“It seemed like an opportunity. You were always upset about not being sent anywhere. In the end, the conclusion was to remove Seoyoon’s respiratory system. Even though she wasn’t brain dead.”

His father tried to kill Seoyoon.

As Dr. Han succinctly summarized his words, the heartbeats that had been pounding on his chest could hardly be felt.

“It would have been an easy task. Even if Seoyoon, already in a coma, died in the space where the underlings of Seowon were playing cards, who would have cared?”

Apparently, the muttering Dr. Han opened a bottle of water.

The water passing through his throat tasted bitter in his mouth.

“Meanwhile, Seoyoon regained consciousness, not remembering anything. President Taekang-hyun, who is now the chairman, received a proposal from him, which was accepted.”

Those with the Taekang surname lived their lives thoroughly centered around themselves.
Their willingness to achieve what they desired, regardless of means and methods, was also strikingly similar.

Among those who were good at controlling emotions, Kanghyun, who lacked emotional expression, received treatment as if he were a mutant. However, in reality, everyone born from the same blood had a similar temperament.

Coincidentally, the person sacrificed by all of them to achieve their desires was Seoyoon.

“Chairman collapsed with a cerebral hemorrhage right after Seoyoon’s death sentence, and that’s how he met his fate. Having received money as compensation for assisting President Taekang-hyun and a promise of a medical director position, I moved along with the trend. That’s all I know.”

Dr. Han lost his words and silently observed the frozen Kanghyun.

“Seoyoon was a child who lived clinging only to Chairman. I only remember the face of her waiting for Chairman. It’s been like that since she was seven, until the accident happened.”

“…”

“I sometimes regretted the choice four years ago. I didn’t know what Seoyoon meant to Chairman. But…”

Muttering to himself, Dr. Han recalled Seoyoon he had seen in the hospital not long ago.

“She looked better with the changes.”

Thanks to that, the guilt of changing someone’s life without asking for Seoyoon’s opinion became somewhat blurred.

????????????

The hotel lounge welcomed Christmas Eve with splendor.

Christmas decorations adorned not only the Christmas tree with various colored lights but also the windows that provided a panoramic view of the city’s night scenery.

Inside the lounge filled with carol melodies, the atmosphere was warm, yet it wasn’t overly noisy.

“What is the name under the reservation?”

“Taekanghyun.”

“Ah, yes. I will guide you.”

The server in a neat uniform smiled kindly and led Jianne to a private room.

“Shall I take your coat?”

“Yes.”

Accepting the offered coat graciously, Jianne hung it on a coat stand. The server, who didn’t forget to pull out the chair for her and handed her the menu, then left the room.

Staring intently at the pristine white table, Jianne, who seemed ready to find even specks of dust, raised her head abruptly at the knock on the door.

“I will serve the pre-meal drink first.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Jianne nodded awkwardly.

In such places, it was always with Kanghyun, so being seated alone and receiving hospitality felt unfamiliar.

“I’ll take the meal order when your party arrives.”

“Yes, but since today is Christmas Eve, if the order is delayed, the cooking time…”

“I’ll go with Course A. For the wine, the chef’s recommendation.”

“Yes, understood.”

Startled by the deep, resonant sound coming from behind, the server grabbed the round tray and calmly bowed, closing the door.

“Sorry for being late.”

“I just arrived.”

Smiling warmly, Jianne greeted Kanghyun.

Instead of sitting down immediately, Kanghyun approached Jianne, beside her. He took out a rectangular case from the pocket inside his coat.
Supporting the case from below with one hand and opening it, a small necklace with two intertwined rings displayed its dazzling beauty.

“Christmas gift.”

As Jianne slightly opened her mouth, Kanghyun, who moved behind her, took out the necklace and gently placed it around her neck.

Kanghyun, who meticulously arranged her long hair, bent deeply at the waist and pressed his lips against her exposed shoulders.

“Director?”

Kanghyun, who usually left a short kiss, lingered longer in that position than Jianne expected. She hesitated and spoke in a small voice.

“What’s the matter?”

“You look so beautiful today that I didn’t want to let go.”

Upon hearing the simple compliment, Jianne swallowed hard.

In truth, her heart had been fluttering since Kanghyun started putting on the necklace.

When Kanghyun’s hand touched her, it felt like tiny sparks were jumping all over her body.

Using the excuse of checking if the necklace was properly in place, Kanghyun, who had rolled the silver string around Jianne’s neck under his fingertips, moved the cutlery set on the opposite side to Jianne’s seat.

“Do you want to sit here?”

“Yes.”

Kanghyun took off his coat and settled down next to Jianne after tidying up.

Jianne, bowing her head, gazed at the necklace neatly draped between her collarbones.

Two rings, adorned with countless diamonds, were entwined like an inseparable Möbius strip.

“…Thank you for the gift.”

Her voice trembled as much as her fluctuating heart.

Questions she intended to ask when meeting Kanghyun, such as whether he knew that Seojun was his affair partner or if there was any connection between Seojun’s traffic accident and Kanghyun, lost their meaning.

Next to him, Jianne was shaking like a reed.

“Next time, let’s go together to choose. I’ll buy everything for you.”

Kanghyun held Jianne’s hand, which was fidgeting on the table, and gently placed it on his cheek.

Jianne, easily grasping the meaning of being touched, moved her fingers to sweep the cool surface of his cheek.

Someone who couldn’t endure not having any part of them touched.

Despite his efforts to dig into her small palm, he felt pitiful, but honestly, it felt good.

Knock, a succinct and clear knock echoed in the room again, and food was placed on the empty table.

“Have this too.”

Kanghyun pushed the appetizer that came as his portion toward her, resting his chin on his raised arm.

He seemed to have no intention of eating.

“You should eat too.”

“I enjoy watching.”

“It feels like being a mukbang creator. Wow, should I eat like this?”

As Jianne opened her mouth wide, a smile gradually appeared on Kanghyun’s dark face, which was hard to find any traces of laughter.

“What should we do today?”

“Well…”

“How about swimming?”

“I didn’t bring a swimsuit.”

Jianne, who had been mumbling while playing with her food in her mouth, swallowed and pouted.

She wasn’t particularly good at swimming, but she loved playing in the water, so she felt regretful.

“It’s okay, there’s a hot tub in the room.”
“Oh, in the room… even in the room, you need a swimsuit, right?”

Jianne, who was nodding along with Kanghyun’s nonchalant remark, belatedly came to her senses.

“Ah, I see.”

Ah, I see?

Did she really think of undressing and going swimming?

Her barely calmed face turned crimson.

It was clear she must have been a tomato in her past life.