By Zephyria 
* * *
A lavish spread of food and drinks arranged in a huge reception room, along with a dense crowd of black-clad Jeun Faction members.
The meal that had lasted all day, from morning till night, felt like an uncomfortable matchmaking meeting.
It was as if Woo Tae-hwon, a bandit who had suddenly appeared, had snatched Kwon Rae-i, a precious daughter who had been raised without lifting a finger. Kwon Rae-i, who had been tacitly chosen as the successor of Jeun, had suddenly left the organization and brought Woo Tae-hwon, a wanted man from Gyeongjeong, back to Jeun, so it was inevitable that they would see him unfavorably.
President Hwang Jin-soo, of course, and even the skinhead Jeon Ho-chang, whom he had encountered in the underground parking lot, and the other members were all extremely menacing. The way they glared at Tae-hwon was also ominous.
‘They must have seen the black box footage.’
He was forcing himself to eat and drink, but he felt like he was going to get indigestion. In their eyes, Tae-hwon must have looked like nothing more than a thief.
‘They must think I’m a bastard who’s eating up a pretty young master who’s ten years younger than me. Someone who betrayed and murdered his master, and now he’s laying hands on his son…’
Ha, damn it. When he thought about it, he felt dizzy.
Perhaps he had lost his objectivity because he had spent so much time alone with Kwon Rae-i. To those who didn’t know the inside story, Woo Tae-hwon must have looked like a piece of garbage. Even Tae-hwon himself thought he was like non-recyclable waste, so what must others think?
‘I have no shame to make excuses.’
In the end, Tae-hwon was the guilty one.
Woo Tae-hwon killed Chairman Kwon Jung-il, Woo Tae-hwon betrayed him, Woo Tae-hwon made Kwon Rae-i turn his back on Jeun, and Woo Tae-hwon was the one who put him in danger again. So he had to endure the cold stares. Even if the Jeun Faction members resented Tae-hwon, he could fully understand their feelings.
They were sitting at the same table now, quietly eating together because they were on the verge of war with Gyeongjeong, but in their minds, they had already stabbed Woo Tae-hwon in the stomach several times.
‘President Hwang must be the same.’
Even though he seemed to have accepted Kwon Rae-i as a member of Jeun for the time being, he might be thinking of something else behind the scenes. He wouldn’t be surprised if he was betrayed. In the end, they were just a temporary alliance. It would be foolish to completely trust and rely on him.
So, the only person Tae-hwon could fully trust was…
‘….’
Stop it. He forcibly stopped the thoughts that were running through his head.
As the sun set and night fell, the long meal finally ended, and the gathering broke up.
Even though it was just a formality, Kwon Rae-i and Woo Tae-hwon had been formally accepted into Jeun and welcomed, so now it was time to prepare for war. President Hwang and the Jeun Faction members all returned to their respective posts to work, and Kwon Rae-i and Woo Tae-hwon returned to his room in the basement.
“Ah. Time really does drag,” Kwon Rae-i muttered, stretching and loosening his stiff back. His cheeks were flushed because he had been forced to drink a lot of welcome drinks that no one cared about.
“I don’t know how many times I wanted to leave in the middle,” he said, taking off the suit jacket he was wearing and hanging it on the chair, then unbuttoning the shirt collar that was choking him. He unbuttoned two, then glanced at Tae-hwon, who was standing quietly by the door, and unbuttoned three.
“Tae-hwon, do you want to change?”
As he reached for the cabinet, the open collar of his shirt parted, revealing his deep collarbone. His firm, muscular chest and bulging abs seemed to burst through his shirt. He opened the cabinet and whispered as he pushed aside the several school uniforms hanging there.
“Hmm. Let’s see. You’d be angry if I said I wanted to put you in the school uniform I used to wear, Tae-hwon.”
“Young master. Even if it’s a joke, that’s a bit much.”
“I’m serious. It would be thrilling… How about this? I’ll wear a school uniform too. Still no?”
“Ha, you seem to be drunk. There’s a T-shirt inside there. I’ll wear that.”
Tae-hwon grabbed his tie and loosened it, striding towards the cabinet. It seemed better to take the initiative and change before Kwon Rae-i really tried to put him in a school uniform. Tae-hwon took out a white T-shirt and comfortable sweatpants that were folded in the corner of the cabinet and bowed his head. Kwon Rae-i clicked his tongue regretfully and grumbled.
“I’m not drunk.”
His clear blue-gray eyes, which were visible up close, were sharp.
“I can’t get drunk after bringing you to Jeun, Tae-hwon. Speaking of which, you seem to have drunk quite a bit, Tae-hwon. Can you handle it?”
“I’m fine. This much is nothing.”
“Your expression has been stiff the whole time.”
“There’s no problem.”
“I think there is a problem… Those bastards from Jeon Ho-chang’s group haven’t come to their senses. I should take care of them before I leave. These things need to be resolved quickly to avoid future problems.”
“Don’t overdo it. It might cause trouble later.”
Kwon Rae-i put his hand on Tae-hwon’s stiff cheek. He gently touched the corners of his frowning eyes with his thumb, then brushed his hair back behind his ear.
“It bothers me that you keep focusing on trivial things, Tae-hwon.”
He traced the outline of his ear as he gently stroked it, then naturally leaned in and approached Tae-hwon. It seemed like he was going to kiss him. As expected, his soft lips met his without fail. His heartbeat, which reeked of strong alcohol, was more dynamic than before, and his breathing was somewhat rough.
It seemed like the alcohol was kicking in. Tae-hwon’s pulse was also racing. Tae-hwon, who had lowered his eyes, gave him a light kiss and turned his head away.
“Is the Jeun Faction a trivial thing?”
“Of course. Let me take your clothes off.”
He started to take off the suit Tae-hwon was wearing without asking for permission. When they were alone at his house, Tae-hwon had gotten used to Kwon Rae-i dressing him or undressing him, but he was startled because the location had changed.
Kwon Rae-i smiled at Tae-hwon, who couldn’t hide his embarrassment and flinched, and unbuttoned his shirt from the bottom up, one button at a time.
“Compared to you, Tae-hwon, everything is trivial. I wish you would only think about yourself, Tae-hwon.”
“…….”
“I can at least be less jealous if you do that. It upsets me when you keep being conscious of Jeun or President Hwang.”
“It can’t be helped. This much.”
“I guess so. I know. Still, it might be my greed, but, ah… No. It’s nothing.”
Kwon Rae-i, who had unbuttoned the last button of his shirt, ran his fingertips over Tae-hwon’s neck. He gently groped downwards, then suddenly pressed his palm against his skin and swept it down to Tae-hwon’s chest.
“Anyway, this will all be over soon.”
Until all the obstacles that get in the way are cleared away and we’re left alone.
Kwon Rae-i, who was standing close, poured out his regret and caressed Tae-hwon. He parted his shirt and dug into the inside of his chest, grabbing his lower chest and letting out a sigh mixed with patience. Tae-hwon leaned back, and the weight shifted to the steel cabinet, causing it to creak, and the wide-open door also made an uneasy sound.
He looked at him for a moment, then left a lingering feeling and stepped away.
“Change and lie down on the mattress. It’s better to take turns sleeping.”
* * *
He must have dozed off.
His body, limp like water-soaked cotton, twitched in his sleep. He was lying down, but he couldn’t sleep deeply, and a vague, ominous, and uneasy feeling remained in one corner of his mind. He had the illusion that someone was watching him, and he felt a murderous gaze.
Of course, he couldn’t sleep soundly. The location of Jeun and the imminent crisis surrounding the two of them. It was like lying under a blanket in the middle of a typhoon.
His neck was stiff and his knees were uncomfortable. It felt like his five senses had become more sensitive in the dark. Was he anxious? Was he impatient? Or maybe it was just the alcohol.
Then suddenly, he felt a strange chill. Tae-hwon opened his eyes wide. The surroundings were still dark, and he couldn’t see anything, but he could sense a subtle change. Tae-hwon reflexively reached out and groped beside him.
The mattress was empty.
There was no sign of anyone in the room.
Tae-hwon paused for a moment and called out to Kwon Rae-i. But there was no answer. Even his voice didn’t echo as if it were trapped.
“Young master?”
Where did he go?
Why isn’t he here?
Or, for another reason?