“Can’t exactly stand here forever, can I?”
The casual reply left Yu-jin even more dumbfounded.
“Ah… So you’re not leaving?”
Unable to hold it in any longer, he finally voiced what was on his mind. But Winston responded like it was no big deal.
“I have the freedom to be wherever I want.”
Sure, that’s true. But then what about my freedom to be alone?
Yu-jin was overwhelmed with things he wanted to say, but the sheer volume of them only choked the words in his throat. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out, and he closed it again. No matter what he said, he felt like he’d never be able to win against this man—and that pessimism crushed what little willpower he had left.
“Do whatever you want, then.”
Muttering in a faint, defeated voice, he turned over and lay on his side, his final act of protest. Every movement sent a searing pain ripping through his body like it was being split in two, but he grit his teeth and endured it. He’d rather suffer through the pain than expose himself, defenseless, under that unrelenting gaze.
A long silence followed. Time passed in absolute stillness, not even the sound of breathing breaking the quiet. It was only after a nurse came in to administer a shot that Yu-jin finally drifted off to sleep. His body relaxed, and he closed his eyes, a quiet sense of relief washing over him.
***
Maybe it was the meds, but when he opened his eyes again, his head was hazy and dull. His body felt numb as well, dulling the pain to something more tolerable than the day before. Not that he could stop the occasional groan from slipping past his lips whenever he so much as moved.
“…”
Yu-jin let out a small sound, his brows furrowing, and turned slightly—only to startle awake and snap his eyes open wide.
Dark violet eyes were staring straight at him.
Unmoving, unblinking, Winston sat like a statue, his gaze fixed solely on Yu-jin. The intensity of it froze Yu-jin in place, panic flickering across his face. And then—his memory returned. The very last moment before he’d fallen asleep the night before.
He had no idea after passing out, but… had Winston seriously been sitting there like that the entire night? Just… like that?
Why?
A thousand questions raced through his mind—when suddenly, Winston let out a sigh. And Yu-jin saw it.
The rigid tension in Winston’s shoulders loosened ever so slightly. His jaw unclenched. His expression softened, crumbling into something far more vulnerable. It was clear—undeniably so—that relief was washing over him, body and soul.
Yu-jin could only stare, dumbfounded. It felt like this was the first time he’d seen Winston’s true face since they’d reunited. With his emotions laid so bare, there was no pretending not to see it.
It really looked like Winston had spent the entire night there, unable to sleep, worried sick about him.
That can’t be it.
Yu-jin stubbornly rejected what was right in front of him. Winston, staying up all night out of concern for him? The old Yu-jin might’ve burst into tears from gratitude. But that version of himself no longer existed. And Winston wasn’t the same man he used to be either.
So whatever he was seeing now… it must mean something else entirely.
When circumstances change, the outcome does too.
The silence between them, though it felt much longer, had lasted only a few seconds. And yet, it was a completely different kind of silence from the one they’d shared the night before. This time, it was thick with tangled emotions—confusion, relief, and something else more complicated.
Yu-jin was the first to speak.
“…Why are you just sitting there like that?”
His voice came out hoarse—so raspy it embarrassed even him. He felt a sudden wave of weakness, and it soured his mood. Of all people, Winston was the last person he wanted to appear fragile in front of.
Yu-jin’s expression clearly showed his discomfort, but Winston’s face shifted almost instantly, slipping back behind his usual mask. With Yu-jin watching him closely, Winston finally moved for the first time—slowly, stiffly, like someone stretching limbs that had been frozen in place all night. He shifted his legs and crossed them, his movements noticeably more sluggish than usual. Then he spoke.
“How’s your body?”
It was a simple question, but in this moment, it held a strange weight.
Yu-jin paused before replying, straightforwardly.
“Still hurts. But better than yesterday.”
He deliberately didn’t say thank you. He didn’t feel the slightest bit grateful toward this man. People with everything can afford to be honest, while those with nothing have to protect what little they have left by staying guarded.
Of course, sometimes the opposite is true too.
He bit back that bitter thought and moved on.
“What were you doing, exactly? Don’t tell me you spent the whole night here like that.”
If he had, it was way too much. The idea of someone watching his face while he slept—especially Winston—made Yu-jin feel like his wounds were going to tear open all over again. He’d basically seen the answer already, but he had to ask anyway—just so he could tell him to leave. His nerves prickled as he waited for the reply.
Winston finally answered, slowly.
“I usually don’t sleep much.”
Yu-jin blinked, thrown by the unexpected response. He opened his mouth as if to speak, then shut it again.
Winston continued, as casually as if they were discussing the weather.
“You know that, don’t you? That I don’t really sleep.”
“Ah… I mean, yeah.”
Caught off guard, Yu-jin fumbled through his words before falling silent again. His mind was a mess, swarming with thoughts that refused to organize themselves. But technically, Winston wasn’t wrong. Back when they’d shared a bedroom, Yu-jin had learned firsthand that Winston hardly ever slept. Even the slightest movement from Yu-jin would wake him. He’d always come to bed far later, only to leave for work before Yu-jin even opened his eyes. It seemed like he barely got three hours of rest in a day—and even that came in scattered fragments.
Is that just how Extreme Alphas are? Do they really need so little sleep?
“…Even if you don’t sleep, you should at least lie down and rest.”
He only realized after saying it that his voice had softened, tinged with something like pity.
“Sitting there watching me all night won’t change anything. It’s just a waste of time.”
Yu-jin scrambled to cover up his slip, quickly shifting to a cold, dismissive tone. But his chest felt heavy with guilt. Is he trying to make me feel bad on purpose? Either way, knowing he sat there worrying because of me wasn’t exactly comforting.
Yu-jin had the thought without meaning to—and immediately rejected it.
No way. That man? Worrying about me?
Not a chance. There has to be another reason.
Maybe he was just keeping an eye on him, afraid Yu-jin would try to run off again. Yeah… that seemed a lot more likely. And somehow, that explanation felt far more believable.
“You really didn’t have to go this far. It’s not like I’m some badass who’d escape the hospital with wounds like these. I’m not CIA, for god’s sake.”
He laid the sarcasm on thick, but Winston’s expression didn’t budge in the slightest.
“That’s true. You don’t have government-agent-level skills. If you did, you wouldn’t be in this mess.”
His slow, indifferent tone didn’t change at all as he agreed—like it was just a casual observation. And that, more than anything, pissed Yu-jin off. The fact that he’d actually felt sympathy for this man, even for a moment, made him burn with self-directed anger.
“So you spent all night in that chair just to criticize me? That’s one hell of a commitment.”
He almost felt like clapping for him, but lacked the energy. Lying there, Yu-jin was hit by the realization that even arguing took serious stamina—and he had none left. He gave up.
“That’s enough. Just go. I’ll be fine on my own.”
Before Winston could say anything, Yu-jin quickly added more.
“I can’t even rest properly with you here. Don’t you have work? Just leave already.”
He said his piece, then shut his eyes—choosing to completely shut out reality. But after a short pause, he heard the sound of the chair scraping back.
…What?
Yu-jin couldn’t help but react. No way… Did he actually listen to me?
He reluctantly cracked his eyes open again—only to find Winston standing, looking down at him from what felt like an impossibly towering height compared to when he’d been sitting. The sheer weight of his presence slammed into Yu-jin for a second before the man finally spoke.
“I’m going to change clothes. Get some rest while I’m gone.”
“Wait, what…”
Yu-jin stammered in surprise.
“Y-You don’t have to come back!”
He hastily shouted after Winston’s retreating back, but the man walked out without a word.
And just like that, Yu-jin finally got what he’d been asking for: a moment of peace. He was alone.
But even so, he stayed there, lying still, just staring at the closed door.
As promised, Winston returned in just a couple of hours. Yu-jin had snarked at him—asking what was going to happen to his company—but he was quickly silenced when a line of men followed Winston into the room, arms full of documents and office supplies. They started stacking everything around the hospital room.
And then, to Yu-jin’s absolute disbelief, Winston calmly sat down and started working. Right there in the hospital.
