Don't Blame Me || Jeongcheol

Chapter 49

Jeonghan stood motionless as the door to the operating room clicked shut behind him. The sterile scent of antiseptic filled the air, mingling with the distant hum of fluorescent lights.

Time seemed to slow down, the seconds dragging, stretching out endlessly. His heart pounded in his chest, the weight of uncertainty pressing down on him with every passing moment.

He wanted to be in that room, wanted to be by Seungcheol’s side as he was patched up. The thought of his lover in such a condition, so vulnerable, tore at him. He had never seen Seungcheol like this frail, weakened, struggling.

The older man, always the strong one, always the rock that Jeonghan could lean on, had been brought low. And Jeonghan? He felt helpless.

The rest of the team was scattered in the waiting room, all of them weary, their faces etched with exhaustion and pain. They had made it out alive, but just barely.

Jeonghan had seen the toll it had taken on each of them the bruises, the cuts, the weariness in their eyes. But the worst of it was Seungcheol. No one had expected him to be the one to be brought down like this.

Jeonghan turned away from the operating room door, his footsteps soft against the cold tile as he moved towards the waiting area. He needed to keep himself together. For Seungcheol, for the team, for Haneul. But there was something gnawing at the back of his mind, something he couldn’t shake.

As he walked past the rows of chairs, his eyes caught sight of the woman still sitting on one of the couches, her form shrouded in the dim light of the room. She hadn’t moved since they arrived. Her hands were folded neatly in her lap, and her posture remained as still as the silence around her.

Jeonghan’s gaze narrowed, suspicion creeping up his spine like an unwelcome chill. She had been with them the entire time, silent and unreadable. Not once had she spoken since they left the site of the mission, her eyes never once meeting his, her attention seemingly elsewhere.

But the moment they entered the headquarters, she had gone straight to the lounge area and sat down. Her lack of urgency, her calm demeanor, didn’t match the chaos they had just escaped. She was a puzzle Jeonghan couldn’t figure out, and that made her dangerous.

Her features were still obscured by a mask, one that covered everything but her eyes. The dark fabric clung to her face like a second skin, and Jeonghan couldn’t help but wonder what she was hiding. Who was she really?

The soft click of his boots echoed in the quiet room as he made his way over to the couch, his steps deliberate. He didn’t want to confront her, didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much he was disturbed by her presence. But he had no choice. Too many unanswered questions loomed, and Jeonghan couldn’t afford to let them fester.

“Who are you?” he asked, his voice low but firm. He didn’t beat around the bush anymore. He needed answers.

The woman didn’t flinch at the sound of his voice. She didn’t even look up at him. Instead, she remained seated, her gaze still fixed on the space ahead of her, as if he wasn’t there at all. Her silence only served to deepen his suspicion. She wasn’t ignoring him out of disrespect; she was deliberately withholding something.

Jeonghan’s patience was thinning. He took a step closer, standing just a few feet in front of her, watching her for any sign of emotion. But nothing came. Her mask remained an impenetrable barrier.

“You’ve been with us the whole time.” Jeonghan continued, his voice tinged with barely contained frustration. “You know more than you’re letting on, and I want to know why. You’re not just some random stranger.”