It felt like she might burn up from the closeness. She wished someone would cool down the situation, not wanting to reveal her embarrassment to him.
“I wasn’t sure if I was asleep or awake.”
Tae-hong gave an ambiguous answer and let go of her waist. Haegin quickly sat in the driver’s seat, pressing her back against the door. It was a perfect defensive posture, short of drawing an X in front of her chest.
“You should have said something when you woke up!”
Even as she scolded him, her eyes kept returning to his injury. Feeling her gaze, Tae-hong waved his bandaged hand, now adorned with a character bandage.
“You did a good job blowing on it, Ho-ho.”
He had been awake after all. She recalled blowing on his hand just minutes ago, wanting to escape the increasingly hot air in the car.
“Where do you live?”
Her stumbling words clearly revealed her discomfort. Tae-hong chuckled but did not turn to face her.
Instead of giving his address, he fiddled with the navigation system and set a destination labeled as his home.
“So I really ended up being your driver tonight.”
“It’s fine. I am your personal assistant, after all.”
Her words came out robotic and stiff. She wanted to hide her flushed face, to erase the lingering warmth of his touch from her mind, drawing a line for herself.
The emotional detour had to end there.
“Alright, work hard then.”
Tae-hong spoke softly but indifferently and turned his head to look out the window at the night view.
“Fortunately, there were no reporters or police involved.”
Haegin had checked this earlier when she borrowed the emergency supplies in the lobby. An employee had informed her that the other party had not taken any further action.
“I’m telling you this so you don’t have to worry.”
“Reporters and police. A fitting combination. Maybe I should have made the news this time.”
“What a reckless thing to say. Comments like that put my high-paying job at risk.” Haegin gripped the steering wheel tightly, glancing at Tae-hong before refocusing on driving.
“You went through unnecessary lengths for your professional dedication.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Did he have connections with the police and media? Considering it’s Yeonchang Group, it wasn’t unlikely. Even when working for her father’s company, having a certain level of lobbying and connections was essential.
As she was lost in her thoughts, Tae-hong slightly opened the window, letting in the cool air.
“Haegin, what do you think it would be like to have a brother?”
First, he was prying into family matters, now this. Her response was simple.
“It would be nice, wouldn’t it?”
She had seen friends with brothers who would pick them up late at night or give them pocket money occasionally.
“Nice, huh?”
“Wouldn’t he be calling around this time to ask where you are?”
The time had passed midnight. The quiet streets spoke for themselves.
“Sounds like you’re implying I can’t go home.”
He chuckled, easing the previously tense atmosphere a bit.
“But I told you to go home. You chose to wait.”
She couldn’t argue; he was right. Though his playful insistence on her leaving was clear, she had chosen to stay.
“I’m not complaining about not being able to leave.”
“Good.”
The mood relaxed even more. Tae-hong’s casual posture and tone conveyed a sense of ease.
“Complaining would be conscienceless.”
Her opinion of him as a humane person changed in a second. Perhaps waiting for him was a mistake. She even thought she should have just gone home to sleep.
“But why were you hurt?”
A fundamental curiosity arose. Only his hand was injured; the rest of him was unscathed.
“Who knows.”
His evasion suggested it might be a personal matter, so she decided not to pry further. But Tae-hong was quicker.
“Let’s just say I was playing the role of a brother.”
His earlier comments about a sister made sense now. Haegin chose to respect his privacy.
The relaxed air outside the car seemed to echo inside. Tae-hong’s gaze shifted from the bandage on his hand to Haegin, who was focused on driving.
The dried blood on his hand contrasted with his attention, which kept drifting back to her.
The fresh morning breeze blowing in through the window scattered her hair, carrying with it a fresh scent.
It was the same scent he had noticed when they were close earlier. Intrigued, he quickly opened the car window, as if to let go of unnecessary illusions.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
