Chapter 180
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 180
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That guy seems to have a lot on his mind. You should take good care of him.
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Eun-ah read the message Eun-seol had left in the notebook, then looked over at Dokyun.
For a moment, she thought that the sight of him sitting on the sofa, blankly scrolling through his phone, seemed far from that of a man with worries.
‘I-Is he hiding it…?’
Dokyun had always tried to show her only his smiling face, so Eun-ah figured he might be hiding his troubles. She closed the notebook and approached him.
“H-Honeybee….”
“Ah, yes, Eun-ah.”
Eun-ah sat down next to Dokyun and carefully studied his expression.
His gentle smile was, as always, full of bright energy. When they spoke, his eyes were fixed on hers, and just as they always did, they held her reflection completely.
“A-Are you worried about something…?”
“Uh, um… All of a sudden?”
Seeing Dokyun ask the question back with a somewhat puzzled look, as if it were nothing, Eun-ah continued her train of thought.
Eun-seol wasn’t the type to say baseless things.
Everything she knew about her—from what Dokyun had told her, from their conversations in the notebook, and from her experience taking over the company—told her so.
Eun-seol was always sharp; there had to be something wrong with Dokyun.
Eun-ah assumed that Dokyun was putting on an unconcerned expression for her sake.
To him, she was both the person he loved and a patient he had to care for with all his might. He was probably just trying not to worry her.
She was so grateful. It was a sentiment that moved her heart deeply.
But.
“A-Are you sure you’re not worried? O-Or hiding something….”
Eun-ah didn’t want to be the one who was always being taken care of.
To her, love was about two people caring for each other. She knew how painful one-sided affection could be. If Dokyun had worries, she wanted to be someone who could readily listen and share his burdens.
Feeling Eun-ah’s hand cover his own, Dokyun looked at her expression and realized she wasn’t just saying this lightly.
‘Must have been Eun-seol…’
She must have given her a hint.
Feeling a little awkward, Dokyun let out a deflated laugh and answered her.
“Well, I was. But I’m okay now. Eun-seol helped me a lot.”
“Ah…”
Eun-ah nodded as if she understood, but a sullen look appeared on her face.
It was because she thought she hadn’t been of any help this time either.
Watching her, Dokyun wondered how her thoughts could be so transparent on her face. He let out a small chuckle and pulled her into a tight hug.
“Of course, you were the biggest help, Eun-ah.”
“H-Huh…?”
“Just having you by my side gives me strength.”
The words hit her out of nowhere. Hearing this, Eun-ah’s lips twitched into a pouty smile, but feeling like something was still unresolved, she lifted her head from where it was buried in his chest and peeked up at him.
“S-Still, tell me next time, okay…? I-I want to listen to your worries too, Honeybee….”
There was a hint of disappointment in her voice.
Suddenly, Dokyun was struck by how much Eun-ah had matured, and his face softened with emotion.
It felt like just yesterday she was throwing tantrums and whining like a child, but now she had grown up so much.
“…Okay, I promise I’ll tell you next time, Eun-ah.”
“Mhm…”
Eun-ah’s head buried itself in his chest again.
She nuzzled her face against his chest, her heart pounding as she felt his scent seep into her.
Naturally, a certain thought followed.
‘I-I have to cheer Honeybee up…’
I couldn’t help him, but I can comfort him like this.
…a train of thought that was closer to self-justification began to run.
Her hand shot out—.
Eun-ah’s hand went for Dokyun’s groin. It settled there and began to knead him with a rather bewitching motion.
Dokyun narrowed his eyes at Eun-ah’s behavior, which had been going so well before suddenly taking a sharp left turn.
“…Eun-ah?”
“Ch-Cheering you up…”
Heh, Eun-ah grinned.
Dokyun felt all the emotion that had been welling up inside him turn to dust and scatter in an instant.
“…This won’t do.”
“Heek!”
Dokyun stood up, still holding Eun-ah in his arms. She let out a delighted shriek.
‘So much for maturing.’
She wasn’t maturing; she was just getting lewder.
Dokyun decided that this lewd demon, who got worked up at any given moment, needed to be taught a lesson about what true righteousness was. He carried her swiftly toward the bedroom.
That day, Dokyun used up all his internal energy to finally vanquish the lewd demon and succeeded in protecting the peace of the bedroom.
*
“You’ve gotten so much better,” the doctor said.
It was their biweekly hospital visit. Eun-ah’s doctor smiled so widely it smoothed out all his wrinkles, his voice full of joy as he continued speaking to her.
“You’ve improved at a truly astonishing rate. Hmm, in all my years doing this work, you’re the first patient I’ve seen recover this quickly, Eun-ah.”
“I-Is that so….”
A small smile touched Eun-ah’s lips.
“I-It’s all because Honeybee helped me….”
“He’s a remarkable person. It’s not easy to be that devoted.”
“Y-Yes…! H-Honeybee is amazing…!”
The reply came out full of energy. After saying that, Eun-ah fidgeted with her fingertips and murmured to the doctor.
“I-I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you….”
It was an apology.
To the old doctor who had been her physician for so long, the one she had always tried to push away with open hostility, Eun-ah was finally able to offer such an apology.
The doctor’s eyes widened at her apology before he let out a hearty laugh and waved his hands dismissively.
“This is my job. You don’t need to feel sorry in the slightest. Hmm, seeing you recover like this is rewarding enough for me.”
After saying that, the doctor put on a slightly playful expression and added, “Besides, you’re a VIP client, aren’t you?”
Blink, blink. Eun-ah blinked her eyes, then let out a ‘Pfft!’ and burst into laughter at the doctor’s words, nodding.
Eun-ah was no longer afraid of the doctor.
*
That same evening.
Dokyun trudged to the front door and opened it.
‘It’s the weekend.’
Tomorrow was the weekend. Finally, the weekend.
Having finished a particularly grueling week, Dokyun felt tears of sheer joy welling up in his eyes as he took off his shoes and stepped inside.
“I’m home.”
“O-Oh, you’re back…!”
With the pitter-patter of footsteps, Eun-ah darted out and threw herself into Dokyun’s arms.
Seeing Eun-ah looking especially cheerful today, Dokyun offered a small smile and asked, “Looks like something good happened?”
“Hmm?”
“Your expression is so bright.”
Eun-ah gave a bashful smile at his words and nodded.
“I-I get to reduce the number of pills I’m taking…!”
“Oh, really?”
Dokyun’s face brightened instantly at her words.
“That’s a relief. I was thinking you were taking too many pills as it was.”
“Y-Yeah…! N-Now I only have to take the antidepressants and… the panic disorder medication! I don’t have to take the rest…!”
The amount of medication she had to take had been reduced significantly.
“But is it okay to reduce the dosage so suddenly?”
Was it really okay to cut back so abruptly? As Dokyun, who had no medical knowledge, wondered this, Eun-ah nodded and answered.
“Y-Yeah… H-He said it’s good to get into the habit of enduring it, even if it’s hard….”
“I see.”
Indeed, when he thought about it that way, it made sense.
Seeing Eun-ah smiling with such a bright face warmed Dokyun’s heart, and he spoke again.
“Hmm, then I should get you a present to help you keep it up. Is there anything you want?”
Eun-ah’s gaze dropped. At the end of her line of sight was Dokyun’s groin.
Dokyun flinched. He shuddered, then narrowed his eyes and continued.
“…Besides that.”
“H-How could I possibly need anything else…?”
Heh. Eun-ah grinned.
How can she be so lewd!
Dokyun tried to suppress his surging emotions, shaking his head as he spoke.
“That’s for later.”
“Ehh….”
Dokyun gently stroked the hair of Eun-ah, who was pouting at his words. Thinking he needed to change the subject, he opened his mouth.
“Weeell… how about we eat first?”
“Ah, yes….”
At the word ‘food,’ her head perked up as if by magic.
Dokyun thought about how serious Eun-ah was about cooking and burst out laughing.
*
Late that night, after they had finished eating and showering, Dokyun was about to enter the bedroom when he felt his body freeze.
“…Eun-ah?”
Of course, it was because Eun-ah, who had gone into the bedroom first, was in a peculiar state.
“T-Teacher….”
Teacher. Calling him that, Eun-ah sat on the bed, dressed in the school uniform she had taken out of storage sometime ago.
No, that wasn’t all.
Her favorite handcuffs were fastened around her wrists, and her eyes were covered with a blindfold.
It was an outfit with impure intentions.
While Dokyun was reeling in bewilderment, the Eun-ah on the bed, her face bright red, squirmed and stammered.
“E-Eun-ah is a bad student…! P-Please punish me quickly…!”
Dokyun’s hand instinctively went to cover his face.
What is this ridiculous sight?
Unable to bear looking at the outrageous scene, Dokyun covered his eyes, but even so, he could feel his lower body stirring as he took one step after another toward the bedroom.
“T-Teacher…?”
“You little rascal!”
“Kyaa!”
That night, Dokyun did his utmost to discipline Eun-ah with the ‘rod of love’ hanging between his legs.