#50
Today again, Eunsol had to wake up before Hyun-oh and take care of the aftermath.
The unfolding situations were all too overwhelming for Eunsol to handle calmly. The contraceptive pill issue had been resolved, and his body was relaxing into a languid state, but conversely, his mind, which had been slack, was now tensing up.
“It will be difficult to do alone.”
While washing his body might be easy, completely removing the traces left by the alpha who had touched him would still be too challenging for Eunsol. Realizing what Hyun-oh’s gesture indicated, Eunsol’s mouth opened in surprise.
The heat that had seemed to be subsiding suddenly surged up to the crown of his head.
As memories of the previous night’s activities, which had left him breathless, came flooding back, Eunsol began waving his hands in agitation.
“I-I’m fine.”
Hyun-oh’s sharp gaze scanned Eunsol from head to toe. His complexion had improved significantly since Hyun-oh had found him crawling on the floor.
It seemed there would be no danger if he only moved around in the bathtub. Besides, unless Eunsol was still asleep, Hyun-oh couldn’t force someone who refused to be bathed.
“Alright. Then wash up and come out. I need to apply medicine to your wounds too.”
With only those words, Hyun-oh turned and left the bathroom. Only after being left alone did Eunsol exhale a long breath that had filled his chest.
Ripples spread across the water’s surface with his breath. Eunsol reached out his hand, adding to the flow of the ripples. Like the undulating water, endless waves also rippled through Eunsol’s eyes.
* * *
“You’ve been looking more listless these days.”
“Ah…”
Eunsol refocused his hazy attention at the elegant voice that reached his ears.
“Turn around once. Then extend your hand so we can see the bracelet clearly.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Kang Ye-ryeong lifted her teacup as she stated her requirements to the model standing before her. The model with a slender figure elegantly turned in front of Kang Ye-ryeong.
Then, as the thin wrist was extended to showcase the bracelet in detail, Kang Ye-ryeong picked up her tablet PC and checked all the products the model was wearing.
“Did something happen between you and Hyun-oh?”
At those words, Eunsol, who had been lifting his teacup to take a sip of tea, choked.
“Cough, cough…”
“Oh my, drink more slowly. What’s the rush?”
Kang Ye-ryeong clicked her tongue as she patted the back of Eunsol, whose small face had turned bright red from coughing.
“Bring some lukewarm water, please.”
An employee standing by behind the sofa where Eunsol and Kang Ye-ryeong sat bowed and quickly brought water.
“This time, drink slowly. Don’t choke again.”
“…Thank you.”
Eunsol clutched his throat, which felt a stinging pain, and bowed his head to Kang Ye-ryeong. After steadying his rough breathing and taking a few sips of water, thankfully the choking subsided.
“Let’s take a short break. Please have everyone leave for now.”
“Understood.”
At Kang Ye-ryeong’s command, the models who had been posing and walking as if the room were a runway simultaneously stopped moving. Following the employee’s guidance, the models left the room, and finally, the employee also bowed to Kang Ye-ryeong before departing.
By now, only Eunsol and Kang Ye-ryeong remained in the spacious room. This was because Kang Ye-ryeong had also dismissed both her secretary and Eunsol’s secretary.
“Has there been progress between you two? There’s something subtly different about your skin compared to before.”
Having turned completely to face Eunsol, Kang Ye-ryeong’s curious gaze met Eunsol’s directly.
“Now that it’s just the two of us, open up honestly. Where else could you talk about Hyun-oh?”
As Kang Ye-ryeong said, Eunsol had no one to discuss such matters with. In fact, he could count on one hand the people he had everyday conversations with.
Ryu Jeong-woo was the only one he could call a friend, but even with him, Eunsol couldn’t easily talk about Hyun-oh. Although he knew Jeong-woo was a good person, he worried that something he said might negatively affect Hyun-oh.
However, Kang Ye-ryeong was Hyun-oh’s mother. Though the relationship between mother and son wasn’t particularly affectionate, it wasn’t worse than that of strangers, like between Eunsol and his father and stepmother.
From their first meeting, Kang Ye-ryeong had treated Eunsol well simply because he was Hyun-oh’s spouse.
Since then, whenever she had time, Kang Ye-ryeong would take Eunsol to social gatherings she attended, and like now, when she went shopping, she would invite him and gift him many expensive items, more than he deserved.
“…It’s nothing. I think I’ve just been dazed because the weather has been getting warmer lately.”
But Eunsol couldn’t reveal his honest feelings even to Kang Ye-ryeong. In truth, Eunsol didn’t even know what he was feeling right now. Strangely enough, though it was his own heart, looking into it felt like examining the world’s most difficult puzzle.
Since that first night of physical intimacy with Hyun-oh, a peculiar atmosphere had lingered in the spaces they shared. More precisely, it had been that way since Eunsol had brought up the topic of contraceptive pills.
After Eunsol had finished bathing, Hyun-oh sat him down and applied ointment to the bruises all over his body. Perhaps thanks to what Eunsol had said, Hyun-oh didn’t hand him any pills to take.
Afterward, he gave Eunsol new pajamas and was the first to lie down on the bed so that Eunsol wouldn’t feel uncomfortable. The bed had already been neatly made, perhaps cleaned up while Eunsol was bathing.
Eunsol carefully lay down on his back beside Hyun-oh, who had his eyes firmly closed. When Eunsol woke up the next day, the space next to him was already cold.
He hurriedly rose from the bed, but immediately sat back down. The aftermath of their intense lovemaking still lingered in his body.
With staggering steps, he searched the entire house, but Hyun-oh had already left for work. From there, Eunsol took to his sickbed. For three full days and nights.
‘Please take this medicine.’
With a fever, when Eunsol closed his eyes, he would immediately lose consciousness. Yet whenever he woke, he would first reach for the spot next to him. But all he felt was the coolness of the sheets.
Instead, Eunsol only encountered the servants who were taking care of him. They would approach whenever he opened his eyes, offering porridge along with medicine.
‘Umm…’
He wanted to ask if Hyun-oh had come home and left. Even with his blurry vision due to the fever, whenever he opened his eyes, he would glance at the clock on the bedside table.
There were times when Hyun-oh wouldn’t be home, but even during the hours when he should have returned from work, Eunsol was still alone.
However, faced with the pitying gazes of the servants, Eunsol suppressed what he wanted to say and simply swallowed the medicine they offered.
Even though he took it with water, the bitter taste of the pill lingered in his mouth for a long time, making him swallow his saliva repeatedly.
Being sick made his thoughts turn negative. As fate would have it, the last time he had seen Hyun-oh’s face was right after their first intimate night together. Additionally, because of his verbal slip, an awkward air had formed between them.
‘…Why did I do that?’
Because of this, every time he came to his senses, Eunsol had to continuously blame himself. Intimacy was a significant part of married life, and he couldn’t bear how pathetic he felt for not even handling that properly.
Even after recovering from his illness, seeing Hyun-oh’s face wasn’t easy.
After that day, Hyun-oh frequently spent nights at the company. Even when he came home, he would immediately bathe, lie down on the bed, and then wake up at dawn to leave for work.
‘…Hyun-oh.’
Once, afraid of missing Hyun-oh again, Eunsol had stayed up all night. He had woken up earlier, made a simple juice, and tried to speak to Hyun-oh as he passed by the kitchen.
‘I appreciate the effort, but I need to leave right away.’
Hyun-oh’s gaze fell on the glass of juice in Eunsol’s hand but quickly moved away. Eunsol couldn’t stop him as he walked toward the front door with large strides, truly seeming busy. He could only watch blankly as the broad back rapidly disappeared from his sight.
Nearly a month passed like this. With their relationship becoming even more distant than before, Eunsol sighed at every opportunity. If he didn’t, the tightness filling his chest wouldn’t ease, making him feel like he couldn’t breathe.
“Your expression is too serious to claim it’s nothing.”
Kang Ye-ryeong gripped Eunsol’s shoulder, bringing him back from his deep thoughts. His unfocused eyes had been staring blankly at some spot on the table, lost in thought.
“I-I’m sorry.”
Only then realizing that he had been deeply lost in his own thoughts, Eunsol hurriedly apologized to Kang Ye-ryeong. Out of anxiety, his index finger kept rubbing the tender skin beside his thumb.
“Stop that. You’ll make yourself bleed.”
Kang Ye-ryeong firmly grabbed Eunsol’s hand.
In many ways, Eunsol was a curious child from Kang Ye-ryeong’s perspective. Despite her constant efforts to treat him well, he still found her intimidating. Even now, she hadn’t scolded him but merely expressed her thoughts.
Though he had become lost in thought during their conversation, there was no reason for her to scold him, yet Eunsol’s eyes trembled violently as if he had committed a grave mistake.
“My son is a bit cold, I admit. You’ve seen how he is with me.”
Eunsol’s social circle was narrow. Just herself, her husband, and one acquaintance, that was all.
She had already witnessed firsthand the nature of his relationship with his birth family. Growing up in such a home environment, it was understandable that he was overly conscious of others even for trivial matters.
But he wasn’t like that with everyone.
Fundamentally, he had a gentle and kind nature, but that didn’t mean he approached everyone with a subservient attitude or engaged in behaviors that might make him seem easily dismissed. He knew how to act with firmness towards his secretary and the house servants.
‘He’s starved for affection.’
The person Eunsol was particularly withdrawn around was Hyun-oh. And since she was Hyun-oh’s mother, he was exceptionally deferential to her as well.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
