“Do you always try to understand other people’s perspectives?”
“Not always. But I’d like to.”
“That was the third time you looked at me with that expression, Kang Da-jung. At the elevator, at the pub, and just then.
What I thought was comfort was just my mistake. You still find me uncomfortable, don’t you?”
“I’m sorry. I should have explained right away why I was so startled. I just walked out instead.”
“I didn’t bring this up for an apology. I’m asking whether you can also understand my heart.
If I said I wanted to have another meal with you,
if I said I’ve grown curious about you—
would you be able to understand that too?
Or… would words like that only scare you more?”
“Is your hand okay? It’s still bleeding.”
“It’s fine. I usually use my right hand.”
“That doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t hurt either hand.”
“Did I frighten you again, Kang Da-jung?
Do I still scare you now?”
“Yes. So please move.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be smart? The hand bleeding is my left, so why do you fear the right?
You still can’t tell the difference.
I wasn’t the one who scared you.
You’re still so foolish.”
And yet… I’ve completely fallen for Ian Chase.
I know you should never like a “bad man,” but here I am. Joo Young-do is such a good man, and yet… Ian Chase. When it was Chae-jun, I was firmly on Young-do’s side. But now that it’s Ian, I find myself torn.
Whether the three murders were done by Chae-jun or Ian Chase, he’s not someone you can truly call a good man. Those lifeless eyes. The way he grips a knife so naturally. Even that classic “wall slam” move—which I usually hate! And yet… here I am, drawn to the dangerous one. Ugh, me! Get a grip!
But why did Chae-jun choose suicide?
Ian was supposedly the kid in the padded jacket that Young-do once called “stupid.” Then how did he cross paths with Young-do? Wasn’t it Chae-jun who stepped on Young-do’s foot that day? If Ian was the orphanage boy scarfing down food, then who was Chae-jun?
When Ian held the knife, my inner voice screamed:
“Da-jung is scared!!! Put it down!!!”
Every time he asks, “Did I scare you again?”—my heart shatters.