Flowers Are Bait

His face didn’t change. Lee-yeon knew Kwon Chae-woo could be annoying when he sulked. “You know the hospital. I named it after a tree I liked when I was young. I was just recalling that.”

It was that tree that had given her hope to live when she had found herself despairing at seventeen years of age. She still remembered the forest vividly. The lush green grass. Sunlight filtering through the leaves. Lee-yeon had met a singing tree in that forest.

It was the only precious and warm memory she had of her childhood.

“Now that you can’t give me away to someone else, you are trying to evade me mentally?”

Lee-yeon was going to protest when Kwon Chae-woo gently grabbed her chin and turned her face to look him in the eye. It seemed that she had been spacing out again without realizing it. His calm eyes reflected her face.

“I can tell what you’re lost again just from your face.”

Lee-yeon smiled awkwardly.

“Didn’t you say you were from a conservative family?”

“I am,” she said.

“Then it seems you are only conservative towards me.” He shook his head slowly. “Am I boring?”

“What?” asked Lee-yeon.

“I understand that I might not be so much fun to be with,” he said. “You are only interested in tress, and I am not interesting enough to get your attention.” He stared at her in disappointment. He leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes.

He sighed. “I’d rather be a vegetative man again,” he said. “Because you will only think of me then.”

Lee-yeon was speechless. She didn’t know what to say.

“When will the day come when you can love only me?” His melancholic voice hit her like a pack of bricks. Her words tugged at her heart. Kwon Chae-woo opened his eyes and looked at her.

The soft carpet touched her feet. She could feel the warm fabric of the sofa. She was aware of even the flowerpots that filled her living room.

A deafening silence fell. Each second felt like an hour.

Bzzz. Bzzz.

Lee-yeon’s phone started ringing and ripped apart the silence in the room. Her face hardened as she stared at her phone screen. Lee-yeon abruptly got up from the sofa.

“Who is it?” asked Kwon Chae-woo.

“Nobody,” she said.

She rejected the call with her trembling fingers. She dropped her hands by her side still clutching the phone. It rang again. Lee-yeon glanced at her phone again. Kwon Chae-woo leaned over and snatched the phone from her hands before she had time to move it away.

“No!” she shouted. “Kwon Chae-woo!”

He frowned at the name on the phone screen. Kwon Ki-seok.

Lee-yeon lunged at him to get her phone back. But he dodged her and accepted the call.

“Hello,” said Kwon Chae-woo.

Lee-yeon glared at him. He turned the speaker ‘on’ and placed the phone on the sofa. Lee-yeon froze. She was at a loss for ideas.

“Who are you?” asked Kwon Chae-woo.

The man on the other side did not speak. Kwon Chae-woo clenched his teeth. Who is this bastard that startles Lee-yeon so much?

“It’s your brother,” said the man on the phone. Lee-yeon could hear the smirk in his voice. She flinched.

Kwon Chae-woo raised an eyebrow at her, questioningly. He was asking her if that was true. Lee-yeon gave a nod.

“So Lee-yeon,” said the voice. It reminded her of a slippery, poisonous snake. “How are you?”

“Hello,” she squeaked out.

“I have been very busy with work, so I haven’t kept in contact,” said the man.

Lee-yeon closed her eyes in fear. She wished this nightmare would end. Such a bad timing!If any of us lets anything slip, it’s all over.

One slip and everything she had created will fall. She will be exposed. Lee-yeon bit her lips.

“I heard the news,” came the voice from the phone. “I know he woke up and is not in a normal state.”

Lee-yeon glanced at Kwon Chae-woo.

“But it seems you are interesting after all,” said the man.

“I am sorry? What do you mean?” asked Lee-yeon, dreading the worse.

“To do such a thing,” said the voice. “How reckless!”

“Well… I…,” stammered Lee-yeon. Her heart was beating so viciously she thought it would burst. She recalled the bloody slaughterhouse that she was dragged into. She remembered everything with vivid details. She even remembered grabbing the contractor’s hand as she hung from the cliff.

He knew! He knew the lies she had concocted to tame his brother. He knew everything!

“Of course, I understand why you must have done it,” continued the intimidating voice. “Maybe you did it without knowing what kind of a man he is. But… you have made a big mistake.”

Lee-yeon felt like she would suffocate. She was about to bury her head in her hands when she felt Kwon Chae-woo’s gently taking her hands in his. The tall tree, the moonlit night, and the fireworks flashed through her mind.

“It’s alright,” he said to her. “I don’t care. I can’t even remember his face anyway, so I can’t really believe all this bullshit. I am not even curious about my family.” Kwon Chae-woo frowned.

“What are you talking about?” said the voice from the phone.

What if Kwon Ki-seok blurts out everything? Lee-yeon closed her eyes and prepared herself for the worse. She had a feeling that this was all going to go down terribly.

“I am talking about the competition. I heard that you are participating in the bidding?” said the voice, suddenly turning friendly in tone. “I just wanted to warn you that the screening process might be extremely difficult. They will try everything to make you lose. You are the only female director participating. Also, it’s a big project. They won’t choose a random small hospital for it unless you show them something different and formidable.”

Lee-yeon dropped her hands. She didn’t know what to do. At the same time, she felt a sense of relief. She had thought that Kwon Ki-seok would have revealed everything just to spite her. What is he playing at?