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Psst! We're moving!
After receiving the clothes, Guk immediately headed toward the door. He opened it without hesitation, and right outside stood a working woman. Guk extended the clothes to her.
“Please hurry as much as possible.”
“Yes.”
The woman bowed deeply but subtly glanced over Guk’s shoulder. She seemed curious about who was inside the room and what might be happening. However, Guk’s body blocked her view, preventing her from seeing anything.
“...”
“Hahaha, I’ll bring it back quickly.”
Meeting Guk’s silent, fixed gaze, the flustered woman hurriedly left. Guk watched her retreating figure before closing the door.
“Sit down. Why are you standing there?”
“Oh, I’ll sit.”
Guk, who had returned to his seat, gestured for Hyun-soo, who was still standing, to sit down. Guk sat first, followed by Hyun-soo, who adjusted his robe before taking his seat. The table between them was small, so they were quite close—close enough that their knees could touch if either moved slightly.
“Do you want a drink?”
Guk lightly raised his glass and asked. Hyun-soo, who had been fidgeting with the hem of his robe, suddenly looked up.
“No, I don’t drink well.”
“Alright, then.”
Guk never insisted twice when offering drinks. Sometimes this felt convenient, other times regrettable—it was an enigmatic sentiment.
“Then show me your hand.”
“Huh?”
“Your hand. It’s injured, right?”
After taking a sip of whiskey, Guk gestured with his eyes toward Hyun-soo’s hand resting under the table. Hyun-soo couldn’t hide his surprised expression.
“Huh? How did you know?”
“What do you mean?”
“The injury... Clearly, earlier...”
“If you try to hide it behind your back, did you think I wouldn’t notice?”
With a languid look in his eyes, he reached under the table and lifted a small first-aid kit. Hyun-soo chuckled softly at the sight of the kit, which he hadn’t even noticed was there.
“Hand.”
At the short command, Hyun-soo cautiously extended his hand. Blood was still seeping out from a fairly deep cut on his finger.
Guk carefully took Hyun-soo’s hand in his own and opened the first-aid kit to find some disinfectant.
“Should I disinfect it?”
“Why?”
“It stings...”
“Are you a kid?”
“No, not really. But it hurts.”
Deciding against further comment, Guk remained silent as he gently dabbed the wound with an alcohol swab. Despite his seemingly indifferent gaze, his touch was surprisingly careful.
“Ouch! Sss...”
“...”
“Ah!”
“Can’t you endure it a little?”
“I’m enduring it, but it seems like the cut is pretty deep. It stings a lot.”
“Maybe I should have taken you to the hospital. You probably need stitches.”
At this, Hyun-soo closed his mouth. The thought of having raw flesh stitched sent shivers down his spine. Guk glanced at the now-silent Hyun-soo and smirked at his transparent reaction.
“Yoon Han didn’t pour water on you, right?”
“Uh... No.”
It was an abrupt change of topic. Hyun-soo rolled his eyes.
“Then?”
“There was a slight misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding?”
“Just... something minor.”
“Just what?”
“I was relaxing in the bathtub, and he must’ve thought I was doing something bad, so he pulled me out, and splash!”
As Guk’s eyes shifted from Hyun-soo’s hand to his face, Hyun-soo slid his gaze downward, unable to bear the sudden scrutiny.
His hand was cradled in Yoon Guk’s large hands, diligently being treated.
“...”
“...”
Guk’s hands, warm and firm to the touch, felt “good.” That was the only way Hyun-soo could describe it. Though contact made him tense, the fact that their hands overlapped gave him a sense of security.
Just a hand. How could holding hands evoke such emotions? Hyun-soo licked his dry lips, acutely aware of the complex feelings swirling within him.
Once the ointment was applied, the finger was wrapped in a bandage, concealing the wound.
“Have you... thought about it?”
“Ah, that.”
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Hyun-soo snapped back to attention. She immediately understood what he was asking. Guk likely wanted to hear Hyun-soo’s decision regarding moving into the mansion.
After hesitating briefly, Hyun-soo began speaking slowly, as if organizing his thoughts.
“To be honest, I couldn’t make up my mind before, but now I think I can decide.”
“...”
“When I realized Han was wrong... it felt like my heart was going to explode.”
After finishing the treatment and securing the bandage, Guk placed Hyun-soo’s hand down. Leaning back in his chair, he picked up his glass again, though his gaze remained fixed on Hyun-soo.
“I’ll move in here.”
Clink, clink. The sound of ice cubes aimlessly swimming in the glass tickled their ears.
“Alright. Good decision.”
“Thank you.”
“But... If your decision is solely based on Yoon Han, that bothers me a bit.”
“Huh?”
“Forget it.”
Guk uttered some cryptic words, set his glass down, and briefly licked his lips with his tongue. His glistening lips caught Hyun-soo’s eye. As Guk exhaled, the sweet scent of alcohol seemed to brush against Hyun-soo’s nose.
“I’ll send someone tomorrow morning, so just bring the essentials. Remember, most things are already here.”
“Okay, I will.”
What had he meant by that? Hyun-soo tried to think about it, but Guk’s rapid-fire follow-up left his head spinning.
“By the way, Kim Hyun-soo.”
“Huh? Yeah.”
“Did you always have a mole on your neck?”
“Huh?”
It was an unexpected question. While sipping whiskey, Guk had been staring too intently, and this was the random remark he finally blurted out.
Slightly flustered, Hyun-soo touched the nape of his neck with his hand.
“There is a mole here, but...”
“Ah.”
“...”
“Was it there originally?”
“Yeah, it’s always been there.”
“Why didn’t I know about it?”
Hyun-soo’s hand, which had been brushing his neck, slowed. Guk’s tone, attitude, and expression all presupposed that he already knew every detail about Hyun-soo.
The Guk he’d met after more than ten years was colder than ice toward him. He acted as though he had no real interest in Hyun-soo. So, how should Hyun-soo react when Guk suddenly acted like he knew everything about him? Unable to find an answer, Hyun-soo could only awkwardly smile.
“Of course, you might not have known. You can’t possibly know everything about me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Before saying that, why don’t you tighten your robe? Otherwise, things might show.”
“What?”
Startled, Hyun-soo looked down. True to Guk’s words, his robe had come undone, exposing his chest. Flustered, Hyun-soo turned red and hastily tightened his robe.
“Ma, maybe you could warn me earlier, huh?”
“Is it my fault?”
“Well, no, but it would’ve been better if you said something sooner.”
“Ah, so it is my fault.”
Hyun-soo glared at him half-heartedly, but not out of anger. Guk shrugged and downed the rest of his whiskey.
“A necklace would suit you.”
“What...? What kind of random comment is that?”
“Your neck. It’s long and slender—a necklace would look good on it.”
What was he talking about? Guk was acting strangely today. Hyun-soo noticed the empty whiskey glass. Could it be?
“Are you drunk?”
At Hyun-soo’s question, Guk snorted derisively.
Crossing his legs, he stared at Hyun-soo with an intense gaze—specifically, at her nape and collarbone. His gaze was so obvious that even Hyun-soo could feel it.
“Why, why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on me?”
Feeling awkward, Hyun-soo brushed her neck and collarbone with her hand while rambling, but Guk’s unwavering gaze didn’t falter.
“Has anyone ever put a necklace on you?”
“Huh?”
“Has any guy ever put a necklace around your neck?”
Over the past ten-plus years, his dating life had been minimal. Friends pushed him into blind dates or introduced acquaintances, but those forced, short-lived meetings hardly counted as proper relationships. So, who would’ve put a necklace around this neck?
Hyun-soo shook her head as if entranced.
“No.”
“That’s how it should be.”
“...”
“That’s the Kim Hyun-soo I know.”
“What do you mean?”
Despite Hyun-soo’s follow-up question, Guk merely smiled and rose from his seat. Holding his refilled whiskey glass, he slowly walked away, seemingly unfazed by whatever expression or emotion Hyun-soo directed at him.
In the end, without further conversation, Hyun-soo spent about an hour and a half in his room—still wearing nothing but a robe.
While the room’s owner, Yoon Guk, appeared completely nonchalant, Hyun-soo was preoccupied with stealing nervous glances at him the entire time.
Hyun-soo stared blankly at his phone screen, his fingers moving rapidly. Re-reading articles and website pages he’d already seen, his mind was solely focused on Yoon Guk nearby.
The farewell was simple—no parting words exchanged.
While Guk was in the shower, the working woman arrived with his dried clothes. Hyun-soo quickly changed and left the room.
He briefly considered waiting to say goodbye, but after ten minutes of waiting for Guk to finish showering, he decided it would be overdoing it. Instead, he left a brief note and exited the room. The note read:
Thank you. See you tomorrow. – Kim Hyun-soo.
---
The next morning, Hyun-soo entered the mansion.
It was early, so there wasn’t anyone to greet him aside from Mr. Park, the driver who helped carry his luggage. It seemed no one else was even aware that Hyun-soo had arrived.
Hyun-soo’s room was located at the far end of the first-floor hallway. Though tucked away, it was spacious, cozy, and tidy, making Hyun-soo quite pleased with his new living space. He suspected Guk had put some thought into choosing it.
For a moment, Hyun-soo sat on the bed and surveyed the room. The bedding, curtains, and other daily necessities were already prepared, giving the room a warm, lived-in feel. It felt like he could settle in immediately just by unpacking his belongings.
Hyun-soo thought that once he added his personal items, it would feel just like his old room.
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