His slightly wrinkled face, an expressionless mask more unreadable than ever, revealed his mistake. The voices of the people murmuring outside gradually faded away.

It was as if the silence in the space where the two were had spread to the outside. In the quiet space, Tae Hong, without answering, still only looked at Hae Jin.

She wished he would at least get angry. She thought if he showed his suppressed emotions, it would make her feel better.

But he didn’t say anything. He just looked down silently and then pulled a chair from under the bed to sit on.

Tae Hong sat close to the bed and reached out his hand towards Hae Jin’s forehead. His large palm covered her forehead and more. The temperature of his hand on her forehead was still hot.

“Do you have a fever?”

He placed his hand on his own forehead to compare with hers.

“There’s no fever.”

Unable to understand his intentions, Hae Jin silently watched his actions.

“Did you hit your head when you fell?”

“No.”

The palm that had measured her temperature still pressed firmly on her forehead. His large hand came down to below her eyes. Her vision was slightly obscured by his long fingers.

“I know it’s not likely, but I think we should get a CT scan anyway.”

Hae Jin shook her head as if to remove his palm. The heavy feeling of Tae Hong’s hand lifted. An inexplicable emptiness quickly swept across her forehead where the weight had disappeared.

“I’m fine now.”

“Then why has Jung Hae Jin been talking nonsense since earlier?”

Finally, emotion showed on his face that had revealed nothing before. As if he had concluded it was complete nonsense, he looked distinctly displeased. He clearly showed his dissatisfaction with the situation.

“I really meant it when I said I’d pay you back.”

“With money?”

“Yes.”

Hae Jin answered briefly. Her payday was coming up soon, and she could afford to pay for the emergency room fees. At the very least, she didn’t want to be indebted like this.

“Well, I’m sorry, but it seems this isn’t as simple a matter as you think.”

“What’s not simple about it?”

Tae Hong stroked his chin and crossed one leg. Something in the atmosphere had changed. His face, which had been strangely contorted, now held a subtle defiance.

“First of all, today is the weekend. There will be overtime pay.”

What nonsense was this about weekend overtime pay, instead of the neat amount written on the receipt? Leaving Hae Jin dumbfounded, Tae Hong continued speaking, as if he wasn’t finished yet.

“For your information, I’m a person with very expensive labor costs.”

Hae Jin’s face gradually hardened. All sorts of figures and numbers spun wildly in her head. She could see the number of zeros endlessly increasing.

“Plus the time spent coming to this hospital.”

As he said this, he looked at the IV bag. Hae Jin naturally followed his gaze.

“And the time I’ll have to spend in the hospital from now on.”

The IV, still more than half full, indicated that there was still quite some time left to stay in the hospital.

“When I calculate all of that comprehensively.”

Just when she thought all the calculations were done, he raised his index finger with an “Oh, right.”

“Plus compensation for my mental distress.”

He started pressing his temple. She wanted to ask when exactly she had caused him mental distress, but she couldn’t.

“I was quite shocked, you know.”

Though he said he was shocked, she already knew his words weren’t a lie from seeing his face full of worry earlier.

“So, calculating everything again comprehensively.”

Just as Tae Hong was about to run the calculator in his head again, Hae Jin reached out and grabbed his raised index finger.

“Wait, wait a minute. Stop right there.”

She was so urgent that she inadvertently put strength into the hand holding his finger. He only looked at her fingers gripping his.

“I guess I really was talking nonsense after all.”

Quick admission can reduce financial damage.

“I guess I was too flippant in the face of money.”

Only then did Tae Hong smooth out his furrowed expression with satisfaction.

“I’m really fine now, so you can go now.”

She wanted to finish the remaining IV alone. If she didn’t send him away, it felt like he would keep looking down at her like this.

“Aren’t you going?”

The man who hadn’t budged suddenly raised his index finger.

“You want me to leave like this?”

He raised his index finger, but why did my finger follow along? Startled, I tried to let go of the finger I was holding. But now Tae Hong was holding my finger.

“I can at least do this much.”

Not understanding his words and not knowing what was happening, Hae Jin’s hand was held by Tae Hong.

“I was really shocked when Jung Hae Jin collapsed.”

She couldn’t bring herself to refuse him when he asked to at least hold her finger. And she couldn’t tell him to leave anymore either.

Tae Hong held Hae Jin’s hand throughout the IV drip. She was more conscious of the hand he was holding than the back of her hand where the needle was inserted.

Even the slightest movement made her acutely aware of his hand filling hers. She had become sensitive to even small movements. The IV was finished and the needle removed. As she slowly tried to get up, her head spun.

As Hae Jin, who had half-risen, lay back down, Tae Hong stood up.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, I think I was lying down too long. My head is spinning.”

Maybe I shouldn’t have spoken so honestly. His face quickly clouded with worry.

“I’m really fine.”

She smiled forcefully and repeatedly reassured him that she was okay. But she couldn’t shake the worry from Tae Hong’s face.

“Let’s go.”

Hae Jin got up with Tae Hong’s support. His large hand supported her back, pushing her up, and her heavy upper body was lifted lightly.

“To my house.”

Tae Hong answered as he neatly arranged her shoes placed under the bed.

What? Our?

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave you alone. Your car, bag, and porridge are all at my house, so let’s go to my place.”

Hae Jin reluctantly put on her shoes while strongly declining.

“No.”

Hae Jin finished putting on her shoes completely and stood right in front of Tae Hong. She straightened her posture to show that she was really fine now.

“I’m really okay now, and I want to go home and rest.”

Even without a car, keys, or porridge, my home is the best.

“I’m already very grateful for everything you’ve done for me up to this point.”

Hae Jin declined sincerely. Looking intently at Hae Jin, Tae Hong’s expression was unreadable. After a long silence, his lips finally parted.

“Then let’s do this.”

He would take her home and come pick her up later. In the end, whatever it was, Hae Jin had no choice but to accept it for now.

“If you refuse this too, we’re just going to my house.”

It was time to accept that there was no other way.

She had to admit that his car was comfortable, despite her earnest refusals earlier. The aftermath of collapsing was indeed greater than usual. That’s probably why she had said those strange things to him.

In truth, she didn’t want to accept his consideration. Wasn’t she the one who had refused, saying she would draw the line from the start? Even his kindness was burdensome.

But she had to accept the fact that his presence beside her in a moment of weakness gave her no small amount of comfort and reassurance. She had persistently pushed him away, but each time, he clung to her even more tenaciously.

Even Jun Tae’s influence didn’t work. Rather, she couldn’t hide her surprise at the fact that he already knew about it.

Be as honest as your counterpart is.

Is it really okay to do that?

“Thank you for driving me.”

This was a heartfelt sentiment. Thanks to him, she had come comfortably, and although she claimed to be fine, her condition wasn’t 100% recovered.

“Alright, rest well and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Unlike his persistent insistence on taking her home, his farewell was neat and clean.

He watched Hae Jin’s figure through the side mirror until it became smaller. She didn’t move until she became as small as a bean.

“Is this just courtesy towards a superior too?”

Tae Hong fiddled with his index finger. He still felt as if he was holding her delicate finger.

She probably doesn’t know how shocked I was. A person collapsed right before my eyes. When I turned around at the thud, there was her fragile body lying on the floor.

It was the first time in my life I’d seen someone collapse. And for it to be Jung Hae Jin, my neck instantly became stiff. Cold sweat ran down my spine. Even while transporting her to the hospital, I couldn’t take my eyes off her face.

It felt like if she disappeared from my sight, she would vanish forever.

I quietly looked down at her face lying on the hospital bed.

Her face had been red from crying, but now it was pale, even her lips were blue. Why was the hand receiving the IV so delicate?

I had carefully chosen the restaurant, hoping she would eat well, but she ended up not eating properly and even getting indigestion.

That too, because of me.

The image of her trying to distance herself by bringing up Jun Tae was still vivid in my mind. She probably thought I didn’t know about her meeting with Jun Tae.

The fact that I knew might be surprising to her, but for me, it felt like the puzzle pieces had fallen into place.

That’s how I could find the answer to why Jo Se Young appeared there. Of course, I didn’t miss Hae Jin’s contorted expression when she saw Se Young’s face.

Despite all that, there’s one thing I still can’t understand. Why do I have to let go of something good?

We both like each other, so why can’t we be together? Knowing what she’s worried about only makes it more frustrating.

Does she not trust me? Or is she afraid of the Chairman?

Well. I should be scarier. Jung Hae Jin doesn’t know that yet.

But seeing her even get indigestion made my heart ache. In the end, I was the one who caused her indigestion.

The image of her face lying in the hospital came to mind again. As I quietly looked down at her with her eyes closed, my heart felt strange.

I even confessed that I liked her, but that made her like this. I felt guilty, sorry, and my confused feelings only deepened.

Did I overdo it? Was I too greedy?

I was going to pay the bill before she woke up, but why is the waiting line so long? If no one’s there when she opens her eyes, she might feel lonely and empty.

Thinking she might be waiting for me, I quickly paid the bill with an anxious heart, but Hae Jin was already awake.

She was looking at me wide awake, and I didn’t know what to do.

I don’t know how to soothe a woman or how to comfort her. That’s why all the words I spit out to her were full of sharp thorns.

And she called it being indebted? I would welcome this kind of debt, but how could she know that.

I came home and leaned back on the sofa. I still couldn’t forget the sensation of her tiny hand gripping my index finger.

Should I not care, should I not pay attention?

What are you going to do, Moon Tae Hong?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t stop.