“Are you alright?”
“···Yes.”
The rescue worker handed Hanryul a tissue. When he touched his face, he felt a damp liquid that could have been either sweat or tears.
“Just an hour ago he was walking around with a smile···.”
“Guardian, please calm down.”
“He’ll be okay, right? ···He has to be okay.”
“···If the guardian stays strong with him, there will be good results.”
In the cramped vehicle, Jaehyun was lying right in front of him, yet it felt like he was somewhere far away, unreachable. Watching him dying right before his eyes while sitting beside him unable to do anything—his own situation was utterly deplorable.
What if, what if··· he never opens his eyes again? Following the mechanical sounds coming from the vital monitor, Hanryul’s heart began to pound violently.
Just a year ago, he had wished the man would quietly go somewhere and die. Now that it was actually happening before his eyes, he could only curse himself for having such thoughts in the past.
“Emergency patient!”
As soon as they arrived at the hospital, Jaehyun was rushed directly to the emergency room. Blood began seeping out from his head again, and continuously watching that sight with his own two eyes was incredibly agonizing.
“Is he going to be okay?”
“We’ll be able to tell you the detailed progress after the surgery. Guardian, please wait here.”
The nurse’s expression wasn’t good. The situation was taking a turn for the worse. The medical staff gathered around Jaehyun hurriedly discussed something, then immediately transferred Jaehyun to the operating room.
‘Cha Jaehyun, you’re a tough bastard. This is nothing to you. You’ll wake up, right? You will, right?’
The red light on the “surgery in progress” sign lit up. Confirming this, Hanryul barely managed to sit down in a chair. He must have sweated a lot because it seemed like mild dehydration symptoms were setting in.
“How is the Young Master?”
“···He entered the operating room.”
“···.”
Woojin, who had arrived belatedly, found Hanryul and asked about Jaehyun’s condition. Woojin’s complexion didn’t look good either. He could see the CEO’s face standing behind Woojin. He wanted to run over right now and grab him by the collar, but he didn’t even have the strength left to do that.
He felt regretful. They shouldn’t have entered Youth or whatever it was called in the first place. If Jaehyun had never met that bastard, this wouldn’t have happened.
‘Please···. Please just open your eyes.’
All he could do was pray. Hanryul leaned his head against the wall, clasped his hands together, and closed his eyes.
* * *
‘Where is this now?’
I stupidly got hit by a flowerpot and collapsed earlier, but now I’ve opened my eyes in some white bed. Sunlight poured warmly through the wide-open window right next to the bed. What nice weather.
“You fucking idiot.”
A vivid, crude curse heard from beside me—I was facing Cha Jaehyun again. The moment I saw his face, I could tell it was a dream.
“Fucking idiot,” he says. I’m suffering like a dog because of him, yet this shameless bastard is cursing at me, whether he knows it or not.
“Fucking idiot? I wasn’t going to say this much, but you’re a real son of a bitch. Do you even know how much I’m suffering because of you?”
“You cracked someone’s head open and your mouth still runs just fine.”
“You’re the one whose mouth is the only thing alive. How does a person live causing trouble everywhere they go?”
It’s a dream anyway, so I feel like I need to jump up and beat the shit out of this bastard to feel satisfied. Seeing his face glaring at me without even knowing what he did wrong made my blood boil.
“Urgh.”
What the hell is this? It’s clearly a dream, but the moment I tried to raise my upper body, a tremendous headache struck my head. Even in a dream I can’t use my strength—what a frustrating situation.
“Can’t even control your own body properly, you really are a fucking idiot.”
“You crazy bastard, you really need to get hit a few times.”
“No matter how I look at it, you’re like a dog barking away. ···Do you enjoy using someone else’s body so roughly?”
Who’s calling who a son of a bitch? I was dumbfounded, but I couldn’t get up from the bed, so I had no choice but to listen to his harsh words as they came.
‘This isn’t the time for this.’
Cha Jaehyun hurled harsh words at me for a while, then perhaps exhausted himself, stopped talking and looked outside. I thought that instead of just sitting here listening to verbal abuse, I should find out what I need to find out.
“No matter how much you curse at me, I’m doing well. That’s an undeniable fact. If things continue like this, I can go back, right?”
“You’re brazenly talking about going back again. You think you’re doing well?”
“I’m living my life cleaning up all the shit you left behind, in my own way. You should acknowledge what needs to be acknowledged, right?”
After hearing my words, Cha Jaehyun smirked and refused to answer. What an unpleasant bastard, as always. Where is the real Cha Jaehyun anyway? Where is he hiding while putting me through this ordeal, only occasionally showing his face in dreams?
“You’re going to keep acting like that? I’m tired now too. If you don’t answer properly, I’ll just live recklessly. Should I just go to prison?”
“You must be really struggling, huh? You’re barking more than when we last met. You smashed someone’s head halfway and you say you’re doing well—you can’t even be objective about yourself.”
It was unfair, but it wasn’t wrong. Either way, it was true that I inflicted a serious injury on his head. It was an accident I suffered unfairly while trying to save Lee Dojun, but it resulted in me only getting scolded by Cha Jaehyun.
“This was clearly a mistake. Anyway, aren’t I doing the best job possible? Just answer that I can go back.”
“Get a grip, you bastard. ···If you die in my body, you’re done for too.”
Die? Does that mean if I die in such a pathetic accident within the time limit, I’ll die too? My whole body stiffened at the chilling words. He should have told me this sooner, not now.
“Why would I die? I’m sorry about what happened to your head. Explain properly what you just said.”
“If you get hurt, only you lose out. Do well.”
Cha Jaehyun got up from his seat and prepared to leave. Since last time, this bastard doesn’t listen to what others say, only speaks in riddles to frustrate people, then leaves as he pleases.
I felt like I wouldn’t be able to meet him again if we parted this time, so I desperately grabbed his hand.
“Ha, fuck. You’re really doing everything.”
“I’m really living hard. Send me back. There won’t be any more incidents like this.”
“The way you’ve been trembling and begging since last time is at least somewhat watchable.”
Perhaps seeing my desperation, Cha Jaehyun sat down in front of me again. With his original personality, he would have pushed my hand away and left, but the fact that he sat down means he has some intention to talk. I shouldn’t get angry but should coax him well.
“I’ll do whatever you want. ···So now give me a clear answer.”
“You idiot, don’t act like a pushover in my body.”
He curses at me crudely again. I’m furious, but if I get angry he’ll leave, so I have to endure it.
“Why would I act like a pushover? It’s because someone goes around causing trouble everywhere and I have to clean it up. Isn’t it good for you too? You cause all the trouble yourself, and someone else cleans it up for you. When you return to your body, everything will be neatly organized.”
“Where does this confidence that you can go back come from?”
“You said so yourself. If I do well, I can go back. ···I’m really doing well.”
“···.”
This stubborn bastard. Is it so difficult to just answer once that I can go back? I wanted to hear a definite answer from his mouth. That I can go back.
“You find your own personality hard to deal with too, right? Don’t be like that and answer me now. I’m going crazy with frustration too.”
“This bastard is gradually crossing the line. Should I make it so you can’t open your mouth?”
“The Chairman doesn’t hate you. It’ll be a bit better next time you meet. Because I’ll be doing well. ···So keep your promise.”
“A bastard who came here on the verge of death talks well.”
Even though he spoke harshly, his flustered expression was obvious. It’s really hard to continue a conversation with someone with such a nasty temper, but I have to continue to get the answer I want.
“And are you scared of motorcycles?”
“Fuck, what kind of idiotic shit is that? I can’t listen anymore. Don’t piss people off and live properly.”
“When someone’s talking, listen to the end.”
“From the way your mouth is running, looks like your head is all healed.”
He forcefully pushed down my upper body, and without being able to resist at all, I was laid back down on the bed. I tried to grab his wrist again, but this time he was faster. I could only helplessly watch his retreating figure as he left the room.
In the end, I didn’t hear the answer I wanted. How frustrating.
As Cha Jaehyun left, a dizzy pain struck my head again. It seemed like it was because that bastard pushed me hard.
‘Ha···. I need to catch him.’
I wanted to jump right up, catch him, and extract all the information I wanted. But as if he had cast a spell when he pushed me down, my eyelids began to close continuously.
‘I can’t close my eyes···.’
