PIA 130

‘What am I seeing right now?’

Ji-an felt as though his mind couldn’t process what his eyes were seeing. He struggled to comprehend the fact that Seo Ji-hyuk had just tried to run him over with a car.

Such clear malice. The voice of ‘Seo Ji-an’, who had said he’d faced death dozens of times in this world, suddenly flashed through his mind.

Did he hate me this much?

Jeong Hee-seo chased after Seo Ji-hyuk, who was staggering away. Ji-an sat there, blankly watching as Jeong Hee-seo caught up to Ji-hyuk, grabbed him by the collar, and started punching him.

“Someone’s here! Please help!”

What woke Ji-an from his daze was someone’s desperate cry. He forced strength into his trembling legs, got up, and ran over to find a hotel employee who had been standing at the entrance trapped under the car. People were trying to lift the vehicle.

The employee, breathing heavily, was still conscious. Ji-an frantically searched his pockets, but his phone had flown off somewhere during the tumble.

“Call an ambulance first! Someone call for help! Please, help here!”

Ji-an’s urgent voice spurred hotel staff rushing out of the building to join the effort.

The quiet weekday evening in front of the hotel turned into chaos in an instant. The debris from the shattered revolving door and the crumpled car were pushed aside with terrible noises. The acrid smell and the commotion of shocked people added to the horror of the scene.

While Jeong Hee-seo was explaining the situation to a hotel employee and handing over Ji-hyuk, the ambulance arrived. As paramedics tended to the injured and the scene was being managed, Ji-an approached Jeong Hee-seo.

“Hyung…”

He couldn’t help but think that if Jeong Hee-seo hadn’t grabbed him and rolled, he would have been the one trapped under that car. Ji-an’s hands shook violently. When he looked up at Jeong Hee-seo with trembling eyes, Jeong Hee-seo hugged him tightly, as if understanding everything without a word.

At that moment, Ji-hyuk let out a resentful scream.

“It’s all because of you!”

Everyone, from those restraining him to Ji-an and Jeong Hee-seo, looked at Seo Ji-hyuk.

“It’s because of you that I miscarried! My baby!”

Jeong Hee-seo narrowed his eyes. Everyone knew there had never been a baby in the first place. Was it a mistake to have kept quiet about it as Grandmother had suggested, out of consideration for Han-joo’s relationship?

Seo Ji-hyuk screamed like a truly insane person.

“It’s all because of you! My marriage with Han-joo failing… —if only you didn’t exist! Seo Ji-an, if it weren’t for you, my life—”

His words were cut off. Ji-an had broken free from Jeong Hee-seo’s grasp, strode over, and slapped Seo Ji-hyuk with all his might. With a sharp sound, Ji-hyuk’s head snapped to the side.

Slap!

Ji-an’s hand that had struck him was also trembling. It was a first for him. Both hitting someone and directly opposing his hyung.

“E-enough with the self-pity. Why should I be the scapegoat for your ruined life?”

“…”

“Not everyone breaks down like you just because things are tough. How can you say such things when someone’s hurt? Can’t you see? The injured person over there?”

“That’s also because of you…!”

Ji-an was at a loss for words.

Seo Ji-hyuk was glaring at Ji-an as if he wanted to kill him. His eyes were bloodshot as if he’d lost his mind, and the sound of his grinding teeth was terrible. For this moment, it felt like facing a viper rather than a person, and Ji-an’s face turned pale.

The siren of the ambulance, hurriedly leaving the scene with the injured person, pierced their ears. The red light from the emergency vehicle flashed across their confronting faces. As the police, who had arrived after being called, approached, the hotel staff holding Seo Ji-hyuk on either side moved.

Thus, the distance between the two widened. Ji-an stood still, continuing to stare at Seo Ji-hyuk. He took in every detail, from the police hearing all the circumstances to taking Ji-hyuk into custody.

“Ji-an.”

Jeong Hee-seo approached and hugged Ji-an from behind. As his soft, warm body temperature covered Ji-an’s back, his stiff body finally relaxed.

He took Ji-an’s right hand and massaged it.

“…I couldn’t hold back.”

“You did well.”

Ji-an turned and hugged Jeong Hee-seo face-to-face. Although he was the one who had hit Seo Ji-hyuk, his own cheek felt stinging and painful. Guilt over the person who had been harmed just for being near him pressed heavily on his chest. Tears flowed uncontrollably.

“What should we do, Hyung… the injured person.”

“It’ll be okay. I’ll take good care of it. Let’s not jump to conclusions just yet. You have Poggles to think about too.”

Hm? Don’t cry. The whisper settled on top of his head. Despite Jeong Hee-seo’s repeated kisses, strangely, Ji-an didn’t feel relieved. The upset feeling just wouldn’t go away. IIt was unbearable knowing that the blade of hatred directed at him had wounded an innocent person.

* * *

Ji-an headed to the hospital in the car Jeong Hee-seo had called. He had moved to follow the injured person, but upon arriving at the hospital, he ended up being the one admitted.

He stubbornly insisted on seeing the injured person first, but Jeong Hee-young also appeared to stop Ji-an. Despite persuasions like ‘He’s my employee, I’ll look after him’ and ‘Leave it to the medical professionals,’ Ji-an remained unmoved until he finally surrendered to Jeong Hee-seo’s words to check on Poggles first.

After quietly changing into a hospital gown and lying in bed, doctors entered as if they had been waiting.

“Fortunately, there’s no major problem. No visible wounds, and no damage to bones or muscles.”

“See? I told you I’m fine.”

“Still, it’s best to keep you under observation for a day or two. You have a baby, and you must have been very shocked.”

“I need to be hospitalized?”

“Yes. You might feel fine now, but your muscles have been shocked too, and you might feel pain at night. We’d also like to do a fetal movement test.”

Ji-an’s confidence quickly wilted. All he had was a small bandage on his scraped palm, yet here he was in a luxurious private room with three doctors surrounding him. Feeling awkward, Ji-an looked around and pointed at Jeong Hee-seo.

“But could you also treat Hyung’s forehead?”

The bleeding had stopped, but the wound was deep. He had wiped it carelessly, leaving dark blood stains on his forehead.

Jeong Hee-seo raised his hand to say it was fine, but when Ji-an glared at him, he resigned and let the doctor examine his face. Ji-an watched from start to finish as the doctor cleaned around his wound with an alcohol swab.

Only after seeing a large gauze bandage applied to his forehead did Ji-an give up and lie down.

As he quietly received the IV drip with added nutrients, Jeong Hee-seo’s expression seemed to relax, as if he was finally relieved. At this rate, Ji-an wondered if he could even suggest being discharged tomorrow.

Even after the medical staff had finished and left, Jeong Hee-seo still stuck close to Ji-an, checking him all over.

“Are you uncomfortable anywhere? What should we do about dinner? Should I go out and buy something?”

“Hyung, more importantly…”

Jeong Hee-young, who had been sitting quietly on the sofa, interjected into their conversation.

“He’s in surgery. Ji-an, I promise I’ll take very good care of him, so don’t worry.”

She got up and approached Ji-an.

“I understand how you feel. But you also need to accept that it’s not your fault. We’ll do our best to treat the injured person, so you need to take care of yourself too. Okay?”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“What’s there to thank for? I’m just doing my job,” Jeong Hee-young nodded. Her face was also dark from the sudden major accident. Then, as if suddenly remembering Han-joo, she gritted her teeth.

“That Jeong Han-joo, meeting such a psycho. He has no eye for people.”

At the mention of Seo Ji-hyuk, Jeong Hee-seo’s face hardened coldly.

“Birds of a feather flock together. You should know too, Noona. There will be no leniency.”

Jeong Hee-young made an expression as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Leniency? Ridiculous. Lying about the pregnancy, well, there might have been some circumstances between them. They even overlooked the chaos he caused at the engagement party and the disgrace to the family.

Grandmother tended to be lenient towards the rash mistakes of young people. But this incident was a crime that shouldn’t dare be called a ‘mistake’.

“I’ll do my best to punish him too. Anyway, Ji-an, don’t worry too much. Hee-seo, you take good care of Ji-an.”

After Jeong Hee-young left to meet the family of the employee in surgery, the hospital room quieted down. Jeong Hee-seo quietly approached and sat on the edge of Ji-an’s bed. Ji-an leaned against him, resting his head on Jeong Hee-seo’s stomach and hugging his waist.

“Hyung…”

“You must have been very shocked, Ji-an.”

He tightened his arm around Ji-an’s shoulders.

“Aren’t you curious why that person hates me so much?”

“…Well, do I need to be curious about the inner workings of a madman?”

As Jeong Hee-seo said “madman,” he pulled up the blanket to cover Ji-an’s stomach. As if that would prevent Poggles from hearing. Pfft, a laugh escaped.

Ji-an slightly detached himself from Jeong Hee-seo. Should he tell him? That actually, he and Ji-hyuk had a deep, bad relationship since they were cells.

“I know.”

“Know what?”

“Why he hates me so much.”

Ji-an bit his lip hard before starting his long explanation. His heart pounded as if he was exposing a great shame, even though it wasn’t his fault.

“It’s because—”

Just as he was hesitant trying to speak, the hospital room door opened and Yoon Ok-hee entered. It was no longer surprising, this world’s soap opera timing. Ji-an’s words caught in his throat.