Chapter 48
***
Hajin, who claimed his hand was uncomfortable and needed protection, was quite capable of touching various parts of my body. I felt something hard pressing below and tried to pull away, but the more I did, the more firmly he held me. So I had no choice but to endure his touch in an awkward position with my upper body pressed against his chest and my hips pulled back.
“Haa… Yoon Juwon.”
“Mmm…”
“If you knew how difficult my day has been, you wouldn’t treat me like this.”
He didn’t seem interested in having a conversation with me, as he brushed his lips against mine before I could offer any comfort. I don’t understand why he bothered to play the victim by showing his injured hand if this was his real intention.
Since the day I permitted the brothers to kiss me, my lips have never had a chance to dry. Moreover, I shuddered remembering the sensation I felt earlier, which was slightly more intense than the kisses before Hajin arrived.
Could I be getting used to kissing men?
While feeling Hajin’s lips exploring every part of mine, I did my best to think about other things.
What’s for dinner tonight? Ah, my lips feel like they’re going to tear. What is Hahyun doing right now? Smack, smack, the tip of his tongue slid across my lips. The musky scent made my head spin.
Hajin bit my lip hard, and I could feel him tensing his entire body as if trying to push me down. I pushed him away with all my strength. Hajin didn’t budge.
“I told you I don’t like doing it this way.”
“This way? What way is that?”
“Why are you pretending not to know? I’ve told you many times I don’t like being forced.”
“So it’s okay to play a clothes-stripping game with Hahyun, but you don’t even want to hug me?”
Why is he being so childish again? If he was going to be like this, he should have shown from the start that he was as immature as Seo Hahyun. Making people so confused…
I looked at Hajin with contempt. He seemed to realize he was being unreasonable and awkwardly averted his gaze.
“Stop it. Are you an animal, trying to do it whenever you get the chance? Don’t you have any self-control?”
I blurted out whatever came to mind, but I didn’t really mean it. Thinking back to our first night alone together, it was absurd to say Hajin had no self-control. Compared to Hahyun, he’d hardly done anything, yet I was unfairly lashing out at him.
Hajin looked at me with an aggrieved expression before laughing emptily.
“To think I’d hear such words in my life. Well, it’s amusing.”
“…”
“I wonder why I act so strangely only around Yoon Juwon?”
“W-well, I wouldn’t know that.”
Hajin’s fingertips tapped the back of my hand. It was a habit of his when he was contemplating something. He stopped tapping and pressed his lips to my neck.
“Was tonight my turn?”
The implication of his question was so clear that my shoulders twitched.
“Why aren’t you answering? I’m just asking whose turn it is?”
I turned my head slightly while thinking, and just at that moment, I saw Hahyun who had come downstairs, grinning at me.
It wasn’t a situation to smile about, but seeing him smile made me even more nervous.
***
I thought another commotion was about to break out, but surprisingly, Hahyun went into the kitchen, saying he would prepare the food. I wanted to follow him, but Hajin wouldn’t allow it.
“We should all do it together.”
“If he wants to do it himself, just let him.”
I understood Hajin less and less. Until now, he had never opposed me when I offered to help Hahyun. But suddenly treating Hahyun worse than a stranger seemed strange.
“What’s really going on with you?”
“What?”
“You’re acting weird. Childishly.”
“I’ve always been childish.”
Hajin answered without even meeting my eyes. He seemed embarrassed by his own behavior.
“Fine. Let’s say you’re naturally childish. Then let me make a childish proposal.”
Hajin, who had been looking down, slowly raised his head.
“If you promise not to needlessly provoke your brother for a week starting today, I’ll grant your wish.”
“Do you know what my wish is?”
The moment I heard those words, heated scenes between Hajin and me flashed through my mind. Heat rushed to my face. Why was my mind always going in that direction when he could wish for anything else…
Actually, even if he mentioned that kind of wish, I had asked with the intention of granting it. Since he wouldn’t stop even if I told him to, I thought I might as well set proper conditions if it was going to happen anyway.
“Anything. Tell me what you want.”
He spoke as if he’d been waiting for this.
“But tell me only after you succeed for a week.”
“…”
Hajin cursed with his eyes but nodded in agreement. I removed my hand that had been covering his mouth.
That’s when it happened.
“Aaack!”
A strange sound came from the kitchen. Hajin and I almost simultaneously jumped up from the sofa and rushed to Hahyun. He was holding one of his fingers with his other hand, blood dripping down.
Just after negotiating with Hajin to prevent bloodshed, another bloody scene…
“Ha… how did this happen?”
I rushed to Hahyun and examined his hand. Fortunately, it didn’t look severe enough for his finger to be cut off. Still, the wound was quite deep, and blood continued to flow.
“I really didn’t do this on purpose. The knife just slipped while I was cutting the radish. I didn’t expect this to happen.”
Looking at the cutting board, there really was a large radish lying there. I suppose a knife could slip when cutting something hard like a radish.
“Are you okay?”
“Hyuung, no. It hurts so much. Did I ever get a tetanus shot?”
I felt he was exaggerating a bit. But some people are particularly afraid of sharp objects like needles and knives…
While I was thinking this, Hajin immediately made a sarcastic remark.
“You’re putting on a show. Seo Hahyun, do you really want to act like this in front of me?”
I glared at Hajin, who had changed his attitude immediately after our negotiation. Hajin seemed to feel guilty and went outside.
Hahyun roughly wrapped his wound with a kitchen towel and said cheerfully:
“Hyung, are you hungry? I’ll make it quickly for you. Please rest outside.”
“What are you going to do with that hand? We can just order something, so let’s go out together. You need treatment.”
“No. I can do it.”
Hahyun insisted on cooking until the end and picked up the knife, then cried out, “Eugh!” and dropped it. The look in his eyes as he gazed at me was so pitiful. That’s when I realized.
This bastard, he injured himself on purpose. Even though I clearly told him I’d hate him forever if he deliberately hurt himself…
“Hyung, bl… blow on it for me.”
“Blowing won’t fix it. Let’s go quickly. I need to disinfect it and put medicine on it.”
“Yes!”
Hahyun followed behind me, answering loudly. A sigh rose to the top of my throat.
***
For the following week, Hajin seemed to keep his promise by not upsetting Hahyun. Or rather than not upsetting him, he treated Hahyun as if he didn’t exist. Hahyun also seemed to find this preferable, and the two exchanged only minimal conversation, avoiding conflicts.
A week passed in tension like the calm before a storm.
And on the night after the week had passed, Hajin came into my room, running his hand through his still-damp hair. The atmosphere was so charged that just him entering the room felt different from usual.
Hajin slowly approached the bed. I had never felt such tension while sharing a bed with the brothers on alternating nights. I moved to the edge of the bed, pushing the sheets away.
Hajin merely smirked, as if daring me to run if I could.
“Yoon Juwon, now it’s your turn to grant my wish.”
As expected, he’s going to ask for that, right? Stay calm.
I pretended not to know what he would demand, even though I did.
“You kept your promise, so tell me your wish.”
Hajin twitched his straight eyebrows, closed his eyes, and opened them again. As his eyelids lifted, I swallowed hard. His clear blue eyes wavered for a moment before focusing on my face.
“You know what I want, don’t you?”
“I-I don’t know unless you tell me.”
He suddenly grabbed my shoulder firmly and pulled me into a hug. The sudden contact of our chests raised goosebumps on the back of my neck. When I moved away slightly, feeling uncomfortable, he looked down at me.
His damp hair was sticking to his forehead, so I reached up to brush it back, but he grabbed my wrist and pulled it down.
“I’ve only had one wish all along. To go all the way with you in your current state.”
He unbuttoned one button of his shirt while keeping his gaze fixed on my face. A muscular chest appeared between the parted fabric. He gripped my wrist tightly and looked at me intently. My face burned red from the heat that started where his eyes touched.
“How can I not get hard when you look at me like that?”
I quickly looked away.
“No. I didn’t see anything.”
“Liar.”
How can even his voice be sexy?
He pulled my wrist, causing my cheek to touch his chest. Even with that brief contact, my heart felt like it would jump out.
