Seo-yeon sat across from him.
Closer now.
No longer a child being protected.
Someone who needed to know.
"What's his name?" she asked.
Her father hesitated.
Like saying it would make it more real.
"…Mr. Han."
Her breath caught.
Han.
Her last name.
Her father noticed immediately.
"It's not related," he said quickly.
Just coincidence.
Just another cruel twist.
But names had power.
And now she had his.
"What does he want?" she asked.
Her father stared at her.
Tired.
Defeated.
"He wants to make sure I don't run."
Her chest tightened painfully.
He had never planned to run.
But people like that didn't rely on trust.
They relied on fear.
Her father reached across the table.
Took her hand.
"I'll handle it."
The same words he had said before the accident.
The same words that led him toward death.
Her fingers tightened around his hand.
"No," she said quietly.
He looked at her.
Surprised.
This time—
She wouldn't let him handle it alone.
Because this time—
She knew what happened when he did.