A Contracted Gangster Who Has to Die to Survive - Chapter 57

Standing in front of the sink, Woo Kyung stared blankly at his reflection in the mirror.

His face, streaked with dried mud, wore an expression that felt unfamiliar, almost foreign.

“I look even worse than usual today.”

He forced a smile, stretching his lips awkwardly, then furrowed his brows in a mock display of anger.

Just then, Taejoon’s reflection appeared in the mirror, abruptly filling Woo Kyung’s vision.

“Ugh.”

Startled, he instinctively shut his eyes tight. When he opened them again, his own face was still there—but his heartbeat had yet to settle.

“Ha….”

Thud. Thud. Thud.

His heart pounded so violently it seemed to echo through his entire body.

One by one, memories of Taejoon surfaced—the weight of his gaze, the steady timbre of his voice, and the subtle curve of his lips when he smiled.

Woo Kyung reached out, tracing a smiling shape onto the fogged mirror with his fingertip.

For a fleeting moment, it almost felt as if Taejoon was smiling back at him.

“…Get a grip, Woo Kyung.”

With a deep breath, he ran a hand down the back of his neck before stepping into the shower.

The hot water washed away the grime, and slipping into fresh, dry clothes made him feel infinitely better.

Left with nothing to do, he wandered aimlessly around the room, occasionally glancing toward the bathroom door where Taejoon was still showering. Eventually, he gave up and sat down to wait.

“…….”

But Taejoon showed no signs of coming out anytime soon.

Bored, Woo Kyung perched on the very edge of the sofa, staying in a position that would allow him to spring up at a moment’s notice.

Before he realized it, he was yawning, his stiff posture gradually relaxing.

The low hum of the air conditioning, the dim lighting, the soothing warmth lingering from his bath—everything made him drowsy.

Maybe just a little nap…?

Taejoon had said he wouldn’t take long, but at this rate, he might have fallen asleep in the shower.

The leather couch was soft, and the cool air gently countered the residual heat from his bath, making it even harder to fight off the sleep creeping in.

Even rubbing his eyes and forcing himself to sit upright did little to help.

He had dozed off like this once before—he couldn’t let it happen again.

He was determined to stay awake. Absolutely.

But at some point, exhaustion overtook him.

He vaguely remembered shivering, mumbling something about being cold.

And then… something warm and soft draped over his shoulders.

Still half-asleep, he fumbled at whatever had covered him. His fingers brushed against the smooth fabric of a blanket.

“Mmm.”

Groggily, he pulled it higher, burying his face into the warmth beneath him.

It felt a little too firm to be a cushion—was he leaning against the armrest?

Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around it, tugging it closer.

“That’s not something you should be touching.”

“……!”

“Just relax and sleep properly.”

A familiar voice rumbled above him.

His half-asleep mind struggled to process the situation.

Then—

“Why don’t you move to the bed?”

Taejoon?

Woo Kyung’s eyes snapped open in an instant.

Instead of the couch’s armrest, he found himself curled up against Taejoon’s thigh.

And the thing he had been absentmindedly reaching for?

The inside of Taejoon’s leg.

“…!”

“Stop pretending to be asleep. I know you’re awake.”

Slowly, Woo Kyung nodded.

But the shock left him frozen in place. Had he really fallen asleep on Taejoon’s lap?

His entire body stiffened as Taejoon’s voice, quieter this time, reached him.

“You were tossing and turning a lot. Were you uncomfortable?”

Panic surged through him as he scrambled upright, limbs flailing.

“D-did I say anything in my sleep?”

If he had muttered anything weird, he was going to jump out the window.

“Did you sleep well?”

Taejoon sat casually, now fully dressed, a tablet in his hands as he looked at him.

“…You sounded like you were singing.”

“S-singing?”

That wasn’t as bad as he had feared.

His brain was now fully awake, but his body felt sluggish, as if it was still struggling to catch up. It was a strange sensation—his thoughts racing ahead while his limbs lagged behind.

“S-sorry about that.”

He stammered, pushing himself up in a daze.

Taejoon set his tablet down on the table and studied him.

“You look much better now.”

Now that he mentioned it, Woo Kyung realized he felt significantly more rested.

Lately, nightmares had been plaguing him, but for the first time in a while, he had slept deeply. Even the dull ache in his shoulders was gone, leaving his mind clear and refreshed.

“But… when exactly did I end up using your lap as a pillow?”

Taejoon glanced at his watch.

“Three minutes ago.”

“Oh. That’s not too—”

“Three minutes and one hour.”

“…What?”

“You were there for a full hour and three minutes.”

Woo Kyung stared at Taejoon in disbelief, but Taejoon simply shrugged and gestured toward the tablet resting on the table.

“I even read through Director Kim’s report three times. It’s already boring as hell—reading it once is bad enough.”

“Ah….”

And there was more evidence.

A glaringly obvious stain of drool on Taejoon’s pants.

And another one at the corner of Woo Kyung’s own mouth.

What kind of lunatic falls asleep like that?!

“Y-you should have woken me up!”

Flustered, Woo Kyung frantically wiped at the spot on Taejoon’s thigh with his palm. Of course, the moisture had long since seeped into the fabric, but he needed to do something—anything—to ease the unbearable awkwardness.

“I did. You didn’t wake up.”

Lies! Woo Kyung wasn’t a heavy sleeper—there was no way he hadn’t stirred. Judging by the blanket Taejoon had placed over him, he had probably been allowed to sleep.

Just as Woo Kyung opened his mouth to protest, Taejoon spoke first, frowning slightly.

“I can’t feel my leg.”

“…What?”

Still expressionless, Taejoon glanced down at his thigh.

“After sitting in the same position for ‘one hour’ and three minutes, my leg’s completely numb.”

“Are you serious? I’m so sorry!”

There was emphasis on one hour—he was clearly making a point.

“Feels like it’s going completely numb.”

“N-numb?!”

Woo Kyung’s jaw practically hit the floor. In a panic, he pressed both hands against Taejoon’s thigh, kneading it firmly.

“Massaging it should help. This is kind of my specialty.”

Taejoon’s thigh was rock solid.

If he wasn’t tensing it on purpose, then it had to be a severe cramp.

Woo Kyung focused all his energy on loosening the muscle, but from Taejoon’s perspective, it probably felt more like gentle petting than an actual massage.

“You need to relax your leg.”

“I am relaxed.”

“R-right….”

“I’m not tensing up at all.”

Woo Kyung wasn’t convinced. It felt like Taejoon was putting all his strength into his thigh.

“Woo Kyung.”

“Yes?”

When Woo Kyung looked up, Taejoon was resting his chin on one hand, gazing at him with an unreadable expression. His half-lidded eyes and faint smile made it seem like he was both amused and toying with him.

“You can stop now.”

“Oh, is your leg better?”

“No, but unless you’re planning to take responsibility, you should stop.”

His gaze flickered downward for the briefest moment before returning to Woo Kyung’s face.

It wasn’t hard to figure out what he meant.

Woo Kyung swallowed dryly.

Maybe it was Taejoon’s low, languid voice. Maybe it was the warm, dim lighting of the hotel room.

But somehow, Taejoon’s presence felt far more intense than usual.

“Ahaha… you’re joking.”

Awkwardly laughing, Woo Kyung quickly pulled his hands away and scooted back on his knees, wiping his sweaty palms on his own thighs.

Maybe he should just stop trying.

There were days like this—when everything seemed to spiral out of control no matter what he did.

Today was clearly one of those days.

“You spent all that time touching me—where do you think you’re going?”

“T-touching?! It was just a little!”

When Woo Kyung dared to look up, he found a rare sight—Taejoon was smiling.

And for the life of him, Woo Kyung couldn’t figure out why.

“I-I’ll go get you a change of clothes.”

“Leave it. It’s just a little drool.”

“But—”

“If I change, I’ll have to swap out my jacket, shirt, and tie too.”

“Then… I’ll just hurry and go meet my siblings. You can stay here and rest.”

Taejoon’s smooth forehead creased slightly, as if displeased by the suggestion.

“I’m not letting you go alone.”

“Why not?”

“It’s too late for that.”

Without further discussion, Taejoon stood and began getting ready to leave.

Wait a minute.

Hadn’t he just complained about his leg being numb? About being unable to feel it?

Yet now he was walking around just fine.

“Is your leg okay?”

“Yeah.”

“So that ‘one hour and three minutes’ was a lie, wasn’t it?”

“It was the truth.”

“Then why does it sound like it’s increasing every time you say it?”

“Because it was actually two hours and three minutes.”

“…Why is the time getting longer?!”

Instead of answering, Taejoon grabbed the hat from the sofa and firmly pulled it down over Woo Kyung’s head.

“…….”

“It suits you.”

Woo Kyung let out a resigned chuckle, adjusting the brim with a sigh.

“My sister used to say the same thing. That I looked better with my face covered.”

“She probably just didn’t want to share her handsome younger brother with the world.”

“You obviously don’t know my sister. She used to tease me all the time about being ugly.”

“If she thought that, then she clearly needed her eyes checked.”

The words came so casually that Woo Kyung almost missed their weight.

His lips parted slightly, but then he quickly shut them.

Right.

There had never been a sister in Woo Kyung’s original backstory.

That had been his slip-up.

Thankfully, Taejoon didn’t press the issue.

Lowering the brim of his hat slightly, Woo Kyung studied him.

“Let’s go together.”

“But—”

“I’d rather go with you than sit here worrying about sending you out alone at this hour.”

Director Kim had warned Woo Kyung—if anything happened to Taejoon, it was his responsibility to protect him.

And yet, Taejoon was the one worrying about him.

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