“Um... not really. Sky is a good person; it’s just hard to see his kindness. He’s too cold and likes making things difficult for a lot of people, including you,” Leo replied, looking at Narin.
Not long afterward, the car stopped at an Italian restaurant. The three of them sat down and ordered their food. At first, Narin wanted to refuse because he had already eaten. But Sun kept pressuring him, so Narin couldn’t refuse and went along with whatever Sun ordered. Of course, that was after Leo gave Narin a sharp look to make him listen to Sun.
The three of them ate peacefully until Leo started teasing Sun, annoying the younger man.
“Come on, Sun. Open your mouth so Daddy Leo can feed you,” Leo teased, holding out a forkful of spaghetti right in front of Sun’s mouth.
“I don’t want to. I can eat by myself,” Sun refused irritably before calmly continuing his meal.
But Leo, of course, didn’t give up. To make Sun accept his food, he quickly held Sun’s jaw, forcing the sweet young man to look at him.
“Open your mouth, or I’ll kiss you right here,” Leo threatened seriously.
Narin remained silent as a spectator. He was pretty shocked by Leo’s forceful behavior and didn’t dare interrupt the two of them.
“You...!” Sun looked annoyed, but in the end, he opened his mouth and ate the spaghetti Leo fed him.
“Good boy, Daddy’s smart kid,” Leo said with a pleased smile. He quickly changed his serious expression into the same mischievous smirk as before, then gently ruffled Sun’s hair.
Sun glared at Leo, his eyes seeming to want to tear the handsome young man in front of him to pieces.
“You two are so romantic. Are you dating?” Narin asked curiously, looking at them both. The two answered at the exact same time, but with different answers.
“Yes,” Leo replied happily.
But Sun immediately shook his head. “No.”
Narin chuckled at their answers until the vibration of a phone drew all three of their attention.
“Hello,” Narin answered, picking up a call from his twin, Nawin.
“Are you okay, Narin? Where are you right now? I was looking for you earlier, but you weren’t on campus, even though your motorcycle was still in the parking lot.”
From his tone, Narin could tell that Nawin was extremely worried about him. “I’m fine, don’t worry. I’m not on campus. I’m out having lunch with Sun and Leo.”
Narin deliberately mentioned Leo’s name so Nawin would understand the situation and know that their secret was safe, and so Leo wouldn’t become suspicious of him.
“What! How is that possible?” Nawin asked, startled and worried all over again.
“I’ll call you again later, okay? Bye, my darling.” Narin ended the call without waiting for a reply because he was afraid Leo would become suspicious of him.
Narin was afraid Leo would grow suspicious because everyone knew he never got close to anyone. He was also afraid Leo would report him to Sky, and then Sky would harass him.
Sure enough, he saw Leo watching him with a curious look. “Who called you?”
Just as Narin was about to answer, Aran called. With no choice, Narin picked up Aran’s call first and ignored Leo.
“Hello, what’s up?” Narin asked gently.
“Hey, Na. I heard that asshole Sky hit you. How are you feeling now?” Aran asked furiously. But Narin knew Aran wasn’t angry with him. He was angry at Sky; he was just too worried.
“I’m fine. I just have bruises and a swollen lip,” Narin answered softly.
“Where are you right now? Do you need me to pick you up?” Aran asked again.
“No, it’s okay. I’ll go home by myself. I’m having lunch with Sun and Leo right now,” Narin replied.
“What! How can you be with one of his lackeys? But all right, be careful. If anything happens, call me or Nawin right away. I’ll let you go now, okay? Bye.”
After the call ended, Leo repeated his question about who had called Narin, and Sun also looked curious.
“Who called you just now?” Leo asked again.
“A friend,” Narin answered softly.
“Which friend? Do you even have friends?” Leo asked curiously.
“Idiot! He’s human. Do you really think Narin can’t socialize, so he must not have any friends? The college campus is huge. There’s no way he doesn’t have friends,” Sun interjected, exasperated by Leo’s reasoning.
“I was just curious. Am I not allowed to be?” Leo pretended to pout.
“Don’t be so nosy about other people’s business, idiot!” Sun snapped, exasperated.
“Why? Are you jealous, sweetheart?” Leo teased, looking at Sun.
Narin immediately breathed a sigh of relief when their attention was diverted, allowing him to escape Leo’s interrogation.
“Why would I be jealous? I only said not to be so nosy,” Sun replied irritably, and Leo only chuckled softly.
Meanwhile, Narin was thinking about how he would get home later and face Papa and Papi. There was no way he would escape their interrogation. He really didn’t want to make either of them worry about him.
“What’s wrong, Narin? Why do you look confused?” Sun asked, noticing the change in Narin’s expression.
“Um... it’s nothing,” he lied, slowly shaking his head.
“Really? You look like something’s on your mind.” Now Leo seemed to realize that Narin was lying.
“All right, I’ll be honest. I’m thinking about how I’m going to go home looking this beat-up. I don’t want to make my parents worry,” Narin answered, lowering his head dejectedly.
The two of them seemed to think it over until Sun came up with a solution. “You can stay at my apartment. Just say you’re spending the night at a friend’s house because you’re working on an assignment.”
“Don’t stay at Sun’s apartment. Stay at mine instead; it’s safer. Sky often visits Sun’s apartment, since the two of them are really close,” Leo also offered to help Narin.
Narin was somewhat surprised that Leo was willing to find a solution to his problem.
“What difference does it make whether he stays at my apartment or yours? Sky visits your apartment even more often, idiot!” Sun snapped, exasperated, because neither of their places would be safe for Narin.
“Sky and Sun are close friends?” Narin asked curiously.
“The seven of us—I mean, Sky, Sun, Max, Blue, Aran, Nawin, and me—we’ve been close friends since childhood. It’s just that a few problems made each of us harden in our own way,” Leo replied with a faint smile, while Sun remained silent, his expression distant.
“So, are you staying at my apartment or this idiot’s, Narin?” Sun asked, changing the subject.
“Hmm, your ideas are great, and I really appreciate them. It’s just that my parents know I don’t have any close friends,” Narin said softly. Of course, he wouldn’t choose to stay at either of their places because he was afraid of running into Sky. “I’m not staying at either of your places. I’ll just go home and face my parents.”
“All right,” Sun and Leo said at the same time.