My Bloody Valentine - 95

“The settlement support cost… is that right?”

“Yes. With this amount, Mr. Lee Han can have fun for a few years.”

Nam Jun-ho’s tone was polite yet overbearing, seemingly respectful yet dismissive. However, his voice held a certain conviction that Han would accept this proposal.

Jun-ho’s intentions were unclear, and Han couldn’t see his expression properly due to the glare on his glasses. What kind of eyes was he looking at him with behind those silver-rimmed glasses? Probably with disdain.

Like a pet animal, wasting time in a comfortable suite, not fully submitting but not trying to escape either. That’s probably how he appears to others.

“…Am I being asked to leave?”

“……”

The sudden eviction order made Han’s fingertips on his lap tremble.

“What right do you have to do this to me?”

“It’s not my decision.”

Han tightly gripped the fabric of his pajama pants on his thighs. Suddenly, something started to boil up from deep within him. He felt a rush of hot bl00d to his eyes.

“…Then what?”

“……”

“Is this because of Jang Taeshin? Is Jang Taeshin telling me to leave?”

The passionate night they had spent together now felt like Han’s own delusion. But his still aching body refuted that hypothesis.

“Lies.”

Han glared at Jun-ho, assuming he was lying to separate them. Jun-ho quickly refuted it.

“Why would I lie about that? Shall I let you talk to Mr. Lee?”

Grabbing his phone, ready to call, Jun-ho’s words made the color drain from Han’s face.

“Really…? Jang Taeshin… is telling me to leave?”

“Yes.”

“Why… how…”

Why are you abandoning me again. How could you abandon me again.

A small trembling started spreading from his fingertips. Resentment engulfed Han’s entire body like waves. He lashed out at the unflinching Jun-ho.

“I haven’t paid off any debts yet. Why are you sending me away like this?”

Nam Jun-ho was Jang Taeshin’s closest subordinate. His title was Accounting Manager, but their relationship went beyond just colleagues. Yelling at such a person was both frightening and somewhat satisfying.

However, Han’s voice trembled miserably throughout the questioning, and his gaze was fixed on the edge of the table. He had the courage to be defiant, but not enough to look him in the eye.

“Debts? You’re so obsessed with money. Does it even matter if you don’t get the money?”

“Yes. The moneylending business has already been settled, anyway.”

“……”

Han bit his lips, seemingly frustrated.

He thought he had grown accustomed to being abandoned. From a young age, Han never belonged anywhere and was never welcomed, not in school, not in society, not even by his biological parents.

For someone like him, this should have been a rather natural occurrence. Just another instance of being abandoned.

But he was uncharacteristically furious. A great resentment erupted.

Han finally realized that while he was used to being abandoned by everyone in the world, he had no immunity to being abandoned by Taeshin. Both then and now, he was repeatedly hurt.

The back of his neck felt hot. His face flushed red with anger, and tears were about to well up in his eyes. To avoid embarrassingly crying in front of his subordinate, he clenched his tongue and swallowed dryly before spitting out the words, laced with defiance.

“I don’t want to.”

“…You don’t want to?”

Jun-ho, feigning surprise, let out a shallow laugh from his nose. Then, he changed his tone to a persuasive one, as if talking to a child throwing a tantrum.

“I’m letting you go. Without any debts to pay, and without any conditions.”

“…I don’t want to.”

“You know how much is in that envelope, and you’re still saying no?”

When his words didn’t get through, Jun-ho unconsciously sharpened his tone. Han was deeply afraid, but he tried not to show it, glaring at Jun-ho with all his might.

“That’s not right.”

“Mr. Lee Han.”

“You just brought me here, and then you’re going to just take me away… like this?”

“……”

A single tear rolled down the heated corner of his eye. Han quickly wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, not wanting to be seen.

“Say no. I’ll work to pay off all the debts and leave. I don’t need the settlement cost or anything else!”

Han abruptly stood up, as if fleeing. Slightly dizzy from the sudden motion, he regained his balance. Staring up at the bewildered Jun-ho, he made one last defiant remark.

“And tell Jang Taeshin to come and say it to my face directly. Don’t send a coward’s messenger.”

Han forgot about the pain in her waist, thighs, and legs, and went into the room. Junho, who was looking at Han, who closed the door with a bang like a rebellious teenager, gave a hollow laugh.

❖ ❖ ❖

“And if you have something to say, come and say it directly. Don’t send your subordinates.”

• Sigh…

From the receiver, Taeshin could be heard chuckling.

“It’s not like we’re playing boss with kids… Subordinates, it hurts my pride a bit.”

Saying that, Junho also laughed briefly.

The appearance of Han seen today was quite new. Han, who used to tremble like a mouse in front of a cat just by standing in front of him, came out quite boldly today. Seems like there’s also that side to this person.

The reason for reporting through the phone that Han had rejected the money handed over and slammed the door was that Taeshin was currently in the provinces to inspect the hotel construction site.

However, I was curious why he hurried to do something that didn’t have to be done right now and made me deliver the message to him. I have a vague guess, but still.

It’s probably not because his heart aches to let go. It’s probably because he’s afraid that the difficult decision he made will be shaken if he faces her directly. He’s afraid that his mind to let her go will change and he’ll want to cling to her and possess her again.

After a moment of silence, Taeshin spoke in a low voice.

• Send her down to the basement. And… create a time for a mother-child reunion.

After a few seconds of silence, Junho replied that he would do so. And he quickly changed the subject to something else in a bright voice.

“Since you’ve come this far, why don’t you have a plate of raw fish by the sea before heading back?”

Han will never know how hard Taeshin’s decision was.

Until just a few days ago, Taeshin was obsessed with the kind of cruel attachment a king would have to his concubine, as if he was ordering her to be buried alive with him. His eyes even hinted at the madness of not letting go even after death.

It seems that Han’s kidnapping and actually facing the crossroads of life and death was one of the triggers that changed his mind. Or perhaps he was influenced by the appearance of Han’s biological mother, actress Shin So-young.

Whatever the reason, Junho had to follow the instructions. After hanging up the phone, Junho immediately turned his steps back to the 15th floor room without the slightest hesitation.

Without even ringing the doorbell, he used a card to open the door and enter. Han, who was sitting dazedly on the living room sofa, looked up at him with wide eyes. The message that ‘Why did you come again?’ was clearly written on her face.

“What are you looking at me like that for? Did I come somewhere I shouldn’t have?”

Whenever he tried to get close, Junho’s attitude had suddenly changed. Startled by his suddenly threatening change, Han unknowingly shrank and hunched her shoulders. Junho looked around the room and said,

“Pack your bags and come out.”

“But I said I’m not going, didn’t I?”

“Who told you to leave?”

“Then…”

“Go back to the basement accommodation.”

“The basement?”

“You said you would work to pay it off. What’s wrong? Cozy and nice in the suite room? Can’t you grasp the situation?”

Asking in his typical sarcastic tone, Han was immediately intimidated.

“No, no… It’s not like that…”

Unable to resist Junho’s cold gaze, Han hurriedly packed her things and left the suite room she had stayed in for a while, returning to the basement 3rd floor.

Soon, Han was left alone in her dark room. She had no idea what was going on.

❖ ❖ ❖

The very next day, a familiar employee came to find Han. Hearing that Jina was looking for her, Han went to Tasenda.

Jina, who was intently looking at the monitor at the counter, saw Han and waved to her with a friendly smile.

“Han, long time no see? You said you would work again.”

“…Yes.”

Apparently Junho had passed on the message.

“That’s great.”

Jina smiled softly. It was the same impersonal smile she used when giving business instructions.

“I need you to go to the Peridot room right now.”

“Right now? I should change into my uniform first…”

“No, you’re not going in as a waiter, but as a performer. A customer has requested you.”

“…!”

“It’s been a while, but you’re okay with it, right?”

The first face that flashed before her eyes was Seonwoo-hee’s. She was the only customer who had singled him out.

“The clothes you’re wearing now aren’t bad either. Just go in.”

“What? Right now? Me alone?”

“Yeah, but hurry up a little? The customer is waiting.”

Urged on by Jina’s smiling face, Han stepped forward and headed for the Peridot room.

The Peridot room was one of the larger rooms at Tasenda, with the unique feature of having a direct access door to the underground parking lot, allowing people to avoid attention.

This was the room often used by prominent figures in politics and business, including Seonwoo-hee, the daughter-in-law of the Daeseong Group.

Standing in front of the door, Han double-checked her appearance and took a deep breath. Then she carefully knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

Before Han could even knock, a woman’s voice came from inside.

Han cautiously opened the door and went in. She had expected to see the sophisticated short-haired Seonwoo-hee, but the person sitting in the room was someone she never expected.