My Bloody Valentine - 101

Chapter 101

“Either open up and let it happen now, or get lost. I have no intention of doing anything else with you.”

It felt like I had drained every last bit of my pride, using up every ounce of courage. I squeezed out the last bit of the courage I had left.

“Please, be honest. Just once, please.”

“Sigh… This is why you shouldn’t make empty promises. You think just because I’ve been with you a few times, it means something?”

I knew it wasn’t something he meant, but it still hurt, accumulating like a pile of wounds. Even though I had heard worse things countless times, strangely, these words were harder to shake off.

“You’re nothing to me.”

I felt my eyes burn up, and hot tears fell down my cheeks.

“Am I… really leaving?”

“How many times do I have to tell you? I’m tired. Your worthless body isn’t needed anymore.”

“But just a few days ago…”

“You want me to show you just how low I can go? I’m getting even more disgusted.”

“…”

Taeshin tapped his shoe on the carpet floor. It was a gesture that seemed like he was bored and frustrated.

I had no more words or courage to give him. I wiped my tears away, feeling more miserable than ever.

“I… I’m leaving then.”

“Still not gone?”

He smirked briefly and then turned away with a tired look in his eyes. It seemed like he had no intention of dealing with me anymore. I felt small, like I was nothing but a bug.

I forced my trembling knees to stand and left the room. As soon as the door closed behind me, my legs gave out, and I collapsed on the floor.

How much time had passed? When I regained my senses, I realized I was still alone in the hotel corridor.

Like a defeated soldier, I trudged back to my room on the third basement floor. With a weary face, I picked up the notepad on the dresser. It had the phone number of Soyoung written on it.

I climbed onto the bed, sat with my knees drawn up, and stared at the notepad for a long time before dialing the number.

After a moment of hesitation, the phone connected before I could even hear two full rings.

“Hello?”

“…”

“Hello? Is this… Han?”

It was the voice of my biological mother, still unfamiliar to me.

“I’m coming.”

“….”

I buried my tear-streaked face in my knees.

“I’ll go.”

❖ ❖ ❖

Passing through the middle lobby, I saw employees of Tacenda bustling around, preparing for the start of business.

I walked past them and entered the building, but I wasn’t wearing a uniform today.

Jina, who had become very busy recently, was sitting at the counter, staring intently at the monitor. I carefully approached her.

“Excuse me… Manager, are you busy?”

“Yeah, a little. Why?”

“I… I’m leaving.”

“Okay. Go ahead.”

Jina answered carelessly, without even looking at me, as she continued to focus on her work. Her hands were busy scribbling something into the ledger while she kept her eyes on the screen.

“Actually… I’m leaving from here.”

“…!”

Jina dropped the pen she had been holding onto the ledger. Her eyes fixed on me.

I smiled faintly, but it looked more like I was about to cry. Jina’s gaze flickered with many emotions as she looked at my face.

She was one of the few people who knew about the complicated relationship between the two of us. However, she had never interfered. It was unbearably painful, but she had decided it wasn’t her place to intervene. Relationships, after all, cannot be forced by others.

Jina left the counter and accompanied me to my room. A small bag I had already packed was placed in front of the door.

“It’s okay… As you can see, I don’t have much luggage.”

With my small bag in hand, I got into the elevator and passed by the convenience store where I used to buy ice cream every day. I stood on the roadside for a moment.

I turned around to glance at the parasol area where I used to sit with Jeong, Jae-gu, Woo-sin, and others, laughing and chatting. A few office workers were sitting there, sipping drinks and talking.

I looked back at the street in front of me, and loneliness filled my face. Jina, who was watching me, spoke with a feeling of sympathy.

“Han, just know this before you leave. You weren’t abandoned.”

“…”

Her words hit me directly. My head instinctively lowered.

“Taeshin didn’t abandon you. He let you go.”

“…What’s the difference?”

“…”

No matter how beautifully the words were wrapped, the contents remained unchanged. How to interpret them was a matter of choice for the listener.

At that moment, a silver sedan worth millions of won approached them and stopped with its hazard lights flashing. A woman wearing round glasses got out from the driver’s seat.

“Hello. I was sent by Actor Shin. You must be Mr. Lee Han, right?”

Yun Seung-ah, Soyoung’s manager, greeted Han as she got out of the driver’s seat. Han gave her a brief nod and then bowed his head slightly toward Jina one last time.

“Well then… Goodbye.”

Han turned away from Jina and got into the back seat of the sedan.

“Please fasten your seatbelt.”

Han quickly put on his seatbelt, but he couldn’t help but glance back.

The sleek gray building, the nighttime paradise, and what was once his home, Tasenda, grew farther away.

Someone once said that celebrities are like the new aristocrats of this era. This was said by a real estate expert on a TV program that dealt with gossip about famous people.

Standing in front of Soyoung’s house, Han could immediately understand that statement. It felt like he had entered a wealthy European neighborhood. Among them, her house stood out.

The simple yet striking two-story house had a shape that appeared straightforward, but its artistic design was evident. The land it sat on seemed to be at least 100 pyeong (a Korean unit of area).

The inside was even more impressive. The white and beige interiors seemed to reflect Soyoung’s calm and sophisticated image.

Though Han was sitting on a fluffy sofa that felt like sitting on a cloud, nothing felt real. He only stared blankly out the window at the garden, while Soyoung, sitting a little further away, kept glancing at him.

Soyoung, unable to stand the silence, spoke first.

“Han, if you’re curious about the garden, you can go outside.”

“…It’s okay.”

Han, looking uninterested, blankly stared into space.

He should have been excited, but even though Soyoung showed him the house and the rooms, Han showed no reaction.

He had been told that he had lived a difficult life since his days in the orphanage, always struggling and never having enough, having to survive on his own.

Soyoung wanted to make sure that Han could finally experience everything he never had before.

Though he would only stay here for less than a month before going to the United States, Soyoung had carefully prepared his room, making it feel like his own home.

She had furnished it with a Swiss-made luxury bed, a desk crafted by an artisan, and limited-edition wallpaper from a luxury brand.

But Han, who had a capable mother, didn’t even spare a glance at any of these things.

Soyoung’s expression darkened. She knew that it was natural for Han to be unable to adjust to such a sudden change, but she felt awkward and sorry for getting excited on her own.

“Um… Han, I think I rushed things. I’m sorry if I made you feel burdened.”

“I’m sorry. Did I make you worry? It’s not that…”

Han turned his head toward Soyoung, and at that moment, a tear that had been gathering in his eyes fell down his cheek. Han seemed unaware that he was crying and quickly wiped his wet face in surprise.

Soyoung had once cried like that, even when just looking at falling leaves.

Seeing something in Han’s eyes, Soyoung carefully asked,

“Can I ask what’s troubling you?”

Han hesitated for a moment before speaking in a voice just above a whisper.

“Can a person’s heart… change all of a sudden?”

Soyoung, paying close attention, took her time before answering.

“I’m not sure if what I feel will help you, but… I once read that the reason we get hurt by people is because we don’t accept that they can change.”

Han looked at Soyoung with soft eyes as she sat down beside him and continued speaking.

“When I was younger, I didn’t understand, but as I got older, I started to love nature.”

“…Yes.”

“The heart of a person changes easily and quickly. And when you realize that, you look at nature again and feel something. Oh, nature stays the same. And that’s why we are drawn to it. Everything is changing, but we don’t notice it.”

“But even so… it still happened so suddenly…”

“I know. Breakups are always hard.”

For the first time, Han heard his situation described so directly, and his eyes trembled.

“A breakup…?”

The realization hit him painfully. He finally understood why he felt so sad. He had been dumped.

“Ugh…”

Once he acknowledged it, a wave of sadness overcame him. His throat tightened, and he began to cry. Soyoung rushed over and hugged Han, who was crying uncontrollably.

“What should I do…?”

Soyoung’s eyes also filled with tears. Perhaps it was because she, too, had recently gone through a breakup—a breakup that had shocked the whole country.

“One corner of your heart is just ripped away…”

When someone is there to comfort you when you need to cry, it becomes impossible to hold back. Han cried in Soyoung’s embrace without restraint.

It wasn’t until some time later that they were able to stop crying. Looking at each other’s swollen faces, they both forced out a small laugh.

Han had skipped meals, and Soyoung didn’t force him to eat.

As time passed, night fell, and Han followed Soyoung to his room. After exchanging goodnight words, Han went into his room, but soon came out again and gently grabbed Soyoung’s sleeve.

It was his first day here, and he hadn’t even had time to share his thoughts about reuniting with her. All he had done today was cry, and he felt bad for that.

“The room is so beautiful… Thank you.”

Soyoung smiled as she wiped her swollen eyes, relieved.

“Tomorrow, you’ll feel a little better. So don’t worry about anything tonight, just sleep well.”

“…Okay.”

“Whoever it is, they’ll regret losing such a handsome boyfriend like you.”

“…Good night.”

“Good night, Han.”

Han lay on the blanket his biological mother had prepared for him. The scent of fresh linen replaced the scent of Taeshin, who had once wrapped him in the blanket like a cocoon.

And again, Han couldn’t stop the tears from flowing.