Chapter 59: The Line Between Real and Fake

“Yeah. It was right after Chae Jae-yi had her trait test done. Back then, trait-testing technology wasn’t as advanced as it is now, but no matter how you looked at it, the chances of Jae-yi manifesting as a dominant trait holder were low. The whole family went into an uproar. Around that time, Father went outside and… well, you know. That child was Chae Jun-seok.”

The situation painted itself clearly in Go Ha-jin’s mind.

Lee Ah-seong had given birth to a child who was likely to be recessive. With the family facing what they considered a disgrace, Chairman Chae Il-joo had fathered a child elsewhere and brought him home.

Whether it could be called a blessing or not, that at least bought them some breathing room.

Even so, Lee Ah-seong’s position remained unstable. Chae Jun-seok was not his son.

Then, miraculously, Chae Woo-seok was born and became his savior.

If that was the case, his absolute devotion toward Woo-seok suddenly made sense. It wasn’t just because dominant traits were valuable, he had effectively saved his life.

“So that’s why the successor issue has been such a mess all this time…”

Ha-jin froze mid-bite, still holding a chicken drumstick as he fell into thought.

The sight of him sitting there seriously pondering things with grease smeared around his mouth looked ridiculous.

But once again, Woo-seok found him strangely admirable.

With only a few pieces of information, he had immediately grasped why the current succession structure was so tangled.

For a moment, Woo-seok found himself thinking that it was a waste.

If Ha-jin hadn’t been a con artist.

If this marriage hadn’t started as a fraudulent arrangement.

Then perhaps things might have been different.

He had no doubt that Ha-jin could have become a tremendous source of support.

Though it was a meaningless hypothetical.

“And Jae-yi got divorced. They split up a long time ago; they just never made it public. They brought her husband into the family, but eventually he started saying he’d rather die than stay married. In the end, he ran off to America.”

“Well… considering her personality, that’s not exactly surprising. The fact that he lasted even a day is a miracle.”

“It wasn’t just one husband.”

“…Huh?”

“It was three.”

“…Oh.”

The more he learned, the more this family seemed completely dysfunctional.

Jae-yi had been divorced three times.

Jun-seok wasn’t a legitimate heir.

And as for Woo-seok…

Well, there wasn’t much point discussing him.

With children like these, who could Chae Il-joo possibly trust with the company?

Every family had its own problems, but this one seemed particularly severe.

For the first time, Ha-jin truly sympathized with the chairman’s struggles.

“For now… I get it. I still have a lot of questions, but I’ll ask them little by little.”

“Good. Talking about my family is embarrassing enough as it is.”

He had learned a great deal, yet countless questions remained.

Why had a contract marriage been necessary in the first place?

What exactly was the relationship between Woo-seok and Tae Seol?

Of course, Ha-jin had his suspicions.

He just didn’t have the courage to voice them.

Even thinking about Tae Seol and Woo-seok in the same context made his stomach churn.

So he decided to leave it there.

Whatever had happened had already happened, and learning the original purpose now wouldn’t change anything.

Woo-seok’s expectations of him were already perfectly clear.

Steeling himself, Ha-jin returned to demolishing the rest of the chicken.

“What did you do before all this?”

Every time Ha-jin took a bite, another perfectly stripped bone appeared.

After watching the spectacle for a while, Woo-seok finally asked.

In the past, he wouldn’t have cared.

Ha-jin had been nothing more than a swindler.

People like that all lived the same sort of life.

But now, he was genuinely curious.

Ha-jin was fascinating.

Sometimes he displayed flawless manners, as though he had spent years learning proper etiquette.

Other times, he was the complete opposite.

The sight of someone covered in grease while tearing apart fried chicken with both hands was unimaginable in this household.

“I just lived, I guess. Nothing special.”

“If it was nothing special, then how did you end up not knowing your own age or name?”

“…I don’t want to talk about that.”

Woo-seok had been curious.

Now he wasn’t.

The look on Ha-jin’s face erased the question before it could continue.

His expression darkened more than Woo-seok had ever seen before.

It was obvious that there was a past hidden there, one difficult even to put into words.

“Well, whatever. It’s not important.”

After a brief pause, he added,

“Just make sure none of that past comes back to bite you.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

The certainty in Ha-jin’s voice was convincing.

Woo-seok had already investigated him once before, and nothing substantial had surfaced.

The man only grew more mysterious the longer he knew him.

“You eat like a kid.”

Woo-seok wiped the grease from Ha-jin’s lips with his thumb.

For some reason, the sight made him feel oddly sorry for him.

He didn’t know why.

****

One of the advantages of this house was its air circulation system.

Even after eating and drinking inside the bedroom, fresh air would replace every trace of the smell within half an hour.

Together they emptied twelve cans of beer and even ordered another whole chicken.

Neither of them got drunk, but they were too full to continue.

“…Don’t cross over to my side.”

“You’re the one who shouldn’t cross over. Unless you want to lose a hand.”

Whenever they shared a bed, it was always like this.

The mattress was enormous, big enough that they would never accidentally touch each other.

And yet they still warned each other not to cross the invisible boundary.

The tiny pillow placed between them only made it more childish.

“Go to sleep already. It’s late.”

Ha-jin used the remote to turn off all the lights.

Darkness settled over the room.

It was so quiet that every rustle of blankets and every breath was audible.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Why was his heartbeat so loud?

It felt as though it was echoing inside his skull.

Had he drunk too much?

‘Strange.’

“I’ve been thinking.”

“…About what?”

Woo-seok’s voice suddenly cut through the darkness.

Perhaps because he had been silent for so long, or perhaps because it was late at night, his voice seemed heavier than usual.

“You forgot your medicine. You’re supposed to apply it before bed.”

Of all things, that was what he wanted to talk about.

“…I think I’m already healed.”

“And how would you know? You’re not a doctor.”

“Well… it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

A moment later, the bedside lamp on Woo-seok’s side flickered on.

The light was dim enough not to hurt eyes accustomed to the dark.

With a long sigh, Woo-seok sat up.

Apparently he was going to get the ointment.

Watching him, Ha-jin felt strangely conflicted.

He couldn’t understand why Woo-seok looked after him so carefully.

At the same time, he was grateful.

He felt guilty for not recovering faster.

But above all, he was grateful.

“Come here.”

At those words, Ha-jin instinctively turned over.

The mattress shifted.

His pajama pants were pulled down.

Since this had become routine, he even lifted his hips slightly to make it easier.

A moment later, he sensed movement between his legs.

The faint sound of ointment being squeezed out reached his ears.

Then…

“W-wait. What is that?”

Something felt wrong.

The sensation between him was unfamiliar.

The length.

The size.

The way it pressed against him.

Could it be…

“You said you were healed. We should make sure.”

“Wait-!”

In an instant, something much larger pushed its way inside.

The ointment apparently helped it slide in without difficulty.

Woo-seok laughed softly.

“After everything, you can’t really say no now, can you? All that time I was helping you recover, and how many times did you leave me suffering on my own?”

He had lost count of how often frustration had built up while caring for Ha-jin.

Every time, he had wanted more.

Every time, he had forced himself to wait.

Still, he had enjoyed it.

Watching Ha-jin blush whenever his clothes came off.

Watching him react to the smallest touch.

“Still…”

Ha-jin’s protest dissolved into a breathless sound.

Moments ago he had been objecting.

Now his reactions were changing entirely.

The warmth surrounding Woo-seok tightened instinctively, as though welcoming him back after a long absence.

“You sure you’re healed?”

Woo-seok leaned closer, wrapping an arm around him.

“Don’t worry. I brought plenty of ointment.”

The truth was that he had already known Ha-jin had recovered enough.

He had simply wanted to wait a little longer.

Watching Ha-jin endure those treatments had been too entertaining.

Now, though, everything felt almost like the beginning again.

The sensation alone was enough to leave him satisfied.

“How does it feel? Still hurting?”

Pressing close, Woo-seok whispered near his ear.

Ha-jin couldn’t answer.

No matter what he said, Woo-seok would twist the response to suit himself.

“What I mean is-”

Before he could finish, Woo-seok moved again.

The interruption was completely deliberate.

“You’re reacting an awful lot for someone who claims it hurts.”

“That’s not-”

The sight of Ha-jin struggling to respond only amused him further.

After days of patience, Woo-seok had no intention of stopping now.

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