Prey (Lee Seohan) - Chapter 124
“Not that you need me to explain that to you.”
Taewoo gave an awkward smile, knowing better than anyone about Do Jeonghan’s trauma.
“…….”
Jeonghan silently drank his whiskey. Watching him, Taewoo crossed his arms over his chest.
“But she’s young, and with so much time having passed, I’m not sure if she’ll be accepted as a witness in court.”
“They said they secured the hospital records from back then. At the clinic she recently visited, her statements about the incident site were consistent, so they confirmed it’s possible to file her as a witness.”
Taewoo nodded with a relieved expression.
“That’s a relief. So, is there anything I need to do now?”
“Please check the file of case records you organized back then to see if there’s anything I might have missed.”
“Okay. And?”
Jeonghan met Taewoo’s gaze directly.
“I’ve assigned someone to keep an eye on Seol Hee-nam. I’ll ensure reports come in simultaneously, so please make sure he doesn’t approach Seol Suhyeon.”
“You’ve already assigned security to Seol Suhyeon too, right?”
“You know what kind of person Seol Hee-nam is.”
Though he wore a smile, his eyes were sharp. Seeing that gaze, Taewoo spoke as if he understood.
“…Yeah, you’re right. I’ll take care of it.”
Taewoo, who had answered, drank his whiskey with a heavy expression.
Jeonghan also slowly let the golden-hued whiskey trickle past his lips. Even though he was drinking strong alcohol, he oddly felt more alert.
Now that they had found the witness, Lee Bona, the process ahead should become much smoother.
So why did he feel… so drained?
Jeonghan poured himself another glass of whiskey and brought it to his lips.
Trauma as a witness.
Especially when experienced at a young age, it becomes more deeply ingrained.
That was something Jeonghan understood better than anyone, just as Taewoo had mentioned.
Jeonghan recalled when he was six years old.
That day, Jeonghan had been proudly showing off the airplane he made in kindergarten to his mom, Han Eunju, and was eagerly waiting to show it to his dad, Lee Cheol-eum, as well.
Since Cheol-eum often worked late, Eunju gently tried to comfort him.
“How about going to sleep and showing it to Dad tomorrow?”
“No! I’m going to show it to Dad.”
Young Jeonghan rubbed his sleepy eyes, stubbornly waiting for Cheol-eum.
Finally, past 10 p.m., Cheol-eum came home.
“Dad!”
“Oh, yeah. Suho.”
Cheol-eum, looking more tired than usual, smiled softly as he saw Jeonghan running toward him.
“Dad, today I…”
At that moment, a sudden, urgent knocking came from the door behind him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
When Cheol-eum opened the front door, Seol Hee-nam was standing there.
“We need to talk.”
At Seol Hee-nam’s irritated voice, Cheol-eum let out a troubled sigh.
“We already talked earlier.”
“I’m not convinced. This situation…”
“Let’s go outside. We’ll talk outside. I’ll be back in a bit.”
Cheol-eum said to Eunju before stepping out with Seol Hee-nam.
Jeonghan quickly went to his room, grabbed his airplane, and hurriedly followed them outside.
“I should show it off to Mister, too!”
“Suho, that’s…”
Before Eunju could stop him, Jeonghan ran out of the house.
Cheol-eum had taken Seol Hee-nam to an alley a bit of a distance from their home. Because of this, Jeonghan, holding his airplane, had to run quite a while with his small body.
In the dark alley at night, he almost lost sight of them, but fortunately, he spotted the two turning a corner.
‘Thank goodness.’
Jeonghan ran eagerly, ready to show off his airplane to both Cheol-eum and Seol Hee-nam.
Huh…?
But beyond the corner, he heard the two arguing. The harsh tone didn’t sound like the voice of his father’s friend that he usually knew.
Feeling inexplicably scared, Jeonghan peeked out from behind a utility pole, carefully observing the situation.
“Are you insane? Are you really going to throw away such a great opportunity?!”
Seol Hee-nam, his face full of anger, shouted at Cheol-eum.
Cheol-eum quietly responded,
“I’m not throwing it away. I’m waiting.”
“What better opportunity than Samhwa Company could you possibly get? Selling it for a high price right now is the best move for us! Why are you turning down a chance to make a fortune?!”
“It’s not ready yet. The research results aren’t even complete.”
“What does that matter?! Samhwa is willing to buy it as it is!”
Seol Hee-nam, clenching his fists and swinging them in frustration, yelled loudly, while Cheol-eum silently stared at him.
“…Is it because of your debts?”
“W-what?”
At those words, Seol Hee-nam flinched momentarily.
