Beast, Blue Blood - Chapter 72 - Slight R19

Chapter 72

She didn’t let a single word slide. Ha-yeon couldn’t quite understand what Hisha saw in a wife like that, making him still walk around with heart-shaped eyes for her.

Because of the wrong first step, their relationship still wasn’t great.

“Did Si-woo go alone?”

At Ha-yeon’s words, Eugene looked puzzled.

“Who’s Si-woo?”

Ha-yeon was dumbfounded.

“Why does no one know their boss’ real name?”

“The CEO?”

Eugene asked again, her face becoming intrigued.

“Of course, Selena isn’t her real name. But I was surprised; it’s such a masculine name.”

Instead of answering the question, she made unnecessary comments, so Ha-yeon was about to leave, but Eugene unexpectedly added something more.

“Isn’t it strange?”

“What is?”

Ha-yeon turned back.

“Why does someone who doesn’t even want to be a woman go around dressed like one? It’s like he lost some terrible punishment game.”

It was surprising that Eugene, like her, thought Si-woo dressing up as a woman was like losing a punishment game. But more than that, Ha-yeon looked at Eugene as if she had spoken in a foreign language.

“Si-woo doesn’t want to be a woman?”

“You didn’t know?”

Eugene asked back as if it was something obvious.

“That’s…”

As Ha-yeon couldn’t finish her sentence, Eugene chuckled.

“Look at his eyes. What part of those eyes look like a woman’s?”

* * *

Si-woo, who had been staring at the monitor, turned his gaze toward the balcony.

Ha-yeon was swimming in the pool, surfacing and disappearing repeatedly.

Today, too, Ha-yeon didn’t go home but came to his place. Si-woo wanted to suggest that if she was going to keep doing this, she might as well move back upstairs, but he knew it wouldn’t make any difference, so he didn’t bother saying anything.

The two things he couldn’t control were the stock market and Ha-yeon.

Si-woo got up and took a frozen drink from the fridge. Although he drank blood, he only consumed the minimum amount necessary, so he had to drink frozen drinks too.

He placed it on his desk, drinking while working, and then opened a drawer to take out a pack of cigarettes. Lately, he had been feeling the urge to smoke more often.

Due to the nature of high-rise buildings, the balcony with the swimming pool was the only place where the ventilation was quick, so he stepped outside. However, he felt it would be rude to watch Ha-yeon, so he faced outward, sat on a chair, and lit a cigarette.

A little later, he heard the sound of water dripping and Ha-yeon’s voice approaching from behind.

“You’ve been smoking a lot lately.”

“Once you start, it’s hard to stop.”

He replied as he turned around, and Ha-yeon, now in a robe, sat next to him.

“Give me one.”

“I guess if I stop smoking, you’ll stop too.”

Even as he said this, Si-woo handed over the cigarette. If she were human, he would have scolded her for being unhealthy, but those kinds of scoldings were meaningless for their bodies.

The dim light from outside outlined Ha-yeon’s features as she exhaled smoke.

“Considering you said this was the most expensive house in Seoul, you sure come here often.”

At Si-woo’s remark, Ha-yeon chuckled.

“This is why they say you shouldn’t get a taste of money.”

For a moment, they sat side by side, staring at the rippling water of the pool. Then, Ha-yeon slightly tilted her head, resting her temple on the hand holding the cigarette, and looked at Si-woo.

“What color were your eyes originally?”

“They were just black.”

“I think black would have suited you well too…”

She lowered her gaze, as if imagining it, and then raised her eyes slightly again.

“Still, it’s hard to imagine you with any other eye color.”

As she said this, Ha-yeon placed her hand on the chair, leaning closer to look into Si-woo’s eyes.

Droplets of water dripped from the ends of her w*t hair. The color swirling in her pupils beneath her long lashes shimmered like the water in the pool. The scent of her skin, mingled with the smell of blood rising from beneath her neck exposed between the robe, wafted through the air.

At that moment, Si-woo couldn’t tell whether it was the smell of blood or her scent that made his stomach churn.

He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and stood up.

“Finish your cigarette.”

For some reason, there was something different about Ha-yeon’s vibe today. She was usually not one to be bright and cheerful, but today she seemed especially…

He couldn’t quite find the words to describe it, as if his vocabulary was suddenly lacking. If he had to say, it felt more intense. Her gaze, her voice, even her scent.

Moreover, the atmosphere between them felt inexplicably dangerous, like the kind that exists between a man and a woman amid a romantic tension.

As Si-woo walked back inside, Ha-yeon exhaled a puff of smoke while watching his retreating figure, then stubbed out her cigarette and followed him.

“I have something I’m curious about.”

She said this as she walked towards Si-woo’s room. Wondering what she was curious about, Si-woo followed her. Ha-yeon casually headed to the walk-in closet in his room.

“How do you do your makeup? There are so many different types of cosmetics that I can’t figure them out even when I look at them.”

As she spoke, she pulled out a silicone pad dr*ped over a mannequin and held it up to her chest.

“Don’t play around.”

Si-woo took it back and hung it on the mannequin, answering.

“I didn’t know at first either, but I got better with practice.”

“My mom said there’s a stylist who helps you.”

Ha-yeon, now by the vanity, scanned the lineup of lipsticks that Si-woo’s stylist, Jane, had neatly arranged, picked one, and twisted it open. She then turned around and asked.

“Can I try it?”

“Sure.”

With a surprisingly deft hand, Ha-yeon applied the lipstick and looked at herself in the mirror. The color was too bright red and didn’t quite suit her, but the way she carefully examined herself in the mirror looked quite ladylike.

‘Come to think of it, she’s at the age where she might start taking an interest in her appearance.’

It was so late that Si-woo thought she might never show any interest in such things. But apparently, that wasn’t the case.

Si-woo began to wonder if he should gift her some makeup, but before he could think too much, Ha-yeon turned around, pulled Si-woo by the arm, and sat him down in the chair in front of the vanity.

“Sit down.”

Then, with one hand on Si-woo’s shoulder, she brought the lipstick to Si-woo’s lips. Si-woo instinctively pulled his head back.

“You’re going to put it on me now?”

“Just stay still.”

Applying lipstick on a bare face might look strange, but Si-woo stayed still, feeling as if she was playing with dolls—a game she hadn’t indulged in even as a child. As Ha-yeon carefully applied the lipstick, she spoke.

“There’s a reason I’ve never really felt comfortable around you.”

Si-woo looked at Ha-yeon. He had suspected that Ha-yeon might feel uneasy around him, and it seemed his intuition was correct.

“It’s because of the smell.”

 Ha-yeon continued.

“I never mentioned it because I thought it would be rude to someone who wants to be a woman, but you always smelled like a man.”

Si-woo felt his heart swell with a rush of blood, but he forced himself to smile calmly.

“Is it because of my cologne?”

“Whether it’s cologne…”

Ha-yeon slowly capped the lipstick.

“…or something else, I don’t know.”

Despite her words, Ha-yeon knew it wasn’t just the cologne. Si-woo had a scent that was a mix of ink and blood. It was as if his very form had been molded from those elements. Looking at him, one could easily mistake him for a serene scholar, yet beneath those seemingly innocent eyes, a ravenous beast was hiding its claws.

Though it should have seemed odd to see a man with nothing but bold red lipstick on, looking up at her, the sight was strangely provocative, almost decadent. Perhaps it was the fiery red of his eyes that evoked the image of forbidden fruit.

Ha-yeon curved her lips into a smile, painted red like Si-woo’s.

“This color suits you better.”

Si-woo’s heart pounded in his chest.

* * *

Crash.

The items on the vanity scattered as Ha-yeon’s back hit the mirror. Si-woo’s hand firmly gripped Ha-yeon’s jaw, leaving her no room to move, while his other arm wrapped around Ha-yeon’s waist.

Instead of resisting, Ha-yeon leaned in closer, pressing her lips, now the same shade of red, against Si-woo’s. Si-woo’s rational mind had flown out the window as he aggressively tangled his tongue with Ha-yeon’s as if he were sucking in blood. The wild surge of his impulses was uncontrollable.

Ha-yeon smelled like pool water. Amidst that, there was a faint but unmistakable scent, like a drop of blood in seawater, that called to Si-woo, drawing him in like a shark—an unmistakable scent of a woman.

For Ha-yeon, provoking Si-woo was a half-hearted intention, but she hadn’t expected such a strong reaction. She had always thought Si-woo was unusually patient, but now she was shocked at how sensitively he responded.

She should have been scared or repulsed by the man’s vigorous thrusts, but instead, she was turned on, so she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, instinctively wrapping her legs around his waist even though no one had told her to do so.

Then, Si-woo’s hand slipped beneath the robe, grasping the bikini-clad chest. The firm touch made Ha-yeon flinch slightly, but it wasn’t because she wanted Si-woo to stop.

As Si-woo tugged down the bikini and lowered his head, a sharp sensation brushed against the n*pple.

“…!”

The sensation of sharp fangs grazing her sensitive skin was unmistakable. Though it didn’t leave a wound, the feeling of something scraping her skin sent chills down her spine.

“Hmph…”

Ha-yeon shuddered and tilted her head back, her vision swimming. She was utterly shocked, bewildered by what had been hiding beneath that absurd disguise.

Meanwhile, Si-woo felt as though he were submerged in warm, fragrant water, finally quenching a long-standing thirst that had tormented him. His hand slid toward the source of that sweet, intoxicating scent, gliding over the soft, addictive skin beneath his palm.

When he glanced up, his eyes met his reflection in the mirror, just over Ha-yeon’s rounded shoulders. He snapped back to reality and abruptly pulled away.

“…?”

Ha-yeon’s eyes, hazy with ecstasy, held a look of confusion as if wondering why he had suddenly stopped. Her robe was disheveled, with one side of her bikini completely pulled down, exposing a flushed br*ast, the skin blushing a peachy hue that was a dissonant yet harmonious blend of purity and sensuality.

The smeared red lipstick, now unrecognizable as to who had applied it in the first place, cut sharply into Si-woo’s consciousness, making him feel as if all the blood in his body had turned to ice.

He barely managed to speak.

“I’m sorry.”

As he turned to leave, Ha-yeon caught his wrist.

“Si-woo.”

When Si-woo instinctively looked back, Ha-yeon met his gaze with a firm, unwavering expression.

“I wanted this.”

Her tone was almost a warning, leaving no room for him to think otherwise, as if to say, ‘Don’t even consider that you forced me.’

But Si-woo pulled his arm free.

“Please don’t call me by that name.”

Si-woo left the house and descended to the parking lot, where he got into the driver’s seat of his car. Looking into the rearview mirror, he saw himself, a man with lips smeared in bright red lipstick. The sight was unbearable, so he shoved the mirror to the side.