82 – TIO

Seo Yi-kyung tried to pull away his captured arm, but it was no use. Moreover, he felt a sense of pressure from Han Seung-jae’s gaze as he looked down at him from above. Because of this, the words floating in his mind suddenly burst out.

“I’m already staying only inside the house.”

Han Seung-jae knew every detail of what Seo Yi-kyung was doing. Outside the house, and even inside. If he wanted to know, there was no way he wouldn’t. Furthermore, judging by the photos he had found in the study, it seemed he had been investigating him since he was much younger.

As if resigning himself to the fact that he couldn’t free his arm, Seo Yi-kyung relaxed his grip and let his body slump onto the bed. Struggling would only be to his own detriment. Not only was he unable to beat Han Seung-jae, but since he had just exercised, there wasn’t a single spot from his toes upward that didn’t ache.

And bruises like these would disappear quickly over time. Seo Yi-kyung didn’t care about them, so it was incomprehensible why Han Seung-jae was making such a fuss. It wasn’t as if Han Seung-jae was the one feeling the pain. After all, it was his own body.

“Do you feel suffocated?”

Han Seung-jae guessed what Seo Yi-kyung’s next words would be. Was it an illusion, or had Han Seung-jae’s voice softened?

Seo Yi-kyung pulled his freed arm inward and pulled down his bathrobe to cover the bruise. Even then, Han Seung-jae simply sat on the edge of the bed, watching him. Seo Yi-kyung opened his eyes and looked up at him.

Seen from below, Han Seung-jae’s features were incredibly sharp. His deep eyes held the light filtering in from the garden. Avoiding those glistening eyes, Seo Yi-kyung lowered his eyelids.

The ‘Seo Yi-kyung’ of the original story spent most of his time in the painting studio, so he didn’t find staying inside the house suffocating. He was a person with a very narrow range of activity. Besides, even though it was inside the house, the townhouse was so vast that the spaces were divided according to their purpose.

The garden was large, and if he went out to the terrace, he could see all the changes of the season as it entered autumn. This place was truly pleasant, everything was abundant, and there was no time to feel a lack of anything. Butler Do by his side took care of everything meticulously, the resident chef’s cooking skills were truly top-notch, and the helpers were all kind.

As soon as Seo Yi-kyung lifted his eyelids, his gaze intertwined with Han Seung-jae’s in mid-air. Seo Yi-kyung hesitated over whether to speak the words lingering on his tongue.

“Seo Yi-kyung.”

The low, resonating voice seemed to caress his ear. As if urging for an answer, Han Seung-jae placed his hand on Seo Yi-kyung’s thigh.

“Ugh…”

A scream escaped Seo Yi-kyung at the intense pain surging up his thigh. At Seo Yi-kyung’s trembling movements, Han Seung-jae lifted the bathrobe. No matter how he looked, no bruise caught his eye. Nevertheless, Seo Yi-kyung was writhing wherever Han Seung-jae’s touch landed.

Seo Yi-kyung hurriedly pushed Han Seung-jae’s fingers away. Han Seung-jae lowered his hand, which had been pushed into the air, and pressed firmly on Seo Yi-kyung’s thigh once more.

“Aaaagh!”

Unable to endure it any longer, Seo Yi-kyung let out a short scream. Then, he belatedly realized that it was late at night and everyone else was asleep. He raised his hand to cover his mouth, and when that wasn’t enough, he bit the sleeve of his bathrobe.

“I don’t see any bruises, but does it hurt?”

At Han Seung-jae’s question, Seo Yi-kyung nodded repeatedly. This was because Han Seung-jae was continuously caressing his thigh. Watching this, the sound of Han Seung-jae clicking his tongue pierced through.

“If you can’t say it yourself, should I call Butler Do?”

It seemed it would be faster to ask directly what on earth he was doing inside the house. Just then, Seo Yi-kyung spat out the bathrobe he had been biting, pushed himself up from the bed with both hands, and grabbed Han Seung-jae’s hand on his thigh.

“It hurts!”

Gripping Han Seung-jae’s hand, Seo Yi-kyung looked down at his thigh. Just from running a bit, he felt a pain as if his legs were about to fall off. His ankles, calves, and thighs—all of them.

Han Seung-jae’s gaze lingered below. Throughout the time he examined his body, Seo Yi-kyung held Han Seung-jae’s hand tightly to prevent him from touching.

The rounded fingers, with neatly trimmed nails, looked white and soft. Han Seung-jae stared intently at the small hand gripping his own with all its might, then shifted his gaze to the side. Seo Yi-kyung’s brow was furrowed as he touched his own leg.

Suddenly, Han Seung-jae’s eyes reached the back of Seo Yi-kyung’s neck. A long streak had formed there. Han Seung-jae reached out with his free hand and touched the nape of Seo Yi-kyung’s neck.

Flinching, Seo Yi-kyung slowly turned his head. Han Seung-jae looked at the stain that had rubbed off onto his finger.

This time, it was paint.

“Wh-when did this get on me?”

Seo Yi-kyung let go of Han Seung-jae’s hand and rubbed the back of his neck. The paint smeared from his fingers to his palm.

‘How on earth did it get in a place like this?’

Seo Yi-kyung’s eyes wavered, unable to find their bearings.

“I’ll go wash up.”

Seo Yi-kyung grit his teeth and suppressed the groan that tried to leak out. He entered the bathroom and approached the sink. He washed his face as if erasing the traces left on his pale face and rubbed the back of his neck.

When Seo Yi-kyung came out drying himself with a towel, Han Seung-jae was leaning against the headboard of the bed. Seo Yi-kyung moved his steps slowly. Approaching the bed with difficulty, Seo Yi-kyung burrowed under the covers.

Han Seung-jae’s finger touched the back of Seo Yi-kyung’s neck. The neck, where the paint had been washed away cleanly, was white.

Seo Yi-kyung flinched at Han Seung-jae’s touch.

“Is there still some left?”

He asked because Han Seung-jae’s hand wouldn’t let go. He felt like he had scrubbed it several times. Could it still be there?

However, Han Seung-jae didn’t answer and increased the surface area from his fingers to his palm.

Seo Yi-kyung reached his arm back to push Han Seung-jae’s hand away and covered the nape of his neck as if to hide it.

“I’ll erase the rest tomorrow.”

Lying on his side in bed, Seo Yi-kyung buried his head in his arm. He no longer had the strength to go back to the bathroom. He had truly used all his strength just to wash and return to bed.

* * *

The next day, Seo Yi-kyung’s entire body was tingling. The legs that stepped onto the floor after leaving the bed did not move as he intended. He used every ounce of his strength to wash, change clothes, and stagger into the kitchen.

“Breakfast is not ready yet.”

Butler Do spotted him and approached with a surprised face.

Seo Yi-kyung gave a bitter smile and sat down clumsily, dragging his aching legs. It felt as if his legs weren’t his own. He didn’t want to show this side of himself to Han Seung-jae. If he did, wouldn’t Han Seung-jae figure out where he had gone?

“I’m just a bit thirsty.”

“I will bring you some water.”

“Yes.”

As Seo Yi-kyung nodded, Butler Do turned around. He filled a tall glass bottle with water and added a slice of lime.

Seo Yi-kyung grasped the crystal glass that was placed before him. He gulped down the water as if to soothe the parched thirst in his throat.

* * *

…At the same time, Han Seung-jae, who had been sitting at the desk in the study, stood up. He left the study and headed toward the bedroom. When he opened the door and entered, an empty bed met his eyes.

Turning around and heading back out, he entered the elevator. When he had left, Seo Yi-kyung, who had been struggling with him until late the previous night, was asleep. But it seemed he had woken up in the meantime.

Until now, Han Seung-jae had only been receiving reports regarding Seo Yi-kyung going outside. As for things happening inside the house, Secretary Park only mentioned them when something occurred that he absolutely needed to know. Part of it was that he didn’t want to suspect Seo Yi-kyung even inside the house. Besides, there wasn’t much Seo Yi-kyung did in here. Indeed, it seemed he just painted, unaware that paint was even getting on his body.

Han Seung-jae appeared in the basement. He had felt Seo Yi-kyung’s rose pheromone inside the elevator. Since Seo Yi-kyung would also use the elevator, it wasn’t strange. However, his pheromone unexpectedly extended all the way to the basement corridor.

“Did he come here too?”

Just as there was nowhere Han Seung-jae couldn’t go, the same applied to Seo Yi-kyung. Since Han Seung-jae hadn’t specifically blocked off any areas, it was only natural.

Click. Entering the room, Han Seung-jae felt the pheromones floating in the air. He had wondered where he got hurt; had it happened here?

All the exercise equipment was designed to fit Han Seung-jae’s height. Until now, Seo Yi-kyung had never come here. With an indifferent gaze, Han Seung-jae stepped onto the treadmill, his eyes looking down. He nonchalantly touched the panel, which was set to the lowest level.

Soon, Han Seung-jae’s legs, which had moved a few times, seemed to slow down, and he stopped after being pushed back off the rail.

He raised his hand and ran it through his hair with force. His brow furrowed, and the blue veins on the back of his hand became prominent. Was he not managing his pheromones at all? For that to be the case, the amount of scent spread was small. Nevertheless, because Han Seung-jae was an extreme dominant Alpha, he could smell even a trace of pheromones.

Han Seung-jae’s cold lower lip twisted.

“The scent is so damn erotic.”

Because his cock was hardening, he couldn’t run.