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Ja-kyung looked down at his blood-soaked clothes. Both his arms, stitched up from knife wounds and wrapped in bandages, looked exactly like a mummy's. Seeing him stare blankly like a soulless person at his hands still smeared with blood, Wang Ryun finally spoke up, apparently worried.
"You should go back to your room for now. Staying here in that state won't do any good."
When he didn't budge, Wang Ryun tried to grab his arm and pull him up. But Ja-kyung stayed firmly seated, so Wang Han poked Wang Ryun's shoulder and shook his head, telling him to stop. Wang Ryun let out a long sigh and turned around. Men in black suits stood in a line along the surgery corridor.
Park Tae-soo was busy dealing with the aftermath after moving Kang Il-hyun. The surgery time dragged on, and every time the door opened, Ja-kyung stood up from his seat. But most of the time, it was just medical staff coming out of the operating room.
Kang Yoo-jung was also among those who entered the operating room. Feeling guilty, he couldn't look her straight in the eye. Time crawled by, and exhausted, Wang Han and Wang Ryun left their seats to smoke. Ja-kyung sat nailed in front of the operating room, staring a hole through the door with anxious feelings.
Footsteps approached. Looking back, it was Park Tae-soo returning after finishing his work.
"If you return to your room, I'll let you know when the surgery is over."
He spoke politely, but Ja-kyung didn't answer. The silence between them stretched. To Park Tae-soo checking the time, Ja-kyung spoke first.
"What about Chairman Kang...?"
Park Tae-soo's usually steady face looked exhausted.
"He's also unconscious."
Ja-kyung's expression darkened. He too had been moved to the emergency room, thought to be dead, and barely survived through surgery. That damn old man. Why is his lifeline so long? Should have properly cut off his breathing. The disappointment was brief as the operating room door opened again. Ja-kyung automatically stood up like a roly-poly doll.
Kang Il-hyun appeared as a portable stretcher came out. His upper body wrapped tightly in bandages was covered with a sheet up to his shoulders, and unconscious, he relied on an oxygen mask. Dangling with IV lines and blood bags, his face was bloodless and pale as paper.
Yoo-jung, following behind, lowered her mask and looked at Park Tae-soo.
"We're moving him to the intensive care unit. Tonight is critical, and even if he makes it through safely, we'll need to monitor his progress for a few days."
She conveyed the information to Tae-soo with an exhausted face and tried to leave. Desperate, Ja-kyung grabbed her arm. Without being told, he could tell whose blood was on her gown. Feeling guilty, he released her arm and moved his lips.
"I'm... sorry..."
Instead of resentment, she let out a small sigh.
"Go to your room and rest for now. You can't visit anyway at this time."
"Yes..."
After hesitating just briefly, she patted his shoulder and disappeared down the long corridor.
Wang Han and Wang Ryun, returning with boxed lunches, found the empty hospital room and went straight to the intensive care unit. Sure enough, Lee Ja-kyung in patient clothes was sitting motionless on the chair in front of the ICU.
His head leaning against the wall with eyes closed, his exhaustion was evident. Ja-kyung too had lost a lot of blood, and the doctor said he needed to rest for a while, but he'd been sitting like that day and night for days—it was enough to drive anyone crazy.
"Are you going to keep doing this? You'll die before Representative Kang at this rate."
Unable to hold back, Wang Han spoke harshly. Blood scabs had dried on his cheeks and lips, and not eating properly made his face gaunt. His large brown eyes repeatedly disappeared and reappeared slowly between his eyelids. Ja-kyung said nothing and sat like a wooden statue.
The two men also sighed and sat side by side. Time passed, and visiting hours arrived. Since two days ago, one visit per day was allowed, but it was so short that just seeing his face was all they could do. When the time came, Ja-kyung stood up, put on a mask and gown, and entered the intensive care unit.
Lives fading away with respirators attached everywhere could be seen. Nurses and doctors moving busily. And inside was the intensive care room. A nurse guided Ja-kyung inside. Kang Il-hyun was lying where the door opened.
Lying on the bed, he wasn't much different from when he came out of surgery. He was a bit thinner, bluish stubble had grown on his chin, and he still relied on the machine for breathing. After the nurse left, Ja-kyung pulled up a chair and sat beside him.
Most of his upper body was wrapped in bandages, with faint blood stains showing through. His cheek was swollen, and a torn wound on his temple was visible. Ja-kyung took in every bit of his appearance. Looking at the arm with the IV needle, he carefully reached out. When his fingertips touched, his throat grew increasingly hot.
A surge of tears welled up. His eyes reddened and his nose stung.
"Wake up..."
His damp voice cracked. Thinking about it, he realized he had never been the one to hold his hand first. Fortunately, the hand was warm. Don't leave me behind and go anywhere. When you wake up, I'll do everything for you. I'll like you even more. So please, don't go anywhere. Please wake up.
He desperately held back tears, but they eventually rolled down his cheeks. If the nurse hadn't announced that visiting hours were over, he might have sobbed out loud like a fool. Wiping his tears with his bandaged arm, he came out to find Wang Ryun, Wang Han, and Park Tae-soo waiting.
[It has been a week since Haeun Group Chairman Kang Hoon and CEO Kang Il-hyun were kidnapped by assailants and lost consciousness. However, reports came out today that Chairman Kang Hoon, who was in the intensive care unit, deteriorated early this morning and eventually passed away. In response, the prosecution and police stated they view this incident as a planned terrorist attack by a certain organization connected to Haeun Group, and they will use all means and methods to identify the perpetrators.]
Day after day, the news buzzed with stories about the Haeun Group incident. Newspaper articles were entirely about Kang Hoon and Kang Il-hyun. Meanwhile, a certain internet broadcast reported somewhat credible content that Kang Hoon and Kang Il-hyun had a bad relationship from before, and this incident was also a family feud stemming from power struggles. Even bringing up the background of Kang Il-hyun's mother's death, the media was busy tearing them apart.
Watching the news, Wang Han asked with a puzzled expression.
"About Chairman Kang. Why did he suddenly die? Judging by his condition, he was better than Representative Kang, wasn't he?"
"What does it matter? He died well. If that man had woken up first, we'd all be dead men."
"True. I even thought about going and secretly killing him if things went wrong."
The two men talking quickly turned off the TV at the sound of the hospital room door opening. Ja-kyung entered the room with a cast on. It had been well over a week since Kang Il-hyun was admitted to the intensive care unit. There was improvement, but he still hadn't regained consciousness.
Lee Ja-kyung sitting in front of him all day had now become routine. The two men who tried to stop him at first, Kang Yoo-jung, and Park Tae-soo had all given up on Ja-kyung's stubbornness. Ja-kyung discovered the newspaper on the table.
Wang Han quickly flipped it over, but Ja-kyung had already heard the news about Chairman Kang's death. What could be the reason? He heard from Park Tae-soo that his condition was definitely better than Kang Il-hyun's. He was sitting on the bed when Kang Yoo-jung entered.
She checked his injured arm, then disinfected and wrapped it in bandages. Her touch was warm. She was incredibly calm for someone who had lost her father just hours ago. Ja-kyung didn't know what to say. Wasn't he the one who put Chairman Kang Hoon in that state? Did she know the truth? Would she still treat him this kindly knowing all the facts?
At the very least, since Kang Il-hyun was the only family member he trusted and relied on, he didn't want to be hated. While wrapping the bandage, she glanced at him.
"You're being discharged tomorrow, right?"
"Yes..."
"That's good. Do you know how many complaints we received? A handsome young man sitting around became the talk of the town—everyone came down to take a look. You didn't know?"
She joked with a faint smile, and after finishing the treatment, discovered the newspaper on the table. She picked it up, found her father's obituary article, and stared at it. Wang Han and Wang Ryun watched her nervously. Surprisingly, she tossed it into the trash can with a plop. Then she stuck her hands in her gown pockets and said indifferently.
"Koreans are so interested in other people's business. It was his time to die, so he died. Right?"
The Wang brothers gaped with bewildered faces. Ja-kyung also looked up in surprise. She grinned brightly.
"Have a good discharge tomorrow."
When he nodded, she bid a gentle farewell and left the room. Ja-kyung looked at the newspaper she had thrown in the trash can earlier. Chairman Kang's face lay rolled among the garbage. Wang Ryun looked at the door where she had disappeared and tilted his head.
"Doesn't she somehow resemble Representative Kang?"
Wang Han also rubbed his chin and nodded. At first he just thought she was a smart beauty, but the more he looked, the more there was something strangely cold about her. Whether that was a family trait, no one could know.