Even after the kiss, his lips lingered around Choi Hongseo’s mouth. After sharing several shallow kisses, he gently stroked Hongseo’s hair and whispered.
"I missed you."
"...I missed you too."
This was their proper first kiss. The last time at his house, it had only been a brief kiss.
Conscious of that, Hongseo felt shy and couldn’t bring himself to look at his face, so he averted his gaze and looked away. Lee Hye-seong smiled silently and gave Hongseo a quick kiss on the cheek, making a soft sound, but he didn’t tease him.
After tidying up the gift box, Lee Hye-seong seemed ready to start the car, gripping the steering wheel, and asked:
"Are you very tired?"
"The flight time was short, so I’m not too tired."
"I know a café with a nice night view. How about we go there?"
When they left the parking lot, no one was following them. It seemed like all the paparazzi had followed the new car of ‘Layered.’
After about 40 minutes, they arrived at the café. The café, which Lee Hye-seong had already found, was located in a high area and was quite large.
Outside, there was a large terrace that was relatively darker compared to the interior, making it a good spot for famous people to carefully go on a date at night without drawing attention.
The two of them sat in the middle seat of the terrace, where the city night view spread before them.
"This seat’s not bad, but if we were in the front row, the view would be even better."
Lee Hye-seong looked around a bit regretfully, then stood up while patting Hongseo’s head over his bucket hat.
"Stay here for a minute. I’ll go check if there’s a better seat on the other terrace."
While Hongseo glanced at his tall figure disappearing around the building corner, he pulled his hat down deeper. He suddenly felt shy, realizing that it really felt like a date, like they were a couple.
Most of the people around seemed like they were on dates too. Everyone seemed lost in their own world, oblivious to others, and Hongseo was relieved by this.
This was the first time he was on a date outside with him. They’d always met at home, in the car, or in a hotel room before. A date, a date. If it weren’t for him, Hongseo would never have dreamed of such a thing. There was no way CEO Myung would have let him do this.
The secret past remained the same, and now there was the terrible news of Executive Director Lee Seogyeong’s appearance. Yet, Hongseo was still giddy with the fact that he was going on a date just like anyone else.
He couldn’t figure out how this was even possible.
He had always been tied up in that truth, and no matter what, he couldn’t shake it off. The only thing that kept him going was the hope that someday he would break free of it. And yet... for a moment, he could forget about it.
As he smiled bitterly, a couple sitting in the front row of the terrace started clearing away their drinks from the tray. It seemed like they were about to leave, so Hongseo quickly tried to contact Lee Hye-seong to let him know a seat might open up.
Riiing, riiing.
However, he didn’t answer the call, and a vibration was felt from somewhere in the room in sync with the ringtone.
His phone, which he had left under the cardigan on the table, was glowing brightly as it moved.
Ah, he forgot it... Hongseo absentmindedly took his phone into his hand and, without meaning to, saw his name appear on the screen.
"Hmm... maybe I should change mine too? To 'Carrot Buyer.'"
"What does it say for me right now?"
"I won’t tell you."
"......"
"Even if you make that cute face, I still won’t tell you."
"I didn’t make a cute face."
"You did."
"I didn’t."
"Does saying it stiffly make it less cute?"
After discovering his contact name as , Hongseo had asked him to reveal his contact name too, but he had refused. Thinking back, it wasn’t like him. He was never someone who hesitated or was shy about expressing affection.
He never thought he would learn the answer like this.
Hongseo looked at his own name that Lee Hye-seong had saved for a moment. Somehow, he couldn’t press the call end button.
That’s how he had saved him. Even before they started dating.
Hongseo had never been called that before, nor had he ever wanted to be. Even when he saw other couples calling each other like that, he’d only thought it was a bit embarrassing.
But now, his brow furrowed with a strange ache.
Lee Hye-seong’s feelings for him, seeing him as precious, cute, and fragile, were all contained in that word. That feeling came through so strongly that it was almost painful... and to suppress the rising emotions, Hongseo clutched his hat’s brim and kept pulling it lower.
He found him irresistibly adorable.
Unable to find words to express the complex and chaotic storm of feelings inside him, Hongseo simply wanted to hug him. He wanted to kiss him, to have him.
He loved him so dearly that this emotion, which felt like both love and sadness, made him feel as though if he didn’t convey it to him, his body and mind might break.
The couple in the front row was gathering their tray and getting up. Hongseo, hiding his emotions, quickly grabbed his cardigan and phone and moved to the table where they were sitting. Just as he did, Lee Hye-seong appeared from the building corner and came back.
"A good seat opened up here, huh? Lucky. The only seats left on the other side were in the back. It’s our first date outside, so we got lucky."
So he was thinking of it as a first date too...
"I was about to call to let you know about the seat opening..."
"Oh, really? I left my phone behind. What would you like to drink?"
Because people might recognize them, he didn’t let Hongseo order or pick up the drinks. "There are some people who occasionally recognize me, but it’s just whispers from a distance," he would always say when he went in and out of the building.
Feeling a bit guilty for doing things that his staff would normally do for him, Hongseo would always peek through the building, watching Lee Hye-seong’s movements.
When he came back with the drinks and cake, he looked down at Hongseo and sighed with a hint of a smile.
"Don’t apologize so much. Even if you weren’t a celebrity, I would have done it. And you wouldn’t have let me do it, so just give up on that."
Sitting down, he pressed Hongseo’s hat down once again and added in a lower voice.
"Although it's really cute that you're just staring at me and waiting."
"I was making sure you didn’t make any mistakes. It’s probably something you haven’t done much before."
"Unfortunately, I often go to cafés alone while taking walks around the neighborhood."
"Really?"
Seeing Hongseo's surprised and serious face, Lee Hye-seong chuckled and lightly pinched his cheek.
While he broke apart the cheesecake he had ordered, saying that eating a piece wouldn’t make him gain weight, Hongseo glanced at him.
"Are you going to Seocho-dong today?"
"Yeah, I’m usually in Seocho-dong even on weekends."
He also had a house in Bundang. He used to stay there when he didn’t have to go to work.
Hongseo knew the reason he was in Seocho-dong even on weekends. If he went to Bundang, he would be farther away from him. He stayed in Seocho-dong to be ready to meet him at any time.
Putting down the fork he was holding, filled with the soft, moist cake, Hongseo looked directly at him. The place they were sitting was one where no one would think anything odd about two men sitting side by side, even though it was a spot meant for enjoying the view.
"Could you let me stay over tonight?"
He said it without embarrassment. Hongseo’s expression and voice were calm and full of certainty, unlike the last time when he had said, "I’m anxious," and thrown himself into the request.
Lee Hye-seong, who had hesitated for a moment at the request to stay, smiled softly and responded jokingly.
"You’re always welcome, Hongseo. You can come and go as you please, even when I’m not here."
But tonight, he was determined to make sure Hongseo couldn’t avoid it.
"Not in the guest room."
"......"
"Can I sleep in your bedroom?"
---
When Hongseo came out of the bathroom, Lee Hye-seong was sitting on the sofa in front of the TV.
The screen was showing a variety show that disrupted the mood. Upon closer inspection, it was a variety show that Hongseo had appeared on. His gaze, which seemed to be lost in thought, didn’t look like he was watching the TV.
Noticing Hongseo’s presence, he quickly changed his neutral expression into a smile and stood up, turning off the TV and rushing over to him.
"Did you dry your hair well? Hmm, it’s dry and fluffy. Good job."
It felt odd to be praised just for drying his hair. If Lee Hye-seong had a child, Hongseo thought, their childhood must have been very happy.
Once again looking down at Hongseo, who was wearing his loose pajamas, Lee Hye-seong spoke apologetically.
"Should I get you your own pajamas, Hongseo? I feel bad having you wear mine every time you come."
"I just want to wear yours. I like it better that way."
At Hongseo’s clear response, Lee Hye-seong rubbed his mouth with his large hand, trying to hide his shyness.
"Well... I’m glad if that’s what you want."
In the bedroom, Hongseo now knew that if he wore Lee Hye-seong’s pajamas after taking a shower, Lee Hye-seong would become surprisingly shy, unlike usual.
"Since it’s rare, how about we watch a movie before bed? You said you wanted to watch *Eternal Sunshine* next time, right?"
Muttering to himself about which platform *Eternal Sunshine* was on, he began searching for the remote again.
Hongseo had a feeling about what he was trying to do. It was clear he was trying to delay the time they would both get into bed together.
"Can we watch the movie another time? It’s already midnight, and I’m a bit tired."
"Oh... really?"
Holding the remote, he tapped its head with one hand while his gaze wandered aimlessly in the air. He looked deeply troubled.