Chapter 3 Part 12

At that moment, his heart throbbed. As he approached, the air moved, and the scent of soap also brushed the tip of his nose. Suddenly, his chest flared up. And it wasn’t just his chest that was burning.

“Hmm— I’m not that tired, but if you’re offering, I’d like to try some.” Jeong Tae-ui said, forcing a calm smile. Shinru said, “Yes,” stood up, and went back to the separate room.

As soon as Shinru disappeared from his sight, Jeong Tae-ui, being careful not to make any noise, frantically slapped his chest and thighs.

What are you doing? Do you want to make a fool of yourself in this situation, having only met for a few days? Get a grip, Jeong Tae-ui! He’s still a child, look at those cheeks still full of baby fat and the downy hair on his earlobes. Do you really feel that way about a child like that?!

However, even as he thought such things, he heard a whisper from another corner of his mind.

If someone is twenty-two, they’re a proper adult, and there’s no real reason to hesitate if you feel that way. You’re not forcing anything, and look, you’re both having tea and getting along just fine right now.

Jeong Tae-ui agonized amidst his conflicting thoughts, then clutched his head.

Either way, after smelling that soft scent, cooling down his heated body was the priority. He wondered if it had accumulated that much. Indeed, thinking about it, he hadn’t properly experienced human skin in over a month, but to lose his self-control to this extent, he still had a long way to go.

Jeong Tae-ui beat his chest as if choking. As he took deep breaths and repeatedly thumped his chest, his body cooled down a bit. Then, Shinru returned from behind him.

“What’s wrong, Hyung? Are you uncomfortable somewhere?”

Shinru, who was bringing out dried fruit on a plate, looked strangely at Jeong Tae-ui, who was patting himself, and asked. Jeong Tae-ui smiled and shook his head. The tips of his fingers, which were stroking his chest, were much cooler now.

He calmly observed Shinru, whose gaze was lowered, over the rim of his tea cup.

Even though he looked young, he wasn’t a child. His eyes that subtly tapered at the corners, his plump and moist lips, and his round cheeks and clear skin only made him appear young; in truth, if one were to be precise, he belonged to the alluring side.

Sensing the gaze, Shinru lifted his head. Their eyes met, and after a brief pause, he smiled with his eyes. Was the slightly upturned corner of his mouth so alluring because Jeong Tae-ui was looking at him that way?

“Speaking of which, Hyung, I heard Jeong Jae-ui, who used to be at the Headquarters, is your older brother.”

“Huh? Oh, Jae-ui Hyung? That’s right.”

Jeong Tae-ui, relieved by the change of topic, nodded. It seemed the fact that Jeong Jae-ui was Jeong Tae-ui’s brother had already spread throughout the entire branch. Well, with barely a hundred people confined within one building, there couldn’t be any secrets anyway. Not that it was a secret.

“Everyone says he’s incredibly smart. They also said he’s your twin.”

“Hmm— We are twins, but we don’t look alike. Neither our faces, nor our intelligence, nor our personalities are similar. My brother is better than me.”

Jeong Tae-ui bit into a dried fruit and slowly listed things. Even thinking about it again, there was nothing he could surpass Jeong Jae-ui in. Except for being closer to a normal person.

Then, Jeong Tae-ui suddenly clicked his tongue bitterly. It was a well-known fact that he couldn’t surpass Jeong Jae-ui in anything. He had accepted that obvious truth from the beginning. Now, he was accustomed to any reaction from people around him related to his brother. Having experienced it for a quarter-century, there was no way he wouldn’t be used to it.

So now it was fine, but what had been difficult to get used to until recently were the people who approached him with his brother as their objective. At least the ones who showed their curiosity for Jeong Jae-ui openly from the start were better. The bitterness when he realized that the people who approached him seemingly without such intentions actually had other motives was incomparable.

Jeong Tae-ui thought about past events for a moment, then let out a chuckle.

Humans eventually get used to anything that happens repeatedly. Hurting and aching in the heart only happens for the first few times. As similar things repeated, resignation covered his heart like a shield.

Jeong Tae-ui gazed idly at the beautiful red hue of the tea, from which a subtle orchid scent wafted.

Well, what would happen indeed? If, for whatever reason, this young man were to show more interest in Jeong Jae-ui and try to use Jeong Tae-ui as a means to an end.

Then…

Jeong Tae-ui smiled. “What do you mean ‘then’? I’ll just have to see how things play out.”

There are things within his reach and things that are not. Other people’s hearts belong to the latter.

But even if that were to happen, this boy would still be lovely. Just as others had been so far.

“Do you want to meet him?”

Jeong Tae-ui asked. Shinru, who had been enjoying the scent rising from the tea, opened his eyes wide. His face indicated he didn’t understand what was said. Then, he seemed to grasp the context of the conversation, said “Ah,” and tilted his head.

“There’s no reason not to meet him… but he’s a stranger, isn’t he?”

“Right…”

Jeong Tae-ui merely smiled calmly.

Thinking about it, it wasn’t always bad. After all, even if they approached Jeong Tae-ui wanting to know Jeong Jae-ui, some of them stayed by Jeong Tae-ui’s side. They were people he wouldn’t have even had the chance to know if it weren’t for Jeong Jae-ui, and now they were by his side.

“But I imagine he’s quite popular.”

“Yeah.”

“Your older brother, I mean. Even if you say you don’t look alike, as twins, there must be some resemblance. If he resembles you and is also so smart, I think he’d be very popular.”

…

Jeong Tae-ui just blinked for a moment, holding his teacup. Shinru, who had spoken casually, drank his tea as if nothing had happened. Jeong Tae-ui tilted his head slightly and looked at him.

Well, it felt like he had heard something that, depending on the interpretation, could make him feel good.

“Hmm… Hyung is popular. (Though it’s with the ambitious elders of various major public agencies.) But… I’m not very popular.”

Jeong Tae-ui let his words trail off. Shinru then opened his eyes wide with a surprised expression.

“Oh, Hyung, you just don’t know. I think you’d be popular too. You’re cool.”