By Zephyria Even after the kiss ended, his lips lingered around Choi Hong-seo’s. After sharing several shallow kisses, he whispered while stroking his hair.
“I missed you.”
“…Me too.”
It was their first proper kiss. Last time at his place, it was just kissing.
As he realized that, Choi Hong-seo felt shy about meeting his eyes and rolled his gaze away. Lee Hae-sung smiled silently and gave a soft peck on his cheek, not teasing him for it.
Tidying the gift box, he gripped the steering wheel as if about to start the car and asked.
“Are you very tired?”
“The flight was short, so I’m not that tired.”
“There’s a cafe with a nice night view, I was thinking we could go.”
When they left the parking lot, no cars followed. The sasaeng fans seemed to have all gone after ‘Layered’s’ new car.
They drove for about 40 minutes and arrived at the cafe. The cafe he had found in advance was quite large and located on high ground.
Outside, it also had a large terrace, relatively darker than the interior, making it suitable for well-known people to date discreetly at night.
The two settled into a middle seat on the terrace, overlooking the city’s night view.
“This spot isn’t bad, but the very front row would have an even better view.”
Lee Hae-sung, looking around with a hint of regret, patted Choi Hong-seo’s head over his bucket hat and stood up.
“Wait here for a moment. I’ll go see if there’s a better seat on that other terrace.”
Choi Hong-seo, glancing at his tall figure disappearing around the corner of the building, pulled his hat down deeper. He felt shy, thinking they looked like a real couple on a date.
Most of the people around them also seemed to be couples on dates. It was fortunate that they all seemed lost in their own worlds, uninterested in others.
This was his first date with him outdoors. They had always met at home, in the car, or in hotel rooms. A date, a date. If it weren’t for him, he could never have dreamed of it. CEO Myeong wouldn’t have let it happen.
His secret past remained the same, and the terrible news of Executive Director Lee Seo-kyung’s appearance had been added. Yet, he felt a childish excitement about dating him like everyone else.
He couldn’t understand how this was possible.
He had always been bound by that fact, unable to shake it off, and had endured only with the hope of being completely free from it… to be able to forget them, even for a moment.
As he smiled bitterly, a couple sitting in the front row of the terrace began to gather their empty drinks on a tray. They seemed about to leave. Choi Hong-seo quickly tried to contact him to tell him that a seat would be available here.
Rrrring, rrrring.
But he didn’t answer, and a vibration was felt from somewhere, matching the ringing tone in the phone.
His phone was glowing brightly and moving from under the cardigan he had left on the table.
Ah, he left it behind… Choi Hong-seo picked up his phone without much thought and unintentionally saw his contact name displayed on the screen.
“Hmm… Should I change mine too? To ‘Carrot Buyer’?”
“What is it now?”
“I won’t tell you.”
“……”
“I won’t tell you even if you make that cute face.”
“I’m not making a cute face.”
“You are.”
“I am not making a cute face.”
“Does speaking so stiffly make cuteness not cute?”
After his contact name,
He hadn’t expected to learn the answer so coincidentally.
Choi Hong-seo stared at the name he had saved himself for a moment. He couldn’t bring himself to press end call.
That’s how he had saved him. Even before they were dating.
He had never been called that by anyone, nor had he ever wanted to be. Even when he saw others calling their partners that way, he had only felt it was cheesy.
But his brow kept stinging.
Lee Hae-sung’s heart, which cherished him, saw him as cute, and treated him like a precious, easily chipped item, was all contained within that word. That heart was transmitted so painfully, so completely… To suppress the surging emotions, Choi Hong-seo kept pulling down the brim of his hat.
He was unbearably lovable.
He didn’t know how to express the complex, chaotic storm of emotions rising in his chest… so he just wanted to hold him. He wanted to kiss him, he wanted him.
This feeling, so incredibly lovable that it was almost akin to sadness, felt like it would break his body and mind if he didn’t convey it to him somehow.
The couple in the front row was gathering their tray and getting up. Choi Hong-seo, covering his emotions, gathered his cardigan and phone and moved to their table. Just then, he appeared from the corner of the building, returning.
“A good seat opened up here? That’s fortunate. The other one only had seats in the back. It’s our first date outside, we got lucky.”
He was thinking about it being our first date too, old man…
“A seat opened up, so I was calling to tell you…”
“Ah, was that so? You left your phone behind. What do you want to drink?”
Because people might recognize him, he wouldn’t let Choi Hong-seo order or pick up drinks. He would always go in and out of the building himself, saying, ‘Sometimes people recognize me, but they just whisper from afar.’
Feeling sorry for him, who was doing what his attendants must have always done, Choi Hong-seo would glance into the building over his shoulder each time, following his movements with his eyes.
Returning to the table with a tray of drinks and cake, he looked down at Choi Hong-seo and let out a sigh mixed with a smile.
“Don’t look so sorry. Even if you weren’t a celebrity, I would have done it, and I wouldn’t have let you do it. So just give up.”
Sitting down, he patted the top of his hat again and added in a low voice.
“Though the sight of you waiting while only looking at me is incredibly cute.”
“I was monitoring to see if you made any mistakes. It’s something you probably haven’t done much.”
“Unfortunately, I often go to cafes alone while taking a walk in the neighborhood?”
“Really?”
Seeing Choi Hong-seo’s face, which asked with genuine surprise, he playfully pinched his cheek, saying, “Tsk.”
As he broke apart a piece of cheese cake, which he had ordered, saying it wouldn’t make him gain weight, Choi Hong-seo glanced at him.
“Are you going to Seocho-dong today?”
“I plan to. These days, I’m mostly in Seocho-dong even on weekends.”
He also had a house in Bundang. He had heard that he usually stayed in Bundang when he wasn’t working.
He knew why he was staying in Seocho-dong even on weekends. Because if he went to Bundang, he would be far from him. To be ready to meet him anytime.
He put down the fork laden with moist, fluffy cake and looked straight at him, sitting beside him. It was a place where sitting side-by-side, even as two men enjoying the view, wouldn’t strike anyone as odd.
“Can you let me stay over tonight?”
He said it without embarrassment. Choi Hong-seo’s expression and voice were calm and confident. It was different from last time when he had said it like throwing himself into it, saying, ‘I’m anxious.’
Lee Hae-sung paused for a moment at the request to stay over and responded playfully with a gentle smile.
“Hong-seo, you’re always welcome. You can come and go as you please even when I’m not here.”
But today, he wouldn’t let him avoid it.
“Not in the guest room.”
“……”
“In your bedroom… can I sleep over?”
■
When he came out of the bathroom, he was sitting on the sofa in front of the TV.
A variety show that broke the mood was playing on the screen. Upon closer inspection, it was a variety show Choi Hong-seo had appeared on. His gaze, seemingly lost in deep thought, didn’t seem to be actually watching TV.
Sensing Choi Hong-seo’s presence, he instantly changed his expression to a smile and got up. He turned off the TV and quickly approached.
“Did you dry your hair well too? Hmm, it’s dried nicely and fluffy. Good boy.”
To be praised just for drying his hair made him think that if he had children, their childhood would be very happy.
He looked down at Choi Hong-seo, who was again wearing his pajamas loosely, and said with a hint of apology.
“Should I prepare pajamas specifically for Hong-seo too? Since you’ll be coming often, it’s a bit much to have you wear mine every time.”
“I want to wear yours. I like it better that way.”
At Choi Hong-seo’s clear statement, he rubbed around his mouth with his large hand, trying to hide his shyness.
“Well… if Hong-seo likes it, I’m glad.”
Choi Hong-seo now knew that when he was in the bedroom, after showering, wearing his pajamas, he became unusually shy.
“Since we have the time, shall we watch a movie? Hong-seo, you said you wanted to watch
He mumbled, searching for the remote, wondering which platform
“Can’t we watch the movie next time? It’s already midnight and I’m a little tired.”
“Ah… is that so?”
Holding the remote, he tapped its head with his other hand, his gaze wandering aimlessly. He looked very troubled.