#134
“How do you like these wedding attires?”
“They’re… pretty…”
Idam responded, looking at the various wedding attires displayed before him. However, he felt like he was going crazy from how uncomfortable his seat was.
Idam had ended up boarding Ji Taehwa’s car and left the hospital in his sedan. Knowing the man’s infamous reputation, Idam was terrified out of his mind. Moreover, the men sitting in the front seats had menacing faces, which made it even worse. Idam tried to send a message to Taemin. At that moment, Ji Taehwa snatched Idam’s phone and threw it out the window.
‘Let’s talk just between us.’
Idam trembled, feeling even more ominous at his almost violent attitude.
‘How old are you?’
‘Where is your hometown?’
He asked various questions. It felt unsettling, as if he was deliberately confirming things he already knew. So Idam, his mind blank with fear, gave messy answers. Even a seat of thorns would have been better than this.
After traveling like this, they arrived at a seaside with a large cruise ship. After getting out of the car, Ji Taehwa said he would prepare a wheelchair considering Idam’s current leg condition, but Idam refused and walked with crutches. He wanted to run away, but with his leg in poor condition and knowing he’d face worse if he didn’t comply, he had no choice.
The inside of the cruise ship was extremely large and luxurious. However, there were no people visible except for staff and related personnel. This made it feel even more chilling. Entering a place marked “Event Hall,” there were various colored roses decorating the inside, along with candles and balloons. Overall, it was extravagant.
This was clearly not a normal situation. Because of this, Idam’s tension rose to the extreme.
Guided by Ji Taehwa, Idam sat at a round table. Ji Taehwa took a seat directly across from him. The table only had napkins and flower decorations. Soon, people in neat uniforms rushed in. In their hands were mannequins dressed in wedding attire, which were lined up in front of Idam. The staff quickly left.
Thus, Ji Taehwa asked Idam how he liked the wedding attires.
Why was he showing this? There was no way Ji Taehwa had accepted his relationship with Taemin. It felt like he was being mocked, and Idam’s anxiety grew even more.
“Ah, refreshing.”
Ji Taehwa kept drinking water. It wasn’t particularly hot weather, and the event hall had air conditioning, so it was even less so. Was he usually a heavy water drinker? But it felt like he was drinking excessively, which seemed bizarre.
“Take your time looking and choose. These are made with top-grade French fabric.”
“Um… Why are you showing these to me?”
“Why? Aren’t you going to marry our Taemin?”
“…”
“I heard you’re pregnant.”
Idam felt like another weakness had been exposed, but he tried to maintain a calm expression.
“Yes… That’s right.”
At Idam’s answer, Ji Taehwa smiled with his eyes. It felt almost ghost-like.
“I prepared these wedding attires as a sign of giving permission for the marriage, so don’t feel burdened.”
“You’re giving permission?”
It was bewildering, as there was no way he could take these words at face value.
“Yes. Go ahead and choose. I’ll give it as a gift.”
Idam looked at the wedding attires once more, unable to respond further. They were certainly luxurious and beautiful, but their appearance was suffocatingly burdensome.
“I… I’m fine, thank you.”
“Why? Don’t you like them?”
“I’ll choose later with the CEO.”
This was something he should do together with Taemin. Moreover, apart from that, the whole situation felt unnatural and unsettling, so he couldn’t do it. What was Taemin doing now? Thinking of him made Idam’s heart ache even more.
“Is there nothing you like?”
“No, they’re all wonderful, but I don’t think it’s something I should decide alone.”
Ji Taehwa frowned.
“I see.”
Idam felt an unusual sense. His gaze fell on the water glass on the table and the floor. The ivory marble floor was gleaming.
“The meal has arrived.”
This time, a staff member brought in the food. At that moment, Idam grabbed the water glass on the table. Then, pretending to slip accidentally, he dropped it on the floor.
Crash.
The glass shattered with a loud noise.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Idam bent down, pretending to pick it up with his left hand. While doing so, he grasped a piece of glass, allowing his hand to be cut. After confirming that blood was trickling out with the stinging pain, he discarded the glass piece and clenched his fist, hiding the wound.
“Oh my, are you alright?”
A staff member hurriedly approached and swept up the glass. Idam straightened up again.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“You’re not hurt?”
“No, I’m not.”
Idam then picked up the fork with his uninjured right hand. Now that his phone had been taken away, there was no way to contact Taemin.
That’s why he chose this action. It was because Taemin had said this when tracking Idam in Cheongdo before:
‘I smelled your blood.’
‘Your blood is the most delicious scent I can sense after your pheromones.’
So this was now the best way to make Taemin find him.
“Then, let’s eat.”
Ji Taehwa picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
The table was full of fusion Korean dishes. There were many appetizing dishes like butter-grilled oysters, three-combination yukhoe, truffle crab egg roll, cream shrimp, scallop jeon, and Korean beef tteokgalbi. Although there was a splendid array of delicacies that could break the table legs, Idam couldn’t bring himself to touch any of it.
“The food is excellent.”
Ji Taehwa was stuffing the dishes into his mouth. His chewing and swallowing movements were lively, seeming satisfied.
“Why isn’t the new baby eating?”
New baby… Following Hyeongman’s “daughter-in-law” from before, this new term made Idam’s skin crawl.
“I’m fine, thank you.”
“I saw you going to the obstetrics department with Taemin earlier, aren’t you pregnant now? Isn’t this when you should be eating well?”
How long had this person been monitoring him? Idam felt his mouth getting even drier. He wanted to drink some water, but given the situation, he couldn’t because he was uneasy about whether something strange might have been added to it.
Seeing Idam hesitate to eat, Ji Taehwa seemed to have no intention of urging him further and focused on his meal again. All while drinking lots of water.
“How much do you know about our family, new baby?”
“What? Ah…”
Idam lowered his gaze for a moment, not knowing how to answer such a blunt question.
“Or do you already know everything?”
“May I ask why you’re asking me these questions?”
Feeling uncomfortable about answering, Idam asked instead.
“I guess you do know everything. Huh huh.”
Ji Taehwa smiled suspiciously, as if he had already found the answer in Idam’s reaction. Then he picked up his spoon again.
Idam felt the ominous feeling that had been rising grow even stronger. He could barely stand how suffocating this place was. He couldn’t just sit here and face the worst situation. He needed to find a way to escape this cruise ship. Idam rolled his large eyes for a moment, then stood up using his crutches.
“I need to step out for a moment. I’ll be right back.”
“Alright.”
Ji Taehwa allowed it with a relaxed gesture.
Idam walked using his crutches. His heart wanted to run away immediately, but there were sturdy bodyguards in black suits everywhere, making it impossible to even attempt.
After leaving the event hall, Idam first entered the bathroom. Fortunately, the bodyguards didn’t follow him this far. However, their silhouettes standing firmly at the entrance were clearly felt. Idam was even more filled with the desire to escape from here. Wondering if there was any way out, he looked out the window.
He was currently in the middle of the sea. There were no islands or other ships visible around. Even if there were other ships, he didn’t know what he could do.
“Hah…”
No matter how many escape methods he calculated, swimming was the only option that came to mind. But with his ankle in this condition, he wasn’t sure if he could swim properly. However, he couldn’t just stay trapped in Ji Taehwa’s poison and face death.
“I have no choice but to try swimming…”
The window was quite large, so if he broke the glass, he thought he could easily jump into the sea.
Is there a tool?
Idam looked around the bathroom and found an emergency hammer. He quickly grabbed it and double-checked the bathroom door he had locked when entering. Once he broke the window, the bodyguards would first try to open the door. He needed to hurry and break the window and jump into the sea before they could fully open the door. He needed to buy time. So he pulled a box containing cleaning supplies and placed it in front of the door. Not satisfied with just that, he also stacked buckets like a tower.
“Hup!”
Taking a deep breath, Idam hit the window with the hammer. But the window was stronger than he imagined, without even a small crack. Only a loud noise echoed. Startled, Idam hit the window once more.
At that moment.
The doorknob was shattered and the door violently opened.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Ji Taehwa, surrounded by bodyguards, had sharp eyes.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
