Chapter 2.9

When Woo-jae noticed the fixed gaze on my lips, I felt a chill.

I wiped the dampness off my lips with the back of my hand.

Woo-jae immediately refocused.

From my lips, back to my eyes.

"It seems harder to find a reason not to enjoy this situation."

As the circle twitched at the corner of his eye, Won opened the passenger seat door.

A gesture urging him to get in followed.

Woon smiled softly, not turning his body.

"Where did you learn to be so sly?"

"..."

"You laugh when I hit you. Like a wind-blown bastard in your lungs."

He smiled kindly and stared at Woo-jae.

"And Woo-jae."

His neatly curled tail looked relaxed throughout the night.

Woo-jae tilted his head lightly.

A faint smile habitually appeared on his face.

"I don't need to tell you what you haven't asked. I'm not curious about how you see me at all."

"..."

"You keep trying to fuck me like a horny bastard."

Won stretched the end of his sentence and lightly brushed Woo-jae's shoulder.

There was a limit to brushing off wet shoulders, but Won didn't give up.

It was an action that everyone knew and did.

"If you want, I'll let you sleep with me occasionally. But if you act like you have until now, we won't have any future together. It's your freedom to use me as a side dish, but sex is different, isn't it?"

"..."

"You keep trying to fuck me like a horny bastard."

Won stretched the end of his sentence and lightly brushed Woo-jae's shoulder.

There was a limit to brushing off wet shoulders, but Won didn't give up.

It was an action that everyone knew and did.

"If you want, I'll let you sleep with me occasionally. But if you act like you have until now, we won't have any future together. It's your freedom to use me as a side dish, but sex is different, isn't it?"

"..."

"So if you want to tease me, be careful. Be considerate like a junior. You're good at that kind of thing."

It's raining quite a bit.

Won got into the car after his last unexpected remark.

Woo-jae, who had been looking at Won with deep eyes, burst into laughter.

As he swept his hair back, his wet hair just became messier on its own.

Woo-jae, who closed the passenger seat door, circled the front bumper and opened the driver's seat door.

Won leaned down the sun visor and checked his face in the mirror, then listened to the sound of the engine starting.

He then adjusted his hat.

The hat was damp.

He wanted to go home and take a shower.

Won felt the smooth rolling of the car body and raised the sun visor to cover it.

"You don't need to take me all the way home. Since it's raining.."

The voice that was humming without any particular thought stopped in an instant.

Won straightened his waist, which had been leaning comfortably against the seat.

"..Where are you going now?"

In a situation where the destination was unclear, Woo-jae could only memorize the direction sign that his car had passed.

There was no other way as the way out was different from the beginning.

Woo-jae was staring straight ahead with an indifferent face.

With his left elbow resting on the window frame, Woo-jae was running his index finger along his lower lip.

"Kwon Woo-jae."

"Since we're not done with our business, shut your mouth."

It was a strangely sharp tone.

The more signs he saw that he hadn't seen before, the more it impressed him.

"I asked you where you're going."

"Why?"

"Why are you saying that now.."

"Are you afraid I'll take you to a place you don't know and do whatever I want like a horny bastard? Like a fucking dog in heat."

"...."

A sinister smile appeared on Woo-jae's lips.

He was being sarcastic.

His face turned pale.

Won swallowed heavily and looked around.

Woo-jae's car was now speeding on the highway, having left the national road.

Chuncheon?

Won quickly glanced at a junction sign that he had just passed.

Although he couldn't know the exact destination, he could tell that it was somewhere in Gangwon Province.

Won bit the flesh inside his lips and leaned back.

He couldn't gauge what kind of thoughts were going through Woo-jae's mind.

Click, click.

Won's fingernails rubbed against each other as he didn't hide his discomfort.

In the quiet car, insignificant sounds echoed one after another.

Woo-jae rolled his eyes to the side.

His gaze reached Won and then immediately looked straight ahead.

"I don't have any intention to do that, so relax."

"...."

"I have a place I want to take you, that's why."

He said that to Won belatedly. Instead of retorting, Won clenched his fist tightly.

The car drove for quite a while.

Since they had left Seoul, it was meaningless to keep an eye on the signs.

Won sighed as he looked at the letters filling his field of vision.

It was Gangneung.

Woo-jae, who had parked the car in a remote place, got out first.

Won sat quietly in the car, contemplating, and then followed Woo-jae out.

The rain had stopped a while ago, but the ground was still wet.

Before Won and Woo-jae arrived, it seemed that it had rained heavily as there were puddles of water here and there.

The path Woo-jae was walking on was well-maintained like a promenade, but perhaps due to the late hour, there were hardly any people walking on the promenade.

"Let's find out where we're going."

Unable to overcome his frustration, Won pursed his lips.

As if he couldn't hear the annoyed voice, Woo-jae silently continued walking.

"Hey, Kwon Woo-jae."

Won's patience, which he had never thought was lacking, couldn't match Woo-jae's stubbornness.

Won increased his pace and grabbed Woo-jae's arm.

"We're almost there."

Because his back was to the sparse streetlights, Woo-jae's face was cast in shadow.

Although I couldn't see his facial expression, I could quite sense that his mood was calmer than at other times.

Won narrowed his eyes and slowly exhaled.

As soon as he let go of his arm, Woo-jae resumed his movement that had been temporarily interrupted.

Woo-jae navigated the path without hesitation even in the dark.

Unlike before, the road was not paved.

Won's breathing began to slow down.

On the other hand, not a single sound of breathing was heard from Woo-jae.

He said he was almost there.

I suppressed the nerves that were about to break out of the circle that formed my molar.

As I was looking at Woo-jae's back, a belated suspicion arose.

It was already a very deserted place, but as I walked down a path that didn't seem to be a road and even made my way through the mountains, my mind followed the natural steps.

Is it not a situation where mice and birds die without anyone noticing?

Won looked around with a suspicious gaze.

Woo-jae stopped walking.

A wary gaze fell on Woo-jae.

Next, Won looked around at the dozens of trees planted in the mountains.

"..."

This place was not as eerie as before.

Underground lamps installed under each tree were emitting light.

Is it a forest?

It was too hidden in the mountains to have someone regularly maintaining it.

Won stood behind Woo-jae and looked at the tree that had grown the most proudly.

It was a rare evergreen tree without a single nameplate hanging.

Instead of a nameplate, there was a picture of a woman who was presumed to be the owner hanging.

He had a very gentle impression.

The woman with a mature face was smiling calmly.

"It's not late yet because it's still before midnight."

Seon Woo-jae, who showed his back, spoke frankly.

Is he becoming a foster mother?

Woo-jae seemed to be looking at the picture hanging on the cherry blossom tree.

"Seems like they came and went again."

Soon Woo-jae sighed as he looked at the flowerpot in front of Youngsaeng's grave.

His voice sounded quite lonely.

Because he was standing behind, his expression was not visible.

After staring at the photo for a long time, Woo-jae looked around.

"I am Choi Sookyung. The owner of this tree."

The circle looked up at Woo-jae with a puzzled expression, unable to hide its rough expression, but eventually took off the hat it was wearing and stood next to Woo-jae.

I had no idea why they dragged me here.

The deceased was someone I had never seen before, neither their name nor their face.

Although there were endless complaints and dissatisfaction, I didn't want to show any disrespect in front of the deceased.

Standing next to Woo-jae, I offered a brief moment of silence.

Won opened his eyes and glanced up at Woo-jae standing next to him.

Soon he let out a resigned sigh and took a step back.

He adjusted his hat.

"Have you never seen it before?"

"I don't have any."

"I guess so."

I felt uncertain and my eyes narrowed.

What's the point of me asking first and then concluding that I did it?

In any case, it was an incomprehensible seed.

"Remember this. "I will be coming here every year from now on."

"...."

The circle suddenly relaxed its wrinkled face reflexively.

Unfortunately, I had no reason to come here.

Today, I somehow followed along, but this was the last time I would search for this place.

Although he didn't show it, Woo-jae seemed to have realized his feelings.

I guarantee that my senior will come here next year.

Together with me.

He looked around in a low laugh.

I'm not sure why Woo-jae's face, which should have been obscured by backlighting, appeared so clearly.

I couldn't gauge the reason for it at all.