PA 57

When Yejun coldly rebuked him, Junhyuk felt his heart freeze. After a moment of silence, he answered, a beat late but in a firm voice.

“This is just forced now. Let’s stop.”

Yejun, who hesitated for a moment, slowly shook his head and let out a sigh-like sentence.

“Why are you so on edge all of a sudden? What’s wrong?”

“……”

At Junhyuk’s words, this time it was Yejun who couldn’t say anything. Yejun avoided answering and, with an irritated look, brushed past Junhyuk. Junhyuk grabbed Yejun’s wrist.

“Let go of this.”

“We’ve been getting along fine until now. Let me hear what’s inside, why you’re suddenly so angry.”

“We haven’t been getting along fine. You just looked like you were in such a dangerous state… no. That’s not it, I just dislike you and find you burdensome. So please, disappear from in front of me.”

Junhyuk, dropping the bag with the baguette to the ground, pushed Yejun against a high wall and met his eyes. It was useless for Yejun to turn his head to avoid Junhyuk’s gaze. Junhyuk grabbed Yejun’s chin and made him meet his eyes again.

“I said, let go.”

“No, I won’t let go until I hear a real answer.”

“Cha Junhyuk.”

“What’s the reason we can’t be together?”

Yejun looked at Junhyuk with resentful eyes.

“Are you asking because you don’t know?”

“My father? Because of my father?”

“Cha Junhyuk!”

Yejun finally burst into tears in the arms of Junhyuk, who had brought up the taboo-like word. Junhyuk held the crying Yejun tightly.

“I mixed flesh with your father. But, but…!”

“Yejun.”

“How can I be with you? Do you think that’s even possible, logically?”

For the first time, Yejun put into words the exact reason he was rejecting Junhyuk. Junhyuk made Yejun face the situation of that time, when there was nothing he could do.

“Were you… voluntary?”

“……”

“Then did you enjoy sleeping with my father?”

“……”

“Yejun.”

“Sob sob.”

Sorrowful tears poured from Yejun’s eyes. Junhyuk wiped away the teardrops streaming down his pale cheeks with his fingertips and continued speaking.

“You’re just a victim.”

“B-But….”

“I can make it so you never have to see that person until you die.”

“Junhyuk.”

Yejun eventually called Junhyuk in a voice that sounded like a plea.

“W-We… can’t be.”

“No, I can’t let you go.”

Yejun looked into Junhyuk’s sincere eyes for a long time. He was so resentful of the tangled and ruined memories of his younger days.

“……”

“You just stay still. I won’t let you go. Please, just don’t push me away.”

Yejun, unable to control the stuffy emotions filling his chest, buried his face in Junhyuk’s firm chest. Junhyuk held Yejun, who was continuously crying, in his arms as if he would never let him go again, leaving no space between them.

☂︎

Gyeongchan, perhaps sensing the strange current flowing between Yejun and Junhyuk, began to gather his things and spoke up.

“I have plans, so I’m going to head out a little early today.”

“You do? Alright.”

Yejun, deliberately pretending not to know Gyeongchan’s intention of giving them space, spoke to Junhyuk.

“Let’s close up early today.”

“Okay.”

Junhyuk, who answered briefly with a nod, organized the tables and chairs on the terrace and then came back inside the cafe. He quite liked this time, sitting comfortably in the sofa seat across from Yejun and catching his breath for a moment.

Along with the languid pop music, the cheerful sound of typing echoed through the cafe. Junhyuk, who had been watching Yejun for a long time, slowly got up and walked behind the counter. Yejun, engrossed in his laptop screen, didn’t notice Junhyuk standing right behind him and continued to write something down.

“What are you writing so diligently?”

“Oh, you saw?”

Startled by the sudden presence, Yejun shot up from his seat and covered the laptop screen.

“What is it?”

“D-Don’t look.”

“What is it that I can’t look at?”

Just as Yejun was about to close the laptop altogether, his cell phone screen flashed and an alarm rang. Junhyuk picked up the cell phone, handed it to Yejun, and mouthed the words, “Who is it?” Yejun looked at the cell phone screen for a moment, then answered the call with a reluctant expression.

“Yes, this is Lee Yejun.”

— This is Song Euijun, the person in charge of the Daesung Competition.

“Yes, yes.”

— There is a movie production announcement next Tuesday. I’m calling because we would really like you, the writer, to attend.

“It will be difficult for me to attend the movie production announcement….”

Just then, Junhyuk snatched Yejun’s phone. Yejun reached out his arm to take the phone back, but Junhyuk also raised his arm high into the air and left the counter.

“Hello?”

— Yes, who is this?

“I will try to persuade the writer. I will contact you again tomorrow.”

— Oh, really? Then I will wait for good news.

Junhyuk, who had given a firm answer, hung up the phone and smiled brightly at Yejun.

“What are you doing?”

“What do you mean? I’m trying to persuade you.”

“Cha Junhyuk.”

“Let’s go to Korea together.”

Yejun walked over to Junhyuk and irritably snatched the phone back.

“No, I’m not going.”

“Let’s go.”

Junhyuk hugged Yejun from behind as he was turning away.

“Let go of this.”

“No, I won’t.”

“Cha, Cha Junhyuk.”

A customer who had entered the cafe just in time got startled and left. Yejun tried with all his might to break free from Junhyuk’s embrace, but he couldn’t overcome Junhyuk’s strength.

“What are you doing? Customers are coming in.”

“So promise me you’ll go.”

Junhyuk turned Yejun’s body and held him tightly in his arms. Yejun felt dizzy from the scent of his skin, which held a hot heat. Junhyuk’s firm arms tightened, squeezing Yejun, and his slender body was lifted up. Yejun had to lift his heels and barely stand on his tiptoes.

“J-Junhyuk.”

“Isn’t it so much better when you just call me by my name, without my last name?”

Junhyuk lifted Yejun’s body higher and slowly spun around in a circle on the spot. Yejun looked down at Junhyuk and continued speaking urgently.

“I said customers are coming in.”

“I don’t care.”

Customers who were about to enter the cafe were peering inside through the transparent window.

“Put me down, quickly.”

“If you promise you’ll go.”

After confirming the customers leaving with a huge fuss, Yejun very urgently pressed his lips against Junhyuk’s. It was truly a peck, like a child giving to their mother. Yejun quickly jumped down from the surprised and frozen Junhyuk and grumbled.

“I told you to stop.”

Yejun, who went back behind the counter, let out a long sigh and closed his laptop.

“Let’s call it a day. Doing any more business is….”

At that moment, Junhyuk grabbed Yejun’s wrist and pulled him toward his body. Yejun lost his balance and fell into Junhyuk’s arms as if collapsing. At the same time, Junhyuk pressed his lips against Yejun’s, and his hot tongue pushed its way past the tender lips.

His kiss was rude, yet very delicate. Junhyuk’s hot tongue meticulously traced the roof of his mouth, as if trying to recall the memory of that time when they were twenty. It slowly came down, thoroughly licking the soft, tender membrane.

“Hh, hup.”

Yejun’s soft tongue, feeling the sensitive sensation, retreated as if running away.

“Heh heh.”

Junhyuk’s strong arms held Yejun firmly again so he couldn’t move, and his hot tongue wrapped around Yejun’s retreating tongue like a snake and began to suck on it. Tense, Yejun felt his whole body become as stiff as a block of wood, and he couldn’t even breathe properly due to his irregular heartbeat.

“Eu, eup.”

Yejun desperately pushed Junhyuk away to breathe. Junhyuk lightly pulled his lips away and whispered quietly in a low voice.

“Do you still hate me?”

“……”

Yejun’s breathing became more ragged, and his shoulders began to heave. Junhyuk hugged the tearful Yejun and waited patiently for his rough breathing to calm down. But Yejun’s tears showed no sign of stopping. Junhyuk wiped away the tears flowing down his pale cheeks with the back of his hand. Yejun took a step back.

“I’m going home.”

Yejun, having packed his things, left the cafe. A sunshower was falling again today.

“Hoo….”

Yejun, who glanced once at the clear sky where the bright sunlight was shining dazzlingly, opened his transparent umbrella and entered the street. He was worried that his constantly flowing tears would be more visible on a bright day, and soon he hung his head.

Yejun walked while looking at the sea today, just like that day. He slowly walked around and arrived at the house with the impressive red roof. Junhyuk, who was standing leaning against the wall, smiled and approached him. Yejun was becoming soaked in him again, just like when they were twenty.

“Where have you been?”

“……”