Choice of Choices

At my joke, he squinted his eyes and smiled prettily. Then he slipped his hands under both my arms and hugged my shoulders tightly. Our lower bodies, still connected, pressed even closer together. There was nowhere to escape from the two eyes looking straight at me from close range.

“We’re dating, right?”

“……”

“I’m hyung’s boyfriend now, right?”

He didn’t whine or wheedle. His pleasant, calm voice was quiet like a whisper. I tried to hide my expression by brushing around my lips with the back of my hand, then hesitantly reached out to his arm that was holding me.

“We’re both… past the age where we need to say such things out loud.”

“But I want to hear it this badly. Can’t you just endure being embarrassed for a moment?”

“……”

“Tell me clearly.”

This time I could feel slight trembling in his voice. It wasn’t a confident and bold demand, but closer to a plea filled with entreaty. His voice now rustled like dry fallen leaves.

In the past, I couldn’t hold him to prevent my emotions from exploding. But now it was different. We were living in the same city, and unless major changes struck, this time we wouldn’t be constrained by space. There was no need to forcibly deceive my heart.

With the hand that had been stroking his arm, I traced up his shoulder and neck. Feeling embarrassed, I playfully pressed his cheeks and deliberately teased his handsome face.

“I thought you were more mature than your age. But seeing you like this, my boyfriend really is younger than me after all.”