WWBU - 37

Then, as if something had occurred to him, Han’s face finally showed signs of life. His eyes seemed to focus properly for the first time.

Turning abruptly, he checked on Hyun-soo.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine. What about you?”

“Let me see.”

Not fully convinced by her words, he visibly relaxed only after confirming she was unharmed. Han then pulled Hyun-soo into a tight embrace.

“I told you I’m fi—”

“You’re safe... Thank goodness, really.”

It was clear that Han had been deeply shaken. Given his past experience with a fire accident and the loss of someone dear, it wasn’t surprising that he harbored trauma.

Realizing this, Hyun-soo felt a pang of heaviness in her heart. She gently patted his back.

But Guk wasn’t any different, was he? As these thoughts crossed her mind, Yoon Guk naturally came to mind. The image of his retreating figure as he went to check the situation lingered before her eyes.

“If you’re feeling better now, I need to go somewhere.”

“Where?”

“Upstairs. To the banquet hall.”

“Why?”

“I have something to take care of.”

“What do you need to check?”

Han gazed at Hyun-soo intently. Even without her saying it, he understood that what she needed to confirm was related to Yoon Guk.

“Noona. Do you really have to—”

“Don’t say anything.”

“...Alright.”

“I’ll be back soon. I promise.”

There was no way to stop Hyun-soo once she had made up her mind.

Despite his overwhelming reluctance, Han had no choice but to let her go. He watched as she headed toward Guk, hoping against hope that she would return safely.

Hyun-soo stood in front of the banquet hall door. Whether fortunate or not, the door was firmly locked. Did this mean he wasn’t there?

Just to be sure, she turned the handle. Click—it opened. Upon closer inspection, the door could only be locked from the outside and opened from within. So it had been locked until just now.

Pushing the door open, she saw Yoon Guk standing alone in the distance. Standing in the middle of the vast banquet hall, he looked almost unreal.

“Yoon Guk.”

At Hyun-soo’s soft call, he turned around. The sound of glass crunching underfoot echoed hollowly through the room.

For some reason, the sight of him made her angry. Taking one step, then two, Hyun-soo approached him and let her emotions show.

“Did you know the door was locked from the outside?”

“No.”

“What if there had actually been a fire?”

“Exactly.”

“This isn’t about someone else right now.”

Guk responded calmly to her heated expression.

“Did anyone die?”

“Yoon Guk, you really...”

“What is it you want to say?”

Hyun-soo started to blurt out her thoughts but caught herself. She needed to gather her words. If she let raw emotion spill out unchecked, things might escalate unnecessarily.

“You only have one life too, you know.”

“So?”

Guk nudged the shards of a broken wine glass with the tip of his shoe as he moved closer to Hyun-soo.

“I wanted you to realize how dangerous it was. Why do you live so fearlessly?”

Staring intently at her, Guk chuckled softly.

“You’re the one who should know how scary the world can be.”

“...”

“It’s not like it’s anything else—a fire incident. If I lost control because of past memories and did something reckless, what would you have done following me here?”

Though his lips curled into a faint smile, his eyes told a different story. They looked as though they might shake her by the shoulders at any moment.

Yet strangely, she wasn’t afraid. She had an inexplicable certainty that he wouldn’t harm her.

Yoon Guk couldn’t hurt her. He wouldn’t even raise his voice in anger—he simply wouldn’t.

Hyun-soo was surprised to realize she held such unwavering conviction deep down.

“I know you wouldn’t do that. You wouldn’t.”

“...”

“Right?”

As Hyun-soo took another step forward, the sound of glass crunching beneath her feet reverberated through the silence. Only the beating of her heart accompanied the noise.

Gazing down at her silently, Guk slowly curved his lips into a familiar smile—one reminiscent of his younger self from over a decade ago. Hyun-soo stared at him, momentarily entranced.

Suddenly, Guk pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her waist. In an instant, he pressed his lips near her ear, letting his breath flow into her ear.

“Why are you doing this...!”

Hyun-soo’s face flushed red, her entire body heating up.

Chuckling audibly, Guk playfully nibbled her earlobe before releasing it. Startled by the sharp yet tingling sensation, Hyun-soo gasped and clutched his chest.

“Hyun-soo.”

His sudden tenderness caught her off guard. The softness in his voice left her bewildered. What was he trying to do? What did he want?

“The past and the present are different.”

“What... What’s different?”

“The things we can do.”

Leaving behind those cryptic words, Guk leaned in as if about to kiss her. Startled, Hyun-soo instinctively closed her eyes tightly. But after a brief moment, nothing happened.

Opening her eyes cautiously, she found Guk staring down at her coldly, his face inches away.

“So stop provoking me. Before I do something impulsive.”

With that, he released her, creating distance between them.

A gap formed between them, and only then did Hyun-soo realize she had been holding her breath.

“I need to clean up the scene. Let’s go.”

With a dry tone, Guk turned and left the banquet hall. Left behind, Hyun-soo couldn’t understand why her heart was pounding so fiercely.

Afterward, neither Guk, Han, nor Hyun-soo brought up the fire incident during the founding anniversary celebration again. They acted as though nothing had happened, wearing masks of normalcy.

But appearances were deceiving. Beneath the surface, an uneasy tension simmered, ready to ignite at the slightest spark.

---

Two days after the founding anniversary event.

As usual, Hyun-soo was in Han’s room while he showered. She was reading a book titled The Taste of Writing, which, unsurprisingly, failed to capture her interest.

Gradually, the long wait for Han to finish his shower made her drowsy. Leaning back in the high-backed chair, she drifted off to sleep. Not long after, she jolted awake, startled by her own accidental dozing.

Checking the time immediately, she realized 40 minutes had passed. Yet Han still hadn’t emerged from the bathroom.

“What’s taking so long with the shower...”

Placing the book back on the table, a sudden uneasy feeling washed over her. There was no sound coming from the bathroom—not even the sound of running water.

Her heart raced as she approached the bathroom door and knocked. Strangely, there was no response.

“Han. Yoon Han.”

Knock, knock, knock.

“Stop fooling around and answer me.”

Knock, knock.

“If you’ve collapsed, I’m coming in.”

Still, no reply. After much deliberation, Hyun-soo decided to open the bathroom door slightly. A wave of humid air mixed with fragrance rushed out, making her feel suffocated and amplifying her unease.

Creeeeak.

Pushing the door further, Hyun-soo stepped inside. To her surprise, the shower stall was empty and the door wide open. Where could he be...?

Worried, she circled the partition and approached the bathtub. And then—

“Yoon Han!”

She rushed to the bathtub and pulled Han, submerged underwater, out. Summoning an unexpected strength, she climbed onto his broad frame and hauled his upper body above the water. It was as if she used every ounce of energy she had left.

Han, now cradling Hyun-soo, exhaled roughly.

“Are you crazy? What’s wrong with you? Are you out of your mind?”

The water overflowed noisily onto the floor as their combined weight displaced it. Hyun-soo’s voice echoed loudly in the bathroom.

“Snap out of it! Breathe, damn it!”

Han nodded against Hyun-soo’s shoulder, his back rising and falling as he exhaled deeply.

“Why... Why did you do that? Why would you do something like this?”

Hyun-soo’s voice cracked, tears threatening to spill. She barely managed to hold them back. Han gripped her shirt tightly.

“I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not what you think.”

“It’s not?”

“It’s true.”

Han’s voice was calm. Whether or not his words were true, she wanted to believe them. She didn’t want to think he’d tried to end his life while she was just outside the door.

“I was just stressed and needed to think, that’s all.”

“Why would you think like that?”

“It’s a habit of mine. Why are you criticizing my habits?”

“Break that habit.”

“Were you scared?”

“...”

When Hyun-soo didn’t respond, Han, who had been burying his face in her shoulder, lifted his head. Her tear-streaked face looked as though it might burst into tears at the slightest touch.

“I swear, I wasn’t trying to kill myself.”

“...”

“Were you crying because you thought I was dying?”

Finally wiping away her tears, Hyun-soo shifted backward, attempting to stand.

“Fine. Just get out quickly.”

But Han wasn’t about to let her go. He pulled her hand, drawing her back into his arms. As a result, Hyun-soo plunged back into the water.

“Hey! Why are you doing this?”

“Thank you.”

“Let go already...!”

“I’m really grateful.”

He switched to informal speech. Hyun-soo looked up at him incredulously, only to see him smiling brightly despite being soaked.

In that moment, Han’s arms tightened around her, pulling her flush against him. Their flushed faces were mere inches apart as they exhaled in unison.

“...”

“...”

Under Hyun-soo’s palm, which had been pushing against him, she could feel the smooth, firm muscles of Han’s chest. The warmth of his body seeped through, stirring something strange within her.