Chapter 5 

” Hyungsoo, have you been drinking?”

A husky voice slipped through his lips. Yunseul stared at him, eyes narrowing. The casual look and voice made her heart skip a beat.

She wishes she could lean against him, as sturdy as his posture is, but she is unable to do so. She can’t take her eyes away from his face, even though she is the one who is hurting.    

“Yes… I’ve had a few drinks.”

She’s not sure if she’s impressed that he can tell she’s been drinking by the sound of her voice. She’s simply confused, and she has no idea why her mood is sinking.    

“…Does your leg hurt? Do you need me to pick you up?” 

“Haah… I’m fine…….” 

“I’m going to the hospital.”

When she stopped moving, the sweat on her brow went cold.

She strained against the v*g*na that was still biting into his flesh. She should be able to stand up and leave.

Why couldn’t she move?  

 “Just…….It Just…. I feel uncomfortable. Hmph, Ji-hyuk… I’m so tired… Can you come now?”

His eyes turn to her.  Is she calling him at this hour?

She tightens her grip on his expression before his eye reaches her face.

She covered herself with a mask so he couldn’t see what she was thinking.   

“I’ll meet you in the garden.” Actually, no… I’m now in the garden…….”

“Okay, Hyungsoo… Wait there…….”

His deep black eyes were fixed on her.

Are you trying to say no?  

“actuality… My leg hurts so terribly, Ji-hyuk. My leg is in pain. So……. Come on out. Huh?”

No way……. She doesn’t want to put herself in that situation. Her sweat hadn’t stopped, and her large p*n*s were still writhing inside.  

“…I’m on my way.”   

Yunseul barely managed to keep a smile on her face.

He was concerned about his sister-in-law’s condition and had a sad expression on his face.   

“Why did you come outside when it’s raining? Why don’t you wait inside?”

Yunseul looked at him in the eyes. The looseness in his face was bittersweet since it was a face he had never shown to her, and the emotion in his eyes was directed at Hyungsoo, not at her, making her smile bittersweet.  

“Hold on, I’ll be right out.”

He reached out, placing his phone firmly on the couch. He took her up by grabbing her around the waist. His sudden departure squeezed her v*g*na. Her inner walls strained to hang on to him as if begging him not to leave.  Yunseul’s face flushed as she felt her hole throb and pleaded for release.

Dropped on the couch like a piece of luggage, Yunesul’s face crumpled as if she might cry at any moment, but she didn’t care as he zipped up his pants and buckled them.   

He turned and went further from where he was as if he had been having sex. Yunseul was seated on the couch, staring at him, when she cried out, her fluids pouring from between her legs. 

Her face brightened as she immediately closed her open legs.   

“…Hyungsoo!”

 his urgent voice pierced her ears just before the door slammed shut. Her head turned awkwardly like a broken doll. Yunseul’s eyes widened.   

He grabbed the umbrella and rushed over to his sister-in-law, who was struggling and about to collapse, and wrapped his arms over her shoulders, all the way through the front window.  

The humid air rushed into the house and wrapped around her body as he opened and closed the door. Her breathing became ragged, and her perfect white brow furrowed.

But her eyes remained fixed out the window.  He tilted the umbrella toward her, concerned that she might get wet, and watched as her shoulders were suddenly drenched. 

Yunseul’s corner of her mouth was twisted up.  She didn’t understand why he acted like getting stuck in the rain was a big deal, and even if they had been close previously, she wasn’t going to call him up late and have half a discussion with him.

What about her? calling him up and not having sex with him? But Yunseul stepped right in the middle of it, not bothering to adjust her panties that had dropped to the side.

He’d done it before, come to think of it. His sister-in-law had been drinking heavily at the time, and he had to pick him up. Why was she getting annoyed since it wasn’t the first time?

“…Again. I hate the rain.”

The two were nowhere to be seen, but Yunseul’s eyes remained fixed on the window.

They look like a married couple.  Yunsuel realized this after staring at the deserted garden for a moment.

Her body’s temperature refused to drop. Her red lips release a gasp. Her hormones are beyond control, and her body is not feeling well.

She put her panties back, irritated and angry. The juices on her fingertips made me snort.   

“Ahhh…….”  

Yunseul took long, deep breaths in and out, trying to relax her entire body. It seemed to ease her muddled feelings. She pushed herself up from the couch, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Yunseul, trembling violently, grasped the couch. She squeezed her eyes shut, and the vision of him in the rain holding an umbrella over her sister-in-law flashed before her eyes.

A sudden surge of insight flashed through her mind: Who would he pick if Hyungsoo and her collapsed?  

Yunseul seemed to have the solution. No, she was sure. Hyungsoo would get the support of her husband. Yunseul’s face darkened as she realized he wasn’t worried about her.   

Her mouth felt bitter. She needs to eat something sweet, so she holds the sofa with both of her hands and stands up.

What… In some ways, the fact that we stopped s*x in the midst is beneficial to the baby… Yunseul lifted the corners of her mouth.

It’s fine. He’d warned her from the start, and all she had to do now was keep herself together.

She assumed her emotional state was due to her pregnancy.

Yunseul went to the kitchen to get an orange from the refrigerator. She stayed there and quickly sliced through two oranges.

Her emotions faded as her sweet hunger was satisfied, and she returned to her usual calm self.  After throwing the orange peels, She walked to the bathroom to brush her teeth; the woman in the mirror appeared to be almost on the point of collapsing.

She washed her face, went outside, sat at the vanity, and applied lotion.  She smacked her palms on her lifeless cheeks, which turned red slightly, making her look a little better.   

She got into bed while running the tips of her fingers through her hair. She pulled the blankets up to her neck and slowly closed her eyes.   

 “……………”   

She was in trouble. Time passed, but sleep didn’t come. When she woke up from her deep sleep on the couch, she wished he would just let her sleep, but she couldn’t sleep when there was no one to disturb her.

She tried to sleep by listening to music and counting numbers, but the more she did it, the more her eyes glazed over.   

She checked her phone, sighing, and it was already beyond three o’clock.

What happened to them? Did they go to the hospital? Together with Hyungsoo? When she isn’t sleeping, she has strange thoughts.

Yunseul rolled over her side and curled up as tightly as she could. She places her hand on her stomach.    

“…I’m sorry.”

She’s sorry that she hasn’t been eating or sleeping well.  She felt sad for the baby, who had to be stressed but was doing okay.

Her heart felt like it was going to burst as she thought of her baby. She would like to move to a place where she doesn’t know anybody right now, but if she gets suspicious, they will start digging around.

He’d find out she was pregnant right away. No, even if he didn’t, her father would find her somehow.

She’d known personally how difficult it was to avoid her father’s watchful eye when she was a child, so she didn’t hesitate to run away. 

She would rather get a divorce… So when she became useless to her father……. It was the only way. The only way she could get away from him without being particularly suspicious, and was no use to him anymore.

She had been saving the money he was giving her. She acquired quite a bit of money over three years. It was enough to keep her survive for a few years while she raised the baby, so money was never a problem.

Should she do something that would make her mother-in-law think twice about divorcing her, or should she do something that would make her sister-in-law think twice about talking badly about her to her in-laws?

 She didn’t know what to think.   

“…But I will protect you.”   

Her heart swells with pride at the possibility of protecting her unborn child. She is unable to touch her tummy, yet it is there.

She vowed to protect her baby, who was growing inside her, no matter what. She doesn’t have severe morning sickness, but there are some odors that her particularly sensitive to.

Her taste buds were also changing.  As she talked to her baby, her eyelids felt heavy, and they wouldn’t go up anymore.  

A knock at the door followed by heavy footsteps.  Yunseul struggled to lift her eyelids. As the footsteps grew closer, the master bedroom door opened.   

She swallowed hard as she heard the sound of undressing.  Yunseul’s eyes widened. The smell of perfume wafting into her nostrils made her feel nauseous. It was a familiar scent.

She gritted her teeth, remembering the floral scent of her sister-in-law’s perfume.  It would be a big deal if she gagged. Yunseul tried not to smell while holding her breath.

Fortunately, he went into the bathroom. She let out the breath She’d been holding as she heard the bathroom door close.   

“Ugggghhhh!”

She buried her face in the pillow, pulled the covers over her head as quietly as she could, and gagged. She wished she could use the restroom outside, but she didn’t have enough energy to run there.   

Fortunately, she had only eaten an orange and was not sick to her stomach.  She calmed down after a while. She pretended to sleep by lying down in the same position she had been in before he walked into the bathroom.    

No sooner had she laid down, he opened the bathroom door and came out, and she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.   

Tiredly, he sighed and came over to her, the side of the bed feeling heavy. She didn’t open her eyes to look, but she was sure that she was lying with her back to him.

Despite her best efforts to calm down, she could still smell his cologne as he came out from the shower. She tried to hold it, but her stomach wouldn’t let her.   

Yunseul became awakened.   

“Where are you going?”

He asked, his voice cold, as though annoyed that she had disturbed his sleep.  

“I’m going to the bathroom, I have a stomachache.”   

She used the excuse that she must have eaten something wrongly, something she would never do. She couldn’t see his face because he was lying on his back, but she didn’t wait for an answer because he didn’t think too much about her. 

She locked the door and switched on the sink and shower water as soon as she entered the restroom in the living room. She didn’t want him to find out what she was up to.

She takes a seat on the bathroom floor. For some reason, she felt more at ease without him there than in the big master bedroom.

She’ll just have to wait till he falls asleep before sleeping in the other room. Yunseul patted her belly and began to sing herself a lullaby.    

* * * * * * * *

The rain was falling like it was nothing. Yunseul paused in the center of the living room to look outside the window, wondering if there was a hole in the sky.

It had been raining continuously for days, and her sleep had been disturbed.  Her husbund’s brother-in-law’s death anniversary was today.  

” Bring it, Ji Hyuk.”   

She was taken aback by the sound of his father’s voice calling him out the window.

Her heart fell as she watched the corners of her mouth trembling as he presented the sacrificial food to his father and whispered a short thank you.   

Her heart dropped when she realized he’d lost his son:

“How dare you, how can you…… know the grief of losing a child?”     

“Honey……., it’s okay.”

Her mother-in-law walks to her father-in-law’s side and comforts him by holding his shoulder, and he attempts to smile to say he’s okay.

Her mother was also saddened since she loved him. She was careful not to breathe because it was so solemn.

Everyone in the house was feeling down and she felt like she was the only one left standing, so she went to the kitchen.

He, too, had a sad expression. He pretended to be okay in order not to show it, but she could see in his eyes that he was suffering from a lot of pain.

“I’ll take it” she said. 

“Yes, here.”   

Yunseul took the food from the lady. Her feet were heavy as she walked out into the living room. She looked down to see Hyungsoo crying under her breath.

She heard that they found out she was pregnant after his husband died in a car accident. He had been with her mistress when the accident happened, and the two of them had traveled down a road that they would never come back.    

The smell of food stung her senses and caused her to hesitate. But she had to keep it together. What if she became nauseated in front of a gathering of people with whom she shouldn’t have seen……?

She forced the dreadful vision from her mind and extended the food to her father. He took a step back, pretending not to notice her reddened eyes.   

“Haam. Mom, I’m sleepy……. How long do we have to stay here?”

She cast a glance at Seo Jun-hyuk, who standing there yawning as if he didn’t know what was going on.

He hadn’t had a father since he was born, so he didn’t understand exactly what it meant to be a father. With a sorrowful expression, he hugged Seo Jun-hyuk tightly.   

“Come on, let’s say goodnight to your father and go upstairs.”  

Seo Jun-hyuk, who usually follows her well, nods. She stroked his hair as if she was happy for him.

He is really sweet to him. She has no idea as to why he does not want to have children. He seems to like having the presence of children. She bit her lower lip.

This made her stomach turn, so she reached into her pocket for a lemon candy and placed it into her mouth. The ceremony started. Yunseul made a promise to be nice to Seo Jun-hyuk.

His mother expressed concern that he was being too cold. Jokes at her age could be fun. She bowed as she clasped the platter tightly in her hands.    

“…I miss him so much.”

When we heard her wet voice, we all took a deep breath. Her eyes flooded up with tears. Her mother began to cry, as did Seo Jun-hyuk, and her mother and father embraced her firmly and comforted her.   

“Hyungsoo…. you’re going to collapse. You have to think of Jun-hyuk.”   

He comforted his sorrowful sister-in-law, taking out a handkerchief from his pocket. He handed it to Hyungsoo, firmly holding her shoulder for a moment before letting go.

“…Thank you.”

As she saw him wipe away her tears with the handkerchief, she felt a sense of bitterness. He has no idea that is the handkerchief she folded for him.

Yunseul doesn’t do any household chores unless it’s for her in-laws, therefore it’s up to her to prepare her handkerchief, and it’s up to her whether or not she works for her spouse. 

It didn’t matter, but the beautifully folded handkerchief crumbled in Hyungsoo’s hands.

Yunseul diverted her eyes, refusing to look at them. Her lips curved into a tiny sigh. He, his sister-in-law, and Seo Junhyuk headed upstairs shortly after the ceremony ended.

His father and mother said they were tired and went to the master bedroom.  Yunseul helped the helper clean up.   

She held her breath to avoid smelling the food, but the smell stung her nostrils and made Yunseul scrunch up her face.   

“I’m going to make a quick call.” 

“Sure, you don’t have to tell me……”

“But because his word is law, she does not go without asking first. Yunseul walked out the door, swallowing the anger she felt.   

She inhaled while pretending that she was talking on her cell phone, her brow furrowed as the humid air penetrated her chest. Raindrops pattered across Yunseul’s palm as she stretched her hand out.

Her body was suffering from being on her feet all day. She had a feeling that if she put her head anywhere, she would fall asleep.

Her swelling legs hurt and she stretched her toes, but she was pleased not to have smelled the food.   

“Haa…….”

She was unable to stand outside any longer, so she moved her heavy feet inside. Yunseul headed towards the kitchen, rubbing her rain-drenched palms on her thighs, and came to a stop.

Indoors, she caught a cautious voice. Yunseul listened intently.

“Doesn’t he look like him?”

“Yeah. He doesn’t look like his dad….”   

Perhaps it was the rain, but the ladies’ talk was much louder.   

“Watch your mouth or you’ll get fired.”

“I’m just…….”

“How many people have been fired before? he looks just like his mom. Should you say something like that? Think yourself.”

Azmer tells her to watch what she says if she does not want to get fired.

She went into the kitchen, pretending to be interested, while they were talking, and the ladies stared at her as they closed their mouths.  

 She didn’t want to pretend she’d heard anything particular. It was everywhere an afterthought. Even when she lived at her father’s house, she overheard the women gossiping behind her back about her father, stepmother, and Yun Ina.  

Even then, she never pretended to know.

“If there’s anything I can do to help, please do.”

She wanted to clean up, go home, shower, and sleep. Her eyes were heavy even when she was standing. She’d set up a huge altar, which would take some time to dismantle.   

“I’ll go in then.” 

“You’ve done a good job.”

“If I had a hard time, the helper had a harder time too”   

Yunseul turned and left the kitchen, unable to stand it any longer. She didn’t check around the living room to see whether he’d gone first.

Of course, he’s gone first, and she’s relieved she can finally rest. On the porch, She unfolded the black umbrella. Something was moving at the back of her in-laws’ house.   

Who was he?   

Yunseul shifted herself unintentionally. A cat would sometimes enter, but was it a cat? She didn’t believe so, it was raining, and her worried eyes expanded to tears.  

 She nearly shouted. Yunseul put her palm over her mouth. Her husband and his sister-in-law were together.   

“…Ji-hyuk….”

“Hyungsoo……. don’t cry. Huh?”

It was quite shocking to see him holding Hyungsoo, who was crying on his shoulder.  Yunseul let go of the umbrella. Her entire body was weak.

She had no idea it was raining around her. All she could see was Hyungsoo holding his arms firmly.

“How sad to see you like this, I miss you so much?”

She could no longer hear her gravelly voice.   

“I’m sorry, I just kept leaning over… I’m sorry.”

 “It’s okay……. Is your leg okay?”

Her face was as white as a sheet when she staggered out of the room. She was afraid he’d kick her ass if she didn’t. She’d never been comforted before, so she wasn’t sure if her confused feelings were right or wrong.

They’re not in love, but they’re still a couple, and it doesn’t matter since they’re going to break up soon, so she shouldn’t be watching them.

The rain pounded against Yunseul’s skin, causing her eyes to move rapidly.   

It wasn’t that she hated the two of them. It was as if she’d been holding in a crack in her heart that she felt something snap, break, and disintegrate.   

Yunseul walked home in the rain. Water poured and drenched the floor with each step. With sad eyes, she looked down at the wet floor.

She wants to get cleaned up and go to bed, but she is unable to do so. Yunseul flopped down on the couch.  She bit her lower lip as the water dripped from the ends of her hair as if it were crying on her behalf.   

Yunseul’s head lifted from looking at the floor shortly after she heard the door open. He walked into the house and paused upon seeing her sitting on the couch.

His body was becoming very dark.

Yunseul carefully got to her seat and looked him in the eyes. His brows twitched when he stared down at her wet body.

Yun-seul’s lips screwed up as if she were chastising him for acting like a child who was playing in the rain.   

“…Mr. Ji-hyuk, do you like someone else?”

She opted to blame her pregnancy hormones for forcing the question out of the corners of her mouth.   

“What?”

His head slanted to one side. His eyes narrowed slightly as if he hadn’t thought of the question.   

“Do you like someone else?” she asked.

Yunseul’s eyes widened slightly. Her eyes widened as he raised one corner of his mouth, feeling like he didn’t think it was worth answering. The rain made her chin tremble.

“Do I have to answer you that? Are we that close?”

Yunseul straightened her back to show she wasn’t hurt. 

His face looks startled that she would think to ask such a question, his jet-black eyes lazily examining her soaked body.  

She looked at him blankly, with her eyes fixed on the rain. The vision of Hyunsoo running out of the rain flashes before her eyes.   

He removes his hair away from his face and leans forward.   

“Don’t ask me stupid questions, just spread your legs.”   

Water came down her reddened cheeks from her dripping hair. Because it felt like tears, she bit the tip of her tongue.

“What if there’s someone you like?”

Her heart dropped as she asked, her tone caustic. She felt far more at ease standing in the rain than in front of him.

“you’re just like a kid.”  

After she muttered something about coming out in the rain and dirtying the house, he shot her a reproachful look. She met his stern gaze with determination, and judging by the resolute expression on his darkened face, he had no intention of backing down.

Yunseul felt at ease since he kept his word.  Her wet clothes were torn off and thrown on the floor.

As her clothes dropped off, leaving her n*ked, a chilly feeling ran through her body. Her whole body shook and her jaw trembled.    

Yunseul covered her chest with her arm. She covered the area between her legs with her other hand. Unlike her n*ked body, she turned her head slightly to avoid his gaze, even his tie.   

His eyes looked from head to toe, and the last thing he touched was her red lip.  He didn’t look like he cared that she was cold. If she’d been shivering in the rain, he would have stripped n*ked, and wrapped himself around me.   

Yunseul made her face contort.  The clothes she was wearing dropped to the floor one by one. He tossed them away, away from his damp clothes, and approached n*ked.    

Yunseul stepped back, but her legs touched the couch. That meant there was nowhere to run.    

“Get down.”   

Yunseul’s eyes closed and opened slowly, her expression mournful, but he grabbed her shoulders and turned her around as if he wasn’t interested in her face.

When he touched her, her body whirled and she fell onto the couch. Her trembling hands clutched the couch for support. Slender arms that could snap at the slightest touch to her.  

Yunseul’s mouth twisted bitterly at the thought of being warmed by someone who looked like they had frozen everything in sight.

Yes. she’d rather be warmed than left outside in the cold. It’s not like she was going to tell him not to.

“Uh…huh!”

Yunseul closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of his body on her back. Her as$ was spread wide, and the thrusts were endless.   

Yunseul jerked his head back. He began to thrust after grabbing her pelvis.  Yunseul came again and again beneath his thrusts as if trying to forget something. His thrusts hit a single area on her inner wall, knocking her out.

The furious pounding of his p*nis made it hard for her to breathe. Her disheveled eyes were half-closed.   

 “Hmph! Hmph!”

Yunseul leaned closer, frightened by the intensity of the pleasure. Her body moved first, fearful that if he continued, she would break. It was just instinct.   

Her v*g*na jerked and begged to be reinserted as his p*nis slipped out. As her body asked him to put it back in, She bit her lower lip in frustration.

Her juices flow more freely when she moves her knees. It’s all over Yunseul’s face and up to her ears.  

Fortunately, he does not grab her. It’s strange how silent he is. Yunseul went to the end of the couch and was about to stand up when his entire body was flipped over. Her legs were spread out in front of him. She tried pulling her legs together, but a big hand clutched the back of her thighs.

She moistens her shiny lips with her tongue. Her eyes were lifeless and glistened.  Her throat hurt as she swallowed hard.

He’s usually the coldest person she’s ever encountered, but in bed, he’s terrifyingly strong and uninhibited.

She’s not sure what he’s thinking, but his deep, jet-black eyes frighten her.

“Why do you keep running away? It’ll buy you time.”

“I’m too tired….”

“If you run away while showing your as$, what do you think I saw?”

What makes him think that?  Yunseul’s eyes widened in confusion, and his face brightened up at her embarrassment   

“Ji-hyuk!”

Yunseul screamed unable to control herself as he wrapped his arms around her legs and hugged her.

He was surprised for a split second, but only because Yunseul didn’t usually emit loud noises. To avoid collapsing, he wrapped his arms around her neck and gripped her fiercely.

She was afraid she’d fall if she let go, so she buried her face in his neck, asking him to let her go as if it didn’t matter if she fell or not.

She was tall, so it would be a big deal if she fell.   

“Mr. Ji-hyuk, please let me down?”

 She peered at him as he abruptly came to an end in the middle of nowhere, his face crumpled in disapproval. She tightened her shoulders as something cold touched her back.

She pushed against the arm that was wrapped around his neck.   

“Ugggghhhh… Suck!”

Her v*g*na was also pierced at the same time.  The cold thing on her back was, of course, the front window. She leaned towards the front window and quickly flipped her waist.  

 “Man! Ji-hyuk, stop!”

Her legs were raised, unable to escape, and he completely embraced her. She furiously shook her head, pleading with him to stop.  

 Her mouth begged him to stop, but her stomach twisted at the absurdity of clutching her neck in fear of falling to the floor.

She was feeling disgusted with herself for relying on him against her will.

Puck! Puck!

As he lifted her hips, Yunseul’s legs flailed frantically. Her body and mind were both trembling. Sometimes the body and mind become one.   

Yunseul shoved her sad thoughts down into her chest and concentrated on her performance. With each thrust, her back hit against the window, and the pain in her back caused her to narrow her eyes.   

He wasn’t looking at her, however. She noticed he was looking out of the window, oblivious to her pain. She burst into tears in his arms as another wave of pleasure took over him.

She wasn’t crying because she was sad; she was crying because she was happy. He lowered me to the floor once he finished ejaculating.

Her legs gave out and she fell as soon as her feet struck the floor. As she walks to her room to wash her hands, she looks at the back of his head.

Even when he’s gone, she sits there for a while, unwilling to move. She thinks she hears rain behind her. The rain couldn’t have gotten in through the closely sealed windows.

whether to show affection or not. Her anger grew as she found she could be affectionate.  She stayed with him every day, as she stated, but she couldn’t help but feel love for him in the end.

Yun-seul put her arms over her throbbing. She should probably go to the hospital. She couldn’t put it off any longer.  She rubbed her stomach like she was asking a baby if she was all right.

Her stomach felt better after throbbing like a horse.   

“…You know, you shouldn’t be sick”

She held back a tear, but it slipped. Her heart dropped as she realized that, while keeping it hidden so she wouldn’t have to live like her, she was already making her look like me.   

Yun-seul cried quietly to herself. She cried while covering her mouth with her hands so no one could hear.  The tightness in her chest felt better after she cried for a while.

“It’s nothing.”   

“Nothing, nothing, nothing.”

 Yunseul kept repeating the words as if they were a mantra.  

 “So there’s no need to cry…….”   

Yunseul shook her slim shoulders gently. She tilted her head gently to see out the front window. Her eyes caught on the pouring rain.  

 She wished the rain would wash her tears away.  Yunseul stood in the rain for a long time, her body shaking with sweat.   

* * * * * *

The sky was so blue the next day, she couldn’t tell when it had stopped raining, and she smiled. She’s traveling to visit her mother today.  Her father would freak out if he found out, but she needed to see her mother today.

She had missed her mother even more since finding out she was pregnant.  Despite having a driver, she hailed a taxi.   

She lowers the window and lets the cool breeze touch her face as the taxi races along the clear road. The corners of her mouth continued to turn upward.

I don’t normally see him leave for work, but it has disturbed me. But today, She purposefully stayed in bed and did not get up.   

He departed for work like it was dawn, treating her as if she wasn’t there, just as she believed he wouldn’t care. Yunseul shook her head. She wanted to stop thinking about him.

“We’re here.”  

She paid the taxi driver and got out of the vehicle. Although it is not far from Seoul, the air feels different. Yunseul closed her eyes and took a leisurely breath in.  

His father had planned to send her mother to a deteriorating rural convalescent hospital. Yunseul, on the other hand, used her money to get her out of it.

Mom was now receiving excellent care in a high-end nursing home, thanks to him.  It must have been difficult for her to survive in prison when she was so weak, but she didn’t even admit that she was struggling and didn’t even pay her any visits.

She was aware that it was all for her good.    

“Mom!”

She walks into the hospital room and sees her mother knitting on the bed. She glances up as soon as she hears her voice.   

“Yunseul”

Her mother, who was not expecting her visit, jumped out of bed in surprise.

“What’s wrong? What’s wrong?”

“Your daughter is coming to see you… Where is she? I want to see her.”  

She couldn’t believe she would come to see her unless something was wrong. As She got near her, she tightened her grip on the back of her hand. 

 “I missed you so much, darling, I missed you,”

She says that she hasn’t seen her mother since she was imprisoned. She felt relieved that she was able to protect her mother. On the other side, she worried that her father would harass her if we got divorced.  

 “…When are we going to move in together?”

She questioned herself. She wanted to live a happy life with her mother, the baby inside of my womb, and the three of us.

“You should live with your husband, why me?”

“……Yes.”  

She pushed the corners of her lips up so she wouldn’t ask her a question.  

“By the way, I have a strange dream?”

“A dream?”

Yunseul gently smiled as her mother brushed her hair. It was comforting to know that there was someone who cared about her.

“Are you pregnant?” she asks, noting that she hasn’t seen her mother since she was imprisoned.

That’s all there was to it. She was feeling relieved knowing that she could protect her mother. On the other side, She was concerned that her father would harass her if they got divorced.  

“…When are we going to move in together?”

 I asked myself. I wanted to live happily with my mom, the baby in my belly, the three of us.

“You should live with your husband, why me?”

“……Yes.”  

 I forced the corners of my mouth up so she wouldn’t question me.  

 “By the way, I have a strange dream?”

“A dream?”

Pause.   

Yunseul’s eyes widened to tears.  

She had to act as if nothing had happened, but her mouth twitched at the unexpected question.   

“I had a fetal dream……. Aren’t you pregnant? I don’t know anyone around me who’s pregnant….”

“Mom, I’m on my period.”

“Yeah? Then who is it?”

She rubbed her cheek against her arm.   

“Mommy……. I want you to be happy, don’t think about me Mom, don’t think about me…. Okay?”

“I’m …… happy now, I’m happier than anyone else.”

“Okay, then.”  

She gripped her mother’s arm, attempting to hide her sad expression.

* * * * * * * * *

“Yunseul.”   

Someone called her name sweetly. Yunseul’s lips gradually curled up.  It must be a nightmare. No one would say her name so sweetly if it wasn’t a dream. Someone soon brushed her hair tenderly.   

“Sweety, wake up.”  

She didn’t want to get out of bed. If she did, she would face an unpleasant and unforgiving reality. Yunseul’s pristine white forehead wrinkled slightly.

Then a loving hand touched the top of her head. As a loving palm touched her cheek, tears threatened to fall from her eyes. She frowns, and the hand that has been touching her face moves behind her to pat her on the back.

She smells something familiar. Because of her pregnancy, she’s more sensitive to fragrances these days, but the curiously warm smell is soothing.   

“Are you going to stay asleep?”

She lit up. Yunseul’s eyelids twitched forward, straining her clean eyes.   

“…Mommy?”

Yunseul’s shoulders stiffened as she noticed her mother in her eyes.   

“Why are you sleeping like this, haven’t you slept much lately?”

“Ah…….”   

When she turned her head to look around, she noticed it was dark.  

 “What time is it?”

Her voice cracked when she awoke, and her mother brushed her hair as if she felt sorry for her.   

“It’s 6:00 p.m.”

 She was sleeping so soundly so she had decided to wake her up. She thought it was too late, so she shook her, but she didn’t wake up.

She probably didn’t get enough sleep because she was usually scared, so shaking her wouldn’t wake her up. She wandered around in the dark as she woke.   

Yunsul’s eyes sprung wide, her face flushed with weariness.  

 “…It’s okay, I was just dizzy for a second.”

“Are you still so anemic? Is that it?”

She buried herself in her mother’s arms, who had been in prison for a long time yet still remembered feeling unwell when she was a child. She pauses for a moment before hugging her fiercely.   

“…It’s nothing like that, don’t worry.” 

“Your face is white because you must be sick….”

“Mom!”

Yunseul cut her off. She lifted her mother’s chest, burying her face in it. Her face was just as firm and regal as it had always been. To reassure her, she stiffened her facial muscles.  

 “I’m really fine, I just haven’t slept much lately and I’m tired. That’s all,”

She says this as her worried expression softens.  

 “you want to sleep here?.” your husband is waiting  for you.”

Would he wait for her? He wouldn’t wait for her as long as the world was falling apart. But he couldn’t let her be worried.  

 “Yes, he’ll wait. Then I’ll go.”

She began to pull on the coat she’d left behind, but her movements slowed. Not only did she not want to go to his sister-in-law’s house.  Yunseul swallowed her laughter by biting the tip of her tongue.

 The image of him hugging Hyungsoo is still clear in her mind, but it has been stuck in her chest. She would try to pull the blade out if it was severely lodged, but there was no possibility because it was embedded in her chest.   

She kept thinking about them and how nice she was to Seo Jun-hyuk. He treated Seo Jun-hyuk as if he were his son, unaware that he had a child growing inside her. 

Yun-seul’s lips twisted.   

“Okay, Mom, I’m leaving. I’ll come back with you again, so eat well and sleep well.” 

“Be careful.”

“…Can I take that with me?”

She smiles happily as she gets the shawl and bags her mother knitted as if she knows how her mother feels when she spends her time knitting and crocheting.   

“Well, then. I’ll knit shawls for you and my son-in-law soon.”

‘…but we’re going to get divorced by winter.’

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”   

Yunseul lied on purpose since she didn’t want to show her mother that she was unhappy. She took a scarf and a purse from the stack. She turned and reached for the doorknob, trying to look pleasant so her mother wouldn’t be worried when she heard her mother’s voice behind her.   

“……Seul, isn’t something wrong?”

Yunseul’s shoulders shook as she spoke in an anxious tone. She turned her head slowly to see her mother sitting on the bed.   

“What’s wrong?”

She’s wondering whether she’s noticed anything. Her daughter, who rarely visits her, has suddenly come by. It was strange that she’d wake up as soon as she walked in the door and even slept in that day.   

Yunseul swallowed dryly and fixed her eyes on her mother’s lips.

“It’s weird that you just showed up out of the blue. It’s weird because it’s not usual.”

“What do you mean weird? I want to see you, Mom. I said I’m coming to see you mom, is that weird?”

“Not really, but….”

“I’ll go.”   

Yunseul opened the door and went out, unable to pretend it any longer. She fainted as soon as she shut the door.   

It had been odd from the start. She found herself puzzled by the two people who seemed to be very close together. She was feeling bad for her and Seo Jun-hyuk, who had both lost their spouses and fathers, and wondered if she was doing well.

She heard her calling him by his name from time to time, but she thought it was because she said they were close in the past.   

Yun-seul buried her soaked face in the shawl and bag her mother had made for her.  It wasn’t the first time she’d called him late at night and asked him to accompany her to the hospital because Seo Jun-hyuk was sick, or the first time she’d gotten drunk and asked him to pick her up.

She used to believe they could do it because they were family.

No, they were in a contract marriage without love, so what she thought didn’t matter.   

But…. But….   

“What makes me feel so guilty?” Haah…….”   

Yunseul stumbled to her feet after wiping away her tears.   

She had to go…   

Go…. Have some dinner……  Yunseul came to a halt and got up after a few steps.

“You’ve been following me around a lot, Hoho.”

…At the time, She ignored it as a passing remark, and then she had forgotten about it, but now she remembered.  

Where should she go? For a long period, disoriented feet wander.

When a passing nurse asked if she was okay, she was brought back to reality.  Fortunately, traffic was light, and she arrived home on time.

She made her way directly to her in-laws’ house to prepare for dinner. She saw a familiar pair of shoes as she took off her sandals on the porch:

He had to leave work earlier than usual.  

‘You left to take care of the company, and now his back’

Hyungsoo, who had been waiting for her, sneered as she crossed her arms.

Yun-seul said nothing and just looked at her.   

“What, you can’t take a joke?”

Her cold eye turned to her hands. She held the scarf and bag her mother had made for her with all her might.

“…What is this?”

She looked across to Hyungsoo, who was laughing uncontrollably.   

“Where would you find such a thing… Hyun-soo, grow a pair of eyes.”

“…….”

” What is it, Seoju Group’s daughter-in-law used this? Throw this away now.”  

She unintentionally hugged the scarf and bag.   

She’s in the study room talking to her mother about something, and her father is running late.

When she looked at Hyungsoo, her eyes were uneven.   

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

“…Because you seem to have a relationship with him.”

Her lips lifted in amusement, and a proud look pierced into her heart.   

“Didn’t you know, sister-in-law?” Ji-hyuk used to love me.”

“Ah…….”

She wondered whether he hadn’t forgotten about her,

…He was the one who couldn’t forget. Suddenly, everything made sense. This was why he was so weak and tender to his sister-in-law, and why she was so sure of herself when she confronted her.

She expected to be surprised, but Yunseul turned calm without thinking. She didn’t know what their story was, and she didn’t want to figure it out.   

“The meal is ready, so go talk to your mother and Seobang.”

“Okay.” 

Yunseul went to the study room. Her stomach churned, her eyes darted everywhere, and she grasped the wall for support. It’s probably the smell of food in the distance.   

She carefully closed and opened her burning eyes. The dizziness had subsided. Yunseul moved her feet once more.  She knocked on the door in front of the study room, but it was slightly open, and she heard her mother’s voice from inside.

Her patting hand came to a halt.   

“You should have kids, too. You’ve been married for three years.”   

When She heard the word “children,” her throat constricted.   

“Mother, don’t say that, I told you clearly when we got married, didn’t I?”

“Ji-hyuk…….”

“I told you when we got married, which you pushed for, that you would never have grandchildren. I told  you that, you would have known then.”

Yunseul took an unintentional step back as if she hadn’t heard something she wasn’t supposed to.   

“And even if I did, I wouldn’t keep it. I’d delete it.”  

Yunseul raised her hand to cover her mouth.   

“Don’t expect anything from me, Mom.”

“What good is a child born without love? If she becomes pregnant, I’ll force her to go to the hospital and have it removed; if she gives birth secretly, I’ll send her to a foreign country and assure her never to show up in front of me again.”

His words seemed so true that her previously calm stomach turned insane. 

“Are you sure you want to do this, son?” How could you have done such a stupid thing?”

“You said you wanted me to get married, and now that I am, don’t imprison me anymore. What will you do if I abandon my position as successor and run away?”

She felt a desire to leave, and YunSeul ran out of the room without looking back.   

“Where are you going, Yunseul?”

“I’m not feeling well, so I’m skipping dinner.” 

” Yunseul, Yunseul, Yunseul! Yunseul!””

She heard herself shouting after her, but she hurried home without stopping, straight to the bathroom, and puked all over herself.   

She moved to the basin and wiped the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand, but her legs gave out. She clung to the sink to avoid falling.

“…Ha.”   

She’s not sure how many times she’ll chastise her for missing dinner.

She doesn’t know. All she knew was that She had to keep him away from finding out that she was pregnant.   

When he entered the room, She was lying in bed with her both eyes closed. The scent of his perfume lingered throughout her nostrils, and she wondered if he had washed in a different bathroom rather than the master bathroom.     

Yunseul slowly opened her eyes and moved closer to him. His cold stare turned to her.

“I’m going to the gynecologist tomorrow.”  

When he heard the word gynecological, he scowled.   

“Gynecology?”

His eyes look over her face as if studying her. As if to say, As if to break through the word.   

“Yes, gynecology.”

But Yun-Seul already took away the smile from her face. Her eyes deepen, as though she is offended by what she sees on his impassive face.

Yunseul looks at him coldly.