Chapter warning: this chapter contains scenes of sexual content. Please be warned before proceeding.
“Did you sleep for a bit?”
“Yeah.”
Tae-eun climbed into the car with bloodshot eyes, brazenly lying. The reason for her sleepless night just sat there with a refreshing smile on his face.
Feeling too shy to look him in the eye, she turned her head to watch the snowflakes swirling outside the window. That morning, she had tied and untied her hair multiple times and agonized over which similar-colored sweater to wear.
In the end, she ended up just tying her hair back and throwing on a padded jacket, looking no different from any other day she went to work at the café. It seemed all her fussing had been for nothing.
His British SUV began ascending toward Mount Halla, navigating the mid-mountain roads. Tae-eun, who had assumed they were headed to a tourist spot famous for camellias, realized they were actually going in the opposite direction and asked him.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a secret.”
“Stop joking around.”
“It really is a secret spot.”
Hyun-ho answered with a serious face. Flabbergasted, she clamped her mouth shut and turned back to the window. The snowflakes grew heavier as they climbed higher.
Despite being tense enough to stay up all night, seeing his face somehow relaxed her. Perhaps it was also his light-hearted chatting that helped.
Contrary to the chilly scene outside, the warm air blowing from the vents and the heated seats added a cozy touch. Staring blankly at the windshield wipers, her eyelids began to droop heavily. Tae-eun couldn’t recall exactly when she had fallen asleep. She was startled awake when her head dropped suddenly, and she found herself alone in the car.
The car seemed to have been parked briefly with the engine still running. A large blanket covered her body. She fiddled with the blanket for a moment and then looked outside.
“Are you awake?”
He opened the driver’s door at just the right moment. A chill breeze entered through the open door, and a white snowfield was visible behind him.
“We’re here. Let’s get out.”
He turned off the ignition, and the heater that had been blowing warm air stopped. It seemed he had deliberately kept the engine running while waiting for her to wake up. She blushed and hurriedly got out of the car.
“There’s a lot of snow here.”
“That’s because we’ve come up quite high.”
Tae-eun looked down at the snow crunching and sticking to the soles of her sneakers. It wasn’t deep enough to sink into, but the path was quite slippery. She felt guilty for having slept so peacefully while he drove.
“Over there.”
Hyun-ho took her hand and led her on. His earlier words about not needing gloves in the morning made her ears burn. In the direction he pointed, rows of camellia trees lined up along a stone wall, their winter blooms proudly wearing a dusting of snow.
“Wow…”
“You’re already impressed?”
He chuckled and opened a black-painted iron gate, stepping inside the stone enclosure. But she hesitated, planting her feet firmly.
“Is it really okay to just walk in here?”
“Yeah, it’s my propety.”
“…What?”
She blinked in disbelief. Even from a distance, it looked about the size of her parents’ orchard. A 25-year-old owning thousands of square meters of land?
“Come on in. Have you ever seen me do anything bad to you?”
His lips curved into a confident smile. As she hesitantly moved forward, his smile deepened.
“My grandfather left it to me. It was just an empty lot, but I started planting camellia trees here three years ago.”
Hyun-ho spoke casually, as if it were merely a hobby, but the extent of his care had created what looked like a vast camellia forest. Everywhere she looked, the landscape was rushing at her with its crimson blooms.
Despite their vivid appearance, camellias have no scent. However, the sight of tens of thousands of flowers seemed to envelop her in an intoxicating aura.
The snow resting on each bloom looked heavy enough to break them, yet upon closer inspection, it seemed as soft as the blanket that had covered her moments ago.
It was a profound but comforting feeling. She knew what it felt like. She had experienced it briefly in her dream that very morning.
“It’s so… beautiful.”
“I’m glad.”
He turned around, his eyes crinkling with joy.
“I’m glad you like it.”
A serene quiet settled around them, making it feel like they were the only two people in a world of red and white. Even the fierce winds of Jeju seemed to quiet down here. It was so silent that the sound of snow falling from the camellias seemed loud.
She should have been scared by this chilly silence, but she wasn’t. Instead, she felt at ease.
“Thank you for showing me this.”
A natural smile played on Tae-eun’s lips. It was a soft, sea-lavender-like smile that captured his attention more than the striking camellias. He carefully watched her smile.
“Are you feeling uncomfortable?”
She burst into a clear laugh, shaking her head.
“That was the first time I threw up ever since I was born. That was the weird part, not now. I’m fine now.”
“And breathing is easy?”
“Yes. It was just strange then.”
“So, you’re okay now?”
“Yes.”
Hyun-ho asked repeatedly, as if to confirm several times. Watching her smile broadly, he sighed and pulled her into his embrace. Her body stiffened momentarily.
“I hope it wasn’t painful.”
His words of concern sounded sweet. Just like the voice that had harshly driven her in her dream but then called tenderly at dawn to chat, it filled her ears with a soothing sensation, making her eyelids droop.
So she relaxed and nestled quietly in his arms. Even as a thick scent invaded her nostrils, and eventually, his large hand cradled her cheek, she simply closed her eyes. Their lips touched lightly. His lips, as vibrant as camellias, drew back only to approach again.
Tae-eun opened her mouth first, gently capturing his lower lip. His hand around her back tightened as he pulled her close in a crushing embrace. He offered his lips without moving, letting her tongue gingerly venture into his mouth and stir gently. A groan rose from deep within his throat, as if he was in pain.
“Mmm…”
It felt like a cold wind was sweeping through her again, but she didn’t mind it this time, knowing it would soon warm up. Instead, she focused solely on tangling her tongue with his. Her cold hands slipped inside his coat, tightly gripping his sturdy waist.
“Ah…”
With a short exhale, Hyun-ho gave up on staying still. He enveloped her in his embrace and kissed her greedily. Her insides, which had grown cold, now warmed up repeatedly in his hold.
As they continued, the snow, which had briefly let up, began to fall heavily again. As snowflakes settled on her eyelashes, making her blink rapidly, he took her hand and led her back to the car.
Tae-eun secretly hoped he would kiss her again as she watched the driver’s seat with expectant eyes. However, he started the car and told her.
“Buckle up.”
Feeling awkward, she quickly fastened her seatbelt and stole glances at his sharp profile as he drove.
Hyun-ho’s SUV took quite a while to return to Hajung-ri. Instead of dropping her off at her house, he drove to the café. Just when she was ready to hide her disappointment, her heart started fluttering again with excitement.
The man headed straight up the external stairs to the second floor of the café. As soon as she stepped into the warm room, he kissed her hastily.
“Mmm…”
Their feet tangled as they moved to the bed in the center of the room. He quickly shed his coat, then unraveled her scarf and removed her padding. As her body flopped onto the bed, winter clothes sparked with static electricity.
He nibbled on her ear just like in the dream. Startled, she lifted her gaze to the opposite side of the bed. There was no one there.
“This isn’t a dream.”
He whispered into the inner part of her ear while pushing his tongue inside, making wet sounds as he explored. The man’s deep voice sent shivers down her neck.
“Focus on me.”
Instead of verbally responding, Tae-eun raised her arms to pull his neck closer. He seemed to understand her action as an affirmation. While his lips traced down her jawline, his hand slipped under her knitted top and moved inward. Startled by the smooth touch, she gripped him tighter with her arms.
His hand spread wide, gripping her breast through her underwear. He inhaled sharply while licking her neck.
“Noona.”
“What, what?”
Hyun-ho slightly lifted his face to look down at her with a serious expression. She swallowed nervously. Was there a problem?
“Why is it so big?”
He frowned and kept kneading one of her breasts. Her face flushed a deep red, as if she dipped it into dyed camellia water.
He then moved lower, rolling up the hem of her knitted top to her chin. Her pale skin, rarely exposed to sunlight, was fully visible, and her ample chest wrapped in a pale pink bra filled his view.
“Ah…”
He buried his face between her breasts, breathing in deeply. Her body froze at his almost perverse actions, her lips barely quivering. He teasingly tasted her skin with his tongue. And then he said something outrageous.
“I wasn’t supposed to send you to Seoul.”
She had been about to move to the capital for university when he was just a middle school student, yet he was bold with his words.
“Well, I said I’d stay here for a while.”
Hyun-ho sat up, grinning as he crossed his arms to remove his top, revealing a torso densely packed with muscles before her eyes.
“Look─”
Before she could say anything further, his tongue was already making its advance.
🍉🍉🍉
T/N: Brace for impact for the next chapter ;D
