***
“I thought you didn’t even want to talk to me anymore.”
That was the first thing he said as soon as they moved to a quiet place. Those casual words seemed to be deliberately teasing Huiseo. However, Huiseo was absolutely not easy either, and spoke without a single change in expression.
“I also tried not to if I could help it.”
“Then why?”
“……”
Because the situation was far from normal.
‘Because of you.’
Even though Yuwon knew all that, he smiled and asked as if he didn’t know. If he asked back ‘Why would I?’, it was clear that only a tiresome riddle would continue further. For that reason, Huiseo, who closed his eyes tightly for a moment and then opened them, got straight to the point.
“Hong Donghyeon. I know you hit him.”
Yuwon’s eyebrows raised slightly in a puzzled manner upon hearing those words.
It wasn’t asking ‘Did you hit him?’ but rather a statement saying he knew about it. Yuwon’s lips, who had been planning to delay the answer Huiseo would want and enjoy pushing and pulling a bit more with him, immediately twisted into a pout.
“How do you know that?”
“Because I heard so from His Highness.”
“…If that guy says it, is it all true? He might have made that excuse because he was afraid of getting in trouble.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Huiseo said so more firmly than ever. That’s not it. In those few words, his solid trust toward Hwan could be glimpsed. Though Hwan, who was called a troublemaker, wasn’t someone who didn’t do things worthy of punishment, still, if he was going to be punished, he’d be punished—he wasn’t cowardly enough to hide it with lies like someone else.
Even though lately he’d been saying things like wanting to hit someone, he wasn’t reckless enough to actually betray his status as a prince and commit such an act. Huiseo, who had grown up with him, knew that best.
“Oh, really?”
So the two of them know each other that well, is that it.
Displeased by that, Yuwon let out a slight snort as if mocking. To Huiseo, even at this moment of facing him, Yuwon’s appearance seemed to feel regretful that he couldn’t pin it on Hwan, so he countered with an equally sarcastic attitude.
“Wouldn’t it be better to do something about that hand first before talking about this?”
“Ah, this?”
Though it was a calculated attack, Yuwon didn’t even pretend to be flustered.
“This can’t be proof that I did it, can it? Something like this could easily happen from getting injured during exercise, right?”
Yuwon waved his bandaged hand in front of Huiseo’s eyes as if curious about what he would say.
“More than one or two people witnessed you calling Hong Donghyeon and taking him away that day.”
“Hmm.”
“I still have the text you sent to call out His Highness at that time too.”
“That’s a bit much. But Huiseo-ya, even so, that can’t be proof that I ‘hit’ him, can it?”
However, in the ensuing argument, Huiseo was still at a disadvantage.
It couldn’t be helped. The evidence that Hwan and Huiseo had was ridiculously insufficient. Though he had confidently said earlier that more than one or two people had witnessed Yuwon calling out Donghyeon, in truth he knew that there might be few… no, there might not be anyone at all who would testify to that.
Proving that it was Yuwon’s doing and not Hwan’s would probably be impossible unless there was Yuwon’s confession. Huiseo knew that, and Yuwon knew it too.
“You know that at best it only amounts to being together.”
No matter how much he struggled, that was all it was.
Therefore, Yuwon couldn’t help but be more triumphant than ever.
He wanted to see Huiseo’s troubled face. Though the reason being Hwan still didn’t sit well with him, if it meant Huiseo would have no choice but to bow his head to him and make a pitiful request because of it, he felt he could overlook that much.
‘If it even leads to a deal, that would be even better.’
“Is that all you have?”
With that in mind, Yuwon pressed Huiseo even harder. But it was strange. Rather than Huiseo’s face becoming troubled, it only became more and more calm and composed. Then what he said next was something Yuwon couldn’t understand even more.
“That turned out to be pretty good.”
“What?”
“Coming this far, I know there’s no reason for you to readily come forward saying ‘I did it,’ and I’m not expecting it either.”
“…So?”
“Then let’s go with ‘we were together.'”
Though he had no idea what this was about, Yuwon’s expression contorted as he instinctively sensed that things weren’t going in the direction he wanted.
It was just as he said. No matter how much the imperial family and Huiseo put their heads together, they seemed unable to reveal it was Yuwon’s doing due to lack of evidence, and at best could only push him to the point of ‘being there together.’ So the strategy the imperial family chose was to go the same way.
If there was no evidence that Yuwon hit him, then conversely, wasn’t there no evidence that he didn’t hit him either?
It had started as just suspicion toward Hwan in the first place. Then they wanted to fan the flames more, drag Yuwon into it too, and have a proper showdown. That Myeongwoon Group is so great, is it? Would they really stay still when Yuwon’s name comes up?
The imperial family planned to blow their nose without even lifting a hand.
“I came to declare war. Let’s see how it goes.”
You can clean it up on your side without anyone knowing.
Yuwon was utterly dumbfounded by Huiseo’s behavior.
As mentioned earlier, Yuwon had thought that no matter how smart Huiseo was, there were limits to his circumstances, so he would certainly plead in a humble posture. Then he’d pretend he couldn’t refuse and grant it while also obtaining several things he wanted along the way.
But he never dreamed he’d come out like this, declaring war.
‘If this is like Huiseo, it is like Huiseo, but.’
Still, thinking this wasn’t it, he scratched his forehead as if a bit troubled.
“…Then the imperial family will bleed quite a bit too, won’t they?”
“We’re already bleeding, so what difference will bleeding a little more make?”
Looking at his eyes, he really wasn’t joking.
If someone from the imperial family side had come and said this, Yuwon would have sneered at it as bravado. But if it was Huiseo, the story was different. This guy wasn’t ordinarily stubborn, so if he made up his mind like that, he was more than capable of going through with it. That was also the part Yuwon knew best from their previous ups and downs.
So what could he do?
Unlike his original plan, Yuwon had no choice but to give in first instead. To make him say something pitiful even after coming this far. Jeong Huiseo. Really couldn’t be stopped. Dumbfounded, Yuwon shook his head.
“I have a way for both of us not to bleed.”
“……”
“If we do that, would there be something for me?”
For example, our relationship which was nothing could change a little.
Huiseo’s expression was calm as he listened to Yuwon’s following words. He had already thought that Yuwon wouldn’t do anything good for Hwan willingly, and that much was well within the range of demands he could expect from Yuwon.
“If we wrap up this matter smoothly for both sides, friends… wouldn’t something like that be possible?”
So Huiseo answered right away. But Yuwon’s expression, which he thought would be pleased, was somewhat ambiguous. Huiseo was rather confused by that part.
“…Why? Not good enough?”
Had he acted too coldly before, so now even the word ‘friends’ didn’t really move him anymore?
Embarrassingly, that was the biggest card he had, so Huiseo couldn’t help but be flustered. Then what cards did he have left? Huiseo tried his best not to show it and racked his brain.
Though it would be hard to believe, the one standing before him, Yuwon, was equally flustered.
Friends.
‘If it were before, I would have been ecstatic just by hearing that word come from Huiseo’s mouth.’
The reason it now somehow felt insufficient was probably because his feelings had changed incomparably from before. How absurd that the catalyst was the day he was coldly rejected by Huiseo—even Yuwon thought it was truly amazing.
Pulling his tie, bringing their faces close.
Their touching breath. Then the hand that tapped his cheek.
Huiseo’s face that had suddenly approached remained intensely in his head as if he’d been burned by fire, and afterward disturbed Yuwon’s vision for days on end. The reason Yuwon had seemed to be quietly holding his breath alone all this time was precisely because he was flustered by his own state.
In any case, what was certain was that Yuwon now wanted something a little different from Huiseo than before.
“…I want to confirm something.”
“What do you…”
It was before he could even finish asking what on earth he meant.
Yuwon reached out his large hand and grabbed Huiseo’s tie. Then he immediately pulled him toward himself. This time too, as if repeating in reverse what the other had done first.
The distance between the two instantly closed.
“……”
“……”
It was difficult to breathe carelessly.
If either of them moved even a little, their noses would clearly touch.
Huiseo, who had frozen in surprise at seeing Yuwon’s face approach so close, could barely blink. Each time, his light brown eyes trembled confusedly, which was only natural.
The two had already experienced this distance once before.
However, back then Huiseo had been so angry he couldn’t see anything else. Also, it had been by his own will, with his own hands, that he had pulled Yuwon close.
But now he hadn’t expected it at all, and compared to that time he was in too clear a state of mind, so it was no wonder he didn’t know what to do.
“…What the hell are you doing?”
Huiseo barely managed to ask, but Yuwon didn’t seem to be listening at all. Though before he had just looked at Huiseo with surprised wide eyes, this time Yuwon’s gaze could be seen to be quite different.
