Affectionate Obsession - Chapter 51

“Ah, Mom!!”

Yeonhee kicked open the hospital room door.

I don’t know how much I wandered around just to get here.

Naturally, I thought she’d be in the ICU, so I went there, but Yeonjeong wasn’t there.

It was only after I urgently called Miyeong that I heard the news that Yeonjeong had been moved to a regular VIP room.

Even as I rushed to the room, I couldn’t believe it.

Someone who was fighting for their life in the ICU just yesterday had miraculously woken up and been moved to a regular room.

Could this really be happening?

Yeonhee was dumbfounded the entire way here, wondering if this was a dream.

But it wasn’t a dream.

“Yeonhee.”

The person leaning against the semi-reclined bed, looking at me, was definitely Yeonjeong.

“Mom. This, how on earth, how……”

In a situation she couldn’t possibly believe, Yeonhee couldn’t speak properly, only shedding tears.

Then, Miyeong, who was sitting next to Yeonjeong, urged her with a swollen face.

“What are you doing standing there? Hurry up and hold your mother’s hand!”

Yeonhee followed the sound and glanced at Miyeong once, but quickly fixed her gaze back on Yeonjeong.

Even with Miyeong’s urging, she couldn’t easily approach.

She still couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

If she got closer to Yeonjeong, she felt like it would all turn into a dream and she would wake up.

So, she was too scared to take even one step forward.

“Yeonhee.”

But then Yeonjeong’s voice was heard again.

“Come here, Yeonhee.”

And then, as if rooted to the spot, she quickened her halted steps.

Not only that, but she was extending her hand towards me with a bright smile.

As if to say, like Miyeong had said, come quickly and hold her hand.

“Ah, Mom……”

The words caught in my throat finally slipped out.

Yeonhee, while shedding tears, ran towards Yeonjeong with a bright smile.

Seeing Yeonjeong’s outstretched hand, she had no choice but to approach Yeonjeong.

It was a very grateful evening, when a miracle had arrived.

Late into the night.

Yeonhee lay on her side on Yeonjeong’s bed. Then, she blankly stared at Yeonjeong’s face, which was looking at the ceiling.

She couldn’t tell how long it had been since she’d spent a night with Yeonjeong.

Late in the evening, Junhyeok had arrived at the hospital with a pale face.

It was only when she saw his face that she realized he had rushed to the hospital without even thinking to grab his phone in his shock.

He looked very surprised that she hadn’t been answering his calls.

After a long while, Yeonhee pulled away Junhyeok, who was holding her tightly in his arms, and told him she would spend the night at the hospital with Yeonjeong.

For a moment, she saw a flicker of anxiety cross his face. But she didn’t acknowledge it.

She wanted to spend this night with Yeonjeong.

Even after hearing the doctor say there was no explanation other than a miracle, her heart was still uneasy.

Fortunately, Junhyeok replied that he understood and turned to leave, allowing her to spend time with Yeonjeong.

Yeonhee adjusted her arm to use as a pillow and carefully opened her lips.

“Mom……”

“Yes?”

As the night deepened and she had spent quite some time with Yeonjeong, Yeonjeong didn’t ask anything.

When she was with Miyeong, and even after Miyeong left and they were alone, Yeonjeong only asked about everyday matters.

“Why aren’t you asking anything?”

“……”

“Mom, you saw her too.”

As she said those words, Yeonhee examined Yeonjeong’s expression more closely.

There was no response from Yeonjeong. There was no change in her expression. She just blinked rhythmically, as she always did.

That made Yeonhee’s already uncomfortable heart even more so.

It was a long time later that Yeonjeong turned her body to face Yeonhee.

Seeing Yeonjeong turn, Yeonhee moved back, worried she might be uncomfortable.

Once they were in a comfortable position facing each other, Yeonjeong made a curious face.

“How is it, getting married?”

It was a rather surprising question.

To a question she hadn’t expected at all, Yeonhee replied with a look of reluctance she couldn’t hide.

“……Why are you asking that?”

“Just because. Now that I think about it, while I knew I had pancreatic cancer, I thought it might be too much to ask to see you get married. Even though I’m not seeing you married right now, it feels strange that my daughter got married.”

Yeonjeong’s lips parted with an incredibly bright smile.

Instead of scolding her for what she had done, Yeonhee was momentarily speechless at Yeonjeong’s genuinely curious expression.

She had expected to see Yeonjeong’s face full of worry when she said this.

But to see such a pure, childlike face, it felt strange.

“Well, half is good, and the other half.”

“……”

“Is a little difficult.”

After much thought, Yeonhee confessed her honest feelings. Then Yeonjeong’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Difficult? Why? Is your husband making things difficult?”

The worry that hadn’t been visible until now finally crept into Yeonjeong’s face.

Yeonhee smiled faintly.

She hadn’t expected to say this to anyone, but after pouring out the story she had kept to herself, she felt a little relieved.

As if that was the catalyst, her lips moved, independent of her will.

“No. He treats me too well. That’s why, that’s why it’s difficult.”

“Why is that difficult? It’s good if they treat you well.”

“I’m someone who has to leave someday. And the person who married him wasn’t me, but another woman.”

After saying it, a sense of anxiety washed over her, wondering if it was too honest an answer.

But she didn’t regret it.

She felt that if it were Yeonjeong, she would prefer an honest answer, even if it caused worry, rather than a considerate lie.

Yeonjeong, who had been asking questions with a bright smile all along, couldn’t answer easily.

Yeonhee waited silently. Today, she felt it would be okay to be a child, even if just for a moment, by setting down the burden she carried.

After a long time spent in silence.

Yeonjeong’s voice was heard.

“Yeonhee.”

“Yes, Mom.”

Yeonhee replied and burrowed into Yeonjeong’s embrace like a child.

Yeonjeong’s words had only just begun, but her voice was so warm that Yeonhee felt like crying.

“Mom, I… I really want you to be happy.”

“……”

“I can’t forget the moment I first saw you. I was happy the whole time I met you, and I was more than blessed.”

As she said that, Yeonjeong hugged Yeonhee tightly. Then, she gently stroked Yeonhee’s hair as if tidying it.

For the first time in a long time, Yeonhee felt truly cared for as someone’s daughter.

That made her heart feel heavy.

She had lived her whole life considering only Yeonjeong as family, but one day, she suddenly learned she had a real family.

But that real family not only abandoned her but also completely denied her existence.

Such a person wouldn’t wish for her happiness.

Even her real family didn’t wish for her happiness, yet Yeonjeong, with whom she shared no blood, genuinely wished for her happiness.

“You are a blessing and happiness to me, but I think I only made things difficult for you.”

Yeonhee sobbed sadly, then suddenly lifted her head at Yeonjeong’s words.

“No, Mom. What are you saying? Why would I have a hard time because of you? That’s not it.”

Yeonhee vehemently denied Yeonjeong’s words and shook her head. Then Yeonjeong wiped Yeonhee’s cheeks, which were already wet, and met her gaze directly.

“Live a happy life. Whatever you do, make choices for yourself, not for others, and live a life according to your will.”

“……”

“Mom, I really want you to live like that, Yeonhee. Whatever choice you make, Mom will always support you.”

At the end of those words, Yeonjeong wore a dazzlingly bright smile.

“I love you, Yeonhee.”

And the sincere confession from her mother that followed once again moved Yeonhee’s heart.

“Ah, Mom, sob.”

Yeonhee tightly hugged Yeonjeong’s waist. The sorrow she had suppressed for so long burst forth as if it had been waiting.

Every time she let out a sorrowful breath, Yeonjeong stroked her head with a gentle touch.

It felt like she was comforting her daughter for the hardships she must have endured.

How long did she cry like that?

Suddenly, Yeonhee felt a heavy sleepiness wash over her.

The touch of Yeonjeong’s hand on her head seemed to hasten the sleepiness that was already rushing in.

Yeonhee fell into a deep sleep without even realizing when she had fallen asleep.

It was truly a deep sleep after a long time.

Yeonhee, who had been breathing softly, seemed to stir and slowly opened her eyelids.

After blinking her sleep-filled eyes a couple of times, she saw the world outside the window where dawn was breaking.

She glanced at the clock hanging next to her. The clock hands showed just past six in the morning.

It was around the time Junhyeok would be waking up and getting ready for work.

She had made a stew for dinner and left it, but it was uncertain whether Junhyeok would take care of it himself.

Yeonhee rubbed her eyes and slowly sat up. She intended to call Junhyeok to remind him to eat breakfast before going to work.

But just as she was halfway up, Yeonjeong, who had been leaning on her, seemed to stir and then collapsed powerlessly onto the bed.

Yeonhee stiffly turned her head to look at Yeonjeong.

Yeonjeong had a smile on her face, just as she had seen her before falling asleep.

It was clearly the same.

There was no part of her that made Yeonhee think it wasn’t Yeonjeong.

Yet, Yeonjeong’s face, pale and devoid of color, felt chillingly unfamiliar for some reason.

“Mom.”

Yeonhee, unable to shake off a bad premonition, gently shook Yeonjeong with cautious hands.

“Mom…?”

Her cautious touch quickly became rougher.

But no matter how much she shook her, Yeonjeong didn’t answer or open her eyes.

“Ah, Mom. Mom!”

Yeonhee sat up and grabbed Yeonjeong’s shoulder to help her sit up.

But unable to bear the weight of her limp body, Yeonhee’s hands slipped, and Yeonjeong’s body collapsed listlessly onto the hospital bed.

Seeing that, Yeonhee’s eyes instantly filled with tears. And…….

“Mom!!!”

A scream filled with pain echoed through the entire hospital.

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