The next day, Hayeop looked in the mirror and nearly fell over backward. His face was a sight to behold. His forehead had turned a lovely shade of blue-green.
Then a memory abruptly surfaced, and he cried out.
"Ah…!"
He groaned as though he had stubbed his toe on the threshold. He had just remembered last night. Blind drunk, he had called the Young Master from a pay phone.
"Yoooung… Y-Young Master, I’ll… I’ll buy you lunch tomorrrow. Meet me… at twelve."
Am I insane? Have I completely lost my mind?
How was he supposed to go out for a meal with the Young Master looking like this?
It was already eleven, so Hayeop scrambled to his feet. He secretly took two eggs from the refrigerator without his mother noticing. After rubbing them vigorously over his face to reduce the swelling, he rummaged through the wardrobe.
"I don’t have a single decent thing to wear."
He had no choice but to wear the same white shirt again. He filled a pot with water and brought it to a rolling boil, then gently ran the hot bottom of the pot over the shirt. Once it was neatly ironed, he put it on and cautiously stepped outside.
"Young Master."
The moment he left the house, a red sports car caught his eye. The Young Master was leaning against it at an angle.
"Oh."
As always, Yoonwon was impeccably dressed. He wore yellow-tinted sunglasses like an actor, but the moment he saw Hayeop’s face, he let out a disbelieving laugh.
"Are you working for gangsters now?"
Hayeop was upset enough to die. Of all days, why did his face have to end up like this today?
"What the hell happened to your face?"
Yoonwon caught Hayeop’s face in one hand. He kept turning his head, trying to inspect it more closely. Hayeop averted his eyes, mortified and deeply embarrassed.
"We ran out of ingredients at work, so I got hit."
"What exactly did you run out of?"
When Yoonwon asked whether he had been beaten with bean sprouts, Hayeop hastily improvised.
"Oh, well, it was a frying pan…."
Then he bit his lower lip. He had said ingredients at first, only to panic and blurt out something about a frying pan.
Anyone could see how suspicious he was. He might as well have written I’m lying right now across his face.
"I-it’s none of your business."
With his meager social skills depleted, Hayeop went so far as to say something he should not have. The Young Master’s expression instantly turned cold. Then, as if he could not be bothered, he opened the passenger door for him.
"Then get in, you none-of-my-business human being."
In other words, if Hayeop did not get in, Yoonwon would leave him behind.
"Or you can run after me, parasite."
Hayeop practically tumbled into the passenger seat. But something pricked his bottom.
"Ow, that’s sharp."
He raised himself slightly and pulled out what felt like an enormous ring. The pointed needle at one end had been jabbing him in the backside.
"Why is there a bus handle in your car?"
"Ah."
For a moment, alarm flickered through Yoonwon’s eyes. He snatched the object from Hayeop’s hand and flung it out the window.
"Wait, is it all right to throw that away?"
"It’s fine. The bus has plenty of other handles."
"That was an earring."
Yoonwon shot him an irritated look. Would you look at that? He knew what it was and was only teasing me. Beneath that innocent face, Hayeop was no ordinary fool.
"Did it belong to your girlfriend?"
"I don’t have a girlfriend."
Hayeop’s lips twitched as though he desperately wanted to ask something.
"…What about Hana? You said you’d stuff a rag in her mouth."
"Baby, would you be quiet? You’re getting cheeky already, you little brat."
Yoonwon tugged on Hayeop’s earlobe and released it.
"That hurts, Young Master."
"Cut it out with that Young Master nonsense, you freeloader."
Then what am I supposed to call you? Sulking, Hayeop repeatedly tapped the side of his head against the window.
What an infuriating man.
It was Hayeop’s first time in a family restaurant in his entire life.
Wow….
Soft yellow light spilled down from above, and everyone was dressed stylishly. They looked so elegant cutting meat with forks and knives as though it were second nature.
Hayeop’s confidence naturally shriveled.
"I’ll show you to your table."
"Y-yes."
Hunching in on himself, Hayeop followed the employee to their table. They were seated by a window flooded with bright sunlight.
"Th-thank you."
He even bowed before cautiously sitting down. There were no chopsticks, only a fork and knife.
A chandelier hung directly above his head, making everything painfully bright. The ingrained grease stains on his white shirt stood out, making it look filthy. Seeing himself in such bright light only made him appear more shabby, and his spirits sank further.
Then he looked at the menu and found prices he could hardly believe.
Am I reading this wrong?
His legs trembled beneath the table at those incomprehensible prices.
I brought the money I got as a tip, but will it be enough? Maybe I should say my stomach is upset and have nothing but water.
"What would you like?"
"I’ll have course A, with sparkling water instead of wine. What do you want?"
At Yoonwon’s question, Hayeop clutched the menu tightly, looking troubled.
"I…."
"I’ll…."
Yoonwon parted his lips. He was about to say that he would choose for him and that Hayeop should not worry because Yoonwon was paying. But Hayeop’s eyes had already fixed on the waitress.
"I’ve never been to a place like this before."
He looked like a puppy that had lost its mother on a rainy day. His face plainly said that he had no idea what to do.
"Oh, I see."
Perhaps the pitiful sight moved the young waitress, because she came closer and began explaining the menu to him kindly.
"Are you all right with spicy food?"
"No, I’m not very good with it."
"Then how about the cheese-baked spaghetti?"
She recommended it gently, saying it was her own favorite dish. It was kind service.
Without moving his head, Yoonwon shifted his gaze toward Hayeop. Those huge eyes gleamed.
"Yes, that sounds good. I’ll have that."
Without even knowing what it was, Hayeop happily ordered the cheese-baked spaghetti.
"Thank you."
"You’re very welcome."
The waitress asked whether he would like anything to drink. Hayeop replied that water was enough.
"Please wait just a little while."
Once the waitress left, a crooked smile tugged at Yoonwon’s lips.
Hm. What is this unpleasant feeling?
Outdated clothes, frayed cuffs, hair hanging slightly over his eyes. Anyone could see that Hayeop was poor.
That must have been why she had recommended the cheapest item on the menu. She had taken Hayeop’s possible financial circumstances into consideration.
Yes, this was all Lee Hayeop’s fault. He had a way of making people worry about him—both that waitress and Yoonwon himself.
"Here is your food."
Yoonwon silently cut into his meat. He sawed at it with his knife, trying to shake off the strange, clinging feeling inside him.
"Excuse me, Young Master."
At the voice across from him, Yoonwon looked up. With clumsy hands, Hayeop had transferred some of his spaghetti onto a clean plate and was now offering it to Yoonwon.
"Please, have some."
"……."
"Thank you for everything."
Yoonwon silently looked down at the plate. Hayeop had given him all the cheese. He had the least of anyone, yet he readily offered up the best part of it.
Awkwardly using his fork, Hayeop slurped down the spaghetti. Tomato sauce smeared his plump lips.
"Mmm. It’s a little spicy, but it’s good."
"Try this too."
Expressionless, Yoonwon pushed the plate of meat across to Hayeop.
"Wow, thank you…."
As though even the fork itself felt unfamiliar in his hand, Hayeop stabbed deeply into a piece of meat. Appetizing juices seeped from it. He put it in his mouth, chewed, and his eyes widened.
"It’s delicious."
He said he had never eaten anything so delicious in his life, glancing around self-consciously even as he delighted in it.
Damn it.
Yoonwon’s eyes fixed on those smiling red lips. The knife slipped from his hand. Its blade scraped against the plate with a harsh, grating sound.
Yoonwon recognized the filthiness of his own thoughts.
…You crazy bastard.
He wanted to see the nape hidden beneath that white shirt. He wanted to know whether the hickey was still there.
"I’d like to come here with Mom next time."
Hayeop’s beaming face was pure and clear. He looked like a dumpling made from the thinnest wrapper, his soft, steamed-looking face wearing an impossibly innocent expression.
It was a shame. What if Hayeop had been a girl? Yoonwon might have doted on him and showered him with all the affection he deserved. But if he had a cock between his legs, that changed everything.
Of course, Lee Hayeop….
Yoonwon quietly contemplated that pale body. Unlike other men, Hayeop might have a pretty, cherry-colored cock, but men still were not his type.
You’re not my type. You’re far too young, and you’re a man. You don’t even know the first thing about sophistication.
And yet, if I can’t stop thinking about you, does that mean I really do want to sleep with you?
"Then should I ask you something too?"
Hayeop looked at him, plainly unsure what he meant.
"What?"
"You asked me a question earlier. You wanted to know what was going on between Hana and me. So now it’s my turn."
Yoonwon heard Hayeop’s slender throat bob with a gulp.
"What… is it?"
He could sense Hayeop’s nervousness.
"Why did you lie?"
One corner of Yoonwon’s mouth curled as he smiled slowly.
"When you said you hadn’t kissed me."