Once Love Begins - Chapter 1. Part 3

Chapter 1. Part 3

* * *

 She was awoken by a knock on the door at 3 a.m. Checking her phone on the bedside table, she noticed that he had not replied to her text about what time he got home. This made her feel sad, even though she had expected him not to respond.

She smiled bitterly and put away her phone. His footsteps were louder than usual, indicating that he had been drinking. ‘With whom? At this hour?’

Perhaps it was work, but it was more likely with her. She pulled the covers over her head, feeling foolish for considering the unimaginable.

At home, they did not need to pretend to be in love. She slept in the master bedroom, while he slept in the other room.

When she hears the door to his room close, she pulls back the blankets. She stares at the ceiling and slowly blinks, feeling her eyes open.

Two years ago, she came to him in tears and asked him to marry her.

She offered to do anything he wanted if he would just marry her. However, her grandfather refused to perform the surgery and kept pressuring her.

He wanted to start a new business to avoid working for his overbearing father. He wondered if he should give up his dream.

She realized and informed him that she would transfer her shares to him. They both knew that his father could no longer oppose him, at least regarding her shares.

“I’ll never love you for the rest of my life; is that okay?”

She did not consider the consequences of her statement. However, she was happy that her grandfather could undergo surgery after learning she was getting married.

“Our relationship will end if you try to force me to love you. Do you understand?.”

She laughed at his cold words and shook her head. The following day, she drafted a contract and informed her grandfather of her intention to marry.

After a rushed wedding, her grandfather underwent surgery. She tried to hold back her tears, but she couldn’t.

She didn’t need to cry over his treatment of her for not replying to her text messages because she was used to it.

* * *

They would run into each other at the dinner table once or twice a week, and today was one of those days. She looked over at him, her brow furrowed slightly as she felt her heart sink.

He felt her gaze and lifted his eyes. Their eyes met.

“I sent you a text message yesterday. Did you not see it?”

 She asked a question she wouldn’t normally ask.

“I saw it.”

He replied coldly, lowering his eyes again. It was bitter.

“But why didn’t you reply…?” she asked again.

His face fell slightly as if he didn’t like the answer. He held his spoon tightly and looked at her.

“Whether I stay for dinner or not, or whether I come home late or not, is none of your business.”

In annoyance, she slammed the spoon down

and asked, “Why did you marry me?”

It was the first time. She hadn’t asked since they decided to get married. She hadn’t been able to say the words that had been on her lips so many times.

“You should have stopped, if that’s what you’re doing,” she grumbled as she looked at him.

“I thought I told you that.”

He stood up slowly and turned his head to look at her as he stood.

“That I’ll never love you.”

She bit her lip, fearing a cry might escape.

“Finished your rice; it’s not good.”

She held the spoon tightly, ready to scoop the soup.

As the door closed, she couldn’t help but lift the corner of her mouth. She tried to hold back her emotions, but her lips still trembled. She struggled to handle the spoon.

“S*ck.”

She opened her eyes wide. Tears threatened to fall, but she vowed never to cry again. There was a time in their marriage when she cried in front of him, not knowing what to do. He said something she still remembered.

“I married you because I liked you, so why are you crying? Who am I to shed tears? Shouldn’t you be feeling sorry for me for marrying you without love?”

“You needed the shares, too!” she cried out.

She yearned for his love and cried out. He didn’t look very angry, but  he looked at her fiercely.

“That’s why I married you, right? Ha.”

He did not shout or get angry. Instead, he kept going, one by one.

I would still have my own business even if I didn’t marry you. But I chose you, so don’t mess with me.”

He spoke in a cold tone and let out a heavy sigh. His sigh weighed heavily on her heart, leaving her unable to move. She set down her spoon and walked out of the room.

‘What does it mean to live with myself? What does it mean to live with someone who wants to break up with me?’

She lay down on the bed and curled up. She was exhausted, and her love for him appeared to be fading. Maybe she should take a break and have an antacid. She grabbed one from her dresser drawer and went into the bathroom.

She calmed down by taking a bath. Then, she sat on the couch and browsed the internet.

She smiled when she received a text from someone saying, ‘I’m bored; let’s practice.’

At least, she has friends who share her interests. She tried to get dressed, but her eyes opened and closed again. Perhaps it was due to a lack of sleep and eating badly.

School is much nicer than home, so she was eager. She quickly got ready and went to school. Chatting with her friends, eating, and practicing her singing would make her feel better. She hated her empty house.

* * *

The morning was a mess. She seriously wondered if she should avoid face-to-face meals once or twice a week anymore. The traffic jam on her way to work made her irritable to the point of madness. She craved a cigarette out of frustration.

She recently decided to quit smoking. However, if she continues, she will smoke more frequently. Her anger towards him is the cause of this.

He never planned to marry a snobbish dog who knew nothing about him. He never wanted to get married because he had seen his mother suffer due to his father.

His mother’s tears never dried due to her father’s womanizing, but she waited patiently for him to return home. As a child, he was unaware of this secret, but as he grew up, he came to understand it.

It is a mystery why her eyes never dried up. He pleaded with her to end the relationship, but her mother stubbornly refused. She smiled and assured her it was just a marriage, but the expression on her face was unforgettable.

At times, her mother’s eyes were puffy, indicating that she was fighting with her father. He wondered why her mother stayed with a man who didn’t love her.

He was angry with his father for breaking his mother’s heart, but he was equally frustrated with their mother for enduring it.

Marriage never appealed to him, but Ha Yeon-woo changed his mind. She followed him relentlessly, even embarrassing him in front of friends by declaring, ‘He’s mine! Break up with him!’ If not for her, he might still be focused on his career and avoid marriage.

Memories of Ha Yeon-woo crying and begging him to marry her came back to Kang-jae’s mind. Kang-Jae regretted not pushing her hand away and rejecting her firmly. He should have rejected her firmly and made her so angry that she would never turn back to him.

He should have firmly asserted that marrying someone like her was ridiculous. Without Chairman Ha’s kindness, he would never have agreed to the marriage.

Chairman Ha, who previously spoke as if his time was limited, now enjoys better health after surgery. However, he has recently been subtly pressuring someone to have a child. Ha Yeon-woo was never a woman to him.

He couldn’t have feelings for someone eight years younger than him, let alone any desire. When he sees her, it just makes him angry. Her innocence is so pure that every time she looks at him, he feels the need to destroy it.

He feels sick at the sight of her. She sends him texts sometimes, but he never responds. He doesn’t understand why she’s suddenly bothered by it. He furrows his brow as he remembers the recent incident at the table.

He tugs at his tie in irritation, searching for some relief.

“Is something wrong?” she asks cautiously, placing her coffee on the desk.

“No, nothing.”

“You seem like you’re in a bad mood.”

“……”

“Do you want to have a drink again today?”

Hee-young stares at him. He smiled and wondered why she was looking at him like that. However, he couldn’t figure out her thoughts. Hee-young attended the same high school as Ha-yeon-woo. She was a much more sophisticated woman.

“Is that so?”

He feels comfortable around her because she doesn’t flirt or make advances like other girls.

“I will reserve a table at our usual place.”

“Okay.”

Ha-yeon-woo used to brighten up when she saw him until last year, but now she has changed her attitude; she has changed her approach and doesn’t even show it, which irritates him even more. The house feels suffocating.

He notices that his friend Hee-young is rolling her eyes and smiling, but he doesn’t think much of it. He is just fed up with everything.