PO 49

A black car stopped in front of the main building of Hansae Medical Center. When Han Jaehee got out with Secretary Kim’s support and sat in a wheelchair, Woojeong, who had gotten out earlier and was waiting, took hold of the back handles.

“Go to the elevator.”

Since it was Woojeong’s first time handling a wheelchair, he was careful, wondering if Han Jaehee might feel uncomfortable.

“It’s comfortable because Woojeong-ssi is pushing. The speed is just right too.” When Han Jaehee spoke warmly as if she read his mind, Woojeong felt relieved and headed toward the elevator.

When they arrived at the VIP ward floor, an assigned staff member approached and took over the wheelchair from Woojeong. While they were heading straight toward the consultation room, Han Jaehee stopped the group for a moment and looked for Woojeong who was following.

“Woojeong-ssi, wait in the lounge. They said it’s not a long test, so I’ll finish quickly, and we’ll go eat.”

“Yes. Go ahead.”

For Han Jaehee, it was uncomfortable if Woojeong followed her all the way to the consultation room. When Woojeong confirmed that Secretary Kim was following behind her, he stayed in the lounge.

As expected from a VIP ward, it had good facilities. Woojeong poured water into a paper cup and sat at a seat near the entrance. Hansae Medical Center and the Pheromone Center shared some of the VIP ward’s facilities. If you walked just a little along this corridor, there was a quiet outdoor garden. He had met Han Jaegang there once while he was in a patient gown. At that time, it was overwhelming just to see him, so he didn’t even have time to ask where he was sick. Now that he thought about it, Han Jaegang sometimes pressed his hand to his left chest and showed discomfort. He suddenly wondered if there was something wrong with his health.

Lost in thought, Woojeong raised his head in surprise at the vibration of his phone. A familiar name appeared on the screen.

“Executive Director.”

– It’s quiet. Are you at the hospital?

“Yes. Noona went in for tests, and I’m waiting in the lounge.”

– You’ve worked hard. Since you followed all the way there, ask her to buy you a good meal.

“Yes. But Executive Director… are you sick anywhere, or uncomfortable?” Woojeong hesitated, then asked carefully, but through the receiver he heard Han Jaegang talking with someone. It seemed he had called during a brief break in work, and when his voice came again, Woojeong could clearly feel that he was busy.

– Sorry. What did you say?

“It’s nothing. Are you very busy?”

It was not the right topic to bring up to someone working over the phone. He decided to ask separately later, and changed the subject. Han Jaegang answered without even trying to hide that he was busy.

– A little. I think I’ll be late today, so don’t wait, and sleep first.

“…Yes.”

Even saying he understood felt a little awkward. These days, Woojeong often fell asleep early in the evening without being able to fight off drowsiness. So when Han Jaegang came home late from work, he often carried Woojeong, who had fallen asleep on the living room sofa, to the room.

It was like he was sleeping all at once for the sleep he hadn’t gotten until now, since sleep kept coming without end. Han Jaegang said it was good to sleep soundly when tired, but it was to the point that Woojeong worried if it was okay to sleep like this. On top of that, he was hungry at all hours. As if he had developed an appetite he never had, even while eating snacks, he wanted to keep at least one or two pieces in his pocket beforehand. Even now, Woojeong thought, “Why do I keep acting like this?” and couldn’t resist unwrapping one fruit candy on the table and putting it in his mouth.

“Woojeong-ssi. Were you bored waiting alone?”

When Woojeong was melting another lemon candy in his mouth, Han Jaehee, who had finished her tests, came into the lounge.

“Did you get through the test well? What about the results?”

“They told me the immediate results, and for the rest they’ll contact me as soon as they come out. They said it doesn’t look like anything serious.”

“That’s a relief.”

While the classical music playing in the lounge paused for a moment, Woojeong’s stomach growled. Since it was loud enough, Woojeong’s face flushed, and Han Jaehee laughed like it was amusing.

“We better go eat quickly. What do you like, Woojeong-ssi?”

•••

After finishing a satisfying meal, the two moved to a nearby cafe. With a cup of hot lemon tea in front of him, Woojeong spoke awkwardly.

“Thank you for the meal.”

“Not at all. Since Woojeong-ssi ate well, I enjoyed it too.” At Han Jaehee’s words, Woojeong scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. She had taken him to a well-known barbecue place she was a regular at. Normally, if it were just the two of them, the meal would have felt awkward, and he would not have eaten properly, but today, drawn by the smell of charcoal-grilled meat, he picked up his chopsticks.

Seeing Woojeong eat heartily, Han Jaehee accepted the tongs from the staff and grilled the meat carefully for him. After eating until full, Woojeong looked embarrassed, so Han Jaehee comforted him with the words, “I like a man who eats well.”

“By the way, does your family know you’re staying at the Snow Reflection Residence, Woojeong-ssi?”

“They know, but because of circumstances I’m not contacting them separately.” Woojeong just answered truthfully. If she asked about Lee Doyoung, he intended to tell her the truth too.

“Well, as long as they know. But that bracelet is really unique and pretty. Where did you buy it?” But Han Jaehee did not pry further about his family and simply nodded calmly. Instead, she seemed more interested in Woojeong’s bracelet.

Woojeong looked down at the bracelet he had the habit of fidgeting with. On the night when he had spent his heat cycle with Han Jaegang, it had been fastened around his wrist without him even knowing it.

Because several things had happened, he had not asked Han Jaegang about it directly, but the only one who could have given it to him was Han Jaegang.

“…Executive Director gave it to me.”

“Really? At least Jaegang has the eye to give a gift that suits you.” Han Jaehee smiled softly and nodded. She lifted her mug, took a sip of coffee, and then quietly spoke.

“To be honest, I’m similar to Jaegang. I’m not the kind of person who trusts people easily. But with Woojeong-ssi… I don’t know why I keep feeling affection without reason.”

As she spoke, she cleared her throat for a moment, she felt a bit embarrassed.

“I guess it’s because Woojeong-ssi is a good person. Maybe that’s why Jaegang was drawn too.”

“Thank you for thinking well of me…”

The truth was Woojeong also felt comfortable with her. Even though there was an age difference and she was Han Jaegang’s older sister so he had been cautious, spending time with her was not hard or burdensome.

“Jaegang is clumsy at showing emotions and his personality is cold, right? He probably says hurtful things too. But in his own way, he’s trying now, so it would be nice if Woojeong-ssi could see him kindly.”

She pulled Woojeong’s rigid hand and held it, then she gently patted the back of his hand.

“I’m sorry to say this… but please take care of our Jaegang. I’m not telling you to endure and understand everything. If Jaegang makes things hard for you, you can beat him up, and I don’t mind.”

Woojeong nodded. He couldn’t fully know the reason why she treated him so well, but her words gave him support too.

After hearing his reply, Han Jaehee finally looked relieved.

•••

Late at night, Han Jaegang came home and looked around the quiet house. Since it was past midnight, Woojeong and Han Jaehee would already be in bed. His steps were heavy after being harassed by work all day and finally coming home. He loosened the necktie that was strangling him and headed to his room. The moment he opened the closed door, his rigid face noticeably softened.

A soft and refreshing scent that filled the room greeted him. It felt like his stifled chest cleared. As he stepped inside, Han Jaegang found Woojeong asleep lying on his side.

“…….”

He should have slept comfortably lying down. Han Jaegang pulled the blanket and covered Woojeong who was curled up. As he looked at the foot sticking out from the white blanket and softly touched it, it quickly disappeared under the blanket.

Han Jaegang chuckled and headed to the dressing room. The exhaustion that had been so severe until a moment ago seemed to have lessened.

After showering, Han Jaegang drank cold water and returned to the bed. When he carefully sat down, Woojeong’s face buried in the blanket came into sight. His sleeping face looked peaceful. Han Jaegang slowly reached out his hand and gently stroked Woojeong’s forehead. His hair wrapped softly around his fingers.

<I like you…>

The words Woojeong had spoken, which had come to his mind again and again all day, seemed to echo once more in his ears. He felt like he had returned to his adolescent days, that one line had shaken his nerves all day.

The Woojeong who had made him like that was fast asleep without worry. The fact that Woojeong, who always moved only with permission, had come comfortably into his room satisfied him. He quietly pulled back the blanket and bent down to embrace him. When he pressed his face against Woojeong’s warm cheek and wrapped his arm around his waist, Woojeong opened his eyes slightly and in his sleep put his arms around his neck.

Han Jaegang lay on the bed holding Woojeong in his arms. By now he should have grown used to it, but when he tried to sleep with Woojeong in his embrace, sometimes he still felt awkward. At such times, Woojeong always burrowed deeper into his arms like he knew how he felt. When Woojeong, held tightly in his arms, gently rubbed his soft face against his chest, the tension left in his body disappeared in an instant.

…Was it a mistake to give him a separate room? Han Jaegang was finding it less and less appealing to sleep alone in a bed without Woojeong.

Early in the morning, when he opened his eyes and stepped outside, he saw Han Jaehee who was already awake and in the living room. She approached him in her wheelchair after looking out at the faintly brightening sky by the window.

“Why are you up already?”

“I keep waking up at dawn because of pain in my back.”

“Is it bad?”

“It’s just annoying because it disturbs my sleep, but it’s not serious. They said if the test results are fine, I can treat it with medicine.”

“Shall I bring you something to drink?”

“Yes. Some warm water.”

Han Jaehee slowly drank the water Han Jaegang brought her, then she looked around the house as if she had just arrived.

“When you said you would repair Snow Reflection Residence, I was actually surprised. You never budged even when we talked about it all that time, so I wondered why all of a sudden. But seeing it like this, I understand. There was a reason for it.”

Sitting on the sofa, Han Jaegang quietly drank the coffee he had brought down, waiting for her next words. The reason she had not asked or spoken about Lee Woojeong until now must have been because she was waiting for the right time to talk.

“…Honestly, I never imagined you would keep someone like Woojeong-ssi by your side. He’s too different from you. And on top of that, he’s Lee Doyoung’s younger brother, right? How did you even come to think of meeting the brother of your arranged date?”

Normally he would have left the other person to think whatever they wanted. But ‎he saw Han Jaehee’s worried expression and Han Jaegang quietly spoke.

“I didn’t know when I went to the arranged meeting. Of course, I didn’t know it would go this far with Lee Woojeong either.” He briefly explained to her the circumstances she was curious about. After saying it, it was not much different from the kind of cheap story in a TV drama. The man who desired his fiancée’s younger brother and ended up taking him was none other than Han Jaegang.

But the smart Han Jaehee had correctly understood the important part of his story.

“You were never interested in Lee Doyoung in the first place. But it’s strange. Woojeong-ssi doesn’t seem like the kind of person who would accept this kind of relationship so easily?”

“I stirred up someone who was staying quiet. I caught him when he tried to run away in fear, and I brought him to my side.”

“What? You were really desperate, huh?”

“…I could live only if I brought Lee Woojeong. That’s not a metaphor or a figure of speech, it’s the truth.”

“You could live? What do you mean by that. Ah, wait, don’t tell me it’s because of the pheromone issue?”

“…Yeah. My pheromone level was at the bottom, and they said if another seizure came in that state, nobody knew what would happen to my heart. There was almost no medicine I could take too.”

Since he had changed his attending doctor to his junior Kim Junghyun, no one but the doctor he assigned knew Han Jaegang’s condition properly. Han Jaehee asked him several important points, and Han Jaegang answered honestly. After hearing his story, Han Jaehee sank into thought with a grave face. After some time, she lifted her head and asked him directly.

“Are you keeping Woojeong-ssi with you now because of your health problem?”

“…I can’t say no.”

“No. I think you’re making a big mistake.”

“A mistake?”

“Even if no one else knows, I do. You’ve changed. I’ve never seen you take care of someone, look after them, worry about them like this in your whole life. Isn’t that right?”

Han Jaegang looked at her speaking with certainty, then he turned his eyes to his closed door. He thought about Han Jaehee’s words as he recalled Woojeong who must be asleep beyond that thick wooden door.

Changed…

Han Jaegang already knew he had changed after meeting Woojeong. That was a fact he couldn’t deny.