Episode 25: Juhwan's Personal Nurse
Jihui was bound, completely helpless.
The trash bastard was still latched onto her breasts, suckling at them like a dog in heat, while the man behind her relentlessly worked his fingers into her pussy, teasing and prodding without mercy.
"Mmmmnnn... ngh... ngh... nghhh..."
"What's the matter? Hahaha. Feeling grateful that your oppa's finally sucking on you again?"
Juhwan's shift at the convenience store had ended, and he was making his way leisurely toward the spot where he'd agreed to meet Jihui. He had almost arrived when he realized there was still no sign of her anywhere.
"Hmm... maybe she's running a little late?"
He decided to just stand there and wait for her quietly.
Even after ten minutes, Jihui hadn't shown up.
"Did something happen...?"
He pulled out his phone, found Jihui's number, and pressed the call button.
...But she didn't pick up.
"What the hell...?"
Unease was beginning to gnaw at him. And then—
"Eek!!"
A woman's scream, seemingly from somewhere nearby.
No — it wasn't just any woman's scream.
The tone of the voice sounded close to Jihui's.
His creeping premonition was beginning to turn into reality.
Juhwan headed toward where the scream had come from. The alley stretched on beside a bar, narrow and winding, and the foot traffic grew sparser with every step. Even the glow of the neon signs and streetlamps gradually faded away, leaving a stretch of road so dark it swallowed everything.
Squinting into the blackness, he could just make out a silhouette in the shadows.
"Mmph!.. MMPH!!!!!"
It was Jihui. Looking closer — yes, it was definitely Jihui.
"Jihui!!"
The men who had been assaulting her all turned at once to stare at him.
The scene that greeted Juhwan when he first arrived was truly horrific. Jihui's clothes had been all but torn off, leaving her in nothing but rags, and four men were taking turns groping her body, sucking at her skin, violating her.
"...Oppa... OPPA...!!!!!!"
"What the hell is going on... are you okay?!"
But these were not the kind of men who would sit still while someone filmed a drama scene in front of them.
"Hey... hahaha. So you got yourself a boyfriend in the meantime?"
"Pfft, hahaha. Hm... though for a boyfriend, he's looking a little scrawny, don't you think?"
The men assaulting Jihui began to slink toward Juhwan, one by one.
Juhwan was, to put it mildly, a complete novice when it came to fighting. He found himself backing away without even meaning to, but with Jihui watching right in front of him, he couldn't possibly retreat.
"..I'm calling the police! Don't come any closer!"
THUD!!!
It happened in an instant.
A fist flew at him and slammed into his jaw, and Juhwan collapsed to the ground in a heap without even managing to cry out.
"No!!!! Stop it!!"
The men swarmed in and began stomping on the fallen Juhwan with their boots. He didn't even have the strength to groan; all he could do was curl into a ball and shield himself as best he could, while the men pounded into him without a shred of mercy.
Watching the scene, tears beyond her control came pouring from Jihui's eyes.
"Stop it... OPPA!! Get off him, you bastards!!!!"
"SOMEBODY!!!! Please, help!!! Someone's getting beaten over here!!!!!!"
Perhaps her screaming had finally worked...
Into that dark alley where no one was expected to come, footsteps were slowly beginning to appear.
"What the... was that sound coming from here?"
"Oppa, hurry and go look... see what's going on..."
"Ah, shit... Hyung!! People are coming! Let's bolt before we get caught!"
"Fuck..."
The men who had been beating Juhwan began to scramble away.
And then, the man who had led the assault on Jihui — or to be precise, that bastard from back when Jihui had worked as an op girl and he'd been one of her nightmare customers — stood in front of her, spat out a single parting threat, and vanished.
"Hey... I'll be seeing you again... bitch."
The men disappeared into the even darker depths of the alley.
Once they were gone, the passersby who had come running at Jihui's screams appeared before the two of them — and the sight they found was grim. Half of Jihui's clothes were torn away, and Juhwan lay sprawled on the ground, covered head to toe in dust, his lip split and bruises blooming all over his body.
"Hey there! Are you okay?!"
"Look at that guy.... He's badly hurt... Shouldn't we get him to a hospital?!"
One of the women among them rushed over and took charge of Jihui, who was all but half-naked.
"Are you alright..? I picked up your clothes for you... Hurry and put them on."
As she dressed herself, Jihui kept her eyes fixed on Juhwan the entire time. Throwing on her clothes in a rush, she hurried to his side.
"Oppa.... Are you okay..?? You must be in so much pain..?"
"Uuuugh...... Yeah... it hurts like hell......"
"And you..? Are you okay..???"
"I'm fine..."
That's what she said, but she was anything but fine. And yet there she was, worrying more about Juhwan than about herself.
"Excuse me.. but shouldn't you two be going to a hospital?"
"You're right, oppa..... Come on, let's get to a hospital right now..."
"Yeah......."
The two of them hadn't even managed to eat dinner. Jihui had rushed Juhwan straight to the emergency room of the nearest hospital with its lights still on, where he was treated for the places where his skin had broken open and bled, given antiseptic and first aid before they came back out.
On the way to the hospital, some of the bystanders had helped Jihui support Juhwan as they walked. When they suggested that she really ought to report the men who had done this to the police, Jihui dissuaded them desperately.
In her heart, she wanted nothing more than to hand those bastards — the ones who had left Juhwan in this state — straight over to the authorities. But the moment she made a police report, there was a real chance the police would drag out the fact that Jihui had once worked at an op room, one of those sleazy adult entertainment joints.
What they had done to her, she could endure.
But the fact that Juhwan — who had come to protect her — had been beaten like this because of it, that was something Jihui simply could not bear. And even so, she couldn't bring herself to call the police.
"You must have been scared...? Let's head home for today... I'll walk you back."
"..........."
When Juhwan and Jihui both indicated that they could walk on their own, the passersby who had been supporting them exchanged goodbyes and went their separate ways, leaving only the two of them behind.
They began walking in silence.
".....Oppa...... I'm really... sorry........"
Choking back tears, all Jihui could do was apologize to him, over and over.
"Why are you apologizing...... Those bastards are the ones who're trash..."
"Still......... you got hurt like this... because you said you'd protect me......."
"....Don't worry about that...."
Before they knew it, the two of them had arrived in front of Jihui's place.
".......It should be me walking you home...."
"..So... this is where you've been living....."
The two of them stepped inside Jihui's apartment. The faint warmth of those thugs still lingered, ever so slightly, on her skin.
"Oppa.... You must be exhausted..? Lie down on the bed and rest for a bit...."
"That bastard's spit and... theirs is probably still on my body... I'm going to wash up quick, okay......"
Jihui went in to shower, leaving Juhwan sitting alone and hollow on her bed. From his pocket, he took out a Cheongsimhwan — a small herbal calmative pill.
When they were being taken to the hospital by the bystanders, while Jihui was out of her head with shock, he had slipped away on the pretense of buying ointment at a nearby pharmacy — and that was when he'd picked up the Cheongsimhwan along with it.
Jihui came out of the shower. She'd put on something as light as possible, something like a slip, and sat down quietly beside Juhwan.
"You must have been terrified... here, drink this."
He held out the Cheongsimhwan he'd been carrying. Jihui accepted it and simply stared at it blankly.
".....And when exactly did you find time to buy this...."
"..You really do take such good care of me...... But I......"
An awkward silence hung for a moment.
"So......... don't go out anywhere today, okay? Just stay home... it's dangerous..."
"Well... at least I got you home safe. That's what matters..."
"I should get going now....."
Just as Juhwan made to stand, Jihui clamped both hands around his arm and looked up into his eyes.
It was the look of someone who wanted to say something. But... after a moment's hesitation, Jihui seemed to force back whatever it was she'd wanted to say.
What she wanted, more than anything, was to keep Juhwan there beside her for the whole night. Tonight had been so terrifying... couldn't they just stay together, just this one night...
But one look at Juhwan's condition, and she couldn't bring herself to say it.
It was better, she judged, to let him go home where it was comfortable and let him rest, even a little. Any other man, she couldn't have cared less about — but if it were Juhwan by her side, she knew she would feel safe. Still, she couldn't chain him to this place just to satisfy her own selfishness.
"....Oppa.... Get home safe....... And make sure you put the medicine on when you get there...! Okay?"
"Yeah... you must have been scared out of your mind too.... Drink that Cheongsimhwan, and don't worry about a thing tonight... just sleep. I'm off — I'll text you later..!"
He said his goodbyes and stepped out the door.
Thud.
The door closed, and a heavy silence settled over the entryway. The sound of Juhwan's footsteps grew fainter and fainter until they faded away entirely.
"...."
Jihui stared blankly at the door through which he had disappeared, murmuring to herself.
"......Oppa.... Even I don't know why I'm like this..."
"I don't know what this feeling is either..... It really confused me, and I tried so hard to deny it....."
"But... I don't know if this is the right thing to do..."
"I'm... I'm a filthy woman, aren't I..... Is it really okay for someone like me to like you this openly, this proudly...?"
"I was honest with you, I came to you with everything out in the open.... But if you feel burdened by it... if you push me away..."
"...Then I'd never get to have these quiet moments with you again, would I...?"
Silence again... and then, once more—
"......I just saw you, and already I miss you again... Juhwan oppa........."
With her monologue — her confession — finally over, Jihui lay down on the bed, curled herself up tight, and closed her eyes.
Jihui had sent Juhwan message after message, but no reply ever came.
She went to school. Afraid she might run into him somewhere on campus, she kept a careful eye on every man passing by as she made her way to the lecture hall — but Juhwan was still nowhere to be seen.
"Oppa......... why aren't you answering me.... You're worrying me sick....."
She sat down in the lecture hall. Listened to the lecture. But Jihui's mind was consumed, from start to finish, with worry over Juhwan.
When the lecture ended, she made her way to the department building for the psychology major — Juhwan's department. Just in case she might run into him there, she sat down in front of it and simply waited, staring at nothing.
And then, someone came into view.
It was Dongyeop, walking out of his major class with his girlfriend, Yeyeon.
There was not a single second of hesitation.
The moment she spotted Dongyeop, Jihui shot to her feet and hurried over to him.
"Oh, um... hello.. haha."
"...?? Huh??!! G..Goddess.."
"What? Goddess?!"
"Ah.... um.. haha, sorry to startle you... We've met before, haven't we? When you were hanging out with Juhwan oppa..."
"Y...y..yes yes yes yes... Of course... I remember you, obviously..."
"Um... I'm so sorry to bring this up when we've barely met.... but Juhwan oppa isn't answering his phone... Do you think he might be coming down soon..?"
"...J..Juhwan??"
"Juhwan took a self-granted day off today — he's sick!" Yeyeon cut in.
"Oh... is it... bad?"
"Ah.. yeah! Right! Man, you should've seen him — we video called him and you could tell his whole body was in a state, I mean who even beat him up that badly..."
"Yah, quit spouting nonsense, Dongyeop."
"O...okay....."
"Ah.. sorry, you must have been shocked..? That's not like Juhwan at all... I guess he got into some kind of fight near a bar yesterday, and his injuries were pretty serious... so he was applying medicine and resting at home, from what I could tell."
"If he's not answering, he's probably asleep right now."
"Oh...... I see... Right... thank you so much for telling me..!!"
Jihui bowed politely and turned to go.
"By the way, Dongyeop — you just called that woman 'Goddess,' didn't you?"
"N...no I didn't, when did I ever! Goddess... the only goddess I have is you, noona!!!"
"Yah, who even is that? She's gorgeous... Does Juhwan have a girlfriend????"
"Th..that's... a mystery to me too..."
At that moment, as if something had just struck her, Jihui spun back around and came running up to Dongyeop and Yeyeon again.
"WAAAAAH!!!"
"Yah, for god's sake, quiet down! You scared me half to death!"
"Um... excuse me....."
After hesitating for a long moment, Jihui opened her mouth once more.
"...I'm really sorry to ask, but......."
"C..could you tell me the address of where Juhwan oppa lives..?"
"Y...the address??" Dongyeop and Yeyeon echoed.
Just as Dongyeop and Yeyeon had said, Juhwan had spent the day slathering ointment on himself, granting himself a full self-declared day off, and lying in bed recovering. He'd even found a replacement to cover his shift at the convenience store.
"Ugh......... I'm a little better than yesterday, but... it still hurts......"
Of course, getting beaten half to death last night had hurt like hell. He was somewhat improved from yesterday, but every muscle in his body was still screaming in protest.
Just then, the doorbell at Juhwan's apartment began to ring.
"Uuuh... wh..who is it? So-hee noona? No, So-hee noona wouldn't be home yet..."
Dragging his aching body toward the front door, he called out.
"Who is it?"
From the other side of the door came a trembling voice.
"O..oppa... it's me... Jihui..."
Jihui?!
How does she even know where I live...?
"Jihui..? You mean... Jihui?"
"Y...yes... oppa.... I'm sorry, but... could you open the door quickly...?"
"....!!!!"
He hurried toward the door as fast as his battered body would carry him.
"Oppa, I'm sorry, but please hurry...!"
He opened the door.
As it swung open, there stood Jihui in a long coat, clutching it tightly shut with both hands, a single bag slung over her shoulder.
The moment Juhwan opened the door, Jihui slipped inside in a rush and shut it behind her. And as it clicked closed, she let out a long sigh of relief, for reasons she couldn't quite explain.
"Jihui..? How did you... know where I live.... No, wait, more importantly... are you okay..?"
"Yeah.. I'm fine... but what about you...????"
"Me? I'm a bit better than yesterday, I guess......."
Jihui hesitated for a moment — then spoke.
"...Oppa... I came here... to treat you..."
"Treat me..? I already have the medicine and the ointment..."
"No, oppa... not that..."
Without warning, Jihui threw open the coat she was wearing and cast it off entirely.
"....Whoa....."
The moment the coat fell away, the nurse cosplay she'd been hiding underneath struck Juhwan's eyes like a bolt of lightning.
Before coming to his apartment, Jihui had dressed in the nurse outfit and wrapped the long coat tightly over it, sprinting all the way to Juhwan's place buried inside it.
"..Today... I'm your personal nurse, oppa..."
"May I... take care of you today...?♡"
A shy smile bloomed across Jihui's face.