Chapter 109
Startled, Cheong-yeon instinctively pulled the blanket in his hands over his head and hid under the sheets.
Though it was a somewhat one-dimensional avoidance, at present, he couldn’t think of a more effective way to avoid Do-heon.
Damn it. What should I say? Cheong-yeon nibbled on his lower lip with a serious expression as he pondered.
During this time, the events right before he had passed out yesterday came back to him in detail.
He had been seriously telling Do-heon why he detested him when he suddenly started gagging, and from then on, he was half out of his mind trying to empty his stomach.
And then he pushed away Do-heon who was trying to take off his upper garment and wipe his face, making a scene with unreasonable defiance, telling him not to interfere.
“Haah…”
Cheong-yeon let out a deep sigh. Just then, Do-heon’s footsteps began approaching the bed. Cheong-yeon perked up his ears, listening to his footsteps.
He seemed to have stopped right beside the bed, as his presence could be felt through the white blanket.
He could have just calmly said he could manage on his own, but yesterday, he was so angry at Do-heon and overwhelmed by dark, gloomy emotions that he had pushed him away while sobbing helplessly as he tried to help. How embarrassing.
Fortunately, thanks to falling asleep after that scene, his body felt refreshed without any bloating or headache. Maybe Do-heon had given him medicine while he was asleep.
What had Do-heon’s expression been like then? His memory was blurry, and nothing came to mind. Only the sensation of bile rising from inside his throat and a tightness in his solar plexus remained vivid.
Cheong-yeon sullenly fiddled with the edge of the blanket in his hand. Still, nothing went as he wanted in front of Do-heon. By this point, he was angry at himself for being so foolish.
“Are you going to stay in bed?”
“…”
Despite Do-heon’s question, Cheong-yeon remained silent instead of lowering the blanket.
“Well, that’s fine too. Rest and get up when you feel like it.”
“…”
“I’ve hung your clothes in the closet, so take them out when you need them.”
Surprised by the mention that his clothes had been washed, Cheong-yeon quickly pulled down the blanket.
“What about your clothes, Director?”
He recalled that some of the vomit had definitely gotten on Do-heon’s clothes yesterday.
“I bought new ones.”
“Ah.”
Do-heon had already changed into a fresh suit for work.
Though Cheong-yeon expected him to look at him pathetically, he was expressionless as usual.
“Since you said you can’t stand the sight of anything I buy for you, I sent yours to the laundry service.”
“Yes…”
Cheong-yeon lowered his head, not knowing how to react.
Did he come all the way to the bed just to say that? Cheong-yeon’s eyes awkwardly rolled around, unable to find a place to focus.
When Do-heon continued standing in front of him without leaving, Cheong-yeon’s mind became complicated, wondering if there was another mistake he couldn’t remember.
“Yesterday you were cursing me as a bastard. Why are you so quiet today?”
Cheong-yeon flinched, feeling preemptively caught by the dry voice. He was perplexed, unable to understand the intention behind his words.
“That’s because you spoke harshly first, Director…”
“Do you still not feel well?”
As Cheong-yeon kept answering in an increasingly timid voice, Do-heon cut him off, approached closer, and reached out his hand.
He seemed to want to check if Cheong-yeon had a fever, but once again, Cheong-yeon reflexively turned his head away.
“…”
“…”
An awkward silence hung in the air for a brief moment.
Cheong-yeon tidied his disheveled hair, and Do-heon stood still with his hands on his waist before quickly unbuttoning his jacket that had been buttoned up, as if feeling stuffy.
Even though he had only moved slightly, a faint scent of shampoo wafted from him.
A beat later, Cheong-yeon’s eyes widened.
“Ah. Are you going to do it now?”
When he asked, unable to hide his confusion, Do-heon’s brow furrowed slightly as if trying to gauge what he meant.
“Do what?”
“Sex…”
Cheong-yeon muttered as if it were obvious. Since he had suddenly unbuttoned his jacket, Cheong-yeon thought he was undressing to sleep with him.
“Since we couldn’t yesterday, I thought you were going to do it now.”
Do-heon’s gaze fell on Cheong-yeon, who was wearing a hotel robe.
“Do you want to?”
“What if I say no?”
“Then I should get going to work.”
Was it a joke or was he serious? It was difficult to grasp how to react to such an ambiguous statement that was unlike him.
“…Then, go to work.”
After deliberation, when he parroted back exactly what Do-heon had said, Do-heon chuckled.
“Eat something when you wake up later.”
“What about you, Director? Have you already eaten breakfast?”
“No.”
At his concise answer, Cheong-yeon suddenly remembered what the employee had said and felt unsettled.
If it was true that Do-heon originally ate breakfast very simply, then that means no one enjoyed such lavish breakfasts for three years.
Along with the question of who or what those meals were for, a sense of emptiness swept over him.
“Ah, right. Director.”
Seeing Do-heon putting on the watch he had placed on the nightstand, Cheong-yeon urgently stopped him.
“From now on, please don’t send money to my uncle and Hyung.”
“Why?”
From Cheong-yeon’s perspective, he was just saying what needed to be said to rectify a misaligned situation, but Do-heon responded as if he didn’t understand.
“They should solve their own problems now. Whether it’s part-time jobs or work. It’s my Hyung’s tuition, after all.”
“It’ll be inconvenient for you. Are you sure?”
“…”
It sounded as if the reason he had been giving money all this time was for Cheong-yeon’s sake. Cheong-yeon momentarily lost his words and blankly looked up at Do-heon.
Certainly, if Do-heon stopped providing money, his family would come looking for him and nag incessantly. Given his uncle and Hyung’s personalities, they wouldn’t stay quiet when the privileges they had received just by sitting around disappeared.
But that didn’t mean he could let them continue taking money from Do-heon. Now that he knew about it, it was something that shouldn’t be repeated.
“Still, it doesn’t make sense for you to give tuition and living expenses to my family, Director.”
Just thinking about his family shamelessly and boldly demanding money from him for years made his face flush with embarrassment.
“They need to solve this themselves now. No, even if we weren’t divorced, receiving money from the beginning itself was wrong. Even if they come to me, I think it’s something I should handle.”
Do-heon crossed his arms and fell into thought for a moment.
“If you’re going to continue acting, reconsider.”
“…”
“Having family matters exposed to the public is absolutely not good from a marketing perspective. Although it hasn’t happened yet, there’s no need to leave open the possibility of such negative outcomes.”
“So you’re saying you’ll continue giving money like you’ve been doing until now?”
“Is there any reason not to?”
Do-heon questioned back.
“…Doesn’t it annoy you?”
Did it really not bother him to provide a substantial monthly amount to people who weren’t even related by blood?
No matter how wealthy a person is, it can’t be pleasant to support such shameless individuals. It would be even more of a thorn in the side for someone like Do-heon, who calculates everything from a business perspective in terms of practical benefit.
“Well. Director Yoo Jung-jae died because of me, and above all, they’re your family, so I haven’t thought about disliking it.”
Do-heon tilted his head while touching his chin.
Director Yoo Jung-jae was Cheong-yeon’s uncle. And his uncle had passed away three years ago in a traffic accident while guarding Do-heon in the United States.
Only then did Cheong-yeon think that perhaps Do-heon might not have been helping his family without any expectations in return.
“I judged there was no need to tell you, knowing you would worry if you found out, like now.”
“…”
Cheong-yeon felt grateful but also suddenly afraid. Do-heon’s words always came with a price as good as they sounded.
Knowing there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Cheong-yeon couldn’t perceive this as pure goodwill.
As a certain thought suddenly surged, Cheong-yeon bit his lower lip with an anxious expression. Then he carefully grabbed the end of Do-heon’s jacket.
“Perhaps.”
“What?”
“Are you… trying to make me indebted again with family matters, to blackmail me?”
After hesitation, Cheong-yeon asked while gauging his reaction. Due to nervousness, his voice cracked at the end.
“…”
Do-heon was about to say something but then completely closed his mouth.
As he stared at Cheong-yeon, something about his face seemed strange. He looked both angry and, in another sense, surprised.
With such an enigmatic response, Cheong-yeon became more anxious about his words becoming reality.
Though a complacent thought that Do-heon wouldn’t go that far still remained in a corner of his mind, in truth, the minimal trust he had held in him had been shattered long ago.
Cheong-yeon still couldn’t forget the shock he had received the day Do-heon mentioned his staff to intimidate him. That’s why he was more anxious.
“You don’t need to give money. I really don’t need it. If you ask me to repay all the money you’ve given so far, I’ll pay it all back, even if it takes time.”
Unlike yesterday when he was extremely agitated and emotional, Cheong-yeon tried to persuade Do-heon in as calm a tone as possible.
“I… I’m really struggling just with what’s happening now. There’s no need to involve my uncle and Hyung too… You know that I have nowhere to run to now, Director.”
This time, Do-heon’s expression completely crumpled.
“I don’t…”
He hesitated for a moment, his words blocked, then opened his mouth again.
“I have no intention of blackmailing using family. As I said, they’re your family too, and there’s also the matter with Director Yoo Jung-jae, so I was just trying to help.”
“Ah.”
After nodding at his words saying that wasn’t his intention, Cheong-yeon couldn’t shake off his anxiety and swallowed dryly.
“Yesterday… you told me not to lie.”
Due to nervousness, Cheong-yeon’s lowered eyelids were trembling slightly.
“I, I don’t feel grateful at all when you say you’ll help me now. I just… I’m too scared.”
“Cheong-yeon.”
“Even if I find myself in a difficult situation, please don’t do anything. Let me solve it on my own. I think that would give me peace of mind.”
Cheong-yeon grasped his collar tightly and implored him earnestly.
“The abyss you talked about… I’m afraid it would be too painful for me.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
