Chapter 58
I listened to his words in a daze and tried to shake my head hurriedly, but my body was already being lifted in Kim Doyun’s arms and swiftly carried up the tree. I couldn’t struggle or stop Kim Doyun. Before I knew it, we had reached a branch, and Jang Jae-gyeong followed soon after.
“Seongho, what if you topple right over?”
Jang Jae-gyeong glared at Kim Doyun and roughly ruffled my hair. Since the situation was different from when I was first carried up by Kim Doyun, I had to make a great effort to calm my pounding heart. Perhaps because of my memory of the first time, Kim Doyun held my hand and gently stroked it, apologizing and asking if I was very startled.
Keek-keek-keek!
While I was being enchanted by his touch, a monster’s cry was heard nearby. I gulped as I saw a black shadow moving rapidly on all fours. Fortunately, the monster didn’t come toward our tree but headed for the building. With nothing obstructing our view in front of the tree, we could clearly see the monster’s actions.
But because of the fire lit on the first floor, the monster couldn’t enter the building and just circled around, rubbing its body here and there. It seemed it couldn’t climb up the walls. Well, creatures that can’t climb trees probably wouldn’t be good at climbing buildings either. Though just looking at their appearance, they seemed like they could climb up high places easily…
In the third-floor window, a dark adult figure silhouetted against the fire was silently looking outside. There was no sign of a child’s shadow anywhere. Without realizing it, I let out a deep sigh. With a sense of regret and bitterness, I scanned the surroundings, wondering if there might be other places with fire outside the building. Then I spotted a dark mass at the base of a tree, wriggling and moving its body.
At first, I thought I might have mistaken it for a tree shadow. But seeing it move separately from the shadow, I realized it wasn’t just a shadow. What could that be? Another monster? I wanted to check, but it was too dark to see clearly. The small thing seemed to be looking at where the monster was, then suddenly slipped into the tree trunk and disappeared.
“…ho, Seongho.”
“Uh, yes, yes?”
I quickly raised my head at the sound of someone calling me. Kim Doyun was holding my arm, looking down at me with a face full of concern.
“Are you in pain? Did you hit something while climbing up…?”
“No. I’m not hurt, I’m fine.”
I hastily shook my head and dusted off my body. At my actions and words that I wasn’t injured, some relief showed on Kim Doyun’s face. I stole glances at his face while rubbing the branch with my toes. When he’s so concerned like that, I can’t help but be drawn to him. But I can’t tell him not to be kind to me either. Honestly, even if he listened to me, I’d probably feel hurt if he did that. I let out a small sigh.
“Then what were you staring at so intently?”
Jang Jae-gyeong seemed curious since I only said I was fine. Though this place was spacious enough for people to stand, it wasn’t wide enough to walk around freely. Nevertheless, Jang Jae-gyeong walked over as if he was on flat ground and leaned his head in the direction I had been looking.
“There’s nothing there.”
“It’s not there now, but at the base of the tree…”
I pointed to where it had disappeared and asked a question.
“Are there small monsters too?”
“Small ones?”
“Yes. It was about… this big, I think.”
I waved my hand around my thigh area. Jang Jae-gyeong and Kim Doyun looked at my legs for a moment and then shook their heads.
“Well, I’ve never seen one that small.”
“I’ve never seen a monster that small.”
“…Really? Then maybe I was mistaken.”
I scratched my head vigorously and looked again at where the small thing had disappeared. Was it really just my imagination? Did I misinterpret the shadow of leaves swaying in the wind? But if it was a monster… Just then, a gust of wind shook the tree shadows back and forth. I gulped.
Maybe there are such small monsters that we just haven’t encountered yet. The world is so harsh that it’s never bad to be careful. I explained what I had seen in detail, then said we should be cautious. Jang Jae-gyeong tapped the handle of his knife and said he understood, and Kim Doyun came over and held my hand tightly. It seems I was unknowingly trembling when I thought about a monster that neither of them had seen before. My trembling hand gradually steadied as if by magic. Instead, my cheeks began to burn hot. I wanted to pull my hand away, but I liked being held, so I wiggled my fingers. Perhaps it was because of my wiggling fingers that it tickled, causing Kim Doyun to laugh softly.
I squeezed my eyes shut. I had never known until now that I was the type to get flushed so easily. My face would burn when my friends did embarrassing things. But that was because they did things embarrassing to show in public; this was the first time I felt like this because I liked someone and my heart fluttered.
Thankfully, it was night, and the trees were dense. No matter how exceptional a person might be, they probably couldn’t see my face color in this darkness. I took a small breath and looked up at Kim Doyun. In the dark gloom, I could faintly see Kim Doyun’s face looking down at me for a moment before he smiled slightly. And in a voice as gentle as his smile, he whispered:
“You must be tired. Shall we sleep now?”
* * *
Keek-keek.
The monster’s noisy cries wouldn’t subside. It slammed its body here and there, making the tree shake, then returned to the building and let out a metallic scream. As I listened to the monster’s cries, I counted on my fingers how many times it had wailed. It’s not that I’m no longer afraid of monsters. I was still scared of them, and I was afraid that the creature targeting the building might rush toward our tree. But the reason I wasn’t as fearful or frightened today was because of this man holding me as he slept.
Kim Doyun had his eyes beautifully closed. His thick eyebrows and deeply-set eyes were visible even in the darkness, with eyelashes so long they could be seen up close. I gazed at Kim Doyun’s face as if bewitched. Just having his face in front of me made it hard to breathe, but the situation below was even more intense.
His arms firmly gripped my waist, and our legs were intertwined. His firm thighs were wrapped around mine, preventing me from escaping. It was under the pretext of holding me so I wouldn’t fall from the tree. Even if I tried to pull my legs away slightly, Kim Doyun’s legs were heavy, and since we were precariously embracing on a tree branch, I couldn’t move properly. Honestly, just a moment ago, my heart was pounding so violently that I thought it would burst, so I tried to move more forcefully, feeling this wouldn’t work. But then his body entangled even more tightly, and both his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me in close.
If Kim Doyun had his eyes open, I would at least try to ask him to loosen his grip a bit. But his well-defined eyes were firmly closed and immobile. Not wanting to wake someone who was tired, I hesitated, then moved unconsciously. But unfortunately, his thing rubbed between my legs and became even harder…
“Ah. This is driving me crazy.”
I whispered softly like a sigh. My face felt so hot that it seemed swollen. I mentally recited prayers about Kim Doyun’s thing pressing against my thigh. When that alone wasn’t enough to calm me down, I recited all the gods I knew. I thought I would feel disgusted if a man’s thing rubbed against me, but is it because it’s Kim Doyun? It wasn’t disgusting, but rather, this was…
My sigh deepened. How did it come to this? Was the problem that I mentioned to Kim Doyun my fear of falling due to my sleeping habits? Was it wrong that I quickly lay down when he said he would help me?
To be honest, I did have concerns. My heart was throwing a party every time I looked at Kim Doyun. Still, given the limited width of the branch, I didn’t think two people would lie down. I thought Kim Doyun would help by tearing some vines and tying my arms and legs to something.
But instead of vines, it was Kim Doyun’s arms and legs that bound me. When he pulled me close, saying the branch wasn’t spacious enough, an unreleasable scream echoed in my throat. By the time I came to my senses and tried to break free, Kim Doyun was already asleep. It was maddening.
I can’t sleep like this. Absolutely cannot sleep…
I squeezed my bloodshot eyes shut. It would have been good if Jang Jae-gyeong had helped, but… Jang Jae-gyeong saw Kim Doyun holding me tightly, made an exasperated face, and disappeared to the opposite branch. Judging by the scratching sound coming from where Jang Jae-gyeong had gone, it seemed he wasn’t sleeping either… But it felt awkward to ask for help now. I let out a deep sigh.
Although my heart was pounding painfully, thinking about it, it wasn’t all that bad. For one thing, Kim Doyun’s body temperature was high, so I, held in his arms, was very warm. Since entering the forest, the times I’d slept warmly could be counted on one hand. I’d either slept curled up facing the night wind on a tree or been delirious with fever countless times. Although I had slept by a bonfire in the village, given the circumstances, my body was warm but my mind wasn’t at ease.
It’s still not comfortable now, but at least I’m not worried about my life. Anyway, thanks to Kim Doyun, despite the uncomfortable position, it seemed like I could sleep warmly for the first time.
Think positively, positively!
I muttered to myself and buried my forehead against Kim Doyun’s chest. Contrary to my belief that I wouldn’t be able to sleep, the warmth on my forehead and the faint sound of his heartbeat gradually made my eyes close.
“I’ll wake up after sleeping just a bit…”
If Kim Doyun falls into a deep enough sleep, I’ll break free then. Thinking this and repeating it with my lips, I couldn’t resist the blurriness surrounding me and tightly closed my eyes. Before closing them, I think I saw Kim Doyun’s hand moving toward the nape of my neck… But I must have seen wrong because I was drowsy? Being in his arms was so warm that I didn’t want to think deeply about it. The world grew dark, and the monster’s squeaking sounds, as well as the sound of leaves rustling in the night breeze, gradually diminished. And the sound of Jang Jae-gyeong scratching something too.
“…cunning bastard.”
Jang Jae-gyeong’s low voice was faintly heard and then cut off.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
