"Eat, then clean everything up yourselves before you leave. You know where the key is, right?"
"Yes. Thank you, boss. We'll pay before we go too."
Seorin set two large bowls in front of both Seonwoo and Hyeonchae before hurrying off so she wouldn't miss the shuttle.
"Eat. Woo Seorin makes amazing ramen."
Hyeonchae, who had been quietly staring at the bowl in front of him, finally picked up his chopsticks.
After cleaning up well enough that the owner wouldn't scold them, Seonwoo paid 100,000 won, then naturally grabbed a couple cans of Pocari from the refrigerator before walking outside. Dropping down beside Hyeonchae, he popped one open and handed it to him.
Sitting side by side as they looked out over the slope, the snow-covered mountain was completely deserted, unlike during the day. Even the ski lifts had stopped moving. The silence was almost unsettling.
"I'm sorry about what happened that day. I took it out on you. I shouldn't have."
"Why were you angry?"
"..."
"Because of Choi Iwon?"
Seonwoo turned toward him.
Their eyes met immediately, as if Hyeonchae had already been watching him. His eyes, shadowed beneath thick eyelashes, looked unusually dark.
"Yeah. That's right."
The moment Seonwoo admitted it without hesitation, Hyeonchae's pink lips parted slightly.
Lowering his gaze, he clenched his fist tightly before pretending not to care as he asked,
"...Do you think you'll keep getting angry because of him?"
"Probably."
Hyeonchae bit his lip and turned away from Seonwoo.
Once his eyes dropped toward the ground, they refused to lift again.
Watching the tear clinging to the tip of Hyeonchae's eyelashes slowly grow larger, Seonwoo swallowed a quiet sigh.
"Why are you crying?"
"...Because you only lose your composure over him, Senior."
A bitter smile crossed Seonwoo's face at the honest answer.
After remaining silent for a long time, he finally murmured,
"But that's no good.
"...It's painful."
When Seonwoo stood up, Hyeonchae looked up in surprise and hurried after him.
The tears that had been pooling in his eyes overflowed at last, running down his frozen cheeks in clear streams.
Standing directly in front of him, Seonwoo met those tear-blurred eyes and gently cupped one side of Hyeonchae's face.
The warm touch that wiped away the tears made Hyeonchae's eyelashes tremble.
"When I look at you, I can't seem to get angry.
"You..."
Seonwoo's lips moved as though he were about to say something else.
Then they pressed tightly shut.
A fleeting trace of guilt flashed across his furrowed face.
Sensing that Seonwoo was about to pull away, Hyeonchae hurriedly grabbed the hand cradling his cheek.
"I'll help you.
"I want to help.
"So that you won't get angry anymore."
So that Senior wouldn't love Choi Iwon anymore.
So that he would never be hurt like he had been that day.
Swallowing the words he couldn't bring himself to say aloud, Hyeonchae simply held onto Seonwoo's hand as though it were the last rope keeping him afloat.
Unable to tear his eyes away from Eun Hyeonchae's unbearably beautiful face as he pleaded with him, Seonwoo asked almost as if entranced,
"...Will you?"
"But then...
"...Senior has to look only at me."
Because then...
...you won't get angry anymore.
At the tiny voice that almost disappeared into the air, Seonwoo finally relaxed his stiff expression and smiled faintly.
* * *
"Where are you staying? I'll walk you back."
"Just one of the villas over there."
"One of the ones by the lake?"
Seeing Hyeonchae nod as though it were nothing special, Seonwoo let out an incredulous laugh.
Lake Village, beside the lake, consisted of the most luxurious private pool villas in all of Mighty Town.
One night's stay easily exceeded one million won, and even then, reservations were almost impossible because most of the villas had been purchased outright by chaebol families and were used as private vacation homes.
The place Hyeonchae was staying in was probably owned by Simjin as well.
Calling Lake Village "just one of the villas over there."
Seonwoo chuckled.
"But isn't it too far?"
"It is, but it's quiet. Private, too."
"No.
"I meant from you, Senior."
Understanding what he meant, Seonwoo looked at him in confusion.
"How long are you planning to stay here?"
"What about you?"
"...I'll be here until February. I'm here to teach. You don't have anything to do here."
"I have to help you."
"Iwon isn't even here. What is there for you to help with? It's just a waste of your time."
Apparently dissatisfied, Hyeonchae pressed his lips together.
Without even trying to tease him, Seonwoo found Hyeonchae's reactions strangely adorable as they walked together toward the lake.
The silence of the early morning and the quiet between them both felt oddly comfortable.
Crossing the completely frozen lake, they entered Lake Village, where the villas stood.
It was Seonwoo's first time coming here, and he looked around with open curiosity.
The foreign-style villas, elegant lighting, steep roofs covered in snow, and the lake stretching behind them made it feel as though they had left Korea altogether.
"This is it.
"...Would you like to come inside for a little while?"
Holding onto the fence, Hyeonchae asked hesitantly.
Seonwoo snorted with a laugh.
"At this hour? There's no such thing as 'a little while.'"
"..."
"I'm going."
Leaving Hyeonchae behind, Seonwoo turned around.
The burning gaze on his back followed him until he disappeared beyond Lake Village.
* * *
You shouldn't casually tell someone,
"When I look at your face, I can't get angry."
Especially not someone as crazy as Eun Hyeonchae.
Only after everything happened did Seonwoo realize he'd unknowingly handed Hyeonchae his greatest weakness.
The doorbell rang early the next morning, waking him from sleep.
Still groggy, he looked toward the front door in confusion.
There wasn't even housekeeping here.
Who would be visiting?
Thinking it might be Dongjin, Seonwoo walked over exactly as he was and opened the door.
The freezing wind that rushed inside made him instinctively hunch his shoulders.
Through the barely opened door, Eun Hyeonchae cautiously poked his head inside.
"Senior."
"What the... what are you doing...
"...Eun Hyeonchae?"
Seeing Seonwoo wearing nothing but his underwear, Hyeonchae's eyes widened.
He hurried inside carrying all his luggage and quickly shut the door.
"You'll catch a cold."
Still half asleep, Seonwoo simply blinked in bewilderment.
"What are you doing here this early?
"And what's with all this luggage...
"...No."
Seeing the faint blush on Hyeonchae's otherwise calm face, Seonwoo immediately refused.
But lowering his eyes, Hyeonchae quietly continued,
"I want to stay with you all winter.
"But I know you'll just tell me to leave again.
"That there's nothing I can do...
"That I should go home...
"That you don't need my help..."
"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?"
Speechless, Seonwoo scrubbed a hand roughly over his face.
While secretly glancing at Seonwoo's well-defined muscles, long limbs, broad chest, and especially firm thighs, Hyeonchae quickly lowered his eyes again the moment Seonwoo lifted his head after letting out a deep sigh.
"How long do you want to stay?"
There were a little over two weeks left until Christmas.
Seonwoo had never expected him to leave obediently anyway.
After roughly calculating his schedule, he nodded.
"Fine."
Once he had thrown on some clothes and come back out, Hyeonchae was sitting on the sofa quietly watching the ski slopes through the window.
"What are you going to do about Schuphur?"
"I don't know."
He had expected an immediate refusal to leave, but the answer was unexpectedly vague.
How exactly is he planning to get to Inun?
...Well, that's none of my business.
"Alright. Christmas.
"I'll spend time with you whenever my schedule's free.
"But take your luggage back to your villa.
"What are we supposed to do living in the same place?"
"..."
"I told you already.
"I think I could probably sleep with an Alpha now.
"So I'll be honest.
"I don't think I can hold myself back."
"You still don't like me yet, Senior."
That forced "yet" made Seonwoo let out a helpless laugh.
Hyeonchae looked genuinely heartbroken.
"Isn't it kind of wrong...
"...to do that when you don't even like me?"
"Knowing it's wrong is exactly what makes it so damn tempting."
"I really hate you."
Even the tightly pressed lips expressing that tiny bit of contempt looked beautiful.
No matter how many times Hyeonchae said he hated it, he would never say that he hated Seonwoo himself.
Knowing that only made enduring him even harder.
Without realizing it, Seonwoo ran his tongue across his dry lips before shaking his head and standing up.
He should at least show Hyeonchae around the ski resort before lessons started.
"Let's go.
"Watch TV or something.
"I'm going to take a shower."
Just as he stepped into the bathroom with a towel over his shoulder, the doorbell rang again.
Both of them turned toward the front door at the same time.
"What's with today?"
Muttering in confusion, Seonwoo headed toward the entrance.
Then he froze the moment he heard the voice pounding on the door.
"Hey! Nam Seonwoo! We're here! Open up! Nam Seonwoo!!"
It was Nam Junwoo.
Hurriedly checking the peephole, Seonwoo's face stiffened when he saw not only Nam Junwoo but their parents standing behind him as well.
"Senior...?"
"We heard from Hwang Dongjin that you don't have morning lessons. Hurry up and open the door."
"Nam Seonwoo!"
Even his father's angry voice joined in.
Pretending no one was home was clearly no longer an option.
Seonwoo grabbed Hyeonchae with one hand and all of Hyeonchae's luggage with the other before quickly pushing him into the bedroom.
"It's my parents and my brother.
"I'll send them away as quickly as I can, so stay in here for a bit.
"If they see you here...
"My brother might not recognize you, but my father will know immediately that you're the youngest son of Simjin.
"It's better if they don't see you."
"...Okay.
"Don't worry about me."
"I'm sorry."
Closing the bedroom door, Seonwoo tucked Hyeonchae's shoes into the shoe cabinet before finally opening the front door.
"Hey! Nam—!!"
"Nam Junwoo. Quiet.
"...Father, Mother, what brings you all the way here?"