UCCU | Chapter 2.6

The next day, starting from breakfast, there were two meat side dishes at every meal. Seonwoo was secretly relieved by the response that more than met his expectations. But he was also worried.

‘He’s too soft-hearted for his own good.’

With all that money, he was bound to attract freeloaders and scammers. And judging by how he didn’t have many friends at university, he probably wasn’t that social either. Seonwoo thought it’d be nice if they could stay in touch and help each other even after he left this house, but then he snapped out of it.

‘Why am I worrying about him?’

Here he was, a broke guy, worrying about someone living in a place this fancy. He laughed bitterly to himself. Still, seeing Ihyun’s reaction, it didn’t seem like leaving this house would be impossible. If he kept working at it, maybe he could go back to school next semester. That hope grew inside him.

After sharing a couple of his own stories, Seonwoo started to naturally ask about Ihyun’s personal life, too. He started with small questions like what side dishes he liked, and now he even helped organize documents and asked about Ihyun’s family.

“By the way, Ihyun, when did you start doing this work? It seems a bit tough for a college student.”

“I’ve been getting business training since I was a kid.”

Ihyun spoke as if he’d had a normal upbringing. Usually, he only worked for an hour or two a day, and Seonwoo figured he was still in the learning phase rather than actually running things.

“I’m the youngest, and there’s a big age gap, so my hyung or noona will probably inherit the main company. But my parents said I should at least know how to run a small business.”

Ihyun answered like it was nothing, as if his parents were just handing him a little shop, and took the documents Seonwoo had organized. Seonwoo carefully tried to dig a little deeper.

“Oh, right. I heard before—you said you were about ten years younger than your hyung?”

By “before,” Seonwoo meant the time when he and Ihyun had first met, not at university but for real. Ihyun turned and looked at him, a bit surprised.

“You remember that? Actually, I’m twelve years younger than my hyung. Fourteen years younger than my noona.”

“That’s a big gap.”

He’s got parents, a hyung, and a noona… Seonwoo had always been jealous of people with families of four. He’d had friends in the orphanage who were like siblings, but now he’d lost touch with all of them. Because of An Hyungtae.

‘I changed my number, moved without telling anyone… there’s no way he could find me, right?’

Unless he got back together with the old gang, which was scattered now, it’d be hard for An Hyungtae to get help. As he was thinking that, Ihyun stopped typing and asked,

“Why are you acting like this these days?”

“…Huh?”

Lost in thoughts about An Hyungtae, Seonwoo answered a beat late. Ihyun narrowed his eyes at that.

“Do you think I’ll forgive you if you act like this?”

Seonwoo thought he was being as natural as possible, but Ihyun must have sensed something off. Still, looking at his face, he didn’t seem angry—just cold as ice. Seonwoo clicked his tongue inwardly and chose his words carefully.

“I’m not doing this to get your forgiveness. I don’t even want that.”

“Then what?”

The honest answer was that he wanted Ihyun to let his guard down so he could leave, enter contests, tutor, get scholarships, find a new place, and live his life as planned. But he couldn’t say that, so Seonwoo spoke slowly.

“I just… like being here with you.”

“Ha, really?”

Ihyun snorted, as if telling him to cut the crap. But Seonwoo, surprised by his own answer, went blank for a moment. He realized there was a bit of truth in what he’d said. He mumbled weakly,

“Maybe it’s because I’ve always lived alone…”

Seonwoo had left the orphanage he’d grown up in before even finishing elementary school. He’d stayed at Detective Noh’s house for a while, bounced between a couple of foster homes, then entered another orphanage in a different area, but couldn’t adjust and left soon after. Detective Noh, feeling sorry for him, helped him get a tiny studio apartment, and he’d lived there ever since. From age fourteen, he’d basically been on his own.

After living like that, being kidnapped and locked up in Ihyun’s house made Seonwoo realize for the first time how lonely he really was.

This huge mansion wasn’t just home to Ihyun—there were lots of employees handling management and security. No matter where he went, there were people around 24/7. And since he was always by Ihyun’s side, Seonwoo could feel the empty part of his heart filling up, even just a little.

Feeling awkward under Ihyun’s stare, Seonwoo added,

“And the house is amazing. The interior is awesome. When would I ever get to live in a place like this?”

Honestly, that was a big reason, too. A really big one.

Seonwoo thought of the studio he’d lived in alone. A tiny room too small for even a bed, filled with old furniture he’d picked up off the street, mold and damp stains on the wallpaper…

It was such a shabby place, he couldn’t even invite anyone over. No matter how hard he cleaned, it never felt rewarding. Being half-basement, it always smelled musty in summer, and if he opened the little window, the ground was right at eye level, with all sorts of crawling and flying bugs showing up. Hot in summer, freezing in winter.

So to Seonwoo, Ihyun’s house was like paradise. This mansion, where Ihyun lived alone after moving out from his family, screamed luxury from every corner. Huge windows let in tons of light, there wasn’t a single bug, and air purifiers kept the air fresh. The bedding was soft as clouds, and every meal was nutritious and balanced. And all of it was free.

Honestly, he wanted to suck up and live off Ihyun forever. But Seonwoo was an independent, mature adult who could take responsibility for his own life, so he pushed down that temptation. As he gathered the documents he’d organized, he asked, “Are we done for today?”

Ihyun didn’t answer. Seonwoo just sat in the chair and looked out at the garden. Ihyun typed slowly, then finally spoke after a long pause.

“This house is pretty nice.”

Seonwoo, who’d been wondering what was for dinner and dessert, blinked. Ihyun saved his files, shut down the computer, and turned his head. His gaze, always a little gloomy, fixed on Seonwoo’s face.

“I put a lot of thought into it—enough that I’d never get tired of living here.”

“Yeah, I can tell just by looking.”

You could see Ihyun’s taste reflected everywhere in the house. When Seonwoo smiled and agreed, Ihyun looked like he wanted to say more, but just got up and left the study without a word. Seonwoo followed, tilting his head.

‘Why did he look at me like that?’

It wasn’t pity or sympathy. It was a strange look he couldn’t quite describe. If he had to put it into words, it was a dark, greedy gaze, like he was holding back something he wanted. But why would he look at Seonwoo like that? Seonwoo figured he must have imagined it.

𓂃𓍼 ོ☁

After that conversation, Ihyun’s attitude definitely softened a lot. Seonwoo could see him slowly starting to open up, and he even felt a bit proud of himself.

He made sure not to bring up anything about the outside world or his own phone. Because of that, sometimes Ihyun would start to say something like, “If you ever go somewhere later…” and then clamp his mouth shut.

‘If time just keeps passing like this, our relationship might really get better.’

On the 14th day of being locked up in Ihyun’s house, Seonwoo thought this as he cheerfully opened his bedroom door and stepped out. He felt even better when he thought about how his old studio apartment was probably freezing cold by now. But when he came out for breakfast, Ihyun wasn’t there—only his own breakfast was set out.

“Um, butler. Is Ihyun not eating breakfast with me today?”

“Young master had an early appointment and left already,” the now-familiar butler answered with a gentle smile, pouring him some water. The seat felt empty without his usual breakfast companion. Seonwoo asked if the butler wanted to eat with him, but got a polite refusal.

A little bummed, Seonwoo finished his breakfast and headed up to the study. Since Ihyun wasn’t there, he skipped the apron and just grabbed the duster. Humming, he leisurely dusted the bookshelves and books. As he worked, he started planning things out in his head.

It was a shame he’d lost his tutoring and part-time jobs, but he could always find new ones. Thanks to his reliable and likable appearance, getting work was always easy for Seonwoo. Plus, since he’d been eating and sleeping at Ihyun’s house, he’d actually saved on living expenses.

Most of all, his body was finally recovering from all the overwork. Eating well, sleeping deeply, and resting his brain had done wonders. He felt so good that he figured he could work himself to the bone for a while after leaving this place. He was even grateful to Ihyun, so he took it upon himself to clean the study without being asked.

Should I watch a movie I missed in my room? Or binge-watch <Clover Hotel Club>? Seonwoo was coming down from the second floor with a light step when he stopped. The front door on the first floor was wide open.

“What the…?”

He looked around, but weirdly, not a single staff member was in sight today. Maybe someone left it open to air out the house? Or just forgot to close it?

What if some wild animal or bird wandered in? Without thinking much, Seonwoo started walking over to close the door, but then he sensed something off and stopped.

He carefully approached the front door and looked around. Then he quietly backed away. Outside, he saw the same big guys in suits who’d dragged him here on his first day—they were loitering at a distance.

“I guess I don’t need to worry about locking up,” Seonwoo muttered. With those guards out there, not even a bug would dare sneak in, let alone a thief or animal. He headed straight back to his bedroom. Lying on the soft bed and clicking the remote, he felt like he was in paradise.