Chapter 28
Outwardly, Yeonho kept his posture loose and composed, every inch of him looking unbothered and relaxed—but underneath, his nerves were pulled tight, coiled with unspoken pressure he refused to let show.
He tilted his head at the photos spread between them, feigning casual curiosity.
"Hmm… This looks real. Where did you get it?"
"I ran a background investigation on you, and this was the only thing I managed to dig up."
Gyeongjae lied smoothly, his gaze never leaving Yeonho's face.
Every word out of his mouth was a test—he needed to confirm if everything Han Jiseok had told him about Yeonho was actually true.
Yeonho huffed a soft, mocking laugh, leaning back like the whole thing was nothing but a joke.
"That's funny. We're in the modern era, Gyeongjae. Anyone with half a brain and access to advanced tech can forge something like this. And to think this is the only result you got from your little investigation? That's even more funny."
He let the laugh ring out, taunting him, but inside, alarm was spiking hot in his chest.
He never expected Gyeongjae to dig into his past, to go as far as running a background check on him at all.
It was dangerous, but Yeonho was quick—he knew exactly how to spin this, how to keep himself safe.
Gyeongjae didn't laugh back. He stayed perfectly still, sitting straight, his dark eyes sweeping over every micro-expression on Yeonho's face, searching for any crack in his mask, any tell that he was lying.
"Are you gonna keep staring at me like that, or what?" Yeonho waved a hand right in front of Gyeongjae's face, breaking his line of sight.
But Gyeongjae didn't blink. His focus stayed locked entirely on Yeonho, silence stretching between them.
'Shit. Is he trying to read me like an open book?'
He was. Gyeongjae studied every twitch of Yeonho's mouth, every flicker in his eyes, growing more suspicious by the second.
"Are you sure you're not lying?"
"Nope." Yeonho's answer came easy, light and dismissive. "Seriously, don't let those photos fool you. Do you really think someone like Hana would ever do something like that? I'm the bad guy here, Gyeongjae. Don't forget that."
'C'mon… believe me.'
It was the only logic he could use to convince him right now. He couldn't afford to admit he actually didn't remember any of the events in the photos—if he did, Gyeongjae would dig deeper, ask more questions, and that was the last thing Yeonho wanted.
Truth be told, if those pictures were real and authentic, they would've been perfect for him—they could've been the key to take Hana down.
But Yeonho knew absolutely nothing about them, not a single thing.
Worse, if Hana ever got her hands on them, she'd twist the whole story around in seconds, paint herself as the innocent victim and Yeonho as the villain all over again.
It was messy, complicated, and dangerous. He needed to end this conversation now, make Gyeongjae drop his suspicion and stop asking questions entirely.
"Those pictures are 100% fake."
Yeonho's voice turned serious, edged with warning. "Don't you know I can file a complaint and sue you for harassment and spreading falsified evidence over this?"
"I know." Gyeongjae didn't flinch, but the hard edge in his gaze softened just a fraction.
"I'm just making sure you're not lying to me."
Slowly, the heavy tension in the room eased, just enough for Yeonho to let out a quiet, relieved breath he'd been holding in. Gyeongjae believed him, for now.
"Now, if we're done wasting time, can you please leave? I have work to do."
Yeonho pushed himself up from his seat, bending down to slip his slippers on, but before he could even take a single step away, Gyeongjae's hand shot out, wrapping tight around his wrist to stop him.
'What now? What the hell does he want now?'
"Work?" Gyeongjae's grip tightened, hard enough to sting, his tone thick with disbelief and scorn.
"You're actually employed? I thought you just sit around all day spending that old man's money?"
Yeonho yanked at his wrist, but Gyeongjae wouldn't let go then spoke.
"I do use his money, yeah—I'm loaded with it, obviously. But I still want to work, y'know? I wanna touch some grass, not just rot inside this apartment 24/7. Duh."
"What kind of work are you doing, exactly?" Gyeongjae didn't let up, his stare piercing.
Yeonho let out a long, frustrated sigh, his shoulders slumping.
Couldn't he just leave him alone for five damn minutes? He had way more important things to think about right now.
"Live streaming, modelling, fashion styling, makeup, that kind of stuff. It's just content creation work. Now get up and leave."
He pulled harder, finally tearing his wrist free, stumbling back a little on unsteady feet. Gyeongjae stood up too, towering over him slightly.
"So that explains all this stuff, then."
Gyeongjae glanced past him, eyes landing on the low table behind Yeonho, cluttered with makeup palettes, brushes, serums, and skincare products spread across the surface.
Silence hung in the air for a long beat, before Gyeongjae spoke again.
"Let me watch you."
As soon as he heard that Yeonho's head snapped around so fast his long blonde hair whipped right across Gyeongjae's face with a sharp, audible swish.
"Fuck, that hurt." Gyeongjae hissed, lifting a hand to rub his stinging cheek slowly, scowling.
"Pftt… My bad." Yeonho bit his lip to hold back a laugh, schooling his face back into a neutral expression in a split second.
He didn't let the amusement show, pushing past it to say firmly, "Our business here is done. You got your answers. So you should be heading out right now."
"I'm interested in what you're up to."
"Yeah right, whatever." Yeonho rolled his eyes, though inside his mind was racing. "You just wanna spy on me, that's what this is."
It was obvious—Gyeongjae was curious, suspicious, and desperate to find anything he could use against Yeonho.
Normally, that would've been a problem, but… honestly? This was actually a good sign.
If Gyeongjae was starting to get curious about him, starting to pay attention to what he do, that meant Yeonho was getting under his skin exactly how he wanted.
But right now, he needed to be alone. He needed to think, to clear his head, and most importantly, to find out where those photos came from and who made them. That was his top priority.
Suddenly, an idea sparked in his head. It was perfect, easy, exactly what he needed.
"Okay, here's the deal." Yeonho placed his hand on his hips.
"I'll let you stay and watch me work… but you give all those pictures to me. I'll ask Mr. Han to help track down who made those fakes, and we can sort this out properly."
"No!"
Gyeongjae's shout was sudden, making Yeonho jump slightly, eyes widening in genuine surprise.
"Whoa—why are you shouting? And… no? Why not?"
Yeonho took a slow step forward, then another, until he was standing right in front of Gyeongjae, their faces barely inches apart, staring straight into his eyes.
"Tell me why not."
"…Just don't." Gyeongjae insisted.
"If you won't give me the pictures, then leave."Yeonho murmured, his voice dropping soft and low.
Gyeongjae hesitated for a long moment, jaw tight, before he finally answered.
"I'll give them to you. But you absolutely cannot ask Han Jiseok for help with this. Think about it—if he finds out you met me again, or that I investigated you behind his back? He'll get jealous. He'll get furious. You know how he is. Do you really wanna deal with that?"
It was a lie. That wasn't the real reason at all. Gyeongjae didn't want Han Jiseok to find out he'd given the photos to Yeonho for one simple reason: Jiseok had strictly warned him, never show those pictures to anyone, never hand them over. Not even to Yeonho himself.
But Yeonho didn't need to know that.
He played along instantly, letting his expression shift, softening into something worried, something hesitant.
"You're right…" Yeonho mumbled, looking away like the thought alone stressed him out. "I can't get him disappointed in me. If he gets mad, he won't help me with anything anymore."
Without thinking or at least, pretending not to think, Yeonho lifted a hand, biting nervously at the tip of his nail, gaze dropping to the floor.
'Now act a little more concerned. Lean in just a tiny bit. Show him that side of you you never let anyone else see.'
He let a flicker of genuine vulnerability show through his mask, just enough, nothing too obvious.
Gyeongjae watched him closely, every movement, every shift in his expression.
'Is he really this nervous because of Jiseok?'
Gyeongjae wondered, confused by the sight in front of him. It was a side of Yeonho he'd never seen before—uneasy, anxious, like he was terrified of making Jiseok upset.
"Stop that. What are you doing?"
Gyeongjae reached out, pulling Yeonho's hand away from his mouth to stop him from biting his nails any further.
Yeonho blinked, looking up at him like he'd been snapped out of a trance, quickly composing himself and pulling his hand back gently.
"Oh… right. My bad. Anyway. We have a deal then. You get to stay and watch me work. And you give me every single one of those pictures."
He held his hand out between them, palm up.
"Deal." Gyeongjae wrapped his larger hand around Yeonho's, shaking it firmly.
His acting worked perfectly. Gyeongjae bought every bit of it, hook, line and sinker.
And true to his word, after that, Gyeongjae even helped Yeonho carry all the boxes of parcels and supplies stacked by the door, bringing them all into the master bedroom without a single complaint.