Pay With Your Heart

Chapter 433: Sena’s Child

Eun-Sun felt the hours they spent at the Kim’s were the longest and the most torturous of her life.

Every fiber of her being had been burning with curiosity. At some point, her legs had anxiously begun to tap against the marble tile until Dan-Han finally announced their departure.

Eun-sun wasn’t sure if her eagerness had increased in the last moments of saying their goodbyes or if it had been at its peak since they arrived.

“I hope you come to visit us again before you leave,” Sena said as she pulled Eun-sun into a warm hug. The tone in which she spoke indicated that she wanted to see her again.

Eun-sun didn’t know how that made her feel, but there was a reaction in her stomach. She also wanted to see her again, but that would be determined by the answer Dan-Han provided her.

“I’m sure we’ll make the time,” Dan-Han replied in Eun-sun’s stead as they strolled towards the door.

Sena had her eyes fixed on Eun-sun as she trailed beside Dan-Han.

.....

“Why don’t you fix yourself a bit, my darling? Your hair seems to be a bit out of place.” Sena said, tipping her chin to Eun-sun’s hair. All eyes darted towards Eun-sun, who looked slightly surprised to hear that.

“Yeah, you should do that.” Ki-Jun sharply chipped in, making Eun-sun wonder if her hair was really that out of place. If it was, it was all because of Dan-han, who kept clinging to her and touching her hair, and she had also been nervous, so her fingers kept fiddling with it.

Funny how she kept sweating under the cool breeze of the air conditioner.

Her hands traveled through her hair as she tried to smoothen whatever she could of it.

“My dear, why don’t you use the restroom? I’ll ask one of the maids to get a brush from my room.” Sena offered, and she quickly motioned one of the maids to immediately do as she had said, but Dan-Han politely intercepted her.

“Aunt, you don’t have to worry about that. We’re heading back to the hotel from here, so I’m sure no one will notice a few strands of hair that are out of place.” Dan-Han told her.

“Really?” Sena shot him a displeased look. “Aren’t you supposed to take her around? Your visit is meant to be a holiday, right? Don’t tell me you’re going to spend the whole of your holiday cooped up in the hotel room. I know you’re not an outdoor person -”

“I’m an outdoor person, Aunt.” Dan-Han politely countered, but she scoffed, causing Dan-Han to chuckle. “We’re just going to rest in the hotel today. The trip was a long one.”

“Not for someone who can afford to travel with convenience.” Mi-Cha, who had been trailing behind in silence, interjected, and Dan-Han replied with a smile.

Sena ignored them and walked up to Eun-sun. Her dainty fingers pushed a few strands behind her ear before smoothly brushing her hair backward. “You should always try to keep your hair neat and in style.” She said in a tone that Eun-sun found too motherly.

“And try not to wear too little. The weather’s changing soon, okay?” She advised, and Eun-sun slowly nodded.

There was something about the way Sena touched her hair that caused a tingling sensation in her heart. There was some motherly gesture to it that made her stomach flutter.

“Thank you.” Eun-sun appreciated in a soft voice.

Dan-Han held Ki-Jun’s gaze, and he furtively scoffed when he observed the man’s change of expression, and he shot him a knowing smile.

The man had seen an opening to get what he wanted, and Dan-Han wasn’t stupid not to recognize it. Sena might have suggested it out of genuine concern, but not him.

He had told him all he needed and given him all he required. It was left to him to look at the right place.

Eun-sun felt a weird heaviness in her heart as they waved at the couple staring at them, Mi-Cha included.

“You don’t want to go anymore?” Dan-Han asked with a teaseful note as he stepped into the car after her.

Eun-sun snipped him a mock scowl, and he scoffed.

“You seemed so eager minutes ago. What now? Wanna go back?” He teasefully coked a brow at her, but that only infuriated Eun-sun.

Her gaze hardened at him. “Not the time, Dan-Han. It’s time for you to start talking, and no more giving me that I’ll tell you in due time bullshit. I think I’ve had enough of that, and just so you know, I’m not some kid you have to keep in a safety box. So out with it!” She snapped, taking Dan-Han by surprise.

His astonished gaze lingered on her for a while before he sighed. “I know you’re curious-”

“Damn sure, I am!” Eun-sun cut him short.

Dan-Han glanced at her and sighed. He turned on the ignition and started for the gate while his brain pondered where to begin.

“So?” Eun-sun impatiently pressed before she slowly gulped, “Are they-”

Dan-Han gave her a brief look before staring back at the road. “Yes.” He outrightly replied, and Eun-sun instantly froze in her seat. Her breath suddenly got caught in her chest, and her body slowly grew rigid by the second.

Dan-Han turned to her and keenly observed her as she looked overly astonished.

Eun-sun could feel her heart thump hard in a way she had never experienced before, and her body was slowly turning cold.

She had had her suspicion from the moment she stepped out of his car and met Sena’s gaze. She had felt the suspicion curl in her stomach like a snake, and she couldn’t ignore it, but now... Eun-sun was frozen.

“A...I...” Her lips quivered in her attempt to speak, but nothing could come out. Her brain suddenly turned white as a sheet.

Dan-Han hissed as he drove out of the residence and pulled over at the side of the road. He turned to her and silently watched. His gaze took every expression that flickered through her eyes.

“You’re not breathing.” Dan-Han softly told her, bringing Eun-sun to the realization that, indeed, she wasn’t breathing.

Eun-sun tried to push some air down her throat but ended up shaking. Dan-Han cussed under his breath as he leaned over and unstrapped her seat belt, and with one swift move, he deftly lifted her and placed her on his thighs.

“I thought you were ready for this. You keep-” He stopped himself and sighed before brushing a hand through her hair and down her back.

“Come on, love. Breathe.” He softly whispered to her as his hand traveled down her back in soothing strokes.

Eun-sun desperately wanted to catch her breath, but something was pulling her back from doing so. She didn’t know why she was reacting this way, but she couldn’t help it.

Dan-Han pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her before softly speaking into her ears as he knew she was listening and her mind would be distracted hearing him speak.

“Aunt Sena lost her baby twenty-five years ago. The baby was declared dead at delivery -stillborn.” He paused and lowered his eyes to search her face. He heaved a sigh of relief when he observed she was now breathing slowly.

He continued, “She was devastated by the news, as they’ve been trying for a child for so long till their baby came along. But unfortunately, it was declared dead, and that shattered her world.”

“It wasn’t just the baby that hurt her so much, but also the inability to give birth after losing her child.” He loosened his grip when Eun-sun stirred up and slowly raised her gaze to him. Her eyes burned with curiosity, and he could tell the current question twirling in her mind.

“Before the pregnancy, Aunt Sena had been sick, and doctors had ruled out the possibility of her getting pregnant or carrying her child to full term, and they advised her uterus to be removed. My mom used to say her pregnancy was a miracle, so you can imagine how devastated she was when she thought she lost her child.”

Eun-sun couldn’t imagine it because it was something that far exceeded her imagination. She must have been broken. But then, how was she alive if she was Sena’s child? And how sure was Dan-Han, that it was really her?

“Th...then how..am I-” She stuttered and paused. “How...how are you-”

“How are you alive? And how am I sure?” He asked, and Eun-sun slowly nodded her head.

Dan-Han brushed his hand through her hair. “I’m sure even you know that your resemblance isn’t coincidental. And as for how you’re alive?” He paused for a minute, and his face hardened.

“Someone took you.”