MW 7

Even though Jaeha had removed all the ropes binding his hands and feet, Yijae didn’t even think to remove the tape covering his mouth. Jaeha found this so absurd that he let out a small, involuntary chuckle.

At that moment, Yijae reacted sensitively to Jaeha’s sound, flinching and prostrating himself on the floor, head bowed. Jaeha watched him for a long time as he remained motionless with his head down, finally letting out a deep sigh and raising his hand.

Yijae, who had been stealing glances at him while keeping his head down, spotted his raised hand and squeezed his eyes shut. At this sight, for some reason, Jaeha felt his mood sink miserably. Frowning, he peeled off the tape that covered half of Yijae’s face.

“Eut.”

The delicate skin where the tape had been was flushed red. It must have hurt quite a bit, as his fingertips trembled as he rubbed his skin. Jaeha stared at the tear-filled face and regretted not being more careful.

Jaeha took off his coat and draped it over Yijae’s body. Yijae, with a startled expression, raised his head and his lips parted as he looked back and forth between Jaeha and the coat. He was clearly flustered, as if asking why he was being given this.

“How did you get in here?”

“……”

However, Jaeha, pulling the coat a little tighter so it wouldn’t fall off, thought of Yijae being tied up in a warehouse of an unfinished building on this cold day and asked again.

“Did someone lock you in here on purpose?”

No matter how he looked at him, he didn’t seem older than a high school student. Could someone have been bullying this kid? As he slowly scanned his body from top to bottom again, the sight of his wound-covered body came into view. Haa, Jaeha let out a long sigh, ran a hand through his hair, and looked at Yijae with a complicated expression.

“Where’s your school?”

“……”

“Should I call the police for you?”

“……”

“Then I’ll contact your parents.”

Yijae, who had been silently tormenting his own fingers, stiffened at Jaeha’s last words and shook his head from side to side.

Jaeha fell silent at the sight of him avoiding his gaze and lowering his head as if troubled.

How much time had passed? Footsteps could be heard from outside the building, which had been silent. Frightened by the sound, Yijae took off the coat he was wearing and handed it to Jaeha.

Jaeha’s eyebrow shot up at the sudden action. His thin body was still shivering in the chilly air. Jaeha snatched the coat being handed to him as if taking it away, and this time, he put Yijae’s arms through the sleeves and tightened the belt.

“It’s cold. I’m fine, so you wear it.”

But Yijae, with a pale face, rolled his big eyes, looking back and forth between the source of the sound and Jaeha. Jaeha could easily figure out what he was afraid of.

‘He must be scared that the perpetrator has come back.’

Jaeha inwardly wondered who the culprit who locked this kid up could be and looked around. But there was no trace of the perpetrator who had left Yijae behind.

Time continued to pass, and a cool breeze entered the building through the crack in the closed door. As if the coat alone was not enough to withstand the cold, Yijae started to cough.

“Tsk.”

Yijae, seeing Jaeha click his tongue without realizing it, flinched and tried to take off the coat again. Jaeha gently pressed his shoulder to calm him down, then took off his gloves and put them on Yijae’s hands. The size difference of more than a finger’s length made him look like a child wearing his father’s gloves. Jaeha covered his mouth with his hand and turned his head away.

However, as if he had noticed him smiling, Yijae’s earlobes flushed with embarrassment. Seeing that flushed appearance, Jaeha burst out laughing, a laugh he had been trying to suppress. Finally stopping his laughter, he looked at Yijae with curious eyes and asked.

“What’s your name?”

Yijae hesitated for a moment, then took off one glove and carefully took Jaeha’s hand. Jaeha, raising an eyebrow at the cool temperature that suddenly touched his hand, realized it was the body temperature of the man next to him. Quietly watching Yijae’s actions, he focused on the sensation under his palm.

Seo…… Yi…… jae?

“Seo Yijae?”

At the man, no, Yijae’s, nod in response, Jaeha’s gaze fell on his lips and then away.

“Is it hard for you to speak?”

He asked Yijae, even though he knew it was a sensitive question. Was he being bullied by his peers because of this? Jaeha’s anger towards the unknown perpetrator grew. Yijae reached out his hand again and slowly wrote a sentence on Jaeha’s palm.

I’m not supposed to talk.

“What……?”

That was not within the scope of what he had expected. Jaeha felt his mood sink miserably to the bottom again. With cool eyes, Jaeha lowered his head and looked down at the red mark on Yijae’s wrist.

On his wrist, which had almost no flesh, there were not only red marks but also scars and bruises that looked old. Jaeha, carefully mulling over the words Yijae had left on his hand, looked at his face.

Not that he can’t talk, but that he’s not supposed to talk…….

Jaeha’s expression hardened at the incomprehensible situation, and he opened his mouth to ask Yijae for the reason. No, he was about to.

But when he met Yijae’s clear eyes, blinking brightly as he looked up at him, he couldn’t say anything. From his expression and attitude, it seemed that this absurd situation was a matter of course.

Jaeha closed his eyes, his heart heavier and more dejected than when he had first found Yijae. It seemed he was being abused.

“Haa……. Are you really an idiot?”

After a long breath, Jaeha opened his eyes and took Yijae’s hands. Yijae, startled by the unexpected touch, flinched. A strong scent of apples came from Yijae as he let out a shallow breath, heup.

The sweet scent quickly faded, but Jaeha, smelling the faint scent of apples still lingering around him, could tell that Yijae’s secondary gender was omega. Yijae himself seemed to know that he hadn’t controlled his pheromones, and he rustled his body with a frightened face.

It was a mistake that an omega who had just presented could easily make. Nevertheless, Jaeha’s feelings became complicated at his reaction, trembling with a pale face and teary eyes.

Jaeha let go of Yijae’s hands and put his hand into the pocket of the coat he had draped over him. After rummaging around a few times, he felt something rough in his hand. It was the chocolate that Butler Choi sometimes packed for him. Jaeha unwrapped the twisted wrapper and popped it into Yijae’s mouth.

“……Huh?”

Yijae, who had been holding his breath and sniffling, raised his head at the sweet chocolate melting on his tongue. A teardrop hanging at the corner of his eye fell onto his cheek. Jaeha wiped his tear-filled eyes and said.

“Give me your hand.”

Yijae swallowed his saliva, which had become sweet from the chocolate, and held out his hand to Jaeha. He shook his head with a playful expression and said.

“Both hands.”

Yijae was afraid that his palms might be hit, but he held out both hands to Jaeha as he was told. When he held out his palms and raised his head, Jaeha’s face momentarily took on a bleak expression. It felt as if Jaeha would change just like them and strike his palms at any moment.

As Yijae held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut, Jaeha’s face contorted into an ‘oh no’ expression, and he winced one eye. He must have inadvertently hardened his face after seeing the scars on his palm. Jaeha placed a beautifully wrapped chocolate on Yijae’s frightened palm.

Opening his eyes at the ticklish sensation on his skin, he widened his eyes at the famous French chocolate he had only seen from a distance once. On Valentine’s Day, when people gave each other chocolate, Dohae always ate this.

Is it okay for me to receive something so precious?

Seeing Yijae at a loss, examining the chocolate in his hands, Jaeha poked his cheek and said.

“It’s a gift, Yijae.”

Yijae raised his head and met Jaeha’s eyes, which were gazing at him with a gentle look. For a moment, he had the illusion that light was pouring down behind him. He bit his lip at the sweet scent that filled his nostrils with every breath and the pounding of his heart that had begun. The strange feeling he had never felt before was scary, yet this small flutter was thrilling.

On a very cold winter day, Yijae’s first love began.

Yijae treasured the first gift he had ever received from someone, neither clutching it for fear it might melt, nor putting it in his pants, but just looking at it preciously.

Then, Jaeha picked up one of the chocolates on Yijae’s palm, unwrapped it, and put it into his mouth again. Since he couldn’t move his hand with the chocolate on it, Yijae was frustrated that he couldn’t express his intentions to Jaeha.

Whether he knew it or not, Jaeha chuckled and kept putting chocolate into Yijae’s mouth.

Finally, when only one chocolate was left, Yijae held out his freed right hand and wrote on Jaeha’s palm.

I want to take this home……sir.

Jaeha looked at the words Yijae had written and rubbed his mouth, which still held a smile. Every time he unwrapped a piece of chocolate, his face, which looked as if it would cry at any moment, would brighten up as if he were the happiest in the world after eating it. He found it so amusing that he lost track of time feeding the child chocolate.

However, at the expression of him looking up, his lips parting as if to say the last one was off-limits, Jaeha put his hand into the other pocket of his coat.