Chapter 48

Hae-gang held back words like she was suppressing something, swallowing her initial response. It might have been a brief and abrupt exchange, but the fact that she had managed to voice it was something Woo-jin couldn’t just let slide.

“What’s wrong?”

“You, Mr. All-In, on your business endeavors. You’ve got zilch in the dating department.”

And just like that, the call was disconnected. Woo-jin glanced down at his dimmed phone screen again, a subtle hint of bewilderment in his gaze. He hadn’t noticed the change in the signal due to his absent-mindedness, and Clarkson chimed in from behind. Woo-jin quickly changed gears and muttered to himself.

“Why did she suddenly say that?”

****

Hae-gang disconnected the call at her whim and buried her face in her pillow. How on earth was she supposed to distinguish between being Hae-gang and being Ms. Dawn in the wee hours of the morning?

Woo-jin’s grand delusion was thinking it was as easy for others as it was for him.

“Minwoo Jin, you’re annoying me.”

Couldn’t he be a bit more affectionate at times like this? He was overly frank. He boldly demanded what he wanted, and his advice felt violently blunt.

With all this in mind, she had no idea how to handle a business meeting. Desperate to somehow escape from the image of Geon-ho that was firmly planted in her mind, Hae-gang was uncharacteristically furious with Woo-jin.

She lay wrapped up in her blanket like a silkworm, but from downstairs came the sound of the landlady’s voice. Maybe she was making a call. Considering how quiet she usually is, it might turn out to be an enjoyable conversation. But Hae-gang’s expectations were dashed without a doubt.

“Are you asleep?”

With the sound of the door opening and the welcome voice that followed, Hae-gang sprung up from her blanket.

Without making a sound, Woo-jin closed the door and found himself near the bed. He gently touched his face with his hand, and as his fingers brushed against her cheek, she blinked her eyes slightly.

“It seems you didn’t cry,” he said.

“I didn’t cry. Honestly, there’s no reason to cry over that person.”

Perhaps it was because she had been keeping her emotions in check, but a chill emanated from his hand. Woo-jin seemed to realize it too and quickly withdrew his hand.

Hae-gang, however, didn’t hesitate and reached out to grab his hand before it could distance itself too far. She held his cold hand firmly in both of hers, as if she had no other choice, and sat right in front of him.

“You did well,” she told him.

As she spoke, her other hand moved to gently stroke her disheveled hair. His touch and the way he praised her had a soothing effect on her lingering frustration, akin to complimenting a child who didn’t cry after falling.

Thanks to him, her mind, which had been in turmoil due to Sun-woo’s death, had calmed down considerably. Hae-gang playfully nudged her head against Woo-jin’s chest, which was right in front of her.

“I felt awful,” she admitted.

“Because of Yoon Sun-woo?”

With her head still resting on his chest, she tilted her chin up to look at him.

“At first, I thought it was because of that. No matter how much of a jerk he was, it’s unsettling when someone you know dies.”

“It can be, although I can’t exactly relate to that.”

Hae-gang burst into dry laughter at Woo-jin’s candid assessment. She balled up her fist and lightly swatted his arm, which had caught her eye.

“In moments like this, you’re not supposed to add any more words.”

“…I see.”

His agreement settled gently on her forehead. Hae-gang closed her eyes, still feeling the soothing touch of Woo-jin’s hand on her back.

“But it’s not that. It’s because the person who killed him was Yoon Geon-ho. That’s why I felt so awful. We’ve spent a considerable amount of time together, and I never thought someone like him could be capable of it.”

She couldn’t help but marvel at her own words. Even with the experiences she’d had, she wondered what she’d expected. Perhaps it wasn’t expectation but lingering attachment, as Woo-jin had once mentioned.

However, this lingering sentiment was not rooted in affection for him but rather a complex mix of emotions. She wanted him to retain some humanity and not be a true murderer. She was someone who could disguise a living person as dead and watch over them, who could reduce someone to a nervous wreck with a single glance, who could threaten lives to make them bow down, but at least she hoped he wasn’t a real killer—a feeling that couldn’t be easily defined.

Woo-jin, without a hint of a smile, pinched her feelings like a mischievous child.

“Ms. Dawn, you’re a bit late in realizing things. Or perhaps you don’t want to realize them.”

Contrary to his calm words, his hand continued to sweep gently, as if consoling her, from the back of her head to her back. Entrusting herself to that affectionate touch, Hae-gang began to reconsider her thoughts.

“That could be true. It’s hard to believe, but that person is capable of far more frightening things than I ever imagined.”

And suddenly, she felt uneasy. Was it really okay like this? Today, Sun-woo was the protagonist of the news, but could she guarantee that it wouldn’t change later with just a different name?

Her anxious hand, unable to overcome the overflowing unease, clenched tightly onto Woo-jin’s shirt, wrinkling it.

****

Recently, Hae-gang felt like her soul had been sucked out of her. It had started precisely when the news about Yoon Sun-woo’s death broke.

Today was no different. She sat on her bed, staring blankly into space, when she heard a voice from downstairs calling for her.

“Madam! Please come down for a moment!”

She sluggishly got up, but even that effort came to a halt before she could make it down the stairs. In the foyer, two individuals looked like they had just come from the office.

“Nice to meet you, Madam. I’m Director Han Yoo-Jung from the secretary’s office. This is Assistant Lee Beom-woo, who primarily handles the CEO’s external activities.”

Hae-gang hesitated as she descended the rest of the stairs, and in response to their polite greetings, she raised her head.

“I’m Ms. Dawn.”

The fact that they were coming had been relayed to Woo-jin last night. It had been his suggestion in the first place.

“I’ll send a secretary tomorrow, so you can at least go to the department store and take a walk.”

“What’s the point of going to a department store in this situation? It’s fine.”

She didn’t feel like showing her face to the secretary, and she even mentioned the possibility of running into Geon-ho again, but Woo-jin had been stubborn.

“I’ll send trustworthy people, so if you don’t want to go to the department store, at least go for a walk. You seem too down lately, and I don’t like seeing you like this.”

Under the piercing edge of his words, which cut through her self-awareness, she couldn’t find the words to refuse any further.

“Madam?”

Summoned by the landlady’s call, Hae-gang snapped back to attention and put on a polite smile for the director and his secretary before her.

“I’m sorry. I got lost in thought for a moment with guests in front of me.”

“We’re not guests, so you don’t need to worry.”

“No, please don’t say that. I’ll get ready quickly and come down. Would you like some tea while you wait?”

“Yes, of course. Take your time; there’s no rush.”

A resigned sigh escaped Hae-gang’s lips as she climbed the stairs to wash up. When she thought about it, hiding was pointless when Geon-ho probably knew everything already.

“It’s just that I don’t have the confidence to face him yet.”

She murmured weakly and entered the bathroom attached to the bedroom. She turned on the water and after a moment of splashing and echoing, scalding hot water poured out, enveloping her in steam.

As she waited for the air to warm up, Hae-gang buried her face in her hands, which were still stinging from the hot water.

In recent days, her nightmares have become more vivid. She was still standing in the sticky, bloody puddle, and every step she took was excruciatingly difficult.

In the background, Geon-ho’s voice never stopped, tormenting her ears, and when she lowered her head, countless hands crawled up her legs, sending a shiver down her spine.

Up to this point, it was always the same as her recurring nightmares. The difference lay in what came next.

“‘Lift your head. Look ahead.'”

Though Geon-ho’s voice was tenderly crafted, it carried an icy chill. When she raised her head in response, Woo-jin appeared in front of her. No matter how much she tried to take heavy steps forward, the distance between them remained unchanging.

“Minwoo Jin!”

He didn’t seem to hear her, even when she called out with all her might. Woo-jin just stood there, rooted in place. It was from that moment on that she could vaguely guess how this nightmare would end.

“It’s all your own doing.”

The distance between Woo-jin and her seemed immeasurable, but Geon-ho’s voice felt almost too close. She couldn’t even bring herself to turn around. She would just passively spend time like that, and inevitably witness a horrific scene.

One day, he would be charred to the point where she couldn’t even recognize his form, accompanied by terrifying sounds. On another day, his severed body would fall in front of her, spurting blood. She would scream, cry, struggle to escape Geon-ho’s laughter echoing in her ears, and then wake up.

Every night, she repeated the same remorse. She shouldn’t have said that she liked him. She shouldn’t have listened to words with such meaning.

In the morning, she laughed and chatted with Woo-jin as if nothing had happened the night before, as if trying to avoid reality.

In truth, the place where she was with Woo-jin was the real world, and that dreadful spectacle was a dream, but at some point.

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