LS Ch 67

The next day, on the way to work, Jewoo glanced at Yiwon, who was driving. More precisely, his eyes kept being drawn to Yiwon’s forearm, not his face. There were several visible scratches below his elbow.

Could those be…my doing?

He was sure those scratches weren’t there yesterday. Moreover, they didn’t look like they were caused by scraping against a corner or a wall. Anyone could tell they were scratches from fingernails. Therefore, he was the only suspect who could have inflicted those wounds.

“That…”

Yiwon looked over as Jewoo spoke. He gestured towards his forearm with his eyes. Yiwon followed his gaze to his arm and made a small sound of acknowledgment. But that was all. He reacted as if it was nothing.

“It happened unconsciously. Don’t worry about it.”

His words confirmed Jewoo’s suspicion. It was indeed his fault.

“Sorry…”

He frowned involuntarily. He couldn’t even sigh, wondering what he had done.

“It’s really okay.”

Yiwon tried to brush it off, but Jewoo was still concerned. He had left marks on a celebrity, no less. Even if it seemed fine now, what if those scratches became noticeable during some future engagement?

“They’re just light scratches. They’ll disappear in a few days.”

Yiwon added, as if he had sensed Jewoo’s worries.

“Besides, I also…”

Yiwon trailed off and then chuckled. It was a strange reaction, but Jewoo’s eyes were fixed on his forearm.

“Put some ointment on it, at least.”

The scratches didn’t look serious, but he still advised him, just in case. Yiwon agreed, perhaps because he realized how concerned Jewoo was.

When they arrived at the set, a waiting staff member immediately told him to change into his costume and get ready. Jewoo told Yiwon again to buy some ointment and apply it, and then followed the staff member. After having his hair and makeup done, he changed into the prepared clothes and came out. The makeup artist made a sound of surprise and approached him.

“Mr. Jewoo, did you get bitten by a mosquito there?”

She pointed to Jewoo’s collarbone area. Confused, he checked the mirror and silently groaned. The prepared t-shirt had a deep neckline, revealing a red mark about 10 centimeters below his collarbone. It wouldn’t have been visible if he had worn a regular shirt.

“There must have been mosquitos in the hotel.”

Fortunately, it was still late summer, so the presence of mosquitoes wasn’t unusual. The staff member didn’t seem to suspect anything else.

“Wait a moment. I’ll cover it with makeup.”

The mark wasn’t easily visible if he stayed still, but it seemed like it would show if he moved. Jewoo stared into space as the staff member brought concealer and covered the area.

He had been worried about the scratches on Kang Yiwon’s arm, but when did this guy leave this mark? That must have been what he was trying to say earlier.

And of all days, why did the costume have to be like this…? He cursed the unfortunate outfit and sighed inwardly. It wasn’t the costume’s fault. He and Yiwon had been careless.

He couldn’t blame Yiwon. It had been a while, and he, too, had been so caught up in the moment that he hadn’t realized what he was doing or what Yiwon was doing to him.

I really need to be careful.

He finally understood why Jiho had been so insistent.

And the regret continued. While filming a scene where he jumped from a high place, and another where he had a physical altercation, he almost winced involuntarily because of the throbbing pain from his lower back to his inner thighs. Trying not to show it, he broke out in a cold sweat, and the color drained from his face.

“Are you okay?”

Yiwon asked with a worried look during breaks. He was trying not to show it, but Yiwon, the cause of the problem, seemed to know why Jewoo was struggling.

“Well…”

He couldn’t bring himself to say he was fine, especially to Yiwon, but he couldn’t blame him either. Who was he to blame? He had pulled Yiwon in, knowing full well what might happen. So, he had to deal with the consequences himself.

🎞️✮⋆˙

A month flew by in the blink of an eye, filled with the hectic schedule of filming. Towards the end of filming in Japan, Jewoo worked long hours, sometimes until dawn, but once he returned to Korea, he had relatively more free time. His appearances in the latter half of the film were minimal, so after returning to Korea, he could finally sleep in after a long time.

Yiwon was also less busy than before. He still had commercial shoots and discussions about his next project, but it wasn’t as hectic as before. Thanks to this, they could meet every two or three days.

What they did when they met was ordinary. They ate together, sometimes watched movies or dramas at Jewoo’s or Yiwon’s house, and played PC games together online when they couldn’t meet in person. Just looking at that, they weren’t much different from ordinary friends.

Some days, they would fall asleep during video calls. As they lay in bed and talked, Yiwon’s gentle voice would lull him to sleep. Yiwon didn’t scold him for it. Instead, he would sometimes hear Yiwon’s even gentler voice whispering “good night” as he drifted off.

Another month passed like that. Before he knew it, the short autumn had passed, and winter had arrived. Jiho brought him various scripts, suggesting it was time to choose his next project, but he didn’t recommend any specific ones, perhaps because none of them caught Jewoo’s eye. Since he had just finished filming a drama and a movie back-to-back, Jewoo wasn’t in a hurry to choose his next project.

On the other hand, Yiwon had chosen his next project and was focusing on working out, as he needed to bulk up. Jewoo didn’t see the need for more exercise, but Yiwon practically lived at the gym, spending several hours there every day. He seemed truly dedicated, as his physique visibly improved every time they met.

“These are your size, right, hyung?”

Yiwon, whom he hadn’t seen in a few days, handed him a large box. Looking inside, he saw a pair of sneakers from the outdoor brand Yiwon was modeling for.

“I filmed a commercial for them today.”

It wasn’t uncommon to receive products after filming a commercial, so he didn’t think much of it.

“Try them on, hyung. You were saying you were thinking of buying new sneakers the other day.”

Yiwon gave him a plausible excuse, urging him to try on the sneakers. He hadn’t particularly needed new shoes. Yiwon had just seen him browsing sneakers online a few days ago after clicking a random link.

“They gave them to you. You wear them.”

He wondered if it was okay for him to wear shoes meant for promotional purposes.

“They’re your size, hyung. They’re too small for me.”

At Yiwon’s reply, Jewoo frowned in confusion. The advertiser would have confirmed Yiwon’s shoe size beforehand. So why weren’t they his size, and why were they Jewoo’s size, of all sizes? It couldn’t be a coincidence.

“Did you buy these separately?”

He asked, just in case, and as if confirming his suspicion, Yiwon just smiled quietly.

“I thought they’d suit you.”

His reason was simple. Jewoo was speechless at the words “I bought them because I thought they would suit you.”

“I just picked up an extra pair thinking of you, so just accept them.”

There was no need to argue over a pair of sneakers. He accepted them, saying thank you, and Yiwon’s smile widened. He felt a sense of suspicion at the enigmatic smile, wondering if there was another motive, but he dismissed it, thinking it was just a pair of shoes.

“There’s not much time left until our drama airs.”

Yiwon changed the subject. Last month, the premiere date of the drama had been announced. And an online press conference was scheduled for that day.

“It’s been a while since we worked together.”

Yiwon seemed more cheerful than usual.

“Are you that excited?”

When a drama was about to air, actors often felt nervous about its reception, but Yiwon seemed completely unconcerned. He asked if Yiwon was that confident, and the corners of his eyes crinkled in a smile.

“I am excited. Our schedules will overlap for a while because of you, hyung.”

The reason for his excitement was completely different from what Jewoo had expected. Regardless of the drama’s success, he was simply excited about being able to see Jewoo often during the promotional period.

Jewoo couldn’t call it childish, as he didn’t dislike the idea either. The thought that they would naturally see each other for a while, without having to contrive ways to meet, made him understand Yiwon’s excitement.

“It’ll be good to see everyone again at the press conference.”

He hadn’t seen Sihyeon, Yejun, Jiyoo, and the others since the drama ended. They occasionally exchanged greetings in their group chat, but that was all. Sihyeon and Yejun had invited him to dinner a few times, but he was in Japan then, and Yiwon had already left the group chat, so they couldn’t join them.

“I wonder how they’re doing.”

“Who? Sihyeon hyung? Or Yejun?”

Yiwon narrowed his eyes and asked at the casual remark.

“Are you jealous?”

Jewoo asked jokingly, but Yiwon just stared at him intently.