Define The Relationship Novel - Chapter 96

Everything had fallen into place. Their relationship, too, had grown stronger than before.

The day Karlyle reconciled with Ash, he fell asleep holding him for quite a long time. It seemed neither of them had been able to sleep, as Ash also slept for a long time beside Karlyle. They had fallen asleep watching the bluish evening sky stain the window, and woke together to the warm yellow light tickling their eyelashes. Karlyle smiled faintly, looking into each other’s sun-drenched eyes.

The short yet long two days of friction felt like a distant past. He hadn’t forgotten the vivid despair and pain he’d felt, but the time spent with Ash afterward had been incredibly cozy. He had learned a lot. He learned how much Ash loved him, and he also realized that he himself wanted to possess and monopolize Ash more than he had thought.

Once he became aware of these things, the mention of marriage, which he had been thinking about for a while, lingered on the tip of his tongue, almost unbearably so. However, it was still too early. The argument had only happened last week; wouldn’t it be more logical to bring it up after at least a few weeks had passed?

Even as he thought this, his heart kept fluttering, and Karlyle found himself repeatedly glancing at Ash then quickly looking away, a habit he hadn’t realized he’d picked up recently. Ash observed Karlyle for a few days with a meaningful expression, then sent Karlyle a text on Friday evening.

[There’s somewhere I’d like to stop by after work. Will you come with me?]

Naturally, he accepted the offer. He was already feeling bad about not being able to go to the zoo due to their conflict, and he had been wondering what to suggest they do. Thinking that sailing a yacht along the coasts of Croatia and Greece before autumn truly began wouldn’t be a bad idea, he arrived in Soho.

Soho was, as always, excessively crowded. People sitting on patios filled the narrow alleys. Pointed shoes took stiff steps, avoiding the trash on the street. While Karlyle liked anything Ash did, he personally found Soho to be chaotic.

Rolling up the sleeve of his thin white summer suit shirt just once, Karlyle arrived at the address Ash had given him. He stopped in an urban open space, an alley leading to Yauatcha and a small cafe famous for its flat white coffee. The scent of weed was unusually strong here compared to other places. It was indeed an unclean space.

“You’re here?”

Just as he was about to call Ash, Ash found him first. Ash’s arm wrapped tightly around Karlyle’s waist, which was unusually slender for his build. Warm body heat spread through the thin shirt.

“Ash.”

Karlyle’s face, which had been slightly rigid from being in an uncomfortable place, softened. Unable to hide his joy, Karlyle rubbed Ash’s hand wrapped around his waist.

“Did you have a good day?”

“Not bad. Except for how hard it was not seeing Liel. How about my Liel?”

“I had a good day too.”

Even conventional greetings became special when exchanged with Ash. Karlyle gently traced the back of Ash’s hand and asked what he was curious about.

“What do you want to do here?”

As if he had been waiting, Ash whispered into Karlyle’s ear.

“There’s something I want Liel to choose.”

At the words that he was needed, Karlyle replied with full enthusiasm.

“Is that so? Alright. What should I choose?”

Ash rested his chin on Karlyle’s shoulder. His lips stickily bit and released Karlyle’s earlobe.

“Do you prefer outdoor sex, or being punished in another way?”

A questioning expression appeared on Karlyle’s face. He couldn’t understand what he had just heard. It was even more incomprehensible because Ash’s voice had been so incredibly gentle.

“What, just…?”

“You have to choose that first. The options change.”

Karlyle’s brain replayed the situation from three seconds ago. The words “outdoor sex” echoed loudly, ringing in his eardrums. Karlyle instinctively, naturally, chose the answer opposite to outdoor sex.

“Another way… Ash?”

“You want that? Hmm? Why?”

“…Do I have to be punished?”

Karlyle asked cautiously, observing Ash’s mood. He wanted to see his face, but Ash’s arm held his waist so tightly that it was difficult. What did I do wrong? Karlyle quickly reviewed what he had done in the past few days. Could it be that day before yesterday when I begged him to stop because licking my chest was too humiliating?

“Did you already forget? I earnestly asked you.”

Or was he referring to their first fight just last week? If so, he could understand. He had been completely wrong to jump to conclusions without even listening to Ash. But he thought he had been forgiven that day.

“I thought you had forgiven me…”

“You promised not to smile when people came over. You even pinky swore. What did I say then?”

Ash pinpointed a moment slightly earlier than their fight. Karlyle’s face turned pale. He had forgotten due to being too emotionally agitated, but Ash was right. However, Karlyle soon found a contradiction in Ash’s words. The condition he had promised Ash was not that.

“But Ash… wasn’t our promise not to drink more than three glasses of wine?”

Somehow, both options given to him felt unsettling, so Karlyle impiously argued against Ash’s words. He felt like he needed to escape this situation.

“I knew Liel wouldn’t just let it go.”

Ash replied as if prepared.

“But you broke that too. I saw you secretly pouring whiskey for yourself.”

He had thought Ash was drunk and passed out on the sofa, but Ash seemed to remember Karlyle drinking whiskey with Natalie during the poker game that continued into the early hours. It was Natalie’s suggestion, so he couldn’t refuse. A sense of failure washed over him. Karlyle parted his lips to retort, then resigned himself. He couldn’t show himself to be ungentlemanly by not accepting the outcome.

“…Your eyesight is good, Ash.”

Karlyle ended up complimenting his lover’s vision. Ash smiled happily and released his arm. Then he pointed beside Karlyle.

“Alright, shall we go in then?”

“Where…”

Karlyle was about to say, then closed his mouth. To his astonishment, he hadn’t noticed the pink neon sign that read ‘SEX SHOP’ hidden in the building’s shadow.

“Ash, please wait a moment.”

“Liel has so many things to choose from.”

Ash grabbed Karlyle, who was trying to back away in embarrassment, and pulled him into the store. His heart pounded like someone committing a depraved act. Karlyle squeezed his eyes shut, not knowing what to do. He was now committing the most impious act in the world. A dignified nobleman entering a place like this!

His grandfather’s scolding voice, his mother’s shocked eyes, and his father’s disappointed face flashed through his mind in succession. Even the imaginary Kyle looked tearful, saying he never would have expected it from Karlyle.

While his family virtually chastised Karlyle, they entered the store. Karlyle tried to look only straight ahead, determined not to see anything around him. But Ash didn’t leave him alone.

“Honey, look here.”

His voice was filled with amusement, as if he were looking at something cute. Karlyle’s eyelashes fluttered uneasily as he stiffly turned his head. Ash embraced his rigid body.

“Will you choose something from here first?”

Karlyle lifted his chin to look at the items hanging on the wall, seemingly reaching the ceiling. There were countless things, from fluffy pink fur handcuffs to handcuffs that looked suitable for police use, and even leather wrist restraints.

“If you want to look at more, you can ask the owner. There are even ones that fix you to a frame.”

Ash’s words flowed through Karlyle’s brain and out the other side. Karlyle stared at the horrifying items before him, feeling not just dizzy but utterly nauseous. He had never imagined that so many perverse tools existed in the world.

And he wondered how Ash knew about all this. Karlyle almost blurted out what he had honestly thought before: that Ash’s taste was a little, no, very undignified.

At the utterly vulgar sight, Karlyle pressed his lips together, his face pale. He felt as if his soul was becoming defiled. Ash kissed his cheek gently and smiled.

“Can’t choose? Then shall we change the punishment to outdoor? Choose a place, Liel. A park? Or the office bathroom? Hmm, doing it in the car isn’t bad either, but that’s an enclosed space, so it’s hard to call it outdoor.”