When they arrived, the rideless horse caused quite a commotion. The agents were on the phone and the stunt coordinator was arguing with the director, while Hee Jun was nervously biting his lips.
"We've returned." Lee Min Ho's soft voice was not heard at first behind all the loud chatter and arguments.
"We are here." Helped him Choi Young, whose voice, no matter how soft spoken, always carried over air and demanded attention.
Everyone stopped in their tracks. Choi Young helped the man off the horse, while the stunt men wrapped around, surprised to see them riding the same horse.
Some sent suspicious and nasty looks toward Choi Young as he gave his shoulder to Lee Min Ho, who leaned on him for support.
"What happened?" Hissed the stunt coordinator. "I trusted you, man!"
Choi Young did not answer, thinking about how to explain the assassin, abduction, the fall… He tried to prepare a reasonable explanation on the way here, but still came up empty handed. He did not want to lie, but being completely honest did not make sense either.
"We were practicing riding when a crazy dog came out of nowhere and the horse suddenly got spooked. I fell. If Daejang weren't there, I could have hurt myself badly. Thankfully, he came to my aid immediately. The horse run away, so we rode his," Lee Min Ho answered calmly, with slight excitement when describing the actual incident, but his face remained untouched by pain, despite the obvious headache he experienced.
Choi Young turned to the actor completely surprised at how easily he could lie with such genuine conviction and have the audience believe him.
The boy gave him a quick wink, marking him as an accomplice to the fib, while the director proceeded to Daejang, glaring angrily at the trainer who did not take good care of the star of the show.
"Choi Young-shi. This is very disappointing. I entrusted Lee Min Ho's safety to you, since you seem very capable and responsible, but now I'm reevaluating my judgment of you."
"I will take responsibility for this incident fully," said firmly Choi Young, facing the stern look of the man. "You decide whether I should continue working with him or not; I will resign immediately if you choose."
The director did not expect this obviously and softened, now trying to take back the harsh words. "Don't take it to heart, Choi Young-shi," he took the man's arm and said with a buttery tone, "I was just worried, that's all. He seems to be in one piece. That's all that matters."
The agent rushed to Lee Min Ho's side fussing around and making the man visibly uncomfortable. Glancing at Choi Young in the clutches of the director, the actor waved for everybody's attention.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to take the afternoon off and rest. Please don't worry about my health. If I need a day off, I will let my agent know."
"Min Ho-shi, of course, a day will be fine," answered the director in a hurry and pushed the agent toward the actor as if confirming. Choi Young seized the opportunity and repositioned himself next to the actor, planning for the next move.
. . .
Curious Eun Soo approached the commotion from the back of the set and noticed her boyfriend in the middle of the crowd. She called out to him, and the man turned to her, surprised expression etched clearly on his face. It made her smile, her plan had worked. His eyes darkened slightly and he made it through the crowd, grabbed her hand and pulled her closer.
"I need you to examine Lee Min Ho quietly and quickly. He might have hurt his head. I'm worried," he said in low tone, only intended for her to hear.
"What?" She screamed, having people turn to her.
Choi Young dragged her away swiftly before anybody got suspicious and explained about what happened, giving her the short and simple version, omitting the assassin part for now.
"He has to go to the hospital. Why won't you take him?"
"He does not want anybody to worry or reporters to bother him. He is renting a house nearby for the duration of the shoot. I want you to go there with him, examine and watch over. If you believe his health is in danger, take him to the hospital yourself. I leave him in your hands," resolute, he said quickly; clearly decision had been made.
"But…"
"No buts, Imja. You are a good doctor. Please. I have something I need to take care of. I will tell you everything later."
He disappeared back into the crowd, leaving her confused. She saw him speaking with Lee Min Ho, who nodded and excusing himself went together with Choi Young into the dressing room, vanishing from her line of sight. In a few minutes somebody tapped her on a shoulder. A man explained that he was the driver and will be escorting her to the car.
Opening up the door for Eun Soo, the young actor followed right after her. The car had tinted windows to prevent onlookers from seeing who was inside. It was a decoy car; as planned, Choi Young dressed in Lee Min Ho's clothing would be publically entering the agency van. The cap should hide his face enough for people not to notice the difference.
"Eun Soo-shi, please don't worry, Daejang will be fine."
She still looked quite anxious and he offered her some water, which she took with gratitude. He was not sure how to talk to her, especially without her boyfriend present, since Daejang clearly told him he did not like him next to his woman. Still, he must have felt that she was in real danger if he sent her off alone with another man in a car to that man's house.
The head was still giving him trouble. A headache lingered, and he felt a bump at the spot of the impact during the fall. The ride made him nauseous, although he never suffered from the car sickness before. He sipped on the water, which seemed to help. His lips were pale and his whole face pallor.
"Eun Soo - shi, you are a doctor, right?" He asked cautiously.
"Yes, I am." She remembered now that she was supposed to check on him, but with all the rush, seek and hide, she had no chance to be alone with him before they were in the car. If it is a concussion, it could be serious.
"Pull the car over!" she screamed at the driver, who followed her order.
"Min Ho-shi," she turned to him, making him worry, since her eyes revealed concern and fear, "Can I call you that?"
He nodded.
"I will check you right now. Even riding in a car might be dangerous at this point. Concussion is not something trifle. You only have one brain, and, trust me, you don't want it damaged."
She did not need to convince him. She used a small light pointer to check pupil reaction, which was normal. She also palpated his head and especially the part where he already developed a small bump. Everything seemed all right on the surface, but she was worried, nevertheless.
"Once we arrive to the house, I will have to do a more thorough examination. If I suspect you need tests, we are going to the hospital."
"OK."
They both stayed quiet for the rest of the ride, with Eun Soo watching him like a hawk for any symptoms, while Min Ho closed his eyes and reclined back on the supportive headrest, which helped with nausea.
. . .
The rental property was indeed close to the movie set. It was a summer house, built by a reach Seoul resident in a contemporary style with all the modern conveniences, including a large swimming pool, a covered patio with lounges, fireplace, barbeque and table with some chairs. All around a carefully planned arrangement of flowers and plants completed the architectural plan of the garden with fruit and cherry trees running along the fence. The gates opened after a code was punched in and the car entered into a spacious underground garage, which was set up to connect to the inside and outside of the house seamlessly.
"Wow!" Eun Soo could not contain her surprise. "Are we going to be staying here?"
The actor gulped air, still nauseous and nodded, while taking a large sip out of his water bottle. "Welcome and make yourself at home. Follow me." He got out of the car, while the driver opened up a door for Eun Soo.
"Thank you," she bowed slightly, not used to such VIP treatment.
"Eun Soo-shi. There are plenty of rooms, you can choose any one you like. I think I want to lie down. Do you mind?"
"I do." She looked at him, eyes worried. "You were sick during the ride. Your equilibrium is off due to the fall. Who knows what else happened. You can have an edema, and you definitely have a light concussion. So no sleeping for you till I finish my examination."
He sighed, looking annoyed, and just motioned for her to come along. A large living room, overlooking the garden was decorated with modern furniture, clean lines, neutral colors, comfortable and practical. Eun Soo had him sit in a chair and came from the side, now carefully and slowly palpating the area with a bump. "Does it hurt?"
"Just a little."
Eun Soo started to waver. She needed to do a scan, not just touch this man's head and pretend like she knew something, as if she had an X-ray in her hands. Would not that be wonderful, if she could see with her hands?
She sighed and felt something strange – there was a certain feeling she got, similar to the one she had when her KI would become activated. She instinctively looked around expecting Choi Young to jump out from the window or walk into the door any second, because why else would her KI react? But the feeling was different. It was not a response to an outside energy source, it was as if her hands gained a heightened sensitivity. Suddenly she could almost see through the fingers. That made no sense, but there was no other way for her to describe it. Where energy felt more dense – there was inflammation in the tissue, where it was more fluid – the blood traveled well and the area was healthy.
Eun Soo was stunned to say the least. What the heck was happening to her?
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