chapter 100

We Can Never Break Up

Dasol went to the police station as both a victim and a witness.

After spending several hours giving her statement, she headed straight to the hospital, repeatedly reading the text message saying that she wanted to see him.

Yuseok Hospital.

The VIP ward on the top floor.

Dasol stood in front of the ward, bewildered.

There was no way a prosecutor who had been stabbed would be assigned a VIP room.

More importantly—

“Visitation is currently prohibited for patient Jang Jihyeok.”

“Excuse me…? Why?”

“There are too many reporters. His family gave us instructions to restrict visitors.”

“Reporters? Oh…”

A handsome prosecutor stabbed by a drug lord.

It was only natural that reporters would swarm the place.

Dasol was just about to take out her phone when someone called her name.

“Ms. Dasol?”

She turned around and saw Hyewon.

“Ms. Hyewon…”

Hyewon met her gaze for a moment before gesturing toward the entrance.

“Come have a cup of coffee with me.”

Dasol nodded, and the two headed to the café on the first floor.

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

“You look like you haven’t slept at all.”

Instead of answering, Dasol gave a bitter smile and took a sip of coffee.

“I heard what happened. You went through something terrible, Dasol. And so did Jihyeok…”

Dasol forced a smile and fiddled with her cup.

“Did the questioning go all right? It must have been exhausting to give a statement for hours, especially after what happened yesterday.”

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine.”

“I really am okay.”

There was no need to add that seeing Jihyeok would make her feel better.

“Apparently, Jihyeok went into shock early this morning.”

“Oh my goodness… What are we going to do…?”

He hadn’t mentioned anything like that when she’d called earlier. Her eyes began to sting with tears.

“Fortunately, he pulled through. Oh, and don’t misunderstand. Sanggeun was the one who told me.”

“Ah… I see.”

“From what I saw earlier, it seems you can’t visit him.”

“Yes. Because of the reporters. I guess it’s because he’s the handsome prosecutor who caught the drug lord.”

“Well, that too. But even if he’s only a grandson on his mother’s side, he’s still a third-generation heir to the Yuseok Group.”

“Excuse me…?”

“Oh. You didn’t know?”

“Th-then… Jihyeok is from the Y-Yuseok Group family…?”

Dasol couldn’t even finish her sentence.

“That’s right. His maternal family is the Yuseok Group.”

“Then… does that mean… when he said his father was a doctor and his mother worked for a pharmaceutical company…?”

“Well… yes. His father is the director of Yuseok Hospital, and his mother is the CEO of Yuseok Pharmaceuticals.”

Dasol blinked several times before taking a long gulp of coffee.

“So he never told you.”

She had known he was a man who’d grown up in comfort, from a fairly well-off family, but she’d never imagined it was on this scale.

Watching her quietly, Hyewon spoke with some hesitation.

“Jihyeok and I… There was never anything between us. Not in the past, and not now.”

She took a small sip of coffee before continuing.

“To be honest, there was a time when I had feelings for him. But Jihyeok never gave me an opening.”

“…Why are you telling me this?”

“Jihyeok told me something for the first time. He asked me to keep my distance from now on.”

“Keep your distance?”

Hyewon let out a small, amused laugh and nodded.

“I’ve heard it so many times from Jihyeok’s ex-girlfriends. They’d ask me what exactly was going on between us. I knew Jihyeok argued with them over it, but he never said a word to me.”

“…”

“But this time, he finally said something. And when I heard him, I understood. Ah. This time, it’s serious.”

Something warm and fuzzy began to bloom inside Dasol’s chest, like a sweet, fluffy cloud.

“Anyway, I’m telling you not to worry about me.”

“I-I wasn’t worrying about you!”

Dasol shook her head vigorously.

Hyewon gave her a subtle smile.

“Now I understand why Jihyeok lost control and went on a rampage.”

“Pardon…?”

“I have to admit, I’m a little jealous of you, Dasol. You managed to turn that cold man into a walking ball of fire.”

Hyewon calmly picked up her bag.

“I should get going.”

“You’re leaving without seeing Jihyeok?”

“I can’t visit him anyway, so I should go. It’s not as if I’m his girlfriend.”

“Ah… Right. Ms. Hyewon, thank you.”

Hyewon gave her a brief nod.

A little while later, Dasol made her way back to the VIP ward.

Back at the ward, she called Jihyeok from outside his room, but he didn’t answer.

“Um, I’m here to see patient Jang Jihyeok. I’m his girlfriend.”

“Oh, then please wait a moment.”

“Pardon?”

“Just a moment.”

The nurse called someone.

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

After hanging up, the nurse turned to Dasol.

“May I have your name?”

“Jin Dasol.”

“You can go in. His room is at the very end.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Whoosh—

The automatic doors slid open, and Dasol stepped inside. She walked down the corridor until she found his room.

Knock, knock.

“Come in.”

A middle-aged woman’s voice answered. There was a certain refinement in her stiff tone.

Dasol instinctively knew who it was.

Jihyeok’s mother.

Jihyeok was asleep.

Dasol immediately bowed respectfully.

“Hello. My name is Jin Dasol.”

“I’m Jihyeok’s mother.”

Her voice was so cold that Dasol instinctively shrank back.

“Yes, Mother.”

“Mother?”

Dasol pressed her lips together.

With her arms crossed, Jihyeok’s mother regarded Dasol with a sharp, icy gaze, looking her up and down from head to toe.

Quickly, thoroughly, without missing a thing.

“Let’s have a little talk.”

Jihyeok’s mother opened another door inside the hospital room. Beyond it was an elegant sitting room.

“Have a seat.”

Dasol cautiously perched on the edge of the sofa.

“Secretary Park, please bring us some tea.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Soon, two cups of tea were placed on the table.

Jihyeok’s mother picked up her cup and took a sip before setting it down. To Dasol, even that tiny sound was as loud as thunder.

“Now then, how old are you?”

“Thirty-one.”

“And what do you do?”

“I run a pet… grooming salon.”

For the first time in her life, Dasol found herself stumbling over the words to describe her job, something she’d always said without hesitation. It suddenly felt so insignificant. She wanted to add something more.

“It’s called Solsol Pet Salon.”

And that’s the best you can come up with…

Dasol berated herself as she spoke in a voice that grew quieter with every word.

“I see.”

Jihyeok’s mother remained expressionless. Her face revealed absolutely nothing.

But even a fool could tell one thing for certain.

She wasn’t pleased.

Not in the slightest.

Ah… So this is what it’s like to date a man from a chaebol family.

Dasol could practically hear the familiar line from every movie she’d ever watched.

Name your price. Just stay away from my son.

If she replied, I don’t need your money, she’d probably get slapped.

Fine.

But still…

They had only just managed to confirm their feelings for each other.

Her heart ached. She fought desperately to keep the tears from welling up.

Having already played out an entire movie in her head, Dasol spoke before Jihyeok’s mother could.

“I think I can guess what you’re going to say. But… I can never break up with Jihyeok. No matter how much money you offer me, I will never, ever accept it.”

Clink.

Jihyeok’s mother had been about to lift her cup, but she set it back down instead. Deep furrows appeared on her forehead.

“I know very well that Jihyeok went through something terrible because of me. I understand that you’re angry and that you must hate me. I also know that I’m not good enough for Jihyeok.”

Dasol drew a deep breath before speaking clearly and firmly.

“I’ll prove myself to you. I’m already preparing to open a second branch of Solsol Pet Salon. I’ve also received an offer to teach classes.”

“So you’re saying you intend to build a pet-grooming franchise. And once your business succeeds, you want me to acknowledge your relationship.”

“Yes. I’ll make it a success, so please give me a chance to prove it.”

Dasol clasped her trembling hands tightly together.

Silence fell between them.

Then, quite unexpectedly, Jihyeok’s mother burst out laughing.

“What an unpredictable young woman. And so spirited, too. Now I can see why my son fell for you.”

“Pardon…?”

“Fine. I’ll accept your terms. But I hope you understand that it’s difficult to readily approve of a woman who nearly cost my son his life.”

So she hadn’t been planning to offer her money after all.

Dasol gulped down her cold coffee. The chill finally managed to cool her burning face a little.

“The truth is, I did resent you, Dasol. And it’s true that you seem inadequate in certain ways.”

The words struck her heart like an arrow, but Dasol simply listened without saying anything.

“Even before I came here today, I had no intention of accepting you. There was someone else I’d had in mind for Jihyeok.”

Cha Hyewon’s face suddenly flashed through Dasol’s mind.

Her palms grew damp with sweat.

“But… our son, who has spent his entire life as cold as ice, has never looked so desperate before. The expression in his eyes the moment he opened them…”

His mother paused briefly.

“I wanted to thank you. That’s why I asked you to have tea with me.”

“Pardon?”

“I heard that our son survived because you performed first aid on him. Thank you.”

“But… it was only natural for me to do that…”

Dasol couldn’t finish her sentence. The tears and the terror she’d experienced that day came rushing back all at once.

“It’s important to make these things clear. Gratitude is gratitude, and resentment is resentment. One doesn’t cancel out the other.”

“Thank you, Mother. And… please, feel free to speak casually with me.”

“We’ll get to that in time. Wait here for a moment.”

Jihyeok’s mother left the sitting room and returned a short while later.

Tap.

She placed a small shopping bag on the table.

“This was in Jihyeok’s clothes. I didn’t think it belonged to my son.”

Dasol opened the bag.

Inside was a plush keychain.

A little white puppy.

“This… is mine.”

She’d thought she’d lost it.

Dasol picked up the little plushie and gently stroked it with her fingers.

“I’ll be leaving now. Stay by Jihyeok’s side. He needs someone who’s more important to him than even his own mother.”

A little while later, his mother left the hospital room.

Dasol gazed at Jihyeok’s sleeping face for a long time before eventually drifting off beside him.

She remained asleep until she felt a hand gently brushing her hair aside and opened her eyes.