Chapter 124

Only their eyes met.

Silence settled between them.

...His pupils just got bigger...

Before the thought had even finished crossing Gyeol's mind, Yo Han abruptly turned his head away.

Then he picked up a glass of water and held it to Gyeol's lips.

"Drink."

"...I'm not drunk."

The protest came out in a faint pout, softened by the alcohol.

Still, Gyeol didn't refuse.

Instead, he obediently drank—

While wrapping both hands snugly around the hand holding the glass.

He gently pulled the cup closer.

Yo Han's thumb brushed against his lower lip.

Gulp.

Gulp.

Cold water slid down his throat.

A bead lingered on his lip before slipping free, tracing over Yo Han's thumb as it rolled downward.

Yo Han remained perfectly motionless until Gyeol finally let go.

Only then did he set the water glass down—

And immediately tipped back his wine, draining it in several large swallows.

"Why are you drinking by yourself?"

Gyeol reached toward him.

The movement made his head begin to slide naturally off Yo Han's shoulder.

Yo Han caught him with one hand, pressing lightly against Gyeol's forehead, while using the other to take away his wineglass.

"I told you you're drunk. That's enough."

"Aw... why..."

Gyeol complained.

"You're still drinking."

He could feel the fingers resting against his forehead curl slightly, as though they were struggling to maintain their composure.

Pretending not to notice, Gyeol rubbed his warm forehead lazily against Yo Han's palm.

"I get it."

"Get what?"

"So you like it when I call you big brother?"

"..."

"I saw your hand twitch just now."

With a playful grin, Gyeol rubbed his forehead against Yo Han's palm once more.

Looking down at his smiling face, Yo Han let out a shallow sigh.

"No."

"It's not that."

"Then why do you like it?"

Gyeol tilted his head innocently.

"I'm not the only one on this island who calls actor Yo Han Sung big brother, am I? Even Tommy goes around all excited saying, 'Yo Han, big brother.'"

"..."

"Right?"

He smiled brightly.

"Yo Han, big brother."

Calling him again, Gyeol leaned away from his shoulder.

Bracing himself with his bandaged hand against Yo Han's thigh, he looked up at him with a dazzling smile.

Yo Han quite literally froze.

He's flustered.

So he can make that kind of face too.

He'd gone so still he looked almost sculpted from stone.

The sight made Gyeol's smile grow wider.

At first, this had all been intentional.

He'd borrowed the courage of alcohol to provoke Yo Han.

Just as Gyeol couldn't act recklessly with cameras watching...

...Yo Han was equally constrained.

Gyeol had no intention of letting himself be pushed around anymore.

Just as he'd promised himself in the restroom—

He was going to seize control of their relationship.

But whether it was because of the alcohol...

...or because Yo Han looked far more shaken than he'd expected...

His mood kept lifting.

He was actually starting to enjoy himself.

His vision blurred slightly.

Blinking several times, Gyeol absentmindedly brushed against Yo Han's ear.

"It's red."

"...Don't."

Yo Han immediately turned his head away.

Gyeol hadn't imagined it.

The tips of his ears really had flushed a faint crimson.

"You don't like it?"

The color deepened instantly.

Leaning closer, Gyeol gently rolled Yo Han's earlobe between his thumb and forefinger before tracing upward along the rim of his ear.

"...Gyeol."

Yo Han's voice carried the patient tone of someone trying to soothe a child.

But Gyeol didn't remove his hand.

Finally, unable to endure it any longer, Yo Han gently wrapped his fingers around Gyeol's wrist.

Nothing like the rough grip he'd used once before.

This touch was impossibly careful.

Gyeol's eyes widened, sparkling with mischief.

He didn't retreat in the slightest.

Instead, he said,

"A wish."

Perfectly aware the cameras were recording.

"I'll grant it."

He smiled.

"Right now."

Then...

Gyeol reached into his pocket—

And pulled out the card.

***

Three years earlier.

Yo Han absently combed his fingers through Gyeol's hair as the sleeping man rested against his chest.

"Mmm..."

Gyeol let out a sleepy murmur before turning his face deeper into Yo Han's shoulder.

Something stirred inside Yo Han's chest.

An emotion he'd never experienced before.

His gaze lingered on Gyeol's swollen red lips.

They'd become so puffy from all the biting and kissing that even looking at them made heat creep across his own face.

Seriously?

I'm not some hormonal teenager.

He'd never even gone through anything remotely like this during adolescence.

Before his extremely dominant Alpha trait had even manifested, people had always gravitated toward him.

After debuting as an actor he'd become almost obsessively fastidious about personal boundaries, but growing up in America, he'd attended parties, invited people home, and spent countless nights in casual company.

Just never carelessly.

Never making the kind of mistake his father had.

But none of it had ever moved him emotionally.

The very idea of being emotionally stirred had always felt foreign.

Love.

The sort of thing that only existed in scripts.

Falling at first sight.

Being swept away.

Unable to escape.

A cliché so overused it bordered on laughable.

Immersing himself in a character had never been difficult.

But sharp critics occasionally pointed out the same flaw in his romantic performances.

"An imitation with no soul beneath the surface."

Something inside Yo Han was changing.

"...How can someone look this pretty just sleeping after getting drunk?"

Smiling in disbelief, one corner of his mouth lifted.

He leaned down and pressed a kiss into Gyeol's hair.

If it were up to him...

He wouldn't let Gyeol leave tonight.

But if Gyeol mistook him for that kind of man and ran away...

That would be a problem.

So he'd hide every dangerous part of himself.

Approach him wearing nothing but the face of a good man.

Patiently.

Carefully.

Until every possible escape route had disappeared—

And Gyeol had fallen completely for him.

Until their feelings matched perfectly.

***

Fortunately, Yo Han had thought to ask for Gyeol's address before he became too drunk.

After settling him into the back seat of the van, he called a trusted chauffeur he had used for years.

The van headed toward the outskirts of Seoul.

It wound through one narrow uphill alley after another...

Until it finally reached a point too tight for the large vehicle to continue.

Gyeol slept soundly, unaware they'd arrived near his home.

Pulling a cap and mask low over his face, Yo Han climbed out first and surveyed the area.

Even the streetlights were sparse.

The alley was swallowed by darkness.

Despite the late hour, not a single person was in sight.

Not even a stray cat.

Walking Gyeol the rest of the way didn't seem particularly risky.

After asking the chauffeur to wait a few minutes, Yo Han carefully lifted Gyeol onto his back.

The fact that he didn't wake even then showed just how drunk he was.

I hadn't meant to let him drink this much.

Feeling unexpectedly guilty, Yo Han adjusted Gyeol securely against his back and continued uphill.

Eventually they stopped before an aging detached house.

He checked °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° the address.

It matched exactly what Gyeol had given him.

Looking back over his shoulder, Yo Han spoke quietly.

"Gyeol."

"We're home."

"Mmm..."

"Yeah..."

Gyeol mumbled something unintelligible.

Come to think of it...

Yo Han had never asked whether he lived alone.

Or with family.

Or with a roommate.

If he lived alone, carrying him inside would be fine.

If not...

Things could become awkward.

A dating rumor wouldn't matter to Yo Han.

But Gyeol was an Omega.

And he'd only just begun rebuilding his career as an actor.

Without hearing what Gyeol wanted, the safest course was to avoid creating problems for him altogether.

After a moment's thought, Yo Han slowly lowered Gyeol back onto his feet.

Once he was sure both feet were planted, he shifted to supporting him upright—

Only for Gyeol to suddenly wrap both arms around him.

"...You're leaving?"

The words came out slurred with drunken drowsiness.

Is he awake?

Brushing Gyeol's hair away from his face, Yo Han answered,

"I should."

"It's late."

"Mmm..."

"Right..."

"You should go home too, big brother..."

Dragging out every syllable, Gyeol smiled with complete, drunken innocence.

He was obviously wasted.

The problem...

Was that even like this, he looked unbearably adorable.

I want to kiss him.

Lift that small face with one hand.

Press his chin open with his thumb.

Taste those lips again.

Run his tongue over the place he'd already explored.

Slip deeper inside.

Soft.

Hot.

Soaking wet...

Desire crawled slowly through him, whispering temptation.

The only thing keeping him from tearing off his mask and kissing Gyeol right there in the middle of the street—

Was the simple fact that he refused to put Gyeol in any danger.

"Enough smiling."

"You need to go inside."

"Can you stand on your own?"

Supporting him beneath both arms, Yo Han straightened his sagging body.

Gyeol wobbled forward as if he were about to collapse—

Before finally managing to stay upright on both feet.

"Don't..."

"Don't worry..."

"I'm okay."

"I'm not drunk..."

Just then, a phone began vibrating.

It wasn't Yo Han's.

"Oh..."

"My phone..."

It was Gyeol's.

While Gyeol fumbled through his pocket searching for it, Yo Han kept one hand around his arm in case he lost his balance.

At last Gyeol found it and answered.

"Hello, this is Gyeol Go—"

He didn't even finish speaking before an angry voice exploded through the receiver.

Yo Han couldn't make out the words.

Only that it was a man.

"N-No..."

"I'm already home."

Gyeol answered quickly, almost defensively.

The instant he finished speaking, loud clattering erupted nearby.

A door slammed open.

Not the front entrance to the house—

But from a small side unit attached to the building.

The sudden turn caught Yo Han completely off guard.

Before he even realized what he was doing, he'd propped Gyeol against the wall and slipped behind the corner without so much as saying goodbye.

"Seriously..."

"Do you know what time it is?"

A young man's grumbling voice drifted through the silent alley, accompanied by the shuffle of slippers.

From everything he'd seen, it had to be Gyeol's roommate.

He'd hidden on instinct.

But lingering to watch now felt almost indecent.

Satisfied that someone had come to meet Gyeol, Yo Han turned to leave.

Then—

"Dad!"

A little child's bright voice stopped him in his tracks.

Dad?

His head turned before he could think.

With a squeak, the iron gate swung open.

A tiny child came running out and threw himself around Gyeol's knees.

"Dad! You're home!"

"Yuliii..."

Gyeol dropped into a crouch as though collapsing forward and wrapped the child tightly in his arms.

The little boy giggled, rubbing his face against Gyeol's chest.

"Our Yuli..."

"Did you have fun today?"

"Uh-huh!"

"But Dad..."

"You smell funny."

"Yeah..."

"Dad had something to drink..."

Yo Han stood rooted to the spot.

Unable to move.

He could only stare at the two of them.