Chapter 61

Chapter 60.

As his thoughts drifted towards what he wanted, Chaeheon picked up his phone. Was Lee Jun perhaps waiting for his call? He wondered if he should call, then let out a laugh that sounded like air escaping.

“He acted as if he was completely cutting me off, so there’s no way he’d answer my call.”

Even if he was concerned that Chaeheon hadn’t shown up for class, he wasn’t the type to call, even if it killed him.

“Are you worried?”

“Hmm… Yes.”

Chaeheon leaned back into the chair, sighing.

“One person keeps lingering in my mind, from the moment I open my eyes until I close them.”

“Is it someone you like?”

“It’s also someone who thoroughly dumped me.”

“I’m curious who that is.”

At the Executive Secretary’s words, Chaeheon recalled Lee Jun’s face.

Like coloring on a white canvas with a red crayon, if he said something, a blush would rise. When he sucked in his lips, red petals seemed to settle there, and when he forcibly suppressed his anger, the corners of his eyes would redden.

He often couldn’t keep his lips still, chewing them or rolling them inward. So, even without kissing, his lips would often turn red. Each time, Chaeheon enjoyed watching the color bloom on Lee Jun’s lips.

When he gently bit those lips that created such beautiful colors, they would softly yield and then spring back, never tiring him no matter how many times he explored them. Thinking of the countless kisses he’d shared with Lee Jun, a savory longing arose.

“Do you still have lingering feelings for the person who dumped you?”

“Lingering feelings, you say…”

What he’d just thought of felt more like lust… Chaeheon feigned ignorance and spoke in a deliberately dry tone.

“Lingering feelings are for after you’ve let everything go. That’s not me, so it wouldn’t be accurate.”

“So you have no intention of giving up.”

“That’s why I came to see my grandfather, isn’t it?”

Chaeheon glanced at his phone, which had just vibrated briefly, and continued.

“There are many things tangled up between us, and it will take time to untangle them one by one, so to shorten that time…”

Chaeheon’s words trailed off as he saw something on his phone.

When Chaeheon, who had been relaxed until then, showed an unpleasant emotion for the first time, the Executive Secretary looked at him worriedly.

“What’s wrong?”

Chaeheon ran out immediately, without time to answer the Executive Secretary.

As soon as Lee Jun arrived home, he opened Haein’s room first. He looked inside, wondering if she might have come while he was out, when his mother, Yoon Gyeong-hwa, approached him.

“Haein didn’t come.”

She, who had been waiting all day, seemed to be suffering greatly, as her expression wasn’t relaxed even as she sat on the sofa.

Lee Jun, belatedly noticing Yoon Gyeong-hwa’s face, spoke, as if regretting not paying attention.

“Did you sleep?”

“I did.”

Yoon Gyeong-hwa acted as if she was fine, but the more she did, the darker Lee Jun’s expression became.

His heart felt heavy seeing her, who had cared for them when they were young, and now spent most of her time looking after Hae Sol—it wasn’t an exaggeration to say so.

Lee Jun went and sat beside her.

“Look at me, my head’s a mess. Did you eat?”

“I did.”

Lee Jun gently pressed her hand, indicating she didn’t need to get up. As a result, the two sat side by side in silence for a while. This atmosphere was unfamiliar. Normally, the house was never quiet, filled with the sounds of a baby.

Perhaps because of that, the silence suddenly felt even more strange. Though an unexpected nephew, Hae Sol had now become an indispensable presence.

As Lee Jun looked around at Hae Sol’s belongings placed throughout the living room, Yoon Gyeong-hwa’s hand moved. Her feelings were evident in the way she caressed Lee Jun’s arm and gently squeezed his shoulder.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t pay more attention, son.”

Yoon Gyeong-hwa carefully expressed the concern she had felt while only watching, and Lee Jun shook his head. There were times when the burden on him was heavy, but he never resented his mother.

“The one who’s having the hardest time is mo…”

Lee Jun, who was about to say “Don’t say that,” stopped speaking when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He gave a look that asked for a moment’s patience and checked his phone. Seeing an unsaved number, he answered without confirming who it was.

“Hello?”

[Hello.]

Lee Jun’s face stiffened instantly as he recognized the owner of the lively voice. He got up and went outside, worried his mother might overhear.

“Why did you call?”

Only after checking if his mother was following him did Lee Jun speak to the caller sharply.

[I’m going to meet Haein.]

At the name Han Jeong-min mentioned, Lee Jun bit his trembling lip. The anxiety he’d felt since the call started, wondering if it was connected to Haein, had become a reality.

“Why are you meeting Haein?”

If he could see his face and talk directly, he wouldn’t feel so frustrated.

[Hmm… I’m going to meet her.]

Lee Jun, about to dismiss it as ridiculous, felt a sense of unease and frowned. This wasn’t the same tone as last time, when he said he’d come to the house to meet Haein.

“You…”

[I’ll send you the address, so come there. Come… and try to stop me.]

Lee Jun’s anxiety swelled boundlessly at the words, “I know where Haein is.”

He needed to tell him not to meet Haein, but the words wouldn’t come out. He felt pathetic for not having done anything before it came to this. Lee Jun bit his lip hard, trying to collect himself, when the call disconnected.

He was about to call Han Jeong-min back when a message popped up, making Lee Jun’s hand falter. The thought that he should call Han Jeong-min now crossed his mind, but his body moved first.

Lee Jun ran until he was breathless, unable to suppress his dismay at the fact that Haein was not far away.

Her claim that she was at a friend’s place was a lie. Entering the motel, Lee Jun had no time to wait for the elevator and hurried up the stairs.

1st floor, 2nd floor, 3rd floor… And up to the 5th floor, Lee Jun’s eyes rapidly scanned the room numbers, having run without stopping once. But then, hearing shouts even without needing to find the number, Lee Jun’s steps paused for a moment before he burst forward.

Lee Jun placed his hand on the half-open door, shifted his body, and pushed the door wide open. At the same time, sparks flew from Lee Jun’s eyes as he saw what was happening inside.

Haein, surrounded by men in black suits, was trembling, clutching Hae Sol tightly.

“What are you doing!”

Lee Jun strode inside and pushed away the men surrounding Haein. The oppressive aura emanating from them or their sheer numbers didn’t register in his mind. He only saw that Haein and Hae Sol were scared.

Lee Jun pushed through the men and stood with his back to Haein.

“You didn’t have to be so rough…”

It was Han Jeong-min, who had been leaning against the wall and was therefore the last to be seen. He smiled, looking at Lee Jun’s ragged breaths and flushed face.

“You shouldn’t push people like that. I didn’t do anything. In fact, didn’t I help by telling you Haein was here?”

Han Jeong-min stated his points one by one, as if asserting his innocence. If one only listened to his words, it might seem like he truly helped, but Lee Jun’s gaze grew sharper.

“Then who are these men? And what about you, barging in when Haein doesn’t want you here?”

“That’s just me finding my own way because she wouldn’t meet me willingly…”

Han Jeong-min pushed off the wall and took two steps closer.

“You could see this situation as me pressuring her, but we need to consider it point by point. When Haein was pregnant, I told her to get rid of it. But she gave birth anyway. So, who’s at fault here?”

Han Jeong-min pointed alternately at Haein and himself. He claimed there were unfair aspects for him, but his expression was eerily cheerful, not matching his words.

“…He’s an unwanted child, so you could just forget about him.”

Lee Jun’s suppressed words cut off Han Jeong-min’s smile.

“Haein was in a situation where she had to give birth. So she did, and she never once sought you out, so why now…”

“Even if it’s not now, it would be the same ten years from now.”

Han Jeong-min said it as if it were obvious.

“Because he’s my child.”

When he dropped his smile, it was as if he had become a different person. Lee Jun felt a strange sensation seeing his sunken eyes briefly touch Haein and Hae Sol.

When he was very young, his father had also come to take him and Haein. At that time, his father and Han Jeong-min now seemed similar yet subtly different. What was that difference?

“I’m taking Hae Sol, no matter what.”

Han Jeong-min moved his body to the side, blocking the entrance. To Lee Jun, it seemed like he was indicating that he wouldn’t leave without Hae Sol.

“Move.”

Lee Jun warned softly, not averting Han Jeong-min’s gaze. He was determined to push his way past him if he didn’t move.

“Do you know something?”

But Han Jeong-min smiled again. His face looked incredibly pleased, as if the tension that had just filled the air dissipated in an instant.

“That the world is on my side.”

No sooner had Han Jeong-min finished speaking than the men closed in, and Haein and Hae Sol’s cries grew louder.

In the standoff, where the situation threatened to explode the moment anyone moved, Lee Jun heard an unfamiliar sound.

It was the extremely relaxed footsteps of someone.