52
“What’s wrong?”
“No. It’s, it’s nothing.”
He wanted to show only his best side to Ji Seunghyeok. It might have sounded ridiculous at this point, but that’s how he felt. Now that he knew better, he felt reluctant to show his messy face so casually.
“Then why are you covering your face?”
Ji Seunghyeok asked as he approached, and Jo Junghyun retreated half a step to avoid him.
“Not… not right now…”
Junghyun mumbled awkwardly, covering his face with his arm. Seunghyeok skillfully removed Junghyun’s arm and whispered:
“Why? Are you self-conscious about your swollen face?”
“…”
As expected, Seunghyeok knew exactly why Junghyun was acting this way. Junghyun didn’t answer immediately.
“It’s… it’s not pretty…”
Seunghyeok raised his eyebrows.
“So now you know how to call yourself pretty.”
“…No, it’s… Taejun hyung… earlier, he said so…”
Seunghyeok seemed displeased by Junghyun’s words. He placed his hand under Junghyun’s chin to make him look up. Junghyun reluctantly followed his touch. Seunghyeok’s face was close enough that he could feel his breath.
“I’ve called you pretty all the time, haven’t I?”
“No. You… you… um, you always say that.”
Seunghyeok gave Junghyun a kiss that barely touched his lips.
Only after the fleeting kiss ended could he breathe properly. Only then did Junghyun realize that he had been tense. He watched carefully, wondering if Seunghyeok had noticed this fact. But his expression remained unchanged from moments before.
Seunghyeok mumbled softly, “Tastes like toothpaste,” and Junghyun’s face immediately flushed hot.
“Listen, Junghyun-ah. To me, you always look pretty. So there’s nothing to hide.”
For a moment, Junghyun stared blankly at Seunghyeok as if he’d forgotten what to say.
He wondered how Seunghyeok could say such embarrassing things so easily. But it was equally sweet and made him feel good.
Seunghyeok lifted Junghyun and placed him on the bed. Then he held him close in that position. His warm body temperature felt nice.
“Does your face still hurt?”
“Mm. A little.”
He gently caressed Junghyun’s cheek. Feeling slightly embarrassed, Junghyun bit his lip once.
He felt like he should say something.
“Getting slapped hurts physically, but it also hurts my pride. It feels awful. I would have preferred being hit in the stomach… No, wait. My cheek hurt this much, so my stomach would probably hurt even more. I take that back.”
Seunghyeok quietly kissed the top of Junghyun’s head.
“You must have been very scared. I’m sorry. I should have gotten there earlier.”
“No, no, it’s fine.”
Junghyun shook his head.
“But, how did you find me so quickly?”
Seunghyeok’s hand, which had been stroking Junghyun’s shoulder, paused briefly before resuming. The gentle, careful caresses felt so good.
“Should I say it was the power of my love for Junghyun?”
“…”
Junghyun stared with his mouth open at Seunghyeok’s face, which so calmly delivered such an unexpected answer. The response was so incredible that he couldn’t immediately think of how to reply. As Junghyun’s mouth opened and closed wordlessly, Seunghyeok kissed his forehead.
“It’s not entirely a joke. I was desperate.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“Then tell me. What was that detective agency talk that Jeong Taejun mentioned earlier?”
At this question that seemed like an exchange, Junghyun blinked.
“I, I was actually going to tell you about that. I… well, one of the people there told me I was adopted, so…”
Seunghyeok’s arms tightened around Junghyun.
“Ah, so that’s it. I wanted to know what they meant, if it was true. That’s why I did it. A detective agency was the only thing I could think of that would find out such information.”
“Is that so?”
Junghyun silently nodded.
“Shall I look into it for you?”
“What? Um… but.”
Junghyun hesitated at the sudden offer. He wondered if it was okay to ask such a favor of Seunghyeok.
Seunghyeok had already done so much for him. Adding this request seemed too shameless.
“I feel bad about only receiving things from you.”
“Ah. I didn’t mean I would do it for free.”
At these words, Junghyun felt embarrassed for assuming so naturally that Seunghyeok would just do it for him.
Blinking once, Junghyun quickly added:
“…Ah. Oh, yes. What is it? What can I do for you?”
Junghyun blushed at the thought process that had followed so naturally. Thinking about it, Seunghyeok hadn’t said he’d do it for free. Despite his embarrassment, Junghyun eagerly asked:
“Please tell me. I’ll do anything I can.”
Seunghyeok quietly looked at the enthusiastic Junghyun and smiled slightly.
“There you go again. Do you know what I’m going to ask for?”
“…Oh…”
Recalling that he had received the same criticism before, Junghyun smiled awkwardly.
As Seunghyeok gently touched Junghyun’s forehead with his fingertips, his eyes seemed to soften.
“Then, will you have a meal with me after you’re discharged?”
“A meal?”
Seunghyeok answered with a gentle “Yes.”
The disappointment was deflating. Was that all?
“I was planning to do that anyway… Is that really it?”
When he asked again as if to confirm, Seunghyeok slowly nodded. Junghyun had expected something more grand, but it was just having a meal together.
It wasn’t asking him not to leave his side, nor was it asking to be together forever.
Just a request to have a meal together.
It didn’t seem like something to ask when Junghyun had offered to do anything.
While feeling deflated, there was also something warm bubbling up inside his chest. His eyes grew hot. It was strange to suddenly feel like crying when there was nothing to cry about. Junghyun sniffled in confusion.
“Yes, alright. But you didn’t have to ask like that. I wanted to have a meal with you too. It’s too embarrassing to consider that as granting your wish. So think of something else and tell me later.”
Seunghyeok’s hand gently stroked Junghyun’s eyes. His eyes curved gently.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Junghyun nodded quickly.
“Then, alright. No taking it back later.”
“Of course not.”
Junghyun promptly replied to Seunghyeok’s words and smiled.
For a while, they sat across from each other, chatting. The conversation flowed naturally, consisting only of light, everyday topics as if nothing had happened. When dinner time arrived, they shared the meal that was brought. As they ate from the patient and guardian trays they had received, Junghyun thought it felt like eating at a nice restaurant.
In reality, it wasn’t that different.
Looking at just the two of them eating in a private space, it was somewhat similar.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“Oh, nothing. Just, I’m happy eating dinner together like this. Doesn’t it feel like we’re at a Korean restaurant? Although there are fewer side dishes.”
Seunghyeok paused his chopsticks. Junghyun, who was carefully eating while mindful of his still-painful cheek, felt the gaze and looked up. When he looked questioningly, Seunghyeok shook his head and smiled.
“I was just thinking how brave Junghyun is.”
“…That’s a compliment, right?”
“Of course.”
When Seunghyeok asked as if to say ‘what else would it be?’, Junghyun nodded dubiously and focused on his meal. As if matching Junghyun’s pace, Seunghyeok finished his meal at about the same time and set the tray aside. After drinking the lukewarm water Seunghyeok had brought, Junghyun checked the clock and asked Seunghyeok as he entered the hospital room:
“By the way, is it okay for you to stay with me like this? You must be busy.”
“It’s fine. The company runs even without me. Our Junghyun doesn’t need to worry about that. I’m planning to stay overnight again today.”
“Where will you sleep?”
“There’s a separate room.”
At Seunghyeok’s words, Junghyun showed curiosity about where it was. The place he mentioned was a small bedroom set up in the adjacent room. Even for a private room, it was surprising that a hospital room had multiple rooms. However, what bothered him more was the bed itself.
Seunghyeok spoke to Junghyun, who was standing silently looking at the bed.
“What is it? Do you want to sleep together?”
“What? Oh, well… no. That’s not it. This bed…”
Junghyun looked at the bed once and then at Seunghyeok. It was clear. While it might be an appropriate size for an average person, the problem was that Seunghyeok was a head taller than the average person. Literally, the bed was shorter than Seunghyeok’s height. If he lay down, his feet would probably stick out a bit.
“Have you been sleeping here all this time?”
“What do you mean ‘here’? It’s quite decent.”
“…”
Junghyun pressed his lips together in distress.
“Hyung, go home and sleep. You’ll get sick at this rate.”
“Are you worried about me? I’m fine.”
“No, really. How can I sleep alone in that bed knowing you’re sleeping here?”
“Then shall we sleep together?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
Seunghyeok just needs to tell Junghyun the truth about having Taehun investigate his background, putting that GPS tracker on his phone, and about his feelings for him. Not talking, and actively lying, to Junghyun is not only going to come back to bite him in the ass, but it’s going to really hurt the person he loves.
Seunghyeok is treating Junghyun like a child in some respects (ex: not telling him about tracking his phone because he thinks it will scare him). While he is naive, that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be treated as an adult, especially when the person treating him that way is his own partner.