VDN Ch 167

The face looking up from below was as beautiful and handsome as ever. Nam-woon suddenly found it hard to believe that such a perfect person was by his side.

He had clearly tried to distance himself from Kwon Seo-oh, but how did he end up like this? Is there anyone else who wants to spend the rest of their lives with me? Will there ever be another person like this in the future?

In that moment, a wave of overwhelming emotion surged from deep within Nam-woon’s chest. He felt a churn in his stomach as that whirlwind of feelings swept over him. Seo-oh’s dark, affectionate eyes were gazing down at him. Who else could I receive such a look from?

As they continued to gaze into each other’s eyes, Seo-oh’s red lips parted once more. 

“Do I have to tell you what to do next?” 

“……”

Nam-woon immediately tensed his arms. Despite the faint strength, Seo-oh willingly lowered his face. Their soft lips met gently, and a fragrant warmth quickly filled the room. The sound of two hearts beating intertwined over their touching skin.

No further conversation was needed. The two savored each other’s scent, sharing their warmth even more deeply. Perhaps this was the long-awaited night of reunion they had both yearned for.

***

The next morning, Nam-woon packed his things at the motel and returned home with Seo-oh. As soon as he stepped into the cozy and comfortable room, he collapsed on the floor. His body relaxed as he thought he had finally arrived at his own home. He looked around, rubbing his back on the floor.

“Has Se-han not come back yet?” 

“I called Min-chan earlier, and he said Se-han is still sleeping. He’ll probably wake up and hang out with his friends for a bit longer.” 

As Seo-oh pulled clothes from the bag he had placed on the floor, he glanced at Nam-woon, who was squirming around like a slug. 

“How’s your back? You said it hurt in the morning.” 

“Uh? Um…”

“I was a bit rough yesterday. It’s been a while since I’ve been with you, so I couldn’t hold back… I’m sorry.” 

Seo-oh, who bowed his head shyly to apologize, made Nam-woon feel embarrassed as well, causing him to shift his eyes. Then, he suddenly realized that Kwon Seo-oh hadn’t mentioned anything about Hope since last night. Could it be that his words from yesterday affected him? Feeling a bit uncomfortable, Nam-woon cleared his throat and spoke up. 

“Aren’t you going to make a hospital appointment?”

Seo-oh, who had been moving around busily, suddenly stopped for a moment. But soon, as if nothing happened, he continued to organize his clothes and said nonchalantly,

“No. I’ll make an appointment after Hope arrives.” 

Nam-woon doubted his own ears. Seo-oh looked at Nam-woon, whose eyes had turned like a rabbit’s, and added,

“You don’t need to rush, Hyung. Just wait. Then, someday, the fruits of our love will come.” 

“……”

“I’ll try harder. Now that my pheromones have stabilized more, I’m confident for next time.” 

After finishing his sentence, Seo-oh smiled shyly. His earlobes were flushed red. Nam-woon didn’t know where to start or how to point it out, so he just smiled awkwardly. 

Hearing the phrase “fruits of our love” from Seo-oh was already the second time. He had heard it yesterday at the perfume shop, but he had been so disoriented then that he didn’t react at all. Now, however, he thought that it might have been a word that contained Seo-oh’s feelings for him. Just thinking about it made his face flush. For some reason, his heart felt ticklish, and Nam-woon fixed his gaze on Se-han’s picture hanging on the wall. 

Meanwhile, after finishing the laundry, Seo-oh picked up a suit that was hanging in the closet. Nam-woon, surprised by the unfamiliar clothes, asked,

“Why a suit? Where are you going?” 

“…I have a seminar presentation at school.” 

So they wear suits when presenting at university these days? Nam-woon, who had no experience in university, looked at him with curiosity. 

“Has vacation already ended?” 

Seo-oh nodded slightly and headed to the bathroom with his clothes. “Kwon Seo-oh, you’re so shy with me now.” Nam-woon couldn’t help but smirk. It was cute and funny that he was acting shy after having seen his bare body just yesterday. 

After a moment, Seo-oh emerged from the bathroom wearing black suit pants and a white shirt. Nam-woon couldn’t help but exclaim at his model-like appearance. 

“Hey, you look like an actor from TV!” 

“What’s with that way of speaking? You sound like Grandpa Nam-nam.”

Seo-oh chuckled at Nam-woon’s rustic tone and walked toward the shoe rack. Nam-woon quickly followed behind him. Seo-oh perfectly finished off his look with shoes but suddenly paused, holding onto the doorknob without moving. He then turned his head and glanced at Nam-woon. 

“Why? Did you forget something?”

“…Shall we have dinner together tonight, the three of us?”

What now? Nam-woon nodded and looked at the rice cooker.

“Okay, that sounds good. I saw that there was no rice in the cooker earlier, so I’ll make some.” 

“No, not at home. Let’s eat out.” 

Now that he mentioned it, Nam-woon had eaten jajangmyeon with Se-han a few times, but he realized he had never gone out to eat with Seo-oh alone. The same went for dining out together as a trio. 

“Sure. Where should we go? Gimcheon?” 

“Gimcheon?” 

“You know that kimbap place you get to if you go down that big road and make a turn?”

“……”

“Their tuna kimbap is delicious.”

Seo-oh didn’t respond for a moment. Then, they blurted out,

“I’m annoyed.”

“Huh? What’s wrong? Why?”

“Do you think I’m asking you to just eat kimbap? I’ll make a reservation at a restaurant and send you the address. Just make sure you’re there on time.”

Nam-woon was taken aback by Seo-oh’s sudden irritation. What could be bothering him this time? This is really complicated… As Nam-woon scratched his head awkwardly, Seo-oh, who had been opening the front door, suddenly approached him again. 

“…I’ll be back.” 

Seo-oh lightly pressed his lips against Nam-woon’s cheek before stepping out the door. The ticklish sensation left on Nam-woon’s cheek made him stand there, unable to move. How long had he been standing like that? He snapped back to reality when his phone rang beside him and picked it up. A familiar name appeared on the screen.

「Lee Bong-nam」

Right! I completely forgot to call Bong-nam.

He must have been really worried since the last call got cut off at the perfume shop. Hurriedly, he pressed the phone to his ear. The moment he was about to speak, a thunderous voice poured out.

– Mr. Seok! Where are you now? Why can’t I contact you!”

Taken aback by Bong-nam’s shouting, Nam-woon awkwardly apologized. 

“I’m sorry. I was so out of it that I didn’t look at my phone. Did you call a lot?” 

– Do you even realize what you’re asking? The calls kept disconnecting, how could I not keep calling! Including texts, I must have contacted you hundreds of times! You should have called me back right away! Ugh… seriously. Are you okay? Where are you now?”

“I’m sorry, Bong-nam. I just got home. Just now.” 

– Home…? Mr. Seok, you didn’t decide to get back together with that trash, Kwon Seo-oh, did you? That bastard is arrogant and only thinks about his own bloodline. He’s definitely thinking of taking the child away when Hope is born….

“Wait, what do you mean by that?” 

Frowning at the nonsensical comments that reached his ears, Nam-woon cut off Bong-nam’s words. Had they met before? Why was Bong-nam calling Seo-oh trash? 

“Explain one thing at a time. How do you know Seo-oh?” 

– Ah, well…

Bong-nam hesitated for a moment before beginning to recount the past. Se-han and Sundol had come to the convenience store where Bong-nam worked, asking about Nam-woon’s whereabouts and giving him Kwon Seo-oh’s contact information. Bong-nam met with Seo-oh and told him about Nam-woon’s pregnancy, even mentioning the perfume shop. 

Nam-woon was taken aback that the rumor of his pregnancy had started with Bong-nam. How could this make sense? I didn’t do anything, but things got blown out of proportion like this.

After a moment of surprise, Nam-woon decided that clearing up the misunderstanding was the most pressing matter. He explained that he wasn’t pregnant, just that he had eaten too much and gained weight and had a habit of talking nonsense to himself. He repeated the same story to Bong-nam, who was initially skeptical. Eventually, Bong-nam, worn down by Nam-woon’s continued insistence, persuasion, and feelings of guilt, finally apologized.

– I’m sorry, Mr. Seok. I really didn’t know… I misunderstood…

“Well, things like that can happen in life. It’s okay.”

Regardless of how things turned out, Bong-nam had been his benefactor. Feeling sorry for the trouble caused, Nam-woon reassured Bong-nam that it was no big deal and also made sure to clear up the misunderstanding about Seo-oh.

“And Seo-oh isn’t that bad of a person. He’s a bit prickly, but that’s just because he keeps to himself a lot.”

– …Really? That’s because he keeps to himself.

Bong-nam, who had hidden his emotions in an instant, seemed puzzled as if he couldn’t understand. He had a hidden side…? He muttered, his voice filled with embarrassment.

– But I thought I was going to become an uncle next year, so I bought some baby clothes and socks for Hope. It’s been over a week, so I can’t get a refund. Should I just keep them? In case I might need them later?”

“…Don’t do that. Try selling them on the marketplace.”

Nam-woon gave a simple piece of advice before ending the call with Bong-nam, promising to meet again. The thought of baby clothes was too much for him to handle.

So this was the story behind the pregnancy commotion that happened like this. Nam-woon shook his head in disbelief. Then he rummaged through his wallet again and took out a crumpled note to read. That child had come all the way there with Sundol to find him. What if something had gone wrong?

Se-han usually stayed close to the neighborhood, playing near friends’ houses or around the school. The thought of Se-han enduring so much because of him filled Nam-woon with pain.

When Se-han comes, I’ll play lots with him and buy him tanghulu. With that resolution, Nam-woon lay down flat on the floor and closed his eyes. He imagined the three of them eating together at a restaurant. Since Seo-oh seemed to care about the atmosphere, would they eat something like pasta? Se-han would love that.

But I think anything that the three of them would eat together would be good….

Every dinner they had together at this house was delicious. No matter where or what we ate, tonight would definitely be perfect. He immersed himself in thoughts, enjoying the peace that had returned after a long time and drifted off into a nap.