CHAPTER 54……………………………………………
Not long after people helped Hyukjin up and seated him on a nearby chair, an ambulance arrived.
They said it had been passing nearby and came as soon as they received the call.
As the paramedics loaded Hyukjin into the ambulance, Seoyoung climbed in after him.
Seeing Seoyoung’s face a mess of tears and worry, Minwoo followed behind in his own car, his expression just as anxious.
Sitting on the hospital bed with his right shoulder and arm in a cast, Hyukjin opened his mouth wide.
Seoyoung held out a spoonful of food, her eyebrows drooping heavily.
“Thank you.”
“That’s the tenth time already. At this rate, you’ll hit a hundred. I get it, so stop thanking me.”
Hyukjin chuckled lightly as he chewed.
Seoyoung still couldn’t forget the accident itself or the scene of him receiving emergency treatment in the ambulance, yet the person involved was smiling as if nothing had happened.
Thinking he was acting that way just to reassure her, Seoyoung still felt her breath catch whenever she recalled how terrifying it had been.
They said it was fortunate that things had ended this lightly thanks to narrowly avoiding disaster.
If it hadn’t been for him, she might have been far more seriously injured—or even killed.
Just thinking about it made her body tremble, yet Hyukjin even laughed, saying it was better that he had been hurt instead.
She didn’t know what to do with that.
“No matter how many times I say it, it’s not enough. I owe you my life.”
After swallowing his bite, Hyukjin opened his mouth again, and Seoyoung lifted another spoonful of rice topped with braised beef toward him.
Even when he smiled, saying it tasted better because she was feeding him, her face darkened as her eyes lingered on his bandaged arm.
Noticing her expression, Hyukjin deliberately exaggerated his chewing, then narrowed his brow slightly.
Seeing her gloomy face, he shrugged and joked again.
“It’s nothing to make such a big deal out of. More importantly, are you okay, Seoyoung? You’re not hurt anywhere, right?”
“Yes. I only have a few bruises.”
Seoyoung gestured awkwardly to her slightly scraped arm, covered with a few bandages, and smiled sheepishly.
Though he was the one seriously injured, the way he worried more about her made her feel both grateful and shy.
“Stop talking and eat.”
She quickly put more food into his mouth, avoiding his gaze.
“Thanks to getting hurt like this, I can actually talk properly with you. In a way, maybe it was a good injury.”
Hyukjin, seeming to have found his usual rhythm again, wore his familiar teasing smile.
“Is that really what matters right now?”
“Of course. That’s what matters most to me. Sitting here like this almost makes us feel like a real married couple—and I kind of like it.”
At the words real married couple, Seoyoung’s eyes wavered.
Her heart had already been unsettled, and the smile filling Hyukjin’s face only made her more confused.
“Why is that important—?”
She was about to ask, her brow knitting, when a knock sounded and the door opened.
“Are you feeling any better?”
It was Minwoo.
The moment she saw him, Seoyoung’s expression stiffened.
As Minwoo approached, Seoyoung immediately stood up.
“Where are you going?”
Hyukjin frowned, watching her retreat with the meal tray in her hands.
Turning her head with an awkward smile, Seoyoung replied,
“I’m done eating, so I’ll clean up. And since we have a guest, I should prepare some drinks.”
“That’s not necessary. Since when is Secretary Lee a ‘guest’?”
“Hey! Isn’t that a bit harsh? I came today not as a secretary, but as a friend.”
Minwoo’s eyebrows twitched at Hyukjin’s blatant disregard.
“Anyway, did you look into it?”
At Hyukjin’s abrupt shift to the main issue, Minwoo’s sulky expression instantly turned professional.
Seoyoung, who had been heading for the door, also stopped and looked at him.
“It doesn’t seem like a simple accident. No matter how you look at it, it feels prepared.”
“Why do you think so?”
“The worker who caused the accident disappeared. Apparently, he was someone who came in as a last-minute replacement this morning—but his contact information and even his name were all fake.”
“What? The labor office didn’t manage something like that properly?”
“Exactly. It feels like someone pulled strings behind the scenes. It’s hard to trace who.”
At Minwoo’s words, Hyukjin’s brow furrowed deeply.
Seoyoung’s complexion also darkened as she turned away again.
There really must be a spy nearby.
Only the secretaries in the director’s office knew about her Jeju business trip.
If there was one more person, it was Vice President Jung Minhyung.
Suddenly, Juhee’s uncomfortable expression came to mind—but Seoyoung quickly shook her head.
It’s not certain yet.
After returning the meal tray, Seoyoung sent a message to Manager Oh.
When she headed back toward Hyukjin’s private room, she stopped short upon seeing an unfamiliar man standing in front of the door.
“Excuse me—are you here to see Executive Director Cha Hyukjin?”
Just in case, Seoyoung approached and asked.
He was tall and slim, handsome enough to pass for a model.
“No. I came together with Lee Minwoo.”
The unexpected answer made Seoyoung’s eyes widen.
“Mr. Lee Minwoo? Ah—then perhaps you could come in and have a drink—”
“No, it’s fine. He said he’d be out shortly, so I’ll wait here.”
“I see. Then…”
As Seoyoung turned away after his polite refusal, a strange feeling washed over her.
When she turned back, the man gave her a perfectly composed smile.
Unable to ask further about his relationship with Minwoo, Seoyoung entered the room, thinking he somehow felt oddly familiar.
Her eyes met Minwoo’s as he finished his conversation and turned to leave.
“Madam, then please take care. I’ll head back now—I have matters to handle in the executive director’s stead.”
“Yes. Oh, and your friend is outside. Since you’re already here, wouldn’t you like to have a meal together?”
Seoyoung nodded and subtly gestured toward the door, watching Minwoo’s reaction.
Feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, she wanted to see that man again.
“No, we have somewhere to be. We’ll be going now.”
Minwoo glanced toward the door, the corners of his lips lifting as if in a good mood. After a polite bow, he left.
Once the door closed, Seoyoung tilted her head in confusion, then took some fruit from the refrigerator and sat by the bed.
“The person who came with Secretary Lee—do you know him too?”
At her sudden question, Hyukjin tilted his head.
Realizing her explanation was lacking, Seoyoung quickly added,
“He was tall and handsome—he looked like a model.”
Hyukjin glanced toward the door, his brow narrowing.
“Well… this is actually a secret…”
Lowering his voice and leaning closer, Hyukjin’s behavior made Seoyoung’s heart start pounding.
“He’s Secretary Lee’s lover.”
“What?”
“I said, Secretary Lee’s lover.”
Thinking she might have misunderstood the situation in the office storage room last time, Hyukjin deliberately revealed Minwoo’s secret.
Even if she hadn’t misunderstood, he figured she wasn’t the type to spread rumors—so he took the gamble.
His guess proved right.
Seoyoung’s eyes widened like a rabbit’s, then her mouth fell open.
“Then… Secretary Lee’s lover…”
So it wasn’t you?
Unable to finish the sentence, Seoyoung quickly clamped her mouth shut when she saw Hyukjin’s eyebrows twitch.
“Don’t tell me—you thought I was…?”
“Oh—no! Absolutely not! I never thought that!”
Startled by his frown, Seoyoung shook her head vigorously in denial.
“What exactly is it you never thought?”
Hyukjin’s eyes gleamed.
He could hardly believe it—she really had misunderstood the relationship between Minwoo and himself.
It was absurd, yet oddly deflating.
Only now did he understand why she had looked at Minwoo that way, and why she had been so guarded even against his advances.
“Hah… this is really unfair.”
Hyukjin exaggeratedly twisted his brows and pouted, putting on a thoroughly wronged expression.
“No, seriously—it’s not true. Really.”
Even more flustered by his expression, Seoyoung insisted it wasn’t true at all, biting her lip and unable to meet his eyes.
