Her long, dark eyelashes lifted slowly, as if opening her eyes was too much effort. Beneath those heavy lids, her dull, unfocused black irises came into view. Ye-jin’s pupils shifted weakly as she scanned her surroundings.

“…Right.”

A hospital.

She swallowed the sigh rising in her throat and pressed it down into her chest. With practiced motions, she reached for the remote and raised the bed’s headrest. The mechanical hum filled the silence. Once she was sitting upright, Ye-jin squeezed her eyes shut and reopened them.

The world spun for a moment. She took a slow, steady breath until the dizziness subsided, then turned her head towards the window.

“…”

The world beyond the glass seemed peaceful. Under the clear sky, everything seemed calm. Yet her eyes, devoid of light, simply stared without focus or emotion.

The sound of the door opening without so much as a knock made her thin shoulders flinch. But she didn’t turn around. She remained motionless, clinging to the quiet outside the window.

She didn’t need to look to know who it was. The sharp sound of heels scraping across the hospital floor made her skin crawl.

“Tsk. Sitting there so comfortably, what have you done to deserve that?”

“…”

She didn’t want to turn. She just wanted to keep looking at the sky… it felt like even that small peace was being stolen from her. Her right eyebrow twitched faintly in irritation.

“When an elder walks in, you should at least have the decency to stand and greet them. How unrefined. No manners at all.”

Ye-jin finally turned her head, revealing a pale, bloodless face.

“Do you even realize how many times this has happened now?”

Even that sight didn’t soften the older woman’s expression. Her mother-in-law clicked her tongue, a mocking smile curling her lips.

“This makes the third time!”

“…”

“Not the second—the third! Don’t you think there must be something wrong with your body by now?”

Ye-jin only looked at her in silence. Her face was expressionless, void of anything that could be called emotion.

“My, look at that smug face. Do you really think you’ve done nothing wrong?”

Even when her mother-in-law’s sharp words cut through the air, Ye-jin remained still, quiet, and unemotional. She had grown used to it by now. A third miscarriage. The scolding didn’t hurt anymore. There was no anger, no sadness, and not even any resentment left.

Just a hollow calm, like an empty shell that had long since run out of tears.

“Tsk, tsk. You must’ve been throwing yourself around plenty before marriage…”

The words struck her like a blade, lodging deep in her chest. But even now, Ye-jin didn’t flinch. She simply lowered her gaze, pretending not to hear.

“Well, someone like you giving birth would only cause more problems anyway. Maybe the baby ran away rather than having to carry such pitiful bl＊＊d.”

Ye-jin’s lifeless eyes met her mother-in-law’s face. She had barely stepped out of the operating room, yet the older woman’s tongue was already merciless.

“Aren’t you even sorry?”

Ye-jin looked at her for a long moment, then parted her dry, cracked lips.

“…I’m sorry.”

The apology came out quietly. She hadn’t even managed to apologize to the baby she had lost, yet here she was, having to apologize to the woman who blamed her for everything. The absurdity of it all made her chest ache, but she sat up straight and forced herself to remain composed.

A cold draught seeped through the window and stung somewhere deep in her heart.

“What makes you think you can still lie here comfortably? Planning to stay admitted? You should be ashamed of yourself.”

The older woman added sharply.

“Any decent woman would be humiliated after losing three babies like that.”

“I’ll go home.”

She had never intended to stay. Hospitals carried the faint, stinging scent of alcohol, the same smell that filled her lungs just before the anaesthetic took effect. She wrinkled her nose and rubbed it lightly, trying to push the memory away.

As she swung her legs over the bed to change her clothes, her knees buckled. She just about managed to catch herself on the edge of the bed.

“Stop pretending.”

Her mother-in-law said coldly behind her. Clenching her teeth, Ye-jin lifted a trembling hand to unbutton her hospital gown—but froze. The IV needle still pierced the back of her hand. She pressed the nurse call button.

Her mother-in-law’s disapproving gaze burned into her, but Ye-jin ignored it.

“Yes? What’s wrong?”

A nurse entered moments later, smiling gently.

“Oh my, you must still be dizzy. You should be lying down, why are you standing?”

It struck Ye-jin as darkly ironic, that the only person who cared for her well-being was a stranger, not her own family. Her eyes dimmed further.

“Please… take this out.”

“Sorry? You want the IV removed?”

The nurse blinked, startled.

“Yes. Please.”

“Ah… it’s better if you finish the drip—”

“Just take it out.”

“I’ll need to check with the doctor first… I’m not allowed to remove it on my own.”

The nurse said hesitantly, sensing the tension in the room.

“I’m fine…”

“My daughter-in-law just doesn’t like hospitals.”

Her mother-in-law interrupted sweetly, voice dripping with false concern.

“But she’ll finish the IV first, right? You have to think of your health, dear.”

Goosebumps crawled up Ye-jin’s spine. The gentle tone, intended for the nurse’s benefit, made her feel sick. Unable to bear looking at her, Ye-jin nodded to the nurse.

“Please do as she says.”

She’d finish the IV, then have it removed.

“Then please rest for now.”

“Yes.”

When the nurse left, silence filled the room once more.

“Don’t play the victim. You think anyone will fall for that act?”

There was nothing Ye-jin could say. She simply shut her mouth, letting the cruel words wash over her.

— “Hello? Yes, Chairman.”

Her mother-in-law turned away, her voice instantly softening as she spoke into her phone. Watching her, Ye-jin quietly climbed back onto the bed. Perhaps she should follow the nurse’s advice and rest for a while. Her head was spinning again.

However, instead of lying down, she sat up straight against the headboard. If she lay down, she knew the woman would accuse her of being disrespectful.

— “I came because I was worried. Who cares about my own health at a time like this?”

From the corner of her eye, Ye-jin noticed one foot sticking out from under the sheet. She quickly pulled the blanket over it, she’d always hated showing her feet, said they were ugly.

— “My poor daughter-in-law,” the woman continued, her voice thick with theatrical sorrow. “She lost her baby, and there’s nothing I can do for her… It breaks my heart.”

Ye-jin almost laughed. She just wanted her to leave. The only reason that woman had come was to blame her, to make sure she never forgot who was at fault.

She took a slow breath and exhaled as calmly as the still sky outside.

“Don’t you dare call Do-han while he’s away on his business trip!”

Her mother-in-law suddenly snapped, dropping her mask once again.

The words echoed through the sterile room, sharp and cold. Pale and unmoving, Ye-jin stared at the floor, her lips pressed into a silent line.

When the call ended, her mother-in-law’s voice turned cold again. It sounded so different to the sweet tone she’d used with her father-in-law that it sent a chill through Ye-jin’s chest.

“Imagine telling him you lost the baby when he’s already so busy. You think he’ll be able to focus on work after that?”

“…”

“You really never stop, do you?”

“I understand.”

Her reply was flat and lifeless. She didn’t bother telling him that she wouldn’t be contacting him. There was no need. They hardly spoke anymore anyway. She knew how busy he was, wasn’t this business trip supposed to last about a month? That meant there were still two weeks until he returned.

Her mother-in-law said a few more sharp things before leaving, her heels clicking briskly against the floor. The sound faded down the corridor, and at last silence filled the hospital room, just the way Ye-jin wanted it.

“…It’s cold.”

She lowered the bed’s headrest and lay back, pulling the blanket over her head as if to shut out the world. Although it was spring, the air felt icy. Absently, she rubbed her arm, trying to chase away the chill that was creeping under her skin. Suppressing a sigh, she closed her eyes.

Maybe she wouldn’t sleep. But even if she couldn’t sleep, she wanted to rest, she wanted the world to stop, if only for a moment.

❖ ❖ ❖

The next morning.

“Oh, ma’am, really. You shouldn’t be doing things like this, you need to rest.”

It was after breakfast, and Ye-jin was clearing the dishes when Mrs. Park, the housekeeper, rushed in and took them from her hands. Her voice was full of concern, and Ye-jin couldn’t help but smile faintly.

“It’s fine.”

“Fine? Come here, please.”

The woman took her gently by the wrist and guided her to the table.

“I told you before, didn’t I? You need to take care of yourself after something like this. It’s just like giving birth.”

“…”

“I saw you barely touched your meal earlier. You have to eat, even if you don’t feel like it.”

Ye-jin looked down at the neatly arranged dishes on the table. Her eyes began to burn.

“It’s seaweed soup.”

Ye-jin blinked quickly.

Why was this woman, who wasn’t even related to her, so close to tears? Was she feeling sorry for her because she had lost another baby? Maybe. But Ye-jin didn’t want anyone’s pity. That was why she had cooked breakfast and cleaned up afterwards, pretending that everything was normal because she refused to be seen as pitiful.

“Thank you, Mrs. Park. But I really don’t have an appetite. I’ll eat later.”

“Ma’am…”

Mrs. Park sniffled, watching her expressionless face before she began clearing the table again.

“If only you’d cry… seeing you like this just breaks my heart.”

Although the words were intended for herself, they still pierced Ye-jin’s ears.

Would crying really make her seem any less pitiful? She didn’t know.

It wasn’t as if she had never cried before.

How many nights had she spent weeping silently to reach this quiet, hollow calm?

The memory made her chest tighten painfully.

“I’ll go rest now.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Ye-jin dragged her heavy feet up the stairs. The steps that she had climbed without a second thought on many occasions before felt impossibly steep today. She stopped twice to catch her breath before continuing up to the second floor.

Once inside her room, she closed the door and slowly surveyed the still, airless space. It felt cut off from the rest of the world.

“…Ha.”

Finally alone, she let out the sigh she had been holding in.

Instead of going to bed, she moved towards the dressing room as if she had just remembered something. She knelt in the corner, opened a drawer, and pulled out a small box that had been hidden at the back.

Sitting on the floor, she gently ran her hands over the box as though afraid of damaging something precious. Then, carefully, she lifted the lid.

“…”

Inside lay a pair of tiny baby shoes, smaller than her fingers. Three pairs in total, each new, untouched.

She stared at them in silence.

…This time, she’d really thought she could protect the baby.

Once again, she hadn’t even been able to put the shoes on.

“…I’m sorry, my baby.”

Ye-jin bit her trembling lip, her eyes shattering like fragile glass. She didn’t deserve to cry, especially after failing to protect what was hers. So she pressed her hand over her mouth and wept silently, her shoulders shaking with each suppressed sob.

After a long time, she hastily wiped away the tears that had soaked her cheeks and turned her gaze to the object lying beside the baby shoes.

…A pair of worn, frayed pointe shoes.

As she lifted them, a toe pad slipped out and fell to the floor. Staring at the small piece of fabric designed to protect a dancer’s toes, Ye-jin held the pointe shoes close to her chest as though they were precious.

Her lifeless eyes dropped to her feet. She wiggled her toes, those feet that she had always hated showing because she thought them ugly.

These days, thanks to modern protective pads, even ballerinas rarely had the scarred, misshapen feet that their elders once bore. But a dancer’s feet could never truly hide their past. Hers, especially, were a source of shame.

She brushed her fingertips over them, then pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them. Even though she was alone, she hid her expression, unwilling to let anyone see her crumbling façade.

After crying for a while, the world seemed to dim.

Ye-jin put her shoes and other belongings back in the box, closed the lid, and pushed the box into the far corner of the drawer. When she stood up, her legs faltered, but she steadied herself and made her way to the bed.

“…”

For some reason, the silence felt unbearable today. Being alone with it made the loneliness echo even more loudly.

So, before going to bed, she turned on the television just to drown out her thoughts and fill the air. She planned to fall asleep to the noise.

But as she reached for the remote to turn up the volume, her gaze froze on the screen. Her eyes widened and she sucked in a sharp breath.

[Breaking News: Seo Do-han, Heir of the Seohan Group, Caught in Fourth Scandal!]

The face of a man she knew all too well filled the screen—her husband. The same husband who was supposed to be away on a business trip for another two weeks.

And beside him…

“…”

A woman smiled radiantly, her face beaming with happiness: Yoon Jin-ah.

She was the latest woman embroiled in a scandal with her husband. She was also Ye-jin’s former classmate.

Her eyes were vacant and unblinking as she stared at the television screen, unable to look away.