Chapter 6 (Part 7)

In-ah took the phone from Hae-jeong and looked at the photo.

In the photo taken at the hospital, people in patient gowns were smiling brightly at the camera. They were all in wheelchairs.

Two women not in patient gowns stood behind them, posing for the photo.

“The one standing on the left is Hyung-kyu’s mom. She used to work as a caregiver.”

Even as she listened to Hae-jeong, In-ah didn’t notice anything unusual. But then.

“Look at the person in the wheelchair on the far right.”

As Hae-jeong zoomed in on the photo with her finger, she showed it to In-ah. The person sitting in the wheelchair on the far right was… Jinwon.

“This is…”

“They say Hyung-kyu’s mom took care of people with lower body paralysis. Everyone in that photo has lower body paralysis.”

“What?”

In-ah didn’t immediately understand what Hae-jeong was saying. Hae-jeong added an explanation for In-ah, who was struggling to comprehend.

“They say the photo is from seven years ago. Wasn’t that when you broke up with him?”

“Yes…”

In-ah lowered her gaze and looked at Jinwon’s face in the photo again.

“They said he was in a car accident. At the time, they said he’d never walk again.”

In-ah was in a daze. Hae-jeong’s voice seemed to echo from far away.

“So…”

“After the accident, didn’t he break up with you? What a situation, what a situation~”

In-ah felt as if all the blood had drained from her body at once. She couldn’t have imagined it.

Only recently had she started to suspect that there might have been some circumstances, but she had never dreamed of something like this.

Jinwon had buried this enormous truth and had only absorbed In-ah’s anger and resentment.

“…In-ah, Seo In-ah!”

Suddenly, In-ah, who had heard nothing for a while, looked at Hae-jeong.

“Are you okay?”

At that moment, two men at the table across from them spoke to In-ah.

“You look so wistful. What should we do? Would buying you a drink cheer you up?”

Hae-jeong suppressed her anger and spoke forcefully.

“We’re both married women, okay? We’d appreciate it if you’d leave us alone.”

“Oh! Is that lie true?”

The men, finding something amusing to latch onto, laughed and approached In-ah even more.

“Just go.”

In-ah said in a low voice without even glancing at them.

“Oh my! Scary! Are you threatening us?”

“I find threatening women attractive~ Come on, let’s just have one drink together!”

The men were about to sit at In-ah and Hae-jeong’s table when a rough hand blocked them.

It was Jeong-ho.

“Boss? What’s going on~ Young men and women should have fun sitting together.”

In-ah tensed at Jeong-ho’s expression. It was a scary look she had never seen before.

At that moment, Jinwon entered the bar.

Assessing the situation at a glance, Jinwon grabbed Jeong-ho’s clenched fist. Then he turned to the men.

“Would you like to step outside and talk with me for a moment?”

“No, thanks. I want to talk with the lady here.”

The man sneered and reached toward In-ah. Jinwon’s hand grabbed the man’s hand.

“Ow!”

Sensing trouble, the man looked up at Jinwon.

“Are you going to hit me? Go ahead.”

Instead of punching, Jinwon wrapped his arms around the shoulders of both men and dragged them outside.

“Let go! Hey? Let go of me.”

Even as they struggled in Jinwon’s grip, it was to no avail. Watching Jinwon, Jeong-ho spoke as if talking about someone else.

“Take it easy, Jinwon. These kids are still young, their bones are tender. Those kinds of bones break easily.”

Jeong-ho winked at In-ah and Hae-jeong.

“Enjoy yourselves, ladies. Have fun~”

Jinwon didn’t return to the bar afterward. In-ah and Hae-jeong, who were waiting, left early.

As In-ah trudged back to her apartment, she was waiting for the elevator when someone came to stand next to her.

She turned her head to see that it was Jinwon.

Worried he might have fought, In-ah quickly scanned Jinwon’s face and body.

Jinwon, with his eyes fixed on the elevator numbers, spoke in a calm voice.

“I didn’t fight. Don’t worry.”

“Who said I was worried?”

In-ah remained silent even inside the elevator and went into her home. Only after confirming that In-ah had entered through the front door did Jinwon start pressing the door lock code. 

At that moment, In-ah’s front door burst open, and she shot out like lightning. She then began running madly toward the elevator.

A sense of foreboding flashed across Jinwon’s face. He had seen In-ah’s pale, bloodless face before.

In-ah ran out to the road, waving her arms to catch a taxi. However, no taxi stopped, and she anxiously stamped her feet.

Just then, Jinwon’s car stopped in front of In-ah.

“Get in!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, In-ah got into Jinwon’s car. 

Upon arriving at the hospital, In-ah dashed toward the emergency room. Jinwon parked the car and followed her into the hospital.

In-ah was listening to the doctor’s explanation. It seemed there was a problem with her father’s surgical site. He urgently needed a blood transfusion. Her father had RH-negative blood, so RH-negative blood was required.

However, her mother was out of town for a friend’s daughter’s wedding, and both In-kyung and In-woo were on their way to the hospital.

“Your father needs a transfusion immediately. The hospital is short on RH-negative blood.”

In-ah, with a blank face, sank to the floor as if the sky had fallen. She was blood type B, so she couldn’t donate.

“I’ll donate. I’m RH-negative.”

In-ah, her face tear-streaked, looked up at Jinwon.

Fortunately, her father’s surgery went well. In-kyung and In-woo, who arrived late, hugged each other with In-ah, sighing in relief. Their mother was driving back through the night from the countryside.

In-ah approached Jinwon, who was standing some distance away.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

Both In-ah and Jinwon left the hospital without saying a word.

In-ah, her legs weak, barely managed to sit on a bench. Jinwon approached and stood beside her.

“How did you know?”

“…….”

Jinwon hung his head without answering.

“You volunteered to donate blood earlier because you knew everything, right?”

Jinwon still kept his mouth shut.

“You knew I couldn’t donate to my father, so you stepped up yourself.”

In-ah accused him, as if incredulous.

“How much did you know?”

“……That your parents passed away…….”

“You knew I was adopted by my aunt too?”

Jinwon slowly nodded.

Tears welled up in In-ah’s eyes as she looked at Jinwon.

“You must have known they died in a car accident too, right?”

Once again, Jinwon silently affirmed. In-ah let out a hollow laugh.

She then wiped away the tears overflowing from her reddened eyes. Then, with a fierce look, she glared at Jinwon.

“Is that why you did it?”

In-ah raised her voice, not bothering to wipe away the tears streaming down her face.

“Did you think a girl who lost her parents in a car accident would just die if her boyfriend became paralyzed in a car accident too?”

Jinwon turned his frozen face to look at In-ah.

“Ha! I never dreamed you thought of me that way. Not knowing that, I just hated you to death.”

In-ah swallowed her next words.

‘And hurt to death.’

“In-ah…….”

Jinwon finally spoke.

“What, are you curious about how I found out? Oh, I bet you’re curious about that.”

“In-ah, listen to me…….”

In-ah wiped her tears with her palms, cutting off Jinwon’s words.

“Back then and now, you always do as you please. Did you ever ask me?”

“I…….”

In-ah closed her eyes tightly and shouted. 

“You should have asked!”

Jinwon froze as if he had lost his words. He couldn’t find anything to say.

Tears continued to fill In-ah’s eyes. Still, she spoke through gritted teeth.

“You should have asked if I wanted to break up.”

In-ah stood up and headed back to the hospital.

Jinwon remained standing there, unable to call out to her or follow her.

He just watched In-ah walk away, feeling a pang in his heart as if he had hurt her once again.

<To Be Continued In Volume 2>