Flowers Are Bait

Chapter 21:

“I think it’s too early for us to go out together.” She reasoned out.

“Is it me or you who’s not ready?”

Lee-yeon was lost for words for a second.

“I’ll only do what you tell me,” he said. “I will only do what you ask me to do, and only what you allow me to do. So, just let me come with you.”

What is he talking about…? Lee-yeon was bewildered. It seemed she was the one with power here. Looking at him, she recalled the kind of person he was. She perhaps was a deceitful liar, but he was an obedient murderer. It left her speechless and confused. There was no other who knew how to make someone lost for words than Kwon Chae-woo.

For some reason, his smiling face lingered in her mind for a long time.

* * *

Lee-yeon reached the lobby of the Hwaido Grand Hotel banquet hall.

“Look over there. Spruce Hospital is here too.” People began whispering to each other.

The moment Lee-yeon’s straw hat passed by the whispering voices stopped. The eyes glancing at her were suspicious and even fearful. Spruce Hospital was a difficult place to define for other tree doctors. They couldn’t decide whether the place was an ally or an enemy.

Especially since there was only young Lee-yeon and an old woman who fit perfectly like a pair. People gossiped about them. A young tree doctor who was a loner and didn’t entertain any personal or private conversation with anyone, and the arboreal therapist, Gye Choo-ja, who used to be a heartthrob of every man in the locality.

In this job, usually people were in their mid-50s or 60s, it was impossible for anyone to be unfamiliar with Choo-ja. One was an old wise tree, and another a withered flower. They certainly were a pair.

Lee-yeon felt overwhelmed at the eyes of the people judging her. This is why I hate to go to places with too many people. Eyes told of so many emotions. No person could hide their feelings in their eyes. When faced with so many unfiltered, raw emotions, Lee-yeon usually got a stomachache.

Her hands were getting colder and colder. Suddenly, something warm held her hands. Startled, she flexibly pulled away but Kwon Chae-woo gently held firm.

“Didn’t you tell me that you’re only going to do what I tell you to do?” Lee-yeon glared at him. The man smiled slowly.

“I will. Pick one.” Usually, his cold impression drove off anyone from approaching. But today, his smile made him look so innocent. “Will it be the eyes or the mouth?”

“What?” asked Lee-yeon, puzzled.

“These people who keep looking at you. Is it the eyes or mouth that you don’t want them to have? If you don’t say it aloud, you can point it with your finger.”

Her mind went blank. She felt her uneasiness disappear.

“Do they know that you’re married?”

“What? N-no―”

“No?” He asked sharply.

Was it a mistake to bring him with me? Kwon Chae-woo spoke threateningly which made Lee-yeon fear that he might get his memories back. She felt helpless.

“It’s because… you were in vegetative state for a long time. A lot of people probably don’t know that I’m married.”

His eyes which scanned the place looked scary. Lee-yeon tugged at his sleeve, fearing that all external stimuli might trigger him to recall his lost memories.

“Just don’t do anything.”

“Is that what you want?”

“You promised. That you will only do what I allow.”

Kwon Chae-woo looked at Lee-yeon’s stiff face. “Was I not nice just now?”

“What?” She was bewildered.

“Don’t the owners pet the dogs when they bite things that disturb them?”

Who the hell raises dogs like that…? Kwon Chae-woo fiddled with Lee-yeon’s long hair. He was frowning slightly. “Did I do something that I’m not supposed to do?”

Lee-yeon felt as though she was floating in space. She looked at his charming face, unable to think of a suitable answer to his question. There was no hint of mischief in his light brown eyes but Lee-yeon wasn’t fooled. A man with misplaced sense of identity in the world sometimes didn’t know the line. And right now, Kwon Chae-woo could be dangerous even if he no longer recalled being a murderer.

Rather than explaining everything, she decided to make things clear to him. “Yes.”

Kwon Chae-woo turned to look at Lee-yeon at her stern voice. She determined not to be intimidated by his sharp and persistent gaze like she usually did. He was planning something in his head, she could see. Soon, he nodded as if he understood her. Lee-yeon finally felt relieved and let go of all tension that she had held onto.

Seeing him so gentle, she almost wanted to stroke his hair. She held back on the impulse but when her hand grazed his, she couldn’t help but panic. “Kwon Chae-woo, your hands are so hot!”

“Is that making you uncomfortable?”

“What? No. But do you have a fever?”

“I’m okay.”

“Are you sure? But what if something is wrong and your body is manifesting it in the form of a fever?”

Kwon Chae-woo relished the moment. He had never even thought that someone worrying after him would make him feel so warm. He bit his lips, looking at Lee-yeon’s face. She was unaware but Kwon Chae-woo wished he could memorize every part of her face and immortalize it in his mind.

” I like it.”

“What?” she asked, puzzled.

“I like the feeling of blood rushing every time I see you.”

“Are you really okay?” asked Lee-yeon, worried and suspicious.

“Very,” he said firmly.

He smiled at her. Silence fell in the lobby. Every eye was turned towards Kwon Chae-woo and Lee-yeon. She was highly aware of it. Tall, well-toned body. Hair neatly trimmed so that his sharp nose was even more prominent. His eyebrows that sat perfectly over his eyes, and his cold, beautiful eyes. Everyone was mesmerized.

Right at that moment, the door to the conference hall opened. “I have to go now. You can wait here.”

Lee-yeon turned around to follow the crowd. She realized she had been holding his hand this whole time. He held ono it a few seconds longer and then let her go.