Flowers Are Bait

Chapter 13:

Chapter 13:

Lee-yeon stood at the corner of the room, glancing frequently at the man getting his check-ups. She felt very anxious. She patted her arms, pulled at her sleeves, and bit her nails but nothing helped to calm her down. How can this happen? How?

She buried her face in her hands. Her heart pounded. She felt her whole body trembling perhaps because of her rapid pulse and anxious thoughts.

“It is still too early to draw any conclusions,” said the doctor, “We need more sleep data to understand the pattern. The patient might still fall into a long sleep starting tomorrow. We will have to wait and see.”

Today, Kwon Chae-woo had woken up ‘normally’. The man who had slept straight for three days, five days and even 12 days had suddenly woken up ‘normally’. For Lee-yeon, who had just one hope that he might fall in a deep sleep for several days, this was a shock! A stab in the back!

“There is nothing wrong with the patient’s brain,” continued the doctor, “There is a high chance that this might be a psychological condition. Sometimes the change is triggered when there is a shift in environment. A house feels different than a hospital, so that might have brought about some change in him. For now, it will be helpful to find the cause which defines his sleep pattern.”

While the doctor explained, Kwon Chae-woo glanced at Lee-yeon. “There is just one thing that comes to my mind,” he said. He rubbed his lower lip.

“And what is that?” asked the doctor, busy writing down on his table.

“I slept with my wife yesterday.”

An awkward silence fell in the room. Lee-yeon was horrified. The doctor slowly blinked and looked at her and Kwon Chae-woo in turns. He quickly fixed his composure and nodded. “Am I to understand that you two made love?”

“No!” exclaimed Lee-yeon. “We just slept on the same bed. Nothing of the sort!”

The doctor nodded. “Then let’s try that for the moment,” said the doctor, “It would be great if you two continue this and see how it goes.”

Lee-yeon’s face turned dark at the news.

* * *

While Kwon Chae-woo went to the hospital for physical therapy, Lee-yeon lay down on the sofa, watching the news in exhaustion.

『Voice phishing is becoming more deliberate. 』

The headline blared. But Lee-yeon’s head was a mess. If Kwon Chae-woo’s condition improves, she won’t be able to hide him. If he happens to go down to the first floor, it would only be a matter of time before Choo-ja finds out about him. But if Choo-ja does find out...

Okay... okay.... Choo-ja tried to make sense of everything. She witnessed a murder. The murderer chased her. He got into an accident and became vegetative. And then... she brought him to the hospital.... Choo-ja checked the bottom of the sofa to see if Lee-yeon had hidden any bottles of alcohol.

“Choo-ja...”

There was nothing beneath the sofa. Seeing Lee-yeon, who never cried, bursting into tears in front of her unsettled Choo-ja. What happened to her? She thought.

“Why didn’t you call the police?!” asked Choo-ja, incredulously.

“I had no choice!”

“I have never heard of such a story ever in my life! I knew how stupid you can be ever since a broke kid like you began spraying nutritional supplements on the mountain! And now, you’re telling me you brought a vegetative man to the hospital. How amazing!” Choo-ja said sarcastically.

“Why are you telling me this now!” Choo-ja asked.

“Because...”

It broke Choo-ja’s heart to see Lee-yeon hesitating to tell her the entire truth. She hadn’t changed since the first time they had met. It didn’t matter how long they had been together and faced things in their lives, Lee-yeon still couldn’t open her heart to her entirely. It was always the same. Lee-yeon was only ever open to the plants she loved so much.

She grew up as a lonely little girl. Even if Lee-yeon looked like an adult person on the outside, Choo-ja felt that the lonely little girl was still in there somewhere. Choo-ja’s anger melted away at the thought. She sat down on the sofa beside Lee-yeon.

“So... you have been hiding a man all this time...”

“A vegetative man,” Lee-yeon corrected her, wiping her tears.

“So, then how can I help?” asked Choo-ja.

“Choo-ja...,” stammered Lee-yeon, looking as though she might burst into tears again. Choo-ja patted her back awkwardly.

“No need to thank me,” said Choo-ja.

“Okay... before anything else, I have to tell you that I lied to him and said I was his wife.”