Because he couldn’t see anything, his other senses sharpened. Was my breathing always this loud? he wondered—just as something brushed against his lips.
It was a sensation he felt he’d experienced once before. A gentle warmth settled softly, and then hot breaths began to mingle.
Startled by the sudden touch, Sung Ji-woo froze in place. Yu Hii-ro’s hand gently stroked his cheek, stiff with tension.
A thumb brushed slowly over Ji-woo’s tightly shut eyelids. Only then did Ji-woo realize how much force he’d been using to keep them closed, and he gradually relaxed. His eyes throbbed faintly.
Had a few seconds passed? As silently as when they’d first touched lips, Yu Hii-ro drew back. Ji-woo, still rigid with surprise, remained motionless with his eyes closed.
“……”
Something seemed to settle against his chest, tingling faintly. Their lips had parted some time ago, yet his breathing only now began to quicken. His head swam. Ji-woo slowly opened his eyes—and met Yu Hii-ro’s gaze, one he’d never seen before, fixed entirely on him.
It was the first time he’d ever felt someone’s emotions pour out so nakedly. Ji-woo couldn’t tear his eyes away, as if spellbound.
The same was true for Yu Hii-ro.
Ji-woo’s feelings were hard to measure. He seemed to show everything, yet in the end, you only ever understood what he allowed you to see.
His indifferent expressions and tone sometimes felt like a wall, but then his complete lack of distance and the way he took care of even the smallest things made it hard not to misunderstand—to want to misunderstand.
The kiss had clearly been impulsive. Yu Hii-ro thought he might come to regret it.
But even as time passed, Sung Ji-woo didn’t push him away…
Yu Hii-ro wanted to feel Ji-woo’s breath once more.
He gently cupped Ji-woo’s jaw with both hands. Their lips parted, overlapping again, breaths intermingling. The movement was soft and cautious—yet persistent.
Ji-woo struggled to steady his breathing just to keep up with the flow. The hand he’d placed on Yu Hii-ro’s shoulder to push him away gradually lost its strength.
When Yu Hii-ro felt Ji-woo respond amid their mingled breaths, he smiled as if it had been drawn onto his face. Flustered, Ji-woo lightly bit his lip, and with a brief kiss, Yu Hii-ro pulled back.
Their gazes remained tightly entwined. Their chests rose and fell at the same rhythm. Their hearts were surely beating in sync as well.
It felt like a dream—his mind drifting hazily.
Ji-woo closed his parted lips and tried to clearly process what had just happened. The problem wasn’t that he’d kissed Yu Hii-ro.
He clenched and unclenched his fists. A tingling sensation spread through his palms, like blood finally flowing again after being cut off. That was exactly what he was feeling now.
“The fate you said we should tear apart… this isn’t that fate, is it?”
“There’s no way. This is a fate that doesn’t need fixing.”
“……What do you mean?”
Yu Hii-ro opened his mouth to answer immediately, but Ji-woo hurriedly raised a hand to stop him.
“No, it’s fine. Don’t say it. Just… don’t say anything right now.”
He didn’t know what Yu Hii-ro was about to say, but he was certain it would only make his heart more unsettled. Ji-woo let out a sigh. He still felt an unfamiliar sensation lingering on his lips.
“……Are you angry?”
“Ang—angry….”
Ji-woo pressed a hand to his forehead as if he had a headache. He had no idea where or how to even begin explaining. No—could this even be explained?
Love. Dating. Those things were like clouds in the sky to Sung Ji-woo.
They probably existed somewhere. They had to—otherwise, why would every drama and movie be about them? There had to be a reason people went crazy over it.
But that only made sense when it was someone else’s story.
He hadn’t even been aware for very long that he liked Yu Hii-ro. And even then, it was closer to affection as a person.
To be honest, Yu Hii-ro was more like… a puppy than a lover. A fondness like you’d have on a pilgrimage—wanting to be together, to stay close…
“…Really?”
His train of thought abruptly stopped. Ji-woo looked at Yu Hii-ro standing in front of him once more.
Back in his third year of high school, when Yu Hii-ro returned to school after finishing his internship, there had been a moment when his sudden growth felt strangely unfamiliar.
At the time, Ji-woo had no idea why he felt that odd emotion…
He hadn’t understood it when he saw Yu Hii-ro right after returning from the X-Gate either…
And now, he was feeling that exact same emotion again. Strange. Inexplicable.
For some reason, he couldn’t look Yu Hii-ro straight in the eyes. He felt like this wasn’t the Yu Hii-ro he knew.
But that wasn’t because Yu Hii-ro had changed.
What had changed was the way Ji-woo looked at him.
“This is bad…”
Ji-woo muttered the same words Yu Hii-ro had once said to him. Back then, he hadn’t understood why Yu Hii-ro would say something so random—but now, he felt it painfully clearly.
Yu Hii-ro let out a deep sigh.
“It’s okay. You can hit me if you want. I was already prepared for that. Just… after you hit me, don’t throw me away. Don’t kick me out. You know I’ve got nowhere to go.”
“Wow. That’s really low.”
Ji-woo said it with a sigh.
“……I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to act like that…!”
“You called me bad before. Said I was a bad person.”
“……Me? No. That was just something I said. You’re not bad at all. You’re the best person in the world.”
“Don’t lie. You wrote it in a letter and texted me too. I’ve got proof!”
He hadn’t meant to be childish by bringing it up, but Yu Hii-ro’s denial made something in Ji-woo finally burst. He’d felt wronged every time Yu Hii-ro called him bad.
All those feelings piled up until they spilled over. Ji-woo hurriedly added,
“No—this isn’t what I was trying to talk about. Anyway, Hii-ro….”
“……Yes?”
Yu Hii-ro’s eyes wavered anxiously, like someone who already sensed what was about to be said.
“I think I really am a bad person.”
“…….”
“Did I confuse you?”
Thud. His heart dropped. It was more shocking than any outright rejection.
So in the end, it had all been his own misunderstanding—his own excitement running wild. Nothing more than imagination.
He knew they couldn’t feel exactly the same. But still…
“……Ah.”
A tear slipped down from the corner of his eye. Yu Hii-ro hurriedly wiped it away, panic flooding Ji-woo’s face.
“Hey—why are you… all of a sudden.”
“…It’s nothing. I’m fine.”
“No, if I confused you, then I’m sorry.”
“Why—why are you apologizing?”
“Huh?”
“I really feel like crying right now. If I cry, will you comfort me? If you won’t, then don’t say anything at all.”
“What? Of course I’d comfort you. What are you talking about?”
Yu Hii-ro took a deep breath. His eyes reddened as he fought back tears.
“You said you were sorry for confusing me—but then why again…!”
“Because I’m trying not to confuse you anymore.”
“…….”
“I’m embarrassed to say it because it feels stupid that I didn’t even understand my own feelings, but….”
“…….”
Ji-woo felt wronged too. Yu Hii-ro was looking at him like he was some kind of heartless scoundrel, and he was so flustered that his thoughts wouldn’t line up properly.
“Hey—you said you like me too!”
“……You too?”
“Yeah! And you just—just kissed me! Anyone would be shocked! I’ve never—never done that before!”
“That was your first kiss? Is that why you’re mad? It was my first kiss too… can’t that count for something?”
“What are you talking about. If it hadn’t been your first kiss, I would’ve hit you.”
“……That’s a relief. But what do you mean, you like me too? I really want to assign meaning to every little thing right now, so you need to say it clearly so I don’t get confused. Otherwise, I might misunderstand and kiss you again….”
“Do it.”
Yu Hii-ro stopped dead. He stared at Ji-woo, eyes full of confusion. Ji-woo tilted his head slightly.
“I said you can. I told you—I won’t confuse you.”
But upon hearing that he could, Yu Hii-ro froze, unable to react at all.
“…You—do you like me?”
“Seems like it.”
“No, that’s not how I should ask. Do you love me?”
“……Honestly?”
“Yes. Honestly. Clearly. So I don’t get confused.”
“…That much, I’m not sure yet.”
Yu Hii-ro made the face of a wounded puppy once more, and Ji-woo hurriedly added,
“No, it’s just that I don’t really know what love is in the first place…! Damn it—this is so embarrassing.”
Ji-woo buried his face deep in his hands. He didn’t know what love was, yet he’d just said kissing was okay—how was he supposed to say that out loud?
If he really thought about it, they’d already done most of it anyway.
Overwhelmed by belated embarrassment, Ji-woo flailed about internally. Watching him quietly, Yu Hii-ro spoke in a low voice.
“They say love shows in your eyes.”
“……In your eyes? What are you talking about—how would that even show?”
Ji-woo frowned at the absurd idea. But Yu Hii-ro didn’t back down and continued,
“This time, don’t close your eyes. Look carefully. I’ll show you what it looks like.”
If You Notice any translation issues or inconsistency in names, genders, or POV etc? Let us know here in the comments or on our Discord server, and we’ll fix it in current and future chapters. Thanks for helping us to improve! 🙂