Chapter 22
“Busy, I see. Working hard all by yourself?”
Lee Yeon slowly looked up as she gathered the fallen documents, holding them to her chest.
“Did you have somewhere to go?”
“Yeah, I had a lunch appointment for some corporate advisory work.”
“By the way, there’s something I want to ask you.”
“What is it?”
Lee Yeon took a deep breath and spoke.
“What happened with this case?”
Joo-ho’s face, which had been glancing at the corrupted file on the monitor screen, stiffened instantly.
“You… you opened my file?”
Joo-ho’s tone was seeped more with displeasure than surprise. However, Lee Yeon spoke without hesitation.
“I’m still the attorney in charge of this case for you, Attorney Song. I have the right to.”
Joo-ho twisted his mouth into a sneer and let out a short, scoffing laugh.
“You took that bastard Cha Woo-kyung’s side and abandoned me. What are you curious about now?”
“What does that have to do with this case? I just want to know how this case was handled.”
“That case is from years ago. Why the fuss now?”
Joo-ho smirked and pushed his glasses up. But behind his dry, blunt words, there was a silent pressure.
“I said it’s over. Let’s not make this tiresome.”
Lee Yeon’s fingertips twitched. The veins on the back of her hand clutching the documents became distinct.
“Were you… the attorney in charge of this case back then, Attorney Song?”
Joo-ho’s faint smile wavered slightly for a moment.
“That case is already closed. That company was cleared with ‘no charges’. It’ll just be a hassle for me if you dig it up for no reason.”
At Joo-ho’s firm, conclusive answer, Lee Yeon’s gaze turned cold.
“You probably don’t know what happened because of this case.”
Instead, Joo-ho let out a disbelieving snort.
“And so what? What are you going to do about it?”
Joo-ho suddenly moved, taking a slow step closer to Lee Yeon.
As the light fell diagonally, his shadow instantly covered her.
“By the way, you’re not planning to meet Cha Woo-kyung after breaking up with me, are you?”
For a moment, Lee Yeon was flabbergasted, speechless.
“Isn’t that something you shouldn’t be concerned about, Attorney Song?”
“Hey, are you really meeting Cha Woo-kyung?”
“More importantly, I won’t let this matter rest.”
“You? What are you going to do about it?”
Joo-ho’s eyes narrowed coldly.
“I’ll handle that myself.”
A short, sighing laugh escaped from Joo-ho’s lips as he listened silently.
“Lee Yeon, you’re the one who’ll get hurt. It’d be easier for you too if you just stayed quietly by my side.”
Of course, it was true that Lee Yeon was smart and attractive.
But he thought she would be easily manipulated.
Yet, she had turned away cleanly, without a shred of lingering attachment.
How dare someone like her… it still irked him.
That realization, in turn, twisted his insides strangely.
Moreover, Cha Woo-kyung.
As that name came to mind, his mouth twisted again.
A guy who seemed indifferent on the outside but knew how to hold onto a woman at just the right moment.
Joo-ho hated that about him even more.
The fact that Lee Yeon had opened her heart to such a Cha Woo-kyung scratched his pride more than the fact that he had lost her.
Yeah, even if I discard her, I need to get under that bastard Cha Woo-kyung’s skin at least once.
A sneering smile spread slowly across Joo-ho’s lips.
“No.”
Lee Yeon’s firm voice cut him off.
“I have no intention of getting back together with you, Attorney Song.”
At her words, Joo-ho’s face hardened.
In the tense silence that stretched for a moment, just as Lee Yeon turned to leave, trying to avoid the situation first—
Joo-ho’s hand shot out roughly and grabbed her wrist.
“Lee Yeon.”
His low voice brushed against her ear.
His fingers tightened, and Lee Yeon’s vision swayed momentarily.
Blood rushed to her head, making her dizzy.
“Let go of this hand.”
Lee Yeon’s voice fell low and firm.
“Lee Yeon, don’t be like that, let’s talk more.”
“If you don’t let go of this hand right now, shall I tell the senior partner about the dealings you’ve had with your clients all this time?”
Joo-ho’s brow furrowed instantly. A brief flicker of agitation passed over his face.
“Hey, are you threatening me?”
Before he could continue, Lee Yeon forcefully shook off his grip.
Her slender wrist slipped free, leaving a red mark.
“I have no intention of getting entangled with you again, Attorney Song.”
Lee Yeon turned immediately and left the office.
She reached the elevator and pressed the button.
When the light turned on, a momentary sense of relief washed over her.
But the very next instant, her vision turned white. Her head rang and her forehead felt hot, as if she had a fever.
*Thud—*
As soon as the doors opened, Lee Yeon’s body swayed and she stumbled forward.
“Yoo Lee Yeon?”
Someone’s firm arm caught and lifted her by the waist.
As her vision blurred, a low voice brushed the edge of her ear.
“Shouldn’t you fix that habit of fainting in front of me by now?”
With those words, Lee Yeon’s vision completely faded.
***
Under the hazy fluorescent lights, the cold smell of disinfectant permeated the air.
When Lee Yeon slowly opened her eyes, beyond her blurry vision, a white curtain swayed, and medical equipment emitted regular beeps.
Her eyelids felt heavy as she blinked. The unfamiliar ceiling, the unfamiliar feel of the sheets, and the sensation of a cold IV needle touching her arm gradually brought her back to reality.
“Where am I?”
Her voice, barely escaping, was utterly parched.
The nurse, who was carefully adjusting the IV drip, turned her head and smiled.
“The emergency room. You have a cold, accumulated fatigue, and nutritional deficiency all at once.”
The nurse checked the IV line with her fingertips and continued calmly.
“Once you finish this, you can go home.”
“Who… who brought me here?”
Staring blankly at the ceiling, Lee Yeon suddenly asked quietly.
“A handsome man. Oh, there he is now.”
Before her words even ended, the hospital curtain was quietly drawn aside. And a low, bass voice chimed in.
“So you’re awake.”
Woo-kyung’s gaze fixed on Lee Yeon, who was lying motionless on the emergency room bed.
Though he appeared nonchalant on the outside, a subtle worry was thinly seeped into Woo-kyung’s eyes.
Lee Yeon hurriedly tried to sit up.
“I’m sorry for the trouble.”
“Who said you could get up already.”
With a short sigh, Woo-kyung’s hand landed on her shoulder.
“Stay still. Your condition is a mess.”
Lee Yeon was speechless for a moment, then quietly lowered her gaze.
“…What happened?”
“That’s what I want to ask.”
“Huh?”
“How on earth have you been managing your health?”
Somehow, his tone seemed calm, but his eyes were clearly scolding her.
“You didn’t look well since yesterday, and you ended up collapsing.”
“I’m fine. I’m just tired.”
“That word, ‘fine,’ is at it again.”
Woo-kyung let out a long sigh, his mouth twisting into a wry smile.
“I should make that word forbidden.”
“The nurse said I can go once I finish this, but I haven’t even spoken to the office manager yet…”
Even as Lee Yeon cautiously broached the subject, Woo-kyung’s reply was as sharp and firm as a blade.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Right now, I’m your guardian.”
Lee Yeon’s round eyes widened.
“Guardian? Since when…?”
“Since you came into the ER.”
Woo-kyung said nonchalantly.
“You were unconscious, so I signed for you.”
“Why did you…”
“That was the only way to get you admitted.”
Lee Yeon pressed her lips tightly together.
*You have no idea that you’re part of the reason for my accumulated fatigue, Mr. Cha Woo-kyung.*
Those words never made it past her lips.
But as Lee Yeon turned her head away briefly, Woo-kyung sat down in a chair, crossed his arms, and leaned back.
She thought he would return to the office after helping her this much.
Instead, he placed a tablet on his lap and began swiping the screen with calm movements.
Lee Yeon watched him for a moment before asking quietly.
“…Aren’t you busy?”
Woo-kyung slowly looked up and replied.
“I am busy.”
“Then you can just go.”
“If I did that, you’d just collapse again.”
Lee Yeon narrowed her eyes.
“That was just today.”
“Who knows.”
“That’s why I’m not convinced.”
“So, you’re going to wait until I finish this?”
“Yeah. I plan to watch you until you finish it quietly.”
Lee Yeon let out a short sigh, as if in resignation.
“Cha Woo-kyung, you’re really…”
“I know. I’m being fussy.”
He laughed lightly and turned his gaze back to the tablet.
“Just stay still. That’s the fastest way to recover.”
At his words, Lee Yeon didn’t say anything more.
Besides, she didn’t even have the energy to argue in the face of Woo-kyung’s audacity.
