By Zephyria 
When they arrived home, Park Yeo-sa worried about Yeon-rok.
“Honestly, those young masters. They’re just hurting our poor young master in the middle.”
Her eyes seemed to be saying harsher words. Yeon-rok inwardly enjoyed Park Yeo-sa openly taking his side and asked,
“What about the walnut cookies?”
“I kept them separately, shall I give them to you?”
“Yes!”
Although such an unfortunate incident had occurred, the walnut cookies were innocent. Sitting down, Yeon-rok ate the walnut cookies, pondering about the man he saw at the hospital today and the seemingly kind internal medicine doctor. Kim Seo-won… I mustn’t forget. I should write it down on my phone, just in case.
“Oh, Young Master. I found this while cleaning, what should I do with it?”
He looked to see what it was, and it was a plastic clapping cheering tool. It was something he had bought to talk to Moon Kyeon-woo, who used to ignore him. He had hidden them here and there, but he had forgotten to clean up one of them.
“Oh, give that to me.”
Yeon-rok was wondering where he could use this when Moon Kyeon-woo appeared. Seeing the crutches leaning against the table and the leg wrapped in bandages, he sighed. Moon Kyeon-woo asked with a rather apologetic face.
“Are you badly hurt?”
“Yeah. They said my leg is broken.”
Yeon-rok lied bluntly. However, Moon Kyeon-woo, seeing the brace on his ankle, said,
“Looks like a sprain. I figured. Sorry. I’ll give you ice packs whenever I have time.”
He didn’t get his medical license for nothing, it seems. Yeon-rok didn’t answer, narrowing his eyes as he ate a walnut cookie. Since it didn’t seem intentional, he offered a walnut cookie with a forgiving heart. Seeing Moon Kyeon-woo obediently taking it, Yeon-rok felt a little better and suddenly felt playful.
He clapped his hands annoyingly, tapping him. He used to be very annoyed and irritated, but this time, perhaps because he felt guilty, Moon Kyeon-woo humbly accepted it. Yeon-rok tapped him a few times before asking something he had been wondering about.
“By the way, did you have a lovers’ quarrel with Choi Hwan? Why did you fight? Are you going to date again later?”
“Yeon-rok-ah.”
Moon Kyeon-woo glanced at the hand clappers tapping his shoulder and answered seriously.
“I’ve never dated someone I broke up with even once. Once it’s over, it’s over forever.”
Having endured for a long time, he grabbed the annoyingly lingering plastic toy. Then, he suddenly kissed the plastic hand. Yeon-rok, startled, jumped up from his seat, let out a shriek, and quickly dropped the tool from his hand. Surprised, he stammered and questioned.
“W-what are you doing!”
He wouldn’t have been so surprised if he had just gotten angry. However, Moon Kyeon-woo didn’t care about the horrified reaction. He stared at Yeon-rok with his pretty face and asked.
“Yeon-rok-ah, will you date me? I’ll be really good to you.”
Huh? Did Moon Kyeon-woo just confess to me… confess?
Yeon-rok doubted his ears. Moon Kyeon-woo returned the clapping tool as if telling him to touch him again as he pleased, but he had no intention of touching it at all.
“Are you kidding me right now?”
Yeon-rok, distancing himself a little from the other, asked cautiously. Moon Kyeon-woo said quietly with a face devoid of playfulness, let alone a smile.
“I would never joke about something like this.”
What’s going on, what is this? Yeon-rok firmly believed that Moon Kyeon-woo was the least likely of the three to become a lover. But surprisingly, the first person to confess to him and ask him to be his lover was Moon Kyeon-woo. You really never know what will happen with people.
“But why? With me…? Ah, so, is it because I’m your Name partner? Lack of contact, or something like that.”
Could there be some kind of trap? A scheme to trick him? Moon Kyeon-woo could clearly see the suspicion on Yeon-rok’s face, and he dropped his head sadly.
“You made me like you. It’s a little unfair…”
Moon Kyeon-woo quietly lowered his eyes. Yeon-rok flinched at how pitiful he looked. Still unable to understand and flustered, he shouted desperately.
“Even if I did like you, I don’t like you!”
He thought he had rejected him enough with that, but Moon Kyeon-woo was persistent. Unlike Yeon-rok, who had been heartbroken only once and had maintained his chastity for the Name partner he would one day meet, Moon Kyeon-woo was a seasoned player who had dated and broken up countless times, and asked this.
“You really don’t like me?”
“Yeah!”
“Then do you hate me?”
Huh? If he asked if he hated him… To be honest, he used to. But his affection-starved heart had become mushy and soft because Moon Kyeon-woo had been treating him a little better recently, calling him his benefactor. He couldn’t bring himself to say he hated him so coldly. Because Moon Kyeon-woo’s neat brow, eyes, nose, and lips that were facing him were too pretty. If he was just a little uglier, he would have lied…
“I don’t hate you. But don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not like I like you either.”
Even at that answer, Moon Kyeon-woo only smiled.
“If you don’t hate me, that’s enough. I’m okay with you liking me even just a little bit.”
“I’m telling you, I don’t like you even a little bit?!”
Yeon-rok shouted, moving further away from the other, who had gotten closer without him realizing it. Moon Kyeon-woo didn’t tell Yeon-rok to date him again or to like him. He just fiddled with the hand clappers he had used to tap him. Then, he sighed softly and said this.
“Now that I think about it, it’s still unfair.”
This was something Moon Kyeon-woo had said to him during the kidnapping incident last time. Yeon-rok couldn’t stand his curiosity because he couldn’t figure out what was unfair and asked.
“What’s unfair about it?”
“That I probably came to like you someday. And that I’ll probably like you even more in the future. …I knew this would happen from the first time I saw you.”
What nonsense is this? Yeon-rok felt awkward. From the beginning, Moon Kyeon-woo had glared at him and treated him so badly that he couldn’t find even a little bit of affection. Yeon-rok scoffed, thinking that he was just trying to pick a fight now.
“That’s ridiculous.”
“I should have just been nice to you from then on instead of rejecting you for no reason.”
Yeon-rok scoffed at Moon Kyeon-woo’s words, but on the other hand, he felt strange. It felt like he knew something but was hiding it from him. But… what could he be hiding from him?
“Can I have this?”
Moon Kyeon-woo asked in an infinitely gentle and affectionate voice as he stroked the hand clappers. He seemed like a completely different person from the one he had seen in the beginning. Yeon-rok, unable to adapt at all, trembled and snatched the object in his hand coldly.
“No! And… we’re just going to break up anyway if we date. I’ve seen what you’re like, how can I trust you.”
Since coming to this house, Yeon-rok had been continuously letting go of hopeful feelings. It was only natural that he would think this way, seeing the disappointment in his cold Name partner, as well as them dating and breaking up with each other.
‘Is there even any point in dating if it’s like this?’
Watching the three of them, it seemed that Yeon-rok was the only one who had innocent feelings about lifelong partners, love, and lovers. He wished that even one of the Name partners would become his lover, but he only came to the conclusion that they would definitely break up in the end. Moreover, Moon Kyeon-woo had so many ex-lovers that he didn’t even know how many there were, and he was the type of person who was cold and cut them off like a knife after breaking up.
That Moon Kyeon-woo said this.
“Why would we break up? You wouldn’t betray me, would you? Then I’ll never betray you either.”
Yeon-rok flinched. It was because he was reminded of something he had suddenly thought while watching Moon Kyeon-woo’s relationships.
If I had a lover who treated me that well, I would never betray them. I would treat them really well too… Moon Kyeon-woo, noticing him, tempted him as cunningly and smoothly as a snake.
“Yeon-rok-ah, we have a lot in common. We’re both lonely and crave affection endlessly. We’ll be a really good match.”
Moon Kyeon-woo’s words accurately pierced the long-deprived part. Yeon-rok unknowingly puffed out his chest. He was very tempted by the other’s suggestion, but then he thought of Yeom Cheon-ho.
The uniqueness of a group of four Name partners bothered him. As far as Yeon-rok knew, he was the only one currently in contact with Yeom Cheon-ho. But what would happen to Yeom Cheon-ho if he started dating Moon Kyeon-woo? Then, he was reminded of the two kisses he had shared with him…
“Are you thinking about someone right now?”
Yeon-rok suddenly came to his senses at the cold voice. Moon Kyeon-woo was smiling, but his eyes were somehow cold.