By Zephyria 
“Was I asking for something big? You’d think I was asking you to get matching wedding rings. It’s just clothes.”
“The watch…”We can get matching watches for fun as a souvenir. Can’t you even get me something like this?”
Tae-hwon took off his clothes, but Kwon Rae-i put them on.
He put on the cream-colored sweater over his T-shirt and showed off his new clothes to Tae-hwon.
“Be honest. Is it the price and usefulness that’s bothering you? Or are you just reluctant to wear couple clothes with me?”
“…”
“Ha! I’m not asking you to date me! We’re not lovers, we’re just friends. How many times do I have to say it? I’m not pathetically begging you to be my lover. I know it won’t work, and I don’t even want to. Just wear the clothes.”
And he unfolded the sweater and roughly put it over Tae-hwon’s head. He was even trying to force him to wear it. It was appalling.
‘What is it? Does he want me to wear it that badly?’
Kwon Rae-i struggled with Tae-hwon over the sweater. Tae-hwon’s hair was messed up and static electricity crackled. The victor of the fierce battle was, of course, Kwon Rae-i. Tae-hwon, who was still rehabilitating his right arm, was at a disadvantage.
“Ugh.”
The static electricity stung. Tae-hwon frowned and gave up resisting. He just put his hands through the armholes and let out a quiet sigh.
“Young master, you’re really… amazing. Fine.”
Woo Tae-hwon ended up wearing the same cream-colored, fluffy sweater as Kwon Rae-i. There was no way such a soft garment would suit him, who was born with a fierce face. Unable to hide his awkwardness, Tae-hwon couldn’t keep his hands still and awkwardly swept back his hair. No matter how much he tried to calm it down, his hair, which had been lifted by static electricity, stuck out like thorns like a hedgehog.
“You’re pretty. Tae-hwon.”
No way. There’s no way I’m pretty.
Kwon Rae-i spouted nonsense again today. It seemed like his rose-colored glasses weren’t even showing signs of coming off. Rather, it seemed to be getting worse as the days went by.
“That’s enough. Such compliments are only suitable for you, young master.”
“No, you’re really pretty. Like a dandelion seed. Or a newborn kitten.”
…I’m going crazy.
I’m going insane.
Tae-hwon was tormented by the urge to throw off the sweater right away. He felt like his blood was drying up. He thought it would be better to endure the pain of a knife in his stomach. Especially since that beautiful Kwon Rae-i was saying those words, it was even more uncomfortable to hear.
He was perfectly pulling off the sweater as if he had to take a photoshoot right away. He was about to be featured on the brand’s website. Or be plastered on the wall of a department store. His snow-white hair and the cream-colored yarn went together perfectly, and it perfectly matched his transparent and fair skin like water-soaked paper. If you watched him with your soul taken away, you felt like you would be captivated by his bewitchingly curved eyes.
“Hey, should we… should we take a picture together now?”
Kwon Rae-i half-threatened Tae-hwon to stay still and not take off his clothes, then left the dressing room alone. He wondered where he was going, but he went into his room and took out his cell phone.
He unlocked the phone, which was thoroughly secured with dual face recognition and passwords, turned on the camera app, and held it out to Tae-hwon. Tae-hwon was just embarrassed and bewildered.
“Young master. Do you really have to leave this in a picture?”
“Yes. Please. Please, I beg you.”
“Haa… why do I have to look like this?”
“Just one picture. Just once. Tae-hwon.”
“Haa…”
“Tae-hwon. Okay? Okay?”
“…”
“Please, just one picture… please…”
Oh, geez. He’s about to cry. What can I do?
Tae-hwon nodded, telling him to do as he pleased. Then, Kwon Rae-i put on a blissful smile and took a selfie next to Tae-hwon. He put one arm around Tae-hwon and pressed his cheek close, completely sticking together.
“Smile. Tae-hwon, smile at the camera.”
“…”
“Now!”
Tae-hwon stared at the lens with his jet-black eyes, and that image was captured as a photo on Kwon Rae-i’s cell phone.
At that moment.
His cell phone vibrated and switched to the call reception screen.
☎️Kwon Sang-oh
Tae-hwon’s eyes, which had been looking forward, hardened. The cell phone, which had just captured a peaceful moment, suddenly felt like a cold lump of metal. The vibration filled the dressing room and grew even louder, and Tae-hwon stared at the screen with tension.
All the hair on his body, even his hair, seemed to stand on end. Anxiety tightened his chest. Kwon Sang-oh. That name was an unexpected threat.
“Ah, that rat is finally moving.”
However, unlike the hardened Tae-hwon, Kwon Rae-i reacted calmly as if nothing had happened. He was not only calm but also relaxed. He turned off Kwon Sang-oh’s call and smiled. Even as he watched his lips curve into a friendly arc, Tae-hwon’s tension did not ease.
“Sang-oh is still the same. He’s stupid and slow.”
“Yes, yes…?”
“Let’s see. Hmm.”
Kwon Rae-i manipulated the cell phone screen. He touched it a few times, unlocked the additional password pattern lock, and showed a new screen. A dark night sky background showed an unfamiliar front door. And a man was captured in front of it.
“He’s moving even later than I expected. He’s only coming now.”
“What is this? Coming?”
“Yes. It’s Sang-oh.”
Kwon Rae-i zoomed in on the screen. As the CCTV screen zoomed in, the face of the man with blond hair grew larger. The high-definition and automatic night mode made it possible to clearly check the other person’s appearance even in the dark.
Although he had changed quite a bit after 10 years, it was definitely Kwon Sang-oh.
Kwon Sang-oh. The violent and ill-mannered third young master of Gyeongjeong.
“Is he coming here now? To this house?”
Tae-hwon’s complexion turned somewhat pale. His eyes widened and the surrounding air suddenly became heavy and stuffy. The cozy dressing room and the fluffy sweater no longer felt warm. A creepy chill ran down his spine and he had a feeling that something was terribly wrong. Even a desperate fear crept in.
The precarious escape life with Kwon Rae-i was now over.
Peace is shattered.
“Hahaha, no. There’s no way.”
Tae-hwon was so serious that he was going crazy, but Kwon Rae-i just laughed as if he was happy. He laughed as he watched Tae-hwon’s reaction, and laughed again, holding his stomach and laughing as if he was about to lose his breath, then waved his hand and shook his head.
“How can such a stupid bastard find us? That’s just a decoy house. Kwon Sang-oh just got caught in one of the surveillance nets.”
Decoy house? Caught in a surveillance net?
“But it’s clear that Sang-oh is looking for you, isn’t it? Aren’t we going to get caught by Gyeongjeong sooner or later?”
Kwon Sang-oh was, yes, a impulsive person who had been short-sighted and acted before thinking since he was young. He might not be such a threatening presence. But Gyeongjeong was different. Gyeongjeong was a huge and ancient abyss. Kwon Sang-oh’s older brothers, Kwon Tae-oh and Kwon Hyeon-oh, were different from Kwon Sang-oh.
“It’s okay. As long as Tae-hwon doesn’t leave here.”
Kwon Rae-i closed the CCTV screen and turned on the camera app again. And he tried to take a selfie with Tae-hwon again.
“More than that, smile slightly at the camera. You didn’t smile in the last picture.”
Tae-hwon was at a loss. Most of all, what was strange was the look in Kwon Rae-i’s eyes now. Behind the warmth that sparkled toward Tae-hwon, there was a cool calculation flowing somewhere. He looked insidious, like a gambler leading a game he had already won.
A chilling energy and dangerous intentions. Is that Kwon Rae-i’s true nature? Or is he just enjoying the precarious thrill of facing impending doom?
Tae-hwon was beyond impatient and desperate, but Kwon Rae-i was smiling nonchalantly and holding out the camera.
‘What is this sense of incongruity?’
Could it be that Kwon Rae-i doesn’t feel a sense of crisis? Is he insensitive to safety? He didn’t know how much he had prepared with the decoy house and the surveillance net, but no matter how much Kwon Rae-i flew and kicked on his own, he couldn’t possibly stand up to Gyeongjeong, which was like a huge mass of destruction. If he was confident that he could, it was arrogance and bravado. It’s a childish sound.
“Okay, brightly. Smile.”
Kwon Rae-i urged Tae-hwon and took a picture. Tae-hwon shook his head and pushed his shoulder away.
“…Stop it. We already took one picture.”
“But I want to take a picture with a smiling face. I want to see you smile.”
“…”
He felt stuffy. And it was bleak. He felt like he was standing alone in the cold darkness.