Min-seo wiped her face, sensing the subtle tension between Yi-soo and Hyun-seong.
“You…” Hyun-seong began, but Yi-soo quickly interjected, “I’m fine. It’s nothing serious. You didn’t need to come all the way here…”
Min-seo, who had keenly observed the unspoken dynamics between Hyun-seong and Yi-soo, discreetly rolled her eyes. She then grabbed her phone and rose from her seat.
Although they were bound by a formal engagement contract, there was an unspoken connection between the two. Sharp-eyed Choi Min-seo couldn’t have missed it. In situations like this, a convenient excuse was essential.
“Well, Yi-soo. Attorney Yoon is here too. I’ll call my brother and be back. Please enjoy your conversation, Senior!”
“No, just a moment. Choi Min-seo…!”
Before anyone could stop her, Min-seo disappeared from the emergency room. With Hyun-seong and Yi-soo suddenly left alone, Yi-soo lowered his head and avoided making eye contact.
She hadn’t wronged him in any way, but an inexplicable awkwardness hung in the air. Hyun-seong, who had been observing Yi-soo from a higher vantage point, fetched a makeshift chair and placed it next to the bed.
“Seo Yi-soo.” Just three syllables, spoken sternly. It carried a scolding undertone, and she found it oddly irksome when she contemplated it. Who would intentionally faint? Certainly not her. She had no desire to collapse in front of a suspect during work hours.
Tomorrow, she would likely face a string of reprimands, from the head of the criminal division down to the deputy chief. The incessant reminders about taking care of her health grated on her nerves.
At this moment, she didn’t want to hear any lectures, not even from Hyun-seong. Yi-soo bit her colorless lip. The edges of her heart suddenly felt as sharp as needles.
“I know,” Yi-soo sighed. “I need to manage my workload and look after my health. There have been a lot of stressful events lately. If Mr. Yoon Hyun-seong, who is more diligent about self-care than anyone else, wishes to offer advice…”
Hyun-seong remained silent but couldn’t contain the words building up inside him any longer. He furrowed his brow and listened, then interrupted the flow of her sentence.
“Seo Yi-soo,” Hyun-seong cut in.
“What?”
Glancing down at Yi-soo, his finely arched eyebrows moved slightly. She had a pale complexion, tightly pulled-back hair, and, most notably, an unsettled expression. Why did this woman constantly shake him? Yi-soo possessed the uncanny ability to make Yoon Hyun-seong act out of character.
Gazing at her as she nibbled on her lower lip, he finally spoke.
“Don’t make me worry.”
Yi-soo fell silent.
“Don’t get sick either. It concerns me.”
“You… worried?” Yi-soo slowly lifted her head. It felt as though she had been struck at the back of her mind. Hyun-seong, within her line of sight, didn’t seem drastically different from his usual self, but an elusive, distinct aura emanated from him.
Had she mistakenly perceived a slight downturn at the corners of his tightly pressed lips? Most notably, his complex emotions were evident in his cold, obsidian pupils.
“Yeah,” he replied succinctly, causing Yi-soo to purse her lips. What was this sensation? It ran deeper than mere discomfort.
She had never fathomed that Yoon Hyun-seong, the seasoned man of the world, would regard her with concern. Their acquaintance was relatively short, and she couldn’t have foreseen him looking at her with such a blend of worry.
It wasn’t a sermon; it was an inexplicable concern. For some reason, a corner of her heart tingled, and warmth spread through her back. She wanted to attribute it to the onset of a cold, but she knew better.
Then, Hyun-seong placed his large palm against Yi-soo’s forehead. He let out a nearly audible sigh, as though he were almost speaking.
“You have a fever. You should take some medicine,” he advised.
Yi-soo mumbled, “Yes, sure.”
His hand, which had touched her forehead, felt cool against her relatively low body temperature. After withdrawing his hand, Hyun-seong gestured towards Yi-soo’s bag.
“You’ve had the IV, so grab your bag. Let’s go.”
“Go? Where…”
“To my place.”
Naturally, that meant Hyun-seong’s apartment. Yi-soo, somewhat surprised, raised her head to look at him. She hadn’t fully adjusted to his habit of speaking only what was necessary without much elaboration.
Going to this man’s place…
It wasn’t their first time, and their engagement was public knowledge. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease at his straightforward proposition.
Hyun-seong furrowed his brow. “Why? Don’t you want to?”
Don’t want to? Yi-soo couldn’t provide an immediate answer to his concise question. You really are… I come when you call, and I go when you say let’s go.
However, at this moment, Yi-soo instinctively understood that she was tethered to Hyun-seong not by a legal contract but by an invisible thread of the heart.
After gazing at him for a moment as if in a trance, she responded quietly. The once-loose thread had become taut.
“No… it’s fine.”