By Zephyria Seo Jeong-won quietly murmured to himself, checking for any noise from outside the bedroom. Only after what felt like several tens of minutes did he finally get up. He decided to clear his head first with a hot shower.
The only way to leave this house when Kwon Tae-hee wasn’t around was to pretend to be sick, so he needed to figure out how to act sick and in what way. But no matter how hard he racked his brain, nothing really came to mind. Maybe complaining of a stomachache was the easiest and most reliable method after all.
But how should he express that his stomach hurt? Could he just vaguely say it hurt? Seo Jeong-won frowned ambiguously and took off the pajamas he was wearing, tossing them into the laundry basket.
Then, he headed straight for the shower booth. He turned on the water and stood under it, hugging his stomach and bending over. Amidst the sound of the rushing water, a small groan escaped.
“…Ouch, ouch?”
He repeated the same interjections as if rehearsing several times, then adjusted the water temperature because his cheeks felt like they were about to turn red from the hot water. He repeated the same actions throughout washing his hair and body with lukewarm water.
He even brushed his teeth twice out of nervousness. Still, his pounding heart wouldn’t calm down. But he couldn’t keep wasting time in the bathroom, so he turned off the water and stepped out. He roughly dried his hair and chose clothes from his wardrobe that didn’t look too much like pajamas. He thought wearing an outer garment would seem strange, so he took out a thick cardigan from Kwon Tae-hee’s collection and put it on.
He put on socks and looked around the dressing room. Was there anything he could take with him? He had lost his bag, so he didn’t even have an ID. There was no way he’d have a credit card or cash, but Seo Jeong-won widened his eyes and carefully looked around, just in case.
He rummaged through the section where he kept his clothes, repeatedly putting his hands in and out of his outer garment pockets. He had hoped for at least a few bills, but not even a single coin came out. Of course not, he muttered, opening a drawer without much hope, and then he found a white envelope inside.
“Huh…?”
The back of the envelope was labeled ‘Jeong Dae-un,’ and it contained a rather thick wad of crisp bills. Seo Jeong-won wondered why it was in the drawer he used, then recalled the empty mortuary, devoid of any guests.
“Chief Jung.”
The only person who had come to pay respects at Hyung’s funeral. Of course, that wasn’t the reason he had come, but still.
Seo Jeong-won stared at the envelope, which had no creases, and the crisp bills inside, and he unconsciously muttered a thank you. He also felt grateful to Kwon Tae-hee for putting it in the drawer so he could find it, instead of taking it. Thanks to that, he had money for travel expenses.
There was always a way to breathe, and no one was meant to die. Even if he escaped this house, he would be penniless, and the future seemed bleak, so this was a relief.
For a moment, Seo Jeong-won was overcome with the feeling that the entire universe was helping him. He rubbed his stinging eyes and tucked the envelope deep into his cardigan pocket. Now, all he had to do was act sick well, and he’d be halfway there.
“Hoo…”
Should he contact Kang Da-hyun? But Kwon Tae-hee would probably come looking for Kang Da-hyun as soon as he found out he was gone. Then who should he ask for help? Seo Jeong-won slowly moved across the bedroom. The moment he grabbed the doorknob and pulled it down, Song Hae-seop suddenly came to mind.
‘I don’t know what kind of help you might need in your current situation, but you never know. If you need help, contact me anytime.’
The contact information he had given him remained vividly in his mind. Would he really help if he asked? It was true that Song Hae-seop was someone Kwon Tae-hee would never think of, but he was worried that if he contacted him, he might end up telling Kwon Tae-hee his location.
But wasn’t it worth a try? Seo Jeong-won thought it was better to do something than to just worry, so he slowly walked out to the living room. He counted to five in his head and looked up. Kim Jae-sik, who had come out of the dining room, greeted him with a gentle face as if he had been waiting.
“Would you like to have breakfast now?”
“…No, I have a bit of a stomachache.”
“You have a stomachache?”
Kim Jae-sik’s eyes widened in surprise. Seo Jeong-won couldn’t meet his gaze, afraid that his lie would be exposed, and he dropped his head.
“A little. It feels like… like it’s cramping.”
He didn’t know exactly what it felt like, but he used an expression he had heard at the hospital once. Kim Jae-sik’s hand fumbled in his pocket. He was acting anxiously, as if he was about to contact someone right away.
“Um! You don’t have to contact Executive Director. He went out because he has an important meeting today. I don’t want to bother him. I feel uncomfortable that he keeps worrying about me because of me. I’m okay.”
“Still…”
Seo Jeong-won spoke again to Kim Jae-sik, who was hesitating to take out his phone.
“They said it’s common to have things like this when you’re pregnant. I’ll tell you if it gets worse than it is now. Please contact him then.”
As he said that, Seo Jeong-won gently stroked his stomach. Far from hurting, the baby had been moving all night as if excited by Kwon Tae-hee’s pheromone shower last night, but now it was quiet, as if asleep. He smiled slightly as if to say he was okay, and Kim Jae-sik reluctantly nodded.
“Wouldn’t it be better to at least tell Chief Jung?”
“…I don’t want to worry Executive Director. As you can see, he hasn’t been going to the company much these days.”
“…”
“I think I’ll be okay for now. So… ah.”
Seo Jeong-won frowned. He bit his lip tightly and then released it, staggering, and Kim Jae-sik immediately came over and supported him.
“Jeong-won?”
“Ugh…”
He tried to express the pain a little more, as he had practiced in the bathroom. Kim Jae-sik became even more flustered as he trembled. He reached into his pocket to call someone right away and took out his phone, but he dropped it because Seo Jeong-won leaned heavily on him.
“Haa, why… why is this happening.”
“Oh, what should we do? Jeong-won, can you walk? What to do…”
“Hoo, hoo. The baby, will the baby be okay?”
Kim Jae-sik’s face turned white. He nodded repeatedly, saying it would be okay, and helped Seo Jeong-won sit on the sofa. Then, he picked up the phone that had fallen to the floor and dialed a number with trembling hands.
Kim Jae-sik, watching Seo Jeong-won’s pale face, stroked his dry back with an anxious look. He patted his stiff back and complained about why no one was answering the call.
“Um, I… my stomach hurts so much, Mister. I need to go to the hospital… I think I need to go. I think something will happen to the baby if I stay like this.”
Kim Jae-sik couldn’t make rational judgments because of Seo Jeong-won’s serious condition, which seemed like it could lead to a major problem at any moment. His usually pale skin was red. Was he getting a fever? Even sweat was forming on his beautiful face, which was constantly frowning. He was anxious that something might really happen to the baby.
“Oh, what should I do? No one’s answering, I…”
“Ah, it hurts. Ouch… ugh.”
“U, I’ll take you in my car, in my car. I’ll try contacting Chief Jung one more time, but first, in my car…!”
Seo Jeong-won, who had been stroking his stomach, closed his eyes and trembled. Kim Jae-sik called Chief Jung a few more times, and when he didn’t answer, he left a simple message.
“Can you walk? Jeong-won, how can I help you?”
“I… I’m okay. I can walk.”
Kim Jae-sik was trembling excessively, as if he was too surprised. Seo Jeong-won’s conscience pricked at the sight, and his chest ached.
“I’m sorry, Mister.”
“What, what are you sorry for? It’s okay. I’m more worried that something might happen to Jeong-won and the baby. So don’t think like that.”
Seo Jeong-won moved, leaning his entire body on Kim Jae-sik. He left Seo Jeong-won standing in front of the entrance for a moment and ran to the kitchen. He quickly grabbed the car keys and returned, then supported Seo Jeong-won again. The two crossed the garden. Even when going down the stairs, Kim Jae-sik held onto Seo Jeong-won tightly, as if he was anxious. Seo Jeong-won took a long breath and groaned.
“Quickly, to the hospital…”
Kim Jae-sik put Seo Jeong-won, who was completely relying on him, in the passenger seat of the car he had parked.
“We’ll be there soon, so please bear with it a little longer. We’ll be there soon. There’s a hospital nearby. We’ll be there soon.”
“I’m sorry for surprising you so much because of me. Haa, ugh. If we go to the hospital and get it checked, it’ll probably be nothing. Really… I’m okay.”
Kim Jae-sik’s eyes reddened at the voice that was comforting him instead. Then, he checked Chief Jung’s number on the car’s display screen and quickly connected the call.
“Ah, Chief. Hello?”
—Yes, it’s me. You called?
Seo Jeong-won also heard Chief Jung’s voice coming through the car speakers. He swallowed hard, feeling nervous that his lie would be exposed.
“Yes, it’s not about anything else, but Jeong-won suddenly said he has a stomachache.”
—Suddenly?
“I don’t know when it started, but he said he woke up this morning and said it hurt. And it’s still continuing now…”
Kim Jae-sik turned his gaze to look at Seo Jeong-won. Seo Jeong-won, who had his head buried in the passenger seat headrest, groaned, and he sighed and continued.
“He’s in pain. I didn’t know what to do, so I called you, but I couldn’t get through, so I’m taking him to the hospital in my personal car, worried that something might happen.
—Haa… Okay, yes. I’ll report to Executive Director. Daesung Hospital would be closer from there. Please move in that direction. I’ll be there soon too.
“Yes, we’ll go to the emergency room at Daesung Hospital.”