Heavy Rain Chapter 28

The sound of his slow, thudding footsteps carried a sense of displeasure with every stride. Was the boy acting out like this because Lyle had spoken some harsh words in the car? If this was a trick to get his attention, it was effective. Lyle had reached a state where he simply could not bear it without seeing Haejin’s face and saying something to him.

However, upon arriving in front of Haejin’s room in a reasonably foul mood, Lyle ended up crinkling his face in a sudden scowl. It was because two more trays, stacked since morning, were sitting in front of the door. They served as a vivid announcement that the boy had eaten nothing all day long.

The moment he realized this, Lyle could not control his rage. Haejin’s scrawny ankles, and the bone-like sensation that bumped against him whenever they moved, floated through his mind of their own accord.

He passed through the drawing room and knocked roughly on the bedroom door, but there was no response from within. He must have rejected the servants’ visits in this same manner.

“Jin, open the door.”

Only after he spoke aloud did a faint noise come from inside. The sound of feet dragging was heard, and eventually, the door opened with a click. Judging by the sound, it was clear he had kept the door locked as well.

“… Mr. Vermouth.”

“I believe I told you to take proper care of your body. What do you think you are doing?”

Haejin, who had just woken up, could not hide his bewilderment at seeing the man who had suddenly barged in late at night to talk about health management. Following Lyle’s razor-sharp gaze, the trays sitting outside entered his field of vision.

“Why are they still there…?”

In a half-awake daze, Haejin opened his mouth blankly. Were they not supposed to disappear if he didn’t eat them on time?

However, the moment he heard Haejin say this, Lyle could not restrain his emotions. Just how difficult did he want to be? Seeing those cheeks that grew more haggard by the day, this emotion only grew more intense.

Pushing past the door that the boy held as if in defense, Lyle stepped inside.

“Are you holding a protest right now because I brought you here by force? You seem determined to starve to death in my mansion.”

“… I just did it because I had a bit of a lack of appetite.”

“A lack of appetite?”

“Yes. … Since it will not be a problem for the contract, do not concern yourself with it.”

To say he merely had no appetite, there was too much evidence Lyle had seen so far. Now that he had seen the food piled up in front of the door, he could not let Haejin’s condition slide.

In truth, it didn’t matter whether the kid starved or not. Since he was building a wall and telling Lyle not to care, Lyle could have simply ignored him in return. It was merely a bit bothersome when they shared bodies; there was no need to come all this way and tell him to eat his meals.

However, every time he saw Haejin growing more emaciated, Lyle had to suffer through a strange craving. As if something had gone seriously wrong.

It was certain that the pheromones had piled up to the top of his head and were making his brain spin.

“Then there is no need to wait any longer.”

“… Pardon?”

“Get ready right now. I need to resolve my pheromones.”

“Wa, wait, I would rather go first and prepare…”

Whether he was flustered, a voice with actual intonation was heard for the first time in a long while. Nevertheless, Lyle could not contain his anger. It was because that wrist caught in his grip was so scrawny that he could feel it clearly even with his palm.

Every time Haejin twisted his body, the prominent wrist bones thrashed within his grip. Then, Lyle’s heart began to thrash violently in sync. Strangely, every time he took a step, he felt as if his heart were plunging downward. An unpleasant and anxious feeling.

It was all because of the pheromones. His congestion was severe, and since even Haejin was acting bothersome, his patience had clearly hit rock bottom. If he had known it would be like this, he should not have made a vow to wait out of useless mercy.

“Shut up.”

At the razor-sharp voice, Haejin furrowed his brow in distress. The grip on his wrist was so powerful that even when he tried to endure by putting his weight into it, his body was dragged along.

Waking up from sleep only to be met with this disaster, he was simply stunned. Was skipping a few meals really something to get this angry about? Then, soon, the faint pheromones flowing from Lyle hit him.

Ah, his pheromones have piled up again, so he is sensitive.

Encountering a familiar situation, resignation was one step faster. Come to think of it, had he not refrained from calling for him for quite a long time? The time had simply come.

However, unlike his heart, which was steeped in quiet resignation, his body would not follow along well.

“Ngh.”

There was no way the posture of being dragged could be comfortable. Haejin, whose leg slipped on the stairs during the walk, could not hold back the groan that momentarily burst out.

At that moment, the back of Lyle, who was leading the way, came to a dead stop. Haejin looked at Lyle wonderingly, but Lyle soon began to walk forward again without looking back.

Was it because they had passed the stairs? It was a bit easier to step forward than when he was just being dragged. Thus, looking at the path leading away from the main building toward the building where he originally stayed, Haejin swallowed emotions like bewilderment and sorrow as he always did. The faces of flustered servants were visible here and there, but he bowed his head and ignored their gazes.

After being dragged along with his head bowed for a long while, the familiar floor of the hallway entered his sight. If they moved forward a little more like this, the room where they shared their bodies would appear.

The moment he recalled that, Haejin heard a loud knocking sound.

What is this?

The moment a faint question arose, for some reason, his knees collapsed downward. Unable to hide his bewilderment, Haejin stumbled. Because Lyle pulled him forward forcefully, his body was straightened by compulsion.

His ankle was slightly aching, but it wasn’t to the point where he couldn’t walk. Furthermore, Lyle had been maintaining a distance that was somewhat easy to walk in for a while now.

Even though he knew that, the strength drained from Haejin’s legs once more.

“Stand up straight.”

“… Ugh.”

Lyle growled, perhaps thinking Haejin was stalling on purpose. Even though he tried to force himself to endure, strangely, it was not as easy as he wanted. The pain rising from his knees as they hit the floor also felt like something hazy and distant, which was bizarre.

Barely finding his balance as Lyle pulled him, Haejin lifted his head.

Then, he saw the door to “that room.”

‘Fuck, you’re acting disgustingly stiff for a kid who sells his body.’

Why had he wanted to go see his parents so badly on that particular day?

A knocking sound had been oddly audible for a while now. That sound, resembling a heartbeat, continued to beat against Haejin’s eardrums like a massive thunderclap.

Eventually, the moment he drew close enough to see even the fine patterns of the door, the knocking sound rang even louder in his ears. Just like the butler had knocked that morning.

“Move.”

As he stared blankly at the door, Lyle pushed him roughly inside. As if the way he had been putting up a nuisance of a resistance was stoking his anger. However, Haejin had long since resigned himself. He had no intention of being stubborn like this.

The moment his back was shoved, Haejin entered the room as if falling into water. His knees, which had lost their strength again, hit the cold marble floor. It was a familiar sensation.

And he heard Lyle’s voice.

“Take it off.”

‘Get on your hands and knees.’

Involuntarily drawing a sharp breath, Haejin moved mechanically. It was familiar. It was a familiar task. Even when the butler had looked him over with filthy eyes and spoken those words, Haejin had moved familiarly. Was it not something he had done several times over the past five years?

However, the hands unbuttoning the shirt he was wearing began to tremble uncontrollably.

‘B-actually, when I came to find you in a hurry before we started, I had received a call saying they were in critical condition…’

“What are you doing? Did you not say with your own mouth that there would be no problem with the contract?”

Just as Lyle said, he had believed there would be no problem with the contract. Returning to this mansion, Haejin only worried about having to swallow familiar insults again. He did not know he would chew over this kind of despair again. The things that happened the last time he was in this room kept coming back to him.

While he was being ruined like a tool, his parents had passed away in loneliness.

‘It is said that Mr. Bright’s parents passed away last night.’

Haejin realized it. Fearing the contract or Vermouth’s power was a secondary issue.

The most important thing was that he could not handle this situation.