Flower Fiancé Chapter 79

“You know me. I eat anything well.”

“Still. Think it over carefully. The Managing Director called again on his way to work. He said to make whatever you want to eat, Mr. Yeonwoo.”

“Mr. Moohyuk did?”

“Yes. He said not to worry about the cost of ingredients and to make whatever you want, so take your time thinking and let me know.”

The hands that had been pulling out the purchased ingredients from the shopping bag one by one paused for a moment.

These days, Choi Moohyuk was spending his days busier than ever, to the point where he seemed completely overwhelmed. He was also working in his study at home more often. Most of it was company work, but among it all, there must also be matters related to Lee Hyunjoon. The fact that he had personally called the housekeeper to ask this favor despite being so busy made Ji Yeonwoo feel endlessly grateful and yet also apologetic.

Was it really okay to just sit still and do nothing?

He couldn’t help with company work, but if he thought about it carefully, there might be ways he could help regarding Lee Hyunjoon.

“Do you like soup broths too? Like beef bone broth?”

Ji Yeonwoo, lost in thought, paused at the housekeeper’s question and lifted his head.

“I do like beef bone broth. But I know it takes a lot of time and effort….”

Before he could finish, the housekeeper set two well-compressed packs of bones on the kitchen island and brought over a large pot from somewhere.

“This is oxtail. I’ll simmer it down well and freeze it, so take it out and eat it whenever you don’t have an appetite. After all, bone broth is the best when your body is run down.”

With practiced hands, she tore open the packs, put the oxtail in the pot, and filled it with water. She said that soaking it like this for two to three hours to draw out the blood would yield a clearer broth.

“Don’t even think about helping—go rest. I’ll call you when it’s done.”

As Ji Yeonwoo stood in front of the kitchen island, wondering if there was anything he could help with, the housekeeper noticed and urged him not to stand there and to go out. Reluctantly pushed back into the living room, Ji Yeonwoo sat on the sofa and turned on the television.

The TV was airing a news special about the current state of alphas’ human rights violations against omegas. Phenotype individuals made up only about 10% of the total population, but most of the crimes occurring within that group were directly linked to life and had reached dangerous levels. The problem was that most alphas belonged to the privileged classes with social power, so their crimes rarely came to light.

There was someone around Ji Yeonwoo who was a similar case—Lee Hyunjoon was exactly that. It was illegal to purchase pheromone enhancers without a prescription, but Lee Hyunjoon had exploited loopholes in the law to divert drugs and used them to satisfy his own selfish interests. And the full brunt of that damage had fallen on Ji Yeonwoo.

“I really shouldn’t have let Lee Hyunjoon go like that that day.”

Letting Lee Hyunjoon, who had sneaked into his house, slip away right before his eyes remained a lingering regret. Of course, Choi Moohyuk had beaten him nearly half to death, but that still didn’t quell his anger.

Ji Yeonwoo didn’t know what method Choi Moohyuk was using to find Lee Hyunjoon, but if he had gone into hiding with determination, it wouldn’t be easy for him to come out on his own.

‘If only there were a more certain way to put him behind bars…!’

His train of thought was cut off as if snipped with scissors. Ji Yeonwoo’s pupils dilated as he drew in a small breath.

It was because a memory he had forgotten had finally brushed past him.

∞ ∞ ∞

Among the side dishes portioned out in small containers, Choi Moohyuk tore off a small piece of the braised beef and placed it on top of Ji Yeonwoo’s rice bowl. His eyes met Ji Yeonwoo’s, who looked up sharply. Choi Moohyuk signaled with his eyes as if to say, go ahead and eat.

Ji Yeonwoo’s chopsticks weren’t moving well. Since earlier, he had only been picking at the rice grains and the side dishes in front of him, glancing furtively at Choi Moohyuk seated across from him. He looked like someone who had something to say.

Choi Moohyuk didn’t urge him but waited quietly. After hesitating for a long while, Ji Yeonwoo quietly set down his chopsticks.

“Mr. Moohyuk, I have something to tell you.”

Sensing Ji Yeonwoo’s unusual mood, tension also flickered across Choi Moohyuk’s face.

“I know you’ll handle things well on your own, but still, I wanted to help even just a little.”

Choi Moohyuk, who had been listening quietly, raised one eyebrow.

“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on purpose, but I heard that Lee Hyunjoon has gone into hiding.”

Choi Moohyuk nodded in agreement.

“Yes. Ever since he ran away that day, he’s vanished completely and hasn’t shown up.”

“You don’t plan on reporting him to the police, do you?”

“That will be a last resort. We don’t have proper evidence anyway, but more than that, I have a strong desire to handle this one with my own hands.”

“Then, by any chance—what if there were evidence of him stalking me and using violence against me? Wouldn’t it be useful later, even if not right away?”

Choi Moohyuk, who had been quietly listening, had a sharp glint enter his eyes.

“But there isn’t any, is there? That day, it was just Lee Hyunjoon and you in your house, and I arrived late and didn’t know the preceding situation, so there’s nothing that could be called evidence….”

“Mr. Moohyuk, that day, it wasn’t just Lee Hyunjoon and me in that place.”

Continuing the conversation, Choi Moohyuk finally sensed something unusual and narrowed his eyes.

“What do you mean by that?”

Ji Yeonwoo set his expression with firm resolve and opened his mouth.

“Actually, I have a home camera that I installed when I moved into that house.”

“A home camera, you say?”

Choi Moohyuk asked back in surprise.

“Yes. The installation technician recommended it when I set up the internet. He said these days it’s a must-have for people living alone, so I had it installed, but I’ve never actually looked at it once.”

“Where is it?”

“It’s attached in a corner of the ceiling. Since it’s a home-use model, it’s not that big, so he said it wouldn’t be very noticeable. If it’s working properly, it probably captured everything from that day. It’ll be dark since I didn’t have the lights on, but my place gets a lot of natural light, so it shouldn’t be so dark that you can’t make anything out.”

Having heard that much, Choi Moohyuk remained silent for a while. Ji Yeonwoo had thought it wouldn’t be entirely useless information, but seeing Choi Moohyuk’s serious expression made his heart uneasy.

Usually, at times like this, Choi Moohyuk would read his mind and speak, but no matter how many times he experienced it, it seemed Ji Yeonwoo still hadn’t developed the knack for reading anyone’s mind.

“Alright. I’ll check the material myself, so….”

Choi Moohyuk paused, then neatly piled side dishes onto Ji Yeonwoo’s rice bowl, which he had barely touched.

“Mr. Yeonwoo, don’t worry and just eat your meal.”

They were all his favorites—marinated beef bulgogi and stir-fried potato strips.

“Your rice hasn’t gone down at all.”

“Ah….”

Seeing Ji Yeonwoo sitting still with his chopsticks in hand, Choi Moohyuk continued.

“Eat it all without leaving any. That way, you can get tested and treated sooner.”

Ji Yeonwoo, who had been staring quietly, let out a small breath. The tension eased, and his stiff body relaxed.

Only then did he take a little bit of the rice and the side dishes Choi Moohyuk had placed for him and put them in his mouth, meeting his eyes. The corners of his previously taut lips curled up slightly.

∞ ∞ ∞

Choi Moohyuk sat with his laptop open on his study desk, lost in thought. In front of him lay a silver USB drive the size of a single finger joint.

Inside the USB was the footage from that day. Park Jincheol had handed over the backed-up USB and added that if he had been even a little later, they wouldn’t have been able to salvage it.

Contrary to his concerns, the home camera installed in Ji Yeonwoo’s house was working fine. However, due to the nature of household CCTV, storage space was limited, so it only saved seven days’ worth, and the oldest recordings were being overwritten and erased. As it happened, the day Park Jincheol went to back it up was exactly when it was transitioning from day six to seven, so they had narrowly managed to save the footage.

So far, so good. But even with the incriminating video in hand, Choi Moohyuk couldn’t easily bring himself to open it. To be honest, he was afraid of seeing what was inside.

Though it had faded a little now, the bruise marks still visible on Ji Yeonwoo’s face and the clearly scabbed-over burst lip—the footage would detail exactly how those had come to be.

Ji Yeonwoo wouldn’t have wanted to show himself being hit or mistreated by someone either. The way he had hesitated and couldn’t bring himself to speak plainly conveyed that feeling completely, so Choi Moohyuk had deflected with a lighthearted remark, but that day’s events remained a wound for him just as much as for Ji Yeonwoo.

After all, it had happened precisely during the time he was away.