TCE 33

TCE

Chapter 33

Yoonjae, who had left work early for the first time in a while, looked around the house for a moment.

It was quiet.

The house was large enough that one could be inside a room without noticing people coming and going, but the stillness stretching from the entrance to the living room was different from usual.

In fact, a house without warmth wasn’t unfamiliar to him.

Since high school, Yoonjae had lived alone, and except for Mrs. Kim, no one had come and gone in his home. And since he had a strong aversion to noise and chaos, he actually preferred it that way.

But this house was prepared for two people to live together.

Even if it was only a fixed-term lease, it was a home for them as a couple, a space filled with affection.

“There’s no better place for a newlywed home than this.”

As naive Mrs. Kim had said, this was a newlywed home, and there had always been affection.

Yet, this house, which carried every facet of that woman—noisy at times, frivolous sometimes, and at other moments completely unreasonable—had never felt this subdued before.

In other words, this quietness felt strange.

There was no sign of her presence to be sensed without greeting her directly. It seemed she had left early, as a chill flowed through the house.

“…….”

Joo Ae-jeong.

He brushed his lips in response to the presence of the woman who, in just a few dozen days, had turned a decades-old familiarity into awkwardness.

Then he evaluated the situation sharply.

“She’s insane.”

Yoonjae harshly judged his own abnormal reaction and moved.

His mind was tangled. Normally he thought a lot, but today was unusually intense.

‘Unnecessarily.’

With his overcomplicated thoughts, he headed to his room instead of the study.

The method he chose to wash away his overly tangled mind was a shower. He thought a wash might help him regain clarity.

But what greeted him was a shower as silent as the house. The faucet, fine until this morning, didn’t produce a single drop.

He twisted it this way and that, checking the shower, but it only made a rotating sound inside—still nothing.

A flawless, shiny bathroom with a faucet that produced no water.

It was all show, no substance.

“Hoo.”

Leaving the creaky faucet that seemed to mock him, Yoonjae gathered his clothes and headed to the living room.

And that was why he was in the bathroom in the living room, the moment that led to the two of them facing each other completely naked.

As a bonus, their eye contact was so close that she could see him clearly even without her glasses.

“…….”

Their eyes, forgetting to blink as if everything had stopped, captured Yoonjae.

Time seemed to blur.

They had been this close before, but today, the depth felt different—perhaps due to the situation and the place.

A room filled with the scent of Ha Yoonjae’s skin.

Sheets carrying his scent.

And the body still touching hers, unable to pull away due to the arm draped over her.

The thin distance, separated by only a towel, was enough to wreak havoc in their minds.

Dangerous.

It was an instinctive feeling. Even knowing it stemmed from a crisis rather than fear, they could not think to escape.

Even now, facing his damp face, it felt unreal.

Drip, drip.

Water droplets formed on him and fell onto her body.

Slowly, almost soaking in, the water dampened them, and the vacuum created by the quiet made her grip on the towel tighten.

The embarrassment of being unclothed and the shame felt like separate issues.

Tightly.

It was a sharp nudge to her mind—a throbbing ankle.

With a slightly sprained ankle, she parted her tightly pressed lips to breathe, blinking her eyes that had remained wide open. And she spoke to the still composed Yoonjae.

“What… are you going to do?”

A foolish question no child would even ask.

Why she even said that, he showed unprecedented mercy.

“Close your eyes.”

“Huh?”

“If you can’t handle it.”

Handle what?

Still, obediently, she closed her eyes without knowing why.

Damn it.

Her eyes that had continuously teased Yoonjae were covered, yet her defenseless, pale face could easily surpass boundaries if something went wrong.

He pulled back the arm that had been draped across her back.

Slide.

The large towel covering her shifted slightly, revealing her white legs.

And not just that. The narrow view she had been desperately controlling now encompassed their bodies.

The white nakedness beneath the towel, persisting beyond its role, became visible.

Wet hair falling over her shoulders, and her slender legs extending beneath the towel.

Even under the towel, the soft curves stirred the man’s instincts.

Between writhing desire and unknown craving, he fully rose, ending the absurd tug-of-war.

Flap.

“Ugh, ah!”

Yoonjae rose and quickly covered them with the edge of the blanket.

Startled by the blanket covering her face, she flailed, while Yoonjae quickly dressed.

He then approached her, who had barely emerged from beneath the blanket.

“Ha Yoon…!”

Ignoring her protest, he wrapped her completely with the opposite edge of the blanket.

Like a cocoon, he lifted her onto his shoulder.

“Ugh!”

Ignoring her groans from the pressure on her stomach and blood rushing to her head, he headed toward her room.

“No, wait… why, like this again, ugh.”

As if intoxicated from some past drunken incident, she was once again treated like luggage. Her complaints, barely coherent, drew a sharp line from Yoonjae.

“Quiet.”

Fear crept in—saying more might get her thrown mid-step.

She obediently quieted down, and shortly after, he placed her on her bed and immediately left the room.

Click.

“……Phew!”

The sound of the door closing allowed her to twist out of the blanket, freeing her face.

With her head tilted down and face flushed, she muttered, lips pouting:

“You’re really mean.”

Ungrateful muttering was her best form of defense at that moment.

Quickly dressing, she cautiously opened the door to check the living room. Before she could fully take in her surroundings, she spotted Yoonjae standing there.

“…….”

He peeked his face out and gestured at her.

Hesitating briefly, she stepped out cautiously.

Limping.

“……Seriously.”

Not badly injured, but her slightly sore ankle caused her to limp as he watched with furrowed eyes, sighing.

Not knowing the reason for his sigh, she nervously fiddled with her glasses.

After sighing, he clicked his tongue and gestured toward the sofa.

“Sit.”

With nothing to say, she quickly sat on the sofa.

Though her sprained ankle throbbed, she placed both hands neatly on her legs, trying not to irritate him.

‘Am I about to be sued?’

Imagining the consequences of her actions, Yoonjae approached.

He sat on the edge of the expensive wooden coffee table and casually lifted her foot.

“Ah…!”

Before she could protest, she understood his intention.

Surprisingly, he was checking her sprained ankle. Observing for swelling and injury, Yoonjae commented:

“Doesn’t seem seriously injured.”

It wasn’t a casual guess—he was genuinely assessing muscles and ligaments.

Gradually, the pain eased.

The subtle sensation from his fingers made her feel ticklish elsewhere, an inexplicable, quivering stir from deep within.

“Wait.”

As the trembling sensation tingled, she pressed her fingers harder on the sofa. Yoonjae released her foot, then went to a drawer in the corner and pulled out a first aid kit.

He took out a compression bandage.

“Go to the hospital.”

His hands wrapped her foot expertly, starting from the sole and moving up to the ankle. She couldn’t help but admire his skill.

“You’re really good. Feels like a professional did it.”

“I learned.”

“Uh… you’ve fallen a lot?”

It didn’t seem that way at all.

Pausing while tearing tape, he resumed after a moment.

“Probably.”

Her gaze lowered slightly, watching Yoonjae.

His usually neat hair was down, making him look younger, and he wasn’t in his usual tidy casual clothes.

“…It suits him.”