#55
Eunhong also met his gaze, ready to listen.
“I’ll take care of the records with the police on my end. In exchange, I need to cover myself too, so I’ll need your cooperation, Eunhong.”
“What kind of cooperation?”
“Let’s agree that you’ll receive psychological treatment in my room, to provide evidence that the hospital did its best for patient care.”
“…”
“We’ll set up an appointment for one day each week. One hour each time. How does that sound?”
Eunhong looked perplexed. Honestly, he hadn’t expected things to go this way.
“Four hours a month doesn’t seem like a loss for you. Plus, I’m very expensive. It’s not a common opportunity to get free treatment. Oh, did I not mention? I’ll provide all the treatment for free.”
His voice was jovial with a hint of laughter, and his expression was confident. Eunhong narrowed his eyes. In this world, one should be wary of anything free. Except for what Lee Jaeha gives.
“Why are you doing this for me?”
“There are many reasons. The paperwork is done, and this is the fastest way to eliminate any discomfort between us, right?”
It was an absurd proposition. Offering free treatment when the hospital hadn’t done anything wrong, and the person in charge would take the time to do it himself? Even if it was to create solid evidence, it was excessive kindness. Eunhong wasn’t foolish enough to easily believe this.
“When you called, you suggested the psychological treatment center here at the hospital. I looked that up too. I’d prefer that. And I’ll cover any costs for creating evidence or whatever it is.”
“Ah… that.”
I shouldn’t have said that. Han Jeongwook muttered, scratching the end of his eyebrow with his fingertip.
“That won’t work.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve changed my mind.”
Han Jeongwook continued with a nonchalant smile, making excuses about security and whatnot. Without waiting for Eunhong’s response, he took out a tablet, opened his schedule, and pushed forward some dates. Even as Eunhong stared at him with a cold gaze, his expression didn’t change at all.
Eunhong stared at him intently. Suddenly, he felt a sense of déjà vu. It was the same feeling he had when he first came to this hospital. That look that saw him as a prime breeding stallion producing the highest quality traits.
***
After leaving Han Jeongwook’s office, Eunhong walked towards the hospital’s main entrance to catch a taxi. The ward was quiet, so there were no empty taxis. As he walked, lost in his complicated thoughts, a black sedan slowly followed him.
At first, he wasn’t sure, but when it matched his walking pace, he wondered if it was some crazy person. When Eunhong stopped abruptly, the window rolled down as if on cue.
“Hello, Eunhong. Shall we talk?”
Eunhong’s eyes widened at the familiar voice. He bent down to look inside the window, and sure enough, it was who he thought. Blinking at the unexpected appearance, he quickly came to his senses at the beckoning gesture and got into the passenger seat.
“What brings you here… Jaeseong noo… na?”
“It’s good to see you. Have you been well? I should greet you first. What’s with that expression after meeting me for the first time in years? Did you see a ghost?”
The teasing, playful tone was familiar from childhood. Eunhong stared at the woman who looked exactly like Jaeha, just a different gender, like a creature from another world. It was Lee Jaeseong, the real power of the Han Jung Group, whose private life was rarely seen even in the news. Jaeseong glanced at her wristwatch, started the car, and continued speaking.
“I’m a bit busy, so I can’t treat you to a meal… Let’s have a cup of tea. You have time for that, right?”
Eunhong once saw a news report talking about how much an hour of Lee Jaeseong’s time was worth. He didn’t know why that came to mind now, but he just nodded obediently.
The place Jaeseong took Eunhong was a coffee shop that hadn’t opened yet. The interior was dim, with white Oxford cloth covering all the glass windows. Eunhong naturally recalled the cocktail bar Jaeha had taken him to.
“This place hasn’t started business yet. It’s a pilot model for a new dining brand we’re launching. The first branch. Is it too dark?”
“Ah… Yes. I thought so.”
As soon as the words about darkness were spoken, there was a sound of someone moving inside. Soon, the ceiling lights came on. The two sat facing each other at a nearby table. Again, as if on cue, someone in a suit approached, served two cups of warm tea, and quietly disappeared. Unlike the awkward Eunhong, Jaeseong seemed comfortable with this kind of service, her expression at ease.
“How did you know I was coming out of that hospital?”
“This? There’s nothing your noona doesn’t know.”
Like Eunhong who asked knowing the answer he’d get, Jaeseong answered in her usual way. Jaeha and Jaeseong were very similar in this aspect. They didn’t reveal the specific methods, but they were honest about having made efforts to find out. Even if they claimed it was a coincidence, no one would believe it.
“Professor Choi absolutely won’t open his mouth about you two. I hate wasting time, and you need to get back to work, so I won’t beat around the bush.”
Once again – this time even Eunhong was quite surprised – someone approached silently and placed a file on the table. No footsteps at all… he almost asked if noona’s employee recruitment criteria included stealth skills. Jaeseong tapped the table with her finger and began to speak.
“The money flowing from Han Jung to Handae Hospital is quite substantial. The hospital director said there’s an extremely rare omega there, and if I’m interested, he’d introduce us. He said he contacted me first, as if doing me a favor.”
Eunhong stiffened and looked at Jaeseong.
“Do you know what he demanded from me in exchange for giving this omega’s personal information?”
In the file Jaeseong handed over with a smile, Eunhong’s personal information was written.
“This bas-”
“Eunhong, use pretty words.”
As if anticipating Eunhong’s reaction, Jaeseong just drank her tea calmly and waited. Eunhong read through the file detailing his personal information, felt disgusted, and roughly closed it.
“Jaeha tried to prevent your information from being sold.”
“…Jaeha did?”
“Yes. Jaeha stepped up to buy it first. But that hospital director is too greedy. The cunning old man contacted me to do business, ignoring Jaeha.”
Eunhong raised his head. Those hospital bastards told me to keep it a secret. In this capitalist society, money is the only thing you can trust. A sense of betrayal washed over him.
“Normally, I would have scoffed at this… But because of Jaeha’s behavior, I thought it might be you. So I bought it. Your file.”
She thought it might be me because of Jaeha’s behavior?
“I expected it, but seeing it in the file was still surprising. To think you really manifested. So I called Professor Choi, but he wouldn’t open his mouth. He said he didn’t know anything? And this Jaeha, he’s not even answering calls.”
“…Ah.”
“Even Professor Choi, no matter how much he favors Jaeha, he should know better. At his age, he should have quickly assessed the situation and asked for help before things got worse. Should I have to hear about family matters from others in this way?”
“Noona.”
“Hong-ah.”
They called out to each other almost simultaneously. As Eunhong closed his mouth, Jaeseong continued.
“I know. I don’t have any legal right to tell you what to do. But I do have some power, don’t I? When something like this happens, you should have contacted noona first. Even for someone like Jaeha, there are things he can’t do. It seems like you both are living too carefreely, and it makes me anxious.”
Although her tone was stern, it was clear that she was full of concern. Her scolding that they should have come to her first instead of flirting and going on trips after manifesting made her seem like a real older sister.
Even when angry, their beautiful faces were identical. Jaeseong, who had been venting her anger while looking at the file, brushed her hair back. When her eyes met Eunhong’s, she wrinkled her nose and smiled awkwardly. At that moment, Eunhong unconsciously frowned slightly. Suddenly, a strange and peculiar feeling blossomed in his chest.
A crazy thought that he suddenly wanted to see Lee Jaeha.
The features in front of him, identical to Jaeha’s, had transformed into a feminine version, becoming more delicate and glamorous. The attractive eyes with long creases at the corners when smiling, the straight nose bridge, and the well-shaped red lips below… all were elements that captivated him. Moreover, Jaeseong was enveloped in a subtle pheromone that was similar in texture to Jaeha’s. If Jaeha’s pheromones were a forest, Jaeseong’s were a forest full of vibrant flowers.
The hospital had used his personal information to do business. They had made demands that Jaeha couldn’t afford – he couldn’t even begin to imagine what they had asked for.
In the midst of hearing such news, Eunhong was thinking about how Jaeseong’s pheromones resembled Jaeha’s. Eunhong fiddled with his watch. He felt strongly that even in this situation, thinking about Lee Jaeha’s pheromones made him feel like he had given up on being human and turned into a beast. This sensation of being so swayed by instinct was truly unfamiliar. It was enough to make the past twenty-some years of education on living as a rational human being seem meaningless.
Eunhong suddenly burst into laughter. An observer might think he had gone mad from stress.
“Noona. You didn’t really give them everything they asked for to buy this, did you?”
“Why? Does it burden you?”
“No. I just thought you wouldn’t have done that… I was just checking.”
“Eunhong, you’ve grown a lot. You’ve developed quite a sense of perception.”
Jaeseong threw her head back and laughed heartily at Eunhong’s bold response.
