CH 100

Then, the other man checked his watch and said, “It’s an awkward time to go anywhere.”

“Yes? Or no?” Yoonshin pressed on.

Sehun shook his head, shooting Yoonshin a look wondering why he was being so childish. Yoonshin, feeling a bit pricked in his conscience, took a step back. “Then, buy me coffee in front of our building.”

“All right.”

“Did you come here because you missed me?”

Sehun fell silent as he changed lanes. His lips pressed together and apart in hesitation. As Yoonshin felt the urge to press his finger to feel the temperature of those lips, Sehun suddenly yanked the younger man’s tie.

“Urgh…” Yoonshin groaned.

The younger man’s head was yanked toward the driver’s seat, and his eyes grew round, slow to process the situation. Sehun was in the middle of driving, so Yoonshin couldn’t struggle freely in fear of endangering them both. As he stayed still for a moment, Sehun leaned into his lips as soon as they were stopped at a traffic light.

Sehun’s lips compressed onto Yoonshin’s in a gelatinous, bouncy kiss.

Surprised, Yoonshin wiped his lips without thinking. Upset, the older man leaned in for a deeper kiss. The tip of his tongue glided in between Yoonshin’s lips, tapping the younger’s even teeth then pulling away.

Sehun then resumed driving as if nothing had happened. Sehun’s response with his body was much easier to understand than his words. Yoonshin felt elated at the feeling that somebody wanted him. Even so, Yoonshin said defensively in shyness, “You should have just used words. What’s this about when you’re driving? That was dangerous.”

“For whose benefit?”

“You said I was a hostage. You need to keep me alive for now.”

“Why should I, to someone who wouldn’t like me first in a million years?” Hating to enter a losing game, Sehun was quite upset about what Yoonshin said before. He already exacted retribution for that, yet he felt like he needed to reiterate it.

Yoonshin thought that was quite endearing. He chuckled. He felt joy pooling up from the bottom of his heart and giddiness bubbling up to the surface, threatening to overflow.

“That had some other context,” Yoonshin replied.

“You seemed resolute when you said that.”

“This can be easily solved if you like me first.”

“I could like you, but you might never like me back.”

“That won’t happen.”

“Really? Then, you must already like me.”

When he heard that placid response, it occurred to Yoonshin that this was not how he wanted the discussion to go. “Wait a minute. You’re going to count it as something I said first then, aren’t you? I won’t fall for it twice.”

Sehun didn’t deny it and merely shrugged. Yoonshin watched the other man and then turned his head, practicing his right to silence. With his eyes, Yoonshin traced Sehun’s outline and faint reflection in the window.

When he was with Sehun, Yoonshin felt peace returning to his heart despite the unresolved tension accumulating between them. Naturally, he wanted to feel at ease in their relationship. The desire to learn more about the other bubbled.

Actually, Yoonshin greatly enjoyed his time with Sehun. He was happy that Sehun came to pick him up. His heart skipped a beat when Sehun didn’t forget that Yoonshin wanted to see him in the evening and appeared before him. When Sehun kissed him, his heart started to race. He didn’t hate the other’s awkwardness. He was grateful for the space for an opportunity that was only granted to him.

His heart was overwhelmed to know that he was the first human to step foot on the rich soil that Sehun tended and kept to himself.

Yoonshin slowly lifted his hand and touched his lips. The sensation of Sehun’s lips lingered. Yoonshin’s lips felt particularly soft.