Chapter 178
“…You say it’s your child.”
“……”
Hyeon-woo hesitated before reluctantly adding.
“…Yes, it’s my child.”
“……”
“He’s born out of wedlock.”
“…Born out of wedlock…?”
Tae-geon’s crumpled face filled with confusion.
Born out of wedlock, born out of wedlock. As Tae-geon quietly repeated these words to himself as if searching for their dictionary definition, an uncontrollable murderous intent suddenly exploded from him.
“…Which son of a bitch is it?”
“……”
Hyeon-woo had never seen Tae-geon so full of murderous intent in his life. It was on a completely different level from the anger he had been directing at Hyeon-woo until just moments ago. It was terrifying. The killing intent Tae-geon was emitting felt like it could shorten one’s lifespan by several years.
“Which bastard is it, I said!!”
A huge shout that could echo reverberated. Knowing Tae-geon’s persistence in digging into who Jerome’s biological father was, Hyeon-woo, who had turned pale, quickly racked his brain.
He couldn’t honestly reveal that inhuman person as Jerome’s biological father. He was the one who had been reluctant to register Jerome’s birth, had him born through a midwife, and ultimately demanded that he give up his citizenship. He was afraid that if that person caught sight of Jerome, he might harm him.
What would happen if the truth came out? Would he lose all parental rights and custody and have to part ways with Jerome for life? What about the pain Jerome would suffer?
Could young Jerome handle the fact that the man he believed to be his father had actually driven his real biological father to death and smuggled him out of the country like a kidnapping? And Tae-geon? Just the existence of Jerome had infuriated Tae-geon this much; Hyeon-woo felt dizzy at the unimaginable consequences if Tae-geon were to learn the whole truth. A chill ran down his spine.
No. At least not now. Until Jerome becomes an adult, at least until then…!
“He’s dead.”
“…What…?”
Tae-geon froze at Hyeon-woo’s sudden words.
“He died, before the child was born.”
“……”
Taking advantage of Tae-geon’s dumbfounded state, Hyeon-woo quickly changed the subject.
“His name is Han Jerome, and he’s five years old this year.”
Han Jerome. At that name, Tae-geon’s eyes flickered greatly for a moment. Pretending not to notice this, Hyeon-woo continued speaking casually.
“After losing my parents, things were really tough, but thanks to Jerome, I was able to hold on. He’s the only light in my life that was full of darkness, and the reason I live.”
At Hyeon-woo’s mention of his deceased parents, Tae-geon’s face went blank as if he had been struck in a fatal weak spot.
“I was lucky to be offered a high-paying job at the mansion, and although living there was a condition, I didn’t mind.”
“……”
“As long as I could provide a better environment for Jerome. I believed Jerome would understand even a short separation.”
After a moment of silence, Hyeon-woo added with a bitter smile.
“…Though it was a complete miscalculation…”
He cleared his throat once before continuing.
“While waiting for your surgery, I received a call that Jerome was sick.”
“……”
“I couldn’t leave Jerome alone when he was sick.”
“Then, what about me?”
“……”
“What about the promise you made to me?”
The voice that flew from Tae-geon, who had been silent all along, stabbed Hyeon-woo’s heart like a dagger.
“Was that a promise you didn’t have to keep?”
“……”
“Was I asking for too much? I asked you to let me see you first when the surgery was over. Was my request not worth keeping, nothing to you? Is that right?”
“No!!”
Hyeon-woo desperately denied it.
“No, I was planning to return before the anesthesia wore off! Really!”
“How?”
“…!”
At Tae-geon’s question, Hyeon-woo finally realized that he couldn’t reach the mansion on his own. He had been so completely focused on sick Jerome that he hadn’t thought that far. It wasn’t a place he could freely come and go. Moreover, he didn’t even know the contact information of others working at the mansion.
If it hadn’t been for Driver Yoon who brought him here, if Tae-geon hadn’t come looking for him personally, he would never have been able to make contact again after leaving the mansion like this.
“See, another lie.”
“……”
It was frustrating, but Hyeon-woo had no words to refute.
“Hyeon-woo.”
Tae-geon called Hyeon-woo gently. Hyeon-woo’s anxiously wavering gaze intertwined with Tae-geon’s.
Tae-geon’s hand moved towards Hyeon-woo’s cheek. As if it was difficult to discern in the pitch darkness, his fingertips fumbled in the air before finally touching warm skin. Cold fingers clumsily caressed Hyeon-woo’s soft cheek.
A sharp mountain wind enveloped the two facing each other. For a moment, a faint sweet scent of a young child wafted from Hyeon-woo. Tae-geon, his nerves on edge from the unfamiliar smell sharply touching his sense of smell, clenched his molars tightly.
“I won’t believe anything you say anymore.”
“…!!”
Hyeon-woo’s heart sank.
It was a reaction he had fully expected. He would have felt the same if he were in Tae-geon’s place. He would have been outraged, feeling betrayed by someone who repeatedly broke promises. He would no longer be able to trust anything from the other person.
But it was strange. While his mind understood this reaction, Hyeon-woo felt a shocking impact at Tae-geon’s words that he would no longer believe him.
Tae-geon’s eyes looking at him were infinitely deep and murky. He couldn’t tell what was lurking in that sticky gaze. Just a few days ago, those eyes had been so clear that they were almost burdensome in how plainly they revealed his inner thoughts. Now Tae-geon’s eyes were as turbid and dark as a deep blue abyss. They seemed even more transparent and human when they were filled with anger earlier.
Hak-gyu’s statement that there would be no change in appearance because it was a cloned eyeball was wrong. Unfamiliar eyes, completely different from before, were staring at him.
Only after facing such a cold gaze did Hyeon-woo realize how affectionate Tae-geon’s eyes had been towards him all this time. The eyes that were cloudy without light because he couldn’t see were actually warmer and more intimate than they were now.
Will he no longer look at me with such eyes? An inexplicable anxiety began to surge.
“…I’m sorry. I didn’t do it on purpose.”
Hyeon-woo found himself pouring out excuses without realizing it.
“I had no choice, Jerome was sick…!”
Tae-geon’s thumb pressed gently on Hyeon-woo’s parted lower lip, as if telling him to be quiet.
“…Have you ever kept even one of the promises you made to me?”
“……”
Hyeon-woo couldn’t say anything to Tae-geon’s piercing question. He knew best that he hadn’t kept any of the numerous promises and vows he had made with Tae-geon. Moreover, because of Mu-seok, who had left after laying out all the stories he didn’t want to know, the weight of those promises was tormenting him even more heavily.
“…I’m sorry.”
“……”
He meant it. It wasn’t words uttered to escape the situation. But even to Hyeon-woo’s sincere apology, Tae-geon showed no reaction.
The ensuing silence was unbearably terrible. Unlike Hyeon-woo, who was biting his lips in anxiety while looking at Tae-geon, Tae-geon’s gaze was not on Hyeon-woo. Although his eyes were directed at Hyeon-woo, his gaze seemed to be staring at a far-off place beyond Hyeon-woo’s face, as if lost in deep thought. After a long while, his gaze returned to Hyeon-woo.
The eyes that had been as dark as an abyss had become even more turbid in the meantime. Like a black puddle rotting without sunlight, something dangerous was writhing within, hidden from view, but the black, viscous surface was infinitely calm and peaceful.
That gaze, without even the slightest ripple, was bizarre. As Hyeon-woo was about to turn his head to avoid Tae-geon’s gaze out of rising fear, a sharp groan escaped his lips.
“…Ugh!”
Tae-geon, gripping Hyeon-woo’s cheek, applied force and firmly fixed his head in place. It was a rough touch, as if he would no longer tolerate Hyeon-woo trying to look away from him. But the voice that followed was infinitely soft and sweet, unlike his touch.
“Hyeon-woo.”
When Hyeon-woo couldn’t readily answer due to Tae-geon’s inexplicably bizarre atmosphere, Tae-geon continued speaking nonchalantly as if it didn’t matter.
“Since you’re so sorry, I’m thinking of forgiving you this one time.”
“……”
“So you too…”
Tae-geon trailed off hesitantly for a moment, then opened his mouth again in a resolute tone as if nothing had happened.
“You forgive me once too.”
Hyeon-woo’s eyes narrowed at this strange, incomprehensible request.
It was odd. For a moment, something akin to guilt flickered in Tae-geon’s calm eyes as he looked at Hyeon-woo. His face, stained with stubbornness and greed as if struggling to obtain something he couldn’t give up despite being plagued by self-loathing, looked so painful.
He wore the face of a sinner seeking forgiveness rather than one granting it.
It would have been right to be outraged at Tae-geon for demanding something in return even for forgiveness. But why did he keep feeling this way?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
