* * *
“……”
At the commanding tone, Isa hesitated, clenching and unclenching his fists.
Only after Kaindel made a subtle gesture, urging him again, did he timidly approach and sit beside him—keeping a deliberate distance of three or four hand spans.
Kaindel frowned, clearly displeased by the silver-haired man’s attempt to stay away.
Resting his chin on his hand, propped by an elbow on his knee, he reached out with his free hand to brush Isa’s hair aside, exposing his clear, silver eyes.
For a brief moment, he gazed at the glimmering orbs, drawn to their light, before catching himself and letting the soft strands slip from his fingers.
Then, he broke the silence.
“Why did you run away?”
“I choked on something.”
“Liar.”
“It’s true.”
“Another lie.”
“I’m serious.”
“Every time you lie, you get a crease here, you know? Look, there it is again.”
“……”
“Were you worried I might escort Count Serge’s daughter?”
“……”
The pointed question struck a nerve, leaving Isa speechless.
His lips moved as though he wanted to respond, but no words came out.
His flushed neck, which had been steadily reddening, betrayed him, the blush spreading to his earlobes and even his forehead.
He looks like he’s about to burst.
Is he even breathing properly?
Kaindel found it difficult to suppress a laugh at the vivid transformation, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips despite himself.
Isa, meanwhile, shot a sharp glance at Kaindel, clearly annoyed by his smirk, before lowering his head entirely.
Then, in a barely audible mumble, he spoke.
“Will you do it?”
“Hm, I wonder.”
The voice was so faint it might have gone unheard had Kaindel not been paying attention.
Still, he caught the words immediately and shrugged.
He had long since seen through Isa’s true feelings.
Lightly stroking Isa’s lower lip, which was being nervously chewed, Kaindel seized the moment of distraction to pull Isa onto his lap.
Startled by the sudden shift in perspective, Isa instinctively reached out for support, his slender fingers landing on Kaindel’s shoulder.
As Isa struggled to free himself, Kaindel gently clasped the restless hands and leaned his chin on the smaller man’s shoulder.
A soft, clean scent, distinctly Isa’s own, wafted to his nose—something natural, untainted by perfume or oil.
Isa sighed as if resigned and, after a moment of hesitation, relaxed against Kaindel, burying his face into the other’s chest.
In a barely audible voice, he murmured his true feelings, which he had been trying so hard to hide.
“Don’t do it.”
“Don’t do it?”
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
“Isa.”
“Yeah?”
“Are you… jealous?”
“……”
Isa didn’t respond verbally, but his reaction spoke volumes.
Kaindel looked down at the silver-haired man, who was doing his utmost to keep his face hidden.
Clearly, he didn’t want to show the jealousy written all over his expression.
Kaindel, however, found himself curious about it, almost eager to see it for himself.
He could feel Isa’s faint, trembling breaths through his clothes.
Savoring the delicate sensation, Kaindel tightened his arms around Isa’s waist.
It was the first time Isa had been so openly jealous, and the realization stirred something deep within him.
A peculiar heat pooled low in his abdomen, an unrelenting tension coiling tighter.
Realizing what his body was craving, Kaindel lightly traced Isa’s ear, leaving faint traces from the top of the ear to the soft earlobe.
“Can I kiss you?”
“……Okay.”
Isa hesitated for a moment before nodding.
Though it sounded like Kaindel was asking for permission, it was more of a notification—Kaindel wasn’t someone who would back off even if Isa refused.
The moment Isa nodded, Kaindel leaned in, pressing light kisses on his lips.
Soft smacking sounds echoed in the quiet room as the kisses moved to his nose, eyelids, and forehead.
The once-gentle noises grew deeper, more sensual.
Kaindel took in Isa’s slightly parted lips and slipped his tongue in, tasting him slowly.
Between the connected lips, his voice escaped, husky and low.
“By the way, Isa, did you meet the Count’s daughter when I was unconscious?”
“H-Huh?”
“I asked if you met her.”
“N-no, I didn’t. Not at all.”
Isa, lost in the moment, was slow to respond, his voice trembling.
His dazed eyes were still far from reality.
Kaindel gently wiped the sweat beading on Isa’s flushed forehead.
Even from just a kiss, Isa’s face and body had overheated, beads of sweat clinging to his skin.
Kaindel lowered his eyes as he gently pressed Isa’s ear again.
The jealousy that had sparked back in the dining hall still lingered, feeding a dry, gnawing frustration within him.
“Then why does she seem so interested in you, hmm?”
“I don’t know! I mean it, I don’t know!”
Though Kaindel knew the Count’s daughter’s attention wasn’t truly worth worrying about, his thoughts kept drifting back to it.
Isa flailed weakly, trying to escape Kaindel’s teasing hands, but his efforts were in vain. Kaindel caught one of Isa’s trembling hands and kissed the delicate wrist.
“Don’t worry—I won’t attend the banquet as her partner.”
“Really?”
“But I do owe her a favor, so I’ll escort her during the entrance.”
“Ah.”
Isa’s face lit up at Kaindel’s initial words, only to fall at the explanation that followed.
His disappointment was plain, as transparent as a child’s.
Watching him, Kaindel smiled softly.
“You can understand that much, right?”
“……Kaindel.”
“Yes?”
“Do you… like me?”
What?
Kaindel blinked at the sudden, seemingly out-of-place question.
He stared at Isa, puzzled by the inquiry.
They were already lovers—wasn’t it obvious?
Before Isa could grow anxious from the silence, Kaindel pulled himself together, his smile widening.
“Of course, I like you.”
As Kaindel’s reassurance sank in, Isa’s face softened into a small, shy smile, his earlier worries melting away.
“Then it’s fine. I’m okay.”
Then, as if something came to mind, he sighed.
“By the way… you know…”
“Hmm?”
“Is your birthday soon?”
“Birthday? Why do you ask all of a sudden?”
“Well, the Count said he’d hold a banquet for your birthday.”
At the mention of the topic from Isa, Kaindel raised an eyebrow.
What now?
Just as he was about to feel awkward, unsure of Isa’s intention in bringing up his birthday, a remark Sehir made in the dining hall suddenly came to his mind.
“The Count said he’d throw a banquet to celebrate your birthday before we leave, Kaindel.”
So he must have overheard it back then.
Now that the pieces fit together, Kaindel answered plainly.
“Oh, right. My birthday’s coming up.”
“Why didn’t you tell me in advance?”
“I forgot about it myself.”
It’s not exactly a day worth celebrating, anyway. Kaindel added that as an afterthought.
He wasn’t the type to celebrate birthdays.
After all, there had been hardly any good moments in his life.
Moreover, he always had to attend the king’s banquet on his birthday, and he loathed that.
He hated his father, who only saw him as a means to an end, the nobles who only ever demanded things from him—he hated them all.
That’s why he had chosen to forget about his birthday altogether.
“Hmm…”
Isa let out a soft hum, seemingly trying to process Kaindel’s explanation about why his birthday wasn’t a good day for him.
Deep in thought, Isa suddenly began stomping his feet, as if struck by an idea he liked very much.
“Then, there’s nothing else you’ve been keeping to yourself, right?”
“Nope, nothing.”
“Okay.”
Kaindel frowned slightly at Isa’s reaction but soon relaxed.
He decided not to pry into what might be running through that small head of his.
Whatever it was, he’d find out naturally in time.
* * *
🙂