Chapter 15

By the time she wandered around for a long while and finally made it home, he still had not contacted her.

She washed up and lay down on the bed, and then her phone began to vibrate. At first, she did not answer it. At this hour, the only people who might call her were either Seohyeon or him.

Lying on her stomach, she only kept glaring at the word 〈Him〉 on the phone screen.

Perhaps he intended to call until she picked up; true to his persistence, the vibration did not stop and kept going.

“Yes.”

-Were you asleep?

“Yes.”

-…Will you come?

The fact that he had just been with that woman, and was now calling her there, made her resent him so much. As though she was only worth that much.

“It’s late.”

-Why does your voice sound like that? Were you crying?

“It’s because something sad was on TV.”

-…Can I see you for just a moment?

“No.”

Normally, she would have answered okay, but because she refused the moment he asked, he fell quiet. Breaking the silence, Soyoon answered once more.

“We can see each other tomorrow. I’m too tired.”

-…All right. I’ll see you tomorrow.

“Yes.”

She practically threw the phone onto the bed, covered her mouth, and cried. She did not understand what he was thinking. If he was going to hurt her like this, then he should not have treated her well in the first place.

Before getting into the car, she had seen that woman lightly take hold of his hand and then let go. That memory kept drifting through her mind over and over. She bit her lips tightly and cried in silence, trying not to let the sound of it escape.

To think that she, and not her mother, would be the one crying.

It felt absurd, yet the tears would not stop, and all her strength drained away.

The next day, when Soyoon came out after finishing work, he was standing in front of the clinic.

It was a good thing he had come out first; if Miss Park or the other staff had seen him, tomorrow there would have been an uproar right away over who he was.

“Why haven’t you been answering me?”

“…I was busy.”

She replied to his texts asking if she had gotten to work safely and if she had eaten, but had not sent a single answer, because she had not taken her phone out of her bag even once today. She felt too foolish for knowing she would only keep looking at her phone, so she had not even taken it out of her locker at all.

Since she had not expected him to come looking for her like this, Soyoon let some discomfort show on her face.

“From now on, don’t stand in front of the clinic. If someone else happens to see….”

“So what. You can just say I’m your boyfriend.”

“…But you’re not my boyfriend.”

His face, which had been fastening his seat belt in the driver’s seat, instantly hardened.

“That’s right. You’re not my boyfriend, we’re partners under a contract.”

As if he could read the thoughts behind the cold way she spoke, Do-ha quietly stared at Lee Soyoon’s face.

What is this.

Something was strange.

“Are you angry at me about something?”

“There’s no way that could be the case.”

Lee Soyoon would not meet his eyes. Do-ha suddenly felt uneasy.

“Start driving before someone else comes out.”

Do-ha’s brows twitched.

For now, he started the car just as she said. When he glanced sideways, she had turned her head and was looking only out the window.

Usually she would have looked over at his face now and then, so she was truly acting strangely.

Even after they got to the house, while they were kissing in a way that was almost like lying down on the sofa, she still seemed like someone who was upset about something.

Even when he moved through her mouth, kneaded the back of her neck, and stroked her waist, she did not tightly wrap her arms around his neck.

She merely kept her eyes shut tight and accepted the kiss.

That got to Do-ha.

Why. Why would she not show him those clear eyes? Why, even though she was shy, would she not move more eagerly? Why was she not looking at him with that steady gaze?

He wanted to ask.

“Haa. What’s with you?”

“What do you mean?”

In the end, Do-ha got off her body and sat on the sofa. He stared fixedly at her as she straightened her mussed-up hair.

“There’s something strange about you today.”

“Well. I don’t know what you mean by strange.”

She tried to stand. He caught her wrist and pulled her back down onto the sofa.

“Why are you avoiding my eyes?”

Why are you being so cold?

He added the words.

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. I’m the same as always.”

“……”

You can’t even look me straight in the eye right now!

He wanted to shout it, but he forced down his anger because he was afraid she might be startled.

“When are we going to have s*x?”

“That question again?”

“Isn’t it strange? We made a contract saying we would have s*x, but all we do is kiss.”

Her lips twisted upward. Do-ha’s eyes darkened. He swore he had never meant to rush things.

But the little brat kept provoking him.

As if he had gone back to puberty, she made his body and his heart restless. Not long ago, at his age, he had even had a wet dream.

And she kept provoking him without even knowing it—what on earth was he supposed to do with her?

Perhaps she read the conflicted look on his face, because she bit her lip and lowered her gaze.

“Ha…… seriously. This little brat, who do you think you’re….”

“……”

“Don’t regret it.”

Growling like a beast, he tugged at the back of her neck. He pressed his lips there as if he were about to bite into her at any moment.

“I… won’t regret it.”

When she said it slowly while meeting his eyes, he saw his chest rise and fall heavily. He lifted her up and set her down on his thighs. Just as Seohyeon had taught her, she ended up straddling his lap while he sat on the sofa.

Holding her lips in his, he gripped her waist and moved her back and forth. She could feel something hard between her legs. It was so firm there was no way she could fail to know what it was, and it kept prodding at her thighs again and again.

His hand slipped inside her clothes without hesitation.

“Hng… hn.”

Gripping her br*ast, he kneaded it, softly and then firmly, varying the strength of his hold. Even with him touching her over the bra, Soyoon felt like she was going mad.

A small sigh slipped from his mouth, as if he did not like the bra. After pushing the underwear up and grabbing her bare br*ast, he let out a satisfied sound.

Soyoon’s eyes trembled.

As her n*pple rubbed against his palm, her stomach kept tingling, and it felt as though something warm and hazy was blooming inside her.

Even when she tried to wrap her arms around his neck, he was gripping her chest so firmly that she remained in a face-to-face position with him.

“…Hng. Wait……”

Lowering his head slowly, he lightly licked her n*pple.

At the shockingly intense sensation, Soyoon’s whole body trembled. Before she knew it, she had clenched her hands in his hair.

“Ha… ah!”

He stuck out his tongue and licked her hardened n*pple from top to bottom, poking at it now and then, and then he took the n*pple into his mouth in one swallow.

At the little sucking sound- as he drew it into his mouth, Soyoon’s waist bent.

She had not known that touching a br*ast could be such an intimate act. She had only ever imagined it.

The n*pple, swallowed by his lips and then released again, glistened with saliva. It was far, far too suggestive. Moving his lips to the other side, he lightly sucked at her skin and then let go.

Ha……

Her mind grew hazy. She was afraid of the way her body was heating up more and more, and yet she was curious too. What was s*x, exactly, that when people loved, they always ended up doing it no matter what?

She found herself imagining him doing this kind of thing with another woman.

Feeling as though she might cry, she wrapped her arms tightly around his head as he continued to s*ck at her br*ast.

When she looked outside the window, it was raining.

Just like her heart.