"I just suddenly thought that it would be nice to be with you... It was the first time I had that
thought, so I concluded that I liked you. But... is it really like?"
Christoph looked up, puzzled, meeting Jeong Taeui's gaze with his blue eyes under long
lashes.
Jeong Taeui silently looked at him for a moment before slowly sighing.
"Just because it feels good to be together doesn't necessarily mean you like someone."
"But now I can endure you touching me. I can endure it."
Christoph repeated. His cold voice was almost as if he was angry, making Jeong Taeui widen
his eyes in surprise. Then, in a calm voice, he said,
"Being able to endure it doesn't mean it's okay."
If you have to endure something that makes you uncomfortable, it's just a kind of endurance
training for yourself.
Jeong Taeui slowly withdrew his hand from Christoph's cheek. Christoph looked at him
silently.
There was a slight mistake.
There was no reason for Christoph to like him.
Although liking often has no reason, there was no logic to show that the person should be
him.
Christoph had told Jeong Taeui that he liked him, as if it was mandatory.
Perhaps Christoph also felt that slight mistake. Even if he couldn't clearly identify it, he
surely noticed it.
Christoph quietly looked at Jeong Taeui for a moment. But unable to conclude, he just said
once more, weakly - "I like you" - as if to reassure himself.
"You can touch me."
"Because you can endure it. 'Endure' is something you can do with anyone if you want."
"But with you, it's okay."
Jeong Taeui only nodded instead of replying.If that's what he wanted, he could adjust accordingly for a while. As long as he was still here.
A brief silence followed.
Christoph couldn't truly smile, and Jeong Taeui couldn't see a true smile from him, and
neither thought about learning how to smile anymore.
It was then that they heard voices coming from below the tower.
Christoph and Jeong Taeui almost simultaneously turned to look towards the stairs.
The sound of footsteps and lively, energetic voices indicated that the people coming were
children, still a few floors away.
"...Ah."
Jeong Taeui muttered unconsciously.
Previously, he had met the children here once. In hindsight, it seemed to be on the same day
of the week and at the same time as today.
That meant...
"Maybe the children are coming here."
Christoph murmured. Although he frowned slightly, he didn't seem too displeased.
"Ah... Christoph, the person bringing the children could be Richard."
Jeong Taeui scratched his head and said.
Immediately, Christoph's expression, which had been only slightly displeased before,
changed completely. His face instantly turned sour and annoyed.
"How do you know?"
As if unwilling to believe, Christoph frowned and asked Jeong Taeui. Jeong Taeui shrugged,
saying that he had met them before.
"If I had known, I wouldn't have come here in the first place."
Christoph muttered as he stood up. Jeong Taeui didn't feel the need to leave just because
Richard was coming, but thinking that Christoph clearly didn't like it, he stood up as well.
When there are two particularly incompatible people in a group, those around them will feel
exhausted. However, in this case, perhaps those around them wouldn't feel as exhausted as
Jeong Taeui, because they would also be involved in the altercation.
While Christoph grumbled about the place being somewhat uncomfortable, the children had
reached the rooftop."…Oh."
"Oh? It's you again."
"Oh? Christoph is here too!"
The new children who had arrived recognized Jeong Taeui and cheerfully called out. But
seeing Christoph, they were even more surprised. These children were also Christoph's
students.
Jeong Taeui raised his hand to greet the noisy children running over. Seeing Oliver in the
group, Jeong Taeui unconsciously exclaimed, "Ah."
Oliver no longer had any wounds on his head; he smiled and greeted Jeong Taeui and also
smiled brightly at Christoph standing next to him.
Christoph maintained his usual indifferent, annoyed, and troubled expression.
"Oliver, it looks like you've healed completely. No more bandages."
"Yes, I was discharged a few days ago."
The boy replied politely and smiled. Then, he glanced at Christoph.
Christoph still kept his cold attitude and didn't react.
After greeting, the children quickly scattered across the rooftop as if their task was done.
Richard was probably trailing behind the children, so he hadn't appeared yet.
"Before he shows up, it's better to go down."
"If we go down now, we might run into him."
"…We could go around the lower floor and out the back door."
Christoph replied grumblingly, although Jeong Taeui's suggestion seems reasonable.
Jeong Taeui followed Christoph as he walked out. Suddenly, he spoke.
"Oliver, it's a relief that the boy has recovered."
Christoph slowed down a bit. He looked at Jeong Taeui with a frown, then glanced at Oliver,
and finally looked back at Jeong Taeui.
"I've already told you, I don't care."
"Yeah," Jeong Taeui nodded calmly. Anyway, he didn't mean anything else. Just seeing
Oliver and Christoph at the same time reminded him.Although he said he didn't care, Christoph still stopped walking. He looked at Oliver from a
distance, his gaze seemed to be looking into a distant void.
"It's just, when I see Oliver, I remember something. Because that kid looks very similar."
He murmured as if talking to himself. His face looked slightly sad.
"Like Richard?"
Jeong Taeui asked, then answered his own question, adding, "They really do look alike," and
nodded to himself.
Christoph glared at him angrily.
"No! I don't care if they look alike or not! If they look alike, I hate it even more!"
"Oliver and Richard look alike. They look like twins."
"No, their inner nature is completely different. Oliver is more like Olivia."
Christoph muttered angrily. Hearing his voice filled with both anger and sadness, Jeong Taeui
decided to remain silent. He looked at Oliver again.
The boy was thinking about a toy or a puzzle with another child. Jeong Taeui didn't know
Olivia, and he still thought Oliver looked like Richard. But perhaps, to those who knew
Olivia, Oliver resembled her more.
"Olivia is Richard's sister, right?"
Jeong Taeui asked again. Christoph nodded.
Jeong Taeui intended to say something to Christoph but closed his mouth.
There were no words to say.
What more could he say?
Was Olivia the one you buried the dog with in her grave? — He couldn't ask that.
Jeong Taeui silently watched Oliver through Christoph's eyes.
At that moment, Christoph suddenly spoke, as if reading Jeong Taeui's thoughts.
"It was a stray dog with no owner. Olivia used to secretly feed it. When she had to be
hospitalized and couldn't take care of it, she asked me to take care of the dog."
Jeong Taeui slowly looked up at Christoph.
******************