Harmonious Love

First Kiss (1)

***

Fortunately, the presentation preparation went much more smoothly than expected. Of course, this was partly due to Mo Yeon refusing to enter Tae Young-won’s house on days when he was working on the assignment.

And Mo Yeon got a new pair of glasses.

“Are you just going to wear those as they are?”

“Yes.”

“Should I buy you new ones?”

Mo Yeon shook his head. The glasses were practically new anyway, and he didn’t particularly want to receive new ones.

In fact, it was the first time he had received a gift from someone else. He couldn’t help but want to cherish it.

Tae Young-won seemed to know this fact too, though he might have interpreted it a bit differently.

“Ah, something doesn’t feel right.”

So Tae Young-won was interpreting Mo Yeon’s willingness to accept his glasses and wear them every day in his own way. For example, he mostly had misconceptions like Mo Yeon greatly trusting his taste, or surprisingly wanting to wear pretty clothes.

Since it was presentation day, he made Mo Yeon wear various clothes he had bought, saying he should dress nicely, and kept commenting on them while Mo Yeon was eating.

“Mo Yeon’s charm is that he looks a bit gloomy, but this just makes him look cute.”

Moreover, Tae Young-won had a strange way of giving compliments.

“You said seeing me around makes you feel gloomy and lose your appetite.”

“When did I say that?”

“I think you said that when I was following you around last time, sunbae.”

Tae Young-won rested his chin on his hand and stared at Mo Yeon.

“That’s right. You were kind of like that.”

“What…”

Mo Yeon picked up the spoon he had put down. Tae Young-won had called him early, saying various preparations were needed before the afternoon presentation, but in the end, what he made Mo Yeon do was a fashion show.

He knew that Tae Young-won, unlike himself, was very interested in appearance, but he didn’t know he was also interested in dressing up others. However, what was a bit irritating was that Tae Young-won bought clothes for him in styles he wouldn’t wear himself. Even now, Mo Yeon was wearing light blue jeans with a white t-shirt and a beige knit cardigan on top, as Tae Young-won had dressed him. Mo Yeon had never worn anything like this in his life.

He was wearing it for now, but honestly, he didn’t think he could get used to going out like this. Mo Yeon chewed on the egg roll in his mouth for a long time, pondering. And even after swallowing the egg roll, Mo Yeon’s thoughts hadn’t changed.

He couldn’t go out wearing these clothes.

“Sunbae, please just give me black clothes. I don’t like the top and bottom being too bright.”

“Why? Just wear it like that, it suits you well. You wear black clothes a lot anyway.”

“I want to wear what I usually wear. I’ll say it again, I said I don’t need gifts.”

“Ah, I’m telling you it suits you well now.”

“Whether it suits me or not, I’m used to dark colors and they’re comfortable.”

At those words, Tae Young-won furrowed his brows as if in thought, but still shook his head firmly.

“No, just wear it. It’s just the right state now.”

“The right state?”

“Moderately neat and moderately teacher-like, it’s hot.”

“Ah!”

Mo Yeon immediately stood up from the dining chair. Ever since that night, he couldn’t stand Tae Young-won’s occasional teasing about being a teacher.

When Mo Yeon really stood up, Tae Young-won immediately followed. He hugged Mo Yeon’s shoulders.

“Ah, where are you going?”

“I’m going to change into my clothes. Please let go.”

“Okay, I was just kidding. Sit down again.”

He hurriedly made Mo Yeon sit down again. Using pure strength was extremely unfair.

“Then I’ll give you something darker for the top.”

“Hmm… okay.”

That seemed like a compromise he could accept. Mo Yeon nodded. Although he was teased a bit, in the end, he got a result he liked. No matter how much Tae Young-won said bright clothes suited him, Mo Yeon still felt a bit awkward.

“You don’t like egg rolls with vegetables in them, huh.”

“…”

Mo Yeon’s chopsticks stopped as they were about to reach the last egg roll. He hesitated for a moment, looking embarrassed, but eventually, the last egg roll went into his mouth. Seeing this, Tae Young-won laughed quietly to himself.

Time passed, and it was already nearing the end of the semester. This also meant the final exam period had begun. These days, eating breakfast together and going to school had become a seemingly natural part of their daily routine.

Considering Mo Yeon’s typically childish taste, Tae Young-won always made sure to include sausage or ham in the side dishes. As much as he knew his taste, seeing the egg rolls disappear at a different speed than before, he could once again recognize Mo Yeon’s palate.

“Are you really going to keep wearing those glasses?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.”

Although Mo Yeon had said so several times, for some reason Tae Young-won found himself asking again.

“You really don’t want me to buy you new ones?”

“No, I told you it’s fine.”

It was because he seemed to like the glasses more than expected. If he liked them so much, Tae Young-won wanted to gift him either the same ones or ones with an even better design, but Mo Yeon kept refusing every time.

When he stared at him, Mo Yeon seemed to feel his gaze and their eyes met. Mo Yeon rolled his eyes as if checking the mood. If he waited a little, he could guess what Mo Yeon was about to say.

“Well…”

“Yes?”

However, it took a long time for Mo Yeon to open his mouth again. Tae Young-won drank water as if used to this.

“Tell me when you’re ready to speak. If you think it’ll take too long, I can even take a nap in my room, so don’t feel pressured.”

“…”

It always takes this long when he’s about to say something important. This was another thing Tae Young-won had learned about Mo Yeon.

“Um, that was the first time I received a gift from someone else.”

“…”

“So I’ll just use these well.”

“…”

“Thank you, sunbae.”

After finishing what he had prepared to say, Mo Yeon put another spoonful of rice in his mouth. Tae Young-won was frozen in a daze.

“It was your first gift?”

“Yes.”

How could it be his first gift?

“Doesn’t your family buy you clothes? They must have bought you glasses too, right?”

Mo Yeon quietly rolled his eyes. Well, if a gift simply meant giving something bought with money…

“It’s different with family. They mostly bought things saying, ‘Wear this kind of clothes, it’s embarrassing to look at you’… Looking at the clothes stuffed in my closet, many of them don’t even fit. My family doesn’t know my size well.”

Tae Young-won stared at Mo Yeon for a moment.

“They don’t even fit?”

“Yes, that sweater I wore then was one of the better ones, so I wore it even though it was so white. The others are either too small or too big. Most of the shoes are all one size too small, I think they’re just sending the sizes I used to wear in middle and high school.”

There are times when he recites information like this without considering at all how others might think.

Tae Young-won stared at Mo Yeon.

“So you don’t need to buy me glasses. I like them more because it’s the first time I’ve received a gift, rather than the design.”

He says things like this too.

This was undoubtedly another statement made without any consideration of how the listener might feel.

“When you say things like that, it makes me want to buy you more.”

“No… that’s not what I meant.”

Mo Yeon tilted his head, then seemed to give up on explaining. His face clearly showed an expression of just wanting to finish eating.

“Anyway, you really don’t need to buy me anything.”

“…”

Throughout watching Mo Yeon’s meal, Tae Young-won’s thoughts multiplied.

There are kids who are loved at home even if they’re a bit peculiar, but it doesn’t seem like that’s the case here.

“Are you done eating?”

“Yes.”

After finishing the meal, he drinks water and wipes his lips. These days, whenever Tae Young-won looked at Mo Yeon, his gaze kept going to his lips.

By the way, it felt strange every time he recalled it. How did he do such a thing?

‘The more I look, the cuter he seems.’

Tae Young-won had lived his life believing without a doubt that he could throw a punch immediately if a man’s breath so much as touched his face. Then he met Mo Yeon, had sex with him, and was even dating him on the surface, but this didn’t mean he had become gay.

To be sneaking glances at a man’s lips like this. This was behavior very unlike him. Even when having sex with women, Tae Young-won wasn’t particularly fond of kissing. He only did it occasionally when the other person wanted it, and had even received criticism for it.

But here was Mo Yeon, who had stolen his ‘first kiss with a man’ and was now just sitting there as if nothing had happened, his mouth firmly shut. He was truly an infuriating fellow.

Tae Young-won’s eyes narrowed.

Tae Young-won tended to enjoy this kind of irritation he felt towards Mo Yeon. It was because of this fun that he kept this strange guy with the same equipment around in the first place. Even asking him out first was an impulsive decision made because Mo Yeon had provoked him and then tried to back out.

But somehow, this time, what Mo Yeon had done to him made him feel different from usual.