Chapter 166
It wasn’t just the butler. Scott, Carol, and the manager too. If I couldn’t notice that everyone at the estate had begun to doubt my relationship with Tae-geon, I would have been a fool. They hadn’t asked outright, but it was clear.
The day would come when they’d naturally find out, but there was no benefit in revealing it, so I had suggested maintaining our employer-employee relationship on the surface.
The men who had tried to send me away from the mansion had been fired early on. They were useless now anyway. Tae-geon’s rut no longer required their force.
“Come to my room by midnight tomorrow night.”
This was the reason.
Tae-geon’s rut was already tomorrow.
Hyeon-woo’s face turned grim as he stopped in his tracks, about to leave the room with empty dishes, when Tae-geon’s voice reached him.
“Will Uncle… I mean, will the teacher come tomorrow too?”
Tae-geon nodded at Hyeon-woo’s question about whether Kwon Hak-gyu was planning to visit.
“For now, yes, since people are watching. But he won’t be entering my room anymore.”
Hyeon-woo gulped at those words. No more Hak-gyu entering the room. In other words, from tomorrow on, he would have to handle Tae-geon’s rut alone.
Biting his lip hesitantly, Hyeon-woo spoke seriously.
“There’s something I want to agree on beforehand.”
“What is it?”
“As you know, I’ll be in heat on the same day. I’m going to take medication in advance.”
“Do as you wish. Ian has the right to decide about Ian.”
Hyeon-woo looked at Tae-geon with seemingly surprised eyes as he responded nonchalantly. Knowing Tae-geon’s persistent sexual history, he had tried to preempt any strange demands, but it seemed to be an unnecessary worry. With his tension eased, Hyeon-woo continued with his next request more comfortably.
“And I’d prefer if we didn’t kiss.”
“Why?”
“…Pardon?”
“I asked why.”
Hyeon-woo was visibly flustered by Tae-geon’s sharp reaction. He hadn’t expected resistance on this point. Wasn’t this a more reasonable request than taking suppressants during their encounter?
Tae-geon, not hiding his irritation, pressed Hyeon-woo.
“Why no kissing?”
“Well… that’s…”
“…”
“We don’t need to, do we? Not kissing.”
Do I really have to spell this out? Stammering at having to explain something so obvious, Hyeon-woo faced Tae-geon, who suddenly let out a scornful laugh. Hyeon-woo frowned at the strangely irritable laughter.
“No, it’s just a bit funny.”
“…”
“So it’s like that, huh? Body separate, heart separate. Is that it?”
“…”
If it seemed like he was tense, hyper-aware of his own reaction to such nonsensical words and subsequent silence, then maybe he was the strange one.
Body separate, heart separate… What did he take people for?
He felt pathetic for merely observing Tae-geon’s attitude instead of getting angry after hearing such insulting words.
“Haa…”
Hyeon-woo closed his eyes tightly and let out a short sigh.
The whole process of examining, weighing, and expressing emotions suddenly became extremely tiring. Tae-geon’s shoulders tensed at the sound of Hyeon-woo’s exhausted sigh.
“Think what you like. It’s not worth answering.”
“…”
“I’ll be going now.”
As he was about to turn away coldly, Tae-geon’s low voice reached him from behind.
“…You’re right, it’s not worth answering.”
Hyeon-woo frowned, not quite catching the mumbled words. He turned back to Tae-geon, focusing on his voice. It was so faint it would have dissipated into the air without a trace if he hadn’t.
“I forgot my place for a moment. Beggars can’t be choosers, I should be grateful for whatever I get.”
“…”
“Do as you wish, I’ll be thankful for anything.”
With that, Tae-geon stood up and disappeared into the bathroom. Hyeon-woo rubbed his throbbing temples. He reflected on whether his request had been unreasonable, but found nothing wrong with it.
It was a relationship agreed upon for mutual purposes. He was just trying to make things clear. To not attach unnecessary meaning to this act.
He couldn’t keep up with Tae-geon’s mood swings, from being sarcastic and self-deprecating to acting like a wounded animal.
Sighing deeply once more, Hyeon-woo picked up the trolley and left the room.
*
Hyeon-woo barely managed to open his eyes at the sound of the morning call. His whole body felt as heavy as a water-soaked sponge.
Slowly getting out of bed, he approached the window to check outside. Rain was falling steadily from a sky thick with dark clouds. It was so dark outside, it was hard to believe it was morning.
After taking his suppressants and finishing his preparations for work, he stepped into the hallway. Seeing his own condition even after taking the medication, he imagined Tae-geon’s state must be even worse.
He knocked on Tae-geon’s door with his meal. It was a long time before Tae-geon’s voice was heard.
“…Take it back.”
Tae-geon’s voice, delivering this curt order, was noticeably hoarse and raspy. His condition seemed worse than expected.
Hyeon-woo returned to the dining room with Scott, pulling the trolley. The butler, upon seeing Tae-geon’s untouched meal returned, sent the employees who had just finished breakfast back to their rooms.
Soon, only Scott, Hyeon-woo, and the butler remained in the dining room. The butler frowned at Hyeon-woo, who was standing blankly at one side of the dining room, holding the trolley handle.
“…What are you doing? Why aren’t you going back to your room?”
“…”
Hyeon-woo watched suspiciously as the butler turned and left the dining room.
He was clearly fond of Tae-geon, but was an inscrutable old man whose true intentions were hard to gauge. One moment he was trying to drive Hyeon-woo out as a thief, the next he was assigning tasks as if nothing had happened, with the shamelessness of a 100-year-old raccoon dog.
After helping Scott clean up the kitchen, Hyeon-woo returned to his room and spent the time eating the meals left at his door.
On gloomy and humid days like today, his condition often hit rock bottom. At such times, his symptoms worsened, requiring him to take more than the usual dose of suppressants.
As Hyeon-woo popped the suppressants into his mouth and lay his languid body on the bed, Tae-geon’s dejected voice echoed in his mind. He must be in a similar state to himself right now. No, Tae-geon couldn’t even take medication, so he must be several times worse off.
There was still a long time until the promised midnight.
He wished he could fall asleep, but his heart kept pounding with an increasing sense of urgency.
As the sun set, the room quickly darkened. Hyeon-woo, who had been lying in bed wide awake, finally got up at midnight. He took another dose of suppressants and left his room, heading for the third floor.
Hyeon-woo’s face was grave as he reached Tae-geon’s door. It had never been an easy door to open, but today it felt particularly daunting. His trembling fingertips hovered near the doorknob, not quite touching it. Hyeon-woo’s face turned pale as he clasped his hands tightly together.
Tae-geon was beyond this door. Not a sleeping Tae-geon, but an awake one.
For a moment, his hair stood on end.
Was he afraid? Of what?
Though he couldn’t clearly identify the source of his fear, his pounding heart and the cold sweat running down his spine were sounding alarms, urging him to leave. But it was too late to back out now. Hadn’t he resolved not to run away anymore?
He had come this far of his own will, not forced by anyone else. He didn’t want to render all his efforts meaningless.
Gulping, Hyeon-woo steeled himself and reached for the doorknob again.
Creak-.
He quickly slipped through the slightly opened door and closed it behind him. After confirming there was no sound from outside, Hyeon-woo turned towards Tae-geon’s bed and nearly screamed in shock.
Tae-geon was sitting on the bed, his back to the moonlight, staring directly at him. Hearing Hyeon-woo’s sharp intake of breath, Tae-geon asked mischievously,
“I suppose this is how you’ve been sneaking in and out all this time?”
Hyeon-woo’s heart nearly stopped. After barely calming his startled nerves, he glared at Tae-geon.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
