YAIMF 43🍒

Chapter 43
Please Live…!

It felt like someone had grabbed his hair and dragged him down into the abyss. Being unable to do anything, completely helpless, only made Jeongtaek’s mind grow sharper instead. He struggled to open his heavy eyelids, and through the blinking blur, something seemed to come in and out of view.

This place…

A familiar ceiling greeted him. He had visited often because of CEO Moon’s illness, so he immediately knew—he was in a hospital.

But… why?

He couldn’t remember what his last memory was. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t fight his drooping eyelids, and he ended up closing his eyes again. Still, he desperately tried to hold on to his consciousness.

At that moment, he faintly heard the sound of a curtain being drawn near his ear.

Who…?

“Tell them I’ll pay whatever it takes.”

That voice belonged to Imjae. Hearing a familiar voice in this confusing situation made Jeongtaek feel a little relieved. If Imjae was here, things would somehow be handled—or so he thought.

“Father! Is that really the problem right now? Saena is alive!”

Imjae’s sudden shout startled him, but more than that, the content of the conversation jolted Jeongtaek fully awake.

“No, I mean… back then, Saena happened to see it. I regret it too. But what can I do? Saena says she’ll erase the engagement altogether.”

What was he talking about? Jeongtaek wanted to sit up and ask right away, but the brief clarity in his mind didn’t translate to control over his body. Perhaps because of the IV fluid flowing into him, he couldn’t move at all.

“I thought she was dead. I definitely made her fall into the sea. Who would’ve thought she’d come back alive from that!”

His heart started pounding like crazy. It thumped so loudly that he worried Imjae might hear it. Countless fragments of memories flashed through his mind.

There was blood from the missing person on the yacht…
Saena is really dead, right?
Can we check the CCTV inside the yacht?

When all those pieces came together, one truth became clear—Saena hadn’t almost died by accident. She had almost been killed by Imjae.

How… how could he do that?!

He couldn’t even move a finger. The rage boiling in his chest couldn’t overcome the cursed medicine in his body. Jeongtaek clenched his teeth so hard that a grinding sound escaped, and it seemed Imjae heard it. He stopped talking and looked toward Jeongtaek.

From the other end of the phone, Gyeongjun’s voice came through.

—What are you going to do about Kim Jeongtaek?!

“Father, just a moment.”

They had noticed he was listening. Imjae leaned his face closer to Jeongtaek and muttered a curse under his breath. Then, in a chilling voice, he said,

“We’ll make him end up like CEO Moon.”

Saena paced back and forth by the window, clutching her phone. Just moments ago, the call with Jiun had ended with him firmly telling her never to come outside.

What on earth is going on?

Outside, everything looked as quiet as usual. But among that calm scene, she noticed Jiun’s car parked carelessly. Even though this was private property, he was never the type to park like that. It made her feel certain—something really was wrong.

Then a recent memory crossed her mind.

No way… those thugs didn’t come back, did they?

She had never encountered people like that before in her life. She had been terrified back then, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave Jiun behind when he told her to stay somewhere safe alone.

What should I do?

Back then, she could act because she could see what was happening right in front of her. But now, she had no idea what was going on, so she didn’t even know what to do.

Of all times…

Because Haman-daek and the others had gone to visit his grandmother in the hospital, she was completely alone in this huge house.

Should I call the police first?

But what would she even say? All he had told her was not to come outside. She couldn’t just sit here trembling, knowing nothing. Saena called Jiun again, but it only rang with no answer.

As she stood there anxiously looking outside, she suddenly heard the sound of glass shattering.

Crash!

A chill ran down her spine.

…!

Maybe something just fell, she told herself. Her mind seemed determined not to imagine the worst and tried to calm her down. But that effort didn’t last long. This time, the sound was clearly deliberate—like someone smashing something.

Crash—bang!

Her whole body stiffened in extreme tension. The hand holding her phone was visibly shaking. Her own breathing sounded unbearably loud in her ears. Every nerve in her body was on edge as she strained to listen for any sign of movement.

A horrifying silence followed.

Saena stood frozen with her back to the window, unable to take a single step.

I’m scared.

She could barely breathe. The fear that she didn’t know where or when another sound might come from made tears threaten to spill over.

Get a grip. Nothing has happened yet.

And even though she was alone, he was somewhere in this house. The moment she realized that, her body—frozen by fear—slowly began to move again.

I need to find something to protect myself.

Looking around, she realized she hadn’t locked the bedroom door. She hurried over and locked it first, then locked the door leading to the bathroom as well. She decided to block the door as much as possible so it couldn’t be forced open.

As she tried to move the small side table by the window, her eyes met those of a strange man—eyes burning with murderous intent.

“Aaah!”

Startled, she screamed and collapsed to the floor. The man curled his lips into a grin and began smashing the window with the hammer in his hand. The insulated glass didn’t break easily, and a dull, heavy sound echoed.

The sound was so terrifying that Saena’s face was soon soaked with tears.

Bang! Bang!

Someone was pounding on the door.

“Saena, are you in there?”

It was Jiun.

The man she had been longing to see was knocking on the very door she had just locked. Forcing her uncooperative legs to move, Saena crawled toward the door. With the sound of the window about to shatter, tears streamed down uncontrollably.

“Saena!”

“H-hng… I’m here, here… sob…”

She finally managed to grab the doorknob—just as the window shattered with a loud crash.

This is the end.

The man advanced toward her, his eyes sharp with killing intent, swinging the hammer in his bloodied hand. Saena yanked the doorknob with all her strength. The man didn’t miss that moment—he cursed and swung the hammer.

She squeezed her eyes shut.

Her vision turned completely white.

She expected unbearable pain—but instead, she felt warmth. Then, at her ear, she heard Jiun’s voice, sounding like a relieved sigh.

“Thank goodness… I wasn’t too late.”

What…?

When she opened her eyes, Jiun was smiling faintly at her. But then she saw blood running down his pale face.

“…!”

Thud.

Jiun collapsed into her arms. Her heart dropped as if falling along with his weight. She could see what was happening, yet her mind couldn’t process it.

As Jiun fell, she saw Yongsik, Junsik, and several other men restraining the attacker. Nearby, she also saw the bloodstained hammer lying on the floor.

“Jiun… Jiun, Jiun….”

Was it because of his blood? The hot sensation flowing made her feel like she was going crazy. She knew she shouldn’t be like this, but all she could do was call his name.

“Call 119! Call 119!”

After checking Jiun’s condition, Yongsik hurriedly searched for his phone. Only when she saw him calling 119 did it finally feel real.

“Jiun, you… you have to stay conscious. Hic… listen, this… this can’t happen, o-okay… sob…”

She didn’t even know what she was saying anymore—her words were a mess. But she felt like she had to keep talking, no matter what.

“There’s blood… so much blood… this isn’t right… why, why did you do that, why… sob…”

She tried to stop the bleeding with both hands, but it kept flowing through her fingers as if to mock her. Shaking her head, Saena begged desperately.

Why had she locked the door like an idiot? No—if she had just stayed calmer and opened it sooner, he wouldn’t have been hurt like this. More than anything, she was terrified of what might happen to him now. She wished she had been hurt instead.

Hating herself, all she could do was hold onto Jiun tightly as his body kept going limp in her arms.

“Please… please live. Please!”