TM | Chapter 20

He slowly closed his eyes and then opened them again, his tongue flicking out to lick his red lips. Without realizing it, Yoon Sung gulped dryly.

With a gentle smile, Lee Seol pressed a light kiss to his cheek. Breathing softly near his ear, he whispered in a voice that sent shivers down Yoon Sung’s spine.

“I was wondering if my body got a reaction out of you. You’re a man, so you know what I mean, right?”

Yoon Sung flinched in shock and quickly pulled away. Lee Seol winked mischievously and grinned suggestively.

“I didn’t get to check how you were doing since I was too busy calming myself down.”

“…….”

“Nothing in the morning either?”

“…….”

Yoon Sung frowned, his voice laced with irritation.

“You said you were satisfied just deciding to get married.”

“Since we’re doing it anyway, sooner is better, isn’t it? I mean, you had no problem reacting when you were napping before.”

At that moment, Yoon Sung’s face burned bright red as he raised his voice.

“Why were you even watching that?!”

“It was in plain sight.”

“…….”

He had no words to refute that. He was healthy, after all. And it’s not like he could control what happened while he was asleep.

He shot a glare at Lee Seol, his face completely flushed with embarrassment. Meanwhile, Lee Seol silently laughed, his eyes curving into an elegant smile.

Something about that expression made Yoon Sung uneasy, so he cautiously asked, “H-Hey… you didn’t do anything weird while I was sleeping, right?”

“Weird? Hey, I didn’t even touch the tie of your clothes. What do you take me for?”

Lee Seol furrowed his brows slightly as if he was genuinely offended. But since Yoon Sung still looked suspicious,

“If you’re gonna doubt me anyway, I might as well just do something.”

He declared it so decisively and reached out his hand.

“N-No! I believe you!”

“But I suffered all night… Instead of praising me for holding back, you’re really being too much.”

“……Our Seol is really admirable.”

Yoon Sung sighed and patted his back. In response, Lee Seol snuggled in even closer.

A deep sigh escaped Yoon Sung’s lips. Just having this conversation was exhausting.

Feeling the warmth of Lee Seol pressed up against him, he turned his head away.

Caught in the awkward atmosphere and unsure of what to do, Yoon Sung suddenly noticed Lee Seol turning his head towards the door. There hadn’t been any sound of movement, but somehow, a shadow had crept up outside.

“The sun’s already high. You’re dressed, right?”

It was Cheongrok. Relief washed over Yoon Sung at his arrival, and he raised his voice.

“Come in!”

The moment Yoon Sung spoke, the door opened. Immediately, Lee Seol pulled the blanket up, covering Yoon Sung all the way to his neck. Seeing this, Cheongrok narrowed his sharp eyes and smirked.

“Had a nice, steamy night?”

Yoon Sung laughed awkwardly, while Lee Seol shot Cheongrok a look of pure annoyance. Cheongrok, standing at the doorway, merely observed with an unimpressed expression.

“Seol, don’t glare at me like that. I’m still Sung-i’s friend, you know. Without me, your first night wouldn’t have happened.”

“No matter how close you are, you should at least wait until we’re properly dressed before barging in.”

Lee Seol didn’t bother hiding his displeasure.

“Seriously… you guys are so weird about this. Not long ago, we were running around naked in the stream together. We saw everything—hell, we even checked when the hair started growing. Ah, right. You never saw Sung-i’s.”

Cheongrok chuckled as he threw out those blunt words, completely unfazed by the way Lee Seol looked at him in disbelief.

Lee Seol, still shirtless, flexed his arm muscles ever so slightly. It was a silent warning. Cheongrok hesitated for a second, wondering if he should step back, but when he noticed how Yoon Sung, wrapped tightly in blankets, seemed somewhat relieved to see him, he boldly stepped over the threshold.

Then, as if to make a point, he took a deep breath and exaggeratedly exhaled.

“Ah, the air in here is nice and fresh.”

At Cheongrok’s words, Lee Seol’s face twisted in irritation. The way he blatantly pointed out that nothing had happened last night was just annoying enough that Lee Seol grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at him. 

Cheongrok easily twisted his upper body to dodge it, then leisurely strolled over and sat near the blanket. He smelled faintly of alcohol and yawned widely, looking at the two of them with tired eyes.

“I’ve made sure our friends keep their mouths shut.”

Yoon Sung looked at him in confusion, and Cheongrok smirked slightly.

“I mean, I did book the room to make sure you two got tied together properly, but the elders aren’t exactly going to be happy that you got engaged and spent the night together without permission. Not to mention, Seol, you did all this while there were already marriage talks about you and the second son of Prince Heo-geon.”

“I don’t care.”

“You idiot. Have you even thought about Sung-i? Marriage isn’t just about the two of you—it’s a matter between families. Even if your uncle withdraws the engagement talks now, what if the royal family forces another match on you?”

“Abeoji already gave his approval. He told me to get Sung-i’s permission first. If things go wrong, I’ll just take Sung-i and run away.”

“You moron. You say that like it’s easy! Do you think rejecting a royal engagement is simple? This is about having a backup plan—just in case! And let’s be real, with that face of yours, you’d get caught before you even reached the border. Not to mention, what about Sung-i? He never even had feelings for you in the first place.”

At Cheongrok’s sharp words, Lee Seol’s lips pressed into a thin line. Seeing his reaction, Cheongrok let out a sigh of frustration and turned to Yoon Sung, locking eyes with him.

“You didn’t get engaged because you like Seol. You just did it because there wasn’t anyone better suited, didn’t you?”

“…….”

Faced with such a direct question, Yoon Sung couldn’t immediately answer. He just fidgeted with his fingers, glancing at Lee Seol before finally speaking hesitantly.

“It’s just… it still feels a little awkward, that’s all. But… I do like Seol.”

“I hope so.”

Cheongrok responded the moment Yoon Sung finished speaking, letting out a quiet sigh. Meanwhile, Lee Seol smiled softly and met Yoon Sung’s gaze.

“I really like you too.”

“If you say that one more time, Sung-i’s skin is going to get peeled right off.”

Cheongrok scoffed, mocking Lee Seol. But Lee Seol simply ignored him and continued smiling.

Yoon Sung, surprisingly, didn’t dislike this familiar back-and-forth. Actually, it was kind of reassuring. With Cheongrok around, it felt like he could breathe a little easier.

“Anyway, our friends know about your engagement, but they won’t run their mouths just in case. They probably figure that if they keep quiet, they’ll still have a chance to get connected to the Lee Clan through marriage. Ah—more importantly, what’s up with Kang Taegwon? That guy was in a terrible mood. I poked at him a little, and he completely lost it.”

“I don’t like the way he looks at Sung-i.”

Lee Seol added his own complaint, making Yoon Sung sigh and slump his shoulders. He hesitated for a moment, debating whether to say anything, but in the end, it wasn’t something that needed to be kept secret. He opened his mouth.

“…Taegwon likes Seol.”

At Yoon Sung’s words, Lee Seol gave a slight nod, as if he already knew. Meanwhile, Cheongrok chuckled.

“Ah, so that’s how it is. For a moment, I was wondering if maybe he had a thing for you, Sung-i.”

Cheongrok suddenly burst into laughter, as if he found the thought hilarious. His already sharp, narrow eyes crinkled even further.

“Sung-i, at this point, you’ve been through every type of man.”

“…Huh?”

Cheongrok motioned toward Lee Seol with his chin.

“Just don’t raise any chickens. This bastard would probably slaughter every single one in the house if he so much as saw you talking to another guy. Then he’d use the blood to write a curse and spread it everywhere.”

Cheongrok chuckled to himself like he’d just said the funniest thing in the world, but then he suddenly stopped laughing and turned to stare straight at Lee Seol.

“Sung-ah, if you ever get sick of dealing with this guy, just come to me.”

“Huh? Do you like me too?”

“Not like that. I just meant that even someone as tight-lipped as you might need a place to escape—”

Lee Seol, clearly not wanting to hear any more, widened his eyes in annoyance and reached out to grab Cheongrok’s neck. At the same time, Cheongrok leaned back to avoid him, then swung his fist down to block Lee Seol’s next attempt.

Yoon Sung grumbled to himself as he watched the two of them start yet another fistfight.

I’m not some kind of object… Well, I guess… If Big Brother picks a match for me, I’m supposed to go along with it…

He wasn’t sure if Cheongrok was being serious or not, but either way, there was no way he’d marry him. With a sigh, he let out a frustrated complaint.

“Why would I go to you when I already have two friends who like me?”

At that moment, a dangerous glint flashed in Lee Seol’s blue-tinged eyes, and Cheongrok quickly glanced at him to gauge his reaction.

The next second, Lee Seol’s fist came flying toward him. Cheongrok barely dodged, throwing himself flat onto the floor. In retaliation, he delivered a light kick to Lee Seol’s waist.

Understanding the message to back off, Lee Seol blinked forcefully, then grumbled as he lowered his fists. With a huff, he gave Cheongrok a shove with his foot, sending him rolling into the corner of the room.

Understanding the message to back off, Lee Seol blinked forcefully, then grumbled as he lowered his fists. With a huff, he gave Cheongrok a shove with his foot, sending him rolling into the corner of the room.

Cheongrok yawned and closed his eyes.

“Sung-i, are you still drunk? Why are you taking everything we say so seriously? You’re making Seol’s eyes go crazy.”

“Huh? It was a joke?”

“You really don’t remember last night? Everyone was wasted and completely out of their minds. Even Seol got drunk and made a hyeolju—everyone was cheering and clapping like maniacs. No one was in their right mind. Ugh… My head is killing me from the hangover.”

Yoon Sung glanced back and forth between the two of them. Something about this seemed off, but there wasn’t anything specific he could point out as odd. Still, he crawled over to Cheongrok on his knees.

He was sure that Seol had only drunk a single cup of alcohol last night. Yoon Sung had gotten a little tipsy himself, but not to the point where he’d completely misunderstand what had happened.

He was fairly certain that Kim Hojun and Go Cheonseong had confessed their feelings for him.

“I don’t think I was that drunk.”

“Would you have suggested getting engaged to Seol if you weren’t?”

“…….”

So he really was drunk.

It was definitely something he’d only done in a fit of rage over Kang Taegwon. If he had been sober, there was no way he would have pulled a stunt like that. 

Thinking back to Taegwon’s completely dumbfounded face made him smirk a little. When Yoon Sung had been in Lee Seol’s arms, Taegwon’s face had gone red, then pale, then red again—practically fuming.

It should have felt satisfying, but strangely enough, instead of relief, there was a dull ache in his chest.

Swallowing a sigh, he stood up and started pulling on his pants. Lee Seol came over and helped him get dressed, kneeling on one knee to tie the straps of his pant legs. Seeing him like that, a heavy sense of guilt settled in Yoon Sung’s chest.

We’re engaged now… Even if it wasn’t with the elders’ approval, I was the one who made the first move, so I can’t treat Seol as just a friend anymore.

Hesitating for a moment, Yoon Sung reached for Lee Seol’s robe and helped him put it on.

“What are you, a kid? Can’t even dress yourself?”

Cheongrok snickered, lifting his sharp, half-lidded eye mockingly. In response, Lee Seol flashed a bright, beautiful smile.

“If you’re jealous, just say so.”

He wrapped a sash around his waist, then pulled out a weapon that had been hidden under the blankets. Cheongrok watched him for a moment before sitting up and reaching out his hand.