FL Chapter 101

“Who are you with right now?”

– No one. I’m alone.

“…Where are you right now?”

– Um, where was this again…

The voice sounded distant through the receiver.

“Just name any brand.”

– Oh… No, I’m not at the department store. I was somewhere nearby. I’m going to the department store now. It’s close by, so I’ll be there soon.

Listening to Heewoon’s smooth answer, Seo Kangwoo sighed and chuckled. He’s still lying. After a brief moment of contemplation, Kangwoo spoke.

“Yes. See you in the parking lot.”

After hanging up the phone, Kangwoo glanced at Heewoon from far away. Heewoon seemed to be trying to turn around in a hurry, but the woman tapped his shoulder. Kangwoo briefly glanced at the woman’s hand and continued to watch from his spot.

The woman seemed to be saying something, and Woo Heewoon looked embarrassed. Then, as the woman held out her phone, he reluctantly accepted it and started typing. Seo Kangwoo’s gaze turned cold.

Woo Heewoon hastily returned the phone to the woman, as if he were being chased, and rushed away. Kangwoo watched his retreating figure for a moment before starting his stride.

***

When he received a message with the car’s location, Heewoon finally stopped and took a deep breath, panting. He was in front of the elevator. Looking around, Heewoon tidied up his messy hair and put the paper bag into the backpack he had brought. He had brought the bag to hide it when he got home, but he ended up using it earlier than expected. It couldn’t be helped as the corner of the paper bag got slightly crumpled as he hurriedly put it in.

Locking the zipper, Heewoon got into the elevator and descended to the underground level. After waiting for about ten minutes looking for the car, Kangwoo arrived.

“You didn’t have to come to pick me up….”

“I had something to do briefly here.”

Kangwoo replied briefly as he opened the car door. Heewoon glanced at Kangwoo’s face for a moment. Even though their eyes met, Kangwoo didn’t smile, which made Heewoon worry if Kangwoo had sensed something.

As Heewoon sat in the passenger seat, he hid the bag on the back seat as if trying to conceal it. Kangwoo glanced at it briefly but didn’t seem particularly concerned.

He had run and the heater was on, making him feel a bit hot. Heewoon loosened his scarf and looked at Kangwoo curiously.

“Are we not going?”

He asked because Kangwoo was just sitting there holding the steering wheel. Kang-woo squeezed and unclenched the steering wheel, then turned his head. After staring at Heewoon with unreadable eyes for a moment, he finally spoke.

“I saw Sunbae earlier.”

“…When? W-Where?”

Seo Kangwoo tilted his head slightly, looking at Heewoon’s bewildered face.

“You were with a woman.”

“A woman?”

Heewoon blinked, before understanding who Kangwoo meant. He then shook his head.

“She was asking about something.”

“Is that all?”

Kangwoo asked coldly. Heewoon swallowed dryly and tried to recall the details.

“Ah… I said I wasn’t at the department store, because it just happened to be… And she asked for my phone number, but I gave her a different number.”

Really. Heewoon added, feeling like Kangwoo didn’t believe him. But Kangwoo scoffed.

“How can I believe you when you keep lying.”

“It’s, it’s true.”

Kangwoo’s brow furrowed at the sight of the small, reddened face. How freaking annoying. Hearing Kangwoo’s low mutter, Heewoon’s face became pale.

“Why are you so flustered? You make me turn into a foul mood. What, you had plans to meet that woman and got surprised when I came here?”

“No!”

Heewoon shook his hands.

“She was really doing a survey, and I really gave her a different phone number.”

Heewoon felt unjustly accused. He had simply answered a few questions cautiously. Even though he had declined the offer of a small gift by the woman, she had kept insisting, so he had just given her a random number.

“Then why did you lie?”

Kangwoo said with an irritated tone.

Heewoon bit his lip, contemplating what to say. If he lied again to hide Kangwoo’s gift in the bag, and got caught this time, Kangwoo would probably be really angry. But if he wanted to surprise him with a birthday party, wasn’t this level of risk something he had to endure?

“Hey.”

At that moment, a low, rough voice shattered his thoughts.

“What are you doing right now?”

Seo Kangwoo asked, finding this situation unbelievable. His gaze was chilling enough to make one’s skin crawl.

But Heewoon mustered up his courage one last time. Leaning in, he planted a firm kiss on Kangwoo’s stiff cheek.

After giving a soft kiss on the cheek, Heewoon witnessed Kangwoo’s forehead furrowing. His heart raced loudly, but he grabbed Kangwoo’s shoulders and kissed him again. This time, it was Kangwoo’s lips.

Glancing at Kangwoo discreetly and giving another peck on the lips, a large hand pulled him by the nape of his neck. Kangwoo’s tongue slithered between Heewoon’s lips.

“Mmm…”

As their tongues intertwined, a moan escaped. Heewoon slowly opened his eyes to peer at Kangwoo. He thoughht maybe Kangwoo’s furrowed brow was because he was engrossed in their kiss. Heewoon closed his eyes again and licked Kangwoo’s lips with the tip of his tongue.

Kangwoo let out a sigh, slowly pulling back as if to catch his breath. Heewoon blinked slowly, gazing at Kangwoo.

“…I really can’t believe you.”

Seo Kangwoo chuckled dryly. Heewoon was a bit hesitant, but seeing Kangwoo wipe his lower lip with his thumb didn’t seem like a bad reaction.

“Hey, Kangwoo. Can I keep this a secret from you for a few days?”

Heewoon asked, wanting to seize the opportunity, but Seo Kangwoo just continued wiping his lips and gently stroked Heewoon’s flushed cheek. Then, placing his palm on Heewoon’s cheek, he spoke.

“You can’t.”

“….”

Heewoon had a feeling he would say no.

“Don’t make me mad over something unimportant.”

Kangwoo firmly pressed Heewoon’s cheek, who looked at him in a sulk. When Heewoon looked at him pleadingly, Kangwoo raised one eyebrow, then nodded his head.

“I won’t be mad if you tell me now.”

Tell me. I really won’t get mad. Seo Kangwoo whispered affectionately.

Heewoon felt hopeless. If he didn’t say it now, it meant Kangwoo would be angry, and he didn’t know how this hand caressing his cheek would evolve again.

“…Kangwoo.”

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry.”

“What. Did you really cheat on me? Then things will change a bit.”

Kangwoo spat out gnarling words, making Heewoon shake his head. This time, Heewoon had really wanted to make Kangwoo’s birthday special… Heewoon sighed deeply and said.

“I bought something in secret without telling you and wanted to hide it.”

“What did you buy in secret?”

Seo Kangwoo tilted his head. Heewoon frowned, thinking the scarf he bought today would suit this man very well.

“…Your birthday present.”

“Birthday present?”

In a small voice, Kangwoo repeated as if pondering.

“Yeah. But then I got a call from you out of the blue and got flustered, that’s why that happened.”

“Show me the present.”

“Huh?”

“Show it to me.”

Seo Kangwoo said expressionlessly. It was a look of disbelief. Who knew giving a surprise birthday present could be this difficult? Heewoon, feeling down, mumbled as he retrieved a bag from the back seat.

When he took out the shopping bag from the bag and handed it to Seo Kangwoo, he made a peculiar expression. He just stared at it, so Heewoon sighed and took out the box.

“I’ve never given you a present before. So, I wanted to give you one for your birthday this time…”

Seo Kangwoo stared at the black box tied with an elegant ribbon for a while before slowly unwrapping it. As he opened the lid and removed the crinkling thin paper, Heewoon’s choice of scarf from an hour ago was revealed.

“I just chose a gray one. A simple design with a small logo.”

Heewoon added his explanation. He thought Kangwoo would be pleased with the gift, but Kangwoo’s reaction was too quiet, making him feel a bit anxious.

“Do you not like it?”

“…I like it.”

With how Kangwoo had his head slightly lowered and said that with a soft voice, Heewoon thought maybe the scarf wasn’t to Kangwoo’s liking. Maybe he didn’t like it because he usually didn’t wear scarves. But it will be cold this winter, though. Kangwoo must not know how warm it is to wear a scarf.

“I can probably exchange it.”

“I said I like it.”

When Heewoon said that with an effort to sound nonchalant, Kangwoo furrowed his brow and raised his head. Seeing Heewoon’s gloomy expression, Kangwoo softened his expression and spoke gently.

“Really, I like it. Is it okay to give me something this expensive?”

It seemed like this was considered expensive for Kangwoo too. As Heewoon’s expression noticeably brightened, Kangwoo finally smiled faintly. Kangwoo then took out the scarf from the box.

“How does it look? Does it suit me?”

Putting the scarf lightly around his neck, Kangwoo looked at Heewoon and asked. Heewoon nodded enthusiastically. It looked much better than he had imagined. He had thought a fabric shouldn’t be costing millions of won, but once it settled on Kangwoo’s neck, it looked like it was worth it.

“It suits you really well.”

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