By Zephyria Knock, knock, he heard the sound of knocking on the door again. Even then, Yu-jin was holding his breath and listening carefully. His heart was beating so loudly that he thought he would be caught. But he was barely able to cover his mouth with both hands and suppress his own rapid breathing.
*Could it be, really?*I couldn’t believe it. It had already been years, and now? Like this, so suddenly?
I was so confused. Plus, it had been so long since I’d heard Winston’s voice that I wasn’t sure. It also felt much thicker than I remembered.
Maybe I mistook it for Harold’s voice.
Maybe that’s it. Yes, Yu-jin was sure. I can still smell that sweet scent, after all.
I was trembling with fear when the voice continued from below.
“Yu-jin, are you asleep? It’s me, Winston.”
Huh?
My eyes widened at the sound of my name. What did he just say?
Winston is back?
This time, I was too surprised to move. I took my hand off my mouth, which I had been covering in shock, and frantically looked around. Just as the wide-open window came into view, he continued.
“Sorry for coming so suddenly. I missed you so much that I had to come. …Did you perhaps forget about me?”
The last words trailed off, sounding insecure. Then I heard him speak again.
“You don’t want to see me…”
No, Winston!
Hearing his voice, lowered as if talking to himself, Yu-jin hurriedly got out of bed and went to the window. In that short moment, all sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind. Harold doesn’t know about their secret meetings. So there’s no way he’d tell such a lie. Besides, if he wanted to have Yu-jin, it would be a piece of cake, so there’s no way he’d use such a troublesome method.
Could it really be Winston who’s back?
Breathing heavily with anticipation and excitement, Yu-jin leaned out the window and looked down at the entrance, but he paused at the sight that was different from what he had expected. The man standing in the moonlight looked completely different from the Winston he knew. He had always been taller than Yu-jin, but not this tall. He was so huge that it felt like he could reach the second-floor window if he stretched out his arm. Moreover, even looking down from above, his broad shoulders and toned muscles were easily recognizable. Anyone could see that he was not a boy, but a perfect man. A huge one at that.
Yu-jin hesitated for a moment, wondering whether he should answer or not. Is it really Winston? Or what if it isn’t?
The only people who would come here are Harold or Winston.
But it’s been years since I last saw Winston. How long has it been since the promise to come tomorrow was broken? Unable to be sure, he hesitated, but then the man spoke.
“I’ll come again tomorrow, Yu-jin. Good night.”
Perhaps thinking he might be asleep, his voice was even quieter and more subdued. The man who had greeted him from beyond the front door turned around. As he skipped three or four steps at once, Yu-jin momentarily overlapped that figure with the one he had seen countless times before. Then, without realizing it, he blurted out.
“Winston!”
Surprised by the urgent call, he turned around. Their eyes met, and at the same time, their pupils widened. The only light illuminating the world was the soft moonlight, but they could recognize each other so clearly. Each other’s faces.
“Yu-jin.”
Winston smiled brightly and ran back towards the mansion. Seeing this, Yu-jin, in a hurry, immediately stepped onto the windowsill.
“Wait, Yu-jin! That’s dangerous!”
Winston shouted in surprise as he ran towards him. Without hesitation, Yu-jin jumped.
“Whoa!”
With a short exclamation, Winston stretched out his arms. Yu-jin instinctively closed his eyes tightly, but nothing bad happened. Realizing that he was in strong arms, he slowly opened his eyes. As his eyes met the gaze looking down at him, Winston let out a sigh of relief.
“If I had known you would welcome me so enthusiastically, I would have come sooner.”
He laughed with a light joke, but Yu-jin couldn’t laugh. His nose tingled, and he suddenly clenched his fists and began hitting Winston’s shoulders and chest.
“Ouch, ouch, wait, Yu-jin! That’s dangerous, wait!”
Tilting his head back and feigning pain, Winston held Yu-jin firmly in his arms. Thanks to that, Yu-jin was able to hit him until he was satisfied.
“You said, you said you’d come tomorrow, how long, did I wait!”
Gasping for breath, Yu-jin glared resentfully at Winston. “Sorry,” Winston said with a wry smile.
“I had no choice. I’ll explain.”
I wanted to say I didn’t need to know. Yu-jin tried to get angrier, but another emotion welled up first. In the end, he couldn’t hold back and began to sob.
“I missed you.”
Winston tightened his arms around Yu-jin, pulling him closer.
“I missed you too so much.”
“…Hic.”
As Yu-jin began to sob, Winston apologized again, “I’m sorry.” Yu-jin hugged Winston’s neck and cried for quite a long time.
* * *
“Here, drink this.”
Winston brought water and handed it to Yu-jin, who was sitting in the living room with a swollen face. “Thank you,” Yu-jin mumbled softly, took the cup, and drank all the water in one go.
“Do you feel a little better now?”
At Winston’s question, he nodded again. Winston took the empty cup and placed it on the table, then sat down next to Yu-jin and lightly kissed him on the cheek.
“Don’t do anything that dangerous again. You almost got seriously hurt.”
“…If you had come more often, I wouldn’t have done that.”
Yu-jin protested in a small, sulky voice. He was so happy to see him that there was no time to run down the stairs. He was also afraid that Winston would leave.
Yu-jin felt inexplicably sulky at his remark, as if he didn’t understand any of those feelings. Winston, who had lightly tapped Yu-jin’s pouting lips with his finger, chuckled.
“Okay, I’ll come more often from now on. Are you going to stop being mad now?”
“…Come every day.”
“Okay, every day.”
Winston, who had made the promise again, put his arm around Yu-jin’s shoulder and pulled him close. As he naturally leaned his head against his chest, Winston leaned back against the sofa and let out a deep sigh.
“Ah, it’s been so long.”
He said to himself as if he had finally arrived. Yu-jin hesitated and asked carefully.
“Hey, I’m curious… Why do you smell like Harold? And your eye color too.”
Winston replied casually.
“It manifested as you thought, with the same traits as my father.”
The last words felt somehow bitter. Is that a bad thing? As Yu-jin looked at him, puzzled, Winston continued.
“That’s why I couldn’t come here all this time. I lost consciousness because of the manifestation, and when I woke up, I was in England.”
“England?”
“Yeah.”
Winston nodded at Yu-jin, who asked in surprise.
“My mother unilaterally decided that, so I couldn’t return to the main house. I was finally able to come here after I got into university.”
He didn’t bother to mention how hard he had worked to get back here. Or the fact that he couldn’t come to the main house at all, even during vacations.
Because that was nothing compared to the pain Yu-jin had to endure alone.
Winston, who had compressed the events as simply as possible, smiled and concluded.
“It’s okay now, Yu-jin. I can come often from now on. I’m completely back.”
“That’s a relief…”
Yu-jin let out another sigh of relief and smiled brightly. Seeing him forcibly pull up his cheeks, which were swollen from crying, made him feel both pitiful and an irresistible affection. Winston couldn’t resist and kissed him on the lips. As he gently pressed his lips together and licked the inside of his mouth with his tongue, he felt Yu-jin flinch. Winston didn’t rush and pulled Yu-jin’s body closer, placing him on his lap. He held his waist with one arm and stroked his thigh with the other, continuing to lick and suck on his lips, and Yu-jin occasionally let out soft moans and fluttered his closed eyelashes.
Haa, haa, when their lips finally parted, Yu-jin was gasping for breath. His cheeks were flushed red and lovely, and he was about to kiss him again, but just before their lips touched, Yu-jin whispered.
“Where did you learn to kiss like that…? Did you perhaps, date someone while we were apart…?”