OMLM | Chapter 4

The sound of the bell rang, and the employee sitting inside the counter looked up with a bright smile, then froze.

Cha Hyuk didn’t even glance at the employee and immediately went to the refrigerated display case next to the counter, filled with cakes.

Standing in front of the display case, Cha Hyuk gestured with his eyes to Kang Yebon, who followed him in.

Kang Yebon, who had been hesitant, quickly stood beside Cha Hyuk and looked down at the cakes packed in the display case. His light-colored eyes sparkled as if they had never been dull.

Standing side by side, there seemed to be enough space for two heads between Kang Yebon and Cha Hyuk.

The employee’s mouth corners, which had been pulled up, were now twitching slightly, and the same went for his eyes.

Kang Yebon, who had been moving back and forth along the display case with matcha, yellow cheese, C&Q, and strawberry chocolate cakes, slightly furrowed his brows and asked the employee.

“Is the hazelnut chocolate cake sold out?”

“Ah… Yes. It’s a popular item, so it sold out this morning…”

The employee’s body was facing Kang Yebon, but his eyes kept glancing at Cha Hyuk.

The employee’s fingers, politely clasped together, were fidgeting incessantly.

“Shall we make one quickly?”

“No, it’s fine.”

As Kang Yebon was about to choose another cake, Cha Hyuk came right beside him. The employee immediately stepped back one step.

“Are you really okay with that?”

“What? I’m fine with it.”

When Kang Yebon looked up curiously, a large hand moved close to his face.

Before Kang Yebon could dodge, two fingers pressed his cheeks and pulled them down.

“What’s this all about?” Kang Yebon frowned slightly and looked up, only to see Cha Hyuk smiling with narrowed eyes.

“Don’t act like a kid again.”

“…”

Kang Yebon grabbed Cha Hyuk’s wrist and pulled it away. The thick wrist that didn’t fit in one hand and the firm skin felt through his palm made Kang Yebon relax his frown.

“…I’m not doing that. It was hot inside the place earlier, and I didn’t eat the offal because there was only offal.”

“Okay, then choose quickly.”

Kang Yebon shot Cha Hyuk a glare, who had naturally taken his place in front of the POS machine, and then looked back at the cakes.

In the middle, the employee whispered, “Are you really okay without the hazelnut cake?” and Kang Yebon bit his lip hard, shaking his head.

Without thinking, he picked out everything he saw, which amounted to three slices. Feeling slightly embarrassed, he tried to remove some, but Cha Hyuk was already paying.

He pulled out a 50,000 won bill without even blinking at the somewhat luxurious price for Kang Yebon.

Once the cakes were out and they sat down, Kang Yebon picked up a fork but hesitated.

Cha Hyuk, sitting across from him, had ordered a warm Americano even in this weather. Seeing Kang Yebon just sitting there without eating, Cha Hyuk asked.

“You’re upset because there’s no hazelnut, whatever that is.”

“Oh, come on!”

Kang Yebon couldn’t control his temper and shouted. Then, feeling like he was forced to yell, he was taken aback.

“It’s not like that… I was just going to say thank you for buying the cake…”

Cha Hyuk chuckled and nodded slightly, seeming to understand. Kang Yebon glanced at him before picking up the fork and eating the cake.

Although there was no hazelnut cake, the other cakes were delicious too.

While enjoying the sugar rush after a long time, Kang Yebon glanced at Cha Hyuk, who hadn’t touched his coffee in front of him.

He didn’t seem interested in eating the cake either, as he hadn’t even picked up the fork in front of him. With his arms crossed, leaning back on the chair, Cha Hyuk was staring at something under the table with an inscrutable expression.

Maybe because of his fierce look, Kang Yebon got the feeling he might be thinking something menacing.

Why did this man come to university, how old is he, could he really be a gangster? All sorts of speculations swarmed in Kang Yebon’s head when Cha Hyuk raised his eyelids.

His black gaze fixed on Kang Yebon.

“Got something to say? Why are you looking at me so intensely?”

Kang Yebon, chewing on the bread and cream melting in his mouth, averted his eyes and then peeked back.

“Ahjussi, how old are you?”

Cha Hyuk’s eyebrows twitched slightly. Was he doing that on purpose? But Kang Yebon’s face was too innocent to be teasing.

Cha Hyuk was silent for a moment before leaning forward.

“How old do I look?”

Kang Yebon carefully looked over Cha Hyuk’s appearance.

Just looking at his face, he seemed to be around twenty-eight or twenty-nine, but the unique aura he exuded made it hard to guess his exact age.

He seemed like he could be in his late thirties, or sometimes not much older than Kang Yebon himself. His speech was both polite and rough.

His facial features were sharp, and the veins on his wrists and the back of his hands, visible under the rolled-up shirt, were prominent.

His short nails and the calluses on his hands were rugged.

Kang Yebon, scrutinizing Cha Hyuk like a subject, finally looked back at his face.

Their eyes met immediately.

Contrary to his lazily curved lips, the eyes looking straight at Kang Yebon were firm and secretive. It felt as if Cha Hyuk had observed Kang Yebon in the same way.

Heat rushed to Kang Yebon’s face, and he tilted his head down.

“Finished looking?”

“…Yes.”

“So, how old do I look?”

“…Thirty-five?”

His voice lacked confidence. When Kang Yebon peeked, Cha Hyuk’s face was completely stiffened.

“…Thirty-five, huh? Then calling me ahjussi is appropriate.”

Cha Hyuk murmured softly and then shut his mouth.

Because of that, Kang Yebon couldn’t know his exact age. He could only guess he was younger than thirty-five.

‘Could he be twenty-five?’

He couldn’t ask again as Cha Hyuk seemed in a bad mood.

Cha Hyuk leaned back in his chair, more slouched than when he first sat down.

Kang Yebon eventually ate two slices of cake and stared at the last slice in front of Cha Hyuk.

Not long after, Cha Hyuk pushed the plate towards Kang Yebon, who bowed his head in thanks and immediately cut into it with his fork.

“But ahjussi.”

“Yeah.”

“Why are you buying me cake?”

Cha Hyuk looked at Kang Yebon’s lips holding the fork, then down at the cake slice that was already half-eaten.

“Why do you think I would?”

Kang Yebon’s eyebrows twitched. His eyes with faint double eyelids showed clear dissatisfaction, though he might have thought he was hiding it.

Kang Yebon had a look like he had much to say but didn’t open his mouth. This man never gives easy answers.

After a while, Kang Yebon answered curtly.

“How would I know?”

“That’s disappointing.”

Then Cha Hyuk shut his mouth again.

Kang Yebon was getting more upset, his mouth opening wide, but he said nothing, just grumbling.

Cha Hyuk turned his head slightly, covering his mouth with one hand. Underneath that hand, his lips curved into a smile.

“Kid.”

Kang Yebon still looked grumpy at Cha Hyuk. He wasn’t even answering now.

“Your eyes say you want to be friends with me. I’m not easy.”

“…”

Kang Yebon quietly lowered his gaze. This man was unpredictable, his mood shifting.

Kang Yebon grumbled to himself, then thought he might have been too forward, so he kept his eyes down and quietly finished the cake.

Cha Hyuk didn’t take his eyes off Kang Yebon’s small head until he finished eating the cake.

When they left the café, quite some time had passed.

Kang Yebon was surprised internally. He hadn’t expected to spend so much time with Cha Hyuk, and it was astonishing that he hadn’t brought up the main topic for so long. Now, he really couldn’t delay it any longer.

“Ahjussi.”

Cha Hyuk, who had been walking ahead, stopped and turned around.

“You buying me food and cake means you’ll keep my secret, right?”

Cha Hyuk slowly opened his mouth and said, “Well.”

Kang Yebon took a step closer, looking up with a determined face.

“Please keep it a secret.”

“Okay.”

With the immediate affirmation, Kang Yebon’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Really?”

“Well.”

Kang Yebon suddenly felt a surge of frustration and inhaled deeply. Cha Hyuk seemed to be enjoying this situation with his slightly narrowed eyes.

Kang Yebon exhaled roughly, his adam’s apple bobbing. He wasn’t mistaken before; this man was definitely teasing him on purpose.

Kang Yebon never mixed with this type of person. If he did, it would be with someone like Lee Seunggu, who was cheerful and sociable.

Those types might play around, but they wouldn’t keep teasing like this.

When Kang Yebon was very young, as his now-deceased grandmother would say, he had a terrible temper. Stubborn, cried a lot, and stuck to anyone, causing trouble.

With his naturally irritable personality, Kang Yebon didn’t like situations where his feelings were toyed with, like now.

“…What do I have to do for you to keep it a secret?”

Cha Hyuk was silent for a moment before answering with a deep smile.

“I told you I’d hit you if you wanted.”

Kang Yebon’s eyes wavered. Cha Hyuk slowly approached him. More specifically, he had said he’d hit his ‘lips’. Although Kang Yebon wanted to argue, his lips wouldn’t move.

“I’m somewhat interested. So, if you want that…”

A large hand rested on his shoulder, and then Cha Hyuk bent down. He smiled lightly at the stiffened Kang Yebon and whispered.

“We need to get to know each other a bit.”

For example, three hours on Wednesday?

Kang Yebon, on his way home, sent a KakaoTalk message to Lee Seunggu. It was about giving the sweet liberal arts class to another friend.

Intuition told Kang Yebon that Cha Hyuk probably wouldn’t talk about him, but he couldn’t ignore that 1% sense of anxiety.

He wanted to live unnoticed and ordinary; that was Kang Yebon’s wish.

Leaning his head against the bus window on the way home, Kang Yebon stared at Jung Woochan’s number for a long time before turning off his phone.

“If you have any troubles, always tell me, Yebon. Hyung will always be by your side.”

That’s what Jung Woochan had told Kang Yebon on the day his father died. Tears welled up in his eyes.

‘Always, my ass. What a liar, that bastard.’

Kang Yebon regretted not breaking up, realizing he had leaned on Jung Woochan too much.

But…

“I’m somewhat interested. So, if you want that…”

It’s probably just a playful lie, right?