Living with an Ex-Husband - Chapter 11. Endure and Persevere

Chapter 11: Endure and Persevere

Stunned by his harsh response, Eunchae stared at Lee Joon in disbelief. When she turned to face him, his expression was utterly cold and distant.

“Lee Joon…”

Her eyes reddened, and his name slipped out like a sigh from her lips.

“So, is running away your solution?”

“No… no, that’s not it…”

Eunchae’s face turned pale at his cold question.

“I told you, didn’t I? I warned you that living with me wouldn’t be easy.”

As Lee Joon continued speaking, his gaze grew colder. Eunchae bit her trembling lip so hard it almost bled. He sternly reprimanded her, clearly unwilling to tolerate any complaints.

“It’s only been two years. If you’re already saying it’s hard, what do you expect?”

“I just…” she began, struggling to find the words.

“Did you think it would be this easy? Was your smile just empty confidence when you answered?”

“Lee Joon! Please, don’t talk like that.”

As Eunchae shook her head desperately, tears began to fall. His harsh words cut deep, stabbing painfully at her heart.

She felt deeply hurt that he did not offer comfort, only more pain.

Even though she knew what kind of man he was, she couldn’t stop her feelings from growing. Instead of cutting them back, her love for Tae Lee Joon had rooted itself deeply, branching out and trying to bear fruit. She now realized how foolish and naïve that was.

Their increasingly unstable marriage filled her with fear and exhaustion. It felt like living with a ticking time bomb, never knowing when it might explode, leaving her constantly on edge.

Perhaps that’s why she had become so fixated on having a child.

She thought that if they had a baby, it might bring some warmth and life to their cold, barren marriage. Maybe it would make Lee Joon’s heart, which only seemed to show any warmth in bed, beat with real emotion and soften toward her.

But all of it was a futile and empty hope.

Wiping away her endless tears with the back of her hand, Eunchae looked at Lee Joon with a look of resentment. As she struggled to hold back her tears, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs, Lee Joon spoke in a commanding tone.

“Once you start running away, you’ll only become weaker. So, endure it.”

“Haah…!” she gasped in despair.

Eunchae let out a tearful, bitter laugh at his incredibly selfish command.

He kept everyone at arm’s length, living arrogantly in his own world, yet he expected his wife, the one person who shared his life, to bear everything alone. It was unbelievably cruel.

“Can a marriage really survive if only one person is holding it together?” she asked, her voice trembling with the weight of her pain.

Eunchae’s face twisted in pain as she questioned him.

“And… how long am I supposed to endure this? Is there even an end?”

“There will be… an end,” Lee Joon replied, though his words offered little comfort.

Eunchae held her breath for a moment before exhaling slowly. Her voice, thin and strained, slipped out between her uneven breaths.

“And when will that be?”

“Maybe… around the time I take over the company?”

“…What?” she responded, her voice barely a whisper.

“Until then, you have to endure it. I married you because you confidently promised you could handle it.”

Those final words made Eunchae feel as if she had hit rock bottom.

So that was the reason… the only reason he married her.

Eunchae’s vision blurred, her eyes unfocused, as the face of the handsome man before her, devoid of any emotion, filled her gaze.

The reality she faced was so miserable and unbearable that she closed her eyes, letting the darkness take over as hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

She had always believed that Lee Joon had married her with at least some affection or fondness. That’s why she had tried so hard, hoping that he might eventually show her some care and attention.

But to find out that the only reason he married her was because she said she could handle his mother… it was devastating.

When Eunchae opened her eyes, Lee Joon’s face filled her vision once again – his masculine, elegant, and intelligent face. Despite the pain he had caused her, despite the way he had trampled on her heart, it was still the face of the man she loved.

“Stop acting like a child. Don’t get caught up in self-pity, thinking you’re the only one struggling. Most couples in our world live like this. No matter how messy or complicated things get, they still stay married.”

With a stern reminder of reality, Lee Joon pressed the car’s lock button. A heavy click echoed as the doors unlocked.

“If you want to go to the hotel, then get out. I won’t stop you.”

Eunchae’s lips moved, but no words came out in response to his cold remark. To her, it sounded like he was telling her to leave his life if she couldn’t handle it anymore.

Lee Joon raised an eyebrow, meeting Eunchae’s eyes as if to say, “Well? What are you waiting for?” His indifferent demeanor, as if he wouldn’t care what she chose to do, frightened her.

Trembling with fear, Eunchae looked back at Lee Joon. His gaze was calm, yet it cut through her like a blade, making her shrink back.

The air inside the car was thick with tension, making it hard for her to breathe.

Eunchae nervously licked her lips and clenched her trembling hands. As she hesitated, unable to decide, Lee Joon broke the silence with a dry remark.

“Are you planning to spend the night here?”

“Sigh…” she exhaled, feeling the weight of the situation.

As Eunchae let out a sigh, her chest rose and fell with the effort. With cold, trembling hands, she reached over and pressed the lock button.

The click of the doors locking sounded unusually loud in the silence.

“Let’s just go home,” she whispered.

With a weak voice, Eunchae made her decision known. Even though she berated herself for being foolish, she couldn’t bring herself to leave him. She loved Tae Lee Joon too much—so much that she couldn’t bear to be away from him, even for a day.

Eunchae looked at Lee Joon with tender eyes. His expression softened slightly as he let out a deep breath, his chest rising and falling as if he had been holding his breath.

“Put on your seatbelt,” he said.

Following his brief instruction, Eunchae buckled her seat belt. As Lee Joon turned the wheel, the sound of tires scraping the smooth parking lot floor echoed loudly.

As the car left the parking lot and headed home, neither of them spoke a word. Lee Joon focused on driving, his expression cold and hard, while Eunchae stared blankly out the window at the quickly passing city lights.

Even though they were driving toward a clear destination, Eunchae felt lost, as if she were wandering aimlessly.

***

At dawn, as the first light of day began to break, Lee Joon stared at his laptop screen with bloodshot eyes.

[U.S. Lama Pharmaceuticals Begins Clinical Trials for Rare Disease Treatment.]

He focused intently on the headline filling the screen, meticulously reading through the lengthy, detailed article without missing a single word.

After reading the article carefully, Lee Joon closed his eyes and rubbed his face in exhaustion. His eyelids, dry from lack of sleep, felt heavy, and a weary sigh escaped between his lips.

‘Even if they start the clinical trials, the results won’t be out for a long time… I’m not sure I can hold out until then.’

The words echoing in his mind made Lee Joon slowly open his eyes and furrow his brow.

“Sigh…”

As he turned his stiff neck, heavy with accumulated fatigue, he heard a voice.

“Lee Joon…”

Eunchae entered the room, causing Lee Joon to stop mid-stretch. He quickly closed his laptop and scolded her as she approached his desk.

“Don’t you know how to knock? Why are you coming in without permission?”

“Oh… I’m sorry. I forgot,” she replied apologetically.

Feeling embarrassed, Eunchae bowed her head and apologized. She was startled by her own mistake, something she usually didn’t do.

“Leave. I’ll have breakfast later.”

“Okay…” she replied quietly before turning to go.

Eunchae, who had been anxiously watching Lee Joon, left the study, disheartened by his cold dismissal.

“Sigh… damn it.”

Lee Joon muttered a curse under his breath as he slumped back into his chair, covering his face with one hand. It was an unbearably exhausting and frustrating morning.

***

After being coldly dismissed, Eunchae busied herself in the kitchen, making bread for the first time in a while. Just as she put the scone dough in the fridge, the oven timer beeped.

“Mmm… smells good,” she murmured, enjoying the aroma.

Eunchae placed the freshly baked chestnut bread on the kitchen island with a satisfied look on her face. Lee Joon had always enjoyed the bread and cookies she made, especially the chestnut bread, which he only liked when she made it.

As she sliced the bread and arranged it on a plate, she suddenly paused, staring blankly into space. A wave of indescribable emptiness washed over her.

After that day, the two of them carried on as if nothing had happened.

Like a tattered blanket hastily stitched together, they held their marriage together precariously, barely holding it together when it was about to fall apart.

Their passionate encounters in bed continued as usual, Lee Joon’s relentless and demanding schedule remained unchanged, and Mrs. Kang’s harsh treatment of Eunchae was as unforgiving as ever.

As always, the days passed, buried in the routine of their lives.

The only subtle change was Lee Joon’s return time—it had become increasingly later.

Lee Joon had always come home late, but recently, his returns had been even later. There were times when he didn’t come home until after midnight, and on some nights, even without any social obligations, he would arrive at dawn, catching only a brief nap before heading back to work.

Each time this happened, Eunchae couldn’t help but remember the woman’s voice she had heard during one of their phone calls.

Eunchae felt uneasy and worried, but she couldn’t bring herself to confront Lee Joon. She was afraid of his serious or irritated reaction and terrified of what she might discover if her suspicions turned out to be true.

‘How can any man stick to just one woman for his whole life? Especially someone as handsome and wealthy as he is. If you want to stay with a man like that, you have to accept these kinds of things.’

These were the very words Mrs. Kang would use to provoke Eunchae whenever the opportunity arose. It was clear that she almost wanted Lee Joon to see someone else, and that someone was… Lee Seohyun.

“Sigh…”

As her thoughts continued to wander, Eunchae sighed, feeling disappointed in herself for letting her mind go down this path.

“Stop it, Yoon Eunchae,” she scolded herself as she prepared the coffee.

Just then, Lee Joon, fresh from the shower, walked into the kitchen.

“Did you make some bread?” he asked.

Lee Joon ran his hand through his wet hair, pushing it back from his forehead, and placed his phone on the kitchen island.

Eunchae watched him quietly as he closed his eyes and pressed his hands to his forehead. He had come home late again, just before 1 a.m. the night before.

Unable to sleep herself, Eunchae had planned to make some honey water for Lee Joon, seeing how exhausted he was. But instead, he pulled her back into bed and held her tightly, his embrace full of desire.

As always, their time of passion and indulgence lasted quite a while, leaving them with only about three hours of sleep.

“Yes, Father and Mother went for an early morning round of golf together. So I thought we could have bread for breakfast today. Is that alright?”

Eunchae poured the freshly brewed coffee into a mug and handed it to Lee Joon.

“Anything is fine,” he replied indifferently.

Eunchae’s hand paused while pouring at his indifferent response. The time she had spent kneading dough and baking bread since early morning suddenly felt meaningless. Her efforts seemed unappreciated.

‘Of course, he’s always been like this. Why should I expect anything different?’ she thought, resigning herself to the situation.

By now, she should be used to it, but she still found herself foolishly hoping for something more.

“Did you slice all of it?”

Lee Joon asked, pointing to the chestnut bread. Eunchae quickly composed herself and looked at him.

“No, I left half of it uncut.”

“Then give me that. I prefer to tear it apart to eat.”

“Okay.”

Eunchae handed him the uncut half of the chestnut bread, just as he preferred.

Lee Joon tore off a large piece of the bread with one hand, put it in his mouth, and washed it down with a sip of coffee.

“Mmm…”

Seeing him nod in satisfaction brought a smile to Eunchae’s face. It seemed like such a small thing, but it lifted her spirits and she couldn’t help but smile even more.

Lately, things had been going relatively well between them, but the atmosphere shifted when Lee Joon’s phone buzzed on the kitchen island. Eunchae glanced at the caller ID and noticed the name “Alice,” unmistakably a woman. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

When Eunchae looked at Lee Joon, hoping for an explanation, he barely glanced at her before answering the call.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m at home. Go ahead, what is it?”

Lee Joon answered the call as if Eunchae wasn’t even there. His nonchalant attitude made her mouth dry and her eyes dart around nervously.

“And then?” he continued on the phone, his tone distant.

Her anxious gaze felt like it was being sharply scratched as she watched him.