Chapter 549: Park Sang-Gyu (3)

Thud!

My fist slammed into Go Dong-Hyuk's stomach.

𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Thump.

His legs gave out beneath him, and he dropped to his knees. "

Gah

...

ugh

..."

Clutching his gut, Go Dong-Hyuk bent forward and frowned in pain. However, I didn't give him time to suffer in peace. I grabbed him by the collar and yanked his head up.

"Look at me."

Go Dong-Hyuk reached out a trembling hand and stammered. "S-Stop... I did you wrong... I admit it..."

"Did me wrong? I'm not the one you should be apologizing to. You ripped someone's heart apart with that smug tongue of yours, and now you want to stop? What a joke. Says who?"

Without hesitation, I swung my fist again, this time into his side.

Thwack!

The punch landed hard, making Go Dong-Hyuk grunt. I tried to hold back, but I was too fired up. My strength came through a little more than I intended.

Crash!

Go Dong-Hyuk rolled into a nearby table and tumbled to the floor. "

Urghhh

..."

He was clearly in pain, but I felt no guilt. After all, Go Dong-Hyuk had said something no decent human being should ever say. That alone was enough.

Wearing a cold and expressionless face, I walked toward him, step by step. "Stop pretending and get up. You poked someone's deepest wound and you better take responsibility for that. Don't you agree?"

I was so furious that I couldn't even use honorifics. Still, I had just enough self-control to use only a fraction of my strength.

Go Dong-Hyuk, now sitting on the floor, crawled backward. "C-Chief Jung... I said I was sorry, didn't I? I really regret it. Please, just stop..."

'

Regret? Please.

'

If he had truly felt any remorse, he would have never mentioned the accident that haunted Park Sang-Gyu.

Then, shouts came from outside the lounge.

-What's going on in there? Move aside before we call security!

And then I heard Jung Sang-Bong's voice, pleading.

-J-Just a second! Nurses! Please, just wait a moment!

Since Sang-Bong had arrived, I figured this was the limit. Yet, seeing Go Dong-Hyuk's face brighten at the sound of rescue only reminded me that I still needed to drive my point home. If the nurses entered now, he would use them as witnesses and try to press charges.

So I grabbed his collar again tighter this time with my left hand.

"Guhhk..."

As Go Dong-Hyuk squirmed, I gave him a final warning. "Listen carefully, Go Dong-Hyuk. If a single word about what happened here leaks out, I'll make sure you get sued for every con job you pulled on Lee Hyung-Joo, Park Hee-Jung, and Choi Min-Tae. I'm recruiting them next, so they won't listen to a word you say anymore."

Those were the actors Go Dong-Hyuk once 'introduced' to agencies, only to see them dropped soon after. Because I knew their real talent, I planned to bring them on board after Sang-Gyu.

Go Dong-Hyuk's eyes darted around nervously. "H-How do you know about... them..."

I raised my tightly clenched right fist to his face. "That's none of your business. Just watch your tongue from now on. If you try anything, I'll come for you again. Got it?"

Go Dong-Hyuk flinched and nodded furiously. "I-I won't say a word! I swear!"

"And don't you ever show your face to Sang-Gyu hyung-nim again. Stay out of this industry. Understood?"

He clasped his hands together, bowing repeatedly. "Yes! I promise! I won't touch anything related to the entertainment industry again!"

Only then did I release his collar.

Smack.

Go Dong-Hyuk gasped for breath.

I warned, "The nurses are coming in. Get up."

Wincing, Go Dong-Hyuk forced himself to his feet and stepped back from me.

Bang!

The door to the lounge flew open, and in came the nurses and Jung Sang-Bong. Seeing the mess, one of the nurses shouted in disbelief. "What do you all think you're doing?! This is a hospital!"

I bowed at a 90-degree angle. "I'm sorry. I just fell over for a moment."

The moment I bent, Park Sang-Gyu and Jung Sang-Bong hurriedly bowed too. Even Go Dong-Hyuk, caught off guard, bowed stiffly.

The head nurse scowled and snapped, "

Sigh.

I'll let it go just this once. But visiting hours are over. Everyone except the patient's guardian, out."

"Yes, ma'am!"

Just then, Park Sang-Gyu urgently called out to her. "Head Nurse, this is Mr. Jung. He's my benefactor. Please, just let us talk for a little while longer."

"This is the benefactor who's been covering the bills for Room 410's patient?"

"Yes."

The nurse gave me a quick once-over. "...Alright. Then everyone else is out, except for him."

Thankfully, I earned more time to talk with Park Sang-Gyu.

Jung Sang-Bong bowed repeatedly before guiding Go Dong-Hyuk out of the room. The nurses followed behind them.

As the door closed, Park Sang-Gyu slumped down into a seat. Go Dong-Hyuk's venomous words had clearly shaken him. Clutching his chest, his eyes filled with tears.

"Sang-Gyu hyung-nim."

Park Sang-Gyu struggled to keep himself from crying as he spoke. "Thank you... for stepping in for me. If you hadn't been here, Mr. Jung... I really wouldn't have held back."

I gently tried to calm him. "A talent agent has to do that much. And from now on, if any fists need throwing, leave that to your talent agent."

If an actor got caught in a violence case, the consequences were massive. At best, it was months of inactivity. At worst, it was forced retirement and lawsuits from sponsors. That was the reason talent agents took the heat instead.

Park Sang-Gyu gave a faint, bitter smile and nodded. "...Alright."

"And also, feel free to speak casually now. I'm calling you hyung-nim, but you're still calling me Mr. Jung. Just call me Yoon-Ho."

Park Sang-Gyu looked awkward for a moment but finally replied, "O-Okay... Yoon-Ho."

He dropped the formality, but his face still looked heavy as Go Dong-Hyuk's cruel comment about the accident clearly lingered.

'

I'll have to cheer him up with something from the future.

'

I pulled out my phone and checked an entry in my planner.

[Everyday V12.1]

[Date: December 24, 2021]

-

2:00 p.m: Visit Hope Hospital. (Mrs. Lee Sa-Yeon recovers naturally. Don't forget the gift.)

By the end of this year, Lee Sa-Yeon would miraculously regain consciousness. And what we would later learn was even more shocking—while she had been completely unresponsive for the first two years, she began regaining awareness in 2021. She could hear and understand her husband, though her body couldn't respond.

Despite the despair, Lee Sa-Yeon fought to return to the man who never left her side. She trained herself every waking moment to control her eyelids, her fingers, and her toes, just to respond somehow.

To give Park Sang-Gyu hope, I decided to tell the story as if it were someone else's experience.

"Hyung-nim... There's someone I know. His wife was in a vegetative state, just like your wife. But one day... she woke up."

Park Sang-Gyu's eyes widened. "R-Really?"

"Yes. Her body couldn't move, but she could hear and understand everything. Don't you think it's possible your wife might be like that too?"

Loved ones of patients cling to even the thinnest thread of hope. Just this much was enough to ignite something in him.

Park Sang-Gyu suddenly grabbed my hand and urgently asked, "Uh, w-which hospital treated her? Where was it?"

"No, the hospital had already given up. But her husband didn't. He stayed by her side every day, holding her hand, whispering in her ear that he loved her and asking her not to give up. And they say she regained consciousness before a year had even passed."

"W-Wait, really? That actually helped?"

"Yes. She said that because she was aware, it had a strong impact on her. That she had to go back to her husband. She wanted to come back to him."

What I was saying now was exactly what happened to Park Sang-Gyu and Lee Sa-Yeon before my regression. Since he didn't know that, his eyes slowly filled with hope.

"Hyung-nim, then let's go see your wife now. I'll take a look and maybe I'll talk to that couple. Maybe there's more help we can find."

Before the regression no one expected Lee Sa-Yeon to regain consciousness, so they never caught the signals she gave. But this time, I was determined not to miss them. I would even bring in a professional caregiver.

Encouraged, Park Sang-Gyu stood up from his seat. "Y-Yeah. Let's do that. And maybe I can brag that I finally signed a contract too."

"Let's."

"Then from today, I'm in your care, Yoon-Ho—no, my talent agent."

I gave him a big grin and nodded. "Understood, Mr. Park."

With a lighter heart, I walked with Park Sang-Gyu toward Room 410.

***

I arrived at Room 410 of Hope Hospital located in Guro.

The shared room's TV was replaying the first preview of

Hwaranjeon.

The patients and their guardians watched Yoo-Jin and Miso's lively performance and chatted excitedly.

"Yoo-Jin looks happiest when she's with Miso."

"Right? And seriously, how are they both so pretty?"

"Plus they act so well!"

"Exactly~ Watching their performances is what keeps me going these days."

As they showered praise on Yoo-Jin and Miso, I couldn't help but feel a little pride swell in my chest as their talent agent.

When Park Sang-Gyu and I entered the room, the guardians glanced our way.

"Mr. Sang-Gyu, you're here."

"And who's the handsome young man with you? He looks familiar."

"Oh, this is..."

Just then, a woman who looked to be in her 40s clapped her hands as she recognized me. "Oh my! Isn't he Yoo-Jin and Lee Tae-Poong's talent agent?"

"Oh right! The good-looking talent agent from the year-end awards show?"

"Yes, yes!"

"Wow! A real celeb visited our room?"

"Hey, Mr. Talent agent, what cosmetics does Yoo-Jin use?"

"Yoo-Jin's hair is so shiny. What shampoo does she use?"

Suddenly receiving star treatment myself, I felt a little awkward. Smiling sheepishly, I replied to the patients and guardians. "Yoo-Jin only uses Yettreang products. And her shiny hair? That's thanks to regular salon care."

"Well then, I guess I better start using Yettreang too!"

"Me too! Me too!"

That's when the elderly woman in Bed 3 stepped in to calm the crowd. "Okay, everyone. Let's give them some peace. Looks like they're here to see our dear Mrs. Sa-Yeon. Let's not get in the way."

"Aww, okay."

"We were just curious, that's all, unnie."

"We'll keep quiet now~"

As the patients and guardians all nodded and fell silent, the lady in Bed 3 smiled at us. "Don't worry about us. Go ahead and say your hellos."

"Thank you."

After a brief nod, Park Sang-Gyu and I made our way to the far end of the room. There, by the window, lay Park Sang-Gyu's wife, hooked up to a ventilator and blinking her eyes slowly. I had heard that even patients in a vegetative state often stayed awake during the day, but her condition looked far better than expected.

Usually, after two years in that state, a body would deteriorate—becoming swollen, unkempt, and stiff. But thanks to Park Sang-Gyu's constant massages and attentive care, she looked nearly the same as before aside from some slight weight gain.

Holding her hand, Park Sang-Gyu began to speak and started with the story I had told him earlier. "Honey... I joined Hoop Entertainment. You know, the agency that handles the most popular Miss Jung Yoo-Jin. Yeah, her talent agent's going to manage me too. Isn't that great?"

Massaging his wife's hand, Park Sang-Gyu spoke with tears caught in his throat.

"And... they say there's someone who went through what you did and still recovered completely. Even when the body doesn't move, the mind is awake, apparently. So if you can hear me... please don't give up. I'll make it. I'll become a star and give you the life you deserve. So... come back to me, Sa-Yeon. Please."

I joined in beside him, speaking gently to Lee Sa-Yeon. "Hello, Sa-Yeon noo-nim. We met once before at a theater. I'm Jung Yoon-Ho from Hoop Entertainment and I'll be managing your husband now."

There was no response, but I kept going as if we were truly having a conversation.

"And, though it's a bit embarrassing to say this myself, I'm currently the hottest talent agent in the industry. So you don't need to worry about Sang-Gyu hyung-nim anymore. I'll make sure he becomes a top star."

Beside me, Park Sang-Gyu echoed my words. "Did you hear that, Sa-Yeon? I'm really going to be an actor now. So you better wake up and watch me on TV. Remember how much you wanted to see that?"

Then, quiet murmurs rose from behind us.

-Ah, this is heartbreaking. If only she'd just wake up already.

-Yeah, poor guy...

-She needs to get up and see her husband smile again.

-They're such a lovely couple... Heaven can be so cruel.

Hearing them, I turned back to Lee Sa-Yeon with renewed warmth in my voice. "And don't worry about the hospital bills. Our company will cover them from now on, so you just focus on getting better, noo-nim. And when you do, I'll help you find a wedding hall. You've still got a wedding to walk down the aisle for."

Because Park Sang-Gyu and Lee Sa-Yeon only registered their marriage and never had a ceremony, I brought up what she had once longed for to spark anything within her.

At that moment, Lee Sa-Yeon blinked much slower than before.

Blink.

'

Wait... did I just imagine that?

'

Before the regression, Lee Sa-Yeon had begun regaining consciousness around this time of year. However, she didn't manage to move her eyelids or fingers until Christmas Eve.

Then again, she blinked her eyes once more.

Blink.

My heart began pounding. If I wasn't mistaken, this meant she was regaining some control over her body. Last time, it started with her fingers. And once that happened, the rest followed rapidly.

With my heart racing, I quickly pulled up my Everyday app to check the schedule entry. If she really had begun to move, the future event regarding her recovery might have vanished because it was no longer upcoming but already happening.

'

Please...

'