Chapter 348: Revenge (3)

Chapter 348: Revenge (3)

Kang Jin-Ho walked past the elegant but still-flashy corridor to reach Choi Yeon-Ha's private hospital room.

He grabbed the door handle but sighed and took his hand away soon enough after realizing it wasn't designed to open that way.

'If it's like this, why was there a door by the ward's entrance, too?'

Individual rooms' door locks were functioning perfectly well. In that case, what was the point of inspecting every visitor to the ward?

One's privacy was important, of course. However, when Kang Jin-Ho thought this was nothing more than a way to fulfill people's desire to show off, he couldn't help but grow a little disapproving of this arrangement.

Just as he was about to press the door bell, a nurse quickly ran up to him. “P-please wait, sir!”

“Sorry?”

“The patient is currently asleep.”

“Oh, I see.”

“We usually only open the door after seeking permission first, but the patient has already told us to open the door once you arrive, Mister Kang Jin-Ho. Please wait while I open the door for you.”

“Oh, okay. Thank you.” Kang Jin-Ho nodded and watched as the nurse pressed her keycard against the card reader.

The door slid open with a soft whoosh noise. Kang Jin-Ho briefly bowed at the nurse and stepped across the doorway, then waited until the door slid close behind him.

“...Mm.”

The room was too large for a single person to occupy. On the side of this spacious room was a luxurious-looking bed that seemed a bit out of place in a hospital. Choi Yeon-Ha was lying on it, unmoving.

Kang Jin-Ho quietly walked up to the side of the bed and studied her for a little while. Soon, her eyelids began trembling a little before Choi Yeon-Ha opened her eyes.

She stared at him for a moment or two, then a faint grin formed on her lips. “I can see...”

“Mm? What can you see?”

“Your face, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“...I don't follow?”

“I couldn't see your face back in that place, you see? That's why I often wondered if you were really with me down there even when we were talking to each other. Even though I could touch you and feel you, I kept thinking about that... I think people become strange by getting trapped in a space like that.”

“Oh...” Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded as if he understood it.

When he thought about it, it seemed likely for a non-martial artist to find the experience of relying only on the body heat and sense of touch to 'feel' the presence of another person within the darkness absolutely terrifying.

“And now that I can see you in bright daylight... How should I say this? I get a renewed appreciation?”

“About what?”

Choi Yeon-Ha smiled refreshingly. And for the first time during their interaction, Kang Jin-Ho found that smile quite beautiful.

Since she had no makeup on, and didn't take the time to tidy her looks, Choi Yeon-Ha didn't look as good as she could usually be. She was always fastidious with maintaining her looks, but her face was now pale and sickly, while her hair was bushy and unkempt. Those little nicks and bruises around her lips hadn't healed yet and looked somewhat hideous, too.

Even then, the smile on Choi Yeon-Ha's face right now was easily the most beautiful Kang Jin-Ho had seen her make.

That was because he couldn't sense a single hint of pretense from that smile. As it was a part of her job description, Choi Yeon-Ha had to smile all the time. As such, her smile naturally developed this hint of... facade, even if that wasn't her original intention.

But now, for the first time in a long while, Choi Yeon-Ha's face had none of that facade.

“Mister Jin-Ho, looking at you like this makes me appreciate how handsome you really are.”

“...Oh.” Kang Jin-Ho could only smile wryly.

It wasn't that he felt embarrassed about being called handsome. No, his sudden bout of awkwardness stemmed from the fact that they were thinking about similar things at the same time.

Kang Jin-Ho decided to change the topic. “How are you feeling? Is your body okay?”

“Hold on for a sec...” Choi Yeon-Ha slowly got up. Kang Jin-Ho tried to assist her, but she refused his aid and leaned against the backrest with her own strength. “Please don't treat me like a critically-ill patient. People might think I've contracted an incurable disease, you know! It's just that I'm a little dizzy, that's all.”

“I see.”

“The doctor said I'm physically okay. As long as I eat my meals on time and get a good night's rest, I should be discharged in no time at all. So, please don't worry about me.”

“I'm relieved to hear that.” Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. However, he still wondered if the doctor didn't mention the psychological issues to Choi Yeon-Ha. Was telling the truth a moral thing to do? Or lessening the patient's worries by withholding that information the right thing in this case? Kang Jin-Ho couldn't quite tell.

“I'm physically fine, but...” Choi Yeon-Ha put on a cramped smile. “I still feel a little anxious at night, Mister Jin-Ho. Switching the lights out made me too anxious, so I had everything switched on before falling asleep.”

“Mm...” Kang Jin-Ho sighed, then bowed deeply at Choi Yeon-Ha. “I'm sorry.”

“Eh? What for?”

Choi Yeon-Ha opened her eyes wide in surprise. She was taking a chance when asking that to Kang Jin-Ho, thinking that he'd find all kinds of creative excuses and sound reasons to weasel out of fulfilling that promise. To her surprise, though, Kang Jin-Ho actually said yes without too much resistance.

“Really?” Choi Yeon-Ha skeptically asked.

“Yes, really.“ Kang Jin-Ho nodded affirmatively. “However, you need to give me two days first. I have something... 'important' to deal with first.”

“Two days? But I'll be discharged by then!”

“Mm? It can't be helped, you know.”

“You're so full of it!” Choi Yeon-Ha didn't try to hide her expression that screamed,?I knew it!

That expression was adorable enough to tempt Kang Jin-Ho into laughing out loud, but he managed to suppress the urge. “Miss Yeon-Ha. Your shock might last longer than you think.”

“Yes, I'm aware.”

“And you might suffer from some other side effects in the future, too.”

“I'll have to deal with them, then.”

“Once more, I'd like to...”

“Please stop with that!”

Kang Jin-Ho was about to apologize again, only for her yell to leave him in a daze.

“Seriously now! People might think you've accidentally shoved me off a bridge or something! You're also a victim, you know! You've done nothing wrong, so stop apologizing. If you knew what was about to happen, you wouldn't have given me a ride home. And it was my fault for forcing you to give me a ride, even though you just wanted to go home for the night. So, let's not apologize to each other.”

“...Understood.” Kang Jin-Ho helplessly chuckled at that. “Then, I should be on my way.”

“Already?”

“Yes. I have something that needs to be taken care of.”

“But I'm really bored, though...”

“...I'll come tomorrow. I promise.”

Choi Yeon-Ha formed an expression that openly said,?What’s gotten into?this guy?today?

Kang Jin-Ho grimaced a little.

'Well, it's good that she's no longer hiding behind a facade, but...'

One could argue that her less-than-positive emotions appearing more readily on her face wasn't exactly a good thing. Especially when she was so adept at hiding them until recently. At least, that's what Kang Jin-Ho thought.

“I-in that case, you gotta come tomorrow, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“Yes, I will.”

“Ehehe. Thanks. Take care.” Choi Yeon-Ha smiled and waved goodbye.

Kang Jin-Ho smiled back at her while nodding. He then leisurely walked out of her hospital room.

Choi Yeon-Ha waited until Kang Jin-Ho had left the room and the door closed behind him. Once he was gone, she wrapped her arms around her shoulders.

'No, don't shiver, Choi Yeon-Ha...!'

Despite her thoughts, Choi Yeon-Ha's body began shaking like a lone leaf in the winds.

'I... I need to show him that I'm okay!'

It felt like a flood of tears might spill out at any moment. She was still scared. Terrified. Even though she knew there was no reason to, that she was safe, it was impossible to cope with her emotions.

This gigantic yet vague terror would hit her out of nowhere until she couldn't even breathe. And she grew fearful that if her condition persisted, it'd become difficult to continue her career as an actor.

All these things continued to torment Choi Yeon-Ha, and she could only bury her face between her knees to sob quietly.

***

Kang Jin-Ho slowly opened his eyes.

He wasn't a moron. He could see Choi Yeon-Ha was forcing herself so much to smile like that in front of him. The truth was, he sensed her hand hiding beneath the duvet tremble nonstop while they were chatting away.

Kang Jin-Ho gritted his teeth while sensing Choi Yeon-Ha's trembling figure beyond the hospital wall.

“Sir...?” A nurse saw Kang Jin-Ho step outside the patient's room and approached him. Her intention was to guide him to the exit, but when she saw his face, all colors instantly drained out of her complexion. She stood on the spot, her body utterly paralyzed from pure fear. “Ah... Ah...!”

“...My apologies.” Kang Jin-Ho lightly tapped the nurse on the shoulder, then walked past her. While quickly walking through the corridor, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

'Now, we can finally start.'

Never forget one's grudges. That was Kang Jin-Ho's way.