Yoon Jooho pressed his lips firmly against Song Hyunsoo’s, then slipped his tongue inside Hyunsoo’s upper lip.
The sudden, cool touch of his tongue-tip startled Song Hyunsoo, eyes flying open.
But Yoon Jooho didn’t close his eyes either; he looked down at Hyunsoo, gaze steady.
Jooho’s tongue traced along the inner lining behind Hyunsoo’s upper lip.
The unbearably ticklish sensation made Hyunsoo gasp and part his lips, and this time, Jooho’s tongue slid even deeper inside without hesitation.
The feeling of Jooho’s tongue rubbing against his, filling his mouth completely, was enough to snap something in Hyunsoo’s mind.
There was no need to pretend otherwise.
No need to ask why, to push him away or refuse.
That would have been the awkward thing.
Jooho’s hand, which had been covering the back of Hyunsoo’s left hand, slid between his fingers and tightened, squeezing hard. Hyunsoo gripped his fingers in return, tangling his tongue with Jooho’s.
“Mm…”
A low, elastic moan resonated from deep within his throat.
Jooho guided Hyunsoo’s interlocked left hand up to wrap around his neck.
Their bodies turned naturally, and the moment they faced each other fully, Hyunsoo was pushed back against the floor-to-ceiling window with a loud crash.
“Mm!”
A dull pain ran up his back from the rough impact, but it didn’t matter.
From that moment on, they clung to each other, mindlessly desperate.
Lips parted to take in the other, savoring the slick touch of their tongues and the taste of each other’s saliva.
The kiss was fierce, almost suffocating. Jooho pressed his entire body into Hyunsoo, as if pouring all his desires into him.
Unlike young boys and girls, neither closed their eyes tightly.
While savoring the way Jooho’s eyes curled beneath long lashes, Hyunsoo realized that meeting eyes in the middle of a kiss was just as much an act of secret possession.
Right now, he was kissing Yoon Jooho.
To stay conscious of that, he needed to keep looking at the man before him.
In Jooho’s eyes, Hyunsoo pictured the city lights sprawling far below, eighty-one stories down behind his back. The dizzying height sent a chill through him, making his neck shrink.
“Hh, mm…”
Clinging tighter, Hyunsoo wrapped his arm more firmly around Jooho’s neck as Jooho sucked on his upper lip hard enough to make it go numb.
Jooho’s hand, which had slipped under Hyunsoo’s jacket and was wrapped around his waist over his shirt, tightened its grip.
“Mm. Mm…”
The way Jooho’s tongue rolled atop his, stimulating the flesh behind his upper lip, rattled his senses.
Hyunsoo had to struggle not to imagine Jooho’s arousal pressed against his lower abdomen.
He was certain. Jooho must have been feeling the same.
It felt as if both Hyunsoo and Jooho had sensed it all along, somewhere deep down. That this was bound to happen, sooner or later.
Jooho, who had been pressing Hyunsoo against the glass as if he might throw him out the window, gradually relaxed his grip.
As the lingering excitement faded into shallow breaths, Jooho’s tongue slipped gently from Hyunsoo’s mouth.
Once their breathing had almost returned to normal, Jooho rested his forehead on Hyunsoo’s right shoulder and let out a long sigh.
As the heat of the kiss began to cool, Hyunsoo felt awkward with his arm still draped around Jooho’s neck.
He hesitated, then lowered his arm, prompting Jooho to lift his head and tilt Hyunsoo’s chin upward.
Jooho studied the face in his hand for a long moment.
“I just can’t figure you out.”
The flush of the kiss still colored his breath. Each word came with a light, panting sigh that tickled Hyunsoo’s upper lip and cheek.
“W-What do you mean?”
“Wondering if your tastes have changed.”
“You should have thought about that before you kissed me…”
Jooho’s thumb tugged Hyunsoo’s lower lip down, playing with the plump lips as if fascinated by how different they were from his own.
When Hyunsoo glared and pushed his arm away, Jooho finally let go with a small laugh.
“I left some lip gloss out on the table over there. Put some on.”
Jooho straightened his clothes, disheveled from their passionate kiss, using the reflection in the glass behind Hyunsoo.
For some reason, seeing that made Hyunsoo want to jump him all over again.
“Come out when your face calms down.”
“What’s wrong with my face?”
Hyunsoo instinctively raised a hand to his cheek.
But Jooho just laughed, lightly tapping Hyunsoo’s forehead with his palm.
Jooho walked over to the sofa, threw on his jacket, and left the room first. Left alone, still leaning against the window, Hyunsoo bit down on his lower lip. Jooho’s touch lingered there, from how thoroughly he had kissed, sucked, and nipped at him.
He straightened up, then paused, catching his reflection in the glass for a moment. He had no idea what Jooho had seen in his face, but a sharp intuition flashed through him.
Somehow, tonight, he was going to sleep with Yoon Jooho.
■
After the party, Hyunsoo followed Yoon Jooho down to the underground parking lot, where a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter was waiting.
It was a different model from the car that had taken him to the hotel earlier.
Jooho acted as if it had been decided from the start that Hyunsoo would come along, naturally leading him to the parking lot.
11 p.m.
The party had lasted five hours, but for a superstar like Yoon Jooho, it seemed too early to call it a night.
Many of the guests were already teaming up to find a second venue. But Jooho turned down every invitation.
As the vehicle left the parking lot and merged onto the road, Hyunsoo glanced sideways and spoke.
“I thought you’d go out for round two with your friends.”
“Friends?”
Jooho echoed, searching for his pack of cigarettes. He pulled one out, placed it between his lips, and snorted.
“We’re not kids. Just because they came to my birthday party doesn’t mean they’re all friends.”
He lit his cigarette, then shook the pack at Hyunsoo, as if asking if he wanted one.
When Hyunsoo nodded, instead of handing over the whole pack, Jooho took out a single cigarette and passed it to him. Leaning over, he offered the lighter, the gesture clear.
Hyunsoo almost refused, wanting to do it himself, but realized that would be even more awkward. He simply brought the tip of the cigarette to the flame.
The blatant gaze on his profile was hotter than the fire, but Hyunsoo pretended not to notice.
Jooho leaned back against the headrest, took a deep drag, then turned to Hyunsoo.
“You said you’d make me a cocktail at home. And you thought I’d go out for round two?”
“I didn’t mean you should go. I just thought you would.”
“You made Jung Sungwon a ‘Kiss of Fire,’ didn’t you? Not just a kiss, but a Kiss. Of. Fire.”
He’d forgotten. Jooho really could hold a grudge.
“You said I was jealous, but you were jealous too, weren’t you?”
It was a brave thing for Hyunsoo to say.
“Jealous?”
As if he’d never heard the word before, Jooho frowned and repeated it, then shook his head as he brought the filter to his lips.
“I just hated seeing you joke around with someone I can’t stand. Doesn’t mean I was jealous.”
“Pretty sure that’s what jealousy is.”
“It just means I really hate Jung Sungwon.”
Fine, let’s go with that. Pretend he’s someone who never gets jealous. That’s part of his charm, anyway.
But he can’t control what I think.
Even if he doesn’t realize it, I know. That was jealousy.
The Sprinter, so massive it could be called a moving house, turned wide at the Jamsil Station Intersection and headed toward Olympic-ro. Gazing out at the night view, Hyunsoo took a deeper drag than usual.
If he went to Jooho’s place like this, something was bound to happen. Whether it was anticipation or anxiety, Hyunsoo smoked in silence for a while before flicking the ash and speaking up.
“I didn’t know you were into men, sunbae.”
As soon as he said it, Hyunsoo realized why Jooho had bothered to change cars for the ride home.
This car had a full partition installed between the front row and the two rows behind. The privacy glass was tinted black, guaranteeing perfect seclusion. Whatever happened or was said in the back, the driver would never know.
Maybe Jooho had chosen this car just to talk comfortably. It wasn’t an important thought, but Hyunsoo clung to it like a lifeline.
Jooho pointed at his own face with the hand holding his cigarette.
“Do I look like someone who worries about that sort of thing?”
“……”
No. Not at all. He looked like someone who could charm anyone, regardless of gender or age.
“What if I’d freaked out and slapped you? Why did you kiss me without even asking?”
Jooho let out a soft chuckle. Resting his elbow on the armrest, he took a long drag, exhaled, and spoke quietly.
“There are plenty of male juniors who admire and look up to me as just another guy. I know exactly how they look at me.”
“……”
“But the way you look at me is different.”
Lowering his head, Jooho tapped the ash into the portable tray and added,
“I wasn’t sure at first, since you didn’t have that look men who want to be held by another man have…”
Still not raising his head, Jooho rubbed the back of his neck as if to loosen a kink.
The way he turned his chin toward Hyunsoo, his eyes hungry despite the gentle tone, reminded Hyunsoo of their kiss just moments ago.