The Season I Loved You Without You - Chapter 11 - Slight R19

CHAPTER 11

When Go-yeo’s throat got better, she had plans to start exercising. She couldn’t rescue her mind from being devoured by shopping or clubs any longer.

‘Should I try tennis or swimming? I want to exercise intensely and sleep like a log at night.’

Feeling mentally exhausted, she splashed water on her face and looked down at the floor. The rug beneath her bare feet felt soft, lifting her spirits for no apparent reason. Go-yeo teased the rug with her toes.

The footsteps of Ga-eul approaching echoed, and she turned her head towards the direction they came from. He was holding a towel in his hand. And naturally, he knelt under Go-yeo’s foot. Startled, she instinctively recoiled.

Perplexed, she could only stutter. She was even more flustered than when she had mistaken him for a minor.

“…I’m suddenly sorry. But may I intrude for a moment?”

Contrary to his effortless kneeling, his hand holding the towel was trembling slightly.

“You hurt your ankle, and they say a warm compress is good after a day.”

He glanced up at her as if seeking permission. His eyes twinkled, and she nodded in relief. He smiled as if relieved, showing a faint dimple. The way he smiled with his eyes crinkling was unfamiliar to Go-yeo.

Was this out of pure kindness, or was it due to a desire even he didn’t realize he had?

The boy on the ambiguous boundary seemed to have ventured into rebellion for the first time today. He was probably someone who always stayed on the right track and had never deviated from it.

Ga-eul cautiously took hold of Go-yeo’s right ankle. It was barely the size of a palm, and the white foot felt as soft as a child’s. Such thoughts felt base and irreverent. He bit down on the tender flesh inside his mouth and wrapped the warm towel around the foot, gently pouring water over it.

This was all he could do for a woman who had everything. He just wished there was something more he could do for her. That was all he could think of now. His body moved as his heart desired, before considering logic.

Honestly, he didn’t know why he was doing this. He planned to carefully consider it later when he could think.

Go-yeo watched Ga-eul focusing on her foot. Was this something to be done so seriously, kneeling like this? His eyes, deep and elongated without double eyelids, were charming, but when their gazes met, it felt like encountering gentle deer eyes.

She stared directly into those eyes, especially those that seemed unusually upright. It would be better to show awkward desire instead. A sense of wanting to dirty the untouched eyes out of spite. It all began with a twisted desire to destroy it before it caused harm.

She raised her left foot onto the thigh of his tight pants. He was surprised but stayed still. Go-yeo lifted Ga-eul’s chin with her fingers. Even with a light touch, he followed easily. Go-yeo stubbornly examined his lips, as if they were the destination. She traced his lips with her gaze as if drawing with her eyes. Ga-eul’s breath was warm and urgent.

No matter how gentle a deer might be, a male is a male.

Ga-eul’s half-lidded eyes trembled slightly. Go-yeo pulled Ga-eul’s chin, as if urging him to refuse, and made him look at her again. Her face lowered until their lips met.

Labored breaths and tightly closed eyes. His thick lips were soft and warm. Tilting her head, she deepened the kiss with her tongue, exploring the space between their parted lips. Gently, she caressed the stiff tongue and roamed softly inside the mouth. The towel had fallen onto the rug, and his hand wandered in the air.

She felt a little guilty. Having his first kiss with someone like herself.

Even though she explored his mouth, the rigid tension didn’t ease. When she lightly scratched his tongue, Ga-eul was surprised and grabbed Go-yeo’s sweater cuff. Their irregular breathing shook, and their throats quivered.

As the lump in her mouth showed feeble movements, Go-yeo wrapped her arms around Ga-eul’s neck, closed her eyes, and leaned back. He lost composure.

After sharing breaths several times and getting accustomed to the warmth inside their mouths, Ga-eul finally returned what Go-yeo had done.

A mingling sensation in their mouths. Simultaneously crushing. Was the wine they had just drunk like this? Only the wet sound and the quiet, irregular breathing echoed.

When Go-yeo, breathless, lifted her head and opened her eyes, she stretched long. Her face was about to burst, and her chest heaved heavily. The cuff she was still holding onto was thick. Instead of the held sleeve, she pulled the opposite side of the sweater and slowly traced the smeared lipstick and trembling lips around his mouth.

The playful kiss started with a twisted heart and rushed in like the peak of passion. Compared to her, Ga-eul’s response felt somewhat feeble, which was a bit unfair. Her face reddened, and her breathing became rough.

Was that all?

Only now did she hurriedly withdraw her hand as if she had come to her senses. Then, she fumbled awkwardly, covering a certain area with her neatly gathered hand.

Another persona of a healthy lower body pretended not to see. It was satisfying.

A cold towel lay on the ankle. Stepping on it and rising as if it were natural, she looked down at him. The edges of his forehead hair were slightly wet.

She ran her fingers through his hair, and as expected, it was soft. On closer inspection, even his scalp was red. She grabbed a handful of short, thick hair. Pulling it down, his head was tilted back. The pupils that had wandered now focused sharply on Go-yeo.

Not bad.

“Go.”

Go-yeo threw a brief command and headed toward the second floor, leaving Ga-eul behind. As she entered her own space, she threw away one piece of clothing after another. When she reached the bathroom, she was immaculate.

The woman standing against the backdrop of the gray wavy marble was pale everywhere except for her red lips.

She stepped into the shower, feeling the hot water cascading down. The warmth still lingered on her lips. She took her time to leisurely shower and dried her hair. When she entered the bedroom, she finally realized something. She hadn’t thought about Moon Ji-hyuk clinging to her body like a part of herself.

She had complained about having no opportunity, but was it really this easy?

* * *

Ga-eul remained in the same spot for a while. The recent events felt surreal, yet the heat that hadn’t cooled even after she left was still palpable. It was embarrassing, yet at the same time, the burgeoning sensation was regretful. Whenever he looked at her, everything felt spontaneous and beyond control.

He could have turned his head away, and there was room to reject her. And she had made it clear. If he could reject her, he should. But he didn’t. It was a clear decision, not swept away by impulse.

Being alone in a place that didn’t suit him was his situation, but it was okay. He saw the satisfied look in her eyes, and that emotion was born solely between her and himself, so Ga-eul was more than happy.

He reluctantly got up and picked up the coat and jacket he had placed on the backrest. Slowly buttoning up his clothes, he looked around the quiet surroundings. It was a place that suited her. The unfamiliar thing was Yoon Ga-eul himself.

He walked for a while, carrying shopping bags in both hands. This time, the path he had run with sneakers was covered with the sound of loafers. Except for occasional passing cars, the street was deserted.

Ga-eul stopped on the way and felt his lips. Was it normal for the body to have a primal reaction when kissed? He didn’t know. It was his first time.

Even though he knew the act he had just done was a kiss, his whole body felt hot as if he had embraced it, just by touching lips. None of what had happened today felt real.

The scent of winter filled the lungs as if it were coming soon. The chilly temperature couldn’t take away the warmth of his lips.

* * *

Ji-hyuk tilted the glass in the hotel. The path down his esophagus was scratchy. The Scotch straight, rich with oak barrel scent, was refilled several times and quickly emptied.

Go-yeo wouldn’t come. He knew that well. Yet, he waited.

Damn. Even muttering curses under his breath didn’t dispel the strange unease. Han Go-yeo had a talent for driving people crazy. The sight of Go-yeo walking away from the hotel kept coming back to his mind.

‘Is it really over between us? But is that even possible?’

He chuckled and buried his face in his arms on the sofa.

Go-yeo seemed to be doing fine in the newlywed home decorated according to Yun Seung-ok’s taste. But whether it was his wish or not, he couldn’t forget Go-yeo sitting on the dim bedroom floor with the lights off.

He wished she had endured a little more. They spent most of their short married life together. He hoped she would hold on until his position became firmer. It was all for their future together. But unable to bear seeing her withering away day by day, he brought it up first. Half of what he said was with the belief that she would refuse.

‘…Should we get a divorce?’

Go-yeo slowly nodded as if relieved, breathing as if she had finally come alive. As if she was grateful that he had called it quits first. That’s how their conversation ended in the dim bedroom. He couldn’t do anything more.

If only they hadn’t divorced, if only they hadn’t married, if only they hadn’t met, if only she were a little prettier, if only he wasn’t Yun Seung-ok’s son. It wouldn’t have been so hard to bear. Countless thoughts swirled in his mind.

The world knew Yun Seung-ok, his mother, as a woman obsessed with money and power. She was once his father’s secretary, who retreated from the group’s affiliates to a subcontractor. Now, she is the CEO of MMK International, handling international trade, overseas resource development, and automotive components on her own, with ambitions to make her son the next successor.

“Insanity.”

Unfortunately, Ji-hyuk had no such grand ambitions. Life was about enjoying each day. His rise to the position of head of strategic planning at MMK Construction, the flagship company of the MMK Group, was all thanks to Go-yeo. But now, instead of Go-yeo, he was supposed to live with another woman. Fucking ridiculous. Ji-hyuk chuckled.

There’s no comedy like this.