Chapter 37
Standing only inches away was Gyeongjae, clad in his black turtleneck and gloves. His jaw was clenched tight, his gaze striking them with a freezing, deadly intensity.
"What the fuck are you two doing here? What's this?"
Min-Hyuk pulled away first, shifting his weight and awkwardly clearing his throat to break the sudden silence.
"You're here." Yeonho stepped back from Min-Hyuk, a calm, easy smile spreading across his face.
"Come on, Gyeongjae, I'm just letting him kiss me. He's curious how it feels."
Gyeongjae strode directly toward them, stopping right at Yeonho's side as his gaze flicked heavily between the two of them for a moment.
"Disgusting…" Gyeongjae muttered, his voice dropping low, but the raw, heavy irritation boiling beneath it hit Min-Hyuk instantly.
"Hey! Don't say disgusting, you did way more than that. And besides, Min-Hyuk was behaving well—much calmer than you usually are. I just wanted him to have a small taste."
Being compared to Min-Hyuk rubbed Gyeongjae completely the wrong way, sparking pure annoyance in his eyes.
"Watch that mouth or I'll—"
"Whoa there, big guy," Yeonho cut him off instantly, totally unfazed.
"You should be the one watching your mouth. Anyways, Min-Hyuk wanted to know about Hana's little secret."
"You don't need to tell him, it's between me and Hana."
Raising an eyebrow, Min-Hyuk took a deliberate step forward, his eyes turning cold.
Sensing the sudden shift in the air, Yeonho stepped back a fraction to watch closely, highly amused that his plan to stir both of them up was working perfectly.
"I want to know, so don't say no. Yeonho will show it to me whether you like it or not."
"You've got guts. It's Hana's privacy with me, and it's better if you don't stick your nose in our business. Just like how I didn't stick my nose into you and Hana today."
Gyeongjae lifted his chin up with a smug, mocking look before driving the point home.
"You took Hana on a date behind our backs. Don't you think the other guys would love to find out about this?"
This was absolutely perfect. Yeonho's plan was to make them bicker first, letting their possessive streaks do the heavy lifting before he made his next move.
He kept standing there, thoroughly enjoying the show. Min-Hyuk didn't back down at all, remaining just as still and confident as Gyeongjae.
"Go on and tell them. I know all of you do the exact same thing."
Yeonho originally wanted to let them get even deeper into the argument, but the temperature in the air was dropping too fast.
He noticed Gyeongjae's hands curling into tight fists, his knuckles locking hard under the leather gloves. It was time to step in before Gyeongjae completely lost his temper and started a fight right there on the pavement.
'Maybe it's bad idea to make them fight...'
Yeonho stepped directly between them, holding up his hands to block their view of each other.
"Okay, both of you need to stop. I'm here, hello?"
"Choi Yeonho, you better step back or you'll regret it," Gyeongjae warned.
But Yeonho knew exactly how to handle him.
"Calm down, both of you, and be quiet for now. Let me talk. Min-Hyuk, are you sure you want to know what Hana's hiding?"
"Of course. If Hana's involved, I should know about it." Min-Hyuk glanced at Gyeongjae for a split second before looking back at Yeonho.
"Okay, I'll show you, but you need to come with me—with us. Somewhere empty, where there are no people around."
"He doesn't need to know." Gyeongjae stepped forward to block the path, but Yeonho held him back, placing his hands firmly on Gyeongjae's broad shoulders.
"Stay right there. Don't you think it's better if Min-Hyuk knows? Since Hana acted so suspiciously hours ago, maybe it's fine if
Min-Hyuk knows, okay?"
Yeonho gently patted his shoulder. The soothing touch worked; Gyeongjae went quiet, holding back his explosive emotions even though his jaw remained rigid with frustration.
"I'll take that silence as a yes. Min-Hyuk, so what is it? Are you coming or not?"
"I will." Min-Hyuk pulled his phone out of his pocket and started typing rapidly.
Yeonho watched the device in confusion.
"What are you doing?"
Min-Hyuk looked up from his screen.
"I'm calling my driver. I'll follow behind you."
"Oh, okay. Sure, do that." Yeonho nodded, then turned his full attention back to Gyeongjae.
"Take me home. I need a ride."
"No."
"What?"
"I said no. I got here on my bigbike."
Min-Hyuk kept his attention on his phone, but his posture showed he was listening closely to the bickering.
"Isn't that great? Let me hop on and take me home. I want to feel relaxed while riding back."
Yeonho completely ignored the rejection, stepping closer into Gyeongjae's space.
He hadn't ridden a bike before, and with the city lights glowing, he genuinely wanted to watch the scenery and feel the rush of the open air just like real bikers did.
But Gyeongjae clearly didn't want to cooperate, turning his shoulder away.
"Take a taxi or something. I don't have any obligation to take you home."
Yeonho glanced at Min-Hyuk, but Min-Hyuk was obviously avoiding eye contact, staring down at his screen.
"Min-Hyuk, can I?"
"Like Gyeongjae said, take a cab or a taxi or whatever."
Turning on his heel, Gyeongjae prepared to leave, and Min-Hyuk started walking away too, completely leaving him behind on the dark pavement.
It was incredibly frustrating.
"What the hell is wrong with you people? I'm offering to show you the secret, and we're talking about Hana, but you won't even give me a ride home?"
Anger flared hot in his chest. Reaching up, Yeonho violently pulled off his wig, tearing apart his disguise as both men kept walking away.
For all he cared, he was done trying to please them. The park was empty, the road was dark, and cars rarely passed by at this hour. He was dead tired after walking and working nonstop all day, and neither of these two high-society guys was acting like a gentleman at all.
'Well, maybe that chivalry only works when they're around the heroine, on female lead, but still...'
Yeonho let out an annoyed, thoroughly maddening groan.
Hearing the sharp, emotional sound, both men stopped dead in their tracks. They turned around, only to freeze at the sight.
Yeonho had slumped down onto a nearby wooden bench, completely ignoring them as he opened his makeup kit and stared into the small mirror.
"What are you doing?" Gyeongjae asked, slowly walking back toward him. Min-Hyuk followed, though his pace was much more slower.
"Fuck off."
Yeonho didn't even bother looking up at them. He rubbed a cleansing wipe across his face, aggressively stripping the cosmetics away properly.
Both men froze again, paralyzed by the raw attitude radiating from him.
This temperamental, pissed-off side of Yeonho was completely unexpected.
"Don't you think you shouldn't do that here?" Gyeongjae asked again, his eyes tracking the frantic movements.
"Shut up and leave. Don't act like you care about my disguise now. I'm so pissed off right now."
Once his face was clean, Yeonho immediately reached up and pinched out his contact lenses, throwing them aside.
"Why? Because we said no to you?" Min-Hyuk asked this time, but Yeonho was more furious than ever.
"Don't talk to me, and forget about me telling you any secrets. I've been working my ass off, and you can't even give me a ride home. Tsk."
He didn't care if he snapped or broke character in front of them—why should he? When a person is completely exhausted from grueling work, Yeonho was the type to lose control.
'Fuck... So much for just two male leads.'
As much as he wanted to stay calm, he couldn't, not when both men in front of him showed absolutely no manners.
Clearly, they didn't actually care about him.
He expected that, but it still irritated him to his core. Just thinking about how intensely they had been arguing over Hana moments ago made his blood boil.
Yeonho clicked his tongue, doing a final sweep of his face with a tissue.
Without the restriction of the disguise, his perfectly blonde hair fell loose around his shoulders, and his ethereal face was fully revealed.
Even his eyelashes, which had been colored black, returned to their natural shade, his blonde lashes fluttering beautifully under the dim yellow glow of the streetlamp.
Now, Choi Yeonho was perfectly revealed in front of them, without a single trace of his disguise remaining.
Gyeongjae and Min-Hyuk just watched the whole time without saying a word, completely captivated by the transformation.
Yeonho knew he had caught their attention, but this time, he refused to give them a single glance.
He stood up with a sharp movement, packed everything into his bag, and pulled out his phone to text Han Jiseok right away.
The older man was the only one who actually treated him like a princess, looking after his comfort and spoiling him with constant worry even though Jiseok was possessive and controlling.
But then he remembered Jiseok would be away in Russia for a bit, which soured his mood even further. Jiseok would be staying there for a while, leaving him stuck here in Korea, doing all this grueling work just to disrupt the novel's plot.
Yeonho walked straight past them, ignoring them entirely.
"Hey. Where do you think you're going?"
Gyeongjae called out, immediately following behind him.
"You said you'd tell me what Hana's hiding." Min-Hyuk quickened his stride, walking right beside Yeonho to match his hurried pace.
"I'm not in the mood. You can die of curiosity for all I care. My feet are killing me. I'm so tired. Leave me alone and walk away from me."
He marched until he stopped at the curb of the sidewalk to wait. Gyeongjae and Min-Hyuk stepped up right beside him.
"You'll get caught if you take a taxi. Why did you remove those disguises?"
"I don't know you." Yeonho muttered, acting childishly as he turned his head away.
The sudden shift in treatment took them both completely off guard. Gyeongjae was entirely used to Yeonho being shameless, flirty, and overly confident—getting ignored like this was a brand new sensation.
Min-Hyuk was just as surprised; minutes ago, Yeonho had been acting incredibly intimate with him, acting self centered, and now he was showing a completely different side.
"You're actually mad, huh? What happened to being so close and intimate earlier, hm?"
Min-Hyuk leaned down, bringing his face dangerously close to Yeonho's to catch a direct look at his stunning features and bright blue eyes.
"What are you doing?" Gyeongjae stepped closer, raising a brow.
"I'm just taking a clear look…"
Min-Hyuk said, completely fascinated.
Yeonho kept his focus locked blankly on the road while Gyeongjae kept watching him, trying to read his expression.
But since Yeonho wasn't in the mood, he shifted his cold blue eyes straight to Min-Hyuk.
"If you don't back away, I'm gonna slap your face, Kang Min-Hyuk."
The sharp, cocky attitude surprised them even more. Min-Hyuk's smirk widened at the feisty response, and Gyeongjae found himself pulled in too, unexpectedly thinking that this grumpy, furious version of Yeonho was kind of cute.
"Cute…"
"Adorable…"
Both Min-Hyuk and Gyeongjae looked at each other at the exact same time, then instantly stood straight and looked away, clearing their throats.
They had just shared the exact same thought about him.
Yeonho caught the sudden rigidity in their movements and could feel the awkward atmosphere settling over them.
'Now they find me cute because I'm mad… bastards.'
It was a good thing for his ultimate goal, sure, but right now, all he cared about was getting home and escaping their presence.
And the only one who could actually fix that for him was Jiseok himself. Yeonho tried to steady his breathing before he snapped completely.
"You can leave, both of you, while I'm still being nice."
Both men turned to him. Gyeongjae ran a hand through his white hair, letting out a heavy, defeated sigh.
"Fine, I'll take you home. Stay here, I'll go get my bike."
But before Gyeongjae could take a single step, Yeonho's cold voice stopped him in his tracks.
"Don't bother. You can go leave and cater to her instead—that stupid bitch. You too, Min-Hyuk. Don't say a single word to Hana about my disguise, or you'll regret it, else you'll never find out what she's hiding."
"You… just what the hell makes you so confident?" Min-Hyuk asked, crossing his arms.
"Keep guessing. I don't care right now."
Just then, Yeonho's phone began to vibrate violently in his hand. He swiped the screen without a moment's hesitation, pressing the device to his ear. His entire demeanor shifted instantly, his voice transforming into a soft, vulnerable tone.
"I'm right on the sidewalk… can you please hurry up? I'm so tired and hungry…"
Hearing that sudden, dependent shift in Yeonho's voice made Gyeongjae's fist twitch violently inside his pocket. He knew far too well that tone, that exact way of talking.
Min-Hyuk noticed the immediate darkening of Gyeongjae's mood, his eyes narrowing as the atmosphere turned incredibly tense.
He remained completely clueless about what was causing the sudden shift.
Gyeongjae took a step closer, his eyes locking onto Yeonho.
"If I'm not taking you home… then who the hell is giving you a ride?"
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