“Gah, ugh…”
I collapsed back into the chair, clutching my leg. My breathing, which had been erratic, turned into ragged gasps. Cold sweat dripped down in heavy drops, soaking my pants.
It made no sense.
Why all of a sudden…?
“The surgery went well. But the prognosis is a bit concerning…”
“…Sir?”
“They say they’ve succeeded in locating the two of them. Seo Suho, you’ll need to go now and confirm it yourself.”
“How could this happen? How…”
“Suho.”
Blinking against the haze in my vision, I lifted my head.
Min Yugeon had come up to me, speaking earnestly.
“Then let me be the one to hold on.”
“I’m right here.”
The illusion disappeared with the image of him burying his face in my hands.
“……”
The chaos in my head calmed, and the pain in my leg slowly started to fade.
As my mind began to function properly again, I thought of Sun Woosung. When I checked my watch, the call had already ended.
With a hand still trembling faintly, I rubbed my face. Apparently, I had lost it more than I thought. Just because of an injured leg, was I really this dramatic after hearing Sun Woosung’s voice?
The moment I let out a deep sigh, the doorbell rang. I instinctively turned my head toward the front door.
Who could it be at this hour…? I rarely had visitors at home, so the question naturally arose.
I staggered to my feet and made my way to the entrance. Someone couldn’t wait and pressed the bell again. That wasn’t enough—whoever it was started banging on the door.
“Seo Suho!”
“……!”
A voice that shouldn’t have been audible here echoed faintly, piercing through the soundproofing. It was Sun Woosung. I froze in place, eyes wide open.
The unexpected situation left me flustered, but if I just stood there, he looked ready to break the door down. I quickly opened it. And there he was, Sun Woosung in civilian clothes, our eyes locking.
“Colonel, what are you doing here…?”
Sun Woosung scanned me with his signature sharp gaze. Startled by his intensity, I clamped my mouth shut.
His black eyes dropped to my ankle.
“Are you hurt?”
“Ah…”
Reflexively, I looked down. Blood was still seeping from my ankle. When I glanced behind me, I noticed a significant trail of blood on the floor. I instinctively tried to cover it, subtly shielding the mess as I nodded.
“Yes, it just kind of happened… But what brings you all the way here?”
“……”
His gaze, so heavy I had to wonder if I’d done something wrong, remained fixed on my injury.
“I think treatment comes first. May I come in?”
I was momentarily speechless. This wasn’t the best situation to have a guest. Not just the bloody floor—there was also the shattered liquor bottle that had turned the area around the table into a disaster zone. Not to mention I reeked of alcohol myself.
But turning Sun Woosung away after he’d come all this way wouldn’t be right either. His disheveled hair and wrinkled clothes made it obvious he’d rushed here. After a silent moment staring at him, I finally stepped aside.
“Come in.”
As if waiting for that, Sun Woosung stepped inside. After making sure he was in the living room, I closed the door.
Clearly not here for a house tour, he turned back to face me immediately.
“Do you have a first aid kit?”
“I’ll go get—”
“Do not move. Sit down.”
Sun Woosung pointed firmly to the sofa. Honestly, moving around in this state would only make things worse. After a brief hesitation, I told him where the kit was.
I obediently sat on the sofa, and soon enough, Sun Woosung returned with the first aid kit. He had me stretch my leg out across the cushions and rolled up the pant leg to fully expose my ankle.
With my head still hazy from the alcohol, I wavered between discomfort, embarrassment, and laziness. Part of me wanted to refuse his help and do it myself, but another part wanted to just surrender everything to him. I leaned my cheek against the backrest and looked at him.
“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem bad enough for a hospital.”
He said this as he thoroughly sanitized his hands, inspecting my ankle with practiced care.
“I’ll stop the bleeding first. It might hurt a little.”
“……! Ngh.”
I bit down on my lip, grimacing. The pain surged as the wound was pressed, and for a moment, I couldn’t control my expression.
Sun Woosung didn’t even ask if I was okay. He simply gave me a sidelong glance and silently focused on stopping the bleeding.
His demeanor might be blunt, but his actions never are. He must have sensed something was wrong during the call and came rushing over. Even though there was a chance I wouldn’t even be home.
Still, there was something I had to ask.
“How did you know to come here?”
At my question, Sun Woosung turned his head and met my eyes.
“I never gave you my address.”
“……”
At my suspicious tone, his shoulders flinched. He didn’t answer right away, and the silence thickened in the living room.
It was so quiet that I could faintly hear both of our breathing.
Looking increasingly awkward, as if something was weighing on his conscience, he finally spoke after a long pause.
“I’m sorry.”
The sudden apology made my eyes widen slightly.
“I once followed you after work.”
“……What?”
“That day we had dinner together—I sensed something. I thought it was best to confirm it.”
…So he had followed me to identify if someone was tailing me?
I stared at Sun Woosung, speechless. His lips were slightly turned down as he accepted my gaze, and eventually, he lowered his head.
“I didn’t find anyone suspicious, but…”
“……”
“……I apologize.”
Even with his repeated apology, I had no idea how to respond, so I kept my mouth shut.
No matter how concerned he was, following me was… objectively, it crossed a line. Anyone else in my position would likely get angry rather than feel grateful.
But oddly, I didn’t feel angry or uncomfortable. If anything, I was grateful. Because I knew he had acted out of genuine concern for me.
He must have noticed how uneasy I was, and so he took time out of his own day to quietly watch over me.
It did make me wonder what kind of relationship we really had. But knowing the warmth hidden behind his detached expression made it easier to understand.
“No. Thank you for helping me. You’ve really put my mind at ease.”
Sun Woosung looked up, startled by my unexpected response. He seemed unsure if he’d heard me correctly.
I added with a faint smile.
“But you should’ve told me in advance.”
I asked, wondering if all the secrecy had been necessary. Sun Woosung fell silent for a moment.
“If the person following you was sharp, they might have noticed you were aware of me. That’s why I didn’t say anything.”
“……I see.”
Thinking about it, if I had known he was following me, I might have unconsciously started checking my surroundings, or my movements might have looked unnatural.
I nodded quietly and leaned my head to the side again. The throbbing headache and drowsiness made my body feel heavy.
Despite the slightly awkward air, Sun Woosung continued tending to my wound. He carefully disinfected it, checking for debris, applied ointment, placed gauze over it, and wrapped it with a bandage—all with practiced hands.
“May I ask what happened?”
He asked softly. I shifted my unfocused gaze toward him.
“I just… was drinking alone and accidentally broke a wine bottle.”
I gestured toward the kitchen with my chin.
“You might get hurt, so stay away from the dining area.”
After finishing the bandage, Sun Woosung stared at me for a long moment. As if the answer wasn’t what he’d wanted to hear.
He clearly suspected something else had happened today. Judging from his expression, I must’ve looked pretty terrible.
I almost laughed. How pathetic must I look right now?
“There’s a problem I have to solve…”
I closed my eyes and rested my arm over my forehead.
“If you’ve tried everything but still can’t find an answer, what would you do, Colonel?”
Even to my own ears, my voice sounded lifeless and pitiful.
I didn’t want to lose Min Yugeon. I was afraid our connection might end here. Even though he’d devoted himself to me all this time, now I should be supporting him as he found his own path… but these greedy, disgusting thoughts kept surfacing.
I knew there could never be a happy ending where both my desire and Min Yugeon’s happiness were fulfilled, and yet, all that filled my head was the same meaningless question—What should I do?
“……”
Sun Woosung was silent for a while. Even at my sudden, vague question, he seemed to be seriously contemplating it.
“Maybe…”
At his low voice, I opened my eyes and lowered my arm. His jet-black eyes stared directly into mine.
“Maybe giving up is the answer.”
