ACTSV chapter 17

Jingyeom wondered if he had discovered a new talent. Although, he mused, picking out clothes a few times didn’t really count as a talent.

Honestly, no matter what he chose, everything looked good on Soohyuk.

His face was the key element that made everything work.

Even when he tried on an indie pink shirt, it looked so good it was almost scary.

Soohyuk had the kind of appearance that could turn rags into fashion.

Plus, he was tall and his consistently exercised muscles added to the perfect balance.

“If only his personality wasn’t twisted…”

He could have been a very popular second lead.

Jingyeom shook his head as he imagined this, then he re-hung the shirt he was holding.

“Why? Doesn’t it suit me?”

“No, it suits you too well.”

“Then why did you shake your head?”

“I was just admiring it.”

Afraid that Soohyuk might pry into what he was thinking, Jingyeom quickly picked another suit.

The suit Soohyuk was currently wearing was navy blue.

It was one of the colors that office workers could wear without standing out too much.

His thigh muscles were straining against the tight fabric of the suit.

Jingyeom had felt hot just standing outside the hospital in the sun earlier.

Yet, Soohyuk was wearing a jacket on top of his suit. It was impressive.

No matter how well air-conditioned the department store was, wasn’t he hot?

Nowadays, most office workers wore short-sleeve shirts in the summer…

Come to think of it, the suit Jingyeom picked out for Jinwoo yesterday was also long-sleeved.

Maybe Jinwoo wore it just because Jingyeom had chosen it for him?

But he hadn’t seen any short-sleeve options.

“I’d like to buy something for Jinwoo while I’m here…”

There were plenty of suits in the store that would suit Jinwoo.

If he had money, he would have bought them, but it was disappointing.

Even though he knew he couldn’t buy them without knowing the size, it was still frustrating.

Jingyeom handed a beige suit to Soohyuk.

He thought the lighter color would suit him well.

As he held it up to Soohyuk, it indeed looked good.

His appearance didn’t get overshadowed by the beige color.

“There’s nothing that doesn’t suit you.”

“…Really?”

“Your face makes everything work. Jinwoo was the same…”

Soohyuk’s left eye twitched. He had heard countless times that things suited him.

Some people said it sincerely, while others said it insincerely to sell clothes.

It wasn’t hard to tell the difference. Their faces or voices would give it away.

From Jingyeom, it felt genuine. He was expressing his pure thoughts without any falsehood.

Yet, after saying this, he turned his gaze away and mentioned Secretary Baek’s name.

It wasn’t that Soohyuk felt bad, but since they were together now, he wished Jingyeom would focus solely on him.

Soohyuk, who was staring at the suit Jingyeom was holding, called for a staff member.

“Do you have this in size 95?”

“Yes. What size trousers would you like?”

“…26.”

“Okay, please wait a moment.”

As Soohyuk nodded, the staff member went inside and brought the suit.

Soohyuk took the suit and approached Jingyeom, who was looking at another suit.

“Try this on.”

“…Me?”

“Yes. If it looks good on you, I’ll buy it.”

Jingyeom, who had received the suit unexpectedly, tilted his head in confusion.

Shouldn’t you buy it if it looks good on you, not someone else?

What difference does it make if someone else tries it on?

“Hurry.”

Jingyeom, pushed by Soohyuk’s hand, had no choice but to go into the fitting room.

Even as he changed clothes in the narrow fitting room, he couldn’t shake the thought, “Why me?”

But he diligently changed into the suit.

He straightened the suit properly and buttoned it up well.

There was no mirror in the fitting room, so he couldn’t see himself, but with his pretty face, it was clear that everything would look good on him.

“Hey…”

Jingyeom called out to Soohyuk, who was staring intently at him as he came out of the fitting room.

From the moment Jingyeom stepped out, Soohyuk had been staring at him without even blinking.

Maybe he wasn’t answering because he was too focused?

“Director?”

“…”

“Director!”

“Oh? Oh…”

Soohyuk covered his mouth with his hand and looked away slightly.

‘He looks unnecessarily good. Maybe because his skin is so fair?’

Although he expected it, it was almost annoyingly perfect.

The suit looked like it was made for Jingyeom.

Every time they met, Soohyuk couldn’t help but praise his fashion sense.

Baek Jingyeom’s appearance was undeniably beautiful.

But this was the first time he felt like this.

He turned his head because he couldn’t bear to look any longer.

If he kept looking, he might reach out unconsciously.

‘Is this a bit dangerous?’

Soohyuk closed his eyes tightly and then opened them again.

He suddenly felt that this was inappropriate.

‘I’ve been holding back a lot lately, so my mind is wandering.’

Because he was living in Mr. Tak’s house, he had inadvertently been living a restrained life, which must have affected his body.

Seeing Soohyuk turn his head, Jingyeom wondered if something was wrong, so he turned around and looked in the mirror on the fitting room door. It was as he expected. It looked really good.

Although he was wearing the clothes, he should have been looking at the suit, but Jingyeom lifted his chin and turned his face from side to side.

He didn’t look at his face much except when washing, but it always made him smile involuntarily when he did.

He was very satisfied with his new body.

Soohyuk’s reflection in the mirror showed he was still covering his mouth.

“Don’t you like it?”

“…”

“You must not like it…”

When Soohyuk didn’t respond, Jingyeom, who had felt good because the suit looked great, quickly became sullen.

“…I’ll change back.”

After changing back into his clothes, he handed the suit to the staff member.

Then he approached Soohyuk, who was now sitting on the sofa in front of the fitting room.

“If you didn’t like it, why did you make me try it on?”

He sounded a bit grumpy without realizing it.

“…It’s not that. …I was actually surprised at how good it looked.”

“Did it really look good? Your expression didn’t show that…”

Jingyeom thought Soohyuk had turned his head because he didn’t like what he saw.

Shopping continued after that.

Soohyuk, who said he was buying for himself, kept asking Jingyeom to try things on.

At first, Jingyeom found it annoying, but every time he tried on new clothes and looked in the mirror, he couldn’t help but smile at his handsome reflection.

Moreover, remembering that Soohyuk had no friends, he willingly tried on the clothes.

Thus, their hands gradually filled with shopping bags. They finished shopping only after buying everything from head to toe.

Shopping was enjoyable. Even yesterday, while organizing shoes, he had discreetly set aside the ones he really liked.

‘Oh… I need to post these on Carrot Market.’

I need to upload the mountain of shoes onto the app.

Moreover, since most of them are branded, I need to check and understand their retail prices.

I felt like I didn’t have time for this.

While it was nice to go shopping for Soohyuk, who had no friends, I had things to do myself now.

I was no longer just an idle bum. Of course, it was all collected by Baek Jingyeom with difficulty, but for now, since I was here, I decided not to think about the consequences.

I wondered when I’d be able to go home, trailing after Soohyuk, when I started feeling hungry.

I had only a bit of breakfast because hospital food was unappetizing, and walking around made me even hungrier.

As Jingyeom rubbed his belly, the phone he had put in his pocket rang.

“Hello.”

― Hyung, where are you? You said to send a picture when you got a taxi. Did you arrive home?

Jinwoo’s urgent voice made Jingyeom’s mouth open slightly before he closed it again. He had completely forgotten to contact him after being dragged to the department store so suddenly.

Jingyeom covered the phone with his hand, bowed slightly to Soohyuk, and moved to a secluded spot.

― Hyung?

“Ah, sorry. I forgot to contact you.”

― Haah… Where are you now? Home?

“No. At the department store.”

― ……

As Jinwoo suddenly went silent, Jingyeom called out to him.

“Jinwoo?”

― Yeah…

“Sorry for not contacting you. I got dragged here suddenly, so I was a bit out of it.”

― Dragged by who? Hyung, who are you with now?

Just as he was about to say he was with Soohyuk.

“I’m with him.”

“What?”

“I’ll feed him lunch and take him home safely. Don’t worry, just focus on dealing with Mr. Tak. If he finds out you called during work hours, he’ll freak out.”

Soohyuk, who had approached unnoticed, snatched the phone and cut the call after saying his piece.

Jingyeom looked up at Soohyuk with a baffled expression.

“What are you doing? Give it back!”

“I will. Later.”

As the phone started ringing again, Soohyuk rejected the call and turned it off, then put it in his suit pocket.

Jingyeom, bewildered, reached out to get it back, but Soohyuk grabbed his arm and pulled him along.

With both hands occupied by bags, Jingyeom couldn’t put up a proper resistance and was dragged along, frowning and straining his legs.

But it didn’t stop him. Instead, he slid across the shiny department store floor in that state.

“I’m not stealing it. What would I do with a phone like this? I’m hungry from all the walking. I’ll give it back after we eat.”

“…”

“I mean it. I’ll give it back after we eat. I don’t have anyone to eat with, and if you leave after I give it back, I’ll have to eat alone.”

“I’ll eat with you, so give me the phone. Jinwoo will be worried if you hang up like that.”

When Jingyeom mentioned Jinwoo’s worry, Soohyuk let out a small laugh and stopped walking.

Indeed, his actions today had been impulsive.

The sight he saw yesterday had lingered in his mind all night. He was curious.

He visited the hospital to check and, since he happened to be discharged, he used shopping as an excuse to come here.

Baek Jinwoo, who disturbed the emotionless Tak Wonbeom. And his brother, Baek Jingyeom.

They seemed to bring a small amount of life into his dull life, so he stuck around.

So, he didn’t plan to let him go for now. He wanted to have some more fun.

He had found something interesting after a long time and didn’t want to let it go just yet.