"How do you know him?"
The moment Yoonwon got into the car, he asked the question, and Hayeop’s eyes darted about. He was asking again. So he hadn’t believed that clumsy lie after all.
"I work at a bean sprout soup restaurant. Cheol came in once after drinking himself senseless…."
In the end, it was another lie. He had no choice but to repeat what he had told his mother. Feeling guilty for no reason, he hastily added that Cheol was a regular, so his face had become familiar.
"You seemed pretty close, calling him Cheol like that."
There was a sharp edge to the question. Hayeop felt as though a pointed toothpick had lodged itself in his heart. Maybe he should just confess now. Tell him that he actually worked at a nightclub.
But somehow, he suspected Young Master wouldn’t like it. Worse, it might give him the wrong idea. What if he thought Hayeop was some shameless little slut? N-not that anyone would make such a mistake after seeing his pathetic mug.
"So it wasn’t your first kiss?"
Yoonwon picked up the conversation that Yangcheol had interrupted earlier. How could he say something so rude? Wasn’t it wrong to mock him like that? Unable to contain his indignation, Hayeop let his mouth run away with him.
"I really have kissed someone before."
"Liar."
Yoonwon’s eyes narrowed seductively, as though he were trying to determine whether Hayeop was telling the truth.
"I’m not lying."
But now that he had come this far, stubborn pride kept him from admitting that it really had been his first kiss.
"Who was it?"
Young Master asked with studied indifference, his eyes fixed firmly on the road ahead as if the identity of Hayeop’s first kiss meant nothing to him.
"An older woman I know. She was tall, with red lips."
Naturally, that was a lie too. Yeonhee, the prettiest woman at the nightclub, had suddenly popped into his head, so he had simply described her.
"Sounds like the sexy type."
"…Yes. The sexy type."
The car abruptly fell silent. The atmosphere seemed strangely heavy. Had Yoonwon realized he was lying? Hayeop cautiously glanced to the side, only to lurch without warning. The car had jolted, making his body sway with it.
"Fuck."
Hayeop jumped at the sudden curse. Yoonwon’s hand was pressing hard on the horn. A piercing blast rang out. Startled out of his wits, Hayeop hurriedly grabbed the handle and blinked rapidly.
"Ah, sorry. Did I scare you?"
Yoonwon soon smiled gently, as though nothing had happened. It felt deeply unfamiliar. Hayeop had never heard Young Master utter such a vicious curse before. He teased Hayeop, yes, but his tone was always mild.
"No matter where you drive, some son of a bitch is bound to show up."
"I-I’m fine…."
Hayeop had nearly jumped out of his skin.
"So you really have kissed someone before?"
"Yes, yes, I really have. I really kissed that woman."
Afraid that Yoonwon would give him hell if he discovered the lie, Hayeop quickly nodded. Yoonwon smiled smoothly.
"What was it like?"
"It w-was nice. Soft. It made bells ring in my head."
The more he spoke, the more sincere the words became. He had tried to forget it because every time he dwelled on the memory, something pricked at his heart and made it ache. Yet the harder he tried, the deeper it lodged itself in his mind.
"…To be honest, I never wanted to do it again."
My heart was pounding so hard, I thought I might die.
Hayeop spoke as though lost in a dream. The man responsible gave a cold scoff.
"Then let me hear you say it yourself."
Yoonwon’s lips relaxed into a mocking smirk.
"Do you know how babies are made?"
Hayeop looked up at Yoonwon. His gaze seemed to ask how anyone could possibly not know that. His large eyes were moist, his face innocence itself.
"…A-a baby is made when a man and a woman sleep together under a bridge."
That guileless face. It reminded Yoonwon of a nun praying in a white veil, leaving him utterly speechless. What did that make him in front of this innocent little thing—Satan? An evil spirit? The guilt rose so naturally that he wanted to cover those small lips.
"That’s how they make a baby."
"Are you seriously telling me that?"
Yoonwon swept a hand over his forehead as if his head hurt. Jet-black hair spilled across his handsome brow. His exhalation was heavy.
"Yes."
Though now that he thought about it, it did seem a little strange. Men and women slept in the same room at public bathhouses all the time, so why would babies only be made under bridges?
"Ha…."
Yoonwon sighed. The guilt had come crashing down on him out of nowhere. Until he was twenty, he had only dated people his own age. After that, he had exclusively dated older partners. He had never been interested in the innocent or the young. Their purity was tiresome. Teaching someone had never particularly aroused him.
"What the hell am I doing with a kid…."
"Why did you suddenly ask me that?"
Hayeop grumbled, scratching hard at his knee. Red patches of heat rash had bloomed across skin as pale as milk. The white tops of his feet still bore the marks of his three-striped slippers. Yoonwon’s vision swam, and he covered his eyes with one hand.
Something writhed in Yoonwon’s lower belly like a revolting insect. It was damned lust.
…Fuck. This is dangerous.
Warning lights that almost never came on were now flashing madly. Yoonwon drew his brows together. Hayeop watched him cautiously before asking,
"Are you in a bad mood?"
As he spoke, he rounded his red lips.
"Yoon…."
"No."
Could Hayeop have thought Yoonwon was upset and planned to coax him out of it by acting cute? Yoonwon’s large hand clapped over Hayeop’s mouth. Hayeop stared up at him, eyes wide.
"Wh-why are you doing this?"
"No. Don’t."
"What?"
Hayeop’s lips moved beneath the hot palm. Perhaps Young Master was angry because Hayeop only addressed Cheol so familiarly.
"When I tell you not to, just don’t."
His voice had dropped, sounding slightly hoarse.
"I must be out of my damned mind."
Yoonwon muttered under his breath, scrubbing both hands roughly over his face as though washing it without water.
"Just keep calling me Young Master."
"Yes…."
"And another thing."
Yoonwon spoke with a deep scowl. For the first time, his voice sounded as though it were being forced through clenched teeth.
"Don’t try to do everything a grown man tells you."
He sometimes said things Hayeop couldn’t understand. His eyes had gone so black that Hayeop instinctively shrank back. Young Master was as sophisticated as a fashion model and as witty as an actor on television. But now, there was something disciplined and forceful about him, like a soldier, and it was a little frightening.
"Wh-what is that supposed to mean all of a sudden?"
"Stop talking."
Yoonwon abruptly turned ice-cold. Why did he keep plunging Hayeop into hot and cold water by turns? Hayeop felt a little like crying. No matter how he looked at it, Young Master was the one who talked more.
Was he angry because a boy who had attached himself to the household like a servant had dared to act familiar with him? Hayeop glared at him resentfully.
"Tsk. Your eyes."
Now he was even being told where to look. Hayeop thought he might die from the injustice of it all. Like some tragic hero, he wasn’t allowed to call a brother a brother or his mother his mother….
"Hayeop."
Hayeop stared only at his knees. How many lies had he told today? But there was one truth he could never deny: whenever Yoonwon said his name, it seemed to carry the fragrance of flowers.
"You really are just a child."
He was not. Hayeop had passions he could never tell anyone about. Yoonwon shouldn’t dismiss him as a child.
"An ignorant, innocent parasite living under our roof."
"I am not."
"Of course you are."
Hayeop pouted. His cheeks, which always turned madder-red when he felt wronged, were flushed as though stained with balsam flowers. Yoonwon pressed a finger to Hayeop’s cheek and flicked it. Then he chuckled secretly to himself. The atmosphere softened a little.
"We only had a meal today. Understand?"
"…Yes."
"Me letting you ride in my car today doesn’t mean anything."
"Yes…."
"I don’t care for brats who look as childish as you."
"I-I said I understand."
"If nothing else, I prefer the glamorous type."
"……."
"And among those, naturally, I prefer women."
He’s still talking.
Hayeop turned his round eyes toward the window. Outside, the sunset had been drizzled across the sky like syrup. Depending on his mood, that sunset could taste refreshingly tart or pleasantly spicy, but today it seemed bitter. And yet it was far too addictive to give up.
"Young Master, you’re too difficult. I don’t understand you."
"What, did you think you could run circles around me?"
Yoonwon tugged Hayeop’s earlobe and released it. It tickled, so Hayeop rubbed his ear vigorously against his shoulder. One moment Yoonwon treated him as coldly as an ice prince, and the next he was warm and affectionate. Hayeop’s heart never had a moment to rest.