Chapter 92: A Babymoon at Sea

“Ah, this is truly wonderful…”

Yoonwoo flopped onto the yacht’s deck. The cloudless, sapphire sky stretched endlessly above him, filling his entire view.

The distant murmur of waves breaking softly reached his ears. With every breath, the scent of the sea filled him, subtly mingled with the faint, sweet fragrance of cherry blossoms carried on the breeze.

“Oh, Yeon-chae?”

Yeon-chae, who had approached without Yoonwoo realizing, settled down beside him. As Yoonwoo turned his head, their gazes met.

Yeon-chae’s expression was bright, clearly delighted to be by the sea for the first time in a while. Simply looking at that beautiful face made Yoonwoo feel a surge of happiness, prompting him to smile back needlessly.

“The weather is truly wonderful, isn’t it? And the sea is so beautiful.”

“Are you enjoying it?”

“Yes, I love it.”

The weather, the sea, and Yeon-chae—everything felt utterly perfect.

Yoonwoo snuggled closer, lying right next to Yeon-chae.

Yeon-chae discreetly glanced around, and upon confirming no one was looking their way, he gently lifted Yoonwoo’s head, adjusting his position so Yoonwoo could rest on his lap.

Yoonwoo pressed his lips against Yeon-chae’s pale, smooth thigh and playfully blew a puff of air.

“Ah, that tickles,” Yeon-chae chuckled, his hips twitching, yet he made no move to push Yoonwoo away.

“Aren’t you getting seasick?”

“I told you I don’t get seasick…” Yeon-chae drawled, his eyes lowered, a hint of petulance on his face.

Yoonwoo wanted to burst out laughing, but he held back, fearing Yeon-chae might puff up his cheeks and turn into a ‘dumpling’ again.

Instead, he reached out and felt behind Yeon-chae’s ear. The motion sickness patch was firmly in place.

“This works well. You were throwing up so much in Tongyeong.”

“Don’t bring that up,” Yeon-chae grumbled.

Just as Yoonwoo thought they were sailing quite far out, the yacht came to a stop.

They were in a spot where the currents were gentle and the sea was crystal clear. Besides Yoonwoo and Yeon-chae, people who had been relaxing across the spacious yacht began to line up, guided by safety officers, eager to jump into the water. Most of them appeared to be couples.

“Let’s go, quickly!” Yoonwoo urged Yeon-chae, gathering their gear.

Yeon-chae gently placed a snorkeling mask over Yoonwoo’s excited face. ‘Look at how sweet my partner is,’ Yoonwoo thought, feeling a pang of disappointment that there was no one he knew on the yacht to brag to.

“Don’t go too far. Stay close to me… Yes, just like that.”

The sea, into which they carefully dove, was both cool and surprisingly warm. Yoonwoo, buoyant in his life vest, floated not far from the yacht before dipping his head into the water.

He enjoyed watching schools of fish, large and small, swim by. Yet, he found it even more fascinating to observe Yeon-chae’s body submerged beneath the waves.

“What’s wrong? Are you tired?”

“Huh? No.”

Yoonwoo must have lost himself for a moment while his head was submerged. The firm body he had been admiring suddenly approached, extending an arm to pull him out of the water. Yeon-chae seemed to think Yoonwoo was exhausted, his limbs losing strength.

Yoonwoo felt a slight prick of guilt.

Nonetheless, he liked being clung to Yeon-chae, so he quietly wrapped his arms around Yeon-chae’s neck.

“Let’s stop now and get back on board.”

“Oh, right. Let’s do that.”

Yoonwoo expected Yeon-chae to release him, but instead, Yeon-chae held him close and swam towards the yacht with one arm.

Yoonwoo stared intently at Yeon-chae’s dripping chest before resting his cheek against his shoulder. Yeon-chae flinched slightly and glanced around, but ultimately let Yoonwoo have his way.

Yoonwoo found it endearing how Yeon-chae’s cheeks flushed crimson over such a trivial gesture, making him want to tease him even more.

“Why are you being so good to me, my husband?” he asked playfully.

Yeon-chae’s light brown pupils widened in surprise.

“…Husband?”

“Why? You are my husband.”

Yeon-chae, still cradling Yoonwoo, stopped swimming and chuckled, his shoulders shaking. The warmth that began on his cheeks spread past his ears and down to his neck, turning his pale skin mottled red.

Then, just as suddenly, he stopped laughing and feigned innocence.

“When have I ever not been good to you?”

“Hmm, that’s true, I suppose.”

Yoonwoo racked his brain, but couldn’t recall a single instance to contradict him, so he could only agree.

“It was you who was mean.”

“I wasn’t exactly mean…”

“You made me eat raw crab floating in soy sauce.”

“I was wrong.”

Yoonwoo had been about to protest, ‘I told you not to eat it, but you did!’ but the sight of Yeon-chae’s plump chest, glistening with water droplets, kept catching his eye.

He mumbled an incoherent apology and quickly buried his face in Yeon-chae’s chest.

“Are you cold?”

“Huh? Oh, a little.”

“Your cheeks are cold. See, you’ve been in too long.”

“Is that so…”

Of course, his cheeks would be cool after being in the sea. The sunlight was warm, and he had been moving his limbs constantly, so he hadn’t felt cold at all.

Nevertheless, Yoonwoo shivered performatively, rubbing his cheek against Yeon-chae’s chest. Yeon-chae, meanwhile, swam effortlessly towards the yacht with one arm, his other arm tightening around Yoonwoo’s waist.

It was while Yeon-chae had left to get drinks and some light snacks.

Yoonwoo, looking around, noticed two men who appeared to be a couple. They seemed to be in their late twenties, their striking height and handsome features naturally drawing attention.

“Are you traveling with a friend?”

Yoonwoo must have been staring, quite unintentionally. One of the two men, the more slender one with softer features, seemed to notice Yoonwoo’s gaze and approached him with a friendly question.

Feeling a little apologetic and shy, Yoonwoo shook his head, his ear tips flushing red.

“Actually, it’s a babymoon…”

‘A babymoon for *me*? Good heavens.’ The words, once spoken aloud, made him incredibly self-conscious, sending shivers down his spine. The man’s eyes widened in surprise, then he burst into laughter.

“Wow, you look so young, I never would have guessed! Congratulations!”

“Th-thank you.” Yoonwoo bowed his head, his face burning crimson. The man’s large eyes crinkled as he smiled again.

“So, are you traveling for the holidays?”

“Yes. Ah, but it’s a bit longer than just the holidays… We’re planning for a week.”

“Wow, really? I’m so jealous. How did you manage to get away for so long?”

He seemed to be a working professional, expressing genuine envy and marveling several times. Yoonwoo felt a secret sense of pride, realizing it had been a good decision to listen to Yeon-chae.

Although the holiday was only three days long, Yeon-chae insisted on a week-long trip, claiming it was fine to miss a few lectures.

‘We have to go while we have the time. Once I get a job, I won’t even dream of a week-long vacation.’

‘How would you know that? You’ve never even had a job.’ Far from having a job, Yeon-chae was only a sophomore in college. Yet, he shook his head with a remarkably serious expression.

‘Last year, Kevin-hyung graduated from undergrad, came to Seoul, and worked for a bit.’

‘…Kevin-hyung got a job? He graduated from undergrad?’ Words that didn’t seem to fit Kevin at all poured out in a single sentence, leaving Yoonwoo utterly bewildered.

‘Yes. He joined the international sales department because he was good at English, but he was constantly traveling for business and working overtime. He was so busy he couldn’t even breathe.’

‘Kevin-hyung, business trips and overtime?’

‘Then he quit after just a few months, of course. Now he’s in grad school in America.’

‘Kevin-hyung is a grad student?’

‘Yes, he goes to UPenn.’

‘…’

He was a grad student at an Ivy League prestigious university.

‘…So let’s go for a week, okay? Huh? Hyung-ah.’

While Yoonwoo was momentarily speechless from the surreal information, Yeon-chae pestered him, feigning cuteness.

Yoonwoo stole a glance at Yeon-chae from the corner of his eye. His cheeks, rounded and raised from his wide smile, were genuinely adorable, so it wasn’t merely a ‘pretense’ of cuteness.

Feeling a tickle in his chest, Yoonwoo cleared his throat unnecessarily and indulged Yeon-chae’s scheme, despite Yeon-chae still having over two years left until graduation.

It would have been awkward to give such a long-winded explanation, and the man probably wouldn’t have been interested anyway. Yoonwoo offered an embarrassed smile and vaguely replied, “I’m still a student, so I have a bit more free time.”

“Student life is the best, isn’t it? We only came for a two-day, one-night trip. We’ll just ride the yacht and head straight back tomorrow.”

“That quickly?” Yoonwoo’s eyes widened.

Even for nearby Southeast Asia, it still required several hours of flying, making it seem like an incredibly tight schedule. ‘Do all office workers get such short vacations?’ he wondered. He felt even more certain that he had done well to indulge Yeon-chae’s insistent demands.

While Yoonwoo silently praised Yeon-chae, the man added more details.

“I’m a flight attendant, you see. I came here for a flight and decided to bring my partner along. Ah, this is my partner.”

He smiled brightly, gesturing towards the man who had been standing silently beside him. The handsome man with sharp features gave a polite bow.

“I’m Han Tae-yeon.”

“Huh? Oh, yes, I’m Eun Yoonwoo.”

Flustered by the polite introduction, Yoonwoo hastily returned the bow. The man who had been chatting with Yoonwoo chuckled and introduced himself as Kang Ji-hyung.

“They’re here on a babymoon, for a week with their husband.”

Ji-hyung’s expression was kind as he repeated the story, even though Tae-yeon had heard it all along. Tae-yeon listened attentively, nodding his head. A smile formed on his usually cool lips, softening his features.

The yacht was now moving further out to sea. Ji-hyung explained they were going to see dolphins.

Throughout their various conversations, Tae-yeon remained silent, staying close by Ji-hyung’s side. Nevertheless, it was clear he listened intently whenever Ji-hyung spoke, occasionally even chuckling at a lighthearted joke.

An air of maturity and affection emanated from them.

Yoonwoo imagined himself and Yeon-chae several years into the future. He pictured their daily lives after graduating from school and finding jobs. Their future selves didn’t seem so different from the couple before him.

‘We’ll be burdened by work and exhausted by childcare, then on a weekend holiday, we’ll make a big decision to take a quick trip to a nearby destination. Like Ji-hyung and Tae-yeon, holding hands and gazing at the sea, Yoonwoo and Yeon-chae in their late twenties will exchange tender, mundane stories.

If we place snacks for the seagulls on the baby’s hand, cradled in Yeon-chae’s arms, the baby might gurgle loudly, calling to the gulls with plump hands. Following Yeon-chae’s example, the baby would have a motion sickness patch behind its ear, just like Yeon-chae himself.’

These small moments, enjoyed in the crevices of their busy lives, would flow by leisurely. The thought of such a future brought him no displeasure.

In fact, it brought him great joy.

“Yoonwoo-hyung!”

Yoonwoo turned his head at the voice calling from behind him.

“Yes, Yeon-chae.”

From where he had turned, Yoonwoo’s young husband stood smiling, a large cup and a plate laden with sweet snacks in both hands, walking towards him.

A gentle breeze brushed his cheek. Involuntarily, his eyes curved into a smile, and a laugh escaped him.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

Evil Organization Executive, Forced to Become a Magical Girl

ComedyGender BenderGirlsLove

Read Now →
Not interested