Beast, Blue Blood - Chapter 62

Chapter 62

“Miss…”

Selena gestured to the people following him to go ahead and approach Ha-yeon alone.

“What brings you to the company?”

“You told me to stop by. I had some free time, so I came here.”

In the past, Ha-yeon could not come to the company, but now that she was grown and had a certain level of self-defense, she was allowed some freedom. They couldn’t live in hiding forever.

Although it wasn’t exactly an invitation to come straight to the company, Selena just smiled slightly.

“I have to go into a meeting now.”

“I’ll wait. Go ahead.”

With that, Selena disappeared with the others. Ha-yeon watched him leave and walked down the hallway.

She ran into Jerome in the hallway.

“Miss.”

Ha-yeon greeted Jerome, who recognized her.

“How have you been?”

“Good, and you, Miss? But the CEO is in a meeting.”

“I know. I saw him on my way here. Do you think Selena is the only reason I came?”

“What else?”

“I came to see Secretary Jerome.”

Of course, she was here because Selena called her, but she said that anyway.

“Why me?”

Jerome asked innocently, and Ha-yeon was silent. Jerome laughed.

“You’re lying.”

Ha-yeon just shrugged. As they walked down the hallway together, Jerome asked.

“How is school life these days?”

“It’s good.”

That was all Ha-yeon said. Knowing she was very private, Jerome asked another question.

“Are you getting along well with the CEO?”

“Selena?”

Ha-yeon looked sideways as if thinking.

“Well…”

In truth, she wasn’t very close to Selena. To be honest, it was more uncomfortable than anything.

The memories from her childhood were hazy, and since moving to Africa, they had hardly met. Even though it had been three years since she started living in Seoul, their life cycles were so different that they rarely saw each other.

“Are you uncomfortable?”

Jerome cautiously asked, as if wondering if he should say this.

“Well, he’s not like the usual male Luax…”

Ha-yeon snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Jerome.

“It’s not that kind of problem. Don’t worry. And we shouldn’t discriminate against Selena.”

After all, Selena had been the same ever since Ha-yeon could remember.

Ha-yeon shrugged.

“Maybe it’s because we haven’t met much since I moved to Africa.”

* * *

Ha-yeon watched the sunset. The voice of a young female singer flowed through the earphones in her ears. The voice was slightly husky yet had a refreshing quality unique to a young girl.

She swung her legs over the armrest of the sofa in time with the music. The light of the setting sun gradually spread, flowing like a river under the sofa, and her dangling hand dipped into the imaginary water.

The movements of her hands and legs gradually slowed and then stopped, leading to a moment of silence. After a while, the conference room door opened, and someone entered. The person looked around the quiet space, searching for someone, and then noticed a leg draped over the armrest of the sofa and approached.

“Miss.”

Ha-yeon slowly opened her eyes at the sound. Selena was wearing a coat, ready to leave for the day.

“Are you done?”

Ha-yeon yawned widely and sat up. It was already dark outside.

“I’m sorry. Work ended a bit late.”

Ha-yeon cracked her neck and grabbed her bag to stand up in response to Selena’s words.

“It’s okay. I finished my assignment thanks to you.”

She yawned widely again.

Since most of the employees had already left, they walked down the quiet hallway to the elevator. Jerome held the elevator door open for them to enter together.

But as soon as Ha-yeon got into the car waiting in the parking lot, she started to doze off again. Seeing her unusually tired despite not being exam season, Selena asked.

“Are you tired?”

“I didn’t sleep well.”

Ha-yeon mumbled, her head tilted to the side.

“Why?”

“There’s… a prostitute living upstairs.”

Selena looked at Ha-yeon again.

“Really?”

“The noise is too loud…”

Ha-yeon trailed off and fell back asleep, clearly exhausted.

A prostitute?

Selena was taken aback.

‘I told her to get a place in a decent neighborhood.’

The place where Ha-yeon had moved was in a slightly rundown area that had become somewhat slum-like due to an influx of refugees, tarnishing Seoul’s reputation for safety. Though not as dangerous as some parts of South America, it was the only place that fit Ha-yeon’s budget, so she reluctantly moved there.

The problem was that Ha-yeon’s parents were not particularly concerned about the situation. They thought living in such an area would be a valuable experience. Despite their unease about their daughter living alone in an unfamiliar city, they seemed to trust her physical abilities.

Anyway, with her parents not objecting, no amount of nagging from others would make Ha-yeon change her mind.

At that moment, Jerome, sitting across from them, asked.

“You called her here for a blood test, right? Should we go home?”

Selena took his gaze off the sleeping Ha-yeon and replied.

“Yes.”

* * *

They arrived at the parking lot, but Ha-yeon didn’t wake up.

“Should I wake her?”

Jerome asked in a low voice.

Selena looked at Ha-yeon. He considered waiting until she woke up on her own but decided it would be better to let her lie down properly, seeing her uncomfortable position.

So he unfastened Ha-yeon’s seatbelt, holding it until it retracted completely to avoid making a noise. As he reached out toward Ha-yeon, the girl opened her eyes slightly. She looked up at Selena, who was leaning over her, with a dazed expression.

Selena smiled a little.

“We’ve arrived home.”

Ha-yeon saw the familiar parking lot outside the window and, still half-asleep, got out of the car and greeted Jerome.

“Goodbye, Secretary.”

“Rest well.”

Jerome said his farewell and drove away.

“I can’t seem to wake up. Wake me in 30 minutes.”

Upon entering the house, Ha-yeon spoke and went straight to the familiar guest room. She knew the layout well since she had lived in the upstairs apartment before and used this room whenever she visited, though it was only occasionally.

Selena looked around the quiet house. With Ha-yeon asleep, he didn’t feel like having dinner alone, and he wasn’t particularly hungry anyway. He loosened his collar and headed to the bathroom.

* * *

Ha-yeon opened her eyes. Squinting against the irritation, she checked the time on her wristband and realized she had only dozed off briefly. Perhaps her dozing off at the company left her unable to sleep deeply. She yawned widely and got up.

The only problem with her current apartment was the overly industrious upstairs neighbor. With her keen hearing, it was a significant issue.

Throwing on the clothes she had discarded before sleeping, she left the room. The minimalistic living room, with its large window overlooking the city, was empty, and she heard sounds coming from the bathroom. Selena was likely showering.

Ha-yeon went to the kitchen to get some water from the purifier. As she rubbed her eyes, she spilled water on her hands and the floor.

“Tsk.”

She clicked her tongue and wiped her hands on her t-shirt. Looking for something to clean the spilled water, she found the house impeccably tidy, with no rag or paper towel in sight.

“Hey, Ana, where are the tissues?”

Ana, the home AI, responded.

[The nearest ones are in the bathroom cabinet. The rest are in pantry B…]

With that, Ha-yeon headed to the bathroom.

Ziiing.

The automatic door slid open, and she walked to the cabinet, opening it. At that moment, she didn’t recall certain details, like Selena’s true gender.

As she turned around with the tissues, she saw through the foggy glass a man standing under the shower. Ha-yeon froze.

Despite the mist, she could see the man’s back muscles moving as he washed himself. His muscles were well-defined but not overly bulky.

Ha-yeon continued to stare, and the automatic door sensed her presence and slid open.

Ziing.

The accumulated heat and steam rushed out, mingling with the sound of water hitting the floor.

The man in the shower turned his head, perhaps sensing the cold draft. Despite the unfamiliarity, Ha-yeon recognized the face—Selena, now revealed to be a man.

She stared, unsure of what to think. Selena ran his fingers through his wet hair, seemingly waiting for Ha-yeon to snap out of it.

Swoosh…

The sound of water hitting the floor echoed in the peculiar silence. Finally, Selena gave a sheepish smile.

“Miss?”

Startled, Ha-yeon snapped back to reality, stumbling backward and hastily closing the automatic door.

Bang! Crack!

The door, having hit the wall, broke with a loud crash. Startled, Ha-yeon jumped back a few steps and muttered to herself.

“That scared me.“

* * *

“It looks like it’s going to be hard to fix.”

Selena, kneeling on one knee to inspect the broken door, commented. He was wearing a T-shirt and comfortable pants.

“Even if it’s made of regenerative glass, it seems irreparable at this level of damage.”

Ha-yeon mumbled to herself, looking down at his slightly wet t-shirt, which clung to his back, showing his outline.

“You really are a man, after all.”

Selena glanced back at Ha-yeon and gave a slight chuckle.

“Of course?”

His face, devoid of makeup, was pale and neat. He looked more like a refined young man than particularly feminine. His features, which Ha-yeon had thought were heavily made up, now looked as though they were delicately drawn with a brush—almost like an ink painting. If there were ever a male face that could be described as stunningly beautiful, it would be this one, making it no surprise that he could cross-dress without any incongruity.

“Right. But…”

Ha-yeon trailed off, not entirely sure what she wanted to say. In the meantime, Selena had already moved to the kitchen.

“I’ll call someone to fix the door tomorrow. Let’s have dinner first. You must be hungry?”

Ha-yeon followed him with her eyes.