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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: I'll Go Wash Up
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"I'll head home?"
An Do Hyun asked in a tone laced with expectation.
"I need to rest."
"You're thinking of resting?"
An Do Hyun, who had been leaning against Yi Yeon for a while, straightened his back and shifted to the driver's seat.
He started the car, rested his arm on the steering wheel, and gazed at Yi Yeon for a moment.
"Why can't I think about resting?"
Yi Yeon blinked her eyelids prettily, as if she had no idea.
"Yu Yi Yeon, you're less responsible than I thought."
An Do Hyun chuckled as he gently stroked the corner of her eye.
"I'm actually very sensitive to the word 'responsibility.' It's overflowing, that's the problem."
"Do you know what I mean?"
"Hmm... No, actually, there's something I need to tell you once we get home."
As soon as Yi Yeon mentioned she had something to say, An Do Hyun responded in a subdued voice.
"Something to say...?"
Anxiety flickered in An Do Hyun's eyes.
"Just something. It's not the kind of talk we can have here."
"Alright, buckle up."
Once Yi Yeon fastened her seatbelt, An Do Hyun hurriedly pulled the car out.
⋮
An Do Hyun usually drove leisurely, but today he picked up the pace.
He could sense that Yi Yeon, sitting silently, had steeled herself for something.
"So, what was it you wanted to say?"
The moment had arrived. Yi Yeon squeezed her eyes shut.
The resolve she had firmly made on the way there had somehow turned into fear.
'Ah, what do I do.'
As soon as they entered, An Do Hyun shrugged off his outer clothes. After tossing aside the cumbersome garments, he pulled Yi Yeon into a tight embrace.
"Wait a second, Vice President. Let me catch my breath."
Should she delay it by another day?
Yi Yeon had vowed in the car. She would become An Do Hyun's woman today.
An Do Hyun always pushed aggressively but never crossed the line beyond kissing. He was making an effort to respect her boundaries for her sake.
Because he knew the full reason why she had started disguising herself.
An Do Hyun was clinging to his rationality to avoid crossing that line first.
Just like how he had barely stopped his hand from wandering above her waist earlier.
Yi Yeon wanted to respond to his consideration. To do that...
"I'll go wash up."
Yi Yeon fluttered her jewel-like eyes slowly, acting coquettish.
Seeing Yi Yeon so relaxed in contrast to himself, An Do Hyun furrowed his brow.
He ran a hand through his hair and pinned her against the wall, trapping her in his arms.
"You want to see me driven crazy with curiosity, huh?"
Even as he sensed her intentions, he seemed tense, worried that her words might be something bad contrary to his expectations.
"It's good news, so don't make such a scary face."
Yi Yeon grinned.
Then, as if oblivious to his inner turmoil, she smiled brightly and slipped out of his embrace.
She couldn't share her first time covered in unremoved freckles, a sweaty wig, and the thick smell of meat.
She couldn't bear to let An Do Hyun experience her like this, reeking.
'Just wait a little longer. I'll share the good news soon.'
The day she becomes An Do Hyun's woman!
"20 minutes! No, 15 minutes. I'll wash up quick and come back."
She didn't wait for An Do Hyun's reply.
Determined to wash up and hurry back down, Yi Yeon dashed up the stairs.
As she reached the second floor, she briefly passed by An Do Hyun, who stood dazed below, staring up at her, then quickly entered her room.
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"Ah, feels refreshing."
The slight buzz from the alcohol had long faded.
It was embarrassing, but having a clear head like this was good. At least she could feel An Do Hyun fully with her senses intact.
"No way he's asleep already?"
Why is it so quiet?
Yi Yeon applied toner and lotion to her freshly washed bare face, then added a tinted lip balm to her dry lips.
When she stepped into the living room and found it deserted, she was startled and rushed down to the first floor.
"Vice President?"
Where did he go? No way he's actually asleep?
He'd regret it!
She had mustered her courage with such difficulty, only for it to end up back in storage without even drawing the sword.
Yi Yeon stood in front of An Do Hyun's door. She hesitated, wondering if she should knock to wake him.
Just as she turned to leave, as if answering her inner thoughts, An Do Hyun's door swung open.
"Oh? You're still awake? I thought you might have gone to sleep..."
Yi Yeon couldn't finish her sentence. An Do Hyun had swiftly grabbed her hand, which had been hovering in the air.
"You've got some nerve coming here."
Yi Yeon swallowed hard.
An Do Hyun must have showered too; the scent of shampoo tickled her nose.
Yeah, my fear's completely gone now!
"How did you know? That I have no fear."
At Yi Yeon's provocation, An Do Hyun's body, pressed close to hers, twitched. Feeling that subtle tremor, a sly smile curved Yi Yeon's lips.
"Just follow a few precautions."
With a resolute gaze, Yi Yeon gently pushed An Do Hyun away from her.
"What's this about precautions that sound so scary? You're freaking me out."
There wasn't a trace of fear in An Do Hyun's playful words.
"Vice President, you might faint from shock, so sit on the bed first."
Yi Yeon pushed the standing An Do Hyun onto the nearby bed. She sat down a short distance away from him.
"Telling me to sit on the bed. That's a very dangerous statement, Yu Yi Yeon."
"Why?"
"It feels like permission to lie down."
Yi Yeon lost her words, unsure how to respond to An Do Hyun, who spoke with all amusement gone from his face.
Is this the moment? Should she say she wants to lie down with him too?
Ahem.
Clearing her throat, Yi Yeon pulled herself together and continued what she hadn't finished saying.
"It's not a hard promise. Promise me you'll keep it first. Here."
Yi Yeon waved her small, white fist with only her pinky extended in front of An Do Hyun's eyes.
"Whatever it is, I'll keep it."
An Do Hyun answered as if entranced. Whatever it was, he'd keep it.
Her softly curved lips, her slightly raised cheekbones—they were so lovable he wanted to bite them.
With Yi Yeon tilting her head back slightly and waggling her pinky in front of him, he wanted to honor whatever she said.
An Do Hyun hooked his pinky with hers. He shook their linked fingers up and down a couple of times.
"First, no matter what I say, you'll keep this distance."
At Yi Yeon's words, An Do Hyun's lips twitched. It was a sign he didn't like it.
"Second, from now on, you'll listen to everything I say without interrupting."
"And the third?"
"There isn't one. That's it."
"That's all? For precautions, there's nothing to be careful about. Basically, don't move and stay put."
An Do Hyun tilted his head, feigning confusion.
Yi Yeon took a light deep breath as the moment of confession finally arrived.
Whew.
"You don't have to treat me preciously. Handle me roughly."
An Do Hyun looked at her with eyes that said he didn't understand.
"I'm a bit dense with emotions, so it only hit me now. When we kissed in the car earlier, I realized you're trying so hard not to cross the line out of consideration for my wounds. You're suppressing your masculine instincts like crazy. I woke up to your precious feelings of liking and cherishing me."
The only sound in the quiet room was Yi Yeon's voice.
Perhaps because of that, An Do Hyun focused intently on her words.
As he listened quietly to her voice, An Do Hyun's heart reacted. The faintly beating heart soon began to race wildly.
Soon, An Do Hyun flinched. He was burning up. He couldn't tolerate even the small space between them, stamping his feet inwardly in frustration.
"But you know..."
Yi Yeon hesitated before continuing.
"I don't want to drag out this wait any longer. Because I feel the same way about you, Vice President."
Blushing, Yi Yeon slowly lifted her lowered head. An Do Hyun's face was blank, as if his soul had left him at the unexpected confession. Yi Yeon imprinted herself into his dazed, hazy eyes.
"I want you too, An Do Hyun."
An Do Hyun's eyes widened.
Unlike the shaken An Do Hyun, Yi Yeon slowly lowered and raised her eyelids before speaking again.
"I want to be An Do Hyun's woman. Let me have you freely too."
That's why she had given those precautions. So he wouldn't approach no matter what she said.
An Do Hyun, who had been listening to Yi Yeon in silence, finally spoke.
"That's the hardest precaution to keep in my life."
An Do Hyun gave a small smile.
"I'm going crazy. Because of you."
"......"
"Take me, Yu Yi Yeon."
As soon as An Do Hyun finished speaking, Yi Yeon took a step closer and sat by the bedside.
Yi Yeon wrapped her arms around An Do Hyun's neck. Her bare face without makeup looked even clearer up close, pure and flawless. Her small face held delicate features, utterly charming.
The woman he longed for even in his dreams was gazing only at him.
"This is foul play."
"I've decided to be brave now too."
"I want to support that bravery of yours."
Thirsty with desire, An Do Hyun reached out and seized Yi Yeon's waist.
The promise had become meaningless now.
"I don't need support."
It was a call to simply follow her lead.
She had wrapped her arms around his neck, so he thought she'd at least kiss him, but Yi Yeon just stared at him silently with her deep eyes.
Then she pressed her body even closer.
As if silently urging him to feel her body and heart, she said nothing.
"This can't be real."
"What's not real?"
"Having all these skills to drive me insane, yet no dating experience."
Yi Yeon laughed softly. An Do Hyun could no longer hold back seeing her laugh so casually while binding his neck.
In the end, it was An Do Hyun who moved first.
The indulgence that began that way entangled and blended the two relentlessly.
Yi Yeon's body, pushed by An Do Hyun's, fell onto the bed. At no moment did their lips part.
An Do Hyun roughly tore away the clothes draped over Yi Yeon. Her hands didn't stop, working to strip him as well.
An Do Hyun looked down at Yi Yeon, scattered like pearls on the bed. Seeing her hazy pupils, filled with excitement and fixed only on him, his possessiveness surged once more.
From now on, he would have all of Yi Yeon. And he would give himself to her without reservation.
His even hazier eyes heated up to witness her writhing, becoming wholly his.
His obsessive gaze began to explore her body.
Tonight would be a long and short night for the two of them.
