Not long after the
episode 461 incident, Jaeheon Lee was discharged from the hospital.
“Can I come out already?”
“It looked bad on the outside, but it wasn’t a very serious injury.”
“Would you like to speak directly? “It wasn’t a serious injury?”
“I don’t have heart failure or cancer, right? Anyway, they say it was all trauma and my brain is fine, so all I have to do now is recover my body. Even if you break your ankle, you can just get a doctor to check your condition from time to time, so you can either recover at the hospital or at home, that’s it.”
“Are you provoking me?”
In response to Ha Seong-yoon’s gentle question, Lee Jae-heon shrugged his shoulders and said.
“Didn’t they hire such a capable doctor because they were worried that there might be side effects? As a bonus, they will also check your ankles.”
“It looks like you have become more eloquent after getting hit on the head. It’s a very clear water. “He is very clever, trying to avoid his own crisis by praising the other person.”
“How can you survive in this harsh world if you don’t even open your mouth? Of course, this incident was a disaster caused by my mouth.”
“Are you saying you’re proud of that? “I don’t know why you’re becoming more obnoxious by the day.”
Ha Seong-yoon sighed at Lee Jae-heon’s joke, but did not criticize him any further. Jaeheon Lee blinked lazily at that sight and asked.
“…Why don’t you nag me?”
“…I think a lot of other people have already done it, and I was hired for a short period of time. And considering the sincerity of voluntarily reporting the accident right after the incident, I will make sure that no one is mistreated as much as me.”
“Thank you for that, it brings tears to my eyes.”
As can be seen from the conversation, Ha Seong-yoon was hired by Lee Jae-heon and was sitting at his house. To be more precise, it was requested by Lee Jae-hyung and Ha Seong-yoon accepted, but in any case, it was clear that he had been selected by Lee Dang as a doctor.
However, Ha Seong-yoon didn’t have that much to do. All I had to do was have Seong Dae-young check the condition of his injured ankle, see if there were any aftereffects, and check to see if there were any scratches. The situation was different from that of critically ill patients who needed frequent vital checks, which were usually handled by a capable and passionate doctor like Ha Seong-yoon.
“I feel like serving tea, but…”
“…”
“Yes, I will refrain. “You told me not to move, so can you see I’m not moving an inch from the bed?”
“Have you ever thought that the teacher who thought of using his foot even though he looked like that was the problem?”
Ha Seong-yoon was dumbfounded. I came here completely devastated and where am I now?
If it weren’t for Jeong In-ho’s words, ‘You have to be careful because the more you worry and mistreat Lee Jae-heon, the more crooked he may become,’ he would have already bitten his tongue more than 50 times. It hurts quite a bit.
However, Lee Jae-heon, who looked fine on the outside, was even worse on the inside, and he already knew this.
‘He said he brought it on himself… but anyway, he risked his life for the safety of the survivors. In fact, I was threatened, kidnapped, imprisoned for half a day, and even assaulted, but it would be even stranger if I was still feeling fine. I’m already a person who doesn’t like being tied up in damp, dark places…’
This was the first time in Ha Seong-yoon’s life that he felt such deep sorrow.
He skillfully allayed the frustration and spoke in a tone that informed the patient of the problem.
“…You hurt your ankle that much, and not just anywhere else. Did you say it was broken? I heard from the previous doctor who was in charge, and he said it seemed like he had been hit several times with something like a hard club. “I’m still receiving treatment for this swelling, right?”
“Why do you speak so ticklishly?”
“Listen. Jaeheon Lee also knows that there is no pain. And in order to walk, Jaeheon Lee must continue to use the injured area. “It is difficult for me to understand that he can walk calmly to the kitchen and serve me tea when his injury is such that he cannot walk because of the pain.”
“…Do you need comfort?”
“…sometimes.”
I need comfort when I see someone who doesn’t understand even after a long explanation or when I see their expression asking what to do.
‘This isn’t a battlefield where you can’t survive unless you take care of yourself.’
The patients Ha Seong-yoon has treated so far have understood when he says, ‘If this part of your body is so irritated and you want to live well, follow my prescriptions.’ As a doctor, this was a patient that made me think about many things.
Ha Seong-yoon said as if he was in despair.
“How on earth did you do something like this to explain it to the company? “In the past, you would at least pretend to care about what others thought, but now you just leave.”
“Haha…are we strangers?”
A smiling face with dark eyes slightly curved. A voice that comes out slyly and gently. A relaxed look full of playfulness.
“….”
Ha Seong-yoon looked at Lee Jae-heon as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Who are you really? “Our Lee Jae-heon is not this gentle.”
“No matter how much people pay attention, it’s really a real speaking bird.”
“Where did Lee Jae-heon, who pretended to care about us, go? “Where did the prickly pout go when he didn’t know how to say the right thing?”
“what? A prickly rash? “Is what you just said to me correct?”
“They said I got hit on the head and my brain went bad…”
“I sat there seriously thinking about something. Why don’t you move away from the hand that’s on your forehead? Why don’t you clean it up? “Why are you stuttering like that when you don’t even have a fever?”
Only then did Ha Seong-yoon look relieved at Lee Jae-heon’s violent rejection.
“This is how we are, Jaeheon Lee. Did you also have a headache?”
“I was always fine.”
“This is the most unreliable story I’ve heard this year. “I understand.”
“I don’t understand your expression?”
“Anyway, it means that Lee Jae-heon’s condition is very bad.”
“No, this gentleman?”
Although Jaeheon Lee answered calmly, he thought to himself.
‘I feel like I’m starting to feel a bit out of place.’
Ha Seong-yoon, who was no one else, was shocked and disgusted by the joke that was casually thrown at him. Considering Lee Jae-heon’s strangely suspicious attitude, it seemed right that Lee Jae-heon’s change was causing a sense of discomfort even on the outside.
At this point, it was easy to just ignore it and say, ‘I did it because I was treated badly,’ but moving on like this wasn’t a good decision in the long run.
As Ha Seong-yoon said, I felt like I was quite in sync with the ghost police, whether it was because I got hit on the head, or because time had passed, or if there were other conditions.
‘Mainly in terms of personality… No, it would have been nice if his physical ability had been a little stronger, but it’s not possible to be in sync, and his personality is just this shit.’
Jaeheon Lee clicked his tongue inwardly.
In the future, it will become more and more similar to the prototype, but if colleagues feel uncomfortable each time, it will interfere with future plans.
“….”
“Mr. Lee Jae-heon?”
So I decided to show a little more ‘weakness’.
“…So are you a stranger?”
“…yes?”
“I don’t know what Ha Seong-yoon thinks, but I thought we were at least colleagues.”
As I took the medicine, my facial expression naturally calmed down little by little.
“Actually, I still don’t know… I don’t think efficiency is that bad. “It’s natural for me to get hurt on your behalf. Sacrifice isn’t such an unfamiliar word… But I know full well that you’re worried about me.”
“….”
“I am right and you are wrong. But I thought it would be reasonable to adjust if you were that worried. And if you’re going to match it, I’ll give it a little more…”
“Jaeheon Lee too?”
“I thought maybe I should share my thoughts with you.”
“….”
Ha Seong-yoon looked at Lee Jae-heon like he was speechless and then asked cautiously.
“For that matter, it hasn’t been shared at all…?”
“Isn’t that what people from Ait are saying at best?”
“Yes, tell me more. “I wonder what you are talking about now.”
“…It wasn’t a big story that made you curious.”
“So please try more.”
Lee Jae-heon continued speaking with inner joy at Ha Seong-yoon’s appropriate response. There were a lot of things that seemed to be bothering him, as if he was hesitating, and managing his expression as if he was uncomfortable was basic.
“…I feel like I should share it, but when I actually want to do it…”
“You’re not used to it?”
“…I just haven’t tried it before.”
“Isn’t that what you’re used to?”
“…Is that so?”
“I guess so?”
“….”
Then Ha Seong-yoon blinked a couple of times as he kept his mouth shut.
It was a very unexpected appearance for Ha Seong-yoon. Or should I say it was a reaction. It felt like something had changed in the time I hadn’t seen him, but I didn’t know he was thinking like this. I don’t know exactly what prompted it, but it didn’t feel bad.
After sitting at the head of Lee Jae-heon’s bed, Ha Seong-yoon completely closed the book he was reading and placed it on the table where the vase was placed. Anyway, it is very encouraging that you have had a change of heart.
“…So?”
“…What.”
“Isn’t there a purpose for bringing this up?”
“….”
Lee Jae-heon, who was lying on the bed and rolling his eyes, opened his mouth.
“I don’t think I did anything wrong.”
“….”
“But now that there are people who care about me, I felt like I have to change, whether I progress or deteriorate. That Seo-ah….”
“Yes.”
“I told you not to go.”
“aha.”
Ha Seong-yoon nodded. I thought I understood why Jaeheon Lee thought he needed to change. Perhaps he had made a promise to live with a small and delicate child named Jang Seo-ah. The idea is to try to live without dying as much as possible.
‘Actually, he was a person who treated children terribly.’
He was not the kind of person who would break a promise he made with a child he cherished. So, did you think you needed to change? I was really curious about what kind of ‘change’ he was aiming for.
As I listened, Jaeheon Lee continued.
“But trying to do something was difficult. I’m used to it and I think this is the right path, but I thought you wouldn’t like it.”
“You sure knew.”
“So we…” Lee Jae-heon,
who was hesitant, asked.
“…You’re a colleague, right?”
Ha Seong-yoon was dumbfounded.
“Then what were you thinking until now when you were punished instead of us?”
“I don’t think they were beaten that badly… Well, the group?”
“It’s a really loud sound, but let’s keep listening.”
“Okay, first of all, we’re colleagues. I decided that even though I couldn’t change right away, I shouldn’t hide it. “My state, the thoughts I’m having, the emotions I feel sometimes, things you might be curious about… That’s it.”
“I heard you hid a lot about that?”
“As expected.”
“….”
Ha Seong-yoon looked down at Lee Jae-heon lying on the bed.
“…So, are you saying that the pranks just now were also an attempt to hide something?”
“…maybe?”
“Is Jaeheon Lee’s original personality like that?”
“…I don’t really remember.”
“okay.”
I roughly understood it.
I felt it from the first time we met, but Lee Jae-heon was a very dry person with a twisted subject. The evidence was the tired expression on his face as if he was living mechanically because he couldn’t die, his smile that resembled burnt ashes, and the way he got hurt like a person desperate to get hurt if left alone.
Even from a young age, Lee Jae-heon was a person who was dragged into the underworld and forced to become a sacrifice whenever he could forget it. While being treated as a machine that saves people among monsters, he lived his life acting like an old guy to avoid revealing his abnormality to the outside world…
‘In that situation, is there any way he could remember his original personality?’
Ha Seong-yoon recalled the ghost police officer he saw a while ago.
‘So, the easiest personality to imitate is probably that guy.’
Just by looking at the way the ghost policeman often appeared, it was clear that he had a very sly personality. Rather than being openly angry, it was calmly sarcastic, joking behind people’s backs, and a laugh that seemed very light. Aside from being seasoned, he had a different personality from Lee Jae-heon, who had a rough side.
It was understandable if Lee Jae-heon, who is not good at honest relationships, tried to open his heart to us somehow, but did not know what kind of ‘personality’ to reveal in the process, so he followed the police officer’s example.
“…Haa….”
Even though I tried to organize it, I could only sigh at the situation that was twisted in so many ways.
Jaeheon Lee was watching me sigh. I was once again dumbfounded as it looked like a dog that had had an accident was showing the whites of its eyes. Even if Lee Jae-heon was the one who provided the excuse for this incident, there was another bastard who ultimately fell for him and put Lee Jae-heon in this situation, so why does he have that expression on his face?
“….”
I always thought, but Lee Jae-heon was an adult child. I was always worried that as a big adult, I would try to solve everything on my own, but I was glad to hear that he was willing to do something about it himself.
Ha Seong-yoon made his voice as soft as possible. It was the tone used to reassure a patient.
“I understand what you mean. “I think it would be great if you told that story to other survivors.”
“…Did I do something wrong?”
“You have no reason to apologize. Personally, I don’t think Lee Jae-heon’s change of heart is bad. Of course, it’s a little disappointing that you made this happen without even saying a few words to us, but it’s not a crime worth punishing.”
“….”
“Right now, I think just resting well and recovering quickly will help us.”
Hearing Ha Seong-yoon’s words, Lee Jae-heon blinked several times and soon fell asleep. Is he doing this because he thinks that taking a good rest means sleeping? Even though he didn’t think so, he was a man who quietly listened to me.
Next to him, Ha Seong-yoon opened the book again and just spent some time.
‘…Anyway, there are many people who would mistreat me other than me.’
The person who always scolded Lee Jae-heon was Ha Seong-yoon, so I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to let things go like this for once.
(Continued in the next part)
