DI Ch 71

After eating neatly, I finally put down my utensils. Though I filled my stomach leisurely, I couldn’t help but lightly scrape the bottom of the plate with some regret. Tae Seong-je smirked as if he knew that would happen.

“Of course, you won’t be satisfied after emptying your stomach like that.”

That’s true, did he really need to say it like that? I’m aware that I’m not very tactful, but I felt a sudden urge to retort. Eventually, I just traced my fingers over my empty belly, trying to hide my embarrassment.

“It’s not me; it’s the baby…”

“Seo Seung-won.”

“Yes.”

“If you keep doing that, I can really make you full.”

“…”

“If the baby kicks you, it’ll be quite a show. Got it? Calm down.”

He made a joke earlier without a reaction, but when I did, he acted like this. Even if I’m wrong for joking without reading the atmosphere, did he really need to react like that? In response to his stern and even cold gaze, I decided to zip up my mouth instead of retorting.

I tidied up the table while keeping an eye on his mood. He motioned with his hand as if beckoning me closer. When I leaned in, he suddenly started lightly pinching my cheek with his hand. It hurt like hell, honestly.

“Ah, Hyung. Ouch, it hurts.”

“You should be thankful you’re a guy.”

“Uh? Yes…”

“What’s with the ‘yes’ again? Do you just want to give one-word answers?”

Well, then what kind of answer do you want? As I pouted my lips in frustration, Tae Seong-je released the hand that had been squeezing my cheeks. I rubbed my tingling cheeks with both hands, but the pain couldn’t get better that quickly.

“Forget it, eat some bread.”

“Bread? You have bread?”

He silently placed a large bag on the table. The warm scent of bread wafted out, making my mouth water. I had never really craved bread before, but the aroma made me salivate.

However, the variety of bread was astonishing, and there seemed to be various types of milk as well. They were even in glass bottles… If I had to choose, I liked plain milk, so I poured it into a cup and sipped, wiping my lips afterward. I wanted to replenish my lack of sugar, so I picked up a doughnut covered in powdered sugar and took a bite.

As soon as I took a bite,  sugar began to fall like snow, but it wasn’t as sweet as I had expected. Just as I was about to fill my mind with the simple thought ‘The bread is delicious’, his phone rang.

“Uh, why?”

Tae Seong-je answered the call in a rather disinterested manner and reached out to brush the sugar away from my mouth. When I slightly lifted my chin, he meticulously brushed away the powdered sugar that had clung to my lips. I resumed eating the bread after my mouth was clean. Tae Seong-je continued his conversation with someone who appeared to be his subordinate as I took another bite and chewed slowly for a while.

However, whether it was the person on the phone or Tae Seong-je’s indifference, I couldn’t help but think that he should work on breaking the habit of giving one-word answers like “why” and “what.” It wasn’t about being hurt; it was about social etiquette. Even though it’s not mandatory, it’s still good to practice proper manners.

Although he was selfish, he was also considerate and courteous, so if he thinks about fixing it, he won’t do it the next time. After all, these elements were optional behaviors for him… Wait, was that even worse? I shifted my gaze and slowly chewed the doughnut in my mouth. Hmm. This bakery makes some good bread.

Normally, I would just gobble it down because I couldn’t keep up with everyone else’s pace, but it was a peaceful meal all by myself, and no one was saying anything, so I took my time.  In the meantime, Tae Seong-je didn’t move away to make his call inconspicuous; he just continued talking on the phone.

However, he seemed to be avoiding giving detailed answers or keeping the conversation hidden. It went something like this:

“Uh-huh. So.”

He would respond curtly, avoiding discussing the content of the call. My impression of this? “Nothing.” To be honest, I was perfectly fine with not knowing where Tae Seong-je lived or what he did for a living. There’s a reason they say ignorance is bliss. If I found out but had to pretend I didn’t, it would be better not to know anything from the beginning.

That way, I could at least imitate a typical romantic relationship, even if it was just for show.

I made an effort to show that I was completely uninterested in the phone call and focused on eating instead. However, when I had almost finished my third doughnut, something happened. My next target, a sweet red bean bun that I had opened in advance to eat, fell to the floor.

“Ah, shit. What a waste.”

I’d already ripped open the packaging, ready to eat it right away. I should have just left it alone if I had known this would happen. Why do I keep making these mistakes? I muttered in frustration as I quickly picked up the fallen bun. Anyway, there was another one; should I just throw it away or eat it?

Someone once said it’s okay to eat it within three seconds of picking it up from the floor. Although it looked clean on the outside, I hesitated because it was food that had fallen on the ground. I stared at the bun seriously for a moment, but in the end, I bit into it decisively.

I felt his gaze at that moment, and I slowly lifted my head. He had a somewhat shocked expression on his face. Even though I could hear loud voices saying, “Hyung-nim? Hyung-nim?” through the phone on the other end, he didn’t respond.

I shifted my gaze back and forth between Tae Seong-je and the bread with my mouth still open… I quietly set the bread down on the table. My face flushed with embarrassment when I noticed the bite marks on the bread’s surface.

I had relaxed too much. I had been about to eat the fallen bread right in front of Tae Seong-je. Damn it, he probably saw everything, didn’t he? Suddenly, I felt a strong urge for a cigarette. There should be some cigarettes left from the impulsive purchase I made earlier, somewhere in my bag…

Even though I couldn’t properly smoke, I could use it to clear my mind. I had only smoked a few times before, and I was now down to my last cigarette, but it was better than nothing. I had to smoke one and wash my face in the sink. I wanted to crawl into a mouse hole when I was this frustrated. Just when I was thinking about that, Tae Seong-je abruptly ended the phone call.

“…”

“…?”

He stared at me as if he had lost his mind or, rather, as if I were the one who had lost my mind. Did I look ridiculous or something? I brushed my cheek, which had become warm from embarrassment.

I hesitantly observed his reaction. He seemed to have a lot to say, and I waited for him to speak, but… he didn’t say a word. In the uncomfortable silence, his phone rang again. Tae Seong-je fixed his gaze on me and slowly answered the call.

[Hello? Hyung-nim, can’t you hear me?]

“I can hear you, turn down the volume.”

Tae Seong-je answered the call in a distracted manner, as if his mind were elsewhere, and stared at me. But that didn’t last long. Not long after, his forehead wrinkled slightly. His expression grew dark, indicating that something was wrong. The atmosphere, already serious, became even tenser.

“What the hell…”

Suddenly, Tae Seong-je, who had raised his voice, glanced at me, then lowered his voice and sighed. A tendon bulged from Tae Seong-je’s forehead as he stood up from his seat and was talking on the phone a little away.

“Damn it, why did that guy come out again, no… He said he wasn’t feeling well and just lying down. Why did he come out?”

It was a fairly familiar and nonchalant tone, but there was an unconcealable annoyance in his voice. I couldn’t help but wonder if he was really upset. Tae Seong-je clenched his phone tightly between his jaw and shoulder, and his footsteps became rough and heavy as he walked away. It seemed like he was in a rather bad mood, considering he didn’t seem to care about his temper.

“So where are you? What? So, no one knew about this on the way there? Fuck this…”

Suddenly our eyes met.  I couldn’t escape, so I awkwardly chuckled and started eating the cream bun quietly.

“…If you guys don’t work properly, then, will I get angry? Or not? Right, I will. But you’re not doing it properly, are you?”

Although his tone changed, it wasn’t exactly friendly. Eventually, Tae Seong-je got up and left the room. I couldn’t hear his voice through the soundproofing. While he was gone, I took off my hand which had been secretly covering my pants, and went to the bathroom to wash my face with cold water.

His irritated back and fingers tapping on his waist or lower back… they were quite sexy. As I watched water droplets dripping down, I couldn’t help but think that I must have lost my mind. His rugged facial expression, muscular arms, and the way his lower body pressed against his pants…

Honestly, I wanted to relieve myself, but I didn’t have time for that. I exerted all my strength to avoid getting an erection. If I were caught in this situation, I would be incredibly embarrassed and mortified. After finally calming down, I lifted my head. However, I was surprised by what I saw.

“No, how hard did he have to bite…”

In the mirror, Seo Seung-won’s cheeks were covered with Tae Seong-je’s bite marks, just like the ones on my cream bun. It could have been because Seo Seung-won’s skin was too delicate, not because of Tae Seong-je, but what the hell…