Seo Yi Kyung pulled down the blanket covering his chest and braced his left hand against the bed.
As he pushed himself upright, Han Seung Jae sat down on the edge of the bed. His hair was slightly damp, perhaps because he had showered downstairs.
Han Seung Jae reached out and took hold of Seo Yi Kyung’s chin without hesitation, turning his face this way and that as he examined him.
“I heard you went to the hospital?”
Seo Yi Kyung nodded. With his face held in Han Seung Jae’s grasp, he could barely move his head. The scent of white agarwood pheromones clinging to that broad palm spread softly beneath his nose.
Han Seung Jae’s eyes gleamed in the darkness. Half his face was shadowed, making it difficult to discern any change in his expression. Abruptly, he released Yi Kyung and rose. Yi Kyung’s gaze followed him. An ominous feeling came over him.
“W-where are you going?”
“I have something to ask Butler Do. I’ll throw him out if necessary.”
“……!”
Seo Yi Kyung jolted in alarm. Startled by Han Seung Jae’s sudden behavior, he kicked the blanket aside and practically crawled down from the bed.
“Wait. Seung Jae, I’ll explain.”
Han Seung Jae reached out and pressed a button. The room was instantly flooded with light. Seo Yi Kyung squeezed his eyes shut against the glare pouring from the enormous chandelier, then opened them again. Han Seung Jae was already standing directly in front of him.
“I-I met Dong Hoo at the hospital… No, my brother.”
“So?”
Han Seung Jae’s expression remained impassive throughout Yi Kyung’s explanation. Even though he was the one who had done that to Seo Dong Hoo’s arm, he did not so much as twitch an eyebrow. Had Yi Kyung not known the original novel, he might have thought Han Seung Jae had nothing to do with Seo Dong Hoo’s condition.
“W-was it… Seung Jae… Did you do that?”
Seo Yi Kyung’s eyes wavered. He wanted to confirm whether Han Seung Jae was the person who had done that to Seo Dong Hoo’s arm. The middle of the question had dissolved on his tongue and gone unspoken, but Han Seung Jae must have understood what he meant. His instincts were sharper than anyone’s. Besides, Yi Kyung was uncomfortable asking him so directly. Still, he needed to know.
“Yes.”
Seo Yi Kyung’s heart pounded. He stared blankly at Han Seung Jae, who had admitted it far too easily. Seung Jae leaned his upper body slightly toward him.
“Because he did that to your hand.”
The fingers protruding from Seo Yi Kyung’s cast twitched. His hand had already been hurting because of Han Seung Jae, and it had ended up like this only because Seo Dong Hoo had grabbed it. But there was no way he could say that Han Seung Jae had been the one to provide the opportunity in the first place.
“So, is that why you were upset?”
It was nothing of the sort. The back of Seo Yi Kyung’s neck stiffened as Han Seung Jae moved even closer. Just then, a growl came from Yi Kyung’s stomach.
“…….”
Han Seung Jae’s gaze settled on Seo Yi Kyung’s flat stomach beneath his pajamas. Afraid he might threaten to throw Butler Do out again, Yi Kyung hurried to speak first.
“I was the one who said I wouldn’t eat. No, th-that’s not what I mean. I was so tired after going to the hospital that I fell asleep and missed dinner…”
Seo Yi Kyung hastily reached out with his left hand. It flailed through the air.
“…That’s what happened.”
Han Seung Jae caught Yi Kyung’s wrist as he finished speaking. His grip was loose enough that Yi Kyung could have freed himself merely by twisting his hand. Even so, Seo Yi Kyung blinked as he was led away.
Han Seung Jae summoned Butler Do. Seo Yi Kyung was flustered and had no idea what to do, but Han Seung Jae was not the sort of man to take that into consideration. Soon, the chef was summoned as well.
Seo Yi Kyung curled his toes restlessly, his face tense. At this rate, everyone in the house would be dragged out of bed. Not that Han Seung Jae was the sort to care even if they were.
The two men sat opposite each other at the ceramic dining table. Han Seung Jae asked calmly,
“Tell him what you want to eat.”
The chef waited for Seo Yi Kyung’s answer. Looking uncomfortable, Yi Kyung considered what simple dish could be prepared at this hour and said bread, only for Han Seung Jae to reject it flatly.
“Something else.”
“But that’s what I want…”
“You say whatever you want to me, yet you worry about what these people think?”
Butler Do looked back and forth between them as they spoke. He was still disoriented after being abruptly roused from sleep, but the sight of the two apparently bickering gradually brought him fully awake.
…Can I really ask for that?
There was, in fact, a dish well suited to eating late at night. It happened to be exactly what he was craving, too. Seo Yi Kyung bit his lower lip, then released it.
“R-rice with soy sauce and egg…”
“What is that? Did you hear him? Can you make it?”
The exhaustion of working late showed on Han Seung Jae’s face as he pressed his temple and swept back his hair. He looked at the chef, who cautiously asked for confirmation.
“I’m afraid I didn’t hear you clearly. Would you please say it again?”
The chef bent respectfully at the waist so that he could hear Seo Yi Kyung better. Yi Kyung worked his lips.
“Just put soy sauce in the rice, then add butter and an egg…”
Han Seung Jae’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“…….”
An expensive plate was set down before Seo Yi Kyung. A generous mound of rice sat upon it, steaming gently. Beside Yi Kyung, the chef placed two small dishes containing soy sauce and butter. Two golden fried eggs were added on a leaf-shaped plate.
Seo Yi Kyung glanced at Han Seung Jae across from him, then picked up his spoon with his left hand and drizzled a little soy sauce over the rice. Now that the food he had been craving was actually in front of him, his mouth watered. He could no longer hold back. He added the butter, and with Butler Do’s help, the eggs were placed on top.
Han Seung Jae picked up the glass before him. He sipped his whiskey over ice as he watched Seo Yi Kyung.
“Please let me know if you need anything else.”
After carefully gauging the mood, Butler Do left the kitchen. Seo Yi Kyung continued moving his spoon. Watching him eat, Han Seung Jae lightly swirled his glass. The whiskey rippled beneath his fingertips.
“Is it good?”
His tone did not suggest that he was genuinely curious about the taste. They had eaten together several times, but his question seemed closer to suspicion at seeing Yi Kyung eat so eagerly for the first time.
Seo Yi Kyung gave a nearly imperceptible nod. If Han Seung Jae had not been there, he might have savored it more comfortably, but his hunger soon made even that concern fade.
Han Seung Jae slowly rotated his glass. A moment later, it brushed against his perfectly shaped lips.
Seo Yi Kyung recalled how Seo Dong Hoo had looked at the hospital.
It would be a lie to say he had not been shocked. He truly had not expected Han Seung Jae to do that to Seo Dong Hoo’s arm on the very same day. But it was not as though he had been unaware that Han Seung Jae was this sort of man.
Han Seung Jae suddenly met his eyes and tilted his glass slightly.
“Eat first.”
Only then did Seo Yi Kyung emerge from his thoughts and resume moving the spoon that had gone still.
Han Seung Jae tipped back his glass of whiskey and watched Seo Yi Kyung eat.
[Why? They’re your family.]
[They don’t matter to me anymore.]
The words they had exchanged on the terrace that day scraped through his mind. Seo Yi Kyung’s eyes had been utterly hollow when he said that.
Han Seung Jae had thought his attachment to his family was unusually strong. He drained the rest of his whiskey. Apparently, much of what he had been told in the reports was wrong.
The sky was clear after the rain.
Seo Yi Kyung arranged snacks on a tray and passed the time chatting leisurely with Butler Do in the garden.
That was how he spent most of his days. Whenever Butler Do had work to do, Yi Kyung retreated as though making himself scarce, sitting on the terrace adjoining his bedroom and looking down at the garden. A lukewarm breeze swept through his hair.
Whenever he wandered through the house and looked at the paintings hanging on the walls, he was reminded of the painting he had seen at the art museum exhibition. But the exhibition had already ended.
Seo Yi Kyung stared at his right hand, now free of its cast, and gently curled and extended his fingers. Then he carefully rotated his wrist. He no longer felt any pain.
“It feels so freeing.”
At Seo Yi Kyung’s words, Butler Do handed him the ice pack he had prepared just in case.
“You must still be careful not to injure it again.”
“All right.”
Seo Yi Kyung pressed the ice pack to his wrist. A tepid breeze was blowing, making the ice feel pleasantly cool. Just then, the area beyond the iron gate abruptly grew noisy.
One of the housekeepers came outside. After looking around, she walked directly toward the two men in the garden.
“Butler Do, there are visitors outside. They say they’re from Art Atelier Gallery. What should we do?”
The name sounded vaguely familiar. Butler Do went out through the iron gate. Secretary Park had already told him that morning that something would be delivered to the house. It appeared to have arrived.
Several people carefully set down a large object. It was wrapped in paper, so its contents could not be seen, but it appeared to be a framed painting. A familiar face stood before it.
It was Im Jung Yoon. Her lips, painted with pale lipstick, curved into a bright smile.
“Hello. It’s good to see you again.”
Seo Yi Kyung, who had been sitting in the garden, slowly drew up his knees. The ice pack rustled in his hand.
People moved in and out of the drawing room, filling it with unexpected commotion. Im Jung Yoon’s pleasant voice carried through the room.
“As you know from seeing it in person that day, this is Artist Seok’s signature work.”
When the paper was removed, it revealed a painting of sunlight streaming through a window framed by flowers in bloom.
The piece evoked a languid afternoon, instilling the same sense of ease as standing by a window and gazing outside.
“Please be careful. It’s hot.”
Even as he set a teacup and a three-tiered tray of desserts before Im Jung Yoon, Butler Do looked utterly bewildered. Yi Kyung remained unable to tear his eyes from the painting, and Im Jung Yoon added,
“Director Han saw how much you liked this painting and asked us to bring it here once the exhibition ended.”
Technically, Secretary Park had relayed the request. But there was no need to ask where the order had originated.
Watching Seo Yi Kyung’s face as he continued to stare at the painting, Im Jung Yoon lifted the coffee cup before her. Just then, he murmured,
“I’d been wanting to see it again.”
Seo Yi Kyung gazed at the painting as though engraving its serene, warm sunlight into his eyes. Sensing a change in the atmosphere, Im Jung Yoon spoke to him.
“Artist Seok mainly uses soft, comforting colors. But when you meet him in person, he’s nothing like that at all.”
Seo Yi Kyung’s face brightened noticeably as he chatted with Im Jung Yoon. His eyes remained full of curiosity as he listened intently to everything she said. After talking about Artist Seok for some time, Im Jung Yoon continued,
“I heard you enjoy painting landscapes. May I see some of your work?”