By Zephyria Winston was stunned as if he had been hit by something. If Yu-jin had slapped him hard on the cheek, he wouldn’t have been so dazed. Yu-jin, who had been just looking at him for a while, gasped and said again.
“I’m pregnant, with your child.”
His eyes hurt from the approaching fire and smoke. But that wouldn’t be the only reason his eyes were stinging. Yu-jin sighed and asked.
“You don’t believe me this time either?”
“No, no. It’s not that.”
Winston denied it immediately, his face resigned as if he had already expected it. But even so, he couldn’t speak easily.
“You have a child, you have my child?”
“Yes.”
Yu-jin nodded.
“I checked with a tester several times. I haven’t been to the hospital yet… but the results were the same, so I think it’s certain.”
At the firm words, Winston still had a blank expression. Was he going to deny it this time too? When the buried memories made a corner of his heart throb, Winston opened his mouth.
“Oh my god, that’s… how.”
His eyes slowly welled up. His gaze, which had been looking down at Yu-jin’s stomach, returned to his face.
“Really? You have my baby? Really?”
“Yeah, I can’t believe it either…”
Before he could finish speaking, Winston hugged him first. He couldn’t hold back his intense emotions, and the arms that had hugged him tightly soon lost their strength, and before Yu-jin could hug him back, he stepped back.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”
His face, which had quickly turned pale, seemed to reveal his confused mind as it was. This time, Yu-jin reached out to Winston first. He tried to hug him, but Winston stepped back again. Winston said sorry again to Yu-jin, who was about to distort his face.
Yu-jin opened his mouth, but Winston spoke first.
“Then you shouldn’t be here even more. Get out of here, quickly.”
“What about you?”
Yu-jin urged quickly, feeling impatient.
“What about you? I told you, let’s go together.”
“I can’t. Why did you come in? I told you not to come, it’s dangerous!””If you hadn’t done such a stupid thing in the first place, I wouldn’t have done anything so dangerous!”
Yu-jin finally snapped at Winston, who was stubbornly insisting. Winston’s face contorted at the sound of his voice, which was louder than usual.
“I ended the lives of my own flesh and blood with my own hands. Now it’s my turn.”
He continued, his voice somewhat agitated.
“If I’m gone, no one will be able to torment you anymore.”
Winston’s will was firm. It seemed that no one could break it. Yu-jin stared at his face for a moment, then bit his lip. When he lowered his head, Winston felt sorry for him, but at the same time, he felt relieved. Just as he was thinking that Yu-jin must have understood and was getting anxious to get him out safely, Yu-jin suddenly raised his head. The expression on his face was completely different from what he had expected. Winston hesitated for a moment at the sight of Yu-jin glaring at him.
“You’re the most selfish idiot in the world, Winston Campbell.”
“What?”
Winston was taken aback and could only blink as Yu-jin spat out the words, his voice filled with suppressed anger. But Yu-jin didn’t give him a chance to say anything and continued to press him.
“So you’re going to die like this? You think dying is the only way? Don’t talk nonsense. I may have lived rummaging through trash cans, but I’ve never once thought about dying!”
Winston paled and stared down at Yu-jin. With the sound of the flames crackling and spreading between them, he opened his mouth.
“This is the only way I can atone for what I’ve done to you.”
“You’re not only selfish, but you’re also a coward.”
Yu-jin criticized him mercilessly, his voice trembling slightly.
“You should be thinking about how to atone to me while you’re alive. The way you’ve chosen now is to run away. Do you really think this will solve everything? Really?”
“But.”
“If Mrs. Campbell is a threat to me, you can do anything! I’m not saying you should do anything to your mother, think of another way! Persuade Mrs. Campbell, or something.”
Winston sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“There’s no way that’s possible.”
“Then come up with another possible way!”
Yu-jin blocked his escape route once again.
“If you really feel even a little bit sorry for me and if you truly care about Angie, you can’t run away like this. This is the most hurtful thing you can do to me and Angie! Is that what you want? For me to resent you and be heartbroken for the rest of my life?”
His voice gradually rose, but Yu-jin didn’t bother to hold back. Instead, he shouted as loud as he could.
“You have to give me a chance to forgive you!”
Haa, haa, Winston could only watch as Yu-jin gasped for breath, overwhelmed by intense emotion. His face was full of anguish. He was still stubbornly resisting, but Yu-jin could tell that he was wavering.
“Winston.”
Yu-jin squeezed his stinging throat and called his name. Looking up at Winston with pleading eyes, Yu-jin added desperately.
“The baby needs a papa, and so does Angie.”
His heart ached as he thought of the children. Yu-jin asked in a trembling voice.
“You weren’t there when Angie was born, were you? Are you going to do that to this child too?”
Winston still didn’t say anything. But it seemed that his will had already been completely broken. Yu-jin delivered the final blow.
“Don’t you want to hold your newborn baby?”
It was like a counterpunch. Winston buried his face in his hands and let out a deep sigh.
“How can I be by your side…?”
“I’ll decide that.”
Yu-jin cut him off firmly as he mumbled in a trembling voice.
“It’s okay because I’m telling you to be there. But don’t get the wrong idea, I’m not forgiving you.”
Yu-jin quickly added.
“I’m just giving you a chance. If you’re really sorry to me, don’t run away and take this chance. If you die without permission, I’ll never forgive you for the rest of my life.”
And he held out his hand as he would to Angela. As if to say, let’s get out of here. If it were Angela, she would have grabbed Yu-jin’s hand without hesitation, but Winston was not a child. As if he had noticed the meaning, Winston frowned and opened his mouth in a quiet voice.
“Okay, stop now.”
Having said that, he finally moved. Winston, who readily went out into the hallway ahead of Yu-jin, soon contorted his face. The hallway was already filled with smoke. It felt like he would suffocate from the smoke before the flames.
“Wait a minute.”
Winston pulled Yu-jin back into the room and then headed for the bathroom. He turned on the faucet, but the water only came out for a moment before stopping. Winston, who gave Yu-jin a towel that was barely wet, said.
“Cover your nose and mouth.”
As he did as he was told, he turned his gaze to Winston, but Winston went out into the hallway without paying any attention. The only way was to find the stairs and go down through the smoke.
But that soon became impossible. When he had passed halfway down the hallway, Winston decided that it was no longer possible to move forward. Should he go back? If he tore the curtains and tied them together, he could go down through the window…
“Winston.”
Just as he was about to change his plan, Yu-jin suddenly grabbed his arm. When he reflexively turned around, Yu-jin said.
“There’s an emergency staircase.”
Winston frowned. As if it were nonsense. There was no way there was a space in the mansion that he didn’t know about. But Yu-jin was sure.
“This way, quickly.”
Yu-jin grabbed Winston’s arm and quickly turned around. He walked as if running, looking around at the walls, and suddenly stopped.
“Here it is.”
When he pushed hard on the place that only looked like part of the wall, the wall surprisingly moved and a space appeared. It was the staircase used by the servants that Mrs. Campbell had made him use to treat him coldly when he first came. Yu-jin said to the surprised Winston.
“We should thank Mrs. Campbell this time.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s a long story.”
There was no time to explain. Yu-jin immediately grabbed the bewildered Winston and headed for the stairs.
When Mrs. Campbell saw them, her son had disappeared as if he had been sucked into the wall. But she had clearly seen it. The cause of all this, with her precious son.
So you were here.
She coughed between ragged breaths and ran heavily to the door. She held a loaded rifle in her hand. Now there was only one thing left in her mind.
You vulgar harlot, I will kill you.