I Picked Up the Greatest Villain in the Story

22.

Jian sat down in front of Sehun. Sehun tried to curl up in his arms, but Jian shook his head and sat the child in front of him.

“Sehun, did you really keep taking Hyunsu’s origami paper?”

“…”

Earlier, he hadn’t had the chance to ask why the two had fought. But after hearing Hyunsu’s story, it seemed Sehun had been the instigator.

At the rather stern voice, Sehun pressed his lips together and fidgeted with his fingers.

“I don’t like people who lie. I’ll ask one more time. Did you take Hyunsu’s origami paper?”

“…Yes.”

At Sehun’s answer, Jian exchanged glances with Hyunwoo. Hyunwoo, running his hand through his hair, also asked his brother.

“So, Yoo Hyunsu, you messed up your friend’s hair like this?”

“…Yeah.”

As Sehun answered honestly, Hyunsu also replied, pouting his lips. Jian and Hyunwoo simultaneously sighed at the two pairs of large eyes filling with tears.

“Both of you think carefully about what you did wrong and write it down on this paper.”

Hyunwoo pulled out two sheets of A4 paper from under the table and placed one in front of Sehun and Hyunsu each. He also put pencils from the pencil holder on the papers. Hyunsu grabbed a pencil first.

“Sniff…”

The tears that had momentarily stopped started flowing again. Whatever was making him so sad, Hyunsu filled the white paper with black letters as Hyunwoo instructed, all while crying.

On the other hand, Sehun just stared intently at the pencil and paper.

“Sehun.”

Jian called Sehun’s name, feeling sorry for him. The child looked up at Jian’s face for a long time, then pressed his lips together and grasped the pencil.

[I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.]

As the crooked writing appeared, Jian glanced at Hyunwoo’s expression.

Though Sehun had taken Hyunsu’s origami paper first, it was Sehun who had been hit. Even now, there were several clumps of hair scattered on the floor.

The child was already saying he was sorry, so Jian wanted to comfort him at this point, but Hyunwoo silently waited until Hyunsu filled an entire page.

“Hyung…”

Hyunsu held out the paper towards Hyunwoo, looking up at him with an anxious face. As soon as Hyunwoo relaxed his expression and opened his arms, Hyunsu jumped into his broad embrace, crying loudly.

Jian made eye contact with Sehun and gently stroked the child’s head.

“From now on, don’t take Hyunsu’s things. If you want something, tell hyung. I’ll buy everything for you.”

Even if they had the same item, a friend’s possession might look better in a child’s eyes.

The child nodded slightly and hugged Jian, just like Hyunsu had done with Hyunwoo. As Jian patted Sehun’s back, he exchanged glances with Hyunwoo.

“Well, we’ll be going now. I apologize once more on Hyunsu’s behalf for messing up Sehun’s hair. I’m truly sorry. I’ve failed in educating my brother properly.”

“No, it’s okay. Sehun was at fault too. Please don’t scold him anymore and comfort him instead. Hyunsu cried a lot today.”

“Alright. We’ll be going then.”

After Hyunwoo left with Hyunsu, Jian started cleaning up while holding Sehun in his arms. When he vacuumed up the hair, his nose stung with sadness.

After finishing most of the cleanup, he tried to untangle Sehun’s still messy hair.

But no matter how much he combed with his hands, the hair became more and more of a mess. Realizing it couldn’t be solved by just combing, he took Sehun to the bathroom.

“Let’s bathe first and then eat today. Is that okay?”

Nod, nod.

When put down in the bathroom, Sehun started undressing on his own. After cleaning the bathtub with the shower head and plugging it, Jian started filling it with water. Sehun tugged on Jian’s arm.

“I want to bathe together with hyung.”

Until now, their routine had been Jian bathing Sehun first, then quickly showering himself after sending Sehun out, all soaked in water and sweat.

Bathing together with someone was unfamiliar, but seeing the child’s reddened eyes made Jian’s heart soften. Besides, Sehun was still young and probably wouldn’t notice anything strange about Jian’s complexes.

“Okay, let’s do that.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Jian sat Sehun in the bathtub first and started undressing. Just before removing his underwear, a long sigh escaped his lips.

The smooth groin and armpits, devoid of any hair, had long been Jian’s complexes.

While he could explain away the lack of facial hair by saying he shaved thoroughly, there was no way to explain his hairless armpits and groin.

When his peers boasted about their bodily changes, Jian quietly kept his silence. Even when going to the bathroom, he only used the stalls with toilets, avoiding times when others gathered.

After seeing a classmate being teased for having sparse body hair, Jian had a feeling that if his condition was discovered, it wouldn’t end with simple jokes.

Covering his groin with both hands, he entered the bathtub.

Only after hugging his knees to somewhat cover his body did he feel a moment of relief. When his eyes met Sehun’s, he smiled, causing the child’s cheeks to turn bright red.

“Sehun, can you turn around? I’ll wash your hair first.”

“…Okay.”

After hesitating for a moment, Sehun moved. Jian poured some shampoo into his hand and lathered it up. The fluffy foam covered the round head.

As he gently rubbed the foam through the hair, the tangled parts started to loosen bit by bit. He rinsed off the foam and finished by thoroughly applying conditioner.

“Can I wash hyung too?”

“You, Sehun?”

Nod, nod.

After finishing washing Sehun’s hair and reaching for the shower puff, Sehun turned around and said this.

“Alright. Just scrub my back.”

Feeling too embarrassed to let Sehun wash his front, Jian handed the shower puff to Sehun. Sehun, holding the puff, diligently scrubbed from Jian’s nape down.

When foam covered his back evenly, Jian took the shower puff back from Sehun’s hand.

“That’s enough. Now let’s wash Sehun.”

Sehun gave a disappointed look, but staying in the water too long could lead to catching a cold. Jian quickly washed himself first. Meanwhile, Sehun also lathered himself up, with Jian only helping to finish up.

Side by side, they wrapped themselves in large towels and left the bathroom. They went to the bedroom and playfully applied lotion to each other’s faces and bodies until Sehun’s stomach growled.

Sehun clutched his stomach with both hands and bit his lip. Grinning, Jian caressed Sehun’s cheek and said,

“I’ll make you beef soup today.”

He took out the ingredients he had delivered early in the morning and prepared the meal with care, though somewhat clumsily. Sehun helped by bringing out the necessary ingredients each time, making the cooking process smoother.

Sehun ate three bowls of the soup Jian made without any fuss about the food.

Watching Sehun with a pleased expression, Jian also displayed an appetite no less than Sehun’s, scraping the pot clean until the bottom was visible.

After cleaning up and brushing their teeth, they lay facing each other on the bed. Jian’s back was precariously close to the edge of the bed. The bed, originally meant for Jian alone, was slightly small for sharing with a child.

Jian reached out and played with Sehun’s hair, which had become much softer than before.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable sleeping with me? Should I make a separate room for you in the closet?”

It was something he had been thinking about. Though Sehun was still young, he would grow quickly in just a few years.

“…I’m scared to sleep alone.”

Thinking that Jian might send him to another room right away, Sehun snuggled into Jian’s arms.

The child’s unique warm temperature enveloped his body. Just as Sehun had grown accustomed to Jian’s embrace, the same was true for Jian.

“Okay. Then let’s sleep together a bit longer.”

It should be fine for now, Jian thought. If they sleep this close together, they won’t roll off the bed.

Hyunsu was already small for his age compared to his peers, but Sehun was even smaller. If Sehun hadn’t said himself that he was ten years old, Jian would have thought the child was around five.