Ch 20

<20>

 

4 Months Before That Day (7)

 

When Eunho opened his eyes again, he was in an unfamiliar space shrouded in pitch-black darkness. After wondering where he was, Eunho soon realized he was lying on a hospital bed.

 

Had his fever subsided? When he opened his eyes, he didn’t feel the heat that had been trapped inside him leaking out, but he was still dizzy. Usually, right before he caught a cold, he would get a migraine and his body would ache as if it were being crushed, but it was his first time collapsing in his sleep without any warning signs, so he was a little flustered.

 

As he tried to lift his arm, Eunho felt an unfamiliar weight and looked down. Yoonjae, who had been holding his hand and sleeping face down on the bed, slowly raised his head and looked at Eunho. Even though his face was full of fatigue, his heart warmed at the sight of him getting up from his seat, carefully checking on him, and making eye contact.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Judging by the fact that his hand covering his forehead was still cold, he seemed to still have a fever.

 

“If you weren’t feeling well, you should have said something earlier.”

 

“…I didn’t know.”

 

He really didn’t know. As he laughed weakly, wheezing, Yoonjae, who had been covering half of his forehead with his hair, came closer. Just as his vision was darkening and he was about to lose sight of things, he felt soft, moist skin on his forehead. He pressed his lips to his forehead, then carefully stroked his cheek.

 

“Get some more sleep.”

 

“…Executive Director, you should go and get some sleep. I’ll check myself out in the morning.”

 

Half of it was true, and half of it was a lie. To leave him alone in a dark and utterly dry hospital room. Even as he uttered the formal words, a subtle, duplicitous desire for him not to do so was mixed in, and he immediately recognized Eunho’s true feelings.

 

“You have a talent for making people feel bad.”

 

“…….”

 

“Does it make you feel better to say that?”

 

As he lightly shook his listless face from side to side, Yoonjae let out a weak laugh. He carefully touched the back of his hand with the IV line inserted and murmured softly.

 

“Don’t say anything and just sleep. I don’t have any appointments, so don’t feel sorry.”

 

Eunho, who had unintentionally gotten a vacation because of his internal illness, nodded. The moonlight streaming in from the window gently swept over Yoonjae’s face, creating deep shadows. His eyes, with long eyelashes casting long shadows, were deep and intense. Eunho reached out his arms into the air towards him, smiling faintly.

 

Hold me. Without expressing it in words, he only lifted his arms slightly above the sheet, but Yoonjae understood perfectly and gently pulled him into his arms, placing his hands around his back.

 

A deep, refreshing woody scent poured down from his shoulder like a waterfall. As if comforting him not to worry. Eunho closed his eyes and inhaled the pheromones he was releasing to his heart’s content. For some reason, clear tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.

 

***

 

Thanks to the doctors and nurses who made their early rounds from 8 a.m., Eunho woke up early and couldn’t hide his heartache as he looked at Yoonjae, who had fatigue plastered all over his eyes.

 

“I should have just gotten a shot at the emergency room and gone back.”

 

He had barely washed his face and brushed his teeth, and he roughly swept back his unkempt hair. He clearly felt uncomfortable because he hadn’t even brought a change of clothes in his haste to leave.

 

“You’re saying that because you don’t know how chaotic the emergency room was last night.”

 

He knew that he didn’t like noisy places, but a private room was a bit much, considering he would be discharged right away in the morning. Of course, it was convenient because he didn’t have to worry about what other people thought, but it was his first time being hospitalized in a private room for laryngitis and a mild cold, so he was so embarrassed that he wanted to hide in a mouse hole. Eunho, who had glossed over the doctor’s questions during rounds, quickly went through the discharge procedures.

 

His fever had subsided, but his throat was still swollen. His larynx was so swollen that he had to minimize his speech, grimacing every time he swallowed. Yoonjae treated Eunho like a patient who had just been discharged and drew a line, preventing him from doing anything.

 

“Go to the passenger seat.”

 

“I’m uncomfortable with that.”

 

“Just for today.”

 

Yoonjae ended every conversation with “just for today,” to the point where he didn’t know who was the boss and who was the subordinate. Eunho, who could barely receive affection from Hyunjun with material support, couldn’t understand Yoonjae, who only gave unilaterally.

 

“What work is a patient going to do?”

 

“My back hurts from just lying down.”

 

As soon as they arrived at the hotel, Yoonjae, who frowned like crumpled foil at Eunho taking out his laptop and sitting at the living room table, strode over. Afraid that he might press the laptop’s power button like last time, Eunho closed the laptop screen and put it in his arms to prevent it from being taken away.

 

As if reading Eunho’s mind, Yoonjae didn’t come closer but slumped down on the sofa opposite him. He crossed one leg and folded his arms, looking quite displeased.

 

“Try to relax your expression.”

 

When he squeezed out his voice, it came out hoarse, and he must have looked too pitiful, because he unfolded his arms and legs and pulled his upper body forward. He looked so haggard up close. Fatigue was piled up in layers around his dry eyes.

 

“The documents I need to check are the ones that the legal team finalized.”

 

“I still have to check them.”

 

“I checked them. So you don’t have anything to do.”

 

Each time he slowly closed and opened his eyes, his thick eyelashes trembled slightly. He could feel the trembling caused by lack of sleep, and he couldn’t just stand by and watch any longer.

 

“Then put me to sleep.”

 

As he threw out the bait in a slightly reckless tone, Yoonjae, who had been waiting for it, got up from his seat and grabbed Eunho’s arm.

 

“Not here. Executive Director’s room.”

 

Yoonjae, who had thought he was simply telling him to watch him sleep, burst into silent laughter as he read Eunho’s true intentions.

 

In fact, the bed in Yoonjae’s room was a little bigger than the one in Eunho’s room. Perhaps it was because it was the main room, so the infrastructure was well-equipped, but Yoonjae’s room also felt much more comfortable. Above all, it was easier to get out of there if he took him to his room and put him to sleep.

 

As soon as he lay down on the bed, Yoonjae naturally offered one shoulder, so Eunho immediately used his arm as a pillow. Yoonjae, whose eyelids were half-closed, patted Eunho’s back to put him to sleep, but before he could even do it ten times, the patting slowed down and eventually stopped. His chin, which had been touching his forehead, fell limply.

 

If you’re this tired, go in and sleep, why are you watching me? Eunho firmly resolved to quietly slip away in about 10 minutes, but he yawned at the sound of his softly resonating breathing. Was the medicine he took strong? It must be because it contained antibiotics. Eunho gave up on his plan to sneak out and pressed his face against his chest, slowly closing his eyes.

 

A meeting was held between Hanseong Construction, which had entered the foreign-only casino construction project as part of the Jeju Island tourism promotion project, the investment company Yuseong Venture Capital, and the governor and the assemblyman of the district.

 

Even before Yoonjae and Eunho set foot inside, the reception room was overflowing with a friendly atmosphere. Later, thanks to the local reporters who kept flashing their cameras, the conversation proceeded smoothly, and everything was completed in a flash until the signing of the main contract.

 

After the official contract, the reception room door was tightly closed as secret talks took place. Eunho, along with the other accompanying secretaries, organized all the contract details and photos in a separate empty room and shared them with Chief Yoon and the secretarial team.

 

It had been three days since his cell phone was taken away. The first day was as frustrating as if one of his limbs had disappeared, but as time passed, he gradually adapted. Since Yoonjae, who he contacted the most, was by his side and took care of calls from the company on his behalf, there was no one else who would call him except for Hyunjun. Besides, whether he had truly let go of Hyunjun in his heart, the lingering feelings that remained after the difficult first day were somewhat resolved.

 

The moment he turned off his cell phone, his relationship with Hyunjun was irrevocably strained. Eunho seriously pondered how to say goodbye every time he thought about it.

 

Yoonjae finished the luncheon meeting and moved straight to the airport. He finished the check-in process and approached Eunho, who was preparing to board the plane.

 

“Thank you for granting my wish.”

 

Eunho, who received the cell phone he handed over with a nonchalant attitude, put it in his pocket without even turning it on. After all, he couldn’t use it during the flight, and the person who would be on edge if missed call alarms poured out as soon as he turned it on was right in front of him, so it was best to pretend to be indifferent.

 

On the returning plane, Eunho closed his eyes as if he was sleeping, but he constantly worried about how to break up with Hyunjun. He was filled with the thought that he wished he would say let’s break up first, since they had been out of contact for several days.

 

In fact, Eunho couldn’t bring himself to say let’s break up first. He couldn’t bear the guilt if Hyunjun ruined his exam because of the shock of the breakup. He just wanted Hyunjun to yell at him, saying that he was very disappointed in him and break up with him.

 

After landing, Eunho took the car out of the long-term parking lot and got into the driver’s seat. Yoonjae had driven more often than he, the secretary, while they were in Jeju Island, which made him subtly nervous. Even while walking from the airport to the parking lot, he had a hard time stopping Yoonjae, who was walking quickly to grab the steering wheel.

 

“Since you have a suitcase, let’s go to Eunho’s house first. I’ll take care of the driving from there.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“By any chance.”

 

Yoonjae, who had deliberately sat in the passenger seat instead of the back seat, spoke while looking ahead.

 

“If you need anything from me, call me anytime. Don’t worry about the time.”

 

At his words, the hand holding the steering wheel flinched and trembled. Yoonjae often acted as if he could see right through Eunho’s thoughts. As if he knew that he was going to meet Hyunjun today to prepare for a breakup.

 

“Yes.”

 

He felt as stuffy as if he had indigestion. His throat was already tightening as he tried to end a relationship that had lasted for over three years.

 

Eunho parked the car near the officetel, got out of the driver’s seat, and took the carrier out of the trunk. He gave Yoonjae, who came out of the passenger seat, a thank-you look and quickly turned around because he noticed that he was trying to hold him back.

 

He wanted to quickly end his relationship with Hyunjun, which had already gone wrong. Yoonjae had pulled the bowstring of the breakup by taking his cell phone, so it was up to Eunho to hit the target.

 

As soon as Eunho came home, he turned on his cell phone. Contrary to his expectations, there were no common messages other than two missed calls. Eunho, who had expected a strong-toned message to be there, stared blankly at the screen with a somewhat confused expression before going out in the clothes he was wearing.

 

Eunho, who was about to call Hyunjun, was afraid that he would be nervous and stammer if he heard his voice, so he sent him a message asking where he was now, that he wanted to meet him, and waited for a reply. Even the fingers typing the message were trembling.

 

For Eunho, who aimed for a life of living vaguely together, fighting or cutting off relationships required great courage. The fact that he was already under a lot of stress even before he started was proof of that. He was not cruel by nature, so he was told that he was kind and considerate wherever he went, but to put it badly, it was just another way of saying he was a pushover.

 

Five minutes passed without any sign of the message being read. After all, it was evening, so he couldn’t be sleeping, and at best, he would be at home, the academy, or the study room.

 

Since he didn’t know the exact location of the academy and study room, he planned to go to his house first and wait until he could get in touch with him. Even while hailing a taxi parked on the side of the road and calling out the address, his chin was trembling and his palms were wet with sweat.

 

‘I think I’ve done enough, I can’t wait any longer, let’s break up.’

 

Eunho memorized the entire sentence so that he wouldn’t be flustered or stammer when he met Hyunjun face to face.

 

Why is my heart racing and trembling so much over this? I wouldn’t have any heart left if I broke up twice. Eunho kept repeating what he had to say and randomly threw his gaze at the scenery outside the car window.

 

Eunho, who got out of the taxi, kept an eye on the coffee shop located close to the villa where Hyunjun lived.

 

‘Should I call him there to talk? No. There are too many eyes watching, so let’s go to his house first, and if I can’t meet him, let’s think about it again then.’

 

Eunho took out his cell phone and called Hyunjun’s number.

 

-The phone is turned off, so you will be connected to voicemail after the beep……

 

His footsteps stopped abruptly.

 

‘Oh, so his cell phone has been turned off all this time?’

 

Eunho, who had been upset that Hyunjun had deliberately ignored his message, suddenly had an ominous feeling when he heard that the phone was turned off.

 

What if something had happened? He had firmly believed it was a rut because of Yoonjae’s words, but if that wasn’t the case and he was in danger at the time, or if he was so depressed that he contacted him like he was, then the story would be different.

 

Eunho quickened his pace and eventually ran like crazy. He wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if he had turned a blind eye to an accident and let time pass.

 

He ran so frantically that he arrived at the 3rd floor of the villa where Hyunjun lived in an instant. His heart was pounding as if it would explode and his breathing was rough, but without even taking a moment to catch his breath, he unlocked the door lock and hurriedly opened the door.

 

The moment he opened the front door, he instinctively recoiled as a jumbled pheromone rushed deep into his lungs. It was as if he had touched a Pandora’s box that should not have been opened.

 

The fact that Hyunjun and someone else were in the house together could be easily inferred from the pheromones and the unfamiliar shoes placed in front of the front door, even though he hadn’t seen them directly. In a fleeting moment, Eunho was at a crossroads, wondering whether to bury the secret and run away or to confirm the truth.

 

As he heard mumbling voices from inside the closed room, a warning to run away rang loudly in his head. But unlike what he was thinking in his head, his body didn’t move. His feet wouldn’t move as if he had heavy weights attached to his ankles, and as he hesitated, the door opened and an unfamiliar man walked out.

 

“……Who are you?”

 

The man, who came out wearing a loose shirt and shorts, had buttoned the buttons wrong, as if he had been taking them off until just now, and even then, he had only buttoned two of them, barely covering his chest. Eunho lost his words as he looked at Hyunjun, who was putting on his clothes behind the unidentified man.

 

“Who are you to just come into this house?”

 

The man, who seemed to know nothing, blatantly revealed an unpleasant expression and looked back and forth between Hyunjun and Eunho. The fact that he had opened the door lock meant that they were close, and the man, who immediately recognized that Eunho was an omega, instinctively judged that the two were not in an ordinary relationship.

 

“Ha…….”

 

His frustrated heart eventually turned into a humid sigh. Eunho had sometimes imagined this when Hyunjun was reluctant to meet him. Does he have a hidden lover? The words he had grumbled as a half-joke became a reality and unfolded before his eyes, and the feeling was quite different.

 

Standing in front of the unfamiliar man who was coming out on the offensive, Eunho took another breath, which he had been panting from running up. Suddenly, he felt so pathetic for having run all the way here out of concern for Hyunjun.

 

As Eunho continued to remain silent, the man, who was getting more and more angry, cornered Hyunjun, who was standing behind him and only looking around.

 

“Who is this person?”

 

“Ah, that’s, well.”

 

“Were you two-timing me?”

 

Judging from the context, it seemed that Hyunjun had been meeting this man while pretending to be single. He didn’t know how long they had been together, but at least it wasn’t a one-night stand that he had suddenly called because of his rut. He seemed to know the house better than anyone else, and he was quite natural.

 

Eunho’s gaze shifted to Hyunjun. His damp eyes, trying to avoid the crisis, were trembling uneasily. Hyunjun, who had been looking back and forth between Eunho and the unfamiliar man, turned his gaze to the man next to him, as if he had decided to switch sides.

 

“No, two-timing? We’ve already broken up.”