Chapter : 06
“Where… are you hurt?”
I had been ready to ask why he was back so early, but when I actually saw him, his face was so pale that concern came first without thinking.
At her cautious question, Daehyun’s expression became surprisingly calm.
“I’m perfectly fine. Thanks for worrying about me.”
It sounded like he was saying, So you still worry about me.
At Daehyun’s gentle tone, Juhye took a step back. It felt embarrassing, as if the feelings she had tried so hard to hide had been exposed.
“I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Did you meet Juyeong okay?”
“Yes. We even had a meal together.”
She wanted to avoid him altogether, but in the narrow entryway there was nowhere to escape, and no way to get around Daehyun blocking her path.
“You said you had plans with Kangil today.”
Giving up on running away, Juhye asked what she had been curious about all along. Daehyun frowned slightly.
“How did you know?”
“I heard Juyeong unni talking on the phone.”
Juhye couldn’t understand it. Her husband hadn’t been this kind of person.
If anything, he hated acting on impulse—especially canceling prearranged plans for no reason.
“Why did you cancel?”
“I told you I’d wait for you.”
His brief addition only made her more confused.
Covering her eyes with her right hand, Juhye replied softly.
“But… you knew I’d be back in the evening anyway. I clearly said it was just a lunch appointment.”
“You did.”
“Even so, I told you not to wait… so why….”
She wanted to coldly snap at him, asking why he’d bothered coming all the way home, but her lips wouldn’t move.
It felt as if her love for Seo Daehyun was deliberately interfering with her body’s movements.
As if scolding herself that hurting the person she loved wouldn’t make her feel any better.
“It’s okay.”
Seizing the opening, Daehyun gently cut in.
“You don’t need to feel upset, Juhye. I was the one who suggested it.”
“Kangil would be disappointed.”
At her curt reply, Daehyun raised one eyebrow.
No matter how close they were as friends, he clearly didn’t like another man’s name coming from his wife’s mouth.
“Today’s meal was the appointment you had with him.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“How can I not worry? He’s Juyeong unni’s husband.”
The conversation broke off, and an uncomfortable silence followed.
No matter how special the circumstances were, Daehyun’s uncharacteristic behavior felt unfamiliar.
“…!”
Before they could continue talking, a loud vibration suddenly came from Juhye’s bag.
Both of their gazes turned there. Through the gap in the open bag, her vibrating phone was visible.
On the screen was the name of her eldest brother, Jin Suha.
Why is oppa calling?
It was rare for Suha to call at this hour.
He usually worked late into the night and only occasionally checked in on weekends.
“Take the call first.”
When Juhye hesitated, Daehyun gestured for her to answer.
She quickly brought the phone to her ear and accepted the call.
—Juhye!
Before she could even greet him, Suha’s urgent voice struck her ear. It wasn’t the gentle, calm tone she was used to from him.
—Why haven’t you been answering my calls? Where are you right now?
A strange sense of unease washed over Juhye as she gripped the phone tightly.
It seemed there had been missed calls from her brother too, not just from Daehyun.
“Sorry, I had something to do and turned my phone off. I’m home now. What’s wrong?”
—Don’t panic, but listen. Dad…
He collapsed.
Just five words, but the moment she heard them, Juhye’s face turned deathly pale.
Seeing her freeze, Daehyun’s expression also hardened.
—Fortunately, it’s not extremely serious. He collapsed this morning and is recovering now. They say he should regain consciousness soon.
Her father had collapsed from a cerebral hemorrhage and was taken to the hospital, and Suha said he was heading there now.
He had already contacted their second brother, Sugyeong, and said he’d likely arrive first. Juhye urgently asked for the location.
“I—I’ll go too. Which hospital?”
—No, you don’t need to force yourself to come.
Sensing Juhye’s panic, Suha tried to reassure her.
—I’ll stay there first. Take care of anything urgent and come in the evening.
Saying he’d leave right away, Suha hurriedly ended the call.
Juhye’s hand trembled violently as she held the phone, then it slipped and dropped onto her knee.
“What’s wrong, Juhye?”
Daehyun, who had sensed something was off the whole time, immediately leaned toward her.
She caught a familiar scent from him as he came closer. Forcing her stiff lips to move, Juhye spoke.
“M-My father… collapsed. That’s what they said.”
His expression instantly froze.
“The chairman?”
Without hesitation, Daehyun grabbed Juhye’s hand, opened the door, and stepped outside. When a startled Juhye looked at him, he answered quickly.
“Let’s go. I’ll drive you to the hospital.”
“Suha oppa said I don’t need to come right away. I should just finish dinner first—”
“If we go like this, we won’t be able to eat properly anyway.”
He was right. She wouldn’t be able to eat, let alone enjoy anything around her.
She found his insight—seeing straight through her heart—annoying.
“Then… I’ll drive myself. You don’t need to trouble yourself too.”
With trembling hands, Juhye grabbed his sleeve.
It was barely any force, but Daehyun immediately bent down toward her.
“How are you going to drive when your hands are shaking like this?”
“If I really can’t, I’ll call Secretary Kim.”
Daehyun looked displeased, but instead of scolding her for being stubborn, he firmly clasped her hand.
“I’m worried about you. I can’t send you alone.”
“…”
“Let’s go before it gets any later.”
In this flustering situation, his voice—digging into her weakened heart like a thorn—was gentle.
The urge to push him away surged up, yet so did the desire to lean into this gentleness just a little more.
“I’ll take you.”
How could a person’s resolve become so flimsy in the face of love?
Despite her determination to turn away, the warmth of his body stilled the trembling in her hand.
Juhye noticed it too, and that was why she couldn’t refuse any longer.
“…Please.”
After a long moment of hesitation, Juhye gave her consent. Daehyun started walking briskly, as if he had been waiting only for that answer.
Looking down at their joined hands, Juhye bit her lower lip tightly. The warmth gripping her hand was intensely hard to escape.
She wondered why a man so cold and composed like ice could have hands this warm.
Please, let nothing be wrong.
Forcing Daehyun out of her thoughts, Juhye quickened her pace,
praying desperately that her father’s condition wasn’t serious.
After arriving at the hospital, Juhye immediately ran to the ward.
Daehyun stayed in the hallway, saying he would wait for Suha, who had disappeared somewhere.
Thanks to that, Juhye could listen to the doctor’s explanation without showing her shock-hardened face to him.
“It’s a cerebral hemorrhage caused by high blood pressure.”
Looking at her father’s sleeping face, he seemed even thinner than the last time she had seen him.
Because of the ruptured capillaries from the hemorrhage, his face was mottled with reddish blotches.
“For the time being, it’s best to avoid anything that might startle him. Even if there’s important news, don’t tell him right away.”
Hearing the doctor’s warning made her thoughts even more complicated. She had already been worrying about how to tell him about the divorce.
It’s better not to tell him yet.
She hadn’t even been able to confide in her close friend Juyeong, so there was no way she could comfortably bring it up to her ailing father.
It won’t be too late to tell him after he recovers. Let’s wait for now.
Daehyun had suggested a period of deliberation anyway, and she needed time to prepare a lawyer.
Trying to shake off her tangled thoughts, Juhye left the ward.
Stepping into the stark white hallway, she saw two men talking in the distance.
Her eldest brother Jin Suha—and her husband, Seo Daehyun.
“Juhye!”
Suha spotted her instantly and came toward her with visible relief.
Daehyun had his back turned, so she couldn’t see his expression, but she sensed an air of discomfort around him.
It was a feeling she could recognize as his wife of two years.
What’s wrong with him?
Had he heard something from her brother?
As Juhye tried to look more closely at Daehyun, Suha stepped in front of her.
“Juhye, you’re here!”
Looking worriedly at his sister’s pale face, he reached out his hand.
“I told you it was okay to come later. You must have been really shocked, right?”
His hand gently brushed her disheveled hair aside, full of warmth and concern.
