SATURDAY 80

“…Interesting…?”

I couldn’t help but let my eyes scan the inside of the dazzlingly flamboyant car once. At my reaction, Mr. Taeseon laughed, even slapping the steering wheel, and spoke with a voice that still carried a trace of laughter.

“His taste is a bit unique, that’s all—he’s not a bad guy. Come to think of it, I heard his marriage partner has been decided.”

“Ah, with whom…? I should offer my congratulations.”

“I heard his parents are in another business, and he’s a director at a meat processing company. They look good together and seem to have fun. It’s a good match. Now that I think about it, their engagement ceremony is next week… do you want to go together?”

“An engagement ceremony? Already?”

He had said that the cruise party was essentially a place to find an Omega to marry Mr. Song Sihyeon, but to be engaged only a few months after meeting. No, if I think of that party as an arranged meeting, maybe it’s actually late?

“It’s not ‘already’—it’s late. Apparently, the engagement was delayed because the two of them were bickering quite a bit.”

As expected, that was the answer I got from Mr. Taeseon. Bickering even before getting engaged; are they really a good match?

“What do you want to do? Do you have any intention of going?”

I nodded my head silently. I wanted to thank him for trying to comfort me by giving me his phone number back then, and I also wanted to congratulate him on the engagement.

“Okay…. Then I’ll clear my schedule for next week. I was actually debating whether I should mention it or not, so this worked out well.”

“You were debating it? Why?”

“…It’s a place where a lot of people gather. Will you really be okay?”

Mr. Taeseon asked cautiously. Only then did I understand the meaning of his words. Nothing will be resolved by next week. It meant that if I were to go, I would have to go as “Yoon Inha.” And to a place where a crowd of people would be gathered, no less.

I pondered for a moment but nodded again.

“Um, it’s okay…. But if we go together, rumors will spread quickly; are you okay with that, Mr. Taeseon?”

Surely, rumors would spread that Lee Taeseon has accepted Yoon Inha, or that he is getting along well with Yoon Inha. While it wasn’t pleasant for me either, Mr. Taeseon would likely hate it even more. However, he spoke with a faint smile.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Mr. Taeseon reached out with one hand that had been gripping the steering wheel and took my hand.

“One month.”

“One month?”

“Just wait one month, Inyoung. If you wait just one month, I’ll put everything back in its proper place.”

In its proper place…. I stared blankly at Mr. Taeseon. We couldn’t make eye contact, but his expression reflected in the windshield was clearly full of confidence.

I fiddled with the bracelet on my wrist. Because I was out on a temporary leave, the hospital bracelet was still wrapped around my wrist. The letters printed as Yoon Inha were vivid.

In its proper place. To the place where this name becomes Yoon Inyoung.

I quietly lowered my eyes.

It wasn’t a very far distance from the hospital where I was staying to Inhyeon University Hospital, but because there was congestion as there always is in downtown Seoul, it took some time.

The effect of the light-green sports car was magnificent. The moment this shining, hard insect entered the hospital driveway, gazes were drawn to it, but even after seeing it head toward the VIP ward, the reporters showed no interest. Though there were some who snickered.

And I also realized the reason why my uncle had chosen an ordinary German sedan. When my uncle’s car appeared behind us, someone shouted, “Isn’t that Lee Taeseon?” and the camera flashes focused in that direction. Thanks to that, we were able to enter a corner of the parking lot leisurely.

Fortunately, a light drizzle was falling. The kind of weather where it wouldn’t be strange to use an umbrella. Mr. Taeseon, after getting out of the car, hid his face with a large black umbrella and walked around the bumper to the passenger side.

He opened the door and tilted the umbrella for me, whispering for me to get out quickly. From there until entering the ward, I feel as if no photos were taken. At most, a photo of an umbrella with the same logo as the sports car and our legs. It was much better than having reporters swarming like a cloud of bees.

Once inside the ward where access is controlled, we waited for my uncle to arrive. While peering outside through the closed glass doors, I could see my uncle struggling far off, surrounded by reporters.

The ward security guards rushed out to surround the car, but they had a hard time because there were so many people. At 그 moment, my uncle rolled down the window, stuck his body out, and shouted.

“Move! Get lost, you swarm of flies! You’re so desperate to rush in whenever you smell something sweet….”

…Being able to speak like that in front of numerous cameras and recorders was also a talent of my uncle’s. I was already worried about the headlines on the social affairs page of the internet news today.

“Aren’t your words a bit too harsh!”

Some reporter shouted that, but my uncle kept the window open and yelled, “Write an article about it then!” before speeding up the car. The startled reporters scattered here and there. The shutter sounds echoed tremendously.

Still, it was a relief that my uncle’s actions were, to some extent, accepted as the eccentricities of a genius painter. My uncle, who parked the car, glanced at the reporters who were still filming from afar before entering the ward. In the end, my uncle had been the bait from the start.

Upon entering the ward, my uncle was pouring out bitter curses toward the reporters, but he fell silent when he saw me.

“You’re not feeling uncomfortable anywhere, right?”

My uncle asked, tapping my shoulder. When I nodded, my uncle also nodded, saying “Right.”

“Let’s go up. The Chairman and the Managing Director are waiting.”

The security guards guided us. The place where my parents were located occupied the entire top floor of the VIP ward.

As we went up to the top floor, the security was extremely tight. Large security guards in black suits were stationed everywhere, and especially in front of the hospital room, nearly five people were keeping watch on both sides and nearby. They all bowed their heads upon seeing Mr. Taeseon, my uncle, and me.

Doctors and nurses, who had been notified in advance of our arrival, were also on standby. They likewise bowed their heads as we approached and said:

“Please go in. Both of them have clear consciousness. The relatives have been moved to another room in advance.”

The hospital room door opened heavily, and amidst a silence broken only by steady mechanical beeps, I saw two large beds placed in the center. Neither of them were wearing ventilators, but oxygen tanks were prepared.

On the monitors checking their status, a steady curve representing stability was drawn as it passed by.

“Inha…!”

The moment they saw me, both of them tried to get up but were restrained by the nurse. And they still called me Inha. I didn’t want to cause another shock to my parents, who were lying there with major injuries, so I just stayed quiet.

Even though it was said their condition had improved significantly, my parents’ appearance was not good. Casts on their arms and legs, bandages wrapped around their heads and various parts of their bodies, and besides those, small abrasions and bruises that didn’t have separate gauze attached. The heavy injuries, heart-wrenching to see at a glance, showed how great the accident had been.

“I’m sorry for coming so late.”

At those words, both my mother and father flinched. I didn’t know the reason, but before I could think, Mr. Taeseon came and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“As you may have heard, his health was not very good. He’s been hospitalized until now before coming. His condition stabilized a bit today, so he’s just out on a brief leave.”

“Yes, I heard he was hospitalized. But was he in this hospital? No one said anything like that…. Inha, do you know how much your mother worried?”

“…I’m sorry.”

The apology was sincere. I hadn’t come to the hospital properly even when they were receiving intensive care or undergoing surgery. No matter how much I wasn’t feeling well, I felt apologetic. However, my mother and father made strange expressions again at my answer.

I tilted my head, and Mr. Taeseon whispered in my ear, so softly that only I could hear.

“Yoon Inha doesn’t apologize for things like this, does he?”

“….”

Only then did the events at the house that day come to mind. My mother and father actually know that I am not Inha. They just refuse to acknowledge it and are simply waiting for me to ‘become Inha.’

At that thought, I unintentionally recoiled, but Mr. Taeseon was right behind me.

Because I accidentally stepped on his foot, I turned around in surprise.

“Ah, I’m sorry. Without realizing it….”

Mr. Taeseon whispered again.

“It felt like a five-year-old stepped on me. I’ll have to make you gain some more weight. Do you know how scared I am that your wrist might break every time I grab it?”

…I almost laughed in this serious situation. But thanks to that, my tension eased, and I was able to look back at my parents. My mother reached out a hand covered in bruises and abrasions toward me.

“Inha, come here. Let me see your face.”

“I have something to ask the two of you.”

I was about to approach my mother slowly, but Mr. Taeseon caught my arm to stop me and spoke. I looked back at Mr. Taeseon.

“Mr. Taeseon, what…?”

Both my father and mother stared at Mr. Taeseon with wide eyes. I was also surprised.

Mr. Taeseon stood between the beds of my mother and father and spoke.

“The driver who caused the accident this time—I heard he was a new person on the protocol team.”

“Why that…?”

My parents’ accident this time was a social issue to the extent that the press swarmed like that. The police investigation is ongoing, but no related facts have leaked out. The interior and pedal black boxes of my parents’ car do not have a sound recording function. This is because it’s unknown what kind of conversations might take place inside the car.

The traffic accident of the twin sons, with one of them dead, followed by the suspicious traffic accident of the Chairman couple less than a few months later. Remarks that the Jegang Group had been cursed were appearing quite often.

“Did that man happen to say something like this at the end? ‘I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it either’.”