Kiss the Scumbag-Chapter 40

“I missed you!”

It was lovely when Yujin shouted with joy and leapt into Winston’s arms — but being just a child his age, Winston didn’t have the strength to hold his ground.

“Uagh!”

Pushed back by Yujin’s momentum, Winston let out a short cry as he tumbled to the ground. It happened in an instant, but even in that moment, Winston instinctively wrapped his arms around Yujin to protect him as they fell.

“Ugh...”

With a dull thud, Winston let out a small groan. Yujin, who had unintentionally gone down with him, blinked in confusion before suddenly realizing what had happened and scrambled to sit up.

“Oh no! Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Panicked, Yujin asked frantically. Only then did Winston sit up awkwardly — and let out a sharp yelp.

“Ow!”

“Winston!”

Seeing the boy flinch and grimace, Yujin turned pale and cried out.

“Is it because of me? Are you hurt because of me? I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

“Huh? No, it’s okay, really.”

Seeing Yujin’s eyes well up, Winston quickly waved his hands and forced a smile.

“I just lost my balance, that’s all. It really wasn’t your fault.”

“I swear,” he said again and again, trying to reassure him. Yujin studied Winston’s expression, still half-doubting.

“It’s true, I never lie.”

Well, except for faking an illness.

Winston added that to himself. But it wasn’t a lie to Yujin, so technically, it was still the truth. Satisfied with his own logic, he smiled brightly. Only then did Yujin stop crying and smile bashfully. His little nose was flushed red — so incredibly cute that Winston’s cheeks turned red as he smiled back.

“So you came from Korea.”

Winston spoke after listening to Yujin’s story as they sat side by side in the clover field. Yujin nodded and continued.

“Harold brought me here.” ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

“My father?”

Winston asked without thinking, and Yujin answered without hesitation.

“Yeah, your father. Harold Campbell.”

Well, of course.

Winston quickly accepted it. Who else but Harold, the master of the estate, could bring someone to live in the annex? It was obvious that Harold stood behind Yujin. And since Winston had said his own name the day before, Yujin must’ve figured it out too — that the man who brought him here was Winston’s father.

“Then... why are you here? Don’t you get lonely all by yourself?”

“I do.”

Yujin replied honestly and let out a sigh far too mature for a child.

“But I have nowhere else to go... this is my home now. Harold gave it to me.”

Even then, Winston had no way of knowing the dark secret behind why Harold had to bring Yujin into the mansion. He was far too young to understand.

“Then what about school? Don’t you go to school?”

When Yujin shook his head, Winston’s eyes widened. Did that mean Yujin really stayed here in the annex all day, every day? Alarmed, he blurted out,

“Really? You don’t have any friends? You’re all alone?”

Yujin didn’t respond — just hung his head. He might cry again. Startled, Winston hurried to shout,

“You have me!”

At the high-pitched voice, Yujin’s eyes widened and looked up in surprise. Encouraged by that reaction, Winston repeated himself like a vow.

“We can be friends. Let’s do that. That’s all we need.”

The boy even thumped his chest like he was making a pledge. Yujin was overwhelmed. But Winston didn’t seem to care — ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ he reached out and grabbed Yujin’s hands. Yujin flinched and tried to pull away on reflex, but Winston held on tighter and looked him straight in the eyes.

“From now on, I’m your friend. Your only one.”

The last part was added quietly. Winston didn’t want to share this beautiful angel with anyone else. Affection diminished when shared. Friendship was no different — he had learned that it was just another kind of love.

“Friend...”

Yujin repeated the word softly, and Winston nodded enthusiastically and added quickly,

“I’ll even teach you! Math, Latin, Spanish — everything. How about it?”

“Uh...”

Everything Winston said was enough to knock the breath out of Yujin. Study? Him? He couldn’t even go to school. His face filled with confusion, but Winston persisted.

“Lots of kids do homeschooling, so you can too. When you’re ready, you can take an equivalency test. It’s just as good as graduating.”

It sounded convincing. Very convincing. Yujin hesitated before speaking timidly.

“But what about you? Don’t you have to study too...?”

“Don’t worry. We can study together.”

Winston beamed as if he’d been waiting for the question. Yujin’s heart began to race. He had never looked at something and wanted it before. Just having something to want felt like a luxury to him.

“Really... really it’s okay? You’ll teach me?”

“Yes, it’s really okay. Trust me.”

Winston grinned wide, and Yujin, unable to hide his joy any longer, smiled along with him. It was incredible. He’d made a friend — and the friend would even teach him. Could anything be more wonderful? His chest swelled, and his cheeks naturally turned red. Impulsively, Yujin threw his arms around Winston’s neck.

“Thank you, thank you... I’ll never forget this, thank you so much!”

Winston laughed and hugged him back as Yujin repeated his excited thanks. That was how it began for the two of them.

Crash!

With a loud bang, Yujin and Angela, fast asleep, jolted upright and nearly fell off the bed. Relieved that no real accident had happened, Yujin placed a hand on his chest to calm himself — and then turned toward the front door a second too late. The moment he saw the man standing in the doorway, his eyes went wide.

What the hell...?

Something unbelievable was happening right before his eyes. The man who always wore a perfectly fitted suit — vest and all. The one who never had a single strand of hair out of place, who always wore egg-toe straight-tip shoes, who always carried himself with composed confidence. Tall, handsome, dignified, never one to make mistakes. The perfect man. Even though he was the youngest, he inherited the empire. Even his mother’s favoritism made sense in light of that. The man who had always seemed flawless.

That man was gone.

Yujin, half-sitting up in bed, blinked in a daze. The man standing in front of him was barefoot, wearing a hastily belted bathrobe, with bare legs showing underneath. His thick hair was a mess, his jaw overgrown with stubble. The sharp eyes that once calmly assessed every situation had widened in shock. His usual grace and control had completely vanished. Now, he stood there panting, pale, staring at Yujin.

It was a disaster. Who the hell was this?

Yujin swallowed dryly and managed to speak.

“Winston, what... what’s going on all of a sudden?”

His voice stuttered from sheer shock. That’s how rattled he was. For a moment, he even imagined some absurd scenario — that Winston had been kidnapped and replaced overnight.

Anxiously waiting for an answer, he saw Winston finally snap out of it. But then his eyes darkened, turning sharp and furious. Alarmed, Yujin quickly covered Angela’s ears with both hands — she was still asleep beside him.

Then Winston barked in a low, rough voice,

“What the hell are you doing in a place like this?”