BITM Ch24 – Main Story End

His trembling arms tightened around Han Naeyung, as if afraid he might lose him even while holding him close. Finally, Jin gently cupped Han Naeyung’s tear-streaked face, who looked up at him, sobbing uncontrollably.

Tears blurred his vision, making it hard to clearly see Jin’s face. As if trying to grasp that he was truly still alive, Jin tenderly stroked Naeyung’s cheeks and lips.

Where had it all gone wrong? Was it because of the parents who had brought Jang Joontae into this world? Or was it their own parents’ abandonment that bore the guilt? Or was it the world itself that had failed them? Now, he didn’t know anymore. Han Naeyung sobbed like a child.

“Woomin… please, live for me. I’ll bear all the blame.”

With that, he pressed his trembling lips to Naeyung’s.

“…Will you live with me?”

Han Naeyung had tried to jump, without even understanding why. Jin’s tears tore at his heart.

The sound of sirens wailed from below, echoing up the empty building. Jin’s bloodshot eyes sharpened as he quickly pulled out his phone and checked the message from Seon Wookjae. Blood stained the screen, requiring several wipes to clear it.

“Location trace of Jang Seongjun confirmed – same building as prostitution case.”

It was a message that had arrived long before.

“Woomin.”

But Han Naeyung, still gazing at the blood, could only cry.

“Jung Woomin!”

His vacant eyes finally met Jin’s, seeming almost devoid of life.

“You trust me, right?”

Han Naeyung nodded weakly.

“From now on, you need to keep your head straight.”

Jin struggled to speak, his voice strained with pain. He clutched his bleeding arm, struggling to lift himself up, pulling Han Naeyung to his feet and steadying his wavering legs. Jin reached into Naeyung’s pocket, pulling out syringes and drugs.

“There’s so much blood, so much…” Han Naeyung muttered, panic setting in.

“I guess so. Seems our veterinarian doctor was right. I’ve lost enough blood to make my head spin.” Jin gave him a faint, reassuring smile, then gently stroked his tear-streaked face. Naeyung’s beautiful face was swollen from crying, yet Woomin was as lovely as ever, just as he had always been.

Jin placed both hands on his cheeks. “If they take you in, don’t say a word. From this moment on, you don’t know me. If they ask, just say you don’t know. I’ll handle everything. Will you do that?”

As he clung to Jin’s arm, Jin looked at him urgently. “You will, right? Woomin, answer me. You must.”

Still not fully clear-headed, Han Naeyung simply nodded, though he barely comprehended what Jin was saying.

At that moment, Jin’s grip slipped, and he collapsed into Han Naeyung’s arms. Suddenly, dozens of flashlight beams flooded toward them, and as the shouts echoed through the building, Han Naeyung sank to his knees.

* * *

“Doctor, are you locking up tonight, too?”

Han Naeyung, who had dozed off, came to his senses. Lee Seolhwa peered in, grinning, through the half-opened door to the exam room.

“I’ll handle it.”

“Alright, then. I’ll head out first.”

Han Naeyung stood from his chair and exited the clinic. The wall clock in the waiting room already read 7 p.m. He sat back on the sofa and watched as Lee Seolhwa prepared to leave. She smiled as she swung her crossbody bag over her shoulder.

“Doctor, why are you staring at me like that?”

“I guess I’m still waking up.”

“Should I pinch your cheek?”

Han Naeyung shook his head.

“Oh, don’t look so serious! See you on Monday. Have a good weekend!”

“…Yes, have a good weekend.”

After she left, Han Naeyung kept looking out the window, as if searching for someone among the passersby. The hum of his phone vibrating in his pocket brought him back. He looked at the caller ID and let out a quiet sigh, then answered it without much enthusiasm.

“Yes, Doctor.”

“Naeyung, are you finished for the day?”

“I just wrapped up.”

“Did you get some sleep last night?”

“I didn’t take the pills. And… thank you for the aromatherapy candles.”

“Just let me know if you need anything else. I’ve got candles for days.”

“…Yes.”

“You’re still putting water glasses under your bed, right?”

“Haven’t tipped any over.”

“I was worried because you mentioned sleepwalking. Good to hear it’s going well. You should come in sometime next week. I’d love to see you in person.”

“Alright, I will.”

After ending the call with his therapist, Han Naeyung turned his gaze back out the window.

“One of these days… I’ll have to seek counseling.”

“Please, keep your promise.”

He was keeping his promise, but Jin was nowhere to be seen. Every day since they parted, he waited, but every person who opened the glass door was never Jin.

Jin had told him to stay silent, to pretend they were strangers. Fearing that he might cause trouble for Jin, he endured in silence, unable to ask where he was.

More than two weeks had already passed. He even went to Jin’s apartment to wait, called Nari by his door, but there was no response. Driven by unbearable anxiety, he waited endlessly again today, sitting on the sofa and staring out the window.

Workers had gathered to replace the lights on the sign for “AZALEOS.” Even now, he didn’t fully understand how he’d managed to be released without incident.

The more he thought about it, the more he feared that something terrible had happened to Jin because of him. As he recalled that night, Han Naeyung gazed vacantly out the window.

* * *

“Mr. Han Naeyung, we’ve completed the search of your home. We didn’t find any incriminating evidence.”

“….”

“Jang Seongjun has confessed to all of his crimes.”

“….”

“You said you didn’t know Song Iljae. And that you didn’t know Lee Kyungchul either.”

“….”

“Very well. This concludes the questioning.”

Since being taken from the building, Han Naeyung hadn’t said a word, just as Jin had advised. A man who introduced himself as Prosecutor Park Uiseong smiled and thanked him for his cooperation.

“Jang Joontae… no, Jang Seongjun—is he still alive?”

Han Naeyung finally spoke. His lips were red against his pale face.

“That guy has ridiculous luck. That building was abandoned, right? The thick underbrush below saved him. He’ll lose a leg, though.”

One leg. Jaemin had died from a fall at that same place, but that man had survived with only a lost leg. Even that was unforgivable. No doubt he would consider that his punishment had been served.

“We had a hard time tracking down Jang Seongjun since he’d changed his name. You’re really lucky, Mr. Han. If we hadn’t been tracing his location, you might have been murdered like Song Iljae.”

But Han Naeyung still had no idea who Song Iljae was.

“Who is Song Iljae?”

“I’m supposed to say ‘no comment,'” Prosecutor Park replied, scratching his head with a sigh. The witness protection program had revealed Han Naeyung’s identity to Prosecutor Park, and through this, he learned that Naeyung was the adopted son of Han Sungwon.

“The… loose end of this case. From what I heard, Song Iljae kept trying to make money from that same vile business, which Jang Seongjun refused to get involved in again. Song Iljae was threatening him, saying he’d go solo in the prostitution business, so Jang decided to kill him.”

“Refused…?”

“Maybe he’d had a change of heart.”

Han Naeyung gave him an icy look. Realizing his slip, Prosecutor Park scratched his head again.

“Prosecutor.”

“Yes.”

“What sentence will Jang Seongjun receive?”

Prosecutor Park silently traced a word on the desk with his finger.

Life imprisonment

He nodded and smiled.

“I think you misunderstood me earlier. I’m actually pretty strict. To go easy on a criminal just because they’ve repented would be a huge disservice to the victim.”

Park stood and offered his hand. Instead of shaking it, Han Naeyung merely nodded in greeting.

“I apologize.”

“I expected that,” Park said with a laugh, pulling a pair of white gloves from his pocket and placing them on the desk. Watching him curiously, Naeyung put on the gloves, then shook his hand.

“And please, put in a good word with Judge Han for me,” Park whispered, winking. Han Naeyung had met few people with such an untainted aura. People like Prosecutor Park—those who had never wronged others—were rare.

Han Naeyung limped out of the prosecutor’s office. The clothes provided for him fit perfectly, as if they were his own. He looked around the hallway. Everyone seemed busy with their tasks, paying him no attention.

No one called out to him until he exited the courthouse. He sat outside for a long time, watching people come and go. Part of him hoped that Jin might be among them. He wanted to grab anyone and ask about Jin, about how he was doing after losing so much blood, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask.

* * *

When the workers left, the sign was illuminated. Han Naeyung stood up as well. The wounds on his feet had healed enough that walking wasn’t an issue. At 10 p.m. sharp, he locked the door of the animal clinic and stepped outside. As he had yesterday, he headed to Jin’s apartment. Walking down the street, his vision blurred for a moment.

Jin, who had been a bringer of justice, must have done something a prosecutor should never do—for his sake. The fact that he was released unharmed was proof enough.

Then, what should I do from now on? Should I wait until Jang Joontae—no, Jang Seongjun—gets out and kill him?

But his hands felt powerless. Perhaps it was because he’d already attempted to throw his life away once. Everything felt hollow. A thin meow interrupted his thoughts.

A small, three-colored cat was following him, walking along a mossy stone wall. When Han Naeyung stopped, the cat meowed again, a gentle sound. It looked just like the cat he’d seen sitting on the car hood that day.

Han Naeyung took off his gloves and extended his hand. The cat cautiously approached, rubbing its face against his hand and purring softly. At that moment, someone honked loudly. Startled by the noise, the cat pulled away from his hand.

The cat darted into the grass and disappeared. He turned back, hoping for a glimpse of the car that honked, but it was nowhere to be seen.

He felt shameless for wanting to see Jin so much. He had abandoned him and tried to leap, and he had lied repeatedly.

But even if Jin wouldn’t come to him, he would go to Jin. He would go and apologize, confess that he had missed him deeply all this time.

Even if Jin couldn’t forgive him for lying to him until the end, it didn’t matter. Just knowing that the one who remembered Jaemin and himself had been looking for them all along—that alone was enough. The one they loved most had done that for them, and that was all they needed.

Han Naeyung went up to Jin’s apartment and rang the doorbell. There was still no answer.

Nari…

Even when he called softly, there was silence. Han Naeyung left the apartment and sat on a bench. The light in Jin’s room never came on. With his hands in his pockets, he started walking again. Sometimes he would go to the food stall, hoping that maybe Jin would be sitting there.

“Could it be… did I hurt you so much that you came to hate me?” he wondered, looking down at the ground.

Woof!

Woof woof!

Han Naeyung looked up at the loud barking. A scruffy bull terrier was sticking its tongue out, pawing the air. When he looked up further, he saw a man pulling the leash tight to hold the dog back.

In a thin knit sweater and cotton pants, Jin’s arm was wrapped in a cast. Han Naeyung was frozen, unable to move, even though the person he’d been longing to see was standing right in front of him.

“We missed each other, didn’t we?”

Jin’s shy smile was just like always. Tears prickled the corners of Han Naeyung’s eyes. Jin released Nari’s leash. With something close to a howl, Nari bolted toward Han Naeyung, nearly knocking him off balance with her weight.

“Did you have dinner?”

It was the question Jin always asked whenever he saw him. This time was no different.

“Usually… I don’t eat.”

Han Naeyung tried to answer casually, then gave up.

“I’m… sorry.”

He lowered his head, staring at Jin’s injured arm. Nari licked his cheek.

“Oh, this? It’s nothing.”

Jin walked over to Han Naeyung, who stood there, hesitant. He took Nari from his arms and handed him the leash.

“Doctor Han.”

Not Woomin, not Han Naeyung—just that resonant way he always addressed him. Han Naeyung blinked to clear his blurry vision.

“Shall we go see the flowers?”

A warm hand clasped his.

“We promised to take this one for a walk after everything was over.”

Jin hadn’t changed; he asked nothing. It was Naeyung who had silenced him. Yet, selfish as it was, he wanted to follow his words. He swallowed the bitter words and forced a smile as he answered.

“Let’s go.”

Excited for the nighttime walk, Nari tugged on the leash, panting. Fallen spring blossoms paved the ground like a floral path. Jin, keeping pace beside him, called his name.

“Woomin.”

Above them, a warm glow, like the streetlight that night, shone down. Jin, eyes on the trees lining the street, continued.

“From now on, let’s remember together. Let’s share our memories and our pain together. Let’s live like that, just the two of us.”

Perhaps he had always been waiting for someone to fill the missing half of him. Maybe he had really been waiting for someone to stay with him. The person he had longed for so much was here, right beside him. Not anyone else.

“Gyo Jin Hyung…”

At Han Naeyung’s quiet call, Jin took his hand.

Han Naeyung’s eyes followed the magnolia petals fluttering down. As they walked together, he quietly asked,

“Tell me your name—the name you lived under after you left us.”

Jin gave a shy smile.

As he parted his lips to speak, a sweet breath, like a piece of candy, drifted toward him on the spring breeze. Han Naeyung’s breath flowed toward Jin.

Every living thing in the world exhaled with the wind, filling the air with the fragrance of flowers.