Chapter 48.2

Min-seo exchanged a quick handshake with Yi-soo before answering the call. Words like “Is your health better now?” and “I miss you already” drifted to Yi-soo’s ears, prompting him to roll his eyes and stick out his tongue. Just a few days ago, their relationship had teetered on the brink of a breakup, but now they appeared to be reconciled, their affection evident in every sweet word.

Min-seo was the kind of friend you couldn’t help but love. Yi-soo couldn’t contain her smile as she suppressed a chuckle, then proceeded toward the entrance of the Prosecutor’s Office.

In that instant, a faint, delicate meowing sound disrupted her stride, causing her to halt in her tracks. The sound was so hushed that it teetered on the edge of being audible or lost in the ambient noise.

She blinked and scanned her surroundings, wondering if there might be a cat nearby. However, her search yielded no animal or any particularly conspicuous individuals. It was as if everyone had vacated the scene to satiate their hunger.

“Strange… am I just exhausted?” Yi-soo muttered.

As she prepared to resume her walk, the meowing resounded once more, this time a touch more pronounced, reverberating in her ears. Juggling takeaway coffee cups and a paper bag, Yi-soo pivoted for another glance around. In that fleeting moment, something small and inky-black snagged her attention.

“Oh… what should I do?”

Partially obscured by foliage and grass, there was undoubtedly a squirming kitten. Its fluffy fur bristled, a clear indication that it was an exceptionally young newborn.

Yi-soo hastily set down her belongings on a nearby bench and directed her gaze toward the quivering little creature. Had its mother abandoned it? It appeared to be extremely young, barely weaned.

A heavy sigh escaped Yi-soo’s lips. Though she had a deep love for animals, she understood the importance of not impulsively approaching and feeding a stray kitten. She’d heard the cautionary tales of how an unfamiliar human scent could drive a mother cat to abandon her offspring. The undernourished kitten before her had a pitiable, almost wretched appearance, as if it had endured days of hunger.

As her heart ached with sympathy, Yi-soo’s gaze fell upon a wound concealed beneath the scruffy fur of the kitten. On closer examination, it resembled the mark of a burn.

“If I leave it like this, that wound might become infected… What should I do?”

This was an immunocompromised kitten, and she couldn’t simply leave it to its fate. However, the weight of the decision weighed heavily on her. Should she take on the responsibility for a life she might not be fully equipped to care for? Overwhelmed by this moral dilemma, she pressed her fingertips to her temples.

Then, a voice, at once familiar and unfamiliar, spoke from behind her. It was warm, with a mellow mid-low pitch.

“Prosecutor Seo Yi-soo…?”

Startled, Yi-soo turned to find the source of the voice. “Oh… Attorney Kang.”

“It’s nice to see you again. They say fate becomes inevitable when coincidences repeat. Are we destined to meet once more?”

It was Jin-won, a lawyer from Yoon & Kang. He appeared largely unchanged from their last encounter—soft brown hair, a towering figure that demanded attention, and glasses that added an intellectual air to his presence.

The gentle smile lingered at the corner of Jin-won’s mouth. Yi-soo couldn’t help but wonder if he had come to the Prosecutor’s Office for some official business. As she contemplated this, her attention was diverted to something held in Jin-won’s hands.

“Oh, is that for the kitten…?”

“Yes. I noticed it earlier… It was crying as if it were struggling to breathe. I bought some medicine from a nearby pharmacy to treat it.”

Jin-won carefully placed the medications on one side of the bench, then, with gentleness, cradled the kitten in his palms. Yi-soo was concerned about how to handle the fragile creature, but the urgency of tending to its wound took precedence. Furthermore, given the kitten’s distressed state, it seemed as if it had been neglected for quite some time, perhaps abandoned by its mother.

“Prosecutor, did you also notice this little one?” Jin-won inquired.

“Yes,” Yi-soo nodded. “I felt sorry for it. I was considering taking it to a vet, but you’ve brought medication.”

Jin-won explained, “When I checked, the nearest animal hospital is a 15-minute drive away. I took a short break for about 20 minutes… I purchased some animal disinfectant and gauze from the nearby pharmacy for now. If you have a moment, could you hold it for a while?”

Seated on the bench, Jin-won gingerly transferred the kitten into Yi-soo’s waiting arms, and she blinked as she cradled the tiny creature.

The kitten felt astonishingly light, almost as if it were weightless, and Yi-soo could sense its tiny frame quivering. Jin-won proceeded to dilute the disinfectant labeled as Clorsidin in water, his movements flowing with practiced ease.

“It might sting a bit… Should I hold it? We have gauze soaked in disinfectant; you can gently clean the injured area,” Jin-won offered.

Yi-soo shook her head. “No, I’ll hold it. Attorney Kang, you can do the cleaning.”

Yi-soo, sitting in close proximity to Jin-won on the bench, cradled the fragile kitten tenderly. Faint, continuous meows filled the surroundings. It was as if Jin-won comprehended, and he nodded slightly, moving the damp gauze nearer to the kitten’s fur.

Comment

Options

not work with dark mode
Reset