Come Back

Hae-seong connected the call while walking slowly. It seemed like there was a polite greeting, and then the medical treatment details continued.

“Yes, I have a cat.”

Choi Hong-seo’s eyes widened at the word cat. His voice was filled with confusion as he also found the direction of the diagnosis unexpected.

“No, I didn’t find any such symptoms… Let’s take another look.”

Lee Hae-seong continued the call while stopping and making eye contact with Choi Hong-seo. Then, he took the phone away from his ear for a moment and asked with a worried look in his eyes.

“Are you sure you don’t have any itchiness?”

Choi Hong-seo nodded, unconsciously reaching out and touching the back of his neck.

“They said it doesn’t itch.”

While listening to the doctor’s opinion for a while, Lee Hae-seong alternately touched Choi Hong-seo’s earlobes, which were red and cold.

“Can a person get caught without a cat getting caught?”

Judging from the expression on Haeseong’s face as he listened to the doctor’s answer, it seemed like he hadn’t heard a very satisfying opinion.

“Okay, I’ll do that. It must have been hard work on the holiday. I’ll make an appointment with Director Kang and come see you in person. Okay.”

After finishing the call, Hae-seong Lee wrapped his arm around Hong-seo Choi’s shoulder.

“I guess I’ve been outside too long. It looks cold. Let’s go inside.”

Although the side of his face that was exposed to the wind might have been slightly frozen, he didn’t feel the cold because Lee Hae-seong was wrapped up so tightly in a jumper, scarf, and gloves. Still, Choi Hong-seo hurried his steps as he led him.

Even though he didn’t think it was cold, the warm air inside the room melted his frozen skin and his chest, which had been tense, became relaxed. Lee Hae-seong, who took off his jumper first and handed it to Director Kang, also helped Choi Hong-seo take off his jumper.

“Based on the photo, it looks like it’s a skin disease that’s contagious to cats.”

“Is it a cat skin disease? I didn’t see any symptoms when I brushed it today…”

Even simple tasks that he could easily do on his own, he would dress and undress Choi Hong-seo, and even feed him. As if Choi Hong-seo were a real baby. If that was his pleasure, he didn’t want to refuse with a serious face. Of course, he was embarrassed when Director Kang or other people were around, and even when they were alone. But it wasn’t embarrassing enough to rob him of his pleasure.

“They say that cats can be carriers even if they don’t show any symptoms. People with weakened immune systems… can become infected.”

If Choi Hong-seo had a weak immune system and got a skin disease from Tiffany, it was his fault. Hae-seong Lee made a guilty expression. He handed Choi Hong-seo’s jumper to Director Kang and looked closely at Choi Hong-seo’s affected area again.

“Based on the symptoms, it seems clear that it’s a cat skin disease called ringworm. But if the symptoms are this obvious, it must be itchy… Since that seems odd, I think it would be best to go to the hospital and get it examined.”

First, the two caught Tiffany in the kitchen downstairs.

Lee Hae-seong said that he would take care of it on his own since it might be a skin disease that was passed on to Tiffany, but Choi Hong-seo followed him, saying that if it was true, it was already contagious and it didn’t matter.

The two of them sat down on the empty kitchen floor and examined every part of the animal carefully. However, they could not find any symptoms that suggested skin disease. The fur was fine and shiny, and it looked healthier than ever.

The boy was very upset that he was being bothered even though he wasn’t even brushing his teeth. Sitting in the hallway between the kitchen’s built-in cabinets and the island counter, Choi Hong-seo comforted him with his favorite homemade churro.

I sat next to Hae-seong with my back against the counter and slowly stroked Tiffany’s back. While I was absentmindedly eating the churu, I was able to stroke her to my heart’s content.

“It may not have been revealed, but it could still be in a contagious state. There should be an animal hospital that’s open on weekends. If you’re really worried, should we go there together now?”

“Is that okay?”

Choi Hong-seo looked down at Tiffany, who was licking the end of the churu diligently, and Lee Hae-seong, who was leaning the back of his head against the counter, stared blankly at Choi Hong-seo. Then he reached out and stroked the back of Choi Hong-seo’s head. It was more careful than Choi Hong-seo’s hand stroking Tiffany’s back.

“What’s wrong with that? I heard there’s an ointment you can buy at the pharmacy. While you’re out, why don’t you buy some for Hongseo?”

Choi Hong-seo nodded in response.

As the contents were almost gone, Tiffany placed her two front paws on Choi Hongseo’s hand holding the churu and tried to not miss even the last drop. For that guy, she squeezed the churu out once more from the back.

Lee Hae-seong, who was watching the scene, gently pulled Choi Hong-seo’s head with the hand he had on the back of his head. He touched the edge of their foreheads and asked in a clearly ‘lover’s voice’.

“Are you upset that I couldn’t let you go?”

“No. I’m not upset…”

“Then, are you upset?”

This time, he touched Choi Hong-seo’s lower lip with his index finger and laughed softly. It was a ticklish, whisper-like laugh.

“That’s not it. I’m not upset or anything.”

He must have noticed that I was upset at being called a jerk, because this time he pressed his lips against his temple and laughed a little harder.

“So, the grass is dead?”

“……”

“Hongseo, I will definitely find the right way. Can you trust me and wait for me?”

Choi Hong-seo nodded, feeling the rough surface and warm lips. Then he put the hand that had been caressing Tiffany’s back around his lower back.

Tiffany, who had checked several times that there was no more Churu left, looked up at the two people sitting side by side with their arms around each other. Then, just like before the walk, she rubbed her body against Choi Hongseo’s side and thigh and grumbled.

If it were a normal day, he would have left right after finishing his churu, but today, the service was generous. Listening to Lee Hae-seong, it definitely seemed like the guy’s crying and gestures were trying to comfort and reassure me. Did he notice my anxiety?

Even though she seemed to be acting all arrogant, she knew that Tiffany was opening up to her in her own way and at her own pace. Even on the night she first received a call from Lee Hae-seong, the ‘carrot seller’, Tiffany had comforted herself.

I gently stroked the back of the guy who was rubbing his body against my thigh. I felt my mind relax from the vibrations I felt from the guy’s small body groaning.

“I’m sorry for making you feel bad because you followed Director Kang so well.”

Choi Hong-seo apologized in a soft voice, but Lee Hae-seong patted the boy’s small head rather harshly and spoke in a stern voice.

“If it turns out that our baby’s rash is because of you, you’re going to get in a lot of trouble, Inma. Huh?”

Even as she spoke, her touch and expression on his face were filled with love.

Suddenly, I burst out laughing at the sight of the three of them gathered in this small space when there was a spacious and wide mansion. It was a warm moment of happiness, where the lights were on and the light was shining even in the midst of dangerous anxiety.

They went together to the animal hospital that they had made a reservation for by phone, but it was only Lee Hae-seong who took Tiffany to the hospital. Unlike his attendants or employees, the people they would meet at the animal hospital would surely be curious about ARA Lee Hae-seong and Yoon Hye-an who showed up with their cats. That alone wouldn’t cause any big problems, but there was no need to make it a bother.

While waiting for Lee Hae-seong and Tiffany to return, Choi Hong-seo stayed in the car with his attendant. Lee Hae-seong never wanted to leave Choi Hong-seo alone outside, so it seemed like it would be a good idea to get used to this life quickly. Maybe soon, Lee Hae-seong would even order someone to be with him before he returned home.

Left alone, a dark anxiety came over him. To distract himself, Choi Hong-seo took out his cell phone. It was a holiday and he had been with Lee Hae-seong all day, so he had barely paid attention to his cell phone, but three or four hours ago, he had received several messages from Manager Yong-jae.

Choi Hong-seo, who had been scanning the messages, looked up and out the car window. The brightly lit interior of the animal hospital was clearly visible through the glass. Hae-seong Lee, holding Tiffany in his arms, was just coming out of the examination room. Three or four health workers and doctors surrounded Hae-seong Lee and followed him around.

At first glance, it seemed like Tiffany was being treated very well by everyone. Of course, it was because she was ‘Tiffany brought by Lee Hae-seong’, but the guy’s smug expression as he hugged her, as if he was used to this kind of treatment, made me laugh.

While the storage was in progress, Lee Hae-seong secretly waved Tiffany’s front paw in this direction. The tinting was dark so it wouldn’t be visible to other people, but it was a clear sign to Choi Hong-seo who was still inside the car.

Choi Hong-seo, who was leaning his elbow on the car window and biting the corner of his lips, let out a dry laugh at the sign he was sending. He waved back at Tiffany and Lee Hae-seong, even though he knew they wouldn’t see him.

With his laughter fading away, Choi Hong-seo recalled Park Dong-ha’s resentful gaze at him in front of the parking lot of Director Kang Woo-hyun’s house. It seemed that the reason he contacted Yong-jae to ask about ‘Yoon Hye-an’s’ well-being was not because he relied on Yoon Hye-an, as Yong-jae had expected.

Another one.

It seemed certain that Yoon Hye-an had done something wrong to Park Dong-ha.

The anxiety was still there, and Hae-seong said flatly that he couldn’t seek answers from a shaman. For now, all he could do was to start with what he could.

First, it was necessary to know whether what Yoon Hye-an did to Park Dong-ha was a ‘mistake’ that could be forgiven and undone, or a ‘sin’ for which she had to pay a price.

Beyond the glass walls decorated with cute animal characters, Hae-sung Lee was taking commemorative photos with the hospital staff, holding Tiffany. In the bright lights, surrounded by people excited to meet ARA Hae-sung Lee, his appearance as he took photos while holding a cat was so adorable.

Choi Hong-seo took out his cell phone and captured the scene on camera.

I just hoped that days like this would continue.

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