The man was someone Munyeong had seen once before. That day when he’d gone to the private dining room at the Korean cuisine restaurant to carry Yeon Haejeong out — the man had been one of the people in his company.
“Hey, yeah. Try eating somewhere a bit more refined for once, instead of going to the lounge every day and just throwing back drinks.”
He seemed to be on easy terms with Yeon Haejeong — even with company present, the man addressed him casually without a second thought.
“Why are you picking a fight the moment you see me? Mind your own business and eat your food.”
“I’m just happy to see you, man. Anyway — who’s this?”
The man patted Yeon Haejeong on the shoulder and flashed a friendly grin. He was roughly the same age, with a reasonably handsome face.
The man’s attention slid over toward Munyeong on the other side. Being noticed by Yeon Haejeong’s acquaintance made him uneasy, so Munyeong quietly lowered his head.
“…What’s this? Don’t tell me, is this a…?”
The man seemed to pick up on something from the way Munyeong shrank back, and he dangled his pinky finger lightly in Yeon Haejeong’s direction as he asked with a sly look. The unabashed behavior, persistent to an almost offensive degree, was no different from usual — but today of all days it got under Yeon Haejeong’s skin in a particular way.
“Get lost.”
“Impressive. Back in Korea and already….”
The man knew Yeon Haejeong’s sexual preferences, so he naturally connected it to that. And since rumors that he preferred men over women had long since spread as far as they could go, there were few people in those circles who didn’t know his inclinations.
“Which kind is he? A trainee? Or——”
“Hey.”
Casually exchanging remarks about each other’s tastes was nothing out of the ordinary between them, and the man was about to perch his backside on the armrest of a nearby chair with his usual low, easy laugh — when his words were cut off with unmistakable authority.
“…I said get lost.”
“Why are you being so stiff all of a sudden. Are you embarrassed in front of your lover?”
At the unusually touchy reaction, the man laughed as though it were the most amusing thing and pushed back playfully.
“…N-no, that’s not it.”
It was then. A hasty denial came from the other side. The words had come from Munyeong, who had been keeping quiet and making himself invisible. Both the man, who’d been laughing lightly, and Yeon Haejeong, who had been a second away from erupting, turned to look at him with wide eyes.
“It’s not… like that.”
“…….”
“…We’re not… lovers……”
Munyeong was shrinking in on himself, but he made no effort to hide his look of distress. He waved both hands back and forth and denied it emphatically. The desperate, almost frantic way he refuted it — as though being called Yeon Haejeong’s lover would be a disaster — made the man let out a loud, awkward laugh.
“Ah — I see.”
The man read the room and let out an exaggerated sigh. He couldn’t tell exactly what was going on, but sensing that the atmosphere had gone quite tense, he offered a brief apology.
“My mistake — sorry, sorry. My bad?”
And above all, the sight of Yeon Haejeong’s expression turning even icier made the man quickly register that he shouldn’t push further, and he cleared his throat with an embarrassed little cough.
“Well then — enjoy your meal, everyone. See you next time?”
He tossed out a casual goodbye to both Munyeong and Yeon Haejeong, and left. The moment he was gone, a winter chill settled over the table like a cold front. Shortly after, when the second course was brought out, Yeon Haejeong was the first to speak.
“What was so awful about it.”
“Hm…?”
He gave a cold smile and fixed Munyeong with a pair of icy eyes.
“You have a real talent for making people feel……”
“…….”
“Like shit.”
The words came with a laugh of disbelief, delivered in a quiet, dark tone, and Munyeong was caught thoroughly off guard — his words dried up and he couldn’t say anything at all. All he could tell from the sudden drop in atmosphere was that he had made some serious mistake. He didn’t know exactly what he’d done wrong or how, but he had no choice but to bow his head like someone who had committed a crime. He couldn’t bring himself to ask what he had done wrong given how low Yeon Haejeong’s mood had sunk — and besides, that wasn’t his place to begin with. All he could do was read the room and keep his head down, as befitting his position.
After that, Yeon Haejeong didn’t look his way a single time. He ate in complete silence, methodically working through the meal and steadily draining the wine that came paired with each course. Munyeong, who had been riding high just moments ago, felt his throat tighten as though that giddy feeling had never existed. Every mouthful of food went down like a stone, and a dull ache settled in his chest.
There had been one reason Munyeong had blurted out that denial.
In case rumors started spreading in a bad way.
He could accept that Yeon Haejeong liked men — that was one thing. But if the people around him found out that his supposed lover was someone like Munyeong, Yeon Haejeong would be the one bearing the humiliation. People already talked about him behind his back. He already attracted more than his share of misunderstandings and criticism for his behavior — Munyeong couldn’t add himself to the pile.
And besides — lover? That was absurd. How could someone like him dare carry a title like that next to Yeon Haejeong’s name.
If anything, he had been worried that Yeon Haejeong would have been displeased. That was why he had denied it so insistently — and yet, strangely, Yeon Haejeong’s mood had only gotten worse. He’d been silent through the entire meal, and silent the whole ride home. The brief, pleasant time they’d shared earlier felt like something from the distant past.
The moment they got home, Yeon Haejeong pulled open the refrigerator and drank straight from a bottle of cold water. Munyeong hovered nearby, taking off and folding the dress jacket Yeon Haejeong had put on him earlier.
“Um……”
Watching him silently vent his anger without a word, Munyeong finally couldn’t hold back and spoke first.
“…Can I make you some tea?”
He thought a warm cup of tea before bed might help, and asked cautiously. A cool gaze landed on him. Munyeong instinctively shrank.
“……They say drinking it before sleep… has some effect……”
He’d actually looked it up from time to time. Types of tea that promoted deep sleep, exercises — things like that. Yeon Haejeong had said his methods were alcohol or sex, but Munyeong had spent quite a long while searching for something healthier, occasionally jotting down notes.
“Camo… cam…… something like that, and chrysanthemum tea…… and honey is also supposed to be good for sleep.”
Setting aside the names he couldn’t quite remember, Munyeong took out a few varieties of tea he’d bought at the supermarket earlier. He tried to smile to ease the atmosphere as he spoke, but the other person didn’t look remotely inclined to accept the gesture.
“…You have some.”
He turned it down in a tone that made clear he wasn’t interested.
He said it like dropping something and walked away — then slammed his bedroom door shut and disappeared inside. Left completely alone in the wide, sprawling penthouse living room, Munyeong stared at the bedroom door with restless, anxious eyes. He must have done something wrong. He just couldn’t pinpoint what.
There was only one thing that nagged at him. Denying the word lover. But he had thought that was precisely what Yeon Haejeong would want. Just as Yeon Haejeong had consistently told him — someone like him was no one Yeon Haejeong would have feelings for. Even if Yeon Haejeong helped him again and again and made him feel confused, that fact didn’t change. He had asked multiple times, and every single time the answer had been the same. Yeon Haejeong was simply someone who could sleep with a person without feelings, who could kiss a person without feelings. So — no room for delusions. Especially not while he was indebted to him.
“…Good night.”
Munyeong whispered a goodnight that would never reach him, and quietly went into his own bedroom. It was hard to keep up with his shifting moods — but even so, today had been a good day for Munyeong. They had walked side by side, shopped for groceries side by side, and had a meal somewhere nice. Every one of those things had been because of Yeon Haejeong.
The first night, the plush bed felt too unfamiliar and he tossed and turned more than once. He even tried pulling the blanket to the floor and lying there, shifting his position. But when he realized the marble floor was harder and less comfortable, he obediently climbed back up onto the bed. The bed was far too wide for one person. Feeling as though he was being indulgent, Munyeong took to sleeping curled up at the very edge.
The expensive mattress seemed to be worth every bit of its price — the moment he adjusted to it even slightly, it pulled him into sleep no matter the circumstances. Today was no different. Even with that unsettled feeling still sitting in his chest, he had been fast asleep, body curled up as though he might tumble off the edge at any moment. But as a growing sense of suffocation crept over him, he began to stir. Was he having sleep paralysis? The thought surfaced dimly in his half-conscious mind — and the moment he instinctively forced his closed eyes open, Munyeong’s face flooded with shock.
“Wh-who…… Hae — Haejeong……?”
