Chapter 77 (1/2)

Chapter 77: Chapter 77.

“What… what are you doing here…?”

Siwoo pushed away Jihoon’s hand. He was expecting to see Joowan so when it was Jihoon was standing there, Siwoo felt weak at the unexpectedness of it. And it was shocking to see that Jihoon’s face was just as crumpled and devastated as his own. He should’ve never gotten involved with Jihoon Kang. Why were things turning out to be so complicated?

Suddenly, Jihoon held Siwoo’s cheeks between his hands and asked, “Are you crying?” Jihoon’s hands were so hot that Siwoo couldn’t push him away again. He knew he had to look for Joowan, but the feeling of Jihoon’s hands felt so warm and real that Siwoo was speechless.

Jihoon continued, “I am the one who is hurting, so why are you the one crying?”

He wasn’t making any sense. Siwoo was the one hurting, yet Jihoon was talking about himself like the selfish man he was. Even so, Siwoo couldn’t stop staring at him. The cold wind blew and Siwoo wondered if his tears would freeze.

Jihoon asked again, “Why are you crying?”

“Jihoon Kang… what should I do now?”

Siwoo’s eyes were wavering. It was very late in the night, yet Jihoon was still wearing his business suit inside the coat. He didn’t look drunk; Jihoon just looked tired. In fact, his entire body looked like it was giving in. Jihoon looked so devastated that Siwoo couldn’t ignore him and walk away.

Siwoo sighed deeply. He realized that Jihoon’s image was slowly being seared into his mind. The way he looked so depressed and sad… Jihoon’s serious eyes… Siwoo wondered if Jihoon was somehow hurt by someone, just like he was hurt by Joowan.

It seemed that their lives were connected now for some reason. Was it just a coincidence, or fate?

“Jihoon, listen to me carefully because I will only say this once.”

“…”

“I think you are a selfish crazy bastard, but…”

“…”

“And I know that I should just ignore you and walk away right now, but…”

“…”

“For some reason, I… I just can’t leave you, you bastard.”

Siwoo began to sob loudly. Jihoon stilled, looking confused, as Siwoo buried his face on Jihoon’s shoulder. His hands trembled as he slowly hugged Siwoo.

Was this it? Could it be? Feeling the warmth of Jihoon’s body, Siwoo wondered if it was him who was selfish and crazy.

***

Yeonwoo gently touched Shin’s shoulder and asked, “Mr. Shin Kim, you’re already here? You’re at work so early today.”

The new year had arrived. It was very early in the morning and Shin was walking through the hallway to his office when Yeonwoo spotted him. It had snowed hard that morning; it looked beautiful, but traffic was hectic. Work was never fun but being surrounded by familiar people made him feel comfortable. Of course, he would’ve preferred to stay with Woojin all day. If he was rich, Shin would’ve seriously considered quitting his job so he could spend all his time with Woojin.

Shin replied to Yeonwoo, “I took a whole week off, so I had enough of resting. And I wasn’t hurt that badly either.”

“Even though you lost consciousness?”

“How did you know that?”

“You look so big and sturdy, so we were all so shocked when we heard about it. We were worried about you!”

Woojin insisted that he should take more time off, but Shin couldn’t take it anymore. He used to be an athlete and being trapped in a hospital room was unbearable. When Woojin wasn’t with him, Shin took long walks outside. It was cold, but still very refreshing.

Yeonwoo asked, “Was it really a hit and run?”

“… yeah.”

“Did they catch the offender?”

“Not yet.”

“Gosh, you are so lucky that you didn’t get hurt too seriously. That was dangerous.”

“Yeah.”

Shin got hurt by a car that was turning right at full speed. Drivers usually were careful when nearing crosswalks, so this was very strange. And after Shin was barely able to escape, he thought he saw the car trying to reverse to try and come at him again. Instinctively, Shin rolled away towards the sidewalk before losing consciousness.

Whenever Woojin saw Shin’s bruised wrist, he sighed unhappily. Shin loved how Woojin was becoming more and more expressive but seeing him unhappy was never good. Whenever Woojin sighed, Shin kissed his forehead, which seemed to help.

Yeonwoo said to him, “It’s funny how you actually look better though.”

“Really?”

“Your girlfriend must’ve treated you real nice. Am I right?”

“Of course!”

Just then, his eyes met Woojin’s. Yeonwoo bowed slightly to Woojin, and when Shin quietly did the same, Woojin bowed back with a pouty face and walked to his seat. He sat down and turned on his computer screen.

Silently, Yeonwoo looked at Shin and pointed at the office kitchen. After a quick glance at Woojin, he followed Yeonwoo.

Today, Woojin was looking pure as usual. His skin was so porcelain-like and clear that Shin’s fingers easily left slight redness on it. Shin tried not to leave any marks on him, yet he also found it hard to resist touching him, wanting to see himself on Woojin’s skin.