Gulp—
A needle-like pain in his throat caused Ye Jin’s brow to furrow deeply. He struggled against the soreness, forcing himself to sit up in bed. He pursed his dry, parched lips.
Ye Jin felt that his condition was deteriorating. He exerted a great deal of effort just to lift his arm and touch his forehead; it was burning hot. He must have caught a cold. He felt exhausted—so tired that even breathing felt like a chore. He didn’t want to do anything at all.
Yet he knew clearly that if he did nothing, his body would only feel worse. Swallowing hard once more to fight the discomfort in his throat, he slowly propped himself up. He moved to the edge of the bed and, using one hand for support, slowly scooted his body forward and crawled down.
It was only after he reached the floor that he realized he wasn’t wearing a single stitch of clothing.
How could she? To do something so excessive… does she really need to humiliate me in this way too? What does she take me for?
Choking back tears, he crawled toward the pajamas he had tossed aside yesterday. He picked them up and began pulling them onto his body. But before he could finish dressing, the door pushed open with a sharp creak.
Ye Moran walked in carrying a bowl of hot soup. When she saw Ye Jin lying on the floor struggling into his pajamas, she immediately set the bowl down and hurried over.
“Didn’t I tell you not to move around?” she chided. “Is it so hard to just stay in bed properly?”
Hearing this only made Ye Jin feel more aggrieved and miserable. Her first words weren’t of concern, but of blame. By what right?!
“Don’t touch me! Don’t touch me!”
Ye Jin swatted away Ye Moran’s hand and glared at her fiercely, continuing to dress himself. Ye Moran’s brow twitched slightly. Seeing how much the little guy was struggling, she ignored his resistance and walked over to help him into his clothes, piece by piece.
“No! Don’t touch me! I told you not to touch me, didn’t you hear me?!”
“You… I hate you! I despise you!”
Hearing those words caused a sharp pang in Ye Moran’s heart, but her face remained expressionless. She picked Ye Jin up and gently placed him back on the bed.
“Come. Have some soup.”
“No. I don’t want anything of yours!”
Ye Jin turned his head away. He didn’t want to drink it at all, even though his throat was parched and he desperately craved something warm to soothe the pain. Every time he thought of what happened last night, he found it impossible to accept.
Why? Why did it have to be her? Had it been anyone else, though it would still be unacceptable, his heart wouldn’t ache this much.
Ye Moran clenched her fists secretly, a shadow of gloom crossing her eyes. As expected, the little guy had begun to hate her.
She shouldn’t have been so impulsive. But the deed was done; there was no turning back. In that case, the only way was…
She took a deep breath, deciding to give the little guy one last chance.
“Be good. Have some soup. You’ll feel better after eating. I also bought some ointment; I’ll apply it to your wounds later so they heal faster.”
Her gentle tone made Ye Jin daze for a moment. It was as if the person before him wasn’t the demon who had bullied him last night, but his gentle sister. However, it was only a momentary lapse before he snapped back to reality.
“I don’t need it!”
He spat out those four words coldly. They were like ice picks, stabbing directly into Ye Moran’s heart. Ye Jin felt miserable saying it, but he truly didn’t know how to face her.
“You… truly won’t drink it?”
Ye Jin remained silent for a moment before shaking his head.
“Fine.”
Hearing that “Fine,” Ye Jin breathed a sigh of relief, thinking she was giving up. But in the next second, a pair of large hands gripped his chin tightly, forcing his head around.
Ye Moran looked into the boy’s terrified eyes and suddenly laughed. It was an abrupt, bone-chilling laugh.
“Mmph… Let… let go of me! What are you doing?”
“Nothing. Just feeding you.”
With a smile, Ye Moran scooped up a spoonful of soup and put it into her own mouth. Ye Jin was confused—wasn’t she supposed to be feeding him? Why was she eating it first?
The very next second, he understood her intention. His mouth was blocked, and a warm liquid flowed in. Ye Moran clamped a hand over the back of Ye Jin’s head, transferring all the liquid to him.
Come, let’s continue. I’m going to feed you this entire bowl… personally.
“You… you… you bastard!”
“Mmph!~”
“I’ll drink! I’ll drink it myself!”
After being fed five mouthfuls this way, Ye Jin finally gave up his resistance. He’d rather drink it himself than be fed the whole bowl like that.
Ye Moran licked her lips. Whether it was the aroma of the soup or Ye Jin’s own scent, she found herself intoxicated. She wanted to refuse his request to drink it himself, but seeing the little guy’s face flushed with shame, she relented. She held the bowl and brought a spoonful to his lips.
“I said I’d drink it myself.”
“Be good, or I’ll go back to feeding you the other way.”
Ultimately, Ye Jin closed his eyes and opened his mouth.
As the warm liquid slid down his throat, the stinging pain eased slightly. He hadn’t noticed earlier because of the forced feeding, but tasting it carefully now, he realized it wasn’t soup at all—it was freshly brewed pear water with rock sugar.
Why this? Does she know I have a cold?
Ye Jin couldn’t make sense of it. By the time he finished the bowl, his stomach felt uncomfortably full. Ye Moran patted his head and got up to leave.
Ye Jin found it harder and harder to understand what she was planning. He felt that nothing good would come of this; he had to leave this place as soon as his injuries healed.
With that thought, he pulled the covers over his head and went back to sleep.
After sleeping for an unknown amount of time, Ye Jin woke up in a daze to find that it was already dark. He had regained some strength; aside from a slight headache, he felt much better than before.
However, as he lifted his right arm, he noticed a small red dot, as if he’d been bitten by a mosquito. It gave off a rhythmic, stinging pain. He didn’t pay it much mind and rolled out of bed.
He wanted to take a shower. He had sweated a lot while sleeping under the covers, and he felt disgusting. Although he still had wounds, he couldn’t care less.
He pushed open the door. The hallway was dim. He walked quickly to the bathroom and pushed the door open.
“Ah!”
“You—!”
Ye Jin scrambled out in a panic, slammed the door shut, and bolted back to his room as if fleeing for his life.
In the bathroom, Ye Moran watched the boy’s frantic retreating figure, the corners of her mouth curling into a slight arc.
“No matter how I look at him, he’s just so cute.”
“A pity he ran.”
At the thought of the word “ran,” her expression shifted. It was the word she hated most lately. She knew the little guy wanted to escape from her now.
But why escape? He has nothing left out there. He doesn’t even have a proper identity anymore.
Away from here, he would struggle even to survive. Why would he want to run?
“Just why is that?” she muttered to herself, her expression becoming increasingly terrifying.
“I won’t let you escape.”