The lips were tightly pressed together.

Certainly, it was on the way to pick up Jaeha, who said it might end late.

I was excited at the thought of going home together, having dinner, and finishing the day.

But the destination changed suddenly with a phone call.

The urgent voice of Hyunik, who delivered the news that my parents were in critical condition, was unforgettable.

Mom, who had been shuttling between the intensive care unit for the past few days, was reported to be entering the recovery phase again.

‘Both of them in critical condition…’

I don’t know in what state I arrived at the hospital.

In front of my parents’ room, which I barely reached, there was a man with a worried expression.

“Yeo Jin…”

The trembling voice of the man calling my name.

Inside the room, various medical equipment, including a defibrillator, was haphazardly placed.

It vividly showed how urgent the situation was until I arrived.

‘No, they can’t be going like this…’

However, upon seeing the room, a sense of déjà vu, as if I had experienced it before, came over me.

I tried to suppress the thought that it couldn’t be like this, but the anxiety only grew.

Passing the man looking at me with pitiful eyes, I walked into the room.

As we got closer to where my parents were, my heart pounded as if it would burst.

The medical staff blocking the way split to both sides, knowing who I was.

And when I saw the bed through the crowd, I lost strength and sank down.

Because I saw the white cloth covering both of their faces.

Dr. Kim, who discovered them late, approached with a mournful face.

Yesterday, he mentioned that I should mentally prepare because of the cerebral hemorrhage.

But to think that both of them would leave like this…

I was supposed to come with Mr. Jaeha…

“As you know, due to the sudden worsening of both of their conditions…”

At Dr. Kim’s pronouncement, my vision turned white.

Whatever the doctor said to me, only the ringing sound of tinnitus echoed in my ears.

“Miss.”

Dr. Kim called me again.

‘Ugh…’

However, something blocked my throat, and I couldn’t produce a sound.

I pressed my lips tightly, holding back the tears that surged.

‘I couldn’t protect them again…’

Even after coming back, I couldn’t protect my parents.

As the noise of footsteps approached, Chairman Seo and Vice Chairman also arrived.

“Dr. Kim! What on earth is happening?”

Although I felt Chairman Seo’s gaze on me, I had no room to care.

Without time to think about people’s gazes, my mind became distant.

Soon, the chairman was speechless as he looked at my parents being moved to the mortuary.

Dr. Kim, who approached Chairman Seo, seemed to summarize the situation and convey it.

‘What should I do…’

My mind was so complicated that it felt like it would explode.

When I closed my eyes tightly in the gloomy situation, a familiar voice penetrated my ears.
“Can’t you just get up?”

Even in the stifling ears, a clear voice could be heard.

As I gradually opened my eyes, Ji-han stood before me, extending his hand.

It would have been better if he just passed by.

Not wanting to show weakness, I forcefully held back tears.

Even amid the buzzing ambient noise, Ji-han’s voice was incredibly clear.

Why do I find this person so repulsive?

I know my parents’ death is not Ji-han’s fault, but…

Returning to the past and experiencing my parents’ death again made me think it was his fault.

“People are watching.”

Seeing me without any reaction, Ji-han placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Grab and get up. You don’t have the strength to get up now.”

As I looked at him, my once-distant mind gradually awakened.

“…Alright.”

‘Am I going to hold that hand?’

I abruptly pushed away Ji-han’s hand extended to me.

The medical staff in the room, who had remained as we made a louder-than-expected friction sound, looked at us curiously.

As Ji-han had mentioned, my legs were trembling, and I had no strength to get up.

However, I didn’t want sympathy from this man.

Suddenly, Hyun-ik came over and helped me when I tried to leave my seat.

He dampened the hand he had extended with his noticeably darker face.

‘Why did you come here.’

I didn’t expect Ji-han to come this far.

Seeing the chairman and vice chairman entering successively, they might have received the news of the funeral while being together.

‘I’d rather you didn’t come.’

It was just a thought of wanting to hide somewhere where no one could see.

When I tried to leave the hospital bed, Ji-han suddenly grabbed my wrist.

“Where are you going?”

“Wherever I go, it’s none of Seo Ji-han’s business.”

“What?”

At my blunt words, he frowned.

When my grandfather passed away, I didn’t even attend the funeral because I was with Seo-rin.

Now, looking at his seemingly sympathetic face, it felt suffocating.

‘In my past life, when I was alone, he looked at me with those eyes.’

Now is not the time for that.

You don’t even have the right to pity me.

“No need for pitiful sympathy.”

“Pity, you say. I’m just worried…”

“Enough.”