Good Night, Brother! - Chapter 13.2

“Not telling.”

Typical, secretive Yi Hyeon. He glanced at the bookstore bag resting on the empty stool beside them and asked, “Is this my gift?”

“Uh-huh…”

Knowing the gift was too modest and lacked effort, Eun Hyun’s response came out small. He felt like a student presenting half-hearted homework to a teacher.

“Can I open it?”

“Oh, um, yeah.”

With a look full of anticipation, Yi Hyeon placed the paper bag on the table and carefully began taking out the poetry books. His movements were so delicate, it was as though he was handling something fragile. One by one, he laid the books on the table, his eyes growing wider with each one.

By the time he set down the fifth and final book, his face brimmed with amazement as he exclaimed, “Wow… Hyung, you’re really something.”

“Huh? Why?”

A flicker of hope crossed Eun Hyun’s face. Maybe these were books he wanted, he thought. If that were the case, perhaps it would ease his guilt. But Yi Hyeon’s next words shattered that hope.

“How did you manage to pick out only the ones I already have?”

“…”

“Seriously, that’s not easy to do,” Yi Hyeon added, tilting his head as if genuinely impressed.

Eun Hyun wanted to crawl into a hole. Realizing that his brother had likely figured everything out, he decided to confess.

“Yi Hyeon, I swear, I remembered your birthday up until a few days ago. Really, I did. But you know how busy I’ve been lately, right?”

“Yeah, I know.”

“…I’m really sorry for forgetting your birthday.”

“It’s fine,” Yi Hyeon replied with a shrug, easily accepting the apology.

Standing up, he moved behind Eun Hyun and bent down to wrap his arms around his older brother’s shoulders. In a gentle voice, he whispered into Eun Hyun’s ear, “Hyung, you’re my birthday present.”

At first, the words sounded impossibly romantic. But the lips pressed against his earlobe and the warm breath tickling his ear carried a hint of mischief. It was a dangerous forewarning. Simultaneously, Yi Hyeon’s hands began undoing the buttons of Eun Hyun’s shirt, one by one.

Realizing the shift in atmosphere, Eun Hyun asked, “What are you doing?”

“Aren’t you my birthday present, Hyung? Huh?”

The tender tone didn’t sound like a question at all. Before Eun Hyun could react, the last button was undone, and his shirt hung loosely, caught only on his arms since he was sitting upright. The cool air brushing against his skin made him shiver slightly.

“Raise your arms, Hyung.”

The request was spoken so sweetly. Still, Eun Hyun hesitated and asked, “What are you going to do if I raise them?”

“You’re home now. Don’t you think you should take off the clothes you wore outside?”

The lips brushing against his ear felt so hot, they might leave a burn. Refusing to give up his shirt, Eun Hyun crossed his arms stubbornly. Yi Hyeon found his older brother’s futile resistance endearing, even though the unbuttoned shirt already exposed much of his skin.

Leaning his face against Eun Hyun’s bare shoulder, Yi Hyeon began speaking again, his words punctuated by the soft movements of his jaw pressing against the thin skin.

“Do you remember how you used to handle my birthdays, Hyung?”

“Uh…?”

It was true. Every year, Yi Hyeon would ask for whatever gift Eun Hyun wanted to give him, but Eun Hyun always handed him cash instead, brushing the request aside. Even a single piece of candy or a stone picked up off the ground would have made Yi Hyeon happy. What he really wanted was something his brother had picked out for him with care.

Each time he was disappointed, Yi Hyeon would quietly “replace” his gift by secretly taking something of Eun Hyun’s. A toy he no longer played with, a shirt he’d outgrown, or even a half-used eraser tucked in a drawer. Yi Hyeon cherished them as if they were precious treasures. Of course, the way he “cherished” them often strayed far from ordinary.

Recalling those memories, Yi Hyeon’s voice grew soft and melancholic as he continued, “This year, I thought I’d finally get a real birthday present from you…”

The emphasis on real tugged at Eun Hyun’s heartstrings.

“I’m really hurt.”

“……”

By now, Eun Hyun could sense some of Yi Hyeon’s pheromones and realized that the sadness in his voice was genuine.

“I’m so hurt…”

“Fine! I’ll be your birthday present!” Eun Hyun blurted, overwhelmed by guilt and the pressure of the moment.

“Really?”

Even without seeing his face, Eun Hyun could tell from the way Yi Hyeon’s jaw moved that he was grinning from ear to ear.

“Then today, you’re mine, right?”

Today? There were barely two hours left of his birthday. Sighing, Eun Hyun replied, “Do what you want…”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the shirt slid off his arms, leaving him bare. Yi Hyeon’s voice, brimming with excitement, whispered into his ear.

“Since you’re mine today, you’ll do everything I tell you to, right?”

“……”

The ominous feeling that had been growing in Eun Hyun’s chest only deepened.

“Shall we start with the cake?”

Approaching the table, Yi Hyeon picked up a strawberry perched on the cake and held it to Eun Hyun’s lips. When Eun Hyun didn’t immediately open his mouth, Yi Hyeon urged, “Hyung, you like strawberries, don’t you? Come on.”

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