CHAPTER 12

Yunseul got out of the shower and sat down at the vanity to dry her hair. It had started to rain, and the humidity was rising and sticking to her skin. She hated the feeling of sweating so she took a cold shower, where sweat dried up along her back.    

Pregnancy generates a lot of heat. Every breath was a struggle. Her brow wrinkled as she felt eyes on her back.    

She frowned as she became conscious of a look on her back. When she looked in the mirror, she saw him staring back at her.    

It had recently bothered him. She could feel his eyes on her while she was eating, nibbling, talking with a lady, or alone with her thoughts. She wasn’t prepared to ask why until now. Is it because of the humidity?

She was determined not to let it go today. She shook her shoulders as she cocked her head, as if annoyed.    

“Do you have something to say?” Why do you look at me in that way?”

“No, I don’t.”    

Yunseul stood up and approached him. He’d been at work by 7:30 a.m. for the past three years, but he was running late today. It was about 8:00 a.m., and he was dressed formally.    

“Okay then, that’s right,” Yunseul replied, closing the gap. Her eyes widen as she asks what is wrong.    

“…If you’re going to give money to my father in the future, please do it through me.”  

“Why?” he asks, with his forehead wrinkled as if he doesn’t understand.

“Doesn’t it bother you?” he wondered, unsure why he should bother.

“I… wanted to give it to you.”  

It was his money, but she didn’t want to give it to him in the future, and she had her reasons for keeping it. She swallowed dryly, afraid he would say no.    

“Would you?”

With the affirmative response, she exhaled a sigh of relief.    

“Thanks.”  

“Don’t thank me. I’m going to deposit the money for my father-in-law in your bank account.”

She couldn’t think of a way to receive the money without arousing his suspicions, but it turned out to be easier than she thought. It was good to have him do what she wanted.

“But do you need money?”

“What?”

Her heart was beating. Had he noticed something? She bit her lower lip, wondering if she’d spoken too fast. She didn’t want to look up in fear he caught her with a suspicious expression on her face.    

“I’ll put it aside from my father-in-law’s money, so if you need it, you can use it.”

“I don’t need money, there’s nothing I can use it for.”    

She pretended to be uninterested, but on the inside, she was worried and conscious of her breathing. What if he was suspicious of her?

Maybe she should not have told him. She hated the idea of the money going to her father, as much as she needed it.    

Until now, she hadn’t cared how much money he made, but he had ceased to be her father the moment he lied to his word to her and hid her mother.

She’d done everything she could to repay him for raising and feeding her. She believes she has done enough to repay him.

She married a man she didn’t love and often took money from him. She was ignored and criticized without saying a sound.    

“If you don’t need the money, keep it.”

“I’m using the card you gave me…..”

He checked his wristwatch to see if it was late, then shook his head firmly, as if to say nothing more.    

“Just, do it.”    

Yunsul clenched her teeth. She appeared to be okay, but her anxiousness was rising at the same time, she felt glad to have the money.

Her mind wandered. Let us rejoice. The bigger your finances, the better. She would need a lot of money if she wanted to stay hidden.

When she decided to think positively, the corners of her mouth tried to rise. Yunseul pushed the corners of her mouth up.

She saw herself frozen in time. She ran her hands over her hair as she listened to the footsteps grow distant.    

“Oh, right,” he breathed out his feet suddenly coming to a halt, causing Yunseul to pause.

Her eyes began to move once again. She gently turned to face him. She cleaned her lips with her tongue, which felt like they were burning, and tried to maintain a normal expression.    

“Your mother.”

“What? What about her?”

She ran forward and stood in front of him. She grabbed his arms while staring her eyes at him.

She could feel him pause, but she waved her arm, urging him to speak quickly.

“My mom… why? What?”

Yunseul’s deadly black eye pierced his tightly pressed lips as if he were about to eat them.    

“I thought I could find her.”

Crazy bouncing eyes that won’t stop bouncing. She expected him to find her mother quickly, but as time passed, she didn’t hear anything, and she became worried.    

“Really? Are you sure you can find her?”

She couldn’t beg him to find her quickly, so she clung to him, but when he said he could, her heart raced.

Yunseul blinked rapidly to hide her fast wet eyes, but she can’t hide the redness, and his stare lies squarely on her eyes.    

“Yeah, I can find her.”    

His assurance that he would be able to find her again made her so happy that she burst into tears.

She quickly turns away to cover her tears, but she’s sure he sees it. She wiped them away with the back of her hand as if nothing had happened.

“You have to go to work.”  

“Yes.”

She tilted her head to the side, confused by how his face had sunk, and the way he looked at her without blinking made her sick to her stomach.

“I’m going to work.” “Bye.”

“Bye.”

Yunseul had never seen her go to work before because he’d nailed her the moment that they’d married, telling her not to, so saying “bye” felt awkward.    

He must have felt embarrassed as well because he nodded awkwardly.    

“……..”

He walked towards the door, while she walked towards the dressing table, untangling their gazes.

A split second later. It appeared that it would rain a lot, but it was so heavy that she couldn’t see. She sat on the couch, watching the rain fall like a hole in the sky.    

The sound of rain filled the home as she opened the window a bit. She hated the humidity, but not the sound of rain.

Mrs. Seo’s knife sharpening was louder than usual, and she felt relieved that she was at home alone with Mrs. Seo, the only person in the world who knew she was pregnant.

She rubbed her belly while almost lying down on the couch. When she heard that he could find her this morning, the corners of her mouth turned up then quickly dropped.

Her tired shoulders sagged. Even with his intelligence, where the hell did they hide her?

Yunseul leaned over to grab the phone when it rang on the table.    

“Hello?”

When an unknown number appeared, she answered it.    

“Hello, please speak.”    

Because of the silence on the other end, she lifted her voice a bit, but it remained silent. She was about to push the end button when she realized she had pressed the incorrect button.    

– “Who is this?”

She must have dialed the wrong number unless she knew her name. She shook her head, waiting for her answer.    

“-me….…”    

The woman on the other end of the telephone mumbled something and started to respond, but Yunseul interrupted her. From somewhere, she recognized the voice.

“…Yoonjin Kim?”

No way, she thought, she had misheard.    

“-…That’s right, it’s me, Yoonjin.”    

Yunseul’s lips twitched at the words “It wasn’t a misunderstanding.” Her eyes closed and opened, and they were colder than they had ever been.    

Kim Yoon-jin was the only person she thought she knew, and she felt that she was her only friend. She had no idea she was dating Park Dae-hee, her ex-fiancé.

As she remembered doing it in the dorm room, her stomach twisted. She rubbed her hands over her ears as if her words were echoing in her head.  

“What are you calling about?”

How could she call her that when she felt like she had a steel plate over her face?

“-…I’m about to marry Dae-hee’s brother. “I know, I told you before.”

She snorted in surprise. She couldn’t believe someone could be that sleazy.    

“Are you calling to let me know one more time that you’re getting married?”  

“-…Do you have any contact with Dae-hee’s brother?”

She wanted to name every insult she could think of, but she decided to control herself. Yunseul took a deep breath to calm herself down.    

“Don’t call me again,” she whispered, her face heated.    

“-…Whom shall I then contact?”

“What?”

She felt dumbfounded since the question was so absurd.    

Because she was dating Daehee’s brother, she snatched her friend’s fiancé… They refused to even talk to her… They say she’s going to steal their boyfriends too, so who is she going to talk to?

She could hear her crying but she couldn’t help but feel sad for Kim Yoon-jin.

 “-You’re the daughter-in-law of a chaebol!” Isn’t that enough? You and Daehee’s relationship ended because of me. So you’re married, live in a wonderful house, and are doing well…!

“…What happened to you?”

Otherwise, how could she claim it was her fault? Something must be causing her pain.    

-“Why should I know your heart? Kim Yoon-jin, listen carefully. I knew from the start, you would be greedy for even a ballpoint pen, but I let it slide, thinking it was just like that. But you’re the one who’s greedy for the man you’re dating on the premise of marriage. I don’t care how you two live, whether you’re roasted or not.”  

-“You’re right, I’m so happy with my marriage that I don’t have time for you two.”    

She bit her tongue as she realized how sad the woman crying on the other end of the call sounded.

“So you two get married and live happily ever after, and don’t ever think about calling me again. I won’t answer anyway.” She didn’t return the phone call.    

“…Funny.”    

She ran her fingers through her hair. She doesn’t deserve to be irritated, yet she is. She isn’t. She shouldn’t have done it. That should be on her mind.   

 Yunseul closed her eyes and listened to the rain, trying to relax. She stroked her tummy lightly, and it felt wonderfully nice.    

“It’s the time you asked me to inform you, youngest lady.”   

She’d asked Mrs. Seo for a favor just in case, because she’d noticed she was blinking more frequently lately, and she’s happy she did. Kim Yoon-jin’s calls led her to miss appointments.

“I’ll be right back.”  

“It’s raining a lot, be careful, it’s slippery.”  

“Okay.”    

She was on her way to meet her sister-in-law, who had scheduled the meeting. Mrs. Seo was right; the rain-soaked garden was quite slippery, so she moved her feet very carefully.

She was tempted to refuse her sister-in-law’s request to come back home, but she didn’t want to risk getting caught.    

She stepped on a loose stone while holding her umbrella tightly in both hands. “Boom!” Her foot slipped, and she fell to the ground.

Yunseul let go of the umbrella and flailed her arms in an attempt to keep herself from falling, but her body had already fallen downward. She blinked open her tightly tightened eyelids.    

“Ugh… Ouch.”

Her hands and knees were red-hot. She took the umbrella off the ground to keep the rain off her, and when she looked down, her hands and knees looked crusted.    

* * *

She put the umbrella on the wall and she folded it forcefully. Her knees and palms were aching from the force of the impact. She dusted off her muddy wet clothes with her right hand, which was less injured.    

She stifled a sigh, hoping it would make her feel better.  She walked in and slipped on her slippers. Her knees hurt with each step, causing her to limp.    

“Whoa! The monster is here! Run, run, run!”  He laughed.

She forced herself not to sigh as Seo Jun-hyuk rushed at her, waving his sword.    

“Die! Die!”

“Don’t.”   

The knife, which Seo had frequently used as his favorite toy, seemed too dangerous to be a toy. She finds it hard to believe it’s a toy.

Yunseul’s eyes narrowed as she took a closer look at Seo Jun Hyuk.    

“Die, monster! I’ll kill you!”

“I said don’t do it!”

She tries to avoid the knife, but the pain in her injured knee prevents her from doing so.    

“Don’t do it.”

“What will you do if I tell you I will do it?”

Where did he learn to speak so sarcastically? Youseul’s face turned cold as he teasingly thrust out his tongue.

She didn’t run away from Seo Junhyuk but instead looked at him with a cold eye   

“Die!”

Her arm was cut by the toy knife. She struck it with all his strength, and where it hit hurt a lot. Yunseul raised her hand.    

Because he was a child, she’d let him get away with it.    

“Get off me! Let go of me, you monster!”

and took the knife with both of her hands. Seo Jun-hyuk panicked and jumped up and down, trying to get the knife, but Yunseul moved her body to avoid him taking it.    

“Give it to me! It’s mine! Give it to me!”  

“No, I’m not giving it to you.”

“Give it to me!” Yunseul said, shaking her head in disbelief.    

“They didn’t buy it for you to hit it at people, so you can hit it at people knowing it’s dangerous?”

“It’s mine! It’s mine!”

She is unable to express herself clearly. With an expressionless face, she looked at Seo Jun-hyuk, who was crying and shouting.    

Seo’s eyes flooded up with tears as he ordered her to leave his house, but she had no plan of backing her own.    

“If you apologize right away and promise to never hit it at people again, I’ll give it to you then.”

“Give it to me! Hmph! Give me what’s mine!”    

She walked passed the crying Seo Jun-hyuk, but then she heard him cry and saw her sister-in-law rush down the stairs.

When she sees Seo’s toy knife in her palm, her eyes widen.    

“Seo Jun Hyuk, what’s wrong?” Seo Jun-hyuk ran and jumped into her sister-in-law’s arms as he heard his mother’s voice.

“Jun Hyuk, why are you crying? Huh? What’s wrong?”

“Hm…ugh. Mom, mom. My knife… She took it….. She took it all of a sudden.”

She turns her head and avoids Seo Jun-hyuk’s eyes when she notices him looking at her resentfully.    

“What are you doing, crying a child?”

She stares at Hyungsoo, who looks at her as if she’s going to eat her for crying the adorable child who would take over the Seoju group.    

“Give it to me right now!” Yunseul backed away as she saw Hyungsoo grabbing for the toy knife.  

“Yunseul!” her sister-in-law’s loud voice didn’t scare her.    

“Go ahead and sit down. Jun Hyuk, stop crying too.” Why are you crying when you know that you’ve done something wrong?”

The unusual voice made Seo Junhyuk shudder.

“Jun-hyuk, you should go upstairs.”

“My knife….”

“Don’t worry, your mom will going to get it.”

“Yeah…….”

Seo Jun-hyuk looked back and stuck his tongue out at herself as he went away, with his shoulders bowed.

She’s taken aback, but not shocked because he’s able to do it.    

Yunseul sat on the couch with Jun Hyuk’s toy knife, and her sister-in-law sat across from her.

She looks at her, her knees crossed and her arms folded.  Yunseul looked at Hyungsoo with a solemn gaze. She was the one who broke the silence between them.    

“Jun-hyuk struck the knife again.”  

“He did. Why are you being so sensitive?”

She had gotten used to getting away with it, so she knew it would happen again. Yunseul raised her brow.    

“Hyungsoo, have you ever been beaten with one of these?” she asked, with her eyes drawn to the knife.

“How much does it hurt to be hit with a toy…….”

“It hurts, and it hurts like hell,” she sighed, holding the knifed arm.    

“Jun Hyuk isn’t just doing it to me, is he? What if he hits other friends at school, are you going to say he’s just a kid and can do it then?”

“Why would my son hit his friends?”

“Then I can hit him?” “We need to educate him properly at home, it’s school violence nowadays, it’s not like it used to be.” You have to be careful.”

Hyungsoo twitched her fingers and nibbled her lower lip.    

“As you said, Jun-hyuk is supposed to be the successor to Seo-joo Group, so he shouldn’t be the one who talks about it, right?”

“…I’ll make sure Jun-hyuk is good at binding, so you can stop too.”

“No, I’ll give it back if he promises me in front of me that he won’t do it again.”  

She could feel her anger rising. Yunseul gritted her teeth to show that she would not go against her sister-in-law’s requests.    

Hyungsoo’s razor-sharp look penetrated her entire body. But Yunseul was deafeningly silent.

“…Okay.”

She was confused that Hyungsoo was backing down so easily, but since she was the first to back down, she decided to call it a day.    

“But what are you going to do about him?”

“What?”

Yunseul’s eyes widened, wondering what she was talking about. She’ll clarify why she called her today.  

She wasn’t sure what she was going to say, but she felt like she wanted to hurt her. She promised herself not to be surprised by anything she said.

“Are you going to stay with him?”    

“What?”

“You’re asking me if I’m not going to get a divorce?”

Even though she had persuaded herself not to be surprised, the word of divorce did not surprise her in the slightest.    

“Yeah, I thought it was an agreement made between adults before they got married. So, shouldn’t we get divorced?”

Yunseul smiled her eyes drawn to the lifted corner of her sister-in-law’s mouth.    

“Then, Hyungsoo, I need your help.”  

“What? What is it?” 

she mumbled, unable to come up with an answer.    

“I want you to help me get a divorce.”

She repeats it so she can hear her well, and her eyes fill up with tears.    

“I want a divorce too, but he won’t let me go.”    

She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and turns away.    

“I asked him to divorce me, but he doesn’t want to.”

She’s not sure why she’s acting as if her words hurt her.    

“how the hell did Seo Ji Hyuk make “

“Hyungsoo.”    

Yunseul interrupted her.    

“No matter how close you were to him, please call him by his proper name.”  

“…….”

“And I don’t have any regrets about this house.”    

In actuality, the corners of her mouth twitched and she blinked slowly. She locked her eyes on Hyungsoo.    

“If that’s what you’re calling him, don’t call him that in the future.”

“Let me know when you have a date and place for your voluntary work.”    

Hyungsoo moved forward when she said she was going to volunteer. Yunseul couldn’t help but nod when she asked to volunteer at the nursery school where she frequently went.    

“I’ll go then.”    

Yunseul took his toy knife and stood up, turning away from Hyungsoo, who was still sitting in a stupor, and went outside. The rain had stopped by then.    

It felt like a hole in the sky, and she expected it to rain all day. The humidity remained, but there was a cool breeze tickling her hair.

She ignored her messy hair and walked across the garden to her house. Her knees swelled with each step, yet she showed no signs of pain.

By the way, may she use ointment when pregnant? Is there an ointment that can be used?  She decided to hide her injury since if she revealed it, Mrs. Seo would offer to apply medicine.

Yunseul went into her room as soon as she got home and changed out of her rain-soaked clothes. She’d feel better after a shower.    

She’d only been at her in-laws’ house for a few hours, and she already felt terrible. She felt glad that she didn’t have to eat at her in-laws’ house for supper. So, thanks to him.

She should, however, eat dinner with him alone. Yunseul came inside the restroom with her shoulders drooping. She had supper with him a few days ago, and it was… So uncomfortable.    

She sighed, thinking about eating supper with him in a few hours. Uncomfortable is unpleasant.

Yunseul took a glance at the man in front of him. When it comes to eating, he is also a fast eater. He doesn’t make a sound, so she has no idea he’s eating.    

She chewed her rice and the humid atmosphere made her uncomfortable. There was no way the rice would taste nice if she ate it alone with him. She forced herself to chew the rice before swallowing it.    

“I’ll get up first.”    

She could only eat so much before getting up.    

“Okay,”

He responds, and she can tell whether he’s uncomfortable. If that is the case, she has no idea as to why he insists on eating separately.    

Yunseul left the kitchen after putting the bowl in the sink. No, she tried to leave. He abruptly grabs her wrist and turns around.

“What, why?” Yunseul muttered, shocked.    

“What’s wrong with your leg?”

“What?”

“Your leg. You’re hurting.”   

Ah…. How did he find out that she had been hurt? She’s been careful not to reveal it. His eye is drawn to her injured leg.

Yunseul fidgeted with her toes. She tries twisting her wrist to get him to let grip, but he just holds tighter. He hadn’t given any thought to whether she was in pain or not until now, and now he’s wondering why. Yunseul pulls away her hand.    

“I’m just hurt, don’t worry about it.”

She wished he didn’t care as much as he did because it would make it easier to leave. But why is he concerned about her? Did she come across as too cold? She rolled her eyes and swallowed dryly.    

* * *

“Ha…ah.”    

Yunseul let out a deep sigh as she sat at the coffee shop and looked out the window.  He was acting unusual these days. No, he’d been weird for a long, but lately, he’d been really, very strange.    

She could feel his gaze on her no matter where she was in the house, and she felt more comfortable hiding in the bathroom and how fast he got prepared to go to work.    

She felt like a zoo animal in a cage. She was uncomfortable with his eyes following her as if he were watching her. Is it simply unsettling?

She hoped he wouldn’t mind, but the more time they spent together, the more anxious she became.    

As if she wasn’t already careful about revealing her pregnancy, the more time they spent together made her even more anxious. No such thing as a lost cause exists.    

The man who couldn’t come home more than a few times a month suddenly became able to come home regularly, even to eat supper with her.  Yunseul sighed deeply.

She wondered whether he was feeling uncomfortable. Her pain was driving her insane. It was unpleasant and uncomfortable just to make eye contact with him, be in the same room, and breathe in the same rhythm.  

Today and yesterday. She wanted to avoid waking up in the morning and find herself in his arms, but she couldn’t sleep in the other room because he would follow her down and drag her back to the master bedroom. She wasn’t even near him.

Previously, Ji Hyuk would have had her open her legs several times a day…… She did it the previous time he went on a business trip…

How long had it already been? That meant he hadn’t done it since returning home from her father’s house.    

Yunseul pulled out of her bag and took out a maternity notebook. She checked the inside and outside of the coffee shop before opening it.  She was on her way to the gynecologist.    

Yunseul’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she got her bare hands over the ultrasound picture. She worried because her tummy was not showing at all, but the doctor assured her that it could happen.    

She additionally advised her to stay out of stressful situations, that she was able to move around freely now, and that She shouldn’t be worried about her love life.    Yunseul stroked her tummy as she watched the ultrasound.

Stress? She doesn’t recall ever having a stressful experience in her life. It’s just that being around him is overwhelming, and she spends a lot of time in the bathroom…other than that… She believes there is nothing to be worried about.

He was the source of the problem. Except for that, there’s nothing to be worried about.  Yunseul put the maternity notebook in her bag after checking the time.

She straightened up taller and turned her head to look out the window. It looks to be raining a lot this spring.

It looked rainy and humid even now as if it was going to rain. Her mouth dropped open as she saw the leaves on the trees were drooping and lifeless, just like the ones in the old images.    

At the very least, the coffee shop was cool. She had an appointment a short distance away from the gynecologist’s office, and the short walk had left her soaked in sweat.    

Her cell phone rang on the table as she rubbed the back of her neck with her palm. She quickly took it. She looked at the screen, wondering if it was the person she was supposed to meet that day, but instead of the person she was expecting, Yun Ina’s name showed up. Yunseul’s eyes drooped.

When he called her father, stepmother, and Yun Ina, they all went insane. He stopped any funds given to her family. He must have told her father that he would now receive money from her.

He also banned Yun Ina and her stepmother from attending chaebol gatherings. She’d allowed it because she knew they were taking advantage of her in-laws to get to those occasions, but she wasn’t going to put up with it anymore.    

There were so many things she could do as the daughter-in-law of a chaebol. She asked why she hadn’t used these powers all these years, but she preferred freedom to power, freedom to being the Seoju family’s daughter-in-law.    

She wanted to live happily with her mother and her child. Yunseul switched over her cell phone, which was still ringing as if she didn’t want to look at it.    

“Who’s calling?”

Yunseul’s head sprang up at the man seated across from her.

“You are, aren’t you?”

The same blackness filled her entire body, but this time it was different. She swallows dryly as if her hazel eyes are warning her that he’s up to something.    

The man pokes his head out of the door and whispers something only she can hear.    

“The one who offered to buy the jewelry, no?”

 He says this in a light tone. The smell of cigarettes was strong, and Yunseul inhaled deeply.    

“Isn’t that right?”

She shook her head at the man he showed respect. It was just a lie. He was the one who said he would buy her jewelry, but as soon as she saw him, she realized he was dangerous.    

“No?”

“…Who are you?”

The acting was good. His piercing look moved across her face and body. Yunseul lowered her eyes and grabbed her juice cup. She had been kept awake by the ice. She would never sell her jewelry to him.    

“Do you know me?” the man asks, shaking his head.    

“Fuck no, then who are you?”

The words echo in his ears as he mumbles to himself. She reaches out a cold hand, picking up her face-down cell phone.

Yunseul shut off the phone and put it in her bag as the man’s curious stare stuck to her face as if he didn’t know any better. The man later fiddled with the phone’s screen.   

“Ha, Mr. Lee. Is it a submarine?”

Yunseul got more scared as the man scolded her for coming out.

“You’re sure it’s not you?”

The man’s suspicious look rested on the bag where she had put her phone earlier. Yunseul’s eyes widened.    

“Take out your phone.”

“…What?”

“You’re the only one here, and I have a good feeling you’re the bitch trying to sell me jewelry.”    

She was shaking her shoulders, scared of the man who was yelling at her as if he was truly angry when an unknown voice from behind her called her name:

“Seul,” Yunseul gently turned her head.    

“…Senior?” Han Ki-hyuk asked.    

“You’re late, right?”

Yunseul’s face reddened with shame, but Han Ki-hyuk was as daring as if they’d never met in the first place. He continued, looking down at the man seated across from her.

“Who? Do you know him?” Han Ki-hyuk’s brows narrowed for a split second.    

“Do you know him?” he asks again, shaking her head.

“…I don’t know him.”    

The profanity-laced man rose and got out of the coffee shop. Yunseul sagged her shoulders. Han Ki-hyuk takes the seat where the man was a moment earlier, looking worried.    

“What’s going on?”

Yunseul asked, with her eyes locked on Han Ki-hyuk.    

“Senior, please pretend you don’t know what you saw here.”

Han Ki-hyuk must have felt something because he assisted as expected. So Yunseul didn’t back down and told him exactly what she wanted.    

“…Do you need money? Then you can borrow at me….”

“What’s wrong with you?” Yunseul cut Han Ki-hyuk off.    

“It’s nothing like that, so don’t worry. I’ll go.”    

She took her phone from her bag and switched it on. She thought about calling a taxi because the coffee shop was located on a narrow street where taxis did not frequently pass.    

“I’ll take you there. Isn’t that okay?”

“No, it’s okay…….”

“Senior, can’t you take me home?”

She stepped outside, but she thought what if the man could have been waiting for her, or he could have been correct.    

“…Thanks, but don’t you have an appointment?”

“No, I don’t. Let’s go.”

He didn’t even have an appointment, so why was he here? She shook her head, but the senior urged him to go quickly, so she grabbed her bags and got up.

The rain was falling lightly when she stepped outside.    

“Thank you, you made it easier for me.”  

“If you’re grateful, I’ll buy you a car later.”

“But we met by chance, right?”

“What?”

She couldn’t help but be curious. People were often around her who were either looking for something or taking advantage of her.

She didn’t want to go home with a bad taste in her mouth, no matter how sad she felt for him.    

“That coffee shop is down an alleyway… It’s off the usual route… “The coffee is delicious there.” It’s similar to what I had while abroad, therefore I frequently go there.”

“Oh…. I’m sorry.”   

Yunseul’s face turned very red. She felt sad for Han Ki-hyuk, who seemed not to be offended.

“It’s okay, it could be.”    

Han Ki-hyuk had always looked positive and easygoing. She suddenly realized she wanted to live like that.    

“Thanks for the ride.”  

“Next time we meet, let’s have a cup of tea. I’m not serious, we can do that between seniors and juniors, right?”

She couldn’t say no to the cheerful senior any longer.    

“…Yes, let’s do that.”  

“It’s raining a lot. Take an umbrella.”

It was pouring heavily when we arrived at the house.    

“No, it’s right in front of me….”

“Take it. Don’t walk around in the rain.”

Yunseul smiled and replied, “Thank you.”    

“Be careful inside then. See you later.”

“Yeah.”    

Yunseul opened her umbrella as she got out of the car. She looked around first when she realized she hadn’t left despite the door being closed.

She turned around first since he expected to watch her enter and exit the house.  She had just fallen in the garden on a rainy day, so she walked home with caution.    

She folded her umbrella and removed it. She felt a slight shake in her bag as she put the umbrella at the front door and removed her shoes.    

She took out her phone, thinking it was a text, and stepped inside the house. Yunseul’s eyes widened as she checked the screen of her phone.    

“What is this?”

It was a confirmation that the funds had been deposited. Oh……. He claimed he’d send me money, therefore it had to be placed. Wait a second.

Yunseul rubbed her eyes and looked at her phone once again.    

“What, what’s so much?”

Money was given to her father, although the sum placed in the name of ‘Yunseul’ was too much. No, ‘too much’ was not the right word.   

It was a huge amount of money that she wondered if he had made a mistake, and her lips were on fire.

This is sufficient…… Even if she doesn’t sell jewelry or anything else….. She could support her mother and her child without worrying about money.    

She felt relieved, but yet sorry for him. She was aware he had given money to his father, but she was not aware of the amount he was given, and now that she is aware of the amount, she is uncomfortable.

She knew why her father had summoned her from the streets. He’s been getting this every month, and he’s been complaining about not having enough. He’s also been taken from her mother.

Yunseul’s face turned cold. She’d dozed off while waiting for him, who was running late as usual. When she awoke and rubbed her eyes, she saw him outside, wearing only a shower robe.  

“You’re home?” she asked, her voice husky from sleep.    

“Yeah, did I wake you up?”

“No.”    

Yunseul approached him. As he toweled his hair, his eyes expanded slightly.    

“Hey…. Ji-hyuk.”

“Huh?” His ears perked up as his eye was drawn to her face.    

“I saw the money had been transferred, but it’s so… You gave me a lot….”

“You always give me this amount?”

“You gave me too much too.”

She opens her mouth to say that maybe the employee made a mistake, but his low smile silences her.    

“Tell me if it’s not enough, and I’ll give you more.”

She can almost hear his voice ringing in her brain as he tells her that he is divorcing her and that he is aware of how much it costs her each month.    

“It’s fine.”    

There is a brief moment of silence. Yunseul, who had kept her head down, lifted it to meet a piercing stare. 

“…….”    

Yunsul’s eyes flitted wildly. Her expression changed. Her eyes sparkled like those of an animal. She wanted to get away from him as if he was about to bite the back of her neck, but she couldn’t.

She didn’t move when he approached and reached for her.