CHAPTER 15 - THE FIRST SPARK OF UNDERSTANDING .

Chapter Fifteen: The First Spark of Understanding

Later that night, Haera paced her room, torn between pride and guilt. A storm of emotions swirled in her chest, but one feeling stood out—the ache of remorse. Her harsh words and the shattered glass haunted her, especially after seeing the blood trickling down Ethan's arm. She clenched her fists and walked over to her drawer, pulling it open with a determined sigh. From inside, she took out a small first aid kit and held it tightly, as if it could somehow mend more than just wounds.

She stood by the door for a moment, debating whether to go through with it. I'll just check if he's okay. That's all. I'm not doing this because I care... I just feel guilty. That's it, she told herself. Swallowing her hesitation, she knocked twice on the door to alert the guards outside.

When the guards opened it, she stepped out with composure. "I want to go to Ethan's room," she said firmly.

One of the guards took a step forward. "I'll escort you—"

"No," Haera cut in sharply. "Don't follow me. I won't run. After all, you're monitoring my every move, aren't you?"

The guard looked at her hesitantly, unsure if he should allow it, but when Haera narrowed her eyes with an intimidating glare, he backed off. Without another word, she walked away confidently, first aid kit in hand, while the guards remained alert but didn't follow, simply observing from a distance.

As she made her way through the dimly lit hallway, her steps slowed when she reached Ethan's door. Her fingers tightened around the handle, her chest rising and falling as she tried to suppress the nervous flutter in her heart.

Without knocking, Haera gently pushed open the door to Ethan's room. The soft creak of the hinges echoed into the quiet space. Inside, Ethan had just stepped out of the bathroom, a towel draped over his damp hair as he dried it. Steam still lingered in the air, curling around the light.

When he saw her, his hands froze mid-motion. His eyes widened in surprise, the towel dropping to the bed as he took a cautious step toward her.

"Err… do you need anything?" he asked, his voice low and unsure. It was the first time he sounded genuinely nervous around her. "Tell me, and I'll go get it for you."

"Not really," Haera said flatly. "But I came with a purpose."

Ethan blinked, trying to understand. "Why are you here?"

Haera studied him in silence, tilting her head slightly to the right. Then she said bluntly, "Take off your shirt."

"What?" Ethan's brows shot up, startled.

"I said, take it off," she repeated, her tone firm, expression unreadable.

Hesitating, Ethan slowly removed his shirt, exposing the bruises and cuts that had been left untreated. Haera stepped closer, her expression hardening. "I don't want to owe you anything," she said, rolling her eyes to mask the emotion stirring in her chest. "After all, I'm the reason you're hurt."

But her voice trembled when her eyes landed on the raw, red cuts. She hadn't expected them to be this bad—nor untouched.

A memory echoed in her mind: "He started removing obstacles that made him weak," Mrs. Lee had said.

Tears stung Haera's eyes. The realization was overwhelming—he hadn't treated his wounds because even caring for himself now felt like weakness to him.

"So, do you think dressing your wounds is also a weakness?" she asked bitterly, pushing Ethan gently but firmly to sit on the bed. Her voice was heavy with restrained pain.

Ethan didn't reply. He simply lowered his gaze to the floor, silent.

Haera opened the first aid kit with trembling hands and began tending to his wounds. Her touch was gentle but her heart raced. She didn't realize the thin rope of her morning coat had come undone. Her nightdress—almost sheer under the room's warm light—slipped slightly, revealing the soft curve of her chest and the outline of her thigh beneath the delicate fabric.

Ethan noticed. His eyes accidentally brushed against her exposed skin, but he quickly turned his head, averting his gaze in panic.

He clenched his fists tightly on his lap. Don't look. Don't even think. She's hurting, and this isn't about desire.

Haera, unaware of the exposure, focused on applying the ointment and bandages. Each time she touched a wound, her lips tightened, guilt flickering across her face. Ethan remained still, not because he wasn't in pain, but because he didn't want her to stop.

---After Haera finished tending to Ethan's wounds, she gently packed the medical items back into the first aid kit. The silence between them was thick, but not uncomfortable—just heavy with everything unspoken.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, not meeting his eyes. Her voice was low, hesitant, but sincere.

Ethan's eyes lifted slowly. "I'm also really sorry," he said, just as softly.

Haera walked to the door, her hand gripping the handle. But just as she was about to open it, something on the shelf beside her caught her eye—a photo frame.

She paused, letting go of the knob and walking toward it. It was a family picture. Haera picked it up gently and rubbed her fingers across the glass, wiping a thin layer of dust away.

"What a beautiful family," she murmured, her eyes tracing over the smiling faces.

"I know," Ethan replied, his head still lowered. "But it's all gone… burned to ashes."

There was such hollowness in his voice that Haera's heart squeezed.

She turned to him slowly. "Do you… want to talk about it?"

Ethan didn't answer right away. So Haera picked up the kit and turned toward the door again. Just as her hand reached for the knob, his voice stopped her.

"I was just fifteen," he said, his eyes distant. "I had no idea that would happen…"

Haera turned back to face him, her gaze soft. She slowly made her way back to the couch and sat down.

"Hmmm… go on. I'm listening," she said, folding her hands on her lap.

"It was on my birthday…" Ethan began, his voice distant, his eyes locked somewhere far beyond the room. "I'd returned from studying abroad just two days earlier—only because I wanted to spend that day with my family."

Haera sat quietly, her heart already tightening.

"But on the morning of my birthday," he continued, "my parents told me they couldn't celebrate it with me. They had to attend some high-profile business banquet. I was angry. Devastated. I ignored them the entire day… even my sister. I didn't say a word to any of them."

He took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, not looking at Haera.

"My parents noticed I was upset. So, despite their schedules, they decided to take me and my sister out that night. They wanted to make it up to me. They… they didn't want me to be sad."

Ethan's fists clenched at his sides.

"I didn't know… I didn't know it would be the last time I'd ever see them," he said, his voice suddenly hoarse.

Haera's eyes watered as she pressed a hand to her lips.

"On our way there… we got into a car accident." He paused. "Just like that, everything was gone. My dad died on impact. My mom… she managed to shield me with her own body. Even as she lay dying, she begged me to save my sister."

He swallowed hard, voice trembling ever so slightly.

"But I—I couldn't. I froze. She was screaming, crying… begging me for help. But I couldn't move. I was filled with fear, paralyzed. I was a coward."

His jaw clenched, and his voice hardened into something empty and numb.

"She cried for help until her last breath. She kept reaching for me. And I just sat there."

There was a long pause. The only sound in the room was the quiet rustling of Haera's soft sniffles as she struggled to contain her tears.

"You want to know my mother's last words to me?" Ethan asked, his voice calm—too calm. "She looked into my eyes and said, 'Be brave, my son. Never find weakness in anything. Let it be your strength.'"

He looked down, his expression unreadable.

"That was right before she pushed me out of the car. The explosion happened seconds later. She used her last ounce of strength to save me… and I couldn't do anything to save her or my sister."

Haera was now crying freely. Her heart broke as she listened—not just to his story, but to the pain he buried so deeply that not even his voice could carry it anymore.

She expected him to cry, to break down.

But he didn't.

Not a single tear left his eyes.

And somehow, that hurt even more.

"All this while… I thought it was just an accident," Ethan continued, his tone darker now, more bitter. "But no. It was a conspiracy. A deliberate attack. My dad's business rival planned it all. He wanted to erase the Kang family from existence. He thought he could destroy us."

Haera looked up slowly, her breath catching.

"But he failed," Ethan said, voice growing cold. "Instead, he created a monster."

The room grew heavy as silence settled between them.

"You remember that lifeless man you saw at the warehouse during our first meeting?" Ethan asked, eyes flickering with old rage. "He was part of it. I captured him. Tortured him to get the truth. But he refused to tell me the mastermind."

Haera gasped, but Ethan wasn't done.

"So I… I killed him."

Her eyes widened, but she remained silent, knowing this wasn't the time to speak.

"I later found out the second culprit would be attending the International Tycoons Conference," Ethan continued. "So I made plans. I was going to finish him there. End it all at that banquet."

He turned away from her, as if ashamed of what he was saying.

"But then… you found out. You heard my plans, and I had to stop you from ruining everything. That's why I kidnapped you."

Haera's hand tightened around the armrest.

"I didn't expect I'd fall for you," he said more quietly. "But I did."

He took in a breath, his shoulders stiff.

"I swear… I'll find the mastermind behind all of this. And when I do, I'll kill him too."

The fury in his voice returned—but still, not a single tear left his eyes.

Haera was no longer just tearing up—she was completely broken. Her shoulders shook as quiet sobs escaped her lips.

Ethan turned at the sound. For a moment, he just looked at her. The way her tears fell. The way her hands trembled.

She looked beautiful in her pain.

Slowly, he walked toward her and gently lifted her from the couch, pulling her into his arms.

He was still shirtless, but Haera didn't protest.

"I'm really sorry," she murmured into his chest, her voice small. "You must've gone through so much. And here I was… thinking I had the worst childhood ever."

Ethan said nothing. He simply held her tighter.

Then, suddenly aware that her hand had rested against his bare abs, Haera gasped and pulled away, cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"I—sorry," she stammered, brushing her tears away quickly.

She picked up the first aid kit and began walking toward the door, then stopped and turned back.

"Ethan," she said softly, "remember… we do not repay evil with evil."

She offered him a gentle, almost teasing smile.

He didn't reply—only nodded.

As she turned again, ready to leave, he called out to her.

"Haera… can we at least start as friends?"

She paused at the door, looked back over her shoulder with a smirk.

"Well… that depends on your performance."

Then she left.

Ethan let out a long breath, a weight visibly lifted from his shoulders. For the first time in years, he smiled genuinely. He'd made his first step. Friendship. That was all he needed—for now.

Throwing himself onto the bed, his mind replayed the moment Haera cried in his arms. The feeling of her warmth, the way her fingers had brushed against his chest—he smiled to himself again.

In the other room, Haera lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

If only I had taken the time to know him, she thought as her eyes finally fluttered shut.

That night, for the first time in a long while…

They both slept soundly.

❤️ Author's Note:

In this emotional turning point of Love in a Long Suspense, we see cracks form in the wall around Ethan's heart. Haera's perspective begins to shift, and with it, so does their entire relationship. But can love truly heal such deep wounds? Or will secrets from the past destroy them again?

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