Chapter 27
『And now, the next news.
At around 4:20 p.m. this afternoon, four hours ago from now, a fire broke out on the 32nd floor of a 33-story apartment building in Songpa-gu, Seoul. The fire spread from the 32nd floor to the 33rd floor, and three residents on the 32nd floor inhaled smoke and were taken to a nearby hospital.
About 150 residents living in the same section of the building were evacuated in the commotion. The fire was completely extinguished after about two hours, at around 6:22 p.m.
The fire department suspects the blaze started while an electric bicycle battery was charging and is investigating the exact cause.
Meanwhile, indoor charging of electric bicycles and electric scooters continues to cause battery-related issues such as this……』
How can something like this even happen?
Cough, cough!
“Are you all right?”
“This way, this way!”
I can’t think straight.
Seung-eon blinked as she blankly took in the constant commotion, as if she were standing in the middle of a bustling market.
They say all misfortunes come at once…
—A fire?
Still standing, she was watching the firefighters moving busily and the residents from units 3 and 4, when she heard a voice full of dismay in her ear. It was Secretary Chu.
“Yeah.”
—At your home?
“No. But it’s really close. The floor below.”
—Ah.
“Secretary Chu, at this point… shouldn’t I just get an exorcism or something?”
Half a year ago she had almost died, and now, upon waking up one day, her perfectly fine home was burned to a crisp thanks to the carelessness of the people downstairs.
“Sir, what are you going to do about this? We can’t get into our homes!”
“I’m sorry. I really am.”
“Sorry is one thing, but what are you going to do about it? We need somewhere to sleep too!”
“I’m the worst. I shouldn’t have been charging it there. I’m so, so sorry!”
“Ugh, I can’t deal with this. Someone call the police.”
The owner of Unit 3203, essentially responsible for the fire, was being bombarded with complaints from other residents in the 3 and 4 line, until he finally slumped to the ground.
Seung-eon sighed, her headache worsening for no reason, and turned her attention back to the phone in her hand.
It was now almost 9 p.m.
She had just heard from the fire captain that because of the fire that had burned for hours, not only the unit below hers but her own, Unit 3303, was currently inaccessible.
“Even after the investigation is over, you probably won’t be able to return for a while unless you redo the interior where the fire damage is.”
And when she heard she couldn’t even retrieve her belongings, Woo-jin had clung to her hand and cried his eyes out as they went down to the first floor.
“Noona, then all my stuff… is it all burned? Even Mom and Dad’s photos?”
Their penthouse on the 33rd floor was filled with memories of the two of them and photos of their parents.
“By the way…”
—Yes?
“Remember those family photos I asked you to have printed a while back? Do you still have them?”
—Huh?
“I mean, maybe they’re still on the cloud, or in your email… or…”
—Director.
“Yeah?”
—I’ll come over right away.
She did have photos of her late parents on her phone and in cloud storage, but they might not be the exact ones Woo-jin wanted.
Not wanting to disappoint her beloved younger brother, she asked carefully, but Secretary Chu’s voice was firm.
—I’ll go check the situation at your home right away and arrange temporary lodging…
“No!”
Naturally, Seung-eon snapped at her secretary, who was already making plans for the next step.
“As I said before, I’m really fine. Things here are already under control, so don’t worry. I mean it.”
She added quickly to reassure her, but there was no reply.
She doesn’t believe me…
All she wanted was help with the photos, but the situation was getting unnecessarily complicated, making her head throb.
She stayed silent, waiting for Chu’s answer, until at last the words she wanted came:
—I’ll look for them.
Seung-eon let out a breath of relief.
“Please do.”
—Yes. But…
“Hm?”
—Do you really have somewhere to stay?
The question came again shortly after. She was caught off guard, and Secretary Chu pounced.
—You can’t go back home right now, can you?
“Well, that’s…”
—Director, I really don’t mind. Especially since Woo-jin can’t sleep at a hotel, why not just stay at my place…
“Noona! You’re not coming?”
Seung-eon turned her head.
While she’d been on the phone, Woo-jin had been holding hands with Seo Yi-soo and was now waving at her energetically.
“I’ll explain inside. I already have somewhere to stay, so really, don’t worry!”
She hastily told the startled secretary, “I’m hanging up!” and ended the call.
Then she turned toward Woo-jin, and the person beside him holding his hand.
“Are you… all right?”
BOOM!
A deafening bang shook the house, loud enough to mistake for an earthquake.
At the sound, Seo Yi-soo immediately pulled her in, cupping her head in his large hand and tucking her into his chest.
What the…
She wanted to scoff at the overreaction to a mere noise, but the seriousness in Yi-soo’s eyes as he looked down at her, bracing himself against the back of the sofa, kept her from saying anything.
“Noona! I think something’s on fire outside—huh? What are you two doing?”
If Woo-jin’s urgent voice hadn’t come from the doorway just then, she might have stayed frozen, staring into Yi-soo’s calm, dark gaze.
“I heard Woo-jin can’t sleep at hotels. Why don’t you stay at my place until things settle down?”
When her mind was still reeling from the sudden fire, Yi-soo had escorted both her and Woo-jin out of the apartment and—unexpectedly—made that offer.
No way.
Naturally, Seung-eon had planned to refuse.
“Yi-soo hyung! Can I really sleep over at your place?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh yes! Noona, what are you waiting for? Let’s go back! Hyung, come on!”
But when she saw Woo-jin, the most influential person in the Kang family, beaming and grabbing Yi-soo’s hand to hop around in excitement, she couldn’t say another word.
And so, barely five hours after leaving, she found herself back at Yi-soo’s home.
She’d heard that residents above the 30th floor had been relocated to temporary shelters, while those in lower floors returned to monitor the situation.
Yi-soo had left to get them some pajamas, leaving Seung-eon and Woo-jin alone in Unit 1704.
“Kang Woo-jin.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re acting suspicious.”
She addressed him as he waved toward Yi-soo’s retreating back.
“What?”
His innocent, confused expression met her gaze.
“Kang Woo-jin.”
“Noona!”
The more she fixed him with a sharp look, the more he grinned sheepishly and avoided her eyes—until suddenly he sidled up and grabbed her hand.
“You have no idea how many cool things are in Yi-soo hyung’s house, do you?”
“What?”
“He even has an AI robot! I’ve never seen one before! Neither Hee-do hyung nor Hyun-jun hyung has anything like that!”
His eyes sparkled like stars in the night sky.
A robot?
“Last year, when Ji-won came to Korea, we stayed at Yi-soo hyung’s place. We had so much fun… Ah, right. Noona… you don’t know Ji-won, do you?”
In an instant, Woo-jin’s sunny smile dimmed into gloom.
Her heart skipped a beat.
Seung-eon hesitated at the sight of his downcast expression, then shook her head.
“Of course I know Ji-won.”
“…?”
“She’s the friend you like so much you even email each other. She’s in America now, right?”
“You remember?!”
She ruffled Woo-jin’s hair as he beamed and leaned in toward her.
“I’m starting to remember little by little. I think it’ll all come back soon.”
“That would be amazing! I hope you remember everything soon!”
Watching him shout with a bright smile, Seung-eon nodded.
“Yeah… I really hope so.”
