Small and Fragile Things - Chapter 37

Irang opened her eyes in the silence.

The darkness around her made her flinch for a second, but she relaxed once she realized she was lying flat on her back.

Each time she drifted in and out of consciousness, everything had still been pitch-black. That was because he had either still been inside her or had just finished pouring himself somewhere onto or into her.

As she wiggled her fingers and toes to check she could move them, memories from the night before came flooding back like a wave. She’d done things—so many things—she was too embarrassed to even recall.

Being pinned under him and crying out had been nothing. Last night, she learned just how many things a man and woman could do in bed—and that parts of her body she’d never thought of in that way could have entirely different uses.

“Ugh…”

She managed to sit up, and the black blanket that had been covering her shoulders slipped down with a whisper. The silk-like fabric was soft, but even that faint brush against her skin made her shoulders twitch. Her n1pples felt raw, and the reddish marks blooming all over her body looked anything but pretty.

The room was empty. She listened closely but couldn’t hear the sound of running water either.

It was only then that she realized—her skin was dry and clean. She remembered being a mess, completely covered in… something. He must’ve washed her. The sheets felt new too.

While she tried to glue together her fragmented memories, the door creaked open without a sound.

“…”

Through the narrow gap, soft white light spilled into the room. Wrapped in that glow like a cloak, he leaned against the doorway without a word. He simply stood there, watching her—still frozen on the bed with just her feet barely touching the floor.

“Can you get up?”

His voice had the warmth of sunlight. Gone was the version of him from last night.

“…I’m not sure.” She hadn’t tried yet.

He slowly walked over, then bent slightly forward with his hands resting on his knees, eyes scanning her from head to toe. Her face, her neck, her chest—and further down.

Just being looked at like that made her knees tremble. He gave a lopsided smile.

After all that had happened the night before, she shouldn’t still be this self-conscious about being naked in front of him. But her face turned bright red all the same.

“Stay right there.”

Muk-hyun gently patted her head once, then disappeared into the closet connected to the bedroom. He returned a moment later with a t-shirt in hand.

Irang, already embarrassed enough being bare, quickly reached out for it—but instead of handing it to her, he casually tossed it onto the bed and pulled something from his pocket as he sat down beside her.

“Come here.”

It was ointment.

When he patted his thigh, she didn’t know what to make of it and hesitated. But he wrapped an arm around her waist and effortlessly lifted her into his lap.

“Ah…!”

Just like that, she was sitting on his thighs. She’d never sat on anyone’s lap before in her life. It felt awkward and mortifying.

“I’m heavy…! Put me down. What if I break your legs—”

“Even a ten-year-old probably weighs more than you. Sit still.”

“But…!”

As she kept squirming, he let out a short sigh—and his eyes changed.

“Should I spank you a little more?”

His voice dropped into the same commanding tone he’d used the night before. Her body stiffened instinctively.

Her ass was still sore where they were touching, and now he was saying things like that? She clamped her mouth shut.

Despite seating a grown woman on his lap, Muk-hyun stayed completely calm as he squeezed ointment onto his fingers. Holding her steady with one arm wrapped around her back and shoulder, he gently applied the ointment to her swollen n1pples.

His expression was so serious, she bit her lip hard to keep from reacting. As his fingers moved, a cold sting followed by a faint burning sensation spread over her skin. The ointment absorbed quickly, and the swelling seemed to ease a little.

But his frown deepened. He examined the bite marks and the fresh bruises forming on her chest, his brows furrowing tightly.

Then his fingers slid down past her chest, along her side. Oh no. What if he saw the surgery scar? She hadn’t thought of an excuse yet, and anxiety twisted in her gut.

“This might sting.”

“It’s fi—”

Before she could even finish, he slipped his hand between her legs.

“—ne… Ngh…”

She couldn’t lie. The swelling down there was too severe to ignore. The moment he lifted one leg and touched deeper, a low groan escaped her lips.

Muk-hyun moved with a clean precision, as if tending to his own wounds. Nothing about him resembled the destructive man from the night before.

“Until the ointment absorbs, just wear this,” he said as he dressed her in the oversized t-shirt. He even tucked her hair out from the collar with care, then offered his hand to help her stand.

But her body swayed heavily.

“Don’t just stand like that—put some strength in your legs.”

“I am…”

Feeling awkward that she was the only one struggling while he seemed fine, she stared down at her pathetic legs. That’s when his hand came under her chin.

When she looked up, the man who’d taken her the night before was staring at her with a serious expression.

“Anything you want to say to me?” His voice was low and steady.

“Like yelling at me, maybe.”

Yelling?

“Or hitting me.”

When she just blinked up at him, puzzled, he sighed.

“You do realize things got dangerous last night, right? I told you to bite me if you had to.”

Ah.

Irang finally realized what he meant.

He wanted her to say things like, I regret it, Don’t do that again, I hate you, You scared me.

His eyes seemed certain that even if she said those things, he’d be fine.

But Irang had decided not to take his expressions at face value anymore. She now understood just how good he was at hiding, enduring, pretending.

“I did realize something,” she said, taking his hand from under her chin and holding it tightly with both of hers.

“I should eat more.”

“…What?”

Seeing his baffled face made her giggle. His hands were warm. Calloused, yes, but still soft as they wrapped around hers.

“And I’m not broken,” she added.

She liked him—both the warm version in front of her now and the cold, intense one from last night. Because no matter what form he took, he was still him. He was the first and only person in her entire life who had made her laugh and cry like that.

“I’m glad this wasn’t a dream.”

In Irang’s life, which had always been shadowed by “them,” Muk-hyun had risen like a sun.

It really was… the perfect morning.

***

Muk-hyun got a call from Director Gu just past noon.

He’d just learned from Gi-seon—who had brought lunch—that Irang couldn’t read.

“The prosecutors have started making moves. They’ll probably poke around where we suspect you’re staying. You should be prepared.”

Kim Deok-gyu had started to act. Moving people in secret could only mean one thing, he planned to extract Irang himself. He wasn’t giving up on the ledger.

“What did the chairman say?”

“Nothing yet.”

“Does the chairman know Kim Deok-gyu is meeting with Deputy Chief Prosecutor Hyun Sanggil? They’ve been close since their time in the Special Crimes Division. If the ledger ended up in Hyun’s hands, the investigation might already be underway. And if he forms an internal team, we might not have time to stop it.”

“The chairman is aware.”

“And he’s still just watching?”

The silence was as good as confirmation. Whether or not there was an investigation, the chairman clearly believed Kim Deok-gyu would ultimately give up the ledger and come to the table.

“Then what if I’m the real target—not the chairman? If he takes me down, he gets both the girl and the ledger. Or maybe it’s not even me—it could be Choi Il-hyun or Choi Jihyun. The family’s crisis management is already known to be weak. Who’s to say they won’t hit us again?”

“The chairman won’t just sit back and let that happen.”

Muk-hyun, standing on the balcony with the phone pressed to his ear, turned to look inside.

In the living room, Irang was learning how to read from Gi-seon.