WAK 29

Chapter 29

When Hana opened her eyes, it was late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set.

“Umm…”

As she tried to sit up, Hana froze upon realizing something was pressed against her head.

She lazily lifted her half-open eyes at an upward angle.

Jeonghan’s temple was resting right against the top of her head.

“Gasp!”

Startled, Hana quickly clamped her hand over her mouth to muffle the sound.

What should I do…

Unable to move this way or that, she remained stiffly leaning against his shoulder.

A scent she hadn’t noticed until then began to tease her senses.

Her heart pounded faster and faster. Was her accelerated heartbeat due to holding her breath, or because of her body pressed against his?

It was impossible for an observant man not to notice such a small movement.

Sensing Jeonghan waking up, she held her breath tightly once more.

He raised his head. As their joined bodies separated, that side of her arm felt suddenly empty and cold.

Hana quickly adjusted her bathrobe. Fortunately, the overlapping parts hadn’t come undone.

“You’re awake?”

“Yes.”

“It’s been a really long time since I took a nap.”

Jeonghan stretched with his arms raised over his head.

“Me too,” she mumbled in a small voice.

Unlike him, who was stretching lazily, her heart was a blazing fire.

Jeonghan lowered the arms he had stretched out, drawing a large circle in the air.

Hana flinched and shivered as his arm wrapped around her shoulders. Somehow, she ended up snuggled right into his embrace.

If she kept living with him, it seemed things like this would happen all the time.

“I don’t think this is a good idea.”

Without context, he looked at her as if asking what she meant.

Hana worried with a complicated expression.

Her heart was racing like this over the smallest things; would it really be okay for her to spend several days living with him?

“I think it’s a great idea.”

As if he grasped the meaning even without her spelling it out, he whispered meaningfully.

At the moment, her appearance wasn’t exactly in a charming state.

“If I thrust out my lips for a kiss looking like this, I feel like it’d be way too pathetic…” Hana said dejectedly.

“Kang Hana.”

She looked back up at him with eyes like a defeated puppy.

Jeonghan’s arm wrapped around her shoulder. Hana stared at him in surprise.

“I genuinely feel like I want things to work out well between us.”

She blinked once.

“That’s just how attractive you are.”

She thought it might just be empty flattery. Yet, even so, the heavy burden weighing on her heart inevitably lifted.

Night fell, pitch-black.

Hana, who had been lying blankly in the middle of the bed, sat straight up at the sound of a knock.

“Hana.”

“Yes?”

“Could you open the door for a second?”

Stepping down from the bed, she went over to the vanity, looked into the mirror, and smoothed down her hair with her hands. No matter how she looked at it, she couldn’t get used to her swollen face.

When Hana opened the door just a crack, Jeonghan’s hand pushed right through the gap.

“Catch.”

What he handed her was none other than a pair of oversized sunglasses.

“What is this?”

“Wear these if you feel uncomfortable.”

She stared down at the sunglasses she had been handed.

An unexpected wave of emotion welled up in her chest.

“Thank you.”

She put the sunglasses on her face. They were a bit big, but that made her like them even more.

“And this.”

Through the narrow gap, he slid in several shopping bags.

“What’s this?”

“Clothes.”

She looked down at the bathrobe she was wearing.

“Thank you. I actually really needed some.”

“Put them on and come out. Let’s eat.”

Finished with his business, he closed the slightly ajar door.

Hana returned to the bed with slumped shoulders. Taking off the sunglasses, she sat on the edge of the bed and peered inside the shopping bags.

“Why is there so much…”

Pulling items out one by one, a variety of clothes emerged—pajamas, loungewear, and even a dress. There was underwear in various styles, too.

“My goodness, where on earth did he get all this?”

Hana took off the bathrobe and put on the undergarments. Miraculously, the size was a

perfect fit.

She picked out a white T-shirt and jeans from the pile of clothes and put on the sunglasses. She finally felt like she looked somewhat human again.

Covering her bruises with the sunglasses made her feel a bit more at ease.

She calmed her nerves at the door and quietly stepped out into the living room.

At the slightest rustle, Jeonghan turned around to look at her.

“Do you need anything else?”

She wished she had a hair tie, but she shook her head. She was already receiving so much help that it felt rude to ask for minor things.

“Let’s order room service.”

She remembered that normally, Jeonghan was the kind of person who would go all the way down to the lobby coffee shop just to grab a cup of coffee.

“Aren’t you feeling cooped up?”

“About what?”

“I’m fine, so it’s okay if you go outside to eat.”

“Alone?”

He scoffed, pointing at himself.

“I can’t just leave you here and do that.”

He said with a light laugh.

Lifting the room phone on the desk, he turned and asked her,

“Is there anything specific you want to eat?”

“Meat.”

She answered immediately without a second thought. Then, feeling like she had answered a bit too fast, she laughed awkwardly.

“I ate porridge during the day, so I want something hearty.”

“Got it.”

Just as she wanted, he ordered high-quality steak, wine, and a non-alcoholic beverage for her.

The two of us sat facing each other in awkward silence.

“What should we do after eating?”

“There’s nothing much to do, so let’s just watch a movie.”

She spoke as if she had completely forgotten about falling asleep while watching a movie earlier in the day.

“Alright.”

Whenever he was with Hana, Jeonghan found himself smiling repeatedly.

To Hana and Jeonghan, the movie acted like a sleeping pill.

Within ten minutes of the film starting, their eyes grew heavy, and both of them ended up falling asleep with their legs propped up on the low table.

Sitting apart at first, the two gradually drew closer in their sleep. The glasses Hana wore slipped down, hanging precariously on the bridge of her nose.

She burrowed into his embrace seeking warmth, and he, shifting in his sleep, wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

The four legs resting on the table became hopelessly tangled together. Hana wrapped her arms around his waist as if hugging a giant teddy bear.

The soft, steady sound of their breathing filled the space peacefully.

The sky began to grow dim. The pitch-black night sky slowly dyed into an indigo hue.

Of the two, Jeonghan was the first to wake up.

Opening his eyes without a sound, his heart stirred when he saw Hana sleeping while hugging him.

Looking at her with wavering eyes, Jeonghan carefully raised his body so as not to wake her.

Barely managing to get off the sofa, he moved her legs—which had been uncomfortably propped up on the table—onto the sofa so she could sleep more comfortably, and laid her hunched upper body down flat.

He knelt on one knee on the floor right in front of her.

Seeing the crookedly hanging sunglasses brought a smile to his face.

She must have put them on to hide her bruises, but perched precariously on the tip of her nose, the sunglasses exposed more than half of the bruises anyway.

With a gentle smile, he straightened her sunglasses and gazed quietly down at her face.

Jeonghan wanted to step away so Hana wouldn’t feel embarrassed when she woke up.

After changing into workout clothes, he quietly left the suite and headed to the fitness center.

Though the sun wasn’t quite at its peak yet, it had risen pretty high by the time Hana woke up.

As she burrowed into the sofa’s backrest, she felt a lack of oxygen and sleepily lifted her messy head.

The glasses Jeonghan had carefully placed on her earlier had slipped crookedly down her face again.

Realizing she had woken up in the living room rather than a bedroom, she scrambled up into a sitting position.

Amidst her grogginess, she fixed her hair and straightened her glasses.

By the way, where had Jeonghan gone?

Glancing around, she stood up from her seat.

Right on cue, Jeonghan—who had gone out early in the morning—returned.

Hearing the door open, Hana quickly rubbed her eyes and wiped her face dry.

“You’re awake?”

“Why did I fall asleep here…….”

She glanced awkwardly at the large sofa with an embarrassed expression.

“You fell asleep while watching the movie. Aren’t you hungry? Do you want some bread?”

He had just returned from working out and buying freshly baked bread from the bakery.

Perhaps because she had just woken up, she didn’t have much of an appetite, but drawn in by the savory scent of bread, she walked over to Jeonghan.

“What is this?”

“Americano. I bought a warm one since it’s morning, is that okay?”

“Yes.”

She pulled out a chair and sat down.

The two of them sat facing each other and enjoyed breakfast.

“I need to drop by the company for a bit.”

“You’re going to work even though it’s Sunday?”

“There are some things I need to take care of.”

He took a sip of his coffee.

“How about taking a half-body bath while I’m gone?”

“A half-body bath?”

“Your body is still aching all over.”

He said, gesturing with his eyes toward her arms and legs.

“I thought soaking in warm water might be good for the pain.”

He said it casually, but his thoughtfulness was palpable.

“Thank you.”

“You’re just using the bathtub that’s already here, so you don’t need to thank me.”

“Then I’ll thank the bathtub instead.”

Hana retorted coyly, causing Jeonghan to chuckle.