The Country Life Diary of a Gangster's Secretary - c42

This chapter is paid for by Nemuru!

It seemed clear that something had happened between Hyeseong and Ihyeok. Dohyun was making breakfast and looking at his cell phone. The quiet phone felt unusually awkward today. Ihyeok should have contacted him around this time every day.

 

For example, things like whether Hyeseong had woken up or what he was going to do today. But there was not a single contact from Ihyeok. It seemed there was a more serious situation than he thought when Hyeseong returned home last time and said he would completely give up on his feelings for Ihyeok that day.

 

“What are you spacing out for?”

 

“Huh?”

 

Hyeseong, who came out to the kitchen after washing up, rubbed his hair with a towel and spoke to Dohyun. 

 

“Are you waiting for some kind of contact?”

 

“No, it’s nothing like that. I don’t even have a lover, why would I be waiting for contact.”

 

Haha, Dohyun laughed and quickly put the phone back on the table. The problem was that even if he wanted to ask, it wasn’t easy to do so. Even when he tried to talk to Hyeseong about what happened with Ihyeok, he himself seemed nonchalant.

 

There was no change in the thought that he would silently support whatever decision Hyeseong made without any doubts. But after that, Hyeseong never mentioned Ihyeok. He thought he would at least briefly say what happened, but Hyeseong acted as if Ihyeok never existed in his life. 

 

He wanted to ask if he was really okay or just pretending to be okay, but since the person himself was being so unresponsive. Moreover, since the contact from Ihyeok had stopped, Dohyun was now more curious than worried.

 

“Dohyun.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“The soup is boiling.”

 

“Oh no!”

 

Dohyun jumped up and quickly lowered the gas stove flame. Hugging Boksil, Hyeseong looked at the floundering Dohyun as if he was pathetic.

 

It had been a few days since he last met Ihyeok. Since then, he had not met Ihyeok or had any separate contact. Well, that was the natural result since he said that. Hyeseong didn’t even know if he had returned from Seoul.

 

When he happened to see it while throwing out the trash the other evening, the lights were on next door and there was a car. But when he saw it early in the morning, it was as quiet as if no one was there.

 

‘I should stop thinking like this now.’

 

Hyeseong shook his head. He had to keep his word somehow. He also had to fix his ambiguous attitude. That’s why he spoke so strongly to Ihyeok that day. He had made up his mind to completely give up his feelings for Ihyeok now.

 

Boksil, who seemed to have sensed something from Hyeseong’s gloomy face, licked his cheek several times.

 

“Are you cheering for me too?”

 

Boksil wagged his tail as if responding to Hyeseong’s words. Hyeseong smiled and gently stroked the brown fur.  

 

“Thank you. But now I need to cheer for your dad first.”

 

Hyeseong approached Dohyun, who was cleaning up the messy kitchen, and helped him prepare.

 

“Whew, we finally finished thanks to Hyeseong’s help.”

 

Dohyun wiped the sweat from his forehead while looking at the breakfast table that was safely set up. Hyeseong squinted at him and then sat down, saying let’s eat.

 

“Hyeseong, how’s this stir-fried eggplant? I made it after looking it up online.”

 

Dohyun carefully looked at Hyeseong’s reaction and asked.

 

“Yeah. It’s delicious.”

 

“Right? Haha.”

 

As Dohyun laughed awkwardly, Hyeseong sighed and put down his spoon with a thud.

 

“What is it.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“You have something you want to say to me, right? Then just say it without reading my mind. Don’t sit there groaning like Boksil.”

 

“When did I groan again.”

 

Dohyun pursed his lips and hunched his shoulders, dejected.

 

“Yeah right. You’ve been doing that for the past few days. Your mind is elsewhere. You were spacing out while preparing breakfast earlier and bustling about. You think I wouldn’t notice you keep glancing at me?”

 

Hyeseong’s sharp point made Dohyun press his lips together as if he had been caught.

 

“You always do that when you have something you want to say or do and are trying to read my mind.”

 

Just as much as Dohyun knew Hyeseong well, so did Hyeseong. Dohyun was a typical person who couldn’t hide his emotions. His thoughts and mood were all over his face, so much so that his college classmates used to call him the number one target for teasing.

 

“Hmm, then can I ask you one thing?”

 

That was fast. As Dohyun asked with a timid hehe laugh, Hyeseong nodded as if to say do as you please.

 

“What exactly happened between you and the CEO? That night, you know. The day you said you’d really give up on your feelings. I was going to ask then, but it seemed like you didn’t want to talk about it.”

 

As expected. He had anticipated that topic would come up, but when he actually heard the question, Hyeseong hesitated for a moment. Dohyun probably thought Hyeseong would open up on his own with time and was patiently waiting. He couldn’t tell Dohyun everything, including about the changed trait, but he wanted to be honest at least.

 

“Dohyun.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“What do you think I am to the CEO?”

 

“Huh? Umm…”

 

Dohyun crossed his arms and stared into the air, contemplating the sudden question. Then, as if an appropriate answer had come to mind, he made eye contact with Hyeseong.

 

“A close younger brother? A capable secretary? A business partner?”

 

Dohyun got more and more enthusiastic as if solving a quiz. As if he had expected that answer, Hyeseong just nodded and picked up the spoon he had put down.

 

“That’s why.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“The reason I gave up on the CEO. Like you said, to that person, I’m just a close younger brother, a long-time business partner, a capable secretary, nothing more, nothing less.”

 

“Ah…”

 

What Dohyun said was all correct answers. But it didn’t feel good even though he got them right. Rather, he felt sorry for Hyeseong. As Dohyun failed to manage his expression, Hyeseong laughed.

 

“At that time, I went to a really fancy and nice restaurant to eat with the CEO.”

 

Hyeseong continued speaking indifferently while eating.

 

“To be honest, when I quit being a secretary and came here, I thought everything was fine, but when I ate next to the CEO in a nice place, my heart fluttered. So I knew. Just as you said, I can be a good secretary or younger brother to the CEO, but I can never be anything more than that.”

 

“Hyeseong…”

 

“Actually, I should have realized it sooner and stopped, but I foolishly dragged it on.”

 

In fact, in a way, the opportunity to quit was also due to the changed trait. Because when Hyeseong found out he had turned into an omega, for the first time, he thought about leaving Ihyeok’s side. If it weren’t for that, Hyeseong would have continued the relationship with him.

 

Even when Ihyeok would meet a good person or someone helpful and spend a hundred years together, Hyeseong would have certainly stayed by his side. While taking all the wounds himself. He thought that maybe turning into an omega was an opportunity given by the heavens. 

 

Something like hurry up and come to your senses.

 

“So on the way back from eating, I told the CEO everything. That the CEO wants me to return to the secretary position, so he moved next door and keeps approaching me in a friendly way, but honestly it makes me uncomfortable.”

 

Hyeseong delivered what happened that day and his feelings calmly without changing his expression.

 

“That’s all. Nothing much. I just pulled myself together a bit more and made sure the CEO wouldn’t waste any more time.”

 

If it was as Hyeseong said, that was it. But how can a person’s feelings be as clear-cut as the answer to a math problem and be accurately established as a theory? Hyeseong made a rational decision, but for Dohyun, who prioritized emotions above all else, he didn’t understand such a friend and was also hurt.

 

“Okay. Thanks for telling me. But Hyeseong.”

 

Dohyun carefully opened his mouth while stirring the innocent seaweed soup.

 

“Is it really okay to end it like this? Whether you give up on your feelings or not, I’m always on your side. But is it really okay to end it like this without even confessing how you feel?”

 

It was a remark that didn’t quite fit into a conversation over breakfast in a quiet country house. Upon hearing Dohyun’s opinion, Hyeseong pondered for a moment and then shook his head.

 

“Yeah. I’m really fine.”

 

He wasn’t unaware of what his friend was thinking when he said that. Hyeseong also sometimes had the urge to confess to Ihyeok when he felt really frustrated or realized that he really liked Ihyeok.

 

But the problem was that he couldn’t imagine himself confessing to Ihyeok at all. Moreover, he could clearly see what kind of expression Ihyeok would make when he said he liked him. A troubled and awkward expression. He didn’t have the confidence to face Ihyeok with that face. So what’s the point of conveying his feelings?

 

“It was a hopeless love from the beginning. But what’s the point of confessing? I don’t want to get hurt any more. Dohyun. I just want to end it quietly like this.”

 

“Okay. If that’s how you feel, I won’t say any more. But if you have anything to discuss, be sure to tell me! Got it?”

 

“Yeah. Thanks.”

 

Although his curiosity was satisfied, Dohyun’s face was not bright. Hyeseong told him not to make that face since he told him to do so, and firmly said not to be mindful of him in the future.

 

“Hyeseong, shall we clean up roughly and go out? The fields are almost done, and I think we should slowly start buying seedlings and such to plant.”

 

Dohyun spoke to Hyeseong, who was staring intently at his phone while sitting at the table after finishing the dishes.

 

“Ah… that’s true.”

 

“Yeah. Then when should we go? Since it turned out this way, let’s go downtown and eat something delicious too! Browse the markets too!”

 

“But Dohyun. How about tomorrow instead of today? Or let’s go later in the evening.”

 

“Sure? I don’t mind, but why?”

 

Hyeseong put down his phone and got up from his seat.

 

“I was going to tell you anyway, but I think I have some business to take care of in the morning. I have to take care of some urgent matters. So you stay home and take good care of Boksil.”

 

Hyeseong only said that and went straight into the room to prepare roughly. Dohyun was only puzzled to see him getting dressed and leaving the house.

This chapter is paid for by Nemuru!