Come Back

Knowing Lee Hae-sung’s dislike for noisy environments, the hospital had the doctor come quietly to the room with only one nurse accompanying him.

“When the patient arrived at the hospital, his temperature had risen to 42 degrees Celsius. It’s still not dropping quickly,” the attending physician said with a stiff expression while looking at the nurse who was measuring the patient’s temperature.

“Given the fever and nausea, we might suspect pyelonephritis or sepsis. However, we need the patient to recover somewhat before we can conduct a detailed examination. At the moment, he is completely unconscious…”

“…”

“And it seems that the patient endured the pain for a long time. He was sweating so much that even his outer clothes were damp. If our suspected condition is correct, if he had endured it any longer, it could have progressed to septic shock.”

As the guardian of the VIP ward and the person in charge of ARA, Lee Hae-sung had been listening to the doctor’s words, which were somewhat reprimanding, though delivered with a cautious tone, as the doctor understood that he needed to be careful when addressing him.

“With symptoms like this, it must have been extremely painful. Even if the patient says they’re fine, someone close to them should have forced them to come to the hospital. Such high fevers can be fatal even for adults.”

Lee Hae-sung remained silent, only looking down at the patient.

At the memorial hall, even when Yoon Hye-an collapsed right in front of him, Lee Hae-sung hadn’t felt anything. He had actually thought it might be some kind of a disgusting show. He had only understood Yoon Hye-an through Manager Kang’s report, and Kang’s reports were always reliable without mistakes.

Most of the people around Yoon Hye-an also thought he was “pretending to forget,” and to Lee Hae-sung, the Yoon Hye-an in the report had seemed like the kind of person who could have faked even collapsing.

But why?

While listening to the doctor’s reprimand, it felt as though the unconscious patient lying in front of him was a result of his own neglect. Though his suspicions about Yoon Hye-an remained unchanged, at least, the sweating and collapsing he had witnessed in front of him were not fake shows.

The doctor, sensing Lee Hae-sung’s prolonged silence, grew uneasy. He quickly gave a few more instructions and left the room, trying to gauge Lee Hae-sung’s mood as he departed.

After the doctor left, Lee Hae-sung stood staring at the folding door connecting to the living room. The crumpled napkin that had been squeezed in anguish earlier still lingered in his mind strangely.

“Faking a collapse…”

“…”

Yoon Hye-an’s voice, as dry as the air, whispered faintly. Lee Hae-sung turned his head toward the bed.

Yoon Hye-an was looking up at him, his face pale, his neck stiff as he struggled to swallow dryly.

“You do believe now, at least, that I wasn’t pretending to collapse, right?”

Had he overheard the conversation with the doctor?

Lee Hae-sung, who had only turned his head before, slowly turned his body to face the bed. Looking at Yoon Hye-an’s eyes, which seemed unable to focus properly, it was clear that he hadn’t fully regained consciousness yet.

The patient was in such poor condition that he had collapsed. Unable to decide how to treat Yoon Hye-an, Lee Hae-sung rubbed his jaw as he took a few more steps toward the bed.

“Don’t think about that. Just sleep now. You need to rest.”

The patient’s eyes, feverishly glassy, quickly filled with tears. His frail hand reached out as if trying to hold onto the disappearing illusion before his eyes.

But Lee Hae-sung could not hold that hand. He wrapped both hands around the side rail of the bed instead.

“If I fall asleep… will you disappear, Uncle?”

“……”

As he gripped the rail, a tendon on Lee Hae-sung’s hand bulged. His gaze, focused on the patient, began to waver with intensity.

The patient seemed delirious from the fever. His lips, pale and cracked, trembled as they moved again.

“If this is all a dream, and if I disappear… what will happen if I can’t see you again?”

Thick tears began to fall from Yoon Hye-an’s eyes. Watching the tears slide from his temples to his ears, Lee Hae-sung’s hand began to tremble uncontrollably.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t keep my promise… I said I’d come, but I didn’t wait… I’m sorry.”

Lee Hae-sung gently wiped the patient’s eyelids with his palm. Hearing the sobs, a servant appeared by the folding door between the living room and the hospital room. Lee Hae-sung gestured for him to dim the lights.

The doctor had said the patient would likely remain asleep until the next morning. Yoon Hye-an’s wakefulness and speech were likely an extension of his sleep, an extension of the dream.

Even so, there was no reason why Yoon Hye-an should have called him “Uncle.” They had never made any “promise.”

A promise where someone could apologize for failing to keep it, calling someone “Uncle.”

What came to mind was only the promise made over the phone with Choi Hong-seo before his death.

How much does Yoon Hye-an know?

How is it that he knows these things?

If he says he wants nothing, why… why is he doing this to me?

Why are you apologizing for not waiting?

Lee Hae-sung’s palm became damp with tears, and after Yoon Hye-an’s sobs gradually quieted, the room returned to silence. But Lee Hae-sung’s inner turmoil could never settle. Outside the window, the drizzle was growing heavier.

■

The place that Yong-jae took him to for the birthday party turned out, ironically, to be the same members-only club where Lee Hae-sung had met him for the second time.

It had been a party to celebrate the promotion of a third-generation chaebol heir, where ‘Layered’ was invited as a guest, and a reception for the host and Choi Hong-seo was planned.

And unexpectedly, Lee Hae-sung had appeared. The reception was canceled, and Choi Hong-seo was able to leave the club with Lee Hae-sung.

As Choi Hong-seo descended the stairs that he had climbed following Lee Hae-sung, he felt a strange sensation, as if time was reversing. But now was not the time for such reflections.

“They said my brother’s birthday party is being prepared, and Director Kang helped us get this place,” Yong-jae said, excited, much more so than the birthday boy, Choi Hong-seo.

“Director Kang did?”

If it were Director Kang Woo-hyun, it made sense that he would either be a member of such a club or have close acquaintances who were members.

“That’s what I mean! It’s his first birthday since waking up, so of course, it should be celebrated,” Yong-jae said excitedly.

“Wasn’t it just supposed to be a simple meal with the three of us—me, you, and Dong-ha?”

Choi Hong-seo sighed briefly as he descended the stairs. From what he remembered, the size of this club was far too large for just three people to have a meal.

“Well, that’s just what they said. The more celebrations, the better, right?”

Yong-jae flashed a smile and showed his ID to the staff in front of the firmly closed entrance. The staff checked the guest list against Yong-jae’s name and confirmed the face of ‘Yoon Hye-an.’ They opened the heavy door with polite courtesy.

Inside, the place was bustling with people. Although the party hadn’t officially started yet, there was already an atmosphere of excitement as people drank and mingled, with no flashing lights or booming music just yet.

When the guest of honor appeared, everyone’s attention immediately turned toward him. Amid the cheers, Park Dong-ha approached, awkwardly greeting Choi Hong-seo.

“Hyung! Happy birthday! Wow… with that outfit, you look just like the Yoon Hye-an I used to know!”

Yong-jae had insisted that they couldn’t just dress casually for a nice place like this, so Choi Hong-seo had made an effort, though by Park Dong-ha’s standards, it seemed like a humble attempt. Park Dong-ha, on the other hand, looked much more fashionable than usual. His hair and makeup, carefully done, showed that he still had the glam and vitality of an idol.

【I’m such a fan of Hong-seo when he’s in idol mode.】

Lee Hae-sung’s message from when he saw photos taken during an interview suddenly came to mind. He knew that Park Dong-ha liked him because he was an idol, but still, he couldn’t help but notice how much of an idol he still looked, even now.

Of course, he never expected someone like him to appear at Yoon Hye-an’s birthday party. It was a completely unnecessary thought.

“What’s going on? We were just supposed to celebrate with close friends,” Choi Hong-seo said.

“All these people here are your close friends. You didn’t even contact anyone after waking up, right? You’re so distant… But once you did, everyone was curious about how you’re doing, so they all came without hesitation.”

“I probably wouldn’t even recognize them…” Choi Hong-seo muttered. “I feel bad for no reason.”

“Everyone knows you don’t remember. They’ll understand, so don’t worry. Oh, Director Kang and his guests are here too, so let’s go say hi to them first.”

Park Dong-ha pushed Choi Hong-seo toward the table at the front of the stage. As they walked, people here and there greeted Choi Hong-seo, recognizing him as ‘Yoon Hye-an.’ Many of them were celebrities or models that Choi Hong-seo knew by face and name, but most of them were people he wasn’t particularly close to. It was clear that Choi Hong-seo and Yoon Hye-an operated in very different social circles.

Choi Hong-seo had been a little nervous, wondering if Lee Hae-sung might be at Director Kang’s table, but there was no sign of him. He couldn’t tell if he was relieved or disappointed.

As expected, Director Kang, who liked such glamorous parties, was enjoying himself surrounded by his acquaintances. The head of the production company for *Cream Mansion* and the executive producer were also seated at Director Kang’s table.

“Thank you for coming despite your busy schedule, Director. I heard you went out of your way to arrange this place for us.”

“It’s our Hwang Ji-woo’s birthday, so I had to do something. The vice president probably knows, but he’s not a fan of places like this, so who knows if he’ll show up?”

Director Kang casually mentioned this as he passed by, causing Choi Hong-seo’s heart to skip a beat.

He knew all too well that Director Kang disliked Yoon Hye-an and noisy parties. The last time he had shown up here, everyone had been surprised…