Taeju secretly peeked from a corner at his hyung being scolded by their uncle. Iseo was stuck right next to him. It wasn’t particularly intentional. They just happened to be stuck together.
When Taeju tried to sneak closer to get a better look at his hyung being scolded, Iseo grabbed Taeju’s sleeve.
‘Why?’
At that time, Seok Iseo kept his mouth firmly shut with teary eyes and a soaked face. Even to young Taeju, it was a very impressive face. He looked too desperate to readily move away.
‘Shit, I can see hyung getting scolded better from over there.’
Grumbling, Taeju stayed by Iseo’s side. After that, Taeju constantly rescued the imprisoned Iseo. Some were intentional, some were not. Every time, Seok Iseo made that face. A face too desperate to leave behind.
What nerve. Damn it. Seeing his expression, he couldn’t continue on his way. Yeon Taeju strode back the way he came and stood before Seok Iseo.
“What now?”
Seok Iseo, who’d been on the verge of tears, raised his eyes as if nothing had happened.
“It’s hot. Come inside quickly.”
Taeju grabbed Iseo’s arm half-heartedly and dragged him along. He followed without protest.
05
Taeju had constantly rescued Iseo unintentionally. And as they grew, it manifested as a rebellious streak against the cousins who ganged up on and ostracized one person. Yeon Taeju stayed close to Seok Iseo to screw them all over.
It wasn’t particularly because Iseo’s pitifulness struck a chord in his heart. Though that expression of crying yet enduring was his type.
It didn’t have any special meaning, nor did he occupy a large part of his life. Of course, it wasn’t to make a good impression on Seok Iseo either.
“About what you said before…”
It was when Taeju gulped down water repeatedly and handed the water bottle to Iseo. He whispered softly like a shy child.
“Hm? Drink water.”
Iseo bit his lower lip slightly and pulled the blanket up to cover his bare chest. That stirred him oddly again. Taeju narrowed his eyes slightly and pressed close to Iseo.
“Not drinking?”
“Drink it.”
Taeju brought the water bottle he’d held out as if to give it straight to his own mouth. After taking all the remaining water in his mouth, he crushed the bottle and threw it under the bed.
“You said to drink it.”
When Iseo glared at Taeju and grumbled, his chin was grabbed. Taeju’s moisture-soaked lips pressed down on Iseo’s lips. When Iseo let out a low sigh, the two soft pieces of flesh met without a gap.
Water at Yeon Taeju’s body temperature pooled in his mouth. Moisture spread through his mouth, dry after sex. Iseo gulped down the water Taeju passed to him. He swallowed it down his throat quickly, afraid to spill even a drop.
After all the water came over, Taeju’s tongue came over. The thick fleshy mass leisurely ravaged his mouth. Iseo raised his chin more with a slight sound from his throat. Because Taeju was kissing him while sitting, his face was almost held in his hands.
“Hng, mm…”
Taeju pressed down teasingly on the soft flesh inside the roof of his mouth. His body right after intercourse heated up quickly. The kiss that was neither rushed nor rough made it even more so. It was truly the kind of afterplay lovers would do.
“Won’t you tell me? What I should do.”
Taeju raised his head slightly and spoke. His eyelids were heavily lowered and his eyes were looking at his lips. If he’d been deaf, he would have thought he was whispering sweet nothings.
The voice cracked with just the right amount of heat felt like it was teasing his eardrums. Iseo swallowed dry saliva. Iseo, who’d been gripping the blanket, wrapped both arms around Taeju’s nape.
“Treat me like we’re in love.”
Taeju raised his neck slightly. Iseo pulled Taeju, who was trying to move away, closer by putting strength in his arms.
“Because I’ve never been like that. I want to know. That kind of relationship.”
Taeju stared down at Iseo intently. He didn’t mock or sneer. He just looked down at Iseo with a heavy gaze. Only then did Taeju realize. That Iseo liked him.
He was already seeing him as a lover. Even the great Yeon Taeju felt taken aback. At the same time, he felt a thrilling sensation like electricity running through his fingertips.
If asked whether he knew that Seok Iseo saw him as more than a sex partner, Taeju would answer no. To be precise, he had no interest in how Seok Iseo viewed him.
“As much as I want.”
Seok Iseo rubbed his soft lips against his cheek. At that ticklish feeling, Taeju took a deep breath. When the ticklish feeling didn’t disappear despite that, he pressed his face hard against his lips.
“In love?”
For the first time, Taeju contemplated. Enough to roll that nuance around in his mouth.
“You’ve had many lovers. Teach me.”
Iseo’s breath slowly wrapped around his face. The warm feeling matched well with his calm voice. Taeju realized that for the first time, he was this close to Seok Iseo without doing anything.
Taeju swept his arms around Iseo’s waist and sat him on his lap. Iseo looked down at him. Taeju didn’t care anymore if Iseo looked down at him. The power dynamic between them was already clear.
“How would I know if it’s many or few?”
“I know.”
Seok Iseo lowered his head and cast his eyes down as if he didn’t like it. Taeju burrowed into his lowered face.
“Treating you like the girls I dated before doesn’t seem to be what you want, hyung.”
Seok Iseo grabbed his shoulders. Taeju quietly pressed their foreheads together and waited. He thought he was waiting, but in reality, he was just staying still. Only now did Seok Iseo’s quiet eyes and the heat lurking within them enter his vision. Since when had he been looking at him like this?
“Right?”
“Affectionately, like there’s only me. Not going anywhere, always staying by my side.”
Iseo inhaled with each phrase. Like saying difficult words, he chewed and spat out each syllable.
Taeju nodded briefly. It wasn’t difficult. The things he’d laboriously crafted word by word were too easy for him. Almost pitifully so.
“Affectionately, like you’re the only one in this world and I can’t live without you, hyung.”
Taeju whispered to Iseo. The intimate murmuring was sweet and sticky. Iseo’s bare chest swelled greatly and both cheeks flushed red. Taeju gazed at Iseo’s face blankly.
So hot and persistent. It was as if a thin film covering his eyes had been lifted. Seok Iseo’s face, clearly and distinctly visible, seemed to be suffering from first love.
Taeju laughed. His laughter bloomed gorgeously like a ripe flower, bewitching. If Seok Iseo had acted like this toward him from the beginning, it would have been much easier. Yeon Taeju was a ball with strong elasticity. If you applied strong force, it bounced up, and if you applied weak force, it stopped in place.
***
It was truly perfect days. Iseo wanted to describe his recent life that way. Yeon Taeju was drowning him in the sticky honey pot called affection.
“Did you wake up?”
Iseo opened just one eye slightly to look at Taeju. He was looking at his phone. While giving him an arm pillow with one arm, he was diligently checking SNS with the other hand. Iseo burrowed deeper into his side, pretending he hadn’t woken up yet.
“That tickles.”
A hint of laughter was buried in his husky voice. Iseo felt ecstatic at those short words. He wrapped his arm that had been an arm pillow around his shoulder.
“If you’re awake, go downstairs. I’m hungry.”
With his eyes still fixed on his phone, Taeju pressed his lips to his forehead. His hot body temperature spread across his forehead then disappeared.
“What are you looking at?”
“Hm?”
Only then did he look at him. Taeju’s smooth lips were forming a gentle arc.
“I was looking at my friends’ travel photos.”
“Must be disappointing you couldn’t go.”
“Not really.”
This time he kissed his cheek. Iseo tucked in his neck and looked at him. His searching eyes were earnest, trying to determine if he really wasn’t disappointed.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Why are you looking at me like that?”
Taeju turned his body toward Iseo and lay on his side. Supporting his shoulder with his arm, Taeju raised his eyebrows slightly.
“Nothing. Just.”
“Why would I be disappointed? Being here with hyung is better.”
Taeju whispered in a voice sweet and sticky like melted sugar water. Iseo’s cheeks heated up. The words he wanted to hear came out of his mouth exactly.
At first, Iseo earnestly calculated whether his words were acting or not. But now he accepted them as they were. He didn’t ask Taeju to treat him like a lover to determine whether it was acting or not. It was purely to enjoy this time.
To do that, he threw away all his analytical gaze and the calculation speed of gauging his sincerity. He simply enjoyed Yeon Taeju’s tooth-rottingly sweet tenderness.
“Isn’t that right?”
He kissed him. It wasn’t a devouring kiss right before intercourse. Their lips met moderately. He enjoyed the soft skin and felt the scent and breath.
