Chapter : 40
Na-eun got out of the car when she saw the lights on in the house next door.
“I left something at Lee Tae-shin’s place. I’ll just go for a bit.”
Before getting out, she made sure to touch up her makeup, fix her hair, and straighten her clothes.
“Come back quickly. If you’re late, I’ll just leave without you.”
Jun-pil issued a playful threat.
Lee-seol, seeing Na-eun enter, went into her own room at the health center.
She hesitated for a moment in front of the window.
Sneaking a peek to eavesdrop on what the two were saying seemed really childish.
It probably wasn’t anything serious anyway—why check…?
Yet somehow, her hand had already cracked the window open.
Through the narrow gap, she spied into Tae-shin’s room.
His window was half-open.
If Na-eun had really left something behind, it would probably be in Tae-shin’s room.
What on earth could she have left?
A hair tie?
Lipstick?
Surely not underwear…
Shaking her head at the strange thoughts crossing her mind, Lee-seol tried to clear her mind.
The door opened, and Tae-shin and Na-eun entered the room.
Focusing intently, Lee-seol could actually hear their conversation fairly clearly.
“You smell nice, Mr. Lee Tae-shin. Do you use perfume?”
“I don’t use perfume.”
“Oh, I see. But it’s really nice.”
“I didn’t notice anything when I cleaned this morning. Are you sure it fell in this room?”
“Yes, I’m sure. That night, I took off my earrings to put them in my bag, so I guess one must have dropped.”
Dropped an earring?
She was sure she saw her wearing them the next morning. What…?
The two of them moved further inside.
The bed wasn’t visible from Lee-seol’s room.
Their voices grew fainter.
“Oh, here it is! It must have rolled under the bed.”
If they found it, hurry up and return it already.
“By the way… about the show… two tickets… if you have time…”
Lee-seol pressed her ear closer to the window, straining to hear.
Two tickets? Were they inviting each other to go?
She couldn’t quite hear Tae-shin’s reply.
Their figures came back into view.
Na-eun looked up at Tae-shin with a slightly disappointed expression.
Annoying as she was, Lee-seol had to admit Na-eun was pretty.
Especially with eyes that seemed to captivate anyone—no man could resist that gaze.
Unlike Lee-seol, Na-eun was direct about expressing her feelings.
Na-eun tilted her head, pouting slightly as if teasing.
Tae-shin met her gaze, listening attentively.
If she had found her lost item, she should have just returned it quickly—what were they doing staring at each other?
Should she call to interrupt?
That wouldn’t look good.
Lee-seol bit her lip nervously, when suddenly Na-eun’s phone rang.
“I… should go now.”
Judging by that, the call must have been from Jun-pil.
Lee-seol felt a surge of gratitude toward him.
“What are you doing there?”
Director Jang asked.
Startled, Lee-seol covered the open window with her body and muttered,
“Ah… I was opening the window because I had a fever.”
“Cold air isn’t good for colds. Take medicine and have a warm cup of tea.”
“I’m okay. I’m almost better.”
“Still, taking medicine now will help you feel much better tomorrow morning.”
People really shouldn’t lie.
Resigned, Lee-seol followed Director Jang out. At that moment, she heard a knock and Tae-shin’s voice.
“Director, I need to speak with you briefly.”
Lee-seol hurriedly said to Director Jang, who was about to open the door,
“I’ll just go wash up.”
At the sudden mention of washing, Director Jang looked suspicious but nodded anyway.
She could hear Tae-shin speaking with Director Jang from the bathroom.
He was asking if they could strengthen security, like installing CCTV and door locks, for the health center.
Lee-seol turned on the shower to let them know she was busy washing and undressed.
After finishing the shower and drying her hair, she returned to her room without thinking, only to find Tae-shin sitting at her desk looking through her photo album. She nearly screamed.
She had assumed he had already left, yet there he was, brazenly in her room.
Fortunately, she covered her mouth in time to avoid a humiliating situation.
“What are you doing here?”
“The director said it’s okay to wait inside.”
Wasn’t his business done already?
“You said you had a cold, didn’t you?”
“…”
“Because of the night fishing?”
He reached out his hand.
Instinctively, Lee-seol recoiled.
“That bruise…”
Her cheeks flushed.
Did she really even have a cold?
Her temperature seemed to spike at any time.
“Yes. There’s a mark left.”
He stared at the bruise with an intrigued look.
Not an apology, just fascination. What was that reaction?
“You should cover it well.”
“Mm.”
She wanted to warn him never to do it again, but Tae-shin held up the photo album and asked,
“Are these pictures of you, Yoon Lee-seol, when you were little?”
When had that album gotten there?
She hadn’t intentionally brought it; she didn’t particularly want anyone looking at her childhood photos.
Six-year-old Lee-seol riding a bike in colorful clothes looked terribly unsophisticated.
Her high school photos in uniform were equally awkward.
She didn’t want him to see her embarrassing past.
“Give it here.”
As she reached for the album, Tae-shin raised his arm.
“Go ahead and take it.”
“I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
He lowered his arm again.
Seizing the moment, she tried to snatch the album, and Tae-shin smiled and pulled her into an embrace.
His sharp yet mesmerizing gaze seemed to pierce straight into her mind.
After setting the album down, he touched her forehead.
It felt cool yet soft.
“You have a fever. I guess you really do have a cold.”
She couldn’t say it was him making her temperature rise.
“You might catch my cold. Let go.”
“If it were contagious, you’d have caught it last night.”
Her cheeks turned bright red.
So he had a mischievous side too.
Lee-seol lowered her eyes.
“Go away.”
She pushed him away.
“I’m tired. I need to rest.”
“Why was the window open?”
“I was just airing the room.”
“Weren’t you curious about what Park Na-eun came to look for?”
Right on target. Hopefully, he hadn’t noticed she had been watching.
“…Why would I be curious about that?”
Tae-shin, watching her silently, got up from the desk.
“Alright. Rest then.”
Only after he left did Lee-seol breathe a sigh of relief.
Whenever he was around, it always felt like there wasn’t enough air.
Monday morning.
Lee-seol left the house 30 minutes earlier than usual.
She texted Tae-shin:
[I have a lot of work, so I’ll be coming in early for a while. I’ll leave work with Jun-pil, so you don’t need to follow me.]
She had spent the past few days deliberately avoiding Tae-shin.
Even in class, she avoided eye contact and made sure not to get involved with him, personally or professionally.
With a location app installed, he could track her wherever she went.
So she didn’t need to follow him 24/7—no big deal.
Jang-hado wasn’t a very big island; anywhere could be reached within 30–40 minutes by car.
The next few days passed without incident.
Jun-pil willingly escorted her to the health center.
Sometimes, Na-eun accompanied her.
There were nights when the three of them ate dinner at the health center with food brought by the grandmothers.
Jae-hyeok strengthened security, installing CCTV around the health center.
Safety bars were installed on Lee-seol’s window.
Still, she kept her window closed.
She half-worried about Tae-shin coming at night, but he never did.
With exams approaching, the students were busy preparing for midterms, even Hwang In-woo’s gang.
Since most subjects had finished the syllabus for the exam, classes were mostly self-study.
After finishing the last passage for the exam, Lee-seol spent the remaining twenty minutes in self-study.
“The remaining time today is for self-study.”
At that moment, a female student raised her hand.
“Teacher, I have a question.”
