* * *

Soohyuk stared at Jingyeom’s face for a moment before raising one corner of his mouth.

“You need to gain some weight. Your cheeks look better when they’re fuller.”

Jingyeom’s face had swelled a bit, making him look like he had gained some weight. As Soohyuk admired this, a sharp voice forced him to look away.

“Could you move over? You’re squishing my arm.”

“How about Baek Secretary moving his arm?”

“I had my arm here first.”

“No thoughts of moving aside for a later guest, huh?”

Jinwoo raised an eyebrow as if Soohyuk had asked something obvious.

Ignoring the bickering, Jingyeom turned his head toward Wonbeom, who had been standing like a statue.

“Director, you came to visit me too, right?”

“…”

“I heard you’ve been visiting every day. …Thank you.”

This was what Hoonil had told him. He had recounted everything that had happened in the past week to Jinwoo, who had been too preoccupied to notice.

There wasn’t much to tell, but he mentioned how Jinwoo had practically lived in the hallway outside the ICU, how Soohyuk and Wonbeom visited daily, how they brought porridge when Jinwoo didn’t eat properly, and even moved him when he collapsed from exhaustion.

Hearing this made Jingyeom feel a warmth in his chest. He scratched the center of his chest absentmindedly.

Receiving someone’s care and love felt like this, he realized.

Even though Soohyuk was making playful comments, his eyes were filled with concern, a fact that became clearer after hearing Hoonil’s account.

He sensed the same from Wonbeom.

“You probably came straight from work. Aren’t you hungry? I heard there’s a good restaurant near the hospital. How about the three of you go together?”

Jingyeom genuinely suggested they go eat, but all three reacted negatively.

“Not hungry.”

“I don’t usually eat dinner.”

“…”

Jingyeom rolled his eyes and nodded briefly, telling them to do as they pleased.

He had hoped to avoid conflict among the three, but now he knew it was pointless.

Even without him, they would meet at work, and now they were seeing each other more often because of him.

If he weren’t hospitalized, their encounters would have been limited to the office.

As Jingyeom mulled over these thoughts, he suddenly remembered something and lightly patted Jinwoo’s back.

“You! Haven’t you been skipping work?”

“Ah… Hyung.”

Jinwoo averted his gaze, mumbling.

Jingyeom had been oddly fixated on Jinwoo going to work and tried to make him go by any means necessary, as if it were his mission.

When Jinwoo pretended not to hear, Jingyeom grabbed his cheeks and lifted his face.

“If you haven’t gone to work for a week, aren’t you fired?”

Jinwoo’s lips curled into a smile at the sight of the stern expression, which looked more cute than intimidating.

Jingyeom’s brow and nose wrinkled further at the sound. He was clearly displeased.

When Jinwoo didn’t respond, Jingyeom turned his head sharply to look at Wonbeom.

“Director, did Jinwoo… get fired?”

“No, he didn’t.”

“Thank goodness…”

A deep sigh of relief escaped him.

In ‘Gray,’ Jinwoo had never skipped work without permission. This incident was purely due to his own collapse.

Currently, Jinwoo’s salary was being used to pay off debts and cover living expenses.

If he didn’t work, they would be in trouble next month. Jinwoo knew this, which is why he had been working so hard.

Jinwoo taking a week off work was indeed a serious matter. He had no excuse if he were to be fired.

But Wonbeom had said he didn’t fire Jinwoo.

‘He must really like Jinwoo…’

He felt once again how much Wonbeom supported Jinwoo, even covering his medical expenses and understanding so much about him.

Soohyuk, watching from the side, also suppressed a laugh at Jingyeom’s behavior.

Wonbeom approached the bed with a slight smile. The sound of his shoes echoed on the hospital floor.

In front was Jinwoo, and to the side was Soohyuk.

There was no space for Jingyeom to be closer. It was frustrating.

Wonbeom walked past Jinwoo and squeezed into the bed beside Jingyeom.

Had Jingyeom not been in the center of the bed, Wonbeom might have had to squeeze in even more.

Soohyuk burst out laughing at the sudden action.

“Hahaha!”

Jinwoo tensed his arms, pressed between the two.

If he withdrew, the two would be too close to Jingyeom.

“How can you sit with such a big build on either side of me? Both of you, go to the sofa. Why are you crowding here when there’s so much space over there…!”

Jingyeom, caught between the two men, looked silently at Wonbeom beside him.

He could hear Soohyuk’s loud laughter and feel the determined effort of the arm beside him to create space.

Jingyeom was swept up in the lively energy and smiled broadly, showing his teeth.

“Being together like this feels nice.”

His voice was very soft. No one reacted, but everyone heard him clearly.

Wonbeom, hesitating as if deciding whether to move his fingers, eventually placed his hand on the back of Jingyeom’s head.

His hand seemed to cover Jingyeom’s entire head, whether it was because his hand was large or Jingyeom’s head was small.

“Secretary Baek has been absent for a week without notice.”

“…You said you didn’t fire him?”

“I haven’t fired him yet. I didn’t say I wouldn’t in the future.”

Jingyeom’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected answer, and he grabbed Jinwoo’s clothes, shaking him.

“Start work again from tomorrow!”

“Let me stay with you a little longer.”

“What if you get fired? I want to support you, but… I don’t have any money…”

Soohyuk laughed again at the gradually diminishing voice.

What could he possibly be thinking with that small head of his?

There weren’t many people who could make him laugh like this, and he thought they were an impressive pair of brothers.

Despite Soohyuk’s laughter, Jingyeom remained serious.

“…Will Jinwoo get fired? He won’t, right, Director?”

“Why do you think I won’t fire him?”

“Uh… Uh…”

Jingyeom hurriedly added a reason to his repeated words.

“Because it’s hard to find a competent secretary like Jinwoo!”

As he shouted with clenched fists, Soohyuk fell onto the bed, chuckling.

Jingyeom’s desperate attempt to prevent Jinwoo’s resignation was too amusing.

Wonbeom also slightly smiled.

Jinwoo was indeed good at his job. He learned quickly from Secretary Yang and was very motivated to work.

Specifically, he was motivated to earn money.

“That competent secretary needs an assistant because he’s too busy.”

At the word “assistant,” Jinwoo, who had been listening quietly, reacted.

“Assistant? You said you didn’t want too many people when I asked for more staff.”

“I did.”

Wonbeom’s hand, still on Jingyeom’s head, moved awkwardly.

He seemed to be trying to pat him but ended up just tapping.

Jingyeom’s head bobbed forward as his posture slumped.

“So, considering you got fired from the café, work at my company.”

“…Are you talking to me?”

“Yes.”

If that was all he had to say, he withdrew his hand.

Jingyeom, who had unknowingly offered his head, widened his eyes and looked up.

“Are you hiring me? As a secretary?”

“Not a secretary, an assistant.”

Jingyeom, who didn’t understand the difference, just brightened up at the word “hiring.”

Seeing those sparkling eyes, Wonbeom cleared his throat.

Faced with those moist eyes, he thought he should have said it sooner.

Whether it was because there were no fitting hospital clothes or because he was too thin, his frail body showed through the loose clothes.

A pale face with only his lips red.

‘Nothing has changed.’

It was a face he hoped never to see again. The only differences were a slight swelling and a constant smile.

These small changes made him seem like a completely different person.

Jingyeom felt that the sharp look in Wonbeom’s eyes seemed a bit warmer.

They no longer emitted a cold, murderous aura.

“So, am I becoming the Director’s secretary?”

“You’re becoming my secretary’s assistant, not my secretary. I said I don’t like repeating myself. Don’t you understand? If not, hiring you will be…”

“No! I understand completely!”

Afraid Wonbeom might retract his offer, Jingyeom quickly shook his head, straightening his back.

“So, when can I start? Can I start tomorrow?”

“Brother.”

“…What?”

His eager voice fell silent in an instant.

Jinwoo felt the strength leave Jingyeom’s hand on his shoulder.

He seemed to guess what Jinwoo was about to say.

Jinwoo unclasped his hands and placed them on his thin thighs, making eye contact.

“You promised me earlier.”

“I did, but…”

“You can always work later. You know that, right? Right now, you need to focus on your health. Okay?”

Though his voice was calm and soothing, it carried a firm undertone.

Jingyeom’s hand dropped. He rubbed Jinwoo’s hand on his thigh, feeling the bones and veins.

“…But we can be together. Isn’t that better? We can go to work together and come home together…”

* * *