Unhealthy older brother’s friend

Cheeks flushed with heat. Long eyelashes trembling slightly. Lips slightly parted, with soft breaths escaping from within.

Yes, those lips.

Lips so moist they looked like they would drip with juice if bitten. His gaze was fixed on them, resisting the urge to devour them whole. His hand clenched and unclenched repeatedly on the seat.

Jae-gyeom let out a quiet breath. Seo-hye, unaware of his dark thoughts, was sleeping soundly against his shoulder. The strange emotions he felt toward her were unsettling, yet at the same time, he had an overwhelming urge to resolve them.

Before being Kwon Jae-gyeom, his friend’s older brother, he was still a man.

He had never been swayed by even the most beautiful women, yet for some reason, Seo-hye was different. He wanted to find out why. His dark pupils remained locked on her slightly open lips. He clenched his jaw, swallowing down a curse at himself before turning his head to the window.

The buildings outside blurred past in a rush, but his focus was entirely on the weight on his left shoulder.

The car entered a narrow alley. The driver glanced at the rearview mirror.

“Sir.”

Jae-gyeom raised a finger to his lips, signaling for silence. The driver immediately closed his mouth.

He had heard the rumors about the new director of the Italian department store branch. Though he had only been driving him for a few days, he had already noted his sharp words and ruthless personality. To avoid annoying him, the driver focused entirely on the road.

“Pull over for a moment.”

At Jae-gyeom’s command, the driver stopped the car at a suitable spot. Jae-gyeom reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a card. At the same time, he was careful not to disturb the small head resting on his shoulder.

“Take a break and smoke a cigarette.”

He handed the card to the driver. Understanding the unspoken message, the driver took the card and stepped out of the car, quickly disappearing from view.

The cool breeze from the open window wasn’t enough to cool his heated body. Leaning one arm against the window, he stared at the peacefully sleeping Seo-hye.

His dark pupils still burned with unquenched desire.

Bzzzt.

The faint vibration of a phone broke the silence. Seo-hye’s delicate brows twitched, and her eyelids fluttered open.

For a few seconds, she simply stared at Jae-gyeom in a daze. Then, realizing the situation, she quickly pulled away and adjusted her clothes.

“Oh… When did I fall asleep? I must be crazy.”

Her face flushed with embarrassment.

“Sorry. I tend to fall asleep when I drink… But even so, how could I…?”

How could she have fallen asleep on his shoulder?

She must have been exhausted from working overtime for days, and the alcohol had hit her all at once.

“You sleep pretty badly.”

Jae-gyeom smirked.

Seo-hye, still convinced that her only drinking habit was falling asleep, bit her lip and wished she could disappear.

“Since we’re here, you should take it with you.”

“Huh?”

“The jacket. You said you’d get it cleaned, but you already forgot?”

At his amused words, Seo-hye turned even redder.

She had indeed taken his expensive jacket to a premium dry cleaner, but in her rush to leave for work that morning, she had forgotten to bring it.

“I—I didn’t forget! I’ll go get it right now!”

Before he could reply, Seo-hye hurriedly stepped out of the car.

Jae-gyeom pulled a Zippo lighter from his pocket and flipped it open and shut repeatedly. He needed to clear his thoughts.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

The metallic sound of the lighter echoed sharply.

He thought about the family dinner scheduled for the next day. His brow furrowed. It was going to be a tedious event, and he could already imagine his two siblings trying to mess with him.

Not that they ever actually succeeded. The two of them were all talk and self-justifications, never able to put a real scratch on him.

Even so, just thinking about it was irritating.

His mind was full of unnecessary thoughts when—

Knock, knock.

A tapping on the window pulled him back to reality.

As he opened his eyes, he saw Seo-hye’s concerned face filling his vision.

“Are you okay?”

“You think I look like I’ve lost my mind?”

Maybe it was the alcohol.

Or maybe it was the lingering scent that had been driving him crazy all night.

Either way, the delayed intoxication was hitting him hard.

“This is a really effective hangover cure. You should feel better soon.”

Seo-hye opened the car door and handed him a small bottle.

Jae-gyeom brought it close to his face, examining it.

Meanwhile, Seo-hye hesitated, looking like she had something to say.

“Um… Did I do something wrong to you?”

Her voice was cautious.

If she had made a mistake, she wanted to apologize properly so that things wouldn’t be awkward.

Instead of answering, Jae-gyeom simply looked at her.

His gaze seemed to ask, Why do you think that?

“The other day, when we were at the hotel lounge… I blacked out after drinking a cocktail. I have a feeling I might have messed up with you somehow.”

When Jae-gyeom had offered to take her home earlier, she had been startled. She knew he was just being considerate as her friend’s older brother, but still, she felt uneasy.

Had she done something so bad that he was just putting up with her out of politeness?

Jae-gyeom rubbed his fingers against his brow, staring at her in silence.

That was a habit of his—something he did when he was irritated or conflicted.

Which one was it this time?

Or maybe both?

Seo-hye anxiously watched his every move. Her palms started sweating.

She worried about what he was going to say.

“Since that night… you’ve been ignoring me…”

She trailed off, embarrassed.

Now that she had said it out loud, her face burned even hotter.

“I don’t remember what happened, but if I did something wrong—”

Jae-gyeom’s eyes locked onto her bitten lip.

Even as he watched, his throat tightened with heat.

Before he could even think, his body moved.

He reached out.

His fingers brushed over her lips, stroking them slowly.

Desire, suppressed for so long, boiled over inside him.

Seo-hye’s eyes widened in shock, but for some reason, she didn’t move away.

Was it because she was too stunned?

Or because her whole body was trembling?

His fingertips lingered, pressing against her lower lip.

Then, they slowly trailed to the back of her neck.

“A mistake.”

If he had to define it, it was an accident.

Like a natural disaster—something inevitable.

But the more he looked at her innocent face, completely unaware of what had happened that night, the more twisted his thoughts became.

If she knew how many indecent fantasies he had about her since that night, she would probably pass out.

“Let’s kiss, Seo-hye.”

His grip on her neck tightened.