When the Clock Strikes|Pi Han Ul x Reader|

(S02) Chapter 35

Min Hwan raised a brow and leaned back against the arm of the couch, looking far too amused for someone just freed from a seven-year nightmare. “So… you two are running away together? That’s it? Fixed?”

I glanced at Han Wool, who was watching me—not answering, not pushing, just… waiting.

“I’m still not sure,” I murmured, fingers wrapped around the warm can. “Leaving everything here… it’s not easy.”

Han leaned forward slightly, his voice low. “Ye Na, you only have to leave your job.”

“Yes,” I said, gaze flickering to him. “But it’s not just a job to me. I’ve spent years building this. I’ve bled for it. It’s important.”

“I know,” he said. “But we’ll come back soon. This isn’t forever.”

I looked down at the floor. “You won’t understand.”

Silence fell. The room held its breath.

Then, after a long moment, Han Wool’s voice broke through, quieter, steadier.

“If you don’t want things to end up like they did seven years ago… you’ll come with me tomorrow.”

I looked up. His eyes weren’t pleading. They were honest. Clear. There was no manipulation. No desperation. Just truth.

Min Hwan let out a low whistle, mock whispering, “Oof. That hit.”

I shot him a glare, then turned back to Han Wool.

I stared at the can in my hands, the metal warming my palms.

Then finally, with a breath that felt like letting go, I said, “Okay. I’ll come.”

Min Hwan made a low whistle from the couch. “Wow. Look at you two. Really the Han Wool I knew? Back then, you couldn’t even keep your emotions straight, and now you’re planning a getaway with your friend like it’s some melodrama?”

Han Wool laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “She’s my girlfriend.”

“You’re his girlfriend?” Min Hwan asked me, eyebrows arching as he looked between us with an incredulous smile.

Han Wool didn’t even hesitate. “Of course she is. She’s mine.”

The words hit like a stone in my chest—not painful, but heavy with everything unsaid.

I blinked once, my expression still, then murmured under my breath, “You never asked.”

The silence that followed was brief, but sharp. Han Wool’s head turned slowly toward me, confusion flickering in his eyes like he hadn’t even considered that part. His mouth parted a little, lips soft in surprise.

“What?”

“You never asked,” I said louder this time, still calm, but the edge in my voice unmistakable. “You just assumed.”

Min Hwan leaned back into the couch, a low whistle escaping him. “Awkward.”

A moment of silence followed, heavy with tension, but something about it was... bearable. Familiar, even.

I sighed and crossed my arms, turning just slightly away from both of them. “You can’t just throw labels around like that,” I muttered.

Han Wool blinked. “What labels?”

“Calling me your girlfriend. You never said anything. Never asked anything. Just—assumed.”

His mouth parted like he wanted to speak, then closed again. I could see him thinking—actually thinking.