Angel Smile

Gun accompanied Yeo Ri in her hospital room, peeling an apple.
The television was on, but neither of them was paying attention to it; it was only switched on for the purpose of providing some sort of noise in the otherwise silent room.
After days of trying to get her to talk, Gun had already pretty much given up. No, it was more like he had been defeated into letting her recover at her own pace. If she wanted to talk, then she would.
During the time after she woke up, the amount of times she spoke was minuscule, but it was not like she was totally silent. That was why, Gun resolved himself to just wait for her to become comfortable in speaking rather than force her.
"—On to the next news. The police has found several bodies at OO area, presumed to be victims of the recent missing persons case. The suspect was also involved in a recent murder case as the victim, Mr. Lee. The suspect of the murder case, who is Mr. Lee's son, is currently awaiting judgement at—"
As the television flashed to a scene where a familiar-looking man was carried out of a police van and surrounded with reporters, Gun immediately switched off the screen.
"You don't need to watch that anymore," Gun calmly says, setting down the half-peeled apple in his hand.
"..."
Yeo Ri, after a long bout of silence, finally reacted.
"I want to see Hyuk-oppa."
"...!" Gun pursed his lips, his fists clenching. After a long time, he slowly nodded despite his unwillingness, "I'll see what I can do."
Then, a knock dissolved the tension in the room.
"h.e.l.lo," Heo Woo Seung greeted as he slid open the door. However, as if he was hesitating, he did not cross over the threshold.
"Uncle Heo, come in," Gun politely bowed.
Heo Woo Seung smiled at Gun. He handed him the paper bag he had brought with him as a souvenir for visiting. "Sorry for disturbing."
"Ah, not at all, sir. Thank you for coming to visit, and thank you for all you've done for us." Gun gratefully accepted the present with both hands and bowed. After the incident, Heo Woo Seung had helped them so much, and the two had gotten somewhat familiar with each other.
Yeo Ri, recognising the man's voice, unnoticeably turned rigid.
She was still looking at the window, as if refusing to greet the man.
"Sorry about her rudeness, sir," Gun smiled apologetically towards the older man.
"No, it was my fault for coming here unannounced." Heo Woo Seung shook his head. Although he had heard what Yeo Ri was like after waking up, he was sad but not quite disappointed. Rather, ever since that day when he told her about the secret, he had already expected to be treated coldly, so he was not as affected with her change in att.i.tude as the others.

"Gun, can you give me some time to talk with her?" Heo Woo Seung asked, hiding a slight nervousness.
Gun glanced at the wooden Yeo Ri, "Is that fine, Yeo Ri-ah?"
Yeo Ri did not respond.
Gun was feeling rather anxious at her quietness. He hoped that the older man did not take offence. "I'll... go and get a drink from downstairs. Please, take your time," Gun squeezed out. Although he did not know what Heo Woo Seung wanted to speak to Yeo Ri about, it seemed rather important. He did not think that Heo Woo Seung would do anything bad to Yeo Ri, so he left them alone for a few minutes.
With Gun gone, there was just the two of them in the room.
"Yeo Ri-ah, how are you?" Heo Woo Seung asked softly.
"..."
"Yeo Ri-ah, I don't know if you have heard this, but there are a lot of reporters chasing after you. This hospital is not safe. So..." he fidgeted before continuing, "So, why don't I transfer you to a safer place? Ah, you don't have to worry; I've already prepared the paperworks. Just say the word, and I'll have you transferred right away."
"... ... ." Yeo Ri opened her mouth to speak, but her voice was too low for it to be heard by the man.
"Sorry, Yeo Ri-ah, did you say something?"
Yeo Ri slowly raised her eyes to stare at the man penetratingly, "Who... told you to do as you please?"
"...!" Heo Woo Seung flinched at her calm but frigid tone.
"Y-Yeo Ri-ah, I—Dad—just wants the best for you..." He stuttered. He looked away, unable to handle her direct gaze. It was as if he was staring into a deep, bottomless pit filled with darkness.
"Go away. I can't stand the sight of you," Yeo Ri says in finality. Then, she turned away, ignoring him completely.
Heo Woo Seung flapped his mouth open, but he could not say anything. In the end, he sighed and decided to leave. "Tell me if you changed your mind. I'm always here to help," he added before closing the door. He smiled sadly at her. After such a powerful rejection, even he could not recover himself so quickly. Dragging his feet, he left her alone.
"..."
Yeo Ri took a deep breath and exhaled, closing her eyes.
Actually, she did not mean to be so cold. In truth, she was merely taking out her anger on the man.
Seeing Heo Woo Seung had opened up memories she wanted to forget. Her skin crawled from the memory of that day. The image of that person had superimposed on the man, causing her to be deeply rattled. Even now, her arms were trembling with fear.
Yeo Ri gripped her blanket tightly as she haltingly inhaled and exhaled, trying her hardest to suppress her tears.