"What did you eat today?"

"..."

"That's why you keep falling and getting hurt."

I glared at him in grievance. Honestly, if it hadn't been for Cha Seonwoo, I wouldn't have fallen at all. Why did he have to blare that horn so suddenly?

"Breakfast?"

"I don't eat it."

"Then from now on, let's eat together."

I knew that every morning Cha Seonwoo and his family ate together. And he wanted me to join them...? I let out a laugh at the thought of myself eating in that suffocating silence.

"If it were you, would you want to sit down in the middle of that and eat?"

Cha Seonwoo didn't answer yes or no.

"...Anyway, thanks for getting me treated."

"You got hurt because of me."

"That's not wrong."

Cha Seonwoo gave a dry laugh. He looked like he couldn't believe I had dragged a doctor here just to say that. But he didn't seem annoyed. I glanced at him, then looked down again.

"Still, you don't need to do this next time. I'll handle it myself."

"Then don't make yourself so noticeable. You keep getting on my nerves."

As expected, gratitude my ass... It was the kind of thing only an Alpha who had never lacked anything in his life would say.

I took the medicine from the table and left Cha Seonwoo's room. But even after I went back to my own room, the feeling in my chest was still strange. Maybe because I was starting to think Cha Seonwoo might not hate me as much as I had expected. He wouldn't go so far as to get me treated like this if he really couldn't stand the sight of me.

Since Cha Seonwoo arrived, the emotions that had always been nothing but anxiety and disgust had somehow settled down a little.

* * *

The dark window outside slowly turned bluish, and before I knew it, light had begun seeping in. I lay in bed and stared blankly at the change. As expected, I still hadn't fallen asleep today. Nothing about that was new, but my dry eyes burned with fatigue, and my mind felt half-asleep and hazy.

I was thinking I should get up soon, since it was almost time for my younger sibling to wake, when someone knocked at my door. Cha Seonwoo? I was too startled to answer, and I held my breath. After a moment of silence, as if the person were waiting, the door opened, and I met the eyes of a servant standing outside.

"Excuse me for a moment."

With that, they came in without warning and set a tray of dishes down on the table. The food inside still looked freshly made, steaming.

"...Why are you giving me this?"

"Young Master told us to start bringing you meals every day from now on. If you need anything else or want something in particular, please let us know comfortably."

Then they left before I could say anything else. When I went over to the table, there was still-warm seaweed soup, rice, and a few side dishes.

I had never once experienced anything like this, so I was at a loss. It felt strange. Not simply good or bad, just ambiguous...

And then it repeated every morning and evening.

I didn't eat breakfast often to begin with, and if word of this ever reached Cha Seonwoo's parents, I felt like that would only make things awkward.

I tried telling the servant it was fine and they didn't need to bring me anything, but they only said it was what Young Master had ordered, and if I had a problem, I should take it up with him. But I didn't want to go looking for Cha Seonwoo over something like this, so I had no choice but to accept the meals every day.

It wasn't bad. In fact, it was good for me. I was already getting tired of sneaking hot water from the dining room and eating instant noodles every day whenever the house was empty.

If it were me, I probably wouldn't care even if I knew Cha Seonwoo had hurt his wrist or wasn't eating. So he had said he wanted to be close to me, huh? Maybe that wasn't a lie. Maybe Cha Seonwoo really had no deep ulterior motive. And yet no one had ever looked after me like this before, even in a roundabout way, so the feeling was strange.

Was I really this simple?

Cha Seonwoo was still an odd, unreadable existence, but at least I was starting to think he might not be the worst thing imaginable.

A few days later, I ran into Cha Seonwoo again. I had just been carrying my younger sibling, who had been nodding off in Mother's room, back to my room.

Cha Seonwoo had just showered, his hair still damp. As I hesitated at the sight of him looking more languid than usual, Cha Seonwoo spotted me too and calmly lifted his eyes.

I worried he might say something about my younger sibling, but he seemed completely uninterested and only nodded toward my wrist.

"How's your wrist?"

"I think it's getting better."

"Still, don't take the cast off for a while."

"Okay."

Cha Seonwoo stared at me as if he thought I was unusually obedient.

"I guess you get pretty docile when you're hurt."

"...If I make a fuss, my younger sibling wakes up."

Cha Seonwoo lowered his eyes at my words and looked at my younger sibling. It was almost as if he was only just noticing that they were there.

Seeing that indifferent gaze land on my younger sibling made me uneasy for some reason. Instinctively, I turned my body, holding my younger sibling closer and shielding them with my own body. Cha Seonwoo gave a quick laugh and asked, "I'm only asking because I have to. Did I somehow get another half-sibling?"

"...No."

Why would he say something like that? My eyes sharpened naturally. But Cha Seonwoo only tilted his head with an unreadable expression.

"That's a relief. Cha Taewoo alone is already enough to make me sick."

Maybe it was because I could feel contempt in his words. I flinched before I could stop myself. Cha Taewoo was an outsider in this mansion, and so was I. Did that mean he saw me that way too?

For a moment, I had been mistaken. Just because I lived under the same roof, just because I could talk with Cha Seonwoo like this, didn't mean I was on the same level as him.

"You're eating properly, right?"

"...You don't need to worry about that. I'm taking care of it."

Unlike what I had been thinking just a moment ago, that if I ever ran into Cha Seonwoo I should thank him, my mouth was spitting out irritable words on its own. I knew it the moment they came out, but Cha Seonwoo didn't seem to mind.

"With who?"

"You know, so why ask? Alone."

I was scared Cha Seonwoo might laugh at me if he heard that. But he said, in a voice without the slightest trace of amusement, "Then from now on, eat with me."

Only then did I look at Cha Seonwoo.

"...No thanks. I'd lose my appetite."

"Then I'll have them prepare food that won't make you lose it."

"..."

It was strange. He clearly didn't seem kind to me, and yet for some reason he kept trying to get involved with me like this. The doubts in my head only grew more and more impossible to understand. Did he really want to be close to me? But why?

"If you have any food you hate, tell me. I'll adjust it."

Maybe...

"Just eat with your family. I prefer eating alone."

I shook my head at the thought that had briefly crossed my mind. No. No, that couldn't be it.

"Thanks for looking out for me. I should go. Sleep well."

"Wait a second."

As I turned to run, Cha Seonwoo stopped me.

"My birthday is in two days."

"...So?"

What did that have to do with me?

Cha Seonwoo looked down at me as if gauging my guarded expression, then glanced away and back again.

"We're having a birthday party at a hotel. Hyung should come too."

"...Me? There?"

"Yeah."

I couldn't hide my unease and blinked.

"I have tutoring that day."

"...Tutoring?"

"Happy birthday."

Leaving Cha Seonwoo still staring at me, I hurried back to my room.

I didn't welcome this kind of attention.

Soon after, I shook my head and tried to brush thoughts of Cha Seonwoo away. I was clearly developing some kind of victim mentality because I had been tormented too much by Cha Taewoo.

That night, Cha Taewoo called me. After a full week of silence, it seemed his patience had finally reached its limit. At least he didn't come find me in person, so that was something.

When I rejected the call, several missed calls showed up on my lock screen. Realizing I still wasn't going to answer, Cha Taewoo started sending messages that weren't quite threats, but weren't far off either.

[Are you not available right now?]

[I thought we still had something to talk about]

[I'm coming over now]

"Ha..."

Only then did I answer Cha Taewoo's call.

"Why do you keep calling?"

[Why aren't you picking up?]

"My younger sibling is sleeping right next to me."

[Then go outside and take it.]

A dry laugh slipped out at that.

"Why should I?"

[...You're not with Cha Seonwoo right now, are you?]

"Are you crazy?"

[No, no... Last time I showed up on my own, and I'm sorry. I was upset. I'll be more careful now.]

"Don't call me anymore. We're not close enough for you to keep calling like this."

Without meaning to, my voice rose. At that, my younger sibling's eyelashes, which had been sleeping peacefully, twitched, and I had to clamp my mouth shut again.

[...You know how I feel.]

"I don't know what you're talking about."

I didn't think for a second that Cha Taewoo's apology or anything he said was sincere. At first, I had even mistaken his sugar-coated words for genuine interest, because he was the only one in this house who treated me well.

But after everything that had happened in between, I knew now. Cha Taewoo was soothing his inferiority complex as an illegitimate child through me. When he looked at me, he found relief in the thought that he was still a better existence than I was.

[I just want things to go back to how they were. I called because I wanted to hear your voice, even just once. Isn't that okay?]

"Hyung."

I stared at the edge of the bed with a tired face.

"Don't do this."

[You and I both seem more sensitive than usual because of Cha Seonwoo. Let's talk again later.]

The call ended with a click, and I let out a long sigh. In case he contacted me again, I turned off my phone and set it on the nightstand. I'd been put through this sort of thing for years, so it was only natural I'd grow prickly toward Cha Seonwoo too, just in case.