* * *
Jinwoo probably had a reason for telling him not to contact his father.
“All he probably does is ask for money… wait. Up until now, Baek Jingyeom had been sending him money. If Jinwoo cut him off, then where’s the money coming from?”
Jingyeom sat up, struck by the thought.
“Is Jinwoo giving him money?”
After receiving the photo from Sanho, Jingyeom had started thinking about his father again.
A man who had gotten involved in gambling, borrowed money from loan sharks, dumped his debt on his children, and then vanished.
When Jingyeom first learned from the messages that he had been in contact with his father, he had debated whether or not to tell Jinwoo.
But he didn’t want to reintroduce someone who saw family as nothing more than a source of money.
Even if Jinwoo had sentimental feelings toward his father, Jingyeom didn’t want to shatter that image.
But his recent conversation with Sanho made him realize that wasn’t the case.
When Jingyeom looked back at the messages, he couldn’t help but sigh.
Baek Jingyeom had sent long, caring messages, but if they weren’t about money, there was no response.
“…Baek Jingyeom, you’re such a fool. You have Jinwoo right here, so why did you cling to the father who abandoned you?”
Of course, Jingyeom couldn’t judge too quickly since he wasn’t in Baek Jingyeom’s shoes.
But perhaps Baek Jingyeom believed his father would come back for him one day.
Either way, Jingyeom knew he had to make contact.
The question was whether to tell Jinwoo first or just go ahead and do it.
If Jinwoo had truly asked him not to contact his father, he wouldn’t like it if Jingyeom went behind his back. It would be better to tell him.
“…But when do I say it?”
These days, by the time Jinwoo got home, Jingyeom was already asleep, and when Jinwoo left for work, Jingyeom was too groggy to have a proper conversation.
Jinwoo even worked on weekends now, so it was almost impossible to see him.
Sending a message while Jinwoo was so busy didn’t feel right either.
Jingyeom knew that Jinwoo might be upset if he found out later that he’d been keeping the situation with his father a secret.
But at the same time, Jingyeom didn’t want to burden Jinwoo while he was already so busy.
“…I’ll talk to him once things calm down a bit.”
That time came sooner than expected.
Wonbeom spent his nights buried in company work in his office.
Soohyuk was tasked with meeting people outside, so he wasn’t free either.
After enduring round after round of golf and drinking with clients, Soohyuk was starting to feel drained.
Physically, he was fine, but dealing with the sly old executives took a toll on him.
Revealing the dirty ledgers would make things easier, but Wonbeom wasn’t willing to take the risk yet.
He knew it would not only hurt him but also cause damage to the company, so for now, the ledger was only being used as leverage.
Even so, the ledger was proving to be quite effective, to the point where they felt their lives were constantly in danger.
With the situation as it was, they had stopped visiting Jingyeom’s hospital room.
After stopping by Wonbeom’s office to check in and go over some work, Soohyuk collapsed onto the sofa, mumbling.
“…I’m starting to get withdrawal symptoms from not seeing Baek Jingyeom. I swear I can see him in front of me. Am I losing it?”
“You’ve always been crazy.”
“Really? That’s a relief. It would be a problem if Jingyeom started avoiding me thinking I’m crazy… But, well, I met him when I was already out of my mind, so it should be fine, right?”
“……”
“I miss Jingyeom. If I could just touch his soft cheeks, I’d feel energized and get back to work. No, actually, I want to lie down next to him and sleep. I swear I wouldn’t do anything, just sleep…”
Wonbeom threw a file folder at him, telling him to stop rambling.
Soohyuk caught it mid-air and suddenly picked up his phone, moving over to Wonbeom’s side.
“Director Tak, come a little closer.”
Soohyuk turned on the camera, stretched out his arm, and adjusted the angle to fit both himself and Wonbeom into the frame.
Wonbeom, thinking Soohyuk was up to something weird again, didn’t even look at him.
“Look at the camera. I’m going to send this to Jingyeom.”
“Why would you send that?”
“To show him that I miss him. Then I’ll ask him to send me a picture too. He sends me selfies sometimes when I ask.”
Soohyuk’s photo album already had over ten pictures of Jingyeom by now.
Wonbeom, who hadn’t thought of this tactic, wore a blank expression for a moment.
Not missing the opportunity, Soohyuk quickly snapped the photo and snickered at the result.
“If you don’t look at the camera, I’m sending this one.”
“Take it again.”
This time, Soohyuk grinned brightly on camera, while Wonbeom still looked stoic, though slightly less irritated.
Satisfied, Soohyuk quickly sent the picture to Jingyeom.
Soohyuk: Did you say you miss me? (2:14 PM )
I miss you so much too ㅠㅠ Should I quit work and come over?
Soohyuk: No! Keep working! (2:14 PM )
Soohyuk’s smile deepened with just one reply.
Soohyuk: Don’t cry because you miss me, stay strong! (2:15 PM)
Jingyeom: I told you I’m not crying! (2:15 PM)
Soohyuk: I miss you too, really. I’ll come when I’m done with work, so hold onto this in the meantime~ (2:16 PM )
(photo)
Jingyeom: You don’t look tired, but Wonbeom looks really exhausted. Maybe try doing some work? (2:18 PM)
Soohyuk: Then send me a picture to cheer me up! With your stuffed animal, too, haha. (2:19 PM)
If Jingyeom didn’t want to, he would’ve replied by now.
Since there was no answer, he was probably taking the picture.
Last time, when Soohyuk visited him in the hospital, he’d made a fuss about how the stuffed animal wasn’t there.
But the next time, it was carefully placed beside Jingyeom’s pillow.
It might seem like a small thing, but it showed he was thinking of him, which made Soohyuk happy.
Jingyeom probably didn’t know how much that tugged at Soohyuk’s heartstrings.
As he waited for a reply, Soohyuk returned to his desk to look at some documents.
When his phone pinged with a notification, he eagerly checked it.
Jingyeom: (photo)
Now, focus on your work! (2:26 PM 0
“Aww, how cute.”
Soohyuk chuckled and showed the selfie Jingyeom sent to Wonbeom.
“This is what healing looks like.”
“……”
“You want it, don’t you? But I’m not giving it to you. If you really want one, ask for it yourself—if you can.”
Knowing Wonbeom wouldn’t do it, Soohyuk playfully provoked him.
If Wonbeom really wanted a photo of Jingyeom so badly that he’d do something as embarrassing as asking for it, Soohyuk wasn’t going to interfere.
Grinning, Soohyuk looked at his phone again, imagining Jingyeom snuggling the round, fluffy arctic fox plushie he’d bought for him, trying to find the best angle to take a cute selfie.
The thought made him smile even more.
Suddenly, a new idea popped into his head, and he turned to Wonbeom.
“Should we bring Jingyeom to the villa right now?”
Wonbeom, who had been contemplating texting Jingyeom himself after seeing the selfie, raised his head.
“The only reason we left him in the hospital was because things had been quiet so far. But now, the situation’s changed.”
Soohyuk was right.
Word had already gotten to President Kim’s side that Wonbeom had a ledger with incriminating information.
Naturally, the news had spread to other people connected to the ledger as well.
Despite their best efforts to stay cautious, small accidents were starting to happen to people who supported Wonbeom.
Some had been involved in sudden hit-and-run incidents, and others had been assaulted by unknown attackers and ended up in the hospital.
The timing was too suspicious to be a coincidence.
“I wanted to ignore it, but things aren’t looking good.”
It’s one thing to have power struggles within a company, but when weapons and violence get involved, it turns into a dirty, dangerous fight.
Soohyuk didn’t want Jingyeom getting caught in the crossfire, and Wonbeom agreed.
“You heard about Director Park almost getting attacked yesterday, right? He’s only safe because he’s been exercising regularly. Otherwise, we’d be attending his funeral right now.”
Ever since they learned about the ledger’s existence, they’d invested a lot of time and money to get their hands on it.
Bloodshed had become a routine part of the process.
“Regretting it after something happens doesn’t suit us, does it?”
“I’ve already been looking for a new place for Jingyeom. Most places are too well-known, so I’m searching for somewhere more private.”
“What’s there to find? My villa’s perfect. No one knows about it since I just bought it, and it’s not even under my name.”
It was true.
Finding a hidden asset under Soohyuk’s foreign name would be much harder than finding one under Wonbeom’s Korean name.
At first, they thought it would be safe to leave Jingyeom in the hospital. But with people close to them getting hurt, the worry grew. Soohyuk’s suggestion naturally caught Wonbeom’s attention.
“We can station a few selected people there. Or we could even hire foreign mercenaries. Don’t you think that’s the safest option?”
Wonbeom slowly nodded, agreeing with Soohyuk.
However, he couldn’t ignore the biggest obstacle.
“Secretary Baek won’t allow it. He’s already stationed people around the hospital.”
“No, think about it.”
Soohyuk straightened up, his expression turning serious.
“What if someone bribes a nurse? We’ve got Hoonil for the doctors, but not the nurses. What if they swap out his medication? Just because it’s a hospital doesn’t mean it’s safe. Anything could happen the moment we let our guard down.”
He wasn’t just saying it; Soohyuk was genuinely concerned. Wonbeom couldn’t deny it either. Worst-case scenarios had to be considered.
Hospitals see a lot of people come and go.
If a nurse was really bribed, they’d have no way to stop it.
Jingyeom had no idea how dangerous the situation was.
They hadn’t even posted guards at his door to avoid alarming him, relying instead on discreet surveillance.
“If Jingyeom’s at the villa, he’ll be safe. And we’d have more chances to see him. The place is isolated—no other houses nearby, just mountains. What do you think?”
When choosing the villa, the most important factor was peace and quiet, surrounded by nature.
Although it wasn’t ideal for someone like Jingyeom, who needed regular hospital visits, they could station a live-in doctor.
“I know. I get it.”
“So why hesitate? If those bastards get to Jingyeom first, there’s no going back.”
* * *
Justifying their desire to lock u jingyeom. Jinwoo will probably agree lol
Nice
They want to kidnapped him loll
What a tensión, and for a book.