CS Chapter 15

The man looked at the woman, who was asleep like a corpse, and recalled what had happened a little earlier.

 

Early in the morning, he received a text message from Ji Seowoo asking if he could help her find someone.

 

It wasn’t a difficult task, but it was somewhat irritating to him that she was contacting him only now, even though it had been over a week since he had bought her the phone, so he decided to call her.

 

“He…hello?”

 

-Is something wrong?

 

“Ah, well, that is…”

 

-Tell me. Feel comfortable.

 

However, the woman’s voice on the phone sounded somehow unusual.

 

She hadn’t been able to give a proper answer to his question about what was wrong, just stuttering and then the call abruptly disconnected with a small scream.

 

Worried that it was an emergency, he contacted the hotel, only to find out that the woman was unconscious in her room, bleeding. Fortunately, she had barely opened her eyes just before being transferred to the emergency room.

 

The woman had explained that she often fainted due to severe menstrual cramps. She also added that there was no need to go to the hospital, so she just asked him to get a few painkillers.

 

After receiving the report, Minjun immediately called the attending physician and, as soon as he finished his morning duties, came to see Ji Seowoo.

 

‘‘Is this how a human shield should be? So feeble?”

 

He had a lot of thoughts, but he felt a slight sense of pity as he looked at the IV needle stuck in the woman’s thin arm. Even the area around the blood vessels where the yellow IV fluid was being injected was all covered in purple bruises.

 

“……”

 

Pity.

 

Because it was an emotion that he had almost forgotten living with, his smooth brow involuntarily furrowed.

 

It was like, what should he say, the feeling of seeing a cat wandering the streets on a day when it was pouring rain. He didn’t have the desire to actively save it, but he felt just enough pity to want to feed it a few meals.

 

Suddenly, he thought of the cat his mother might have killed. Perhaps that cat might have been looking like this now, he continued his unproductive imagination. It was then that Ji Seowoo’s eyelids fluttered, as if she had finally come to her senses.

 

For a while, she stared blankly at the ceiling, then she seemed to try to lift her body. But she was immediately stopped by Minjun.

 

“Stay lying down. It’s dangerous with the IV on.”

 

“……”

 

At the sound of his voice, her head immediately turned towards Minjun. Her light brown eyes weakly looked up at the man.

 

“You fainted. Do you remember?”

 

At the man’s question, Seowoo swallowed hard.

 

She remembered talking to Cha Minjun and then briefly losing consciousness, and then several people had been coming in and out of the room. The last thing she remembered was pleading for painkillers before her consciousness completely faded.

 

Whether they had bathed her while she was unconscious, the bed sheets, as well as her pajamas and underwear, had all been changed. A sense of shame washed over her as Seowoo’s face flushed, and Minjun, who quickly noticed this, continued.

 

“You don’t have to worry. I sent only female staff to do it.”

 

“…Thank you.”

 

“If you’re up, eat something.”

 

She wasn’t particularly hungry, but thinking it would be impolite to the person who had come all the way to the hotel after just one phone call, Seowoo obediently nodded.

 

As soon as Cha Minjun called someone, room service was prepared. A neat small table held a bowl of mung bean porridge, which was good for stomach digestion.

 

“Thank you for the food.”

 

Along with the soft clinking of utensils, the hot porridge was swallowed into her mouth. Minjun stood there watching the woman empty the bowl completely.

 

“She ate as little as a bird picking at food – how long would it take to finish? She’s so skinny because she eats so little.”

 

Just as he was thinking that, the woman suddenly asked Minjun.

 

“Um, by any chance… when is our wedding going to be?”

 

It was an unexpected question, but Cha Minjun answered plainly.

 

“Are you asking because you want to get it over with quickly?”

 

The woman quietly shook her head.

 

“I need to take my GED exam. It would be a problem if the dates overlap.”

 

It wasn’t even a college entrance exam, but it was an exam that she was preparing for with everything she had.

 

Having to juggle her brother’s care and a part-time job, she had to spend twice as much time as others to prepare.

 

Because she couldn’t afford to buy various kinds of textbooks, she mostly frequented large bookstores to study. She read and reread the solution manuals, avoiding the eyes of the staff, and studied as earnestly as that.

 

Above all, because the GED exam was only administered twice a year, if she missed this opportunity, she would have to wait until next year, so from Seowoo’s perspective, she couldn’t help but be more anxious.

 

“Would it be okay for me to take the GED exam…? It won’t take long. It’s next month.”

 

After declaring as if it were a warning that it would be problematic if her GED exam and the wedding dates overlapped, Seowoo once again glanced at Cha Minjun. She was worried what she would do if he rejected her request.

 

But fortunately, the man nodded readily.

 

“Take the exam first. That was the precondition for the marriage, wasn’t it? Asking to take the GED exam.”

 

“…Thank you.”

 

The man smiled gently at Seowoo as she expressed her thanks. Uncharacteristically, his smile was quite beautiful, and Seowoo stared at his face.

 

“Do you need anything else?”

 

“Yes…?”

 

“You said you’re taking the GED exam. Don’t you need study books or anything? You’ll obviously need writing tools.”

 

“Um…”

 

“Send me a text with whatever you can think of. I’ll have it prepared.”

 

Seowoo’s face flushed red for a moment. She felt like she could cry for some reason because of the man’s unexpected kindness.

 

She knew very well that opening her heart to such small kindness was naive, but she couldn’t help it.

 

It was because he was the first adult to ask her if she needed anything in a life that was no better than a quagmire.

 

***

 

“We will have the wedding three months from now.”

 

Cha Minjun, who was leaning back in the passenger seat, continued his call with his grandfather, his face expressionless.

 

“What’s the problem? It’s one of the auspicious dates you chose anyway, grandfather.”

 

When he chose the latest date out of the several auspicious days, Cha Jinwoong grumbled, calling him a “low-life bastard.”

 

-What kind of trickery are you up to, you little punk?

 

“What trickery?”

 

Minjun scoffed and continued speaking.

 

“What can I do? She wants to get married after taking her GED exam.”

 

-Seowoo said that?

 

“Yes.”

 

Cha Jinwoong’s sound of forcefully breathing out through his nose was clearly heard over the phone.

 

He clearly didn’t like it, but since the “amulet” who was chosen by the heavens themselves wanted to do it that way, there was nothing he could do.

 

“I’m the CEO of Daehan Motors, and if I marry a middle school graduate, I’ll get criticized too. I don’t want to hear people say I lured in a young girl who knows nothing.”

 

The grandfather remained silent for a moment at Minjun’s words. Then, he needlessly scolded his grandson.

 

-Don’t even think about divorcing that girl after I die. I’ve already written my will.

 

“A will? Soon you’ll be going around looking at burial sites.”

 

-Know that the moment you divorce Seowoo, you’ll be penniless.

 

“Why is the blame falling on me?”

 

-Do you think I don’t know your black-hearted intentions! You should try fooling a ghost!

 

He was no ordinary old man. He had already seen through Minjun’s plan and had started acting petty.

 

-Listen carefully to everything I say! Hang up, you brat!

 

Minjun frowned, touching his eyebrow irritably, and hung up the phone.

 

Since his plan to divorce the woman immediately after his grandfather’s death was now going to be delayed, it was a big headache for him.

 

Minjun couldn’t understand why his grandfather was so fixated on his grandson’s lifeline.

 

Isn’t it all useless once he dies anyway? He would be able to meet his grandson in the afterlife earlier if he died now, so why?

 

“Ugh, that old man, so inflexible.”

 

Minjun clicked his tongue.

 

As he quietly stared at the rapidly passing scenery outside the car window, he suddenly called the driver. Since he was already out, he decided he would prepare what the woman needed.

 

“Driver Kim, let’s stop by the bookstore in Gwanghwamun.”

 

“Yes, sir.”

 

At Minjun’s command, the driver smoothly turned the steering wheel.