Chapter 13
13.
I came down to the lobby.
There were a lot of people coming and going, so it was a little crowded, but it didn't take long to find Seo Ha-yoon.
I spotted her just as she was heading toward the hospital entrance and quickened my pace.
“Hey, Ha-yoon!”
I only managed to catch up with her after she'd gone through the revolving doors.
She roughly knocked my hand off her shoulder.
“Let's talk for a minute, just you and your big brother.”
“I have nothing to say to you. And who are you calling your big brother?”
I paused for a moment.
Come to think of it, saying “big brother” while looking completely like a woman was incredibly strange and contradictory.
“I mean... I'm the Jeong Ha-won you used to know.”
Seo Ha-yoon furrowed her brow.
I had no idea what she was so angry about.
“So what? What do you want me to do?”
Put that way, I didn't know what to say.
“Um, I don't want you to do anything... I was just glad to see you, and I was wondering if you could tell me what you don't like about me.”
Seo Ha-yoon let out a sigh.
Still, I was glad she didn't seem to be trying to run away.
“Why don't we sit down somewhere for a bit...”
“Forget it. I'll get straight to the point. Don't see my brother anymore. Don't come looking for him, and don't ask him to come see you.”
“Huh?”
I just blinked at her, dumbfounded.
I hesitated, unsure what to say, and Seo Ha-yoon added something under her breath.
“Do you even have a conscience...?”
“Ha-yoon.”
“Don't call me that, either. Showing up out of nowhere looking like a woman is ridiculous, and it makes me want to puke.”
It felt like I'd been hit over the head with a sledgehammer.
The Ha-yoon I used to know was gone.
Her feelings must have changed a lot, just like I had.
Had I played a big part in that?
Judging by the look in her eyes, she seemed to hold a grudge against me.
‘Does she think I boss her brother around and make his life miserable?’
The thought suddenly occurred to me.
From a step removed, I could see how it might look that way. I couldn't deny that.
Whether Seo Geon-woo wanted it or not, a third party or his family could see it as me bullying him through intimidation.
I'd never wanted for anything.
Even back in school, I'd never deliberately used my money or physical strength to crush anyone.
People simply followed me, seemingly captivated by the natural air of refinement I carried, and I never particularly discouraged them.
Was that the problem?
Still, I thought I might have to correct the way this brat talked.
“Ha-yoon, I think you've got something mixed up...”
“Mixed up? You bullied my brother all three years of high school. You think I don't know? He's a little kinder and more sensitive than other people, but he's not stupid.”
So she really did misunderstand.
But I had no idea she cared this much about her brother.
You don't see siblings like that very often these days.
“It's not like that.”
“You should be grateful I didn't report you. If I'd gone to school with you—no, with that person—I would've made sure you regretted it.”
Crack.
The thread of patience I'd barely been holding onto snapped.
“Hey, Seo Ha-yoon. Just because everyone's been spoiling you, you think you can say anything you want?”
One of Seo Ha-yoon's eyebrows rose higher than the other.
A contemptuous look in her eyes, and a faint smile that seemed to say I was beneath her.
My insides boiled.
I wanted nothing more than to slap her across the face.
My clenched fist trembled.
“Why? Are you going to hit me, too, like you always did?”
I never hit women.
No matter how much I might regard them as nothing but prey, laying a hand on a woman or a child would tarnish my dignity.
That was one line I'd never crossed.
‘But right now, I'm a woman too.’
Should I make an exception just this once?
Just this once should be fine, right?
“Go ahead, hit me. I hear you're rich. Let me make some money, too.”
“You're asking for it.”
Sometimes, a beating is necessary to teach someone a lesson.
Violence can never be justified, under any circumstances.
But this wasn't me committing violence. This was an educational lesson to establish my little sister's proper values.
Whoosh!
The arm that had been trembling swung as I released the limiter.
My palm flew toward Seo Ha-yoon's face.
“Ha-won, don't!”
I heard Seo Geon-woo's frantic voice behind me, but there was no turning back.
I was going to smack Seo Ha-yoon across the face and proceed with a proper educational program—
“Huh?”
—but then it felt like I was suddenly airborne, and the world flipped upside down.
Thud.
“Aagh!”
I was slammed straight onto the hard asphalt. Pain spread through my whole body from my back.
There was no way I could keep from screaming.
And that wasn't the end of it.
“Fuck... You really were going to hit me. Do you want to die?”
Was Seo Ha-yoon the one who'd thrown me?
Seriously?
How was that possible?
I heard hurried footsteps rushing toward us, but Seo Ha-yoon was faster, twisting my wrist.
Crack.
“Aaaagh!”
If Seo Geon-woo hadn't pulled her off me, my wrist would've snapped clean in two.
Her strength wasn't the only thing impressive; her technique was exceptional, too.
At this point, I was sure she'd had formal training.
No, more importantly, it hurt so much!
“What do you think you're doing?!”
It was Seong Ji-hoon's voice.
Clutching my wrist, I awkwardly pushed myself up.
Seong Ji-hoon rushed over without hesitation and helped me to my feet.
“Are you all right?”
No, it hurts like hell.
A loud ringing filled my head, and my wrist hurt as if it were broken.
“I-I'm fine.”
Seong Ji-hoon's gaze shifted toward Seo Ha-yoon and Seo Geon-woo.
“Do you understand what you've just done?”
Ignoring him, Seo Geon-woo came over to me.
“Ha-won, are you okay? I'm sorry...”
But Seong Ji-hoon held out a hand to stop him from approaching. His palm pressed against Seo Geon-woo's chest.
“Do not come any closer. As of this moment, you and your sister are designated as threats to Ms. Ha-won.”
Seo Geon-woo's anxious expression instantly hardened.
The two men exchanged looks.
Most people would've been intimidated by Seong Ji-hoon's build and imposing presence. But unexpectedly, Seo Geon-woo didn't back down at all.
“Who are you? I'm Ha-won's friend. A threat? What are you talking about...?”
“Let's move.”
Seong Ji-hoon ignored Seo Geon-woo and turned to me.
My head was already aching, and this guy was just adding fuel to the fire.
“Cut it out.”
“Pardon?”
“I said cut it the fuck out!”
I shouted before I realized it.
Everyone's eyes turned toward me.
I could feel the gaze of everyone passing nearby land on me, too.
I wanted to die of embarrassment.
Shame and anger were mixed together, and I felt like I was about to explode.
“Guess you do know how embarrassing this is.”
Seo Ha-yoon tossed out a remark.
Smack!
The next scene that unfolded before my eyes was completely unexpected.
Seo Geon-woo had slapped his own younger sister. I was so shocked that I forgot to breathe for a moment.
Seo Ha-yoon raised her venomous eyes and glared fiercely at her brother.
“Did you just hit me?”
“That's enough, Seo Ha-yoon. Ha-won is my friend. Where did you learn to behave like that? I never raised you that way!”
The girl who'd slammed me onto the ground and twisted my wrist had tears welling up in her eyes after getting slapped just once.
“Fuck, seriously... I hope you all die!”
Then she turned and ran off.
Seo Geon-woo called his sister's name, but didn't bother chasing after her.
His gaze turned back to me and Seong Ji-hoon.
“It was clearly wrong of my sister to do something so awful to Ha-won. But I have no reason to apologize to you. Would you let me apologize to Ha-won?”
This was the first time I'd seen Seo Geon-woo like this, with that look in his eyes.
The familiar sight of him, always shrinking back like a loser, flustered and helpless about everything, was nowhere to be seen.
“Don't come any closer. Say it from there.”
But Seo Geon-woo ignored Seong Ji-hoon and walked steadily toward me.
Seong Ji-hoon immediately stepped in front of me.
“If you ignore my warning, I'll have no choice but to use force.”
“Go ahead. I'm not scared.”
“I warned you.”
I realized we were at a hair-trigger standoff, and something was about to happen.
“Mr. Seong Ji-hoon.”
I called his name in a low voice, suppressing my emotions as much as I could.
“Yes.”
“If you lay even one finger on him, you're fired on the spot. No, I'll use everything at my disposal to make sure you can't get a job anywhere. If you're confident, try it.”
He didn't answer, only letting out a quiet sigh.
Then he lowered his head and took a step back.
“You're off work for today. And don't irritate me any more.”
“I'm sorry. I didn't think it through. But leaving work...”
“I won't say it twice. Should I call Secretary Shin right now?”
I brought up Secretary Shin's number on my phone and shoved it in Seong Ji-hoon's face.
“Understood.”
He bowed, then turned and walked toward the hospital entrance.
“Ha-won. I'm really sorry.”
You're next.
You useless bear.
“You did a great job raising your sister.”
“Haa... I really have no excuse. I don't have a thing to say, even if I had ten mouths. If you want me to get on my knees, I will. Ha-yoon's rude because I'm such a failure.”
I couldn't... My wrist was wrecked, so I couldn't hit him.
Well, even if I hit him, it probably wouldn't do anything.
What's the point of hitting someone with busted ribs?
“Forget that. Is it okay to just leave Ha-yoon like that?”
Another sigh—I'd lost track of how many—escaped Seo Geon-woo's lips.
“I don't know, either. Maybe she's going through a really bad phase... I just can't figure out what's going on in her head.”
You couldn't even read my mind when I was a man like you, so how could a useless bear like you possibly manage?
How does Seo Geon-woo keep getting more and more pitiful?
“I’m... sorry.”
The words came out of my mouth.
Seo Geon-woo's eyes widened.
He seemed to freeze for a moment, then started waving both hands frantically.
“No, no! Why are you apologizing, Ha-won? It's all my sister and me...”
“Enough.”
I raised the index finger of my good hand and shut the bear's mouth down.
“How much more are you planning to embarrass me?”
“Ah, I didn't mean to...”
“What about the discharge paperwork? I said I'd take care of it, but I couldn't because I was lying on the ground.”
He scratched the back of his head and replied.
“I took care of it. Maybe I should've come out right away. I was late because I was handling the discharge paperwork, and then you ended up going through that.”
“I told you to stop. You've said enough.”
“Okay.”
“Let's go home for now.”
I turned to leave, but Seo Geon-woo suddenly took hold of my wrist.
He wasn't rough. The gentle way he wrapped his hand around it made my body stiffen for an instant.
It was as if a short circuit had sparked in my wrist, sending a tingling current all the way to my brain.
“W-what are you doing?”
“No, are you sure your wrist's okay? It looks swollen...”
I sharply slapped his hand away with my other one.
“I-I'm telling you it's fine! I'm Jeong Ha-won, something like this is nothing... Ow!”
When Seo Geon-woo pressed the swollen spot with his finger, a sharp pain shot through me.
“It doesn't seem fine.”
“You little...”
I couldn't bring myself to curse at the idiot grinning at me.
In the end, I went back into the hospital with him to get treated.
Luckily, there was no fracture or crack; I'd only strained a ligament a little.
They just wrapped my wrist tightly with a bandage.
“Look at the state of me.”
I'd never even worn a cast or a bandage before.
Ever since becoming a woman, all kinds of things had happened to me. I felt kind of empty and dumbfounded, but strangely, I didn't feel all that bad.
As we headed toward the parking lot where the car was parked, I glanced at Seo Geon-woo.
His face had returned to the one I knew.
‘He looks kind of dependable today.’
I covered my mouth.
My face heated up in an instant.
‘W-what? Why did I suddenly think that...?’
“Huh? What's wrong, Ha-won? Does something else hurt?”
To keep him from noticing how red my face had gotten, I quickly pulled my cap down and turned away.
“N-no, you idiot! Y-you're driving, got it!?”
I snapped at him for no reason.
“Yeah. Of course.”
By the time I got in the car, the heat in my face had died down a little.
“Should I take you home, Ha-won?”
“What are you talking about? We should go to your place. You just got discharged, so why would we go to my house? And what about Ha-yoon?”
“Oh...”
What an exasperating idiot.
But I couldn't figure out why I kept dragging this stupid, exasperating idiot around with me.
“Quit making that dumb face and get moving!”