NOVEL NEXT chapter 9.5
"This is me. Did you guys fight?"
—Hey, how could you tell everything without any loyalty? Should I block the card? Report the card as lost?!
His father's voice echoed loudly through the phone.
"I'm at the airport right now. These assholes took apart my violin and messed with it however they liked, and now they say it's all a misunderstanding. I missed the flight, and now they want me to fly business class. That's tomorrow."
—Where are you going? Why the airport? And what’s with the violin?
"I was supposed to go to Bangkok."
—Why there, suddenly? Is there a performance?
"There was, but it got canceled because of these people. Please send a lawyer. I want to claim the losses and press charges."
—Make sure you have the list of people involved. Is it okay to go to Bangkok tomorrow?
His father asked with genuine concern.
"It was canceled, so why go? I don’t want to go anymore. Everything suddenly feels like a hassle."
—You're so fickle. I'll send Lawyer Park right away, so wait for an hour.
"I can't wait any longer. I want to go home. I'll send the business card. Please tell them to contact that person."
After hanging up with his father, Haewon asked the airport staff for a business card. He took a picture of the card and sent it to his father, then gently packed his violin, brushing the bank staff's hand aside, and did it himself. It was childish, but he wanted to call Hyun Woojin and tell him to get these people arrested, if possible.
Why does nothing ever work out?
He was so frustrated and blocked, dealing with suspicion of smuggling an expensive instrument while undergoing an investigation, that for a moment, all thoughts of Hyun Woojin had vanished. But soon, like a rising tide, his thoughts about him came rushing back.
He tried to forget by meeting someone else, but was drugged with date rape drugs he'd never even experienced, and while on a trip to forget, he was unfairly detained and faced this outrageous ordeal...
After getting dumped by Hyun Woojin, nothing went right. Everything was a mess. It was a total disaster. Both his body and mind, his life itself, were in ruins.
To recover from this, he needed to meet Hyun Woojin again. If he saw him again, everything would be okay. This thought, which came uninvited, wouldn’t go away and took over all of Haewon’s consciousness.
He had to meet him again.
"I'm really sorry. Please forgive me."
"When the lawyer arrives later, you can talk to him."
"If you're going home, we’ll escort you."
"That’s fine. I can take a taxi."
Despite the staff’s polite apology, Haewon’s heart softened a little. While everyone else was leaving, he couldn’t go anywhere, and the feeling of leaving the airport was so empty that it was unbearable. He got into a taxi and returned to his officetel, feeling like an idiot. By now, he should’ve been flying over China.
Lying in bed, he looked at the photo of Hyun Woojin that he had deleted and restored four times on his phone, crying miserably.
The phrase "nothing goes right" wasn’t an exaggeration. It felt like someone was actively interfering with him, as everything he tried to do went wrong. A few days later, in an attempt to forget his daily life, he headed to his father’s resort in Gangwon-do.
He called a long-distance taxi, but the road was so blocked due to a major drunk driving crackdown that the road to Gangwon-do had literally become a parking lot, and the car didn’t budge. When the taxi driver said it would be hard to arrive today, Haewon had no choice but to turn the car around. Once that happened, he didn’t want to do anything anymore. He hated everything about the resort.
∞ ∞ ∞
The rain fell steadily.
He met him while giving a statement at the police station about Taeshin’s case, and that was when he learned that the person Taeshin liked was Hyun Woojin. That was already last year.
Since then, many things had happened. He met him again, pushed him away when he approached, fell for a kind and faithful man, and began to like him.
As the rain shifted from fall to winter, people with colorful umbrellas hurried through the streets.
Haewon left his house. He walked endlessly in the rain. Wet from head to toe, he walked to his officetel. He didn’t enter the door with what was probably the wrong door lock code anymore; instead, he waited in front of Hyun Woojin’s officetel. He was doing something he swore he would never do.
He knew he often worked all night in the office, and that even when he came, it was just to take a shower and change clothes briefly, but still, he waited. He waited to see him, even if only for a moment. He didn’t care if nothing happened when they met again. He just wanted to see his face.
His body, soaked in the rain, started to tremble. He felt chills. His lips turned pale as he waited. He waited all night. Sitting in front of the door, he spent the night waiting. He briefly fell asleep, but the thought that he might freeze to death made him struggle to open his heavy eyelids.
Finally, at after five in the morning, Hyun Woojin appeared, opening the elevator doors. It would have been more dramatic if snow had fallen, making his hair and shoulders white, but Haewon, drenched in rain and looking pathetic, could only barely open his eyes and look at him.
The cold, expressionless man walked toward him, and even though he saw Haewon, he unlocked the door and entered without a word.
The door slammed shut.
"..."
It was what Haewon had expected, so he just curled his body even more tightly and trembled. He couldn’t let his hands freeze. His hands and feet were part of his instrument, and if any part of him got hurt, it was a disaster... Haewon knew, but still, he shivered and stayed where he was, hoping to make Hyun Woojin sick of him, to make him so disgusted that he wouldn’t even ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) want to look at him.
He just wanted to see his face once more, even if that was all.
Sleep, which he could not resist, started to overwhelm him. The cold no longer felt as sharp, and Haewon buried his face in his knees. Just as he was about to drift into sleep, the door suddenly opened, and Hyun Woojin swore at him, pulling him up. His lips, pale from the cold, trembled involuntarily.
"..."
Hyun Woojin, who had been glaring at him silently with a frown, grabbed Haewon and pulled him inside. Haewon’s stiff body was dragged in. The door closed behind him.
"Four legs."
"What?"
Haewon couldn’t speak because he was shaking too much. The inside of the officetel was warm, just as Haewon had hoped. Haewon barely calmed his chills and said.
"I crawled here on all fours."
"..."
"I want to make you sick of me, disgusted... What should I do?"
"..."
He didn’t believe him. He accused him of what he had done. He thought that he must have played with Taeshin too. Even though he was telling the truth, Haewon didn’t believe him and misunderstood him, thinking it was only natural. He thought he was someone who deserved to be misunderstood.
He never tried to understand his heart. He only saw what he wanted to see, and heard what he wanted to hear. He interpreted everything according to his own perception. Even when a new, beautiful car was released, he preferred to buy back the familiar, comfortable car he had been driving. He ignored the fact that he didn’t have material desires.
He worked all night and studied all night, not following his parents’ will, but pursuing what he wanted to do. Haewon mistook his passion for greed for power.
He didn’t pay attention to his modesty, his disinterest in dressing up. Haewon only saw the shell of him he wanted to see.
He didn’t know how much he liked him. Haewon didn’t even understand his own feelings well.
He liked him. If he had to kneel here, he would kneel and beg for him. He liked him that much.
Haewon liked Hyun Woojin.
"I'm sorry, hyung."
"..."
"I was wrong. Prosecutor. Senior. Sir. Elder."
"……."
"I really was wrong."
Tears fell embarrassingly. Haewon couldn't even remember the last time he cried over something like this, but recently, he hadn't had a moment without tears because of Hyun Woojin. Thick tears dropped, falling down his frozen cheeks.
He liked him too much to think objectively and logically. It was a situation that could only be misunderstood. He felt frustrated, and tears fell as a result. If the roles were reversed, Hyun Woojin would have misunderstood him the same way.
He had smashed Lee Jin-young's car and broken his nose, yet he hadn’t trusted him, believed him as he was, and treated him like trash. Haewon thought everything ended with him. Hyun Woojin was wrong, but right now, there was no time to dwell on that. All he wanted was to somehow hold onto Hyun Woojin.
"……I was wrong."
Haewon barely managed to say it. His voice trembled as it broke. The tears that had fallen soaked his chest.
"I get it, just go."
"……."
"I get it."
"……I was wrong."
"……."
His eyes, which had been avoiding him, turned towards Haewon. With eyes trembling slightly, he looked at him. His frozen body shuddered intermittently, and the tears that had accumulated, without even blinking, dropped one by one.
The cold-faced man stepped forward. Haewon raised his eyes toward him. His lips trembled unintentionally.
"……Wrong."
Hyun Woojin grabbed his arm and pulled him hard. Haewon buried his face against his chest. He grimaced in pain, closing his eyes. His body shuddered from the cold, but he held onto Hyun Woojin’s waist tightly with his trembling arms.
"Why aren’t you using an umbrella?"
He whispered something near Haewon's ear, unsure if it was a reprimand or a sigh, as he held Haewon tightly, trying to bring some warmth by rubbing his shoulders and back. As Haewon was enveloped in his warmth and scent, the tension left his body, and he felt the strength drain out of him.
"I'm sorry."
"It's cold. Take off your shoes and come in."
With stiff, unresponsive legs, Haewon dragged himself along, following Hyun Woojin’s lead. He was seated on the bed, and Hyun Woojin placed his cold hands on his own cheeks. When that didn’t warm him up, he placed them on his neck and finally inside his shirt on his stomach.
"Why are you so soaked? Did you walk here?"
"I just wanted to walk."
He placed his hand on Haewon’s stomach and gently rubbed his frozen cheek, wiping away the tears from his eyes. Haewon sniffled, taking in a sharp breath.
"This won’t do. Come here."
He took off Haewon’s coat and lay down beside him on the bed, covering their bodies with a thick blanket. He pulled Haewon tightly into his arms, locking his legs between Haewon’s. Trapped completely, Haewon pressed his lips to Hyun Woojin's neck and inhaled deeply, wanting to breathe in his scent, even as every bone in his body ached.
He had been so desperate to forget, looking at his photos on his phone like a madman, playing recordings of his voice countless times just to hear it...
It was then that the unstoppable tears flowed freely, soaking the pillow. Hyun Woojin’s hand stroked Haewon’s neck and the back of his head. He doubted the warmth of this hand. He had misunderstood this warm person. Haewon, desperate, hugged his waist tighter and rested his forehead on his shoulder.
"If I hadn’t come, what would you have done?"
"I was going to wait. Until you came."
"……Are you resisting? Putting on a show? Why are you still using honorifics?"
"I’m reflecting because I was wrong."
"Do you know what you did wrong?"
"Yes."
"What did you do wrong?"
"I misunderstood and thought whatever I wanted. I didn’t trust you."
"That person is trash?"
His arm loosened, and he lifted his head, looking down at Haewon. Their eyes met. The tremor in his body stopped, and the chill in him melted, his body warming as the blood flowed.
Haewon nodded.
"I thought you were mentally ill."
He smiled at the absurdity of what Haewon said. Haewon leaned back into the embrace that pulled him close again. His cheek rubbed against Hyun Woojin’s collarbone. The air in front of him shimmered like heat waves. A strange, almost imperceptible relief passed through Haewon’s chest.
The time he had spent living as Moon Haewon, his history, his identity, seemed to decay and vanish in front of him. If this was Hyun Woojin’s way of fixing his bad manners, it had worked. Haewon was no longer Moon Haewon. He wanted to be Hyun Woojin’s, and he was ready to become just that.
"I must have looked like that. I didn’t think it through. I lied for no reason, which caused the misunderstanding."
Hyun Woojin, who hadn’t told Haewon anything, said he was sorry, acknowledging that not telling him had led to misunderstandings and hurt both of them.
"I’m sorry. I think I’ll stick to you from now on."
"Stick to me."
"I’ve never done it before, so I might do it too much."
"Let me work."
"……No."
"Sleep. Don’t think about anything right now."
He whispered softly. Haewon, not wanting to let go, squeezed tightly and held Hyun Woojin. He clung to him as if he were about to suffocate, and slowly, he let his consciousness slip away.
∞ ∞ ∞
It was the flu. A terrible body ache struck him. Haewon didn’t even know whether Hyun Woojin was there or not, the fever was so high. It was hard to even remember when he last felt this kind of pain. Crying in front of a man, realizing he truly liked someone, feeling as though his whole body was melting in pain—everything was new to him.
When he finally came to his senses and opened his eyes, he was staring at the white ceiling of a hospital room.
It was a quiet room. His mouth was dry, and he licked his cracked lips, surprised. It felt as though he were licking the dirt floor, not human skin.
He sat up, his dazed eyes scanning around. Even though mist-like steam was coming from the humidifier, his throat felt painfully dry. He picked up a cup of water on the side table. The cup was heavy, so he had to use both hands to lift it.
Haewon took a small sip, feeling the pain in his throat. An IV was in his arm, and medicine was being administered. He sat up, pressed the bell next to his bed, and a nurse entered shortly after.
"You're awake? I’ll check your blood pressure and temperature."
The nurse checked his blood pressure and temperature, saying nothing about whether they were normal.
"How did I get here…?"
His voice cracked. The nurse handed him a cup of water mixed with both hot and cold water from the dispenser. Haewon thanked her with a slight nod and drank it.
"Prosecutor Hyun brought you three days ago. You know Prosecutor Hyun Woojin, right? The second son of the Director."
"……Yes."
"You had a high fever until yesterday, but it’s better now. I’ll bring you some food, so eat and take your medicine."
"Sorry, but do you know where my phone is?"
"I don’t think I’ve seen your personal items. Just a moment."
The nurse opened various drawers where personal items were stored but couldn’t find Haewon’s phone.
"Do you need to contact someone?"
"I want to call Hyun Woojin."
"His number wouldn’t be here. I can’t ask the Director either."
She seemed embarrassed and searched again for the phone that likely wasn’t there. Just then, a knock echoed, and the door opened.
"Doctor, you’re here? The patient is awake. His blood pressure and temperature are normal."