By Zephyria She continued to ramble on about the party. How she would change the curtains, where and who to commission for the flowers, what kind of invitation design to send to the guests, rattling off all sorts of ideas as if she had been thinking about them all night, but Winston tuned it all out.
“Invite Evelyn.”
He said after wiping his mouth with a napkin. To his mother, who nodded with a pleased smile, Winston added with a blank face.
“You don’t have to prepare for the party. Yu-jin and Cain will take care of it, so just leave it to them.”
The expression instantly vanished from Mrs. Campbell’s face. Winston got up, leaving his mother looking dazed as if she had been hit. It was a silent indication that the conversation was over, but of course, Mrs. Campbell didn’t back down.
“Winston, what are you talking about?”
She grabbed her son’s arm as he was about to leave and asked with a cold face.
“The Campbell family’s party, and the first one you’re hosting since inheriting the family, and you’re entrusting it to that thing? I must have misheard, or you must have misspoke?”
“No.”
Winston didn’t bother to shake off his mother’s hand and continued in a businesslike manner.
“You heard correctly. Yu-jin will be the host of the party. If you want to help, go ahead. I don’t care.”
“Winston.”
Unable to hold back any longer, Mrs. Campbell jumped up from her seat and glared at her son with anger in her eyes.
“Cancel it, immediately. You need to make sense. That dirty thing, who knows where it crawled out from, is going to host the Campbell family’s party? Are you, perhaps, experiencing a buildup of pheromones? Is that why you’re out of your mind?”
Winston looked down at her without a word. Seeing Mrs. Campbell momentarily falter at his unpleasant gaze, Winston opened his mouth.
“I’m perfectly sane. Yu-jin will host the party. Now, I have to go to work, so I’ll be going.”
He said only what he had to say and readily walked away. Instead of grabbing him, Mrs. Campbell coldly spat out from behind.
“Don’t tell me you’ve been fooled by that thing again?”
Winston, who had been taking large strides, stopped. He slowly turned around, his gaze filled with contempt and anger. Seeing that face, Mrs. Campbell took a step back, but she didn’t forget to warn him.
“Don’t forget what that thing turned you into.”
A brief silence flowed. Winston narrowed his eyes and twisted the corner of his mouth.
“I know very well.”
He added in a low voice, as if whispering.
“All too well.”
Soon after, Winston turned around again and walked away. He left the breakfast room as it was, but Mrs. Campbell didn’t grab him this time. Instead, she let out a deep sigh as if exhaling a blocked breath and slumped into the chair. Her head was already throbbing, and a headache seemed to be coming on. She rested her hand on her forehead and then stared at the air with a grim expression, lost in thought.
What on earth is that child thinking?
Even though he was the child she had given birth to, she couldn’t understand him at all. She swallowed a low groan and mulled over her thoughts. The only fortunate thing was that Winston’s feelings for Yu-jin hadn’t changed much.
Of course, that was only natural.
Mrs. Campbell got up from her seat with a frightening expression. The maid, who was about to ask if she needed anything, hurriedly stepped aside. Without even glancing at the maid, Mrs. Campbell left the breakfast room and walked down the hallway, recalling.
It wouldn’t hurt to have another contingency plan in place.
It was after she left the mansion and got into the car that she called her eldest son, Gordon. After two rings, she heard a voice from the other end, and only then did Mrs. Campbell open her mouth.
“I have something for you to do, Gordon.”
Her voice was calm as usual, but Gordon’s reaction was different.
“Mother, are you perhaps referring to the alternative you mentioned before?”
His voice sounded excited, even feeling a sense of relief that he could finally resolve his curiosity. Mrs. Campbell suppressed a bitter sigh at her dim-witted son’s reaction and continued in an indifferent voice.
“It’s just a small contingency plan. Have you heard that Winston is throwing a party?”
“Huh? No, why all of a sudden?”
“Yes.”
Listening to her son’s bewildered reaction, Mrs. Campbell quietly continued.
“He says he’s going to entrust the role of hostess of the party to that thing. So, I’ve decided to step aside this time.”
“What?”
Gordon shouted loudly from the other end. Mrs. Campbell’s ears stung for a moment, and she frowned, taking the phone away from her ear. Gordon, unaware of her reaction, continued to shout.
“No, that doesn’t make any sense! Why all of a sudden? And to that male prostitute bastard? Is Winston crazy?”
“Quiet down, don’t shout so undignifiedly.”
Mrs. Campbell sternly reprimanded him, and only after Gordon reluctantly quieted down did she finally open her mouth.
“Let’s just move past that for now. Winston must have his reasons. More importantly, I have something else for you to do.”
“Oh, yes. Please tell me.”
Only then did Gordon answer with a disgruntled tone. Mrs. Campbell confirmed that he had calmed down to some extent before opening her mouth. As Gordon listened to the story, his breathing gradually became rough, and as soon as Mrs. Campbell finished speaking, he raised his voice again.
“Is that really true? That bastard went that far?”
“Yes.”
This time, Mrs. Campbell didn’t scold her son, but instead, she held the phone slightly away from her ear and answered.
“You know what you have to do, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
Gordon continued in a cheerful voice, sounding excited.
“It’s a family’s duty to warn a sibling if a bad bug is attracted to them. Don’t worry, Mother. I’ll talk to Winston and advise him well.”
A loose smile appeared on Mrs. Campbell’s lips at his energetic voice.
“Yes, that’s reassuring.”
As she was about to put down the phone to end the call, she heard Gordon’s voice from the other end.
“How could that bastard live doing such things? After all, you can’t help a lowlife…”
Leaving those continuing words behind, Mrs. Campbell hung up the phone. If Winston knew that, he would lose all affection for him. Of course, that’s if there’s any left to begin with.
Looking out the window, Mrs. Campbell leaned back comfortably. A year passes quickly. She was inwardly uneasy about the reason for making Yu-jin the host of the party, but it was okay. He must have countless hidden pasts, and just revealing them one by one would surely make Winston completely disgusted.
To dare to shamelessly come back to the Campbell family on his own two feet.
Mrs. Campbell stared into the distance with cold eyes. She would never allow him to ruin her precious son again. She would stop him with all her might.
Absolutely.
* * *
The dark room was lit only by a few lamps. In the hazy orange light, Yu-jin stood trembling. His face was contorted with shame, his shoulders hunched.
The only thing he was wearing was a plain, old-fashioned white undergarment.
Harold sat on the sofa, drinking wine and watching Yu-jin. He was just about to leave his teens, and he still had the appearance of a young boy. He looked as young as five years younger than his actual age, but knowing that he would soon be twenty, the scene before him was quite stimulating.
“Yu-jin, don’t do that, try to straighten your shoulders. I’ve told you repeatedly how important proper posture is, haven’t I?”
Harold said in a gentle voice. It was no different from what he usually said, but the situation was not the same. Yu-jin looked at him with a desire to cry, but Harold only frowned as if urging him on. Inevitably, Yu-jin trembled and straightened his hunched back. The body of the boy, who was skinny and tall, was gradually revealed in the light. He was so thin that his ribs were prominent, but his pelvis was quite like that of an adult, strangely arousing curiosity.
“You’re becoming a body that can receive a man.”
Harold said. Yu-jin knew all too well that he was slowly scanning every part of his body without blinking once. He tried hard to hold back his tears, but in the end, he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.