TMFS Chapter 6 (Part 3)

Yoon brushed it off like it was nothing, but his face remained dark.

He’d just asked someone who couldn’t feel pain if they were hurting.

It wasn’t even meant to be a joke.

Lucas sighed deeply in his heart.

“I’m really okay. I’ve got things to apologize for too.”

Yoon slowly swirled her glass and muttered.

“What?”

The corner of Yoon’s mouth lifted. It wasn’t a pleasant smile, but she didn’t hesitate.

“I’m sorry.”

It was a vague apology.

Lucas, trying to figure out what she meant, hesitated before speaking.

“…For what?”

The word “sorry” coming from her mouth sounded awkward and uncertain. His eyes flickered.

“Just… everything.”

Yoon downed her drink in one go and set the glass down with a clack.

It took more courage than she’d thought to be honest about her feelings.

After finishing her drink in a single gulp, she took a deep breath and began.

“At first, I didn’t get it. Why you hated it so much when I got hurt.

Why someone like you cared about my well-being, worried about me, treated me like I was a fragile creature who might drop dead any minute, it was weird. Surreal, even.”

Even my own parents never took care of me like that.

There was a faint bitterness in her quiet voice.

“Even now, you still worry about me. Like I’m some helpless child near the water’s edge. And you get angry. Like it hurts you that I got hurt.

Even though I’m the one doing whatever I want.”

Her voice grew slower toward the end.

“So I really thought about it. Why do you get so angry?

What am I to you that you’d look at me with such pained eyes?”

“And I figured it out.

Ah, it’s because you hate that I’m acting like I’m fine.”

Her gaze met his.

Her reddish-brown eyes locked onto him.

It was the look of someone who’d just solved a puzzle they thought they’d never get the answer to.

“Did I get it right?”

A breath of laughter, almost like a sigh, brushed past his ears.

“…Want to know a secret?

The truth is, every time you got hurt, I felt good.

It made my inferiority complex disappear.

It amazed me that someone as perfect as you could be hurt by someone like me.

That’s why I did it even more.

Look at me, I’m hurt, so worry about me.

That’s the kind of mindset I had when I approached you.”

I liked seeing your face twist up like that.

It was an empty laugh, hollow, almost pathetic, yet somehow absurd.

Yoon laid her raw, unfiltered emotions bare before him. Lucas stared at her face, as if nailed in place, taken aback by the unfamiliar expression and the strange tone of her voice.

“Feels crazy, right?”

Yoon chuckled softly.

“But this is who I am. Mean, selfish, and with a filthy temper.”

Her voice gradually faded. The smile on her lips disappeared without her realizing. Their eyes met in the air between them.

There was nothing good in what she’d just said. If he were to glare at her coldly and ask how she could enjoy being worried over, it wouldn’t have been unjustified.

But he didn’t get angry. He only watched her closely.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that all her sharp words were just a prelude to something deeper. He wanted to know what truth lay behind that hollow smile.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I want you to know.”

“Know what?”

His throat moved as he swallowed. Yoon’s lashes quivered. Then, a strange smile, part laugh, part cry, curved her lips.

“…That you were the only comfort I ever had, despite how messed up I am.”

For a moment, he stopped breathing. It was as if the air had been cut off from his lungs. He froze where he stood.

“I just wanted to tell you… your face, the way you worry, your gentle touch… none of that was meaningless.”

The black eyes that always tried to read her, today looked unusually clear.

Strangely, his throat tightened. He instinctively touched his cheek, but his fingers came away with nothing.

“Thank you. For holding onto someone as hopeless as me and trying to turn me into a person.”

There was a depth in her eyes, stripped of any playfulness. He couldn’t look away, as if mesmerized.

“I didn’t know it myself until recently, but I think… you were kind of like a reward to me.”

Yoon confessed in a sincere voice, then turned her head awkwardly.

“Whew… This is embarrassing and kind of cringey, but since I’ve started, I’ll say it properly.”

She took a deep breath and spoke softly.

“Thanks for caring about me all this time. Your affection… it meant so much to me.”

After speaking, Yoon glanced at Lucas.

Her eyes shimmered faintly with tension, and Lucas let out something between a sigh and a laugh.

Strangely, an overwhelming sense of relief rushed in.

He bowed his head and buried his face in both hands. A deep breath escaped him.

Now he understood why she’d said all this.

He couldn’t even remember the harsh things she’d said earlier. They didn’t bother him at all.

All that remained was a sweet, numbing relief that made his heart ache.

The problem that had tormented him all night long had vanished from his mind in an instant.

He hadn’t said a single word of what he’d meant to tell her, but it didn’t matter. He was simply, inexplicably happy.

Watching him hide his face in his hands, Yoon spoke in a teasing tone.

“If you liked the apology, raise your left hand. If not, raise your right.”

Lucas let out a disbelieving laugh.

He felt like he’d gone from heaven to hell and back in a single day.

The stiff tension between them melted away.

Once he’d gathered himself a bit, he lowered his hands.

Yoon’s tense shoulders also relaxed.

A faint smile played on her lips.

With a bit of hesitation, she spoke.

“Separate from the comfort you’ve given me, I probably won’t change so easily.

I’ll still find taking care of myself annoying, and you’ll still have to put up with me being like this.”

He listened quietly.

After a pause to steady herself, Yoon added with sincerity,

“Even so… I’ll try.”

Lucas slowly parted his lips.

“I like your twisted-up face, but… I just realized I like your smile more.”

Was today his birthday?

Otherwise, there was no way Yoon, who had always driven him crazy, would say exactly what he needed to hear.

“So keep worrying about me. Don’t take away my only comfort.”

Unaware of his emotional state, Yoon stretched lazily as she said it.

“I’ll try to find a reason to stay alive too.”

Her eyes curved ever so slightly, and his heart pounded.

His gaze shimmered with every emotion imaginable. It was like joy and awe all at once.

Lucas suddenly pulled Yoon’s hand with force. Her vision shook.

Off balance, she stumbled right into his arms.

“What are you doing?”

She asked, but Lucas said nothing. It was like he couldn’t hear or see anything else.

His face burrowed into the crook of her neck, as if overcome by the relief washing over him.

His breath tickled her skin.

“Does ‘trying’ mean you’ll go to the doctor when you’re hurt?”

He didn’t miss a beat.

Yoon let out a dry laugh.

“Yesss. Sooometimes I’ll go.”

Despite her cheeky tone, he didn’t let go of her.

Even words were enough.

“Good.”

Even if it’s only sometimes.

He whispered in a choked voice as he hugged her so tightly it felt like he might crush her.

Yoon squirmed awkwardly in his arms.

A low laugh, soft and sunken, echoed, and for some reason, something ached near Yoon’s heart.

“You really are a strange person.”

Despite her grumbling, Yoon buried her face into his shoulder. As she breathed in, his scent sank deep into her chest. With her eyes closed, she could hear the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. A different kind of peace was there.

Lucas, who had been holding her for what felt like forever, slowly loosened his arms. Yoon also calmly pulled away.

She stared at his face from a slight distance. Rachel’s words suddenly resurfaced in her mind.

“Try imagining kissing him. You’ll probably get your answer right away.”

Yoon quietly studied his face. The red tinge around his eyes subtly drew her gaze.

She let her eyes drift down and took in every detail of his features. Her intense stare made Lucas glance at her blankly, as if wondering what was going on.

“I can imagine it.”

“…What?”

“I said, I can imagine it.”

Yoon cupped his cheek. His throat bobbed, and their faces were now so close their lips could touch.

“What are you…”

His voice broke from the surprise. Whether she knew what she was doing or not, Yoon’s gaze remained locked on his lips.

Up close, they looked red and soft. Nicely shaped, they looked strangely inviting.

When she’d looked at the doctor’s lips, she’d felt nothing. But now she began to understand what it meant when people said that feelings could change depending on who the other person was.

“This might not be bad.”

And with that, Yoon leaned in and kissed him.

The soft sensation of his lips sent a breathy sound escaping from between his teeth. His pupils trembled violently.

Contrary to what one might expect, Yoon didn’t pull back quickly, she slowly traced his lower lip, as if savoring it.

Caught off guard, Lucas struggled to regain composure, trying to remind himself of Yoon’s nature.

“Don’t misunderstand. This is just curiosity. A joke. A bit of interest.”

He knew how Yoon threw herself into anything that sparked her interest, and he tried his best to approach this with reason. He clenched his fists tightly.

But then her lips lightly sucked on his lower lip. A wet, popping sound followed. His muscles instantly tensed.

Damn.

His expression twisted. Without a sound, his large hand reached out.

He tilted her chin with his thumb and, in a sudden movement, dove in.

Yoon’s brows twitched at the moan that slipped from her mouth.

Before she had time to think, his tongue swept along her inner mouth and roof. He bit her lower lip lightly, almost as if restraining himself, then soothed the spot with gentle kisses.

With each kiss, the tendons in his arms bulged.

The deeper their mouths met, the more tension built in his thighs.

Their kiss grew slick and intense. Hot breaths tangled and overlapped.

It was hard to believe this was their first kiss… so thick, so deep.

Without realizing, Yoon placed her hand on his thigh and pressed down gently.

A low groan slipped from his mouth.

“You…”

He tried to speak, but Yoon leaned in again. This time, the kiss was rough enough to be called a collision.

With a sigh, Lucas surrendered his lips. Their tongues melted together, hot and searching.

It felt strange.

Not a sharp sensation, but something in her body tingled.

Though she’d moved all day without tiring, now she was out of breath. It felt like Lucas was swallowing her whole through the kiss.

What she did know for certain was… she didn’t hate this feeling.

Then Lucas gripped her waist and lifted her, placing her onto his thick, firm thigh.

Before she could even react, his tongue pushed deeper, grazing tender spots.

It was hard to believe this was the same man who had buried his face in his hands earlier. Now he was relentless, exploring every inch of her mouth.

The heat of a real kiss… Yoon had never felt anything like it before.

As her lower body pressed against his, a suppressed sound escaped her lips.

Her body felt strange. Her fingers gripped tighter at the unfamiliar sensation.

His black shirt stretched tight across his forearms as he pulled her closer.

Wrapped in the firm lines of his body, Yoon was reminded… he really was a man.

Was this what kissing was supposed to be like? Her mind grew hazy.

It was nothing like the vague idea she’d had.

His hands that held her, his tongue entangling with hers… everything burned.

(Continued in Maier Family Sniper, Volume 2)