PIA 107

What would normally have been a 20-minute drive took over 40 minutes due to traffic. Since entering through the parking lot made the distance to the inner house even longer, Jeong Hee-seo acted somewhat impatiently.

He hurriedly left his spot, giving perfunctory nods to those greeting him whom he hadn’t seen in a while. The servants who had known Jeong Hee-seo since childhood stepped aside with wide eyes.

The inner house, cleared of people, was quiet. Myeong Hyun-sook always did this when receiving important guests to avoid interruptions. Jeong Hee-seo approached the building with the large room, muffling his footsteps.

“—Did Hyung-nim really do that?”

As  Jeong Hee-seo grasped the sliding door, Ji-an’s voice was heard. He unconsciously stopped in his tracks and listened to the sounds inside. Judging by the laughter, the atmosphere seemed good, contrary to his worries.

Jeong Hee-seo took a deep breath and opened the sliding door.

“Oh, Hee-seo, you’re here.”

At Myeong Hyun-sook’s words, everyone sitting turned their heads. Jeong Hee-seo stood at the doorway without entering and bowed to Myeong Hyun-sook. He didn’t forget to throw a sharp glance at Jeong Hee-young for a moment.

“Just a moment.”

He gestured to Ji-an.

“Come out for a bit.”

“Me?”

Ji-an pointed at himself awkwardly, looking around. Myeong Hyun-sook just smiled with raised eyebrows.

“I’ll borrow Ji-an for a moment.”

Jeong Hee-seo strode in and pulled the half-risen Ji-an’s hand. Ji-an looked back embarrassedly, but all three women in the room were waving them off. Their behavior, as if they had anticipated this situation, felt somehow familiar.

Jeong Hee-seo, who went down to the wooden porch first, took out Ji-an’s shoes and placed them on the stone step, naturally kneeling on one knee. Somehow feeling honored, a blush rose to Ji-an’s face. As he put his foot in while steadying himself with one hand on the man’s shoulder, fingers slipped into his heel.

“……”

“What are you doing?”

As Ji-an stood still with only one foot in his shoe, the waiting gaze looked up. Though they had seen each other at lunch, the black eyes felt like they hadn’t met in a long time. Ji-an shook his head gently and put on the other shoe.

“How cheesy.”

Jeong Hee-seo held Ji-an’s hand and strode ahead. Partly because he was busy following the wide strides, but also because he was entranced by the scent carried by the wind from the man in front and the swaying hair, Ji-an fumbled like a broken person.

This is bad. He was liking him more and more…

Ji-an walked with small steps, tightly holding Jeong Hee-seo’s hand. And then Jeong Hee-seo would glance back as desired. The gaze was sweet.

The other building they entered across the wide inner courtyard had a more modern structure than the room where Myeong Hyun-sook was. Jeong Hee-seo closed the door and turned to Ji-an.

In contrast to Ji-an leisurely looking around the room, Jeong Hee-seo caught his breath with one hand on Ji-an’s waist.

“Nothing happened?”

“What could have happened?”

Ji-an smiled brightly, but Jeong Hee-seo held his chin and examined his face closely. He seemed to be looking for even the slightest shadow in his eyes.

“Why did you come here suddenly? Did my sister force you? Did she even say Grandmother wanted to see you and pester you?”

“No… it’s not like that at all. Hyung-nim. Why are you so tense?”

Jeong Hee-seo faced Ji-an, who was looking up at him with a bright smile. At times like this, Ji-an would reach out and touch his ears. He did so now too.

He grabbed Ji-an’s hand that was fiddling with his earlobe.

“Don’t just say it’s fine, what did you talk about with Grandmother?”

The young Jeong siblings were raised by Myeong Hyun-sook. Their father was often abroad, in charge of business expansion, and their mother, a writer, chose to stay by their father’s side and focus on her own world rather than staying in Korea to raise the children.

They later learned that the business was secondary, and their father also traveled to accommodate their mother’s free-spirited nature. Jeong Han-joo, born as a late child, grew up on an island in the Indian Ocean before coming to Korea, showing how little interest the couple had in life in Korea.

As a result, grandmother was very strict. Perhaps her sense of duty grew stronger as she tried to fill the void left by the absence of parents. Moreover, she was the figure who built the current JM. In her youth, Myeong Hyun-sook was sensitive, sharp, and as tough as steel.

Her parenting methods once became a topic of discussion, even making it into the newspapers. Although she’s now softened and become gentler, Jeong Hee-seo, who remembers her former self, couldn’t help but worry.

Ji-an caressed Jeong Hee-seo’s tightly clenched jaw.

‘Hyung…’

He just loved this situation. His heart raced at the thought of Hee-seo being so alert and concerned, even though nothing had happened. He would surely get angry even at the smallest scratch on his face.

The flustered look on Jeong Hee-seo’s face as he rushed over was sexy. The disheveled expression stirred excitement in Ji-an, and the slight sweat that peeked through made him want to lick it. It was the same face Jeong Hee-seo had when they spent the night together. Seeing such an expression under the daytime sun was truly addictive, making him want to see more.

“Let me tell you what we talked about.”

Ji-an smiled brightly. As Jeong Hee-seo’s expression softened, he began to chatter away his impressions.

“She told me you still don’t eat broccoli.”

With the first words, all tension dissipated.

“…That’s because the texture isn’t great. Did you know it’s full of bugs too?”

“I didn’t want to know that information. She also told me about the treehouse you built when you were little. And how Han-joo hyung fell and broke his leg…”

“She really told you everything, huh.”

“Yes. I also heard how grandmother personally burned down that house. They say you threw a tantrum and cried a lot.”

“Tantrum? I didn’t cry. I was just… well, very angry. I said I’d take responsibility, but they wouldn’t believe me, so I was frustrated.”

Hahaha, Ji-an burst out laughing. He could vividly imagine the nine-year-old kid stepping up to take responsibility. It was probably the same face he made when declaring he’d take responsibility to Ji-an.

Ji-an hooked his fingers with Jeong Hee-seo’s and pulled him. Was this what it felt like to be overwhelmed with affection for someone? It was an unfamiliar feeling.

“Hyung, Grandma said you’re a crybaby. When Jeje, the cat’s grandmother was raising, passed away, you cried for a whole week…”

“Isn’t it strange not to cry about that?”

“Well, that’s true…” Ji-an’s eyes darted back and forth as he looked at Jeong Hee-seo, whose eyebrows were raised crookedly.

“If I had been there, I would have hugged you.”

“At that time, you were probably still a baby who couldn’t even walk.”

“Anyway.”

Ji-an wrapped his arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. He nuzzled his cheek against the warm body and inhaled deeply, taking in the pheromones. It was a comfortable position, and his body, which had been unconsciously tense, quickly relaxed as he was with him.

“Hyung, you said you’d do anything I ask.”

“What are you saying at a time like this?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me. What is it?”

Ji-an lifted his head. His eyes looked quite serious as they met Hee-seo’s.

“Well.”

Ji-an deliberately narrowed his eyes and gave a smile. He showed a smile determined to make Jeong Hee-seo find him cute.

“Kiss me, please.”

“…”

Jeong Hee-seo licked his dry lips.

“Seo Ji-an. You’ve really taken a liking to teasing me.”

His tone was deliberately stern, but his gestures were different. The man cupped Ji-an’s cheeks with both hands. Their lips met with a sticky sound and parted.

“…”

Ji-an liked how Jeong  Hee-seo looked at him as if seeing him for the first time every moment.

“Not just a peck…”

As Ji-an waited for Jeong Hee-seo to come down again, only looking at him, he spoke and pleaded. Jeong Hee-seo leaned in, but their height difference made it so that even on his tiptoes, Ji-an couldn’t reach his lips.

In the moment Ji-an lifted himself, Jeong Hee-seo tilted his head and pressed his lips down in a deep kiss.

Ji-an wrapped his arms around Jeong Hee-seo’s neck. As he parted his lips and bit the other’s lips, he felt like melting at the moist and soft sensation. As Hee-seo’s fingers gently wove into his hair, the coolness of his ears began to warm, sending chills down his spine. As he greedily sucked on Jeong Hee-seo’s tongue, Jeong Hee-seo pulled away and chuckled.

“You’re learning well. Such a little thing, becoming so lewd.”

As Ji-an blushed and pulled his body back, this time Jeong Hee-seo wrapped his hands around Ji-an’s waist and pulled him into a tight embrace. As their lower bodies touched, he could feel the slight arousal below.

He kissed all over Ji-an’s face lightly, then kissed him fiercely again. He firmly supported Ji-an’s arching back with his hand.

“Ungh…”

He approached greedily, not caring that Ji-an was staggering. Ji-an felt something hard against his back, and when he came to his senses, he found himself trapped against the wall. Jeong Hee-seo’s large hand slowly crept under his T-shirt.

“I said just kissing.”

“There’s no such thing.”

“Ah…!”

When Hee-seo’s thumb grazed his nipple, Ji-an gasped, turning his head to break away from the kiss, a thin string of saliva lingering between them. Just as Hee-seo leaned in again, there was a knocking sound from outside.

Knock, knock, knock. The sound made both of them freeze, their gazes simultaneously turning towards the door.

“Boys, you should eat.”

At Jeong Hee-young’s nonchalant voice from a distance, Ji-an hurriedly pulled down his T-shirt. His erect n1pples showed their silhouette through the thin fabric.

Ji-an made a sulky expression and hit Jeong Hee-seo’s shoulder. The man approached nonchalantly and sucked on his lips with a smacking sound.

His shameless face and the red tongue licking his lips looked almost mischievous, but it only made Ji-an’s heart race harder.

“Ah, what are we going to do about this?”

As Ji-an whined, fluttering his T-shirt, Jeong Hee-seo took off his jacket and draped it over him.

“Hyung! This looks even more suspicious!”

“Just say it’s a jacket I lent you.”

“Seriously…”

Jeong Hee-seo kept pressing his lips against Ji-an’s forehead, making him stagger. As Ji-an looked up, wrinkling his nose bridge, Jeong Hee-seo just chuckled, finding it all too adorable.