Chapter 44

“Stop… Don’t touch me…”

“…”

Yu-su flinched violently, twisted away, and covered his side with one hand. Every muscle in his body tensed as he leaned outward, struggling to escape Muwon’s embrace. The resistance did not last. Shivering from the chills, Yu-su soon sagged in defeat, leaving himself hanging forward with his back pressed against Muwon. Even in this state, his supple body moved with an unconscious grace.

Muwon’s gaze settled on the damp strands of brown hair clinging to the nape of Yu-su’s flushed, pale-pink neck, and his heart lurched without warning. Acting on impulse, he gently brushed the wet locks aside and brought the tip of his nose close to the shell of Yu-su’s ear. The sensation was strangely reminiscent of holding a frightened deer by the scruff of its neck.

Muwon’s hot breath hovered over Yu-su’s earlobe, barely grazing skin that burned even hotter.

“Jeong Yu-su.”

Born into a chaebol family, Muwon had never once needed to nurse another person back to health. Yet there he was, slowly patting Yu-su’s back and soothing him with the gentlest voice he could summon.

“Jeong Yu-su, it’s all right. It’s me.”

The absurdity of trying to comfort someone who had called him a fucking asshole only moments earlier was not lost on him.

“…”

What happened next was even more ridiculous.

As if Muwon’s voice had broken through the fever, every trace of tension drained from Yu-su’s body. Yu-su shifted and turned, burrowing into Muwon’s chest. Like a wounded animal seeking shelter, he tucked his head beneath Muwon’s chin and hid himself away.

“…Ha.”

The feeling was unsettling. Muwon’s heart ached as though it had been struck, yet something inside his chest also tingled. Yu-su never revealed weakness to anyone. Perhaps that was why seeing this hidden side of him felt so rare. Without realizing it, Muwon began stroking Yu-su’s back. His palm moved over the narrow ridges of Yu-su’s shoulder blades and then up the straight line of his nape.

He suddenly froze.

“What the fuck am I doing?”

For the next thirty seconds, Muwon cursed himself relentlessly before his breathing finally steadied. He clenched one fist, released it for no reason, then lifted Yu-su’s shirt and began wiping his back with the damp cloth.

Even with the fabric between them, every ridge of Yu-su’s spine pressed clearly into Muwon’s palm. Yu-su flinched from time to time while cradled in his arms, but he no longer rejected the contact as he had before.

Muwon turned him once more to wipe the shallow hollow of his abdomen and the faint lines of his hip bones, then dropped the cloth into the paper cup.

Perhaps it was the subtle trembling that had continued to travel into his palm. Although Yu-su was the one burning with fever, Muwon’s own nape had turned bright red before he noticed. Annoyed, he scrubbed at the back of his head and began fanning Yu-su’s face and body with one hand so the moisture would evaporate more quickly.

As the water dried, Yu-su’s temperature seemed to fall, if only slightly. Muwon was reaching for the cloth again when Yu-su stirred.

“Wa… water…”

“Jeong Yu-su. Are you awake? Do you want water?”

No answer came.

Instead, Muwon felt something strange against his neck.

His entire body went rigid. A shiver raced down his spine as he turned his head and caught sight of Yu-su’s face.

Because Muwon had been moving him around, he was holding Yu-su tightly against his body. Yu-su’s lips were buried in the hollow of Muwon’s neck, rubbing faintly across his collarbone.

“Water… Give me…”

The weak, pleading murmur brushed over Muwon’s skin. Yu-su’s lips remained pressed against him, moving with an intimacy that crossed a dangerous line.

“Th-this fucking…”

Startled, Muwon shoved him back. Yu-su’s lips were red and swollen, twitching faintly as though he had been wronged. Muwon felt his own throat move without permission and forced himself to look away.

“Jeong Yu-su. Can you drink? You need to take the medicine too.”

There was no response, but Muwon carefully let a small amount of water pass between Yu-su’s lips.

Most of it spilled out.

As Muwon wiped the water from Yu-su’s chin with the back of his hand, another faint voice reached him.

“More…”

A red tongue appeared between Yu-su’s wet, parted lips, which opened and closed as if silently pleading for more.

“Fucking hell. Then ask for it properly while you drink.”

Muwon’s stream of curses abruptly stopped.

His body reacted before a coherent thought could form. Blood surged through him, and his heart began hammering against his ribs.

Crinkle.

The plastic bottle buckled in his grip.

“If it’s just a cold… then go ahead and give it to me.”

Muwon put the fever reducer and water into his own mouth, then pressed his lips against Yu-su’s.

Heat and softness met him at once.

Supporting Yu-su’s nape with one large palm, Muwon tilted his head and carefully parted their joined lips.

Their breaths mingled.

Startled by the sudden intrusion, Yu-su’s pale brown eyelashes fluttered, but he did not pull away. Once he realized that water was passing into his mouth, the tension seeped from his body, and he accepted it.

A soft tongue brushed against Muwon’s.

When Yu-su opened his mouth a little wider, Muwon instinctively pressed down against his tongue.

Gulp.

The fever reducer finally went down.

Relief loosened the knot in Muwon’s chest, and he began to pull away.

Then Yu-su made a soft, needy sound.

“Mmm…”

Having tasted the relief of water, Yu-su clung to him and whined for more. His lips suddenly closed around Muwon’s, catching them between his teeth. The hand Muwon had rested against Yu-su’s thigh curled into a hard fist. The last wall of reason inside him collapsed.

“Fuck.”

“Mmm… hhh…”

Muwon tilted his head and pushed his tongue deep into Yu-su’s mouth. He swept through the heated space, tangling their tongues together and rubbing against him as though demanding that Yu-su swallow every last trace of water. Again and again, he licked the fever-warmed interior of Yu-su’s mouth, sucking at his lips until it felt as though he were stealing the breath from his lungs.

“Ugh…”

Yu-su’s breathing grew shallow beneath the relentless pressure. He struggled weakly and finally bit down on Muwon’s tongue.

Muwon stopped.

He jerked his head back as if suddenly awakening from a trance.

Slap!

He struck himself across the face.

The sharp impact startled Gorak, who immediately opened the door.

“Hyung…?!”

“Get inside. Don’t just stand there like a fucking idiot.”

Gorak blinked, bewildered by the hostility. Why the hell is he so angry? He glanced at Hee-eun, who assumed the manager was furious because Yu-su’s fever had not gone down.

“Um, I found these while we were waiting.” Hee-eun placed three bags bearing the bank’s logo on the table. “We can wrap them around ourselves.”

Gorak added the stack of uniforms and blankets he had gathered.

Hee-eun caught sight of the handprint on Muwon’s cheek but wisely said nothing. Instead, she draped a blanket over both him and Yu-su, then checked Yu-su’s temperature.

“Huh? Has his fever gone down a little?”

“Really, noona?” Relief lit Gorak’s face. “That’s great. We can give him the medicine now, right?”

“He’s already taken it.”

Those four words fell with crushing weight. Had speech possessed mass, Muwon’s voice would have gouged a hole through the floor.

Gorak felt as though the sheer force of it had shoved him backward. He stared blankly.

“He took it? That’s great news, hyung.” Gorak swallowed. “You must be tired. Should I take the first watch?”

“Shut your mouth and sleep.”

“Y-yes…”

Thoroughly cowed, Gorak lay down on one of the chairs reserved for bank customers and covered himself with a uniform.

Hee-eun sat in the open space nearby. She watched Muwon in silence but shrank back just before he could snap at her too.

“…”

The chaos at the restaurant had not been enough. They had also been forced through driving snow to reach the bank, then endured hours of agonizing uncertainty while Yu-su’s condition worsened.

Eventually, Gorak and Hee-eun’s ragged breathing softened into the steady rhythm of sleep.

The room sank once more into suffocating darkness.

Muwon remained motionless for a long time, staring into the void like a statue. At last, he forced himself to lower his gaze.

A frail, limp body rested against his chest. Yu-su slept deeply, unaware of everything that had happened, his breathing soft and even.

Do Muwon, you fucking asshole. You crazy son of a bitch. You goddamn lunatic. What the hell have you done?

The worst part was that the stolen kiss had not been his first.

***