that Yijae’s legal guardian was still Chairman Gu.

Since Sejin Group also owned a hospital, forging a medical certificate would not have been difficult. Gritting his teeth, Jaeha ran a hand through his hair in annoyance, his eyes turning cold.

“Prepare a lawsuit to revoke the adult guardianship. We will prepare the medical certificate from Kangmyung Hospital.”

—Yes, I will prepare it within this week and report back.

“And are there any debts under Seo Yijae’s name?”

According to him, Chairman Gu had paid off the debt in exchange for the pheromone fluid transfusions, but given their character, he couldn’t believe it.

He didn’t want Yijae to meet with the people from Sejin Group anymore. To completely sever the ill-fated connection, it would be better to tie up all the loose ends.

—According to our investigation, the creditor was changed to Chairman Gu Byungho five years ago, but the principal amount of 642,410,000 won is confirmed to still be under Mr. Seo Yijae’s name.

He wasn’t surprised anymore, but he was curious just how despicable they could be.

“Let’s proceed with the debt repayment as soon as possible as well.”

He would have to keep it a secret from Yijae, but that amount of money was not too difficult for him to handle. Rubbing his eyebrows at his throbbing head, Jaeha first discussed the most urgent matters to be dealt with and then ended the call.

Quietly leaving the terrace and walking into the living room, Jaeha heard a loud thudding crash and hurried towards the sound.

“Yijae!”

“Ah, su, sunbae-nim…”

When he entered the room, Yijae was hugging his reddened knees, as if he had fallen off the bed. Fortunately, the wound didn’t seem to have opened up, but seeing him in pain made Jaeha’s heart heavy.

“Why did you wake up instead of sleeping more? Were you surprised because I wasn’t here?”

Jaeha turned on the mood light and gently helped Yijae sit on the bed. He spoke with a mix of jokes to ease the tension, but for some reason, Yijae was quiet.

Jaeha, who had been looking down at his knees, found the prolonged silence strange and straightened up. Then, Yijae’s beet-red face came into his view. Jaeha’s eyes curved softly when he discovered him pressing his lips together with a look that said he could die of embarrassment.

“Was it really because of me?”

“…”

As Yijae’s eyes twitched, Jaeha burst out into the laughter he had been holding back. He knew he should stop laughing when he saw his expression gradually turning sulky, but he couldn’t stop easily.

“I, I’ll, go sleep somewhere else.”

“No. I’m sorry. I was just laughing because you’re cute.”

“…”

Jaeha grabbed the wrist of Yijae, who was hugging a pillow and trying to get up as if to leave, and barely managed to stop him.

“Don’t be mad, okay?”

He poked Yijae’s still slightly puffed-out cheek and slyly took the pillow he was hugging in his arms.

“I was just on the phone for a moment, were you very surprised?”

“I, I just called for you, but you weren’t there…”

“I was on the terrace because I didn’t want to wake you. I’m really sorry if I scared you.”

Jaeha, who was gently stroking Yijae’s hair, tilted his head slightly as he watched him slowly raise his gaze.

“Why?”

In all his life, no one had ever apologized to him. Everything was always his fault, and they acted as if that was how it should be. But Jaeha was different. He had been this kind of person from the moment they first met.

“…Because I like you, sunbae-nim.”

In that brief moment when he had opened his eyes and called for Jaeha, but he hadn’t appeared, it felt as if the world had collapsed. Had he abandoned him? Had everything been a dream?

Yijae, who had experienced a brief hell, was finally able to realize one thing. He might not know about other things, but from now on, without him, he would live his whole life in hell.

The first time was difficult, but after confessing his feelings, it became easier. With a bright smile, Yijae hugged his waist and opened his mouth.

“I like you, sunbae-nim.”

The warm scent of Jaeha that seeped into the tip of his nose felt as if it were melting his entire body. Yijae smiled even wider at the sound of the heartbeat coming from his chest. He loved that sound, which was so much like his own.

Originally, Jaeha had no intention of sharing a room with Yijae. There were several empty rooms, and he had no intention of burdening him.

However, seeing Yijae’s body stiffen as if he was particularly nervous about sleeping alone, Jaeha spread out a blanket on the floor below the bed himself.

<Can’t we just sleep here together?>

Jaeha, lying in the same bed with Yijae and holding one of his fingers, gave a slightly bitter smile at the current situation and gazed at Yijae’s peacefully sleeping face.

“He’s sleeping well.”

Jaeha whispered in a small voice to him, who was sleeping deeply as if the long sleep of the past three days was not enough.

“After making me like this.”

Yijae had come to him at a completely unexpected moment. At the confession that had come upon him in an unguarded moment, Jaeha was certain that this memory would remain in his heart for the rest of his life.

He placed a fist over his still pounding heart and let out a long breath. It seemed like tonight would be as long as a day.