When Your Pain Becomes Mine

***

The Vice President's Office.

Ojae carefully presented the report to Mrs. Shin.

After receiving the report, Mrs. Shin slowly put her glasses on and started reviewing it.

Luckily, due to Ojae's quick reaction, the majority of articles about Gyeonhui were dropped; he also replaced them with other issues.

He had cleaned up relatively everything, but he was still nervous as he stood uneasily before her.

There was only the sound of the pages being turned over, and Ojae trying to swallow his dry saliva inside the vice president's office.

"... It's okay even though it is quite late."

Mrs. Shin nodded slowly as she checked the report.

Ojae was relieved with a sigh silently.

"Oh, how is Gyeonhui doing?"

"He's recovering now."

"I've heard that he disappeared from the hospital..."

'How much do you know...'

Ojae was terrified while raising goosebumps on his arm.

"That's… he is recovering in his place now."

"Home?"

"Yes, he said that makes him feel more comfortable..."

When Mrs. Shin heard Ojae, she thought for a moment.

After a while, she nodded and slowly rose from her seat.

"Let's go."

Hearing her, Ojae was so embarrassed that he only blinked his eyes without saying anything.

"Sorry, Ma'am, but I don't understand what you're talking about..."

"My child is sick, so as a mother, I would like to see if he is doing okay."

Mrs. Shin spoke in a bold tone, and she exited the vice president's office before Ojae.

"Oh my. This is totally going out of control."

Ojae took a deep sigh with his eyes closed tightly.

However, he had no time to organize his own thoughts, so he hurried to follow Mrs. Shin.

***

After entering the dark living room, Sun slowly looked around.

The interior was well-maintained, and the paintings on the wall were gorgeous.

Nothing had changed much from the last time she visited.

She slowly went upstairs and headed to his room.

She saw Gyeonhui lying on the bed through the gap of the opened door.

As soon as she saw him, she suddenly stopped nervously.

However, he was sleeping without moving an inch of his body.

When she breathed deeply, she opened the door and slowly went inside.

His face was covered in a cold sweat, and he was sleeping with his arm stretched out like he had tried to reach something earlier.

"... Gyeonhui..."

"Hah…"

Sun caught her breath and pulled up the duvet to cover him up.

His face was still pale, and his forehead was wet with the cold sweat.

She looked at him and felt so sorry. She rolled up her sleeves and brought a wet towel from the bathroom.

She wiped his sweaty face and neck with the towel and put the towel on his forehead to cool down the fever.

She looked still at his face.

His haggard face that she had never seen before made her mind feel so heavy.

It was like a child's face if the child were abandoned by his mother.

'... Yes, he was abandoned… by his own mother.'

His wound was hidden within his harsh and mean words, which hurt her heart deeply.

"Hah…"

She barely calmed her mind, and she slowly wiped the sweat from his neck again.

She could see a pattern on his c.h.e.s.t through the clothes that had opened.

He had never been tattooed before, so Sun carefully opened his clothes and looked at the pattern.

White marks that looked like floral patterns or a starfish.

It was somehow a familiar and a strange pattern.

"This..."

She mumbled to herself.

"... It's a punishment."

When he woke up, he said, but his eyes were still closed shut.

"The punishment I've deserved."

Hearing him, Sun took her hands off from him in a hurry.

He slowly opened his eyes and started speaking as he looked at her.

"... Why did you come here?"

"You called me."

'Oh...'

Her answer struck a faint memory in him.

He felt like he was making a phone call somewhere, but then he lost consciousness and felt like he was in a dream.

"I'll go home since I see you're okay."

She tried to get up.

He reached out and held her hand.

"Let me go."

"... Stay just a little longer."

His voice was so weak because of his sore body. His voice wasn't imposing and oppressive like usual.

She refused his hand, but she could not leave the room.

"... Don't do this."

Sun struggled to press down her crying emotions.

"... I'm sorry about this..."

His weak and sunken voice was hovering in her ears. She turned her body from him to hide her emotion that was about to burst out in tears. Gyeonhui struggled to raise his upper body and looked at her back.

He wanted to hold her delicate shoulders with his arms open.

However, he couldn't do that. He thought his behavior could cause her more pain.

He was struggling with himself, clenching his teeth like they like a vice.

"Hah…"

Sun sighed when she barely calmed him down. She turned and started speaking with a heavy and sunken expression.

"... Let's stop. Please."

Her voice was trembling.

Hearing her voice while enduring the pain, his eyes started trembling as well.

***

"... We've arrived."

Ojae parked the car in the parking lot, looked back, and spoke to her cautiously.

Mrs. Shin was reviewing the report on her tablet PC and looked out the window through her glasses.

"Who's taking care of him?"

After Mrs. Shin got out of the car, she looked at the lights on in the living room and asked.

"Oh, that's..."

Ojae hesitated.

The only maid that could have stayed with him had left a long time ago because of her son.

"I'll open the door first."

Ojae hurried up to the stairs.

After she looked around the house, she slowly followed him.

"I guess I'm having a terrible day. Nothing goes smoothly today."

Ojae had a long face and quickly opened the front door and went inside.

"Huh?"

When he tried to get inside, he inadvertently noticed a pair of unfamiliar shoes.

The small and narrow flat shoes that could hardly be said to be the property of a man.

He knew who's shoes they were.

There was only one person in his memory who would know the password to this house.

'Bang.'

Ojae heard Mrs. Shin opening the door.

He hurriedly lifted her shoes and put them in the closet. However, he threw them too hard, and one of the pair fell back to the floor.

'Udang, tang, tang.'

He quickly picked up the shoes again and put them in the closet, but his actions were so awkward and noisy.

"What's going on?" Mrs. Shin went inside, furrowed her eyebrows, and asked.

"Oh, it's nothing."

Fortunately, Mrs. Shin seemed to have seen nothing.

Ojae turned around and breathed a sigh of relief and wiped away the cold sweat on his forehead.

Ojae quickly rolled his eyes to find Sun. However, he couldn't see her anywhere in the living room.

'If she isn't in the living room...'

There was only one place for her to be.

"Is he on the second floor?" Mrs. Shin looked up at the stairs and asked.

"Yes."

After hearing Ojae's answer, Mrs. Shin slowly began going upstairs.

"Oh, no… this is crazy."

Ojae felt like his spine was freezing up, and all the hair on his body raised. If she found out what was going on in his room, Gyeonhui might be in more trouble.

Finally, Ojae shouted loudly with his eyes closed.

"Gyeonhui! The vice president is here!!!"

Mrs. Shin stopped walking and turned her gaze to Ojae.

In his continuing strange behaviors, Mrs. Shin was disgruntled.

"... I'm sorry Ma'am, I was afraid if he would be surprised to see you."

Maybe because she sensed something was strange from Ojae's awkward laughter, Mrs. Shin's pace increased as she trekked the stairs regardless.