Ephphatha Chapter 14

As soon as she pressed the search button, the first thing that popped up was a list of internet articles sorted by the most recent.  

 

The latest article, uploaded just 40 minutes ago, was about a kidnapping attempt in the countryside. Multiple newspapers had reported that a man who tried to abduct a local resident was immediately caught by a passing police officer. She scrolled down, but there were no other headlines that stood out.  

 

After a brief moment of thought, Seul-ah changed the keyword and typed “missing person.” The moment she pressed the search button, her hand froze.  

 

[“Wife of Company A’s CEO, Ms. B, Found Dead After Five Days Missing”]

 

The article she checked in disbelief was brief.  

 

It stated that the wife of the CEO of a mid-sized company in Seoul had gone missing after going to a golf course with acquaintances and was found dead in a nearby mountain five days later. Since there were no signs of foul play or indications of suicide, the likelihood of it being a simple accident was high.  

 

Although there was no certainty that this was about Aunt Chae-young, an unsettling premonition crept up on her. Her chest tightened as if it were being crushed, and she choked back a sob while pressing the search bar again. Just as she was about to type “missing person accident” to look for a more detailed article—  

 

“Are you digging into me?”  

 

A deep voice from above startled her so much that she dropped her phone.  

 

She couldn’t even think of picking up the phone that had rolled onto the asphalt. As she tilted her head back, she could barely make out Kwak Chi-gyeom, who was staring down at her. Tears blurred her vision.  

 

She blinked, and as her tears trailed down the corners of her eyes, her gaze met his directly. Chi-gyeom’s left eyebrow suddenly arched.  

 

“…….”    

 

As she blankly stared up at him, Seul-ah belatedly noticed the smell of cigarettes and instinctively pinched her nose shut. Though he wasn’t smoking at the moment, the scent was deeply ingrained in him. With her other hand, she wiped the corners of her eyes and tried to steady herself.  

 

“W-what…? Didn’t you leave?”  

 

“If you’re curious, just ask me directly. Why bother searching?”  

 

She was in the middle of investigating something that might have happened to Aunt Chae-young, so his words sounded utterly nonsensical. Then, as a thought suddenly struck her, she quickly looked down at her phone.  

 

The screen was still lit up, displaying the search history.  

 

“Missing person accident,” “missing person,” “kidnapping,” “Gimon Market,” which she had looked up in the gallery earlier, and “Ephphatha,” which she had searched last time.  

 

There was no mistaking what Chi-gyeom was referring to.  

 

“This is…”  

 

Looking up basic company information wasn’t exactly an investigation, but it still meant she had looked into him. That realization made her flustered—like she had shown too much interest in him.  

 

“Seo Han-seong told me that you’re the company president, but I had no idea. It was a bit awkward. I just wanted to check what kind of business it was so there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings in the future. Not that there was much information anyway…”  

 

“Let me just pluck one.”  

 

Before she could finish her stumbling excuse, he cut her off and leaned in closer. His large frame completely blocked out the streetlight, casting a shadow over her.  

 

“What… My eyelashes, you mean?”  

 

“Yeah.”  

 

“Are you crazy?”  

 

“Don’t be stingy.”  

 

His tone was almost scolding, as if she was the unreasonable one.  

 

Caught off guard, Seul-ah widened her eyes. There was something oddly persistent in his gaze that made her shrink back. She quickly picked up her phone and stood up. She bent down and stepped aside to escape his shadow, but Chi-gyeom followed her without hesitation.  

 

“I’m just into collecting eyelashes.”  

 

“…….”  

 

Right. That hobby suited a delinquent far better than liking art.  

 

She gave him a look that said, “You never cease to amaze me,” and he smirked, shrugging his shoulders.  

 

“Stop following me.”  

 

She quickened her pace to shake him off, but his long strides easily kept up. Eventually, exhausted, Seul-ah let out a deep sigh and came to a halt. Before she knew it, a sleek black sedan was parked right beside them.  

 

“I’m giving you a really generous deal here.”  

 

“…….”  

 

“I originally wanted to try something else, but I decided not to mess with you.”  

 

She was too scared to even ask what that meant. As she took a deep breath to brace herself to walk away again, Chi-gyeom’s hand shot out faster than she could react. She quickly ducked her head to dodge.  

 

“Stop it. Are you some kind of pervert, Kwak Chi-gyeom?”  

 

“Oh, dear.”  

 

He let out a playful sigh.  

 

“I’ve been found out.”  

 

“…….”  

 

“How embarrassing.”  

 

“Move aside.”  

 

Seul-ah pushed against his arm with all her strength, but he didn’t budge. Instead, she was the one who stumbled backward. Chi-gyeom, smirking as he watched her weakly stagger, took a step closer. The heavier scent of cigarettes filled the air, making Seul-ah scrunch up her face in discomfort.  

 

“Don’t come closer.” 

 

“We’ll see.”   

 

Even as she pushed against his chest, his strength easily overpowered hers, forcing her to retreat step by step. Her back soon pressed against the car window. The cold, rigid surface of the vehicle and Chi-gyeom standing right in front of her made her curl in on herself.  

 

Her heart pounded with tension.  

 

“Y-you promised you wouldn’t scare me.”   

 

“That’s why I’m being so gentle.”    

 

“…….”  

 

“Normally, I’d just pluck it without asking.”  

 

Anyone would think he was doing her a great favor. She looked up at him resentfully as he made an absurd show of self-importance, and just then, Chi-gyeom’s body leaned toward her.

 

She tried to escape to the side, but the moment he planted his hand firmly on the passenger-side window, her path was blocked. The same was true for the other side. If only someone were passing by, she could ask them to report this lunatic, but unfortunately, the area around the funeral hall was deserted this late at night.

 

“I could terminate the contract.”

 

It was the only card she had left to play, but he didn’t even bat an eye.

 

“Then I’ll have to pluck out all your eyelashes.”

 

“……”

 

“Oh, not a bad idea.”

 

“You… crazy bastard.”

 

Chi-gyeom swallowed a chuckle as he watched her fume with helpless frustration. Seeing her react to every word he said was quite entertaining. The only insult she ever threw at him was calling him a crazy bastard, which was amusing in itself.

 

If he pushed just a little more, she’d probably start crying again. But seeing how pale her face had gone, he figured she’d pass out before that happened, so he let it go and opened the backseat door. The soft click made Seul-ah visibly flinch.

 

“Such a coward.”

 

“……”

 

“Get in. I’ll give you a ride.”

 

As he pulled the door open, Seul-ah’s body, which had been leaning against it, shifted naturally. She was so light that he barely felt any weight. Clicking his tongue, he pulled the door a bit more, and a sweet scent wafted toward him. Pressed against the door, Seul-ah was suddenly standing so close that her chest nearly touched him.

 

“……”

 

“……”

 

Startled, Seul-ah quickly raised her arms to cover her eyes.

 

“Damn it.”

 

“……”

 

“You’re acting cute. Fine, I won’t pluck them, so get in.”

 

“…Really?”

 

“Yes, yes. Since you despise it so much, I have no choice. Now hurry up and get in. We’re wasting time.”

 

Seul-ah, still eyeing him suspiciously over her arm, suddenly wobbled.

 

“Ugh.”

 

Caught off guard by a sudden wave of dizziness, she instinctively grabbed onto something—unfortunately, it was Kwak Chi-gyeom’s shirt. The more she clenched her hand, the more his shirt pulled, revealing more of his chest.

 

“Ah….”

 

Her mouth hung open in shock as she suddenly found herself staring at his chiseled chest muscles and the dark nipples beneath them. Just as she blankly processed the sight, Chi-gyeom, who had been leaning on the passenger seat, tapped her shoulder to help her stand properly.

 

“Seems like there’s another pervert here.”

 

Only when she heard her own words thrown back at her did Seul-ah finally tear her eyes away from his chest and release his shirt. As she glanced at the wrinkled fabric and then looked up, she saw Chi-gyeom’s mischievous smirk.

 

From his silhouette alone, she could already tell, but seeing his bare skin, he looked even more beastly. Especially his healthy, firm flesh—it seemed like even a needle wouldn’t be able to draw a drop of blood from it.

 

Avoiding his gaze, Seul-ah suddenly bent down and slipped under his arm, which was holding the door. She scrambled into the car, and just as she heard an exasperated chuckle behind her, the door shut the moment she settled into the seat.

 

Seul-ah buried her nose into her arm, trying to block out the lingering smell of cigarettes in the car, and leaned her head against the window.

 

Cough. Cough.

 

“Drive. At this rate, I’ll end up having my own funeral here.”

 

At Chi-gyeom’s instruction, Kang Jin-ah immediately started the car.

 

She could feel Chi-gyeom’s gaze from right beside her, but Seul-ah remained curled up and didn’t move an inch. She was too flustered by what had just happened, and more than that, she was starting to feel her body grow heavy, as if the last bit of her energy had finally given out.

 

Blink. Blink. Her eyelids grew noticeably heavier. Cough.

 

No. She didn’t want to pass out next to this pervert…. She had to stay awake…. But no matter how much she willed herself, she had no strength to fight the encroaching darkness.

 

“Shouldn’t we take her to the emergency room?”

 

As Seul-ah’s coughing subsided, Kang Jin-ah noticed her slipping into unconsciousness and asked. Chi-gyeom, who had been watching the way her delicate neck slumped against the seat, clicked his tongue lightly.

 

“You don’t need to act like that for me to know Han Seul-ah is pretty.”

 

“……”

 

“If you’re going to steal glances, at least keep your mouth shut and focus on driving.”

 

“…My apologies.”

 

As the car turned, Seul-ah’s body flopped like a sheet of paper. Her head lolled back before slumping against the window again. She swayed from side to side as if she had no strength left to resist.

 

And then, she suddenly collapsed forward onto Chi-gyeom’s lap. Well, not quite—her head merely landed in the center seat between them.

 

“……”

 

Chi-gyeom glanced down at the sleeping Seul-ah with indifference and brought a finger to her nose. A faint breath tickled his skin. The steady rise and fall of her breathing indicated she had simply fallen asleep from exhaustion.

 

All this from spending just half a day outside?