Those words tore through her like a merciless blade to the heart. Something inside her broke with a hollow crack. Losing her grip on reason, Ye-jin lunged at him, gripping his lapels with both hands. Her voice raw and scratchy, she screamed.

“How can you call yourself a human? How could you do something like that? How could you…!”

Transparent tears trailed from the corners of her eyes and soaked her cheeks. Her furious, broken voice battered the hospital room walls.

“I know you hate Hope! But you can’t do something so cruel to that little child!”

She howled until a vein stood out on her neck. Eventually, she lost the strength to hold onto his collar, collapsing to the floor exhausted.

The sliver of light that she had finally found vanished in an instant. What would happen to Hope now? Born to the wrong mother, he was forced to suffer again and again. Tears streamed down her face. She had wanted so badly to be a good mother. Above all, she had wanted to protect Hope.

“Yoo Ye-jin, calm down.”

He spoke coolly. Ye-jin lifted her head and glared at him as if she were about to kill him. Shouting back, she asked,

“How am I supposed to calm down? How far do you intend to go? Do you want to kill me slowly? If anything happens to Hope, I’ll die with him! And before that happens, I’ll kill you myself!”

Her light brown eyes were full of murderous intent, revealing an ironclad will to kill him.

Seeing that crazed look, Seo Jung-hoo smiled faintly. He dropped to one knee, lowering himself to her level so that they were face to face.

“I told you I canceled the operation, I didn’t say I’d stop the transplant.”

“…What?”

Her wet eyes stared at him, bewildered by his ambiguous wordplay.

“You’ll get the transplant.”

“…”

“Not a cadaveric transplant, but a living-donor transplant.”

He gently wiped the tears that had spread across her pale face with his large hand. The unexpected words made Ye-jin’s eyes go wide.

“Who… who’s going to donate? Who would give Hope a liver…?”

“I will.”

Ye-jin’s heart sank as the two syllables were uttered with absolute resolve. This was beyond anything she could have imagined, even in her wildest dreams.

“The doctor said no smoking, no drinking and no s*x for a while. I quit smoking ages ago, so that’s fine, but not being able to drink or have s*x is… irritating in more ways than one.”

The surgery involved cutting into living flesh to give part of oneself to another person.

Yet he spoke of it as though it were trivial, almost casual. Ye-jin was dumbfounded.

“Why… why would you do that? Why would you give Hope your liver?”

Did this man hate Hope? He wouldn’t let her visit the baby at night, refused to check on him when he was ill, and never showed any concern, even when he was in hospital.

And yet, the man who had always treated Hope with such cold indifference now claimed that he would give a piece of his own body to save the baby’s life. It made no sense.

“Why would you do that?”

“Because.”

His lips moved clearly.

“Because I like you.”

The plain, almost weightless words sent Ye-jin’s mind spinning into chaos once again.

⟡⟡⟡⟡⟡⟡

Chief Baek stood on the rooftop, cigarette between his fingers, replaying the moment he’d reported to his boss a few days earlier.

“It seems Hope’s condition has worsened. He’ll need a liver transplant soon…”

Although Seo Jung-hoo had always acted as if he couldn’t care less about the child at the hospital, he’d been receiving constant updates through Baek.

When he heard that the child’s condition had reached a critical point, his cold, calculating eyes flickered violently.

“If he gets the transplant… he’ll recover?”

He had asked in a carefully restrained tone, fighting back the tremor in his voice. Baek had nodded.

“Yes. Once the surgery is done, he’ll make a full recovery.”

At that moment, a strange smile had curved Seo’s lips, a mix of relief and something twisted.

“Then this might actually be for the best.”

Baek had blinked in disbelief. For the best? How could anyone call this good news?

“What?”

“It’s fine. I’ll just give him my liver.”

“…”

“Hope will get better, and Ye-jin will never be able to leave me again.”

“…”

“He’ll be bound to me forever.”

The gleam in his black eyes was unmistakable: madness tinged with obsession. It was the look of a man consumed by desire and the need to possess.

Now, standing on the rooftop, Baek exhaled smoke and shook his head. It was no wonder that Ye-jin had tried to run away twice.

Seo Jung-hoo was an extreme man. Once he set his sights on something, he would stop at nothing to possess it, even if it meant destroying himself in the process.

“He really doesn’t know fear, does he…”

This wasn’t just any surgery, it was an organ transplant. And yet he’d made the decision without hesitation. It was terrifying in its recklessness.

“Is he really going through with it?”

Baek looked up at the sound of another man’s voice. It was Executive Director Seo Jung-min.

“Yes. He canceled the other scheduled operation and insists on doing it himself. There’s already a compatible donor, so I don’t understand why he’s doing this.”

“He must really love Ye-jin.”

“No matter how much he does, who in their right mind goes under the knife and gives up part of their liver?”

“He’s the kind of man who would because that’s how much she means to him.”

Jung-min gave a faint laugh as he lit a cigarette of his own. Who would’ve thought the cold, bloodless man they knew could lose his mind over love?

“But… is a transplant even possible if he’s not the biological father?”

Jung-min tilted his head, genuinely curious.

“Well, on paper, he’s listed as Hope’s father. Their blood types are compatible, so it shouldn’t be an issue.”

Baek’s answer made Jung-min nod slowly.

“I see. Figures.” He exhaled smoke, smirking faintly. “That fool really is a sucker after all.”

“‘Subtly’? No—he did it openly.”

⟡⟡⟡⟡⟡⟡

The surgery lasted for over twelve long hours.

Throughout this time, Ye-jin paced anxiously outside the operating room, unable to stand still for even a moment. Although she wasn’t religious and had never prayed before, this time she clasped her trembling hands together and prayed wholeheartedly.

‘Please… let them both make it through safely.’

The operation that had begun in the morning finally ended deep into the night. When the doors opened and the surgeon emerged, Ye-jin rushed toward him.

The doctor removed his mask and smiled.

“The surgery was a success.”

Ye-jin broke down, tears streaming down her face, and let out a sob.

She had been holding her breath for hours. The two people she loved most in the world were in that operating room together, and with every passing minute, her fear had tightened its grip, choking her. Now, upon hearing the doctor’s words, the tension drained from her body, replaced by an overwhelming sense of relief which brought with it a fresh wave of tears.

She repeatedly bowed her head, thanking the doctor between sobs.

“You must’ve suffered so much waiting. All that’s left now is recovery. The surgery went well—both patients should recover quickly.”

Ye-jin nodded, voice trembling with gratitude.

Chairwoman Min and Mrs. Han, who had waited with her the entire time, wrapped her in a comforting embrace.

After the surgery, both Seo Jung-hoo and Hope were moved to the ICU.

By the next day, he was transferred to a general ward, while Hope was taken to the isolation unit for liver transplant recipients to begin intensive post-op care.

Since no guardians were allowed inside the isolation ward, Ye-jin stayed by his side, nursing him through the day.

He underwent numerous tests, received endless injections. His arm was pricked with IV lines, and his abdomen was tightly bandaged. Despite the steady flow of painkillers, waves of pain still contorted his expression now and then as he pressed his palm against the surgical site.

“I’m sorry…”

Ye-jin murmured, her voice small and wilted, glancing at the bandages peeking through his hospital gown.

The man who had always seemed unshakable now lay motionless in bed. A man who had always moved like a wild beast—untamed, dangerous, unstoppable.

Her chest ached, her eyes stung. She pressed her palm against her eyelids to keep the tears from falling.

“I never thought you’d actually take out my liver.”

He looked at her with faint amusement and said in a low, languid voice: A slight smile played on his lips.

He had always joked that she might steal his liver one day if he wasn’t careful, but he’d never imagined it would actually happen. Still, he didn’t mind. The pain was worth it — it was for her, after all.

“You shouldn’t have canceled the original surgery…”

“I had to.”

His tone was firm, unwavering.

“Is it appropriate for him to receive a transplant from someone else when he already has a father?”