While driving towards home, Na Eun gnawed on her gums.

Not realizing she was doing it, she kept chewing until she could even taste blood by the time she nearly arrived home.

“To help Woo Jin as a manager, don’t you need to know a lot about visually impaired people? Soo Young, do you know Braille? Do you know how to guide visually impaired people, or how to train them to walk alone using a cane?”

Soo Young couldn’t answer any of Na Eun’s questions.

Rather, she was looking at Na Eun with a surprised expression. With an expression that said, how do you know all of that?

Seeing such an expression should have made her feel triumphant, but instead that innocent look irritated her.

“How can you be Woo Jin’s manager without knowing even such basic things?”

Despite Na Eun’s reproachful tone, Soo Young’s expression didn’t change much. Does she not think at all?

“I heard that Woo Jin came out because of you. But isn’t it a bit dangerous for a non-professional like you to take out a visually impaired person who’s been at home for 10 years? Could you handle any emergencies?”

But this time, Soo Young had a puzzled expression.

Wondering if she was even understanding what I was saying, Na Eun’s words became increasingly aggressive.

“I’m prepared to dedicate my whole life to Woo Jin. Are you the same? Honestly, you’re not, right?”

At this, confusion finally clouded Soo Young’s eyes.

Thinking she had finally realized the meaning that she wasn’t qualified to be by Woo Jin’s side, Na Eun’s expression was tinged with pleasure as she looked at her.

But contrary to her thoughts, an unexpected response came from Soo Young.

“Did you… say that to Seol Woo Jin too?”

“What?”

“I mean, that talk about dedicating your life and all that, did you say it to Seol Woo Jin too?”

It was what Na Eun had said every day when Woo Jin was holed up in his room.

I can help you. I’m here to help you. I’ll help you for the rest of my life by your side.

She wanted Woo Jin to acknowledge this feeling.

“If you haven’t, I think it would be better not to.”

Na Eun’s expression twisted at Soo Young’s cautious tone.

“What did you say?”

“I used to teach middle and high school students. And one kid said that he hated it most when his mom would say things like, ‘How could I have given birth to you,’ ‘I’ll dedicate my whole life to you.’ He wished his mom would stop caring about him and live her own life.”

Na Eun didn’t know what expression to make at Soo Young’s words.

She quickly brought the mug filled with Americano to her mouth to hide the spasm occurring at the corners of her lips.

“From what I see, Seol Woo Jin’s level is just like that middle or high school student. I think your friend’s sacrifice might be a burden to Seol Woo Jin. And don’t people all say they live for others, but actually live for their own satisfaction? Even volunteering, you have to like it yourself. No matter how good the deed is, if you don’t want to do it, you can’t do it even if you die.”

She had gone to meet Woo Jin, but ended up not even entering his house, dumbfounded by Soo Young’s nonsensical words.

Even now that she had arrived home, Na Eun just sat in the car, feeling like she could still hear Soo Young’s voice.

Something strange has come and is shaking Woo Jin’s heart. But her words didn’t seem wrong, which made her feel even more bitter.

[This is the timeline separator]

Soo Young diligently dried her hair and jumped onto the bed.

She turned on the lamp, opened the next part of the book she had been reading last time, and called Woo Jin.

It seemed like the call hadn’t even gone through, but Woo Jin answered.

“You’re 10 minutes late.”

“It’s because I was drying my hair. I think my hair dryer is broken. The hot air doesn’t come out well.”

“Don’t make excuses.”

“It’s not an excuse, it’s true! How long have I been using this hair dryer? Since I bought it in college… Wow! I’ve used it for 5 whole years. I bought it so cheaply, I’m grateful it’s still working. Thank you, hair dryer~”

“Did you just thank the hair dryer? Can it understand you?”

“It’s personification, personification. You’re a writer and you don’t know about personification?”

“Sigh.”

A tired sigh could be heard from the other end of the phone.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“For not believing what Seol Woo Jin said. You really are writer Seol Yong? But maybe… do you have a split personality? Or multiple personalities?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Well, as I said before, it doesn’t make sense that someone with Seol Woo Jin’s personality wrote such stories. Seol Woo Jin writing such pure love stories? Does your personality change when you write books? Does something come in and out of you?”

“…You… just read the book. Don’t talk…”

Somehow, it sounded like he was gritting his teeth.

“If that friend hadn’t told me, I might have never believed it. I’m sorry. From now on, I’ll believe you even if you say you’re making soybean paste with red beans. Promise.”

“What did you talk about with her?”

He had thought Na Eun would naturally come to his house, but it was strange that she didn’t come. Did she come to meet Soo Young? Why?

“Just about Seol Woo Jin’s high school days… and how much that person likes Seol Woo Jin… What else did we talk about?”

Woo Jin asked in a slightly subdued voice at Soo Young’s words.

“You weren’t hurt, were you?”

“Who? That person? Of course not! I was so careful with my words!”

When Soo Young spoke loudly as if wronged, Woo Jin said quietly.

“No, you.”

“Me? Why would I be?”

“…If you weren’t, that’s good. Now hurry up and read. I’m going to sleep.”

“Tch, it’s really ridiculous that you tell me to read while saying you’re going to sleep, you know?”

But Woo Jin was silent.

Soo Young cleared her throat and began to read the book. The most comfortable and happiest time of the day was beginning.

[This is the timeline separator]

Seol Ma Jung and Kang Hyung Min sat facing each other at a table in the study.

On the table, there was cubed radish kimchi and soju in front of Seol Ma Jung, and fruit and wine in front of Kang Hyung Min.

“What’s the matter?”

In the past, he would have downed the soju in one go and the bottle would have been empty by now, but watching Chairman Seol sip the soju little by little as if tasting it due to health reasons, Kang Hyung Min asked gently.

Chairman Seol put down his soju glass and said with a sigh.

“Humans are so fickle.”

“…”

“I thought I had forgiven everything… but when I think about that incident again, those feelings disappear and I only feel resentment.”

“Are you talking about the accident?”

But Seol Ma Jung silently put a piece of radish kimchi in his mouth with his chopsticks, chewed it, and then downed a mouthful of soju in one go.

“Why? Is the building owner demanding something again?”

“No. They’ve already received as much as they should. Even a flea has some shame.”

“Then, are the victims’ families making unreasonable demands?”

“What demands could they make when the company’s support team takes care of everything before they can even ask?”

“You’re really amazing, Chairman. It’s not easy to do that. I heard you said you’d fully support the production of guide signs for each district office?”

“No, none of the guide signs have proper Braille. When they do that remodeling or whatever, shouldn’t they change the guide signs too! If it can’t be resolved through civil complaints, I have to step in myself, what else can I do?”

Kang Hyung Min smiled warmly at his words.

While always scolding Seol Ji Hyun for doing unnecessary things, it was actually Chairman Seol Ma Jung himself who was most actively engaging in disability welfare projects.

“Why do you blame yourself when you’re working so hard?”

“Hmm. Have you seen Kim Soo Young, the housekeeper who comes to Woo Jin’s house?”

“Yes. I met her last time when I went to Woo Jin’s house. She seemed kind and pretty.”

“Well, does she seem like she came with ulterior motives?”

Hyung Min opened his eyes wide at his words.

“What motives could she have? And even if she did come with motives, it’s not easy to stay by Woo Jin’s side for long. Didn’t Na Eun leave because she couldn’t bear it?”

“Well, he was quite beastly then. He’s relatively normal now, isn’t he?”

“Chairman, just because he looks normal on the outside doesn’t mean he’s normal inside. He can’t go outside, can he?”

“I heard he goes out with that girl?”

“That’s what surprised me. I wonder what trick she pulled…”

Kang Hyung Min said as he poured soju into Chairman Seol’s empty glass. Chairman Seol picked up the glass, swirled it, and muttered.

“…Indeed…”

“Tell me what’s troubling you. I have a talent for listening, don’t I?”

At Kang Hyung Min’s generous smile, Chairman Seol let out a heavy sigh and said.

“That girl Kim Soo Young turns out to be Kim Chul Ho’s daughter.”

“Kim Chul Ho? Kim Chul Ho as in…”

“The bastard who pulled down the shutters.”

Kang Hyung Min’s face immediately turned ashen.

“Ah, no… How could…”

“I always thought, if there is a God, why would He do this, why would He go this far? I wanted to understand His intention a little. Just when I thought things were getting a bit better, I’m curious again. Why He’s doing this.”

“Chairman…”

“That father made the child end up in that state, so is He telling the daughter to save him… Is that it?”

“Well…”

Kang Hyung Min’s expression also looked complicated as he spoke.

“How are we supposed to know what to say, He just does as He pleases and tells us to deal with it, what are we supposed to do?”

Chairman Seol downed the soju in one go before Kang Hyung Min could stop him.

His esophagus burned as if on fire as the soju went down, but thinking of his son who died in an even hotter flame, he felt it wouldn’t matter if his entire esophagus burned up and he died.

[This is the timeline separator]

As Soo Young was about to enter the door lock password to Woo Jin’s house, she ended up bumping her forehead hard against the suddenly opening door.

“Oh, are you okay? I didn’t know you’d come this early. I’m sorry.”

As Ji Hyun quickly wrapped his arms around her and asked, Soo Young rubbed her forehead hard, which felt like it had a bump, and replied.

“Ah, I’m fine. My head is pretty hard.”

“Oh, it looks like there’s a bump? I’m really sorry. I was distracted…”

When Soo Young looked up, she could see dark stubble on Ji Hyun’s chin.

His clothes were also all wrinkled, his shirt completely crumpled.

He looked like he had pulled an all-nighter, as anyone could see. Is the company busy?

But then he said something surprising.

“Woo Jin isn’t home. He’s in the hospital.”

“What? Why?”

“He had difficulty breathing at night, so we moved him to the hospital. The home nebulizer had its limitations.”

It was unbelievable. Just last night, he had listened well to the book reading and gone to sleep. Is his cold still not better? Did he overdo it with the walk?

While Soo Young was searching for her own faults, Ji Hyun said as he got into the elevator.

“Go inside. I’ll be going.”

Ji Hyun put down the large bag he had been carrying on his shoulder and pressed the close button, but Soo Young slowly caught the slowly closing door with her hand.

“Can… can I come too?”

“You want to come?”

As Ji Hyun asked with a surprised expression, Soo Young quickly got into the elevator instead of answering. Ji Hyun hesitated for a moment before pressing B3.

“He can’t go outside, so how did he go to the hospital?”

As Soo Young sat in the passenger seat and fastened her seatbelt, Ji Hyun said matter-of-factly.

“Because he can’t go out, we put him to sleep and took him.”

“What?”

“We sedated him and transported him. We do it every time. In the early days, we forcibly took him a few times, but after seeing him have seizures and go into shock several times, we now sedate him for transport, then he receives respiratory treatment there.”

“Is it because he went outside, or…”

“There are various reasons, but the biggest reason is contact. He can’t grasp the situation, but doctors and nurses keep coming to put things on him and poke him. Each of those contacts is all stress for Woo Jin. But if we sedate him, it’s fine.”

It sounded serious to Soo Young’s ears, but Ji Hyun was speaking as calmly as if talking about eating meals and using the bathroom.

“How long does he stay in the hospital?”

“Well, it varies each time… About two or three days?”

“If he just sleeps the whole time, how does he eat?”

“We substitute with IV fluids. That’s why he’s even thinner when he comes back from the hospital.”

“Wow. No matter how much he acts up, shouldn’t you wake him up and feed him something…”

“He can’t eat because he’s acting up.”

She was curious about how he acted up, but as soon as they arrived at the hospital room, she could see for herself.

They said he slept the whole time in the hospital, but as soon as they arrived in front of the VIP room, there was a sound of something crashing down and Woo Jin’s shout could be heard.

“Don’t touch me! I said don’t touch!”

The IV pole had fallen over, and as Woo Jin wildly flailed his arm with the IV line attached, the doctor forcibly held him down and shouted.

“Seol Woo Jin! Seol Woo Jin, just a moment! We need to remove this IV needle! Seol Woo Jin!”

The bed guard had been raised due to the risk of falling, and the nurse was also trying to restrain Woo Jin, but the superhuman strength coming from his thin body was no joke.

Just as the strength he had built up through desperate exercise was taking effect in the hospital, a familiar low voice reached Woo Jin’s ears. Somehow, it sounded mixed with a metallic tone.

“Don’t do that! Don’t touch him!”

Soo Young ran to the doctor and grabbed his arm. At the same time, she pushed away the nurse’s chest.

Ji Hyun didn’t know whether to stop Soo Young or the medical staff, so he was at a loss in the middle.

“Don’t touch him! I’ll, I’ll do it!”

As Soo Young clung to the doctor’s arm, the doctor released his grip on Woo Jin.

The nurse who had been pushed in the chest by Soo Young also stepped back from the bed, huffing.

“How can you touch him like that when he can’t see! Seol Woo Jin, are you okay? It’s me. I’m here in front of you.”

Then Woo Jin, who was all covered in sweat with only his eyes blinking, slowly raised his arm with the IV needle.

The IV line that had turned bright red due to blood backflow somehow sent a chill down her spine.

However, Soo Young took a step closer to Woo Jin so that his hand could reach her shoulder.

Soon his arm wrapped around Soo Young’s shoulder and Woo Jin buried his face in her shoulder, wheezing.

“…Where were you……”

Her heart ached at his damp hair and voice wet with moisture.

While Na Eun had called her unprofessional or something, even doctors and nurses couldn’t handle this, so Soo Young gently stroked his head as if petting a puppy.

Chairman Seol Ma Jung, who had arrived late after hearing the news, stood at the entrance of the hospital room watching this scene.