CRT Ch 58

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In his sleep, he heard the sound of a car engine turning off. Seok Ryu lifted his drowsy eyelids, his head still leaning against the passenger seat window. Cha Yilhyun, who had been in the driver’s seat, had been looking at Seok Ryu for some time now. He ran his fingers deep into Seok Ryu’s hair, toying with it.

“If you’re very tired, let’s go straight to the villa.”

He remembered that they were supposed to stop by the penthouse for Cha Yilhyun to pick up a few necessary items.

“No, I just dozed off for a moment.”

Seok Ryu looked outside with eyes still heavy with sleep. The car was parked in the ground level parking lot in front of the officetel’s main entrance. It was the same place where he had delivered the designated script to Director Choi and found out that Cha Yilhyun had not been doped.

And if he took the elevator up, the space he had lived in with Yejun was waiting. It was a place he did not want to come to even in his dreams. A new resident was probably staying there now.

He tried not to show it, but it seemed he could not fool Cha Yilhyun’s eyes. He was gazing at Seok Ryu with a heavy look in his eyes.

“I’ll be back quickly, so wait in the car for a moment.”

“I will go too.”

It was absurd for him to be sitting idly in the car while his master was packing his things. He had to make sure Cha Yilhyun did not miss anything, and he did not want to be alone in the car either.

As he entered the lobby with Cha Yilhyun, there were many unfamiliar people walking around. But the sight of them putting on airs with the pride of having entered Songhyul Castle was familiar.

They headed for the penthouse-exclusive elevator. While Cha Yilhyun was punching in the password, Seok Ryu spotted a family a few steps away. An adult man and woman in simple attire and a little girl with her hair in two braids were waiting for the residents’ elevator.

He had gained some weight and looked much neater than before, so he recognized him as Kim Myungjoon belatedly. He had heard from Secretary Yang that Kim Myungjoon had moved into the officetel, but he did not expect to run into him today.

The child, with a plastic stethoscope around her neck, patted the belly of the doll she was holding. The woman, who appeared to be his wife, nudged Kim Myungjoon’s stomach.

“Heeju’s dad, I signed up for the fitness center, so you should join me starting next week. You’ve been getting a belly lately, you need to exercise.”

“That place looks expensive……”

“Your salary went up a lot, you can afford it.”

Compared to his excited family, Heeju’s dad wore a sour smile. Despite being favored by Cha Yilhyun and receiving exceptional treatment, Kim Myungjoon did not look entirely happy.

Behind every chosen person, there were bound to be unchosen ones. Cha Yilhyun had simply paid Kim Myungjoon a just price by his standards, as he knew ‘Lake of the Gods’ second best after Lee Sak. Therefore, Kim Myungjoon had no reason to think his current treatment was undeserved, nor did he need to feel guilty towards his fallen colleagues.

“Daddy, are you sick?”

The little girl examined Kim Myungjoon’s belly with her toy stethoscope. Kim Myungjoon, who was stroking the child’s head, belatedly spotted Cha Yilhyun and bowed his head deeply.

“……Hello, Director.”

His wife also bowed along with her husband in a flurry, and the child bowed from the waist as well. Despite the couple’s greeting, Cha Yilhyun’s eyes were fixed only on the toy stethoscope Heeju was holding.

Kim Myungjoon looked embarrassed and glanced at Seok Ryu out of the corner of his eye. At that moment, Kim Myungjoon froze, inhaling sharply. Seeing her husband turn pale, his wife looked puzzled.

The last time he had met Kim Myungjoon, Seok Ryu’s body had been on the verge of breaking, so it was understandable that he would be surprised. Back then, his appearance was no different from a homeless person, but in the time they had not seen each other, his complexion had brightened.

“Have you been well?”

When Seok Ryu asked after him first, Kim Myungjoon flinched and just gaped like a chick. Cha Yilhyun’s gaze pressed against Seok Ryu’s cheek. Kim Myungjoon swallowed dryly and then hesitantly nodded his head. The child, who made eye contact with Seok Ryu, squirmed and hid behind her father.

The elevator’s arrival chime ventilated the awkward atmosphere. Kim Myungjoon caught his daughter who was about to get on the elevator and whispered affectionately.

“How about we give this stethoscope to the Director as a gift?”

“Why?”

“Because he is someone who is sick in many places.”

Kim Myungjoon briskly handed the stethoscope his daughter had given up to Cha Yilhyun. Cha Yilhyun’s eyes lit up as he examined the plastic stethoscope from all angles. Kim Myungjoon was about to turn and leave, but then his gaze shifted to Seok Ryu.

“Lee Sak……”

After hesitating for a moment, Kim Myungjoon seemed to have made up his mind and finished his sentence.

“He is currently recuperating in the countryside. He is still waiting for you.”

Even after Kim Myungjoon’s family left on the elevator, Seok Ryu remained frozen in place. Since Seok Ryu and Yejun’s bond was broken, Lee Sak, who had been doped, must have returned to normal as well. If Lee Sak was normal, there was no way he would be waiting for Seok Ryu. The demon who had used a person’s sincerity to obtain the rights and ordered him to betray his friend.

Cha Yilhyun led the frozen Seok Ryu into the exclusive elevator and pressed the button.

“If you want, I will take you to where the author is.”

Seok Ryu gave a faint smile instead of an answer. He did not know if he wanted to meet Lee Sak or not, but he knew he did not have the right to. He never knew that looking back on the past required this much courage. Seok Ryu looked at the blinking number buttons and then turned his gaze to Cha Yilhyun.

“There is a place I would like to stop by for a moment.”

💎

Contrary to his expectations, the officetel Seok Ryu had lived in was empty. He had boldly suggested coming, but Seok Ryu was rooted in front of the entrance, unable to step inside. Cha Yilhyun took off Seok Ryu’s shoes one by one and then took his arm, leading him inside. In the stark living room, only the puzzle gifted by Lee Sak remained; all traces of Yejun had been cleaned away.

Seok Ryu’s room was just as it was. The blanket and the pillow on top of it, the pencil holder, the dryer…… The things Seok Ryu had used in the past were preserved like a museum. The wine colored suitcase was also standing in its place.

The cream colored blanket on top of the bedding looked familiar. It seemed to be the same blanket Seok Ryu had slept under at the penthouse when he was monitoring Cha Yilhyun. Seeing the puzzled Seok Ryu, Cha Yilhyun said nonchalantly.

“It is my comfort blanket. I cannot sleep if I do not cover myself with this.”

For that blanket to be here meant that he had slept here. It felt like even if he listened all night, it would not be enough time to hear how Cha Yilhyun had endured the two years Seok Ryu was dead. He was speaking as if it were nothing, but if it had been Seok Ryu, he would have found it hard to bear with a sane mind.

Seok Ryu laid the suitcase down and opened the zipper. Cha Yilhyun also sat next to Seok Ryu and rested his elbow on his thigh. The bag, which had been sealed for a long time, contained a few notebooks Seok Ryu had recorded in the past and some clothes that showed their age.

The notebooks, once considered Seok Ryu’s achievements, had become shameful traces. Just as Shinbi and Leo, whom he had looked down on, had become his teachers. Just being with Cha Yilhyun had turned his view of the world upside down. The face of Leo, who had been nothing but a shell, suddenly came to mind.

“I did not know you were close enough with Mr. Lee Joonyoung to have him become your guarantor.”

“We are not close. I was surprised myself when he readily agreed when I asked him to be a guarantor.”

Seok Ryu was also puzzled. If Cha Yilhyun were to harm the workshop, Lee Joonyoung, as the guarantor, would not be safe either. Becoming a guarantor was the same as taking joint responsibility for everything.

Leaving Leo neglected seemed to be an intention to completely sever ties with the workshop without renewing the contract. It was not easy to understand why such a Lee Joonyoung would become Cha Yilhyun’s guarantor.

“Is Mr. Lee Joonyoung giving up on Mr. Leo?”

Cha Yilhyun raised an eyebrow.

“Lee Joonyoung said he had wanted time to himself even before he was doped. Since he had been stuck with his topaz every day for ten years. He wants to ask for forgiveness, but he keeps missing the timing and can’t find the courage.”

He did not know there was such a backstory.

“Mr. Leo will be waiting for his master to come for him. You are an exception, Director, but if Noeul sets his mind to doping someone, they cannot escape, and their actions after being doped have nothing to do with their own will.”

That was also why Seok Ryu held no grudge against Lee Taeon or Director Kwak. The suspicion of why Noeul’s ability had not worked only on Cha Yilhyun was still unresolved.

Suddenly, he let out a soft laugh.

“Lee Joonyoung probably expressed his true feelings through that garnet named Noeul. That is why he is twisting his body and suffering in shame and self loathing.”

Seok Ryu let out a small sigh. He could not just refute Cha Yilhyun’s sarcasm. Because his words pierced through the dregs of humanity that Seok Ryu had experienced for a long time. But Cha Yilhyun did not know the most important thing.

“Mr. Leo did not break even after being abandoned by his master. He will wait with all his might until his wavering master gets a hold of himself again. Because the reason Mr. Leo became such a strong and warm person is because of Lee Joonyoung.”

He no longer wanted to object to Leo’s words that he was human. Does becoming human upon meeting one’s fated master only mean a physical change? Is a lifelong partner only possible with a fated master? If, by any chance, the day comes when Cha Yilhyun abandons Seok Ryu, Seok Ryu too would probably wait for him to return.

Cha Yilhyun suddenly reached out his hand and gently pressed the space between Seok Ryu’s furrowed brows with his thumb. Feeling that he had become agitated without realizing it, Seok Ryu 괜히 fiddled with the clothes in the bag.

Then he fumbled at the very bottom with his hand. He pulled out a small packet that his fingertips caught on. It was the face of Iron Man, still in its packaging. When Noeul had stolen Seok Ryu’s jewelry box, he thankfully had not touched the phone finger ring. Seok Ryu held out the Iron Man to Cha Yilhyun. After a long time, he was finally giving him the gift.

“I bought this to give to you, Director, when I got my paycheck.”

For a moment, his pupils shook greatly. The corners of his hardened mouth were ambiguous, whether to smile or not. For some reason, Seok Ryu did not know where to look and just blurted out whatever came to mind.

“It also lights up in the dark.”

After a long time, Cha Yilhyun took the Iron Man and slowly peeled off the transparent plastic. All the while, his gaze was fixed on Seok Ryu. Taking his phone out of his suit pocket, he said in a husky voice.

“You put it on for me, Mr. Seok Ryu.”

Seok Ryu carefully stuck the Iron Man face onto the back of his phone. Cha Yilhyun, who took the phone back, stared at the finger ring for a long time. If Seok Ryu’s eyes were not deceiving him, Cha Yilhyun seemed moved. He had never even had the courage to give it to him from the start, so he had never imagined him reacting with such surprise.

Through the glass window, the early evening sky, a tangle of dark blue clouds and twilight, was as beautiful as an opal. He had stepped back into the officetel without fear, knowing it would be like this. He was certain that any place where Cha Yilhyun existed would become a beautiful garden, even if it were hell. He believed that the shuddering memories would be turned into treasures he would want to keep until the moment he died.

Seok Ryu gently grasped Cha Yilhyun’s index finger and pressed the golden face of the man of steel. When the red head flashed with light, Seok Ryu gave Cha Yilhyun a faint smile. But he was not looking at the light. His eyes, clashing without a gap, were boiling with lust.

💎

“Uungh…… ugh……”

Cha Yilhyun’s tongue tip greedily rummaged through Seok Ryu’s back hole as if to eat it away. The hole, made extremely sensitive by his tongue and saliva, convulsed. Seok Ryu closed his thighs and tore at the blanket. The crumpled blanket was damp with Seok Ryu’s moans. From the half searched suitcase, clothes were scattered.

A dry palm caressed the inside of Seok Ryu’s thigh and stubbornly spread his legs. Cha Yilhyun swallowed Seok Ryu’s penis and rolled his tongue over the glans. At the sticky, clinging pressure, his vision turned white. Seok Ryu bucked his hips and ejaculated into his mouth. Through his hazy vision, Cha Yilhyun’s face came into view. Cha Yilhyun inserted the heated tip of his penis into Seok Ryu’s hole. His member was swollen enough to be painful, but he seemed to be desperately holding back from thrusting.

Cha Yilhyun began to masturbate with only the tip of his penis inside. For some reason, Seok Ryu’s mouth also felt parched, and he moistened his lips with his tongue. Cha Yilhyun dropped his head and sucked on Seok Ryu’s tongue with a sound. The back of his spine tingled at the noise of saliva mingling and mucous membranes rubbing against each other. After a while, he frowned and pulled out his penis. His face was one of barely being aroused, far from enough to satisfy his hunger.

Seok Ryu grabbed Cha Yilhyun’s shirt and pulled him towards himself.

“It is okay.”

In the darkness, his lust-smeared gaze creaked. Seok Ryu pulled his shirt a little tighter and blatantly rubbed his buttocks against Cha Yilhyun’s penis. He bit his molars and let out a deep sigh. He let go of the reason he had been holding onto precariously.

Cha Yilhyun lifted Seok Ryu up and made him kneel like a dog. The valley of his buttocks, pulled tight and raised high, was starkly revealed. Seok Ryu was biting his lip, preparing for the stimulation that would soon fill his inner walls.

But contrary to his expectations, what touched his back was a soft sensation. He kissed and licked the torn scars for a long time, as if to make the surface smooth.

Fingers that came up along the line of his waist invaded Seok Ryu’s mouth. The fingers, coated in the saliva pooled under Seok Ryu’s tongue, came out and rubbed his nipple. At the slow, gentle sensation, the small bumps became erect and his arms gave way.

Cha Yilhyun grabbed the waist of the swaying Seok Ryu and immediately thrust deep. He quickened his hips and thrusted rapidly. As he pounded and stimulated the sensitized muscles of the inner walls, pleasure rushed in like a torrent.

His mind went blank at the rebound of his buttocks being hit. Uneven breaths scattered across the nape of Seok Ryu’s neck. He pulled Seok Ryu’s waist towards him urgently. He exploded what he had been holding in while thrust deep with his penis.

“Ha, heok……”

Cha Yilhyun’s moan was cut off for a moment. His lower body, threaded through Seok Ryu, trembled finely. Seok Ryu collapsed onto the blanket in a fierce climax. The semen he poured out flowed down the valley of his buttocks to his calves.

Cha Yilhyun turned Seok Ryu’s body over and pressed his ear to his heart. The hair swaying over the bridge of his nose was like black water weeds. His heart was pounding as if it would shatter, but he was not scared. He even thought that he would have no regrets if he died now. Seok Ryu wrapped his arms around Cha Yilhyun’s neck and pressed their lower bodies together again. When he embraced his penis fully with his inner walls, he let out a husky breath and bit Seok Ryu’s bare shoulder.

He hooked both of Seok Ryu’s legs over his arms and pushed carefully into the relaxed hole. At the deepened insertion, a tingling sensation ran from his waist to the crown of his head. Cha Yilhyun never once missed the stimulation point and threw Seok Ryu into a dizzying place.

“Haah, aat…… hauk!!”

Cha Yilhyun let out a rough breath and looked down at Seok Ryu, disheveled in pleasure. It was a gaze that had clashed countless times and been captivated every time. Seok Ryu let out a wet cry and bit down hard on his phallus. A vein bulged on his smooth forehead. He felt him rushing towards climax again, pounding as if to crush his inner walls. Cha Yilhyun’s hip movements became so urgent that Seok Ryu could not keep up. Drops of his sweat splattered onto his flat chest and small nipples.

“Heo, heok, ha……”

“Haat, a-uk…… hauk……!”

He scraped the bottom of the pleasure he thought he had burned all out and pulled him up to a higher peak. At the climax that was close to sadistic, Seok Ryu contracted his whole body and convulsed. For a moment, his consciousness was paralyzed as if he had been to another world.

Cha Yilhyun was pouring the lust he had been suppressing and fermenting into Seok Ryu. Not just his bones and blood, but his cells entered Seok Ryu’s body, and tears suddenly poured out from a strange sense of fulfillment. From the other side of his consciousness, the sound of a budding life echoed and knocked on his heart. It was not a stimulation based on memory, but a natural sensation that Cha Yilhyun was imprinting on each and every one of Seok Ryu’s cells.

💎

After driving for a long time in Cha Yilhyun’s car, they arrived in a quiet countryside. The unpaved road was too narrow for a car to enter, so they decided to walk together. A little further into the forest, a shallowly flowing stream appeared.

Cha Yilhyun had a displeased look on his face. But he stepped on the stepping stones one by one to check if they were safe first, and when Seok Ryu swayed, he would even give him a piggyback ride, guiding him to their destination.

After crossing the stream and passing an old house, a wooden house surrounded by bushes came into view. It looked like the witch’s abode from Hansel and Gretel. The moment he looked around the well kept yard, Seok Ryu gasped. On one side of the yard, he saw Lee Sak sitting on a wooden bench.

Lee Sak was sitting in the sunlight, scribbling something in a notebook. The artist, lost in agony, wrote and then crossed out, over and over, as if he was not satisfied with his own words. Now that he had confirmed he was alive, the words he had mulled over the entire way here evaporated from his mind. He was also afraid of what kind of face he would greet Seok Ryu with. He had not spotted Seok Ryu yet, so now was the only chance to run away. But he took courage and took a step forward.

At the sound of grass being stepped on, Lee Sak raised his head. He spotted the intruder in the yard and blinked his piercing eyes. Then, after confirming it was Seok Ryu, Lee Sak’s lips trembled. Seok Ryu was scared and hesitant, but Lee Sak was still a broad and deep person. He shot up from the bench and ran over with his arms wide open. The notebook that tumbled to the floor fluttered in the wind. There were enough blank pages that it would not matter what story was left behind.