Love Born of Pity Chapter 52

“I teach piano here.”

“Piano?”

“Yes, piano.”

“Ah, that’s why your hands are so pretty.”

Choi Suhyeok nodded in admiration. He hadn’t imagined Kwon Jiho in a profession involving musical instruments, but now that he heard it, nothing seemed more fitting for him than the piano. He followed Kwon Jiho as he went to retrieve his drink. Then, at the barista’s words to pick up his order, he turned back and hurriedly grabbed his coffee.

“Can I take a look around the academy?”

“Yes? Ah… Why… Why?”

“Do you have children by any chance?”

“No way. I’m single. Did you forget that you mistook me for Mr. Kwon Jiho on that blind date?”

“Then why…”

Kwon Jiho couldn’t understand why Choi Suhyeok wanted to see his piano academy, which had nothing much to see. He understood if he had children, but if he was single, it seemed even more irrelevant. At Kwon Jiho’s dubious gaze, Choi Suhyeok smiled and opened his mouth.

“I have a niece. A girl. My brother said she should learn an instrument. I thought maybe I could help him choose if I knew what kind of place it is?”

“Ah. How old is she?”

“She’s still young.”

At his added words, Kwon Jiho’s stiff expression relaxed. Choi Suhyeok followed Kwon Jiho as he led him inside, saying “This way.” As they entered the academy, the scent emanating from Kwon Jiho subtly wafted around. No matter which way he turned his head, he could smell it at a similar intensity. Including the alpha’s pheromones mixed within.

“How many students do you have?”

“Four. Three elementary school students and one middle school student. The children are at the academy for about an hour, including lessons and practice.”

Choi Suhyeok, slowly looking around the interior, asked if he could open the practice rooms. As soon as Kwon Jiho nodded, he opened the doors, checked the space, and examined the pianos. Despite knowing nothing about instruments, he maintained a serious expression throughout.

“There are a lot of cameras. More than you’d expect for the size of the academy.”

He scratched his chin as he looked at the CCTVs installed even on the ceilings of the practice rooms. There were too many cameras for an academy with only four students. Just counting the visible ones, there were seven. Wasn’t it a misnomer to call them CCTVs? Shouldn’t they be called surveillance cameras? Unlike Choi Suhyeok, who felt uneasy, Kwon Jiho seemed unconcerned.

“They said it would be good to install them without any blind spots for safety reasons. The practice room footage is shared with the parents, so they can feel at ease sending their children here.”

Kwon Jiho explained as he slowly followed behind Choi Suhyeok. He didn’t mention that although he had a niece, she wasn’t old enough to attend an academy yet. Choi Suhyeok quietly nodded and leaned against the table in the center of the hall.

“The academy is nice. Clean, too.”

“Thank you.”

“Do you have a business card you could give me?”

“Ah, I don’t have a business card. I’ll give you this instead. I prepared it for the opening, and the academy’s phone number is on it.”

Blushing as if incredibly shy, Kwon Jiho held out a piano-shaped pamphlet. He usually only smiled politely, awkwardly, or remained expressionless. He was pretty. Literally. Choi Suhyeok took in this new side of him. Unable to look away, he stared intently and slipped the pamphlet Kwon Jiho gave him into his jacket pocket.

“I should get going.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

Kwon Jiho moved to see him out, following him for the short distance. The door opened, and Choi Suhyeok turned around again. As he was about to say “See you again,” someone suddenly pushed his shoulder and entered. Choi Suhyeok frowned deeply at being so unceremoniously jostled.

“Hey!”

“Oppa!”

Kwon Jiho’s eyes widened in surprise at the voices that simultaneously cut through the air.

“Oppa?”

“Ah, Heeyeon.”

Kwon Jiho bowed his head again toward Choi Suhyeok, who stood there, bewildered by the situation.

“Be careful. You come in. How did you get here? Did you come alone?”

Kwon Jiho closed the door after ushering Choi Suhyeok out. Choi Suhyeok, pushed outside, carefully examined the unexpected intruder. His girlfriend? He quickly recalled that Kwon Jiho had a partner and turned to leave. His younger sister? They didn’t resemble each other at all. A younger acquaintance? He thought this was more likely.

Kwon Jiho couldn’t even blink as he looked at Kwon Heeyeon, who had suddenly come to find him. He didn’t know how she knew about this place, or why she had even come here. Kwon Heeyeon passed by Kwon Jiho, who had even forgotten to tell her to sit down, and exhaled roughly, leaning on the table before collapsing onto the floor.

“Heeyeon!”

“Heu, heu, haa…”

Kwon Heeyeon, trembling, stretched out her hand toward Kwon Jiho, who was hesitating whether to help her up, and gripped his arm tightly. Catching her breath, she leaned completely against him.

Kwon Jiho managed to lift Kwon Heeyeon and seat her in a chair, then brought a bottle of water. As he opened the cap and handed it to her, Kwon Heeyeon emptied half the bottle without pausing for breath. Kwon Jiho couldn’t hide his worried gaze as he anxiously checked on her.

“Oppa.”

“…Yes.”

“Ha. Why haven’t you come to see me all this time? Don’t tell me you’re doing this to me now because of what I said back then… Because I said that to you?”

Kwon Jiho frowned slightly at Kwon Heeyeon’s words. The headache that had subsided for a few days began to flare up again. His head throbbed.

“Or what, did you want to make me realize… that I can’t do anything without you?”

“…It’s not like that. How… How did you get here?”

“What do you mean, it’s not like that? Why have you changed so much, Oppa? Is that what’s important right now, how I got here? Aren’t you even curious about how I’ve been?”

Kwon Heeyeon, looking at Kwon Jiho with eyes full of resentment, slumped over the table and sobbed. Kwon Jiho sat like a sinner, watching his sister’s thin back heave.

Kwon Heeyeon abruptly lifted her tear-stained face and roughly wiped her cheeks. Her face, which he had only seen in pictures recently, seemed to have gained a little weight. Unlike back then, when she was clearly ill, her cheeks now had a healthy glow, as if she was recovering smoothly. Kwon Heeyeon’s face flushed red, and she sniffled.

“Uncle told me. He asked if I didn’t know you were running an academy. That you opened a piano academy. I… I thought you were okay. So I thought you were still playing the piano.”

“Uncle… went to see you?”

“Are you upset with me, Oppa? Is that why you’re like this? I know I said some harsh things back then, but you shouldn’t be doing this to me, should you? Were you going to just pay my hospital bills and pretend I didn’t exist? Even Uncle, after hearing my story, said you were going too far? That you shouldn’t treat your sister like this?”

“…Heeyeon.”

At his weak call of her name, Kwon Heeyeon, emboldened, raised her voice. Kwon Jiho tightly closed and then opened his eyes, wiping his face.

“What am I supposed to do? Should I kneel down and beg for forgiveness? Should I?”

“It’s not… It’s not like that. I was worried… that you would be uncomfortable. There’s no other reason.”

“…Really? You weren’t angry with me, and you didn’t come because you were worried I’d be uncomfortable? Is that right?”

“That’s right.”

Kwon Jiho didn’t bother mentioning that he had been hurt or shocked back then. Thinking from Kwon Heeyeon’s perspective, it was understandable that she would say those things. He could understand because she was his family, his younger sister. He was clearly responsible for Kwon Heeyeon ending up like this.

“I’ll take you back.”

“No. I’ll go alone. This place, that man…”

“…Man?”

“No, never mind. I’ll go. Don’t come out. I’m getting good treatment, and I can go out now. I didn’t sneak out. I got permission from the hospital. They said I can be discharged soon if I just do a bit more rehabilitation. But… You said our house is gone? Uncle said he sold it all. Then… where will I go when I’m discharged?”

Kwon Heeyeon revealed her reason for coming. She pouted and rubbed her eyes. She still seemed upset, but she didn’t snap at or blame Kwon Jiho any further. She sensed that she shouldn’t act like she did before, no matter how kind Kwon Jiho was.

She was in the hospital now, but once discharged, she had nowhere to go, and she had no money. Her only family were Kwon Jiho and her uncle, but her uncle didn’t seem capable of taking her in. Regrettably, the only person who could take responsibility for her was her older brother.

“I’m glad you’re getting good treatment. As for the house… I was just about to look into it. I’ll take care of everything. Don’t worry.”

Kwon Jiho smiled wearily. He felt like he’d missed something in Kwon Heeyeon’s words, but he didn’t have the energy to delve into it. At his words that he’d take care of everything, Kwon Heeyeon looked like she wanted to say something but remained silent. Kwon Jiho followed Kwon Heeyeon out of the academy, hailed a taxi for her, and handed her some money.

“I don’t need the money.”

“Take it, Heeyeon.”

“…”

“Just… take it. How did you get here by taxi? Did you borrow it from the lady who takes care of you?”

Kwon Heeyeon, blushing bright red without answering, took the money Kwon Jiho offered. She had said that he was disgusting, that he was supporting her by selling his body, but that was in the past, when she was overwhelmed by her emotions. She had always regretted saying those things. It was thanks to that money that she was able to comfortably receive luxurious rehabilitation treatment, just as the caregiver had said.

“You’ll come to the hospital, right? You’re not going to abandon me just because I said those things? I, that was…”

“I’ll go. I’ll come see you, so don’t come out like this, Heeyeon. You haven’t fully recovered yet. I’m worried. Be careful.”

Just as Kwon Heeyeon reached out to grab Kwon Jiho, he stepped back, pulling away as if he didn’t want to be touched.