Chapter 61
He managed to hit the ball that barely came over. He needed to quickly correct his posture, but the tall figure on the other side of the court lightly jumped into the air and smashed the small ball, no bigger than a palm, directly onto the floor across the court. Woo Tae-joo quickly sprang up, but he couldn’t handle the speed of the incoming ball. Without time to extend his knees, he only stretched out his arms, lost his balance, and fell flat on the court.
Groaning, Woo Tae-joo threw his racket and lay spread-eagle on the floor. Strength was one thing, but to have such jumping power with that massive body was unfair. Even elephants humbly walk on the ground under the law of gravity, but this guy…
“Hyung, are you secretly taking some health tonic?”
Woo Tae-joo stuck out his tongue in amazement. That man, despite being older than him, never seemed to tire no matter what sport they played. He had mentioned being in rut recently – did he save up his energy then? He didn’t know his stamina could be so monstrous. If anything, he seemed to be flying around even more than before.
“You’re just weak,” Woo Hyun-se said, lifting the hem of his top to wipe the sweat from his face. Woo Tae-joo marveled once again at the exposed abs and firm chest. The tightly woven muscles weren’t for show but were clearly functional.
Well, it was only now in his older years that he would play golf or tennis with him. In the past, he wouldn’t even look at him when he begged to play. Back when Woo Hyun-se wore a school uniform, he was obsessed with unfamiliar martial arts like boxing and Krav Maga.
When was it? Once in high school, he had somehow ended up at Woo Hyun-se’s office. He couldn’t remember why he went, but the Woo Hyun-se he saw that day was still vivid in his memory.
Despite it being a cold winter day, Woo Hyun-se was wearing only a single layer shirt. Even that was disheveled. The top three buttons were undone, and the cuffs and collar were a crumpled mess.
But more than anything, what caught his eye were Woo Hyun-se’s bruised knuckles and the dark red stains scattered on his shirt. Thinking he was hurt, Woo Tae-joo rushed over in a panic and asked, but Woo Hyun-se said it wasn’t his blood. To Woo Tae-joo’s half-joking, half-serious question about whether he had been slaughtering pigs, Woo Hyun-se smiled as he always did.
‘As a matter of fact, I just came from a farm.’
Woo Hyun-se answered enigmatically as he changed into a spare shirt hanging on the coat rack. But at the time, Woo Tae-joo thought it was just him playing along with his joke.
Later, when he became old enough to legally drink, he casually asked Woo Hyun-se about that past incident. Where did he get so much blood on him? Furrowing his brow as if he had completely forgotten, Woo Hyun-se searched his memory before going “Ah” and smiling the same way as back then. Despite the benign smile, the blood stains he saw that day seemed to overlay Woo Hyun-se, making the back of Woo Tae-joo’s neck feel chilly for no reason.
‘It was a bit rough when I was just getting established.’
Woo Hyun-se laughed it off as youthful recklessness. Woo Tae-joo wanted to ask what kind of work required him to throw punches like that, or if he was involved with gangsters, but he never got the chance as Woo Hyun-se kept plying him with drinks without giving him a break.
Even now, Woo Tae-joo didn’t know exactly what Woo Hyun-se did for a living. He only knew superficially that he was a wealthy businessman who owned several clubs, bars, and successful restaurants.
“You’re still sprawled out.”
After lying down for just a moment, Woo Hyun-se had crossed the court and nudged Woo Tae-joo’s shoulder with his foot. Woo Tae-joo whined and stretched out his arms, asking to be helped up like a child coaxing their mother, but only received a contemptuous look. Grumbling, Woo Tae-joo got up on his own.
“That’s too much. When your cute little brother asks to be helped up, you could at least offer a hand.”
“A grown-ass man being disgusting.”
“Eeng,” Woo Tae-joo shook his chest. While not as impressive as Woo Hyun-se’s, his chest had nicely defined muscles from working out. As he puffed out his chest like a preening bird and moved it side to side, Woo Hyun-se shuddered with a pale face as if he’d seen something revolting. The goosebumps on his neck were visible to the naked eye.
Sensing that any more teasing might result in that fist coming down on his head, Woo Tae-joo grinned and took a step back. Knowing when to strike and when to retreat was key to a smooth life.
After all that running around, their bodies were drenched in sweat despite the mid-winter chill. Feeling too grimy to leave as is, they first stopped by the sauna in the building’s basement. Woo Tae-joo succeeded in dragging Woo Hyun-se along by clinging to his waist when he said he was going to leave. After all, the sauna wasn’t a place to go alone.
They sweated out the last drops in the hot room and came out to shower. Luckily, the shower room was empty, so Woo Tae-joo hummed a tune as he found a spot. Woo Hyun-se came in a step behind.
“Whoa…” With a pervert-like exclamation, Woo Tae-joo looked Woo Hyun-se up and down from head to toe. The proportions were one thing, but something else caught his eye involuntarily. ‘Genitals’ was too cute a term; ‘weapon’ would be more appropriate. It was a size and thickness you’d only expect to see in Western porn. If it was that big when flaccid, then when erect… Though he didn’t want to imagine it, the thought came unbidden, and he fake-retched.
“Are all alphas this big?”
“What?”
Woo Hyun-se turned on the shower one stall over. Woo Tae-joo leaned back and pointed with his chin at Woo Hyun-se’s lower region. Woo Hyun-se followed the gaze, lowering his head, then turned away with a disinterested expression.
“You’re human but carrying a weapon. You should definitely get a ring for that thing, hyung.”
“It goes in all the way fine without one.”
“Is that person okay? Still alive?”
“They do struggle during the act.”
“Wooh,” Woo Tae-joo booed. Woo Hyun-se remained nonchalant, saying he was just stating facts. Sensing this wasn’t a topic to pursue further, Woo Tae-joo fell silent for a moment before speaking up as something occurred to him.
“Hyung, can you recommend a good place for health tonics?”
“Why? For yourself?”
“No, for that person I mentioned before. I want to take care of them.”
After being absent for a few days, Kwon Si-yul had returned looking much thinner. He said he had the flu. There had been no response to texts or calls, apparently because he was sick. While his flowing hair and fair skin still looked lovely, overall he had become rather gaunt.
It bothered Woo Tae-joo. Si-yul was already so weak he could barely throw a garbage bag properly, and now he had lost weight on top of that. It was impossible not to worry.
When invited out for meat, Si-yul declined, and he refused offers to go eat restorative foods too. The only option left was to give him health tonics as a gift. Surely he would at least take one packet out of consideration for the thoughtfulness.
“Didn’t you whine about being rejected last time?”
“I wasn’t whining! And it was just one rejection.”
Woo Tae-joo had clung to Woo Hyun-se asking for drinks on the day he received a firm refusal from Kwon Si-yul. He had dragged out the reluctant Woo Hyun-se with threats of breaking into his home, and they had drunk all through the night. He had poured drinks down his throat, unsure if the alcohol was consuming him or he was consuming it, until he blacked out completely after getting drunk. Still, Woo Hyun-se hadn’t abandoned him on some street corner but had taken him home.
“It seems hopeless. Why don’t you give up? Didn’t he say he has someone he likes?”
Cold and detached as it wasn’t his own affair. But Woo Tae-joo didn’t falter. His motto was that no tree wouldn’t fall after ten strikes. Even if there was someone in Kwon Si-yul’s heart, couldn’t he just push them out and take that place himself? It’s not like he hadn’t stolen someone with a partner before, and with that successful experience, Woo Tae-joo was confident.
“I don’t want to give up. And my feelings won’t disappear easily.”
“You like him that much?”
“The more I see him, the more I like him. Even the way he’s been putting up walls since that day, I like that too.”
He might not care about others’ views, but he wasn’t completely tactless. He knew that Kwon Si-yul had been keeping his distance since his clumsy confession. Still, he didn’t mind. He would stick to the position of a friend and gradually expand his territory. Until one day, Si-yul would wonder where he was when he wasn’t around.
“I wish he would like me. I could treat him so well.”
In the midst of his enthusiastic chatter, the sound of water suddenly stopped. Had he finished showering already? When Woo Tae-joo looked up quizzically, Woo Hyun-se was calmly crossing the shower room, rubbing his hair with the towel he had draped over the partition.
“If you’re late coming out, I’m leaving without you.”
“Ah, hyung!”
He had been so focused on talking that he hadn’t even washed his hair. Knowing that Woo Hyun-se was a man of his word, Woo Tae-joo hurriedly poured shampoo on his head and scrubbed vigorously, not wanting to be left behind. He had thought Woo Hyun-se kind for taking him home when he was drunk, but as expected, he was a cold and heartless person.
* * *
Si-yul awkwardly rubbed his cheek in front of the mirror in the changing room. Lately, it seemed he had some luck with food as it kept coming from all directions. He felt like he was about to burst just from what Woo Hyun-se provided, but there was also a parade of food at the store.
The chef, saying Si-yul’s jawline looked too sharp as if he had lost too much weight, served him mainly fried and stir-fried dishes. When he tried to lean against the bar for a moment, the bartender would silently approach and pop a snack into his mouth. Even Manager Kang secretly stuffed jellies into his pocket before disappearing.
Do I look that pitiful?
Thanks to Woo Hyun-se’s meticulous care, he had gained weight if anything, not lost it. Yet they kept trying to feed him. While he appreciated the sentiment, it was also burdensome.
