Chapter 63
“I’m uncomfortable listening to this anymore, so I’ll excuse myself.”
“Sit down.”
As Taekyung tried to stand up, Han Taeseok looked at his son. Han Taekyung sighed and sat back down.
“Yuhan.”
“Yes, Father.”
“First, we don’t oppose you spending your heat cycle together. That’s an issue you two need to resolve, so discuss it well with Taekyung and make a decision. You’ve been engaged for a long time, and you’re in a relationship that should lead to marriage, so it seems right for you two to plan your future together.”
“Thank you for your permission.”
“And regarding the security guard issue, I’ll look into whether there’s a better person and then make a decision. After all, it’s important to consider Athlete Seo’s wishes, and I need to discuss it with Instructor Kim as well. However, when you marry Taekyung in the future, you’ll become part of NI, and treating people like objects doesn’t look good. It would be better for you to be careful.”
“Yes, I think I misspoke. I’m just too close and comfortable with Igeon. I apologize. I’ll be more careful in the future. But Father, I won’t accept any close protection other than Igeon. If Igeon isn’t available, I’m fine maintaining things as they are now.”
“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind. Now that seems to be settled, let’s all eat. We don’t get together often, so it would be a waste of time. Right?”
Han Taeseok smiled gently as he looked at his partner, Jaekyung. Jaekyung nodded and responded with an equally warm smile. The heavy atmosphere that had prevailed until just now melted away instantly. Han Taekyung resumed eating, and Jae-woo and Tae-eun shrugged at each other before continuing their meal. In contrast, Kang Yuhan stopped eating, looked at Han Taekyung once, and then slowly resumed eating. As ordinary and everyday conversation began to flow, Igeon too was able to stop feeling tense. Why had Kang Yuhan brought up such a topic? Did he really want him? One could think of it in such innocent terms, but somehow it didn’t feel pure. His attitude just now was identical to how he treated the secretaries in front of the executive office. Why? There was something off about Kang Yuhan. No, I’m on duty right now. I shouldn’t think about other things.
“Igeon hyung!”
Jae-woo, who had finished his meal, approached Igeon with a bright smile. Igeon looked at Jae-woo once and, since he needed to report on the current situation, radioed Instructor Kim.
[Let’s switch in 30 minutes. You need to eat too.]
“No, I’m fine. I don’t plan to have dinner. I’ll just maintain my position here.”
[No way. You have to eat. You need to stand guard all night, and your energy will drop. I’ll send someone in 30 minutes.]
“Understood.”
After ending the radio transmission, Igeon glanced at Han Taekyung. He was talking with his fathers in the living room. Since it was closer than the dining room and directly visible, Igeon thought he could stay put. When Jae-woo realized that no matter how much he called, Igeon wouldn’t respond to him, he clicked his tongue with a “Tch!” and turned around, saying it couldn’t be helped. At that moment, something gently brushed Jae-woo’s hair. Turning around, he saw that Seo Igeon had stroked Jae-woo’s hair once and was smiling kindly at him. And when he mouthed “Sorry,” Jae-woo also mouthed “It’s okay” and quickly joined in the family conversation.
“Father, may I stay overnight today?”
Kang Yuhan asked as he brought coffee and handed it to Jaekyung. Jaekyung said thank you and accepted the coffee.
“Did you make this yourself, Yuhan?”
“Yes. Since you like coffee, Father, I’ve been studying about it lately.”
“Thank you. You didn’t have to go that far. I’ll enjoy it. And yes, you can stay overnight. There are many rooms on the second floor. Ah, would you like the room next to Taekyung’s?”
“I’d love that!”
“The adjacent room is not available.”
Han Taekyung quickly cut in sharply. Kang Yuhan looked as if he had expected this, while Jaekyung seemed surprised.
“You want to sleep in the adjacent room?”
“The adjacent room should be used by the security guard.”
When the word “security guard” came out of Han Taekyung’s mouth, everyone in the living room looked at Seo Igeon. Igeon was flustered. Of course, he was supposed to guard all night, but he had been ordered to guard in front of Han Taekyung’s room, with a shift change around 2 AM for about 3 hours. During that time, he was supposed to get some rest in the security team’s dedicated vehicle. Wondering if he had misunderstood something, Seo Igeon quickly replayed the conversation he had with Instructor Kim, but no matter how much he searched, there was no option of sleeping in the room next to Han Taekyung’s. Igeon looked at Taekyung, but Taekyung ignored him and went upstairs to the second floor. Unable to give them any answer, Igeon quickly bowed his head and followed Taekyung up to the second floor.
“Tae… I mean, Executive Director Han. If I may, according to the instructions I received today-“
“I know.”
He knows?
“But just pretend today. Otherwise, it gets complicated.”
What is he talking about? Igeon was about to question but held back. There wasn’t much given to him right now anyway.
“Yes, understood.”
What’s going on here… Igeon had a feeling that tonight wouldn’t be easy. Soon after, a replacement came for dinner, and Igeon told Han Taekyung that he would be away for 30 minutes and went to where Instructor Kim was waiting. They were in a house across from Han Taekyung’s family home. That place was also enormous, and it was set up to look like ordinary people lived there—apparently, the staff working at the family home lived there—while the basement contained equipment related to the security of the family home, spaces for security guards to stand by, and recreational facilities. Of course, there was also an armory in the basement. Amazed at the scale, Igeon wanted to look around more, but since he didn’t have time, he quickly ate dinner and relayed to Instructor Kim what Han Taekyung had said to him earlier. After listening quietly, Instructor Kim nodded in understanding. When Igeon returned to his duty, Han Taekyung was talking with his twin siblings in the separate living room of his room.
“I really don’t understand how he can always act so mean.”
Jae-woo said as he put down his coffee.
“Be quiet. They’ll hear you.”
Tae-eun frowned and warned her brother.
“Besides, he’s the person who took care of our brother. He went through life-or-death situations with him. We should be grateful.”
“Noona, I’ve shown enough gratitude to that person. Was it just me? You and our fathers did too. We’ve fulfilled all of Kang Yuhan’s requests.”
Ah, so they were talking about Sunbae Yuhan. Igeon turned around and put in his earphones. It seemed like something he shouldn’t listen to… but inevitably, some sounds still leaked through.
“We bought him a house, sent him to study abroad when he asked, and publicly announced their engagement when he asked. Moreover, our second father arranged a position for him at the hotel and gave him the villa in Gangwon-do. What more should we do? Honestly, even if the engagement were broken off now, that person wouldn’t lose anything. Shouldn’t he show some restraint at this point? Strangely, he keeps asking for more. I’m scared about what else he might say. I’m scared.”
“…He talked about his demands.”
Han Taekyung, who had been quiet, suddenly dropped a word.
“Did he say something else to you, hyung?”
“A child.”
“A child?”
“So he must have talked about the heat cycle today.”
“That’s right. Hyung, are you going to go?”
Han Taekyung put down the cup he was holding and tapped the armrest with his finger. Then he slowly turned his gaze to Igeon. Igeon felt the gaze strangely and looked up, only to be startled. Han Taekyung’s gaze, visible through the glass cabinet, was fixed exactly on him. His red eyes were so intense that Igeon felt he might be captivated, so he slightly turned his gaze away.
“I have to go.”
“…Do you really intend to marry that person? If that’s what you’ve decided, I don’t intend to oppose. But… I don’t like it.”
“You’ve already talked plenty about how you don’t like it, so don’t be too hard on your brother. All decisions are for oppa to make.”
“That’s true, but… But not Igeon hyung. Absolutely not.”
His name came up again… Igeon didn’t realize he was so famous in the NI owner’s family. Of course, he understood why Jae-woo was saying this. Jae-woo had hired him as Han Taekyung’s security guard with a purpose. If he went to Kang Yuhan, Jae-woo’s purpose couldn’t be fulfilled.
“Ask him yourself. Whether he wants to go or not. His own opinion is important too.”
When Han Taekyung nodded slightly, Jae-woo turned around, discovered Igeon standing behind, and smiled as he was about to get up from his seat, but Han Taekyung grabbed Jae-woo’s arm.
“What?”
“Sit down.”
“Athlete Seo is on duty right now. How uncomfortable must he feel if you keep talking to him like that.”
“Ah, right. I keep forgetting. I can’t help it. I’m just so happy to see Igeon hyung. Then later-“
“Seo Igeon-ssi.”
Before Jae-woo could finish saying that he would ask Seo Igeon later since he was on duty now, Han Taekyung called Seo Igeon’s name. Only then did Seo Igeon turn around to look at them.
“Yes.”
“What do you think? You probably heard the conversation earlier, about being Kang Yuhan-ssi’s close protection.”
Is he genuinely asking? Or is he testing me? Igeon blinked as he looked at Han Taekyung. Han Taekyung’s pupils darkened. I still can’t get used to those red eyes. They strangely remind me of that time.
“I have no intention of going.”
“Why? It would be more comfortable there.”
“First, I was hired by Han Jae-woo-ssi, and since Han Jae-woo-ssi doesn’t want it, and my duty during the contract period is to protect Han Taekyung-ssi. And I don’t want to choose my work based on comfort.”
“What if I terminate the contract for you?”
“I still wouldn’t go. There must be many security guards who are much more capable than me.”
With eyes that said, “Stop testing me,” Igeon looked at Han Taekyung. He hoped this would confirm that he truly had no feelings for Kang Yuhan. And his answer seemed right, as Han Taekyung appeared to think for a moment, then looked at his sibling and said “So that’s how it is,” while finishing the rest of his tea.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
