Chapter 44
Minutes earlier, outside the door, Freya was panicking because of the mistress' unknown situation.
Gyeongjae was still pushing his weight against the wood several times, but the door wouldn't budge.
"No! Stop!" Yeonho shouted from inside.
"Mistress! We're here! Don't be scared!" Freya shouted back, her hands sweating.
"Fuck, the door's too hard."
Gyeongjae stepped back, ready to slam into it again. He tried using the screwdriver next, jamming it into the mechanism, but it was useless.
The door was high-security, designed to be too thick and reinforced to force open easily.
"Please hurry up! That child will do something stupid if we don't get to him on time!"
Freya paced frantically, her mind racing through worst-case scenarios.
Walking toward them, Min-hyuk raised an eyebrow, watching Gyeongjae use his body to try and break the door.
"What's going on?" Min-hyuk moved closer.
"When did you get here…" Gyeongjae muttered, throwing his shoulder against the door again and again.
"Fuck, it's too hard!" Gyeongjae cursed.
"Where's Yeonho?"
"My Mistress is inside. And at any moment, something unpleasant can happen," Freya explained, completely restless.
Carl, who had run downstairs to grab another tool, sprinted back up the stairs. The catering workers trailed right behind him, their faces pale with concern.
"Here, use this." Carl shoved a heavy utility axe into Gyeongjae's hands.
"Where did you get this?"
"It doesn't matter. Now please get the door," Carl said, stepping back to give him clearance.
Crash—!
The sharp, echoing shatter of glass erupted from inside the bedroom.
"No! Please! Mistress! Don't!"
Freya shouted, her panic exploding as tears pricked at the corners of her eyes.
Gyeongjae tried to lift the heavy iron axe, but a sharp wince cut through his jaw. His arm was already badly bruised from slamming into the door frame so many times.
"Fuck."
"I can try and pick the lock with my hairpin!" one of the female workers volunteered, stepping forward out of worry.
"Make it quick," Gyeongjae ordered.
The girl walked quickly to the door, jamming her hairpin into the lock and twisting it with all her strength.
But after a few frantic turns, the thin metal snapped off entirely inside the keyhole.
The worker bowed her head in a panic.
"I'm sorry! My hairpin snapped, Mr. Woo!"
Min-hyuk, who had been watching closely, walked up to Gyeongjae, his long fingers reaching for the handle.
"Give it to me, Gyeongjae. I'll open it, and you'll go inside."
Taking the axe from Gyeongjae, Min-hyuk swung with brutal precision, smashing the door with the axe a few times until a large fracture splintered down the center.
But Gyeongjae didn't even wait for the hole to be big enough for a person to fit comfortably.
The moment the wood cracked open, he forced his body through the narrow gap.
The sharp, jagged splinters tore through his skin, scratching his arms and leaving them bleeding, but he didn't care.
His eyes frantically searched the room, locking onto Yeonho in the corner.
Yeonho was sitting on the floor, pointing a jagged, bloody shard of glass from the broken lamp directly at his own neck.
He was crying hysterically, blood from his nose and hands smeared all over his face and throat.
Gyeongjae's adrenaline kicked in instantly.
"Yeonho!"
Gyeongjae ran across the room, sprinting with massive, desperate steps.
Before Yeonho could react, Gyeongjae quickly snatched the sharp glass from Yeonho's bleeding hands and pulled him hard into a fierce hug.
"What are you doing, you idiot? Damn it."
Gyeongjae held Yeonho tightly in his arms.
Yeonho was sobbing uncontrollably, his breathing shallow and completely ragged.
Slowly pulling back just enough to look at him, Gyeongjae gripped Yeonho's face, noticing his blue eyes were completely dilated, the pupils swallowed by blackness.
"Why…? Why did you stop me?" Yeonho mumbled in a daze, his voice hollow.
"They'll just make fun of me… They want me gone. All of you want me gone… "
"Of course I'll stop you. Stop doing something stupid," Gyeongjae muttered, his voice softening as he gently lifted Yeonho to make him sit on the mattress, steadying his weight.
Min-hyuk walked into the room, followed by Freya, Carl, and the rest of the workers.
The employees' eyes widened in sheer shock as they fully realized the so called Mistress, bleeding on the bed was Choi Yeonho from the infamous Choi family.
Freya gasped when she saw Yeonho's state.
Noticing her tears, Yeonho looked up at her, his voice shifting into a quiet, calm sob.
"Freya…?"
"Yes, mistress?" Freya answered with absolute gentleness, rushing to his side.
"Why did you let him stop me…? I'm better off gone… I was almost there…"
"No, mistress, please don't say that," Freya cried, her heart breaking at his words.
Gyeongjae pulled Yeonho back into a tight, protective hug, a bitter, heavy ache settling into his own throat.
Carl looked away toward the window, barely holding back his own emotions.
Min-hyuk walked closer, sinking down onto his knees directly in front of Yeonho, watching his fractured expression closely. The employees at the door couldn't help but look on with profound pity.
"Yeonho. Don't say that. What's wrong with you?" Min-hyuk murmured, firmly holding onto Yeonho's right hand.
"The mistress is not in his right mind, Mr. Kang," Freya informed him, her voice weak as she wiped her face. "He's having a flashback, thinking that he's trapped in that specific memory…"
"It hurts… too much pain… I want it gone,"
Yeonho buried his face directly into the crook of Gyeongjae's neck. "
"No one wants me. No one believes me. No one listened. No one's on my side. I feel so lonely. Mom and dad, they…"
Gyeongjae pulled him even closer against his chest, keeping him secure.
"They what? What happened?"
"They left me… Don't go… Don't leave me alone by myself. What if those men come back? I told dad and mom I was raped, but they didn't listen… They drugged me," Yeonho mumbled, completely detached from the present as the horrific fragments of the gala flashed behind his eyelids.
Everyone were shock. The employees' eyes went wide, while Freya couldn't stop her tears from flowing freely.
"Mistress… I believe you," Freya said, pressing her hands tightly to her chest.
"You won't… Everyone won't… I don't want to be alone. Don't leave.. please. I'm scared."
"Shhh, I'm not going anywhere. I'm right here. I'll stay with you," Gyeongjae murmured, his palm slowly rubbing Yeonho's head gently to keep him grounded.
Min-hyuk squeezed Yeonho's hand tightly, a silent promise telling him he was right there.
The realization settled over the room like lead.
The infamous, international scandal that had ruined Choi Yeonho years ago hadn't been a wild tryst—it had been a brutal, orchestrated assault.
The bedroom fell into a heavy silence, broken only by the sound of Yeonho's quiet, exhausted crying.
Freya and Carl quietly signaled the remaining employees, guiding them back downstairs to clear the hall.
Gyeongjae stayed on the bed with Yeonho, unable to leave him alone after what had just happened. Min-hyuk did the same, sitting right beside them.
After nearly fifteen minutes of heavy crying, Yeonho, who was sitting on Gyeongjae's lap like a child, finally went limp as exhaustion claimed him, falling into a deep sleep.
"Yeonho… Are you sleeping?" Gyeongjae whispered.
The rhythmic, heavy rise and fall of the Yeonho's chest was his only answer.
"He's sleeping. Put him down now," Min-hyuk said softly.
Slowly, Gyeongjae laid Yeonho on the bed, tucking the heavy blanket up to his chest. Crimson blood was still smeared all over Yeonho's nose, neck, and collarbone.
He opened his mouth to call Freya back up to clean the wounds, decided otherwise not wanting to leave Yeonho alone.
Min-hyuk tried to call Freya instead, he tried to shift but Yeonho's hand tightened instinctively around his fingers.
Min-hyuk sat down on the edge of the mattress, keeping his grip secure as he stared at Yeonho's sleeping face. It was his first time watching the Yeonho look this vulnerable.
Both men stayed firmly by his side, holding onto his pale hands, waiting.
Right on time, Freya came back into the room carrying a tray with a basin of warm water and clean towels. Carl opened the broken door for her, keeping guard at the hallway.
"P-please excuse me… I'm going to clean the mistress," Freya sniffled.
Gyeongjae didn't say anything, moving back a bit to give her room. He watched silently as Freya dipped a towel into the warm water.
With her hand slightly trembling, she began to carefully wash away the dried blood from Yeonho's nose, cheeks, and skin.
"Mistress… please excuse the intrusion," Freya started moving with absolute care.
Watching Yeonho's sleeping profile, Gyeongjae let out a heavy breath. He had never imagined the depth of the horror Yeonho had been carrying behind his defensive exterior. The lingering panic of seeing that glass shard inches away from Yeonho's neck made his own chest tighten.
Beside him, Min-hyuk's jaw remained set. Although Gyeongjae had been the first to break through, Min-hyuk had caught the exact moment of near-destruction, and the terror had left his own pulse hammering.
"It's still early in the morning,I'll stay here until he wakes up. Tell the workers downstairs to reheat the lunch service when it's time."
Gyeongjae instructed in an authoritative whisper.
"I have a photoshoot scheduled, but I'll stay. He won't let go of my hand. If I move, he might act up again." Min-hyuk added quietly, his eyes never leaving Yeonho's hand, which was still holding his fingers like a lifeline.
Listening to both men made a small, sad smile touch Freya's lips as she finished cleaning Yeonho's skin.
"I'm very grateful my mistress has both of you on his side," Freya said, bowing deeply.
"The mistress always wants to carry everything alone, and like you said, he might do something again if left unguarded."
She cast one final, worried glance at Yeonho before picking up her tray and walking out of the room.
Gyeongjae and Min-hyuk moved closer to the sleeping Yeonho. Min-hyuk leaned back against the headboard, keeping his hand secured, while Gyeongjae laid down on the opposite side of the mattress, shielding him.
They stared silently, but the weight of what they had just discovered hung heavily between them.
"He said he got raped…" Gyeongjae stated flatly.
"Yeah. I think he's talking about that scandal…" Min-hyuk replied.
"I saw that video back then, but there was nothing in the leaks about him getting raped."
"Media outlets can edit whatever a powerful family pays them to edit, Min-hyuk."
"I know." Min-hyuk ran a hand through his red hair. "If I remember correctly, that was right around the time we all first met Hana. Just like Seungjo, Dongjun, and Jaehwan..."
Everyone in their circle knew about that famous scandal. It had been an international wildfire due to Yeonho's father collaborating with prominent business partners from foreign countries.
"I'll look into it," Gyeongjae said, his teeth grinding.
"I know he's telling the truth. Someone with dilated eyes that look like a dead person won't lie about that."
"So you noticed his eyes too..." Min-hyuk muttered, staring up at the ceiling.
Neither man spoke after that, the shared protective instinct settling over the bed.
Slowly, Min-hyuk laid down too, staring at the ceiling, while Gyeongjae stared at Yeonho, his thumb gently rubbing the uninjured skin of Yeonho's wrist.
When Freya came back a few minutes later to check on the room, Gyeongjae gave her a final, sharp directive.
"Tell the workers to standby downstairs and don't let them leave the property," he instructed quietly.
"What happened inside this room stays here. We need a complete briefing, and we need to make sure nobody talks. And that woman, I need to know who ordered her to spy on us."
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