TBR 18

Chapter 18

Only then did Somang finally confront her situation and lower her gaze.

She saw Hangyeol’s hand moving in a circular motion across her flat stomach.

“W-Why…! Someone else’s stomach!”

“Siwon said if I give you medicine and warm it up while touching it, it’ll be fine,” he replied.

“Wasn’t there a heating pouch next to the first aid kit?”

After joining the company, she had developed habitual stomach cramps. And Siwon always kept the medicine and heating pouch in one place for her, just in case Hangyeol wasn’t around.

“It cooled down.”

“Then you could just warm it up again.”

“I didn’t want to wake you.”

Every time he spoke softly, his hand on her stomach trembled slightly. Even the smallest movement felt delicate against their skin.

“I’m fine now, so please move your hand.”

“Just ten more minutes. I’ll move it after I make sure you’re okay.”

As he leaned closer, his breath brushed against her nose, almost touching. The way he checked if she was really fine made her whole body tense.

Somang tried to move her stiff neck just enough to turn her head.

Gasp…!

It was a completely wrong choice of direction.

Right in front of her, she saw the center of his body radiating pure testosterone.

The silhouette was so massive that she couldn’t see it all from such a close angle.

“Somang, want to breathe slower?”

She could feel the tension in his hand as it pressed against her stomach. And somehow, the folds of his pants seemed to be stretching tighter.

“It’s hard to resist,” he said, exhaling sharply toward the ceiling.

“Do… do you need to go to the bathroom?”

She rolled her eyes upward to check him, and his face, brushed by his own hand, looked strained, as if he was holding back something difficult.

“It’s nothing like that. Just stay still.”

He pressed firmly against her abdomen, stopping her instinct to wriggle or get up.

“Baek Somang. Don’t move.”

Facing his swollen center from almost point-blank range, Hangyeol’s words immediately made sense. She had to curl her lips to avoid accidentally bumping against him.

“……”

Watching the living, moving part of him in front of her made her lower abdomen tingle and her toes curl tightly. Realizing she might cause an accident if she kept looking, Somang shut her eyes to block her view.

Those felt like ten endless minutes.

“Checked. You’re fine now, right? Want to get up?”

Thankfully, this time Hangyeol finally listened.

The awkward tension was immediately broken by the ringing of a phone.

Rrrrr. Rrrrr.

Hangyeol’s phone rang persistently.

“I’ll take it. I’m going in to sleep now,” he said.

Though he said it, Somang was curious about the international call flashing on the screen at this late hour.

“Take it. Sounds urgent.”

Hangyeol glanced at the caller, then flipped the phone face down on the sofa. Sitting in his place, he reached out his arm. Somang, walking slowly to eavesdrop, was caught almost immediately.

“Already going to sleep?”

She turned her back, unwilling to face him, and he slowly pulled her toward the sofa.

When his foot brushed hers, a tingling current shot up from her toes.

“Oppa, you’re just going to leave me like this and sleep?”

“Well… yeah. I have work tomorrow, can’t stay up all night.”

“Why? I don’t mind.”

Hearing that, her head, turned away, slowly swung back as if mesmerized.

Hangyeol lightly shook her wrist and smiled faintly. The sharp lines of his eyes softened, completely changing his facial expression.

Even just smiling made her heart contract.

“L-Let go! I told you I have a boyfriend!”

“Really?”

Hangyeol slowly curved his lips as he gently stroked her wrist with his thumb. His eyes seemed determined to read her true feelings.

“Even more than when you’re next to me, your heart beats faster, right?”

Her heart, which she hadn’t even noticed, became clear to her.

Thump-thump.

Her pulse, beating against his thumb, made Somang pull her hand away with all her strength.

“Probably,” she replied.

Somang dashed into her room, unable to lie down on the bed as she collapsed from the tension. Even after his hand moved away, her pulse remained rapid.

The next day.

Hangyeol, reading documents on the living room sofa, stared at Somang’s door across from him. Overnight, one more “Housemate Rule” had been added.

4. No physical contact (★Absolutely under no circumstances, even emergencies★)

Just then, the door opened.

“Is this about yesterday?”

“Oh, you saw?”

“So who was it for? Me? Or you?”

Hangyeol put down his documents and stood up from the sofa.

“If it was for me, you didn’t need to go through all that.”

Somang’s eyes wandered down to his center. Quickly regaining composure, she straightened her gaze and said slyly:

“I’m dating. So I don’t want to do anything that could be misunderstood by my boyfriend.”

“Living together is okay?”

“Well… that’s…”

It was fine because it was a fake relationship, of course. But Hangyeol didn’t know that.

“We’re not really living together! And Minchan—or rather, my boyfriend—is understanding, so he’ll get it.”

The embarrassment made her tongue twist over each word.

“Okay. I’ll be careful.”

Hangyeol retreated calmly.

“Go to work. See you at the office.”

Ah, she shouldn’t acknowledge him at work either. Hangyeol smiled faintly and waved at the entrance.

Meanwhile, Somang’s face, not getting the reaction she wanted, twisted moment by moment.

“What’s with him? Is he full of confidence, or just relieved he doesn’t have to marry?”

Either way, it wasn’t what Somang wanted.

Pouting, she got off the elevator and climbed into Minchan’s bright red car parked in front of the apartment.

“Good morning, Minchan.”

The car, lower than Hangyeol’s, roared as it headed to the office. Minchan, listening quietly to the radio, glanced at Somang’s sullen expression.

“You told him you’re dating?”

“…Yes.”

Seeing her sulking, it seemed things didn’t go as planned.

“Not happy with his reaction?”

“Yes, completely. Let’s do this fake relationship properly!”

Somang clenched her fist tightly.

And then came the long-awaited Friday night.

Clearing her throat, Somang lingered at the entrance, waiting for Hangyeol.

“I’ll be late tonight. So make sure to wear earplugs when sleeping.”

“A date?”

His expressionless reaction still irritated her.

“Well… he might not even come back…”

Somang trailed off. Spending the night out wasn’t agreed with Minchan. She felt guilty using him, so she planned to have dinner, spend some time alone at Yewon’s café, and return around 10 p.m.

But Hangyeol’s unexpected behavior kept making her unsure.

“Alright. Have fun.”

Somang stomped her foot and left the house.

“What’s with him? Does he really have no jealousy?”

Or maybe jealousy only comes from liking someone? But he said he likes her!

Somang couldn’t make sense of Hangyeol’s ambiguous behavior.

If she asked whether he liked her, he would fold his eyes prettily and answer:

“Of course, I like you.”

Walking along, lost in thought, she passed Minchan’s car.

Beep—

Startled by the horn behind her, Somang finally straightened up.

“Sorry, Minchan. I was lost in thought.”

“You were thinking about the team leader again, weren’t you?”

“Yes. Even if I come back late today, there’s no reaction. I think our fake relationship is failing.”

Somang slumped into the seat with a sigh.

“Hmm… hard to tell.”

Being a man, Minchan could vaguely sense it from their brief encounter at the convenience store.

Hangyeol’s attitude toward Somang wasn’t just that of a friendly senior.

But now… his reaction was unexpected. After starting the fake relationship, he seemed even less conscious of her.

As if he knew this was a prearranged scenario.

Does she need a different strategy? Minchan also felt a strong desire to make this plan succeed.

It wasn’t just camaraderie—one side of his heart felt heavy with intent.