Chapter 60
After making sure he was gone, I collapsed onto the sofa. I was so exhausted I didn’t even have the energy to shower. A little while later, Hahyun came downstairs from the second floor, holding his head.
“Did you work out?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you need to shower. I’m about to take one too. Want to join me?”
After keeping me up all night… He was really shameless. Hahyun, who’d said he was going to shower, drank some water and then came over to me, complaining his head was killing him, and started being flirty.
Even though I was annoyed as hell, part of me was relieved that Hahyun had returned to his old self. I responded half-heartedly and asked, “Why did you do it?”
Hahyun blinked with an innocent expression and asked back, “Hmm? Do what?”
“Are you seriously asking? You’ve been acting weird for the past few days. Whenever I asked you something, you’d give me one-word answers, and even when you were with me, you’d just play games…”
As I kept talking, the corners of Hahyun’s mouth gradually lifted. Instead of answering, he just kept grinning and then pulled me into his arms. Having been completely drained by my morning workout, I had no strength to push him away and could only let myself be held.
“You crazy bastard, back off.”
“Come on, stop playing hard to get.”
“I’m not playing hard to get, I really don’t like it! How much of a pushover do I look like that you treat me however you want? Just answer me already.”
I shoved Hahyun away, narrowed my eyes, and glared at him. Yesterday I’d let it slide because I was drunk, but I couldn’t keep putting up with this guy’s moods forever.
“So you got worked up, right? My hyung’s ideal type must be a well-dressed, quiet man. Should I become a bodyguard?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m asking if you felt anxious—like your feelings for me were fading, if you were sad, like the world was ending?”
Looking at his face as he said that with a stupid grin, I wanted to punch him.
“No? I was just irritated.”
“Oh, you’re lying… You were anxious. I knew you were watching my every move.”
This bastard… He knew all along and pretended not to?
It was getting more ridiculous by the second. I suppressed my rising anger and asked again, “Why did you do it? I don’t think you did it just to make me anxious.”
I firmly resolved that if that was the case, I’d show him who was truly crazy—forget that “crazy bastard” nonsense.
“Of course not. It wasn’t like that at first, but you kept giving me attention, and I got so happy that before I knew it…”
“So why did you do it?! How many times do I have to ask?”
Hahyun made a strange expression, like he was trying to hold back laughter.
“I’ll tell you if you shower with me.”
“Ha…”
I can’t take this anymore.
I jumped up from my seat and, with do-or-die determination, put Hahyun in a headlock. Then I pulled with all my strength. This bastard kept laughing even while choking. There was zero impact—I felt like an ant trying to annoy an elephant.
After letting me have my way for a moment, Hahyun broke my hold with one move and pushed me down onto the sofa. The atmosphere reversed in an instant.
“If you keep being this cute, I might jump you right here. I’m already holding back like crazy…”
“Holding back what?”
Hahyun grinned and looked down at his crotch. I unconsciously followed his gaze and frowned deeply.
“Understand? So if you want to know, follow me. I’ve had some realizations lately.”
Hahyun winked at me with a sultry expression and headed for the bathroom.
I wanted to know, but I had a feeling that knowing would somehow work against me, which made me furrow my brow. As I was frowning, Hahyun suddenly turned around and said, “Oh, and… if you don’t come now, I’ll never tell you. So make your choice.”
Unable to resist my curiosity, I eventually ended up following Hahyun.
***
Hahyun knew I was following him but didn’t look back. His attitude was so relaxed it felt strange.
Recently, Hajin had been acting weird, and now Hahyun was doing the same, causing my stress to pile up to unbearable levels.
Hahyun, who had entered the bathroom, glanced at me and closed the door. His attitude seemed to say, “Come in if you want, don’t if you don’t.” That just made me more annoyed.
It’s not like we hadn’t bathed together before, so there was no need to make a big deal out of it. Besides, I needed to wash up anyway…
After rationalizing it to myself, I stripped off my clothes right there and flung open the bathroom door. A large bear was standing under the shower, letting the water hit him.
“Happy now? I’m here, so talk.”
“I can’t hear you over the water. Let’s shower first and talk while we eat.”
“Haah…”
I sighed and looked at Hahyun. He was cheerfully humming while soaping up his body. As I watched him mindlessly, he suddenly turned toward me, and I ended up seeing something I shouldn’t have.
Something I’d never noticed when the three of us bathed together now seemed unusually large with just the two of us.
Wait… They say they’re brothers but don’t share blood, yet that thing looks exactly the same size.
“Hyung? Don’t stare so intensely. I told you I’m holding back like crazy.”
I must have been staring without realizing it. Caught red-handed, my face turned bright red.
“If you’re going to talk nonsense, I’m leaving.”
As I threatened and turned around, he came out of the shower stall and grabbed my arm.
“If you came to shower, you should shower before you go. I’ll wash you.”
Hahyun brought me under the shower. The hot water made my muscles, exhausted from Hajin’s training, relax to the point where I couldn’t move. Hahyun came up close behind me and said, “See? Feels good, right? I told you I’m amazing at adjusting the water temperature.”
Uncomfortable with Hahyun’s body touching mine, I elbowed him in the stomach. Yet Hahyun didn’t budge at all. This brute is nothing but strength…
Only the sound of water filled the steamy bathroom. When we were talking at a distance, I hadn’t noticed, but standing right next to him, Hahyun seemed exceptionally large, and the way his hands washed my hair and soaped my body seemed oddly mature.
Is something wrong with my head? To think that Seo Hahyun seems mature…
“Why that expression? Don’t you like it?”
“Let’s just finish quickly and get out. And I have hands—why are you washing me?”
Hahyun suddenly lifted one of my arms upward.
“Ow!”
Even though it only went up halfway, a groan escaped my lips.
“How can you wash when you can’t even move your arms properly? That’s why I asked you to come in…”
“How did you know?”
“How could I not know? I watch you all day.”
Hahyun’s words made me feel strange. I’d assumed he’d asked me to bathe with him with dirty intentions, but he’d actually noticed my arm was hurting… Honestly, it was a bit shocking.
Hahyun, finished soaping me up, turned on the water. As the soap washed away from my body, I wished these strange feelings would wash away too.
The water was so hot my face kept burning up.
After the shower, I put on the clothes Hahyun brought me and ate the meal he prepared. Maybe because of my daily morning workouts, drowsiness swept over me even before afternoon. Then I suddenly realized something. I still hadn’t heard the reason I was supposed to hear…
As I glared at Hahyun, he walked toward the kitchen and said, “I was just about to tell you. I’ll bring some tea.”
***
I was ready to get straight to the point as soon as Hahyun brought the tea. I needed to focus and ask questions as specifically as possible. There must have been a reason he’d been smirking and dodging since this morning, and if I wasn’t careful, I might fall into his trap again.
“Why have you been avoiding me lately? Don’t lie and say you haven’t, or I’ll hate you forever. Tell me straight.”
“Alright.”
“Just answer the question.”
Despite my question, Hahyun didn’t answer and just stared at me before saying something strange.
“Um… Why did you suddenly change, hyung?”
Despite asking first, I fell completely into his pace.
“Me? Because I lost my memories!”
“No, not the weirdness when you first lost your memory. You’re different now from then, too. How should I put it? Your expressions have gotten rougher, but your feelings come across more strongly?”
“…”
I thought I’d hidden the slight emotional turbulence I felt whenever I saw him, but apparently it showed on my face. As much as I hated to admit it, I had to acknowledge the fact that the me back then was Kim Sojin acting as the kind Yoon Juwon, and the me now was just… me.
“What’s different? I guess it might seem that way because I went from speaking politely to casually.”
“Yeah, let’s say that’s it.”
When had the gap between Yoon Juwon and Kim Sojin disappeared? In other words, when did I stop “pretending” to like my brothers?
I ended up running away again, as usual. I couldn’t tell him properly when I didn’t even know myself how and when my feelings had changed, or what my current feelings even were.
“You told me before, hyung. That you needed time. You said that to me three times. And you left me standing at the door twice. But my brain just couldn’t understand it. If you like someone, why do you need time? Normally, you shouldn’t want to be apart for even a moment…”
Hahyun shook his head as if he still couldn’t understand. I was a bit caught off guard since I’d asked why he’d been indifferent to me and didn’t expect this kind of answer, but strangely, I felt touched.
“So I decided to try it myself. I want to know everything about you without exception, and since there was something I couldn’t understand with my head, I had no choice but to experience it firsthand.”
That was the reason? Wait, Seo Hahyun thought that deeply?
Today, Hahyun truly surprised me in many ways. Moreover, my conscience pricked me because asking for time wasn’t for any serious reason like Hahyun thought—it was just an excuse to avoid complicated situations.
