OYSB 3

Chapter 3

Doheon tightened his grip on Eunchae’s hand and pulled her up so she could stand.

“Ah.”

As Eunchae tried to get to her feet, she flinched and twisted her hand, letting out a small groan.

Doheon’s gaze shifted to her slender hand, which was trembling slightly.

Under the streetlight, her wrist was visibly red and swollen. A low sigh escaped him.

“We should go to the hospital first.”

A few hours later.

After returning from the hospital with Doheon, Eunchae hesitated, unable to bring herself to step forward.

Before she knew it, she had ended up at his house.

It had been a full five years since they last saw each other.

There was no way it would be easy to walk into his home for the first time as an adult.

“Come in.”

Doheon stepped inside and walked a few paces before stopping.

He slightly turned his head toward Eunchae, who was still standing blankly in the entrance.

“Do I still have to teach you everything, Princess?”

At the embarrassing nickname attached to the end of his sentence, Eunchae’s eyes widened.

When she was little, Eunchae had been so absorbed in playing princess that she had demanded he call her one.

Hearing that old, teasing nickname come from his lips after so long made her flinch.

“This place is unfamiliar to both of us. I’ve only spent one night here myself.”

Doheon had spent a long time living overseas and had only arrived in Korea yesterday.

In other words, this house was still unfamiliar to him, too.

“I won’t ask you twice.”

Doheon soon turned around and walked farther inside.

His ability to say warm things in such a cold manner hadn’t changed at all over the years.

“Then I’ll impose on you for exactly one day.”

Emphasizing the words exactly one day, Eunchae belatedly took off her shoes.

Even after finally stepping inside, she had nowhere comfortable to direct her awkward gaze, so she looked around for no particular reason.

The interior of the luxurious villa, reportedly home to many celebrities, was just as magnificent as its exterior.

Just as an exclamation of admiration was about to escape her open mouth—

“You should wash up first.”

“Pardon? W-wash up?”

“Or are you planning to lie down on the bed just like that?”

Wash up. Bed. Lie down.

It was as though those three words had been printed in bold and driven straight into her ears.

Did his voice come with some kind of romantic filter?

Even the perfectly ordinary suggestion that she should wash before getting into bed sounded strangely suggestive when he said it.

“Min Eunchae.”

Only after hearing Doheon’s low voice calling her name did she come back to her senses.

Eunchae’s face turned red in an instant. She shook her head, trying to chase away her wandering thoughts.

“Ah! Right. I should wash up. Of course I should clean myself properly after being outside.”

So flustered was she that she ended up saying something that sounded like a line from a well-behaved child.

She nearly blamed herself for being on the verge of saying, I’m ready, too, and tightly pressed her lips together.

“The bathroom is this way.”

Doheon personally led her toward the bathroom.

Following him, Eunchae found herself standing before a bathroom as grand as a palace.

It smelled wonderful, and there was even a huge bathtub.

“Thank you. Then……”

She intended to tell him that she would wash up now and that he could leave.

But instead of turning away, Doheon asked,

“Can you wash up by yourself?”

His gaze rested on Eunchae’s bandaged hand.

Having momentarily forgotten that they had just been to the hospital, Eunchae finally remembered and trailed off with an “Oh……”

“Come here.”

Before she knew it, Eunchae had followed him inside and was standing in front of the washbasin.

Doheon took out a fresh towel and wrapped it around her neck.

When her upper body was covered with the towel like a bib, Eunchae looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“Close your eyes.”

“Oppa, what are you doing right now……”

“I’m going to wash your face.”

Before she could even ask another question, a refreshing stream of water began flowing from the faucet.

Doheon adjusted the temperature, wet his hands with lukewarm water, and brought them toward Eunchae’s face.

Eunchae’s wide-open eyes squeezed shut.

“Oppa, I can do it myself…… Pfft!”

Her words were drowned out by his hands wetting her face.

“Do you want me to blow your nose for you, too?”

Hearing that horrifying suggestion, Eunchae shook her head frantically while trapped between Doheon’s hands.

In the end, Doheon even applied cleansing foam and carefully washed her face.

Was it just her imagination, or did she sense a faint smile in his touch as droplets of water glistened across her face?

“Take the bandage off and do the rest yourself. No matter how much of a little kid you are, I can’t give you a shower, too.”

Then why couldn’t I have just washed my own face in the first place?

Eunchae stared at Doheon with her freshly washed, bare face, looking utterly dumbfounded.

“Keep the bandage away from the water and leave it over here. Don’t use your injured hand.”

Did I just get played?

It certainly seemed that way.

Wearing the T-shirt and pants Doheon had given her, Eunchae timidly stepped out of the bathroom.

She had pulled the adjustable drawstring at the waist as tightly as possible, but the pants were still so loose that they looked ready to fall off.

The difference in their physiques suddenly became all too apparent.

Perhaps because showering with one hand had taken twice as long?

Doheon, who seemed to have already washed up in another bathroom, was sitting on the sofa wearing a bathrobe.

“Bring the bandage over here.”

Like an obedient little child, Eunchae took a seat beside him.

Doheon took the bandage and placed it over her wrist.

As she quietly watched him, she suddenly remembered what had happened at the hospital earlier.

‘Where is the guardian of patient Min Eunchae?’

Eunchae had been quite flustered by the nurse’s question in the treatment room.

The concept of having a guardian had disappeared from her life a long time ago.

‘I’m Min Eunchae’s guardian.’

At that moment, a low voice had suddenly interrupted.

She couldn’t understand why her heart had given such a painful throb at those words spoken by Doheon.

‘The patient’s ligament has been stretched, so she’ll need a compression bandage. Guardian, please pay close attention and learn how to wrap it properly.’

He had silently watched the nurse’s movements, but when it came to his own hands, there had been no hesitation.

He wrapped the bandage so skillfully that it was hard to believe he had learned simply by watching once.

‘Oppa really can do everything.’

In Eunchae’s memories, Doheon had always been the perfect prince, someone who was good at absolutely everything.

And even after all these years, he hadn’t changed.

She gazed absentmindedly at his hands as he gently yet firmly tightened the bandage around her wrist.

She was definitely looking at his hands, but somehow her gaze kept wandering beyond them.

Through the opening of his bathrobe……

It kept drifting there.

No, not there. I shouldn’t look there. No, no. Yes, I should.

“You’ve become quite a pervert while I wasn’t looking. Sneaking glances at a man’s body.”

“N-no, I wasn’t s-sneaking a glance!”

“You were. You’re stammering, after all.”

Her Oppa, who was good at everything, was quick to read people, too.

Feeling as though a thief had been caught red-handed, Eunchae jumped in surprise and quickly turned her gaze away.

By then, Doheon had finished wrapping the bandage and released her hand.

“You must be tired. Go to bed early and get some rest.”

“Yes.”

Doheon led Eunchae to the room where she would be spending the night.

“Let me know if anything makes you uncomfortable.”

As if there could possibly be anything uncomfortable about this place.

He had called it a guest room, but it looked far better than the tiny studio apartment where she lived.

“Then get some rest.”

Eunchae nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed.

At that moment, she noticed the banknotes lying on the bedside table.

“Oppa, what is this money……”

Before she could finish her question, Doheon bent down and leaned toward her.

Confronted by his firm, well-defined chest and the sudden rush of his scent, Eunchae hurriedly opened her mouth.

“O-Oppa.”

Her flustered mind began racing.

Could this be money he’s giving me in exchange for something?

Was that why he told me to wash up earlier, too……?

When did he become such a bad person without me noticing?!

No matter how much I like him, this isn’t right! Not like this!

As she instinctively leaned backward, following his approaching figure, Eunchae’s eyes widened.

Her hand shot up defensively without her realizing it.

“What are you thinking?”

“Pardon?”

“And what’s with that hand?”

Doheon straightened the pillow behind Eunchae before glancing at her hand and asking.

Her bandaged hands were crossed in an X shape in front of her chest.

“Why are you suddenly giving me money?”

A short laugh escaped Doheon.

He straightened his back and looked down at Eunchae.

“This is your money. The money that was stolen from you.”

Upon hearing his answer, Eunchae looked at the banknotes with a puzzled expression.

Looking more closely, the amount seemed roughly the same as what she had kept in her wallet.

So he had retrieved the money Won Sugap had stolen and brought it back to her……

The moment she understood what had happened, a wave of embarrassment washed over her.

“Ah!”

A sharp pain suddenly struck her forehead with a thwack.

Doheon had flicked her forehead.

“The little brat has such a dirty mind.”

Eunchae was mortified that he had caught her making such an outrageous misunderstanding.

As she rubbed her forehead with her hand and frowned, Doheon whispered in a low voice.

“You were sneaking glances at me earlier. But now you’re afraid I’ll devour you?”

“It’s not like that……”

“Is it something you want, or something you’re afraid of? Pick one.”

His question, delivered while looking straight into her eyes, left her completely speechless.

“You used to sing about how you were going to marry Oppa as soon as you turned twenty.”

“That was just something I said when I was little……”

“So, do you not want to anymore?”

Even if she wanted to lie, she couldn’t bring herself to say no.

Of course she didn’t dislike the idea.

The moment she saw him, her heart had reacted out of habit, just as it always had.

“You should take responsibility for the words you’ve said.”

Then came the unexpected words, which didn’t quite match his otherwise indifferent tone.

“Let’s do it, then. Let’s get married, Oppa and I.”