The Season I Loved You Without You - Chapter 35

CHAPTER 35

Ga-eul dressed neatly in the clothes given by Go-yeo for the opera. He put on his watch and wore his shoes. And then he saw a large bouquet that didn’t fit in the room. At first, he put them in a large bowl because there was no vase, but then he hurriedly bought a glass vase and put them in.

Ga-eul was worried about the day when Ji-hyuk’s engagement news came out, so he went to the boutique without a plan. The boss had already left early, and the employees were just there until closing. He couldn’t stand the feeling of helplessness of not being able to do anything, so he waited because he couldn’t go home like that. He felt like he was reaching out with his magpie feet, hoping to touch her feet.

Waiting for someone who didn’t come was reckless, but it wasn’t difficult. He just watched the boss’ boutique finish the day from there. It even felt like he could sense her presence just by doing that.

He wanted to say he wished she could forget about anyone who made the boss’ life difficult, but it was something he couldn’t say. He didn’t have the right to say it, and he knew the boss wouldn’t know. If she could cut her heart straight, she wouldn’t have been so distressed.

At first, he thought it was an auditory hallucination created by hope, but he could tell it was the boss just by the sound of footsteps. Relaxed yet regular footsteps. Overwhelming gaze. The awe that emanated from her whole body. The boss who made him like a reckless animal.

It was he who was actually surprised by her sudden appearance. Their gazes got tangled up. The moment he saw her, she was so captivating. He just wanted to be next to her recklessly.

The emotions buried deep in his chest sparked courage. Although she hesitated a little at the words asking her to work again, she agreed. She suddenly held out the bouquet she was holding.

“Take it. I’m giving it to you because you’re as beautiful as these flowers.”

It was already a little withered, but he hoped it would last a long time. He gently touched the beautiful, delicate flowers. He deeply breathed in their scent. The sweet and subtle fragrance resembled her.

As they went outside, Eun-jae, who was getting ready to go out, was standing there. Eun-jae glanced at Ga-eul’s attire and exclaimed in pure admiration.

“What’s this? You look so cool. Where did you get these clothes? You’re fully dressed up because you’re going to see the opera today.”

Ga-eul awkwardly smiled at Eun-jae’s flattering compliment.

“Wow. Your clothes fly. They seem quite expensive. Today, you’re a rich nobleman’s son, brother.”

Ga-eul nudged Eun-jae’s foot playfully. He said to the excited Eun-jae as they took the town bus to the subway station.

“Let’s bring Mom next time.”

“Okay.”

Eun-jae smiled broadly as if it was good enough to imagine.

“I’ll make a lot of money and show her often.”

“Sure, let’s do that. But no matter how much money I make, I don’t think I can buy one ticket for 150,000 won. Royal seats are the best, right? Your boss must be really rich. Just giving away four tickets. The deposit alone is 600,000 won.”

Ga-eul just smiled faintly. He gave all the opera tickets Go-yeo had given him to Eun-jae, except for one. When they arrived at the station, Eun-jae’s male friend, Dong-hoon, who attends church with Anna, was there.

Anna was surprised to see Ga-eul. She had also dressed up a bit because she was going to the opera, but she tried to dress modestly enough not to stand out too much, but seeing Ga-eul who looked like a model on a runway, made her feel unnecessarily inferior.

Throughout the subway ride, Anna felt people glancing at Ga-eul. The clothes he wore, perfectly fitted his tall figure, seemed like they were made for him. Anna couldn’t afford luxury items often, but she was aware of high-end brands. She recognized that what he was wearing were luxury items she had seen in magazines.

Of course, what Ga-eul bought would probably be similar knockoff items, but it still bothered her oddly. Anna wasn’t anything to him yet, but she thought she was the only one who could understand him completely.

When they arrived at the concert hall, Ga-eul entered the hall, wondering if the boss had come, but he hadn’t seen her yet. Sitting next to him, Eun-jae continued to chatter excitedly with Anna.

“The seats are amazing. We’re so close.”

A while later, the boss and her mother, whom he had seen last time, entered. And the chairman he had seen at the club also. Even from a distance, the three stood out. They exuded an energy that couldn’t be approached. Despite the rapid flow around them, there was an atmosphere where only their part seemed to flow slowly.

Go-yeo sat two rows in front of Ga-eul. It was a seat where he could see her profile. Ga-eul smiled for no reason. It seemed like she were on good terms with the man next to her as if they were family. She nodded with a comfortable smile. The two of them naturally exchanged conversation.

They seemed to have similar positions and backgrounds, like they had known each other for a long time. He felt intense envy toward the man. More than justifiable jealousy, he was just envious.

It was his first time seeing an opera, but he was overwhelmed and captivated. The soprano’s voice gave him goosebumps involuntarily. But in reality, he saw more of her face than the opera. Her calm gaze looking ahead was pleasant.

Eun-jae returned from the restroom and made a fuss.

“Sister. Did you see the woman next to me at the sink earlier?”

Anna responded to Eun-jae’s words.

“Huh? What about her?”

“Wow. I’ve never seen such an elegant person before. And her face was really pretty, right?”

“Was it?”

Anna replied awkwardly, shaking her head as if she wasn’t sure.

“She seems wealthy. I’m sure I’ve seen such a person before. Where could I have seen her?”

Eun-jae frowned thoughtfully. Anna, who was next to her, looked at Ga-eul instead of Eun-jae. Ga-eul had been looking straight ahead all along. She felt a strange unease. It wasn’t the Ga-eul she knew.

He seemed to have changed the atmosphere suddenly at some point. Although there was only a two-year age difference, he had always seemed childish, but suddenly he looked like a mature adult.

“How’s work, Ga-eul? Not too hard?”

“Hmm? I’m okay.”

“You won’t be able to work when school starts. Right?”

Anna hoped he would return to school soon. Then this strange unease might disappear. She looked at Ga-eul nodding her head. It felt good.

“It seems like the boss is a nice person. Giving us these great tickets too.”

“Yeah, she’s a good person.”

Anna smiled along with Ga-eul’s smile.

“Eun-jae said your boss is a designer?”

Ga-eul nodded, thinking Eun-jae was saying all sorts of things.

“She seems amazing.”

Just as she was about to talk more to Ga-eul, she was taken aback by his unfamiliar gaze. She had always felt like she knew him through his eyes, but this expression and gaze were so unfamiliar that it was bewildering. At the end of his gaze was the woman Eun-jae had been admiring with awe earlier.

Even to the same woman, she looked incredibly enchanting and elegant. She seemed not like an ordinary person. She was rather relieved. It was absurd. Even though it was a bit disappointing, it was understandable for him, a man, to be curious while looking at a pretty woman. Dong-hoon, who was next to her, felt the same way. So it was an absurd feeling.

* * *

Sang-moon hadn’t been with his wife in a long time. It was winter, so they decided to go to Southeast Asia to play together. It was a casual game of golf.

Representative Do Sung-guk, who had served as the chief justice of the Supreme Court, was a seasoned politician. Although his political career was only five years long, he had solidified his position as the party leader and was aiming for the next presidency. Probably over there, they were putting forward Jo Hee-chang, so they might rise as presidential candidates together.

Politics is about people, and money moves people. So politics required a huge amount of funds. Representative Do reached out first, and Sang-moon finally shook hands after a long consideration.

He mentioned easing sanctions on real estate investment and revising gift and inheritance taxes first. Sang-moon, who had a large amount of real estate, thought it was a good deal.

The problem was the aftermath of revealing direct political tendencies. To minimize that, he had to make him president and cut him off before his term ended. Sang-moon suspected that this snake-like person wouldn’t be unaware of that.

“I understand what Chairman Han is worried about.”

Sang-moon looked at Sung-guk and then turned his head.

“But don’t worry. I’m also tired of noisy things.”

Haha. Sang-moon laughed at his confident tone. Sang-moon could assert that he had come this far by seeing people and using them in the right places.

As he got older, it became difficult to decorate his own unique scent like a person. Eyes full of wit. He was as generous as he was ambitious. As a partner, he wasn’t a bad choice.

When they arrived at the resort, Do Sung-guk stopped walking and cleared his throat. Sang-moon looked at him with confusion and then ahead. There were Jo Hee-chang and his prospective son-in-law, Moon Ji-hyuk, who were in a competitive position with Do Sung-guk. Sang-moon put on the face of a thorough businessman. Hee-chang smiled first and greeted Do Sung-guk, then nodded casually at Sang-moon.

“Oh my, Chairman Han.”

Sang-moon smiled and shook hands lightly with Hee-chang.

“Nice to meet you, Congressman.”

“If I had known you were coming, we should have come together.”

At Hee-chang’s joke, Do Sung-guk and Sang-moon laughed politely.

“As you may know, he’s my prospective son-in-law. My daughter and wife came with us today, but they’re out for a moment.”

Hee-chang patted Ji-hyuk’s shoulder in a friendly manner, as if not particularly concerned about past connections with Sang-moon. Do Sung-guk moved to wrap up this remarkable encounter.

“I’ve heard the news. You got yourself a good son-in-law. Congratulations.”

Sang-moon also spoke naturally, as if he had nothing to distance himself from. He treated Ji-hyuk thoroughly as an outsider.

“Indeed. He looks good.”

Behind Sang-moon, Yeong-ran’s eyes met Ji-hyuk’s. She didn’t know what to do, but compared to her, Ji-hyuk seemed unaffected by Sang-moon’s gaze.

Yeong-ran couldn’t understand what Ji-hyuk’s intentions were. She didn’t want to understand what he meant by being there like an in-law of another family and wanting solitude. 

‘I understand that Tae-shin is a good person, but he’s not the one for me. I know what you’re worried about, but I don’t want to meet anyone right now. I understand your feelings, Mother. Thank you for caring.’

Go-yeo’s politely firm rejection of the meeting arranged by her was subtle. Although she understood Go-yeo’s intentions, as a parent, she couldn’t help but worry.

After dinner, each couple returned to their rooms, and Yeong-ran talked to Sang-moon. Sang-moon, with a troubled face, asked. He felt uneasy after meeting Ji-hyuk.

“What did Go-yeo say after meeting him? Was it bad?”

“She said she wants to be alone for a while.”

“Stubborn, anyway.”

“Even if she doesn’t get married right away, it would be good to meet other people.”

Sang-moon sighed heavily. Yeong-ran looked out the window with a troubled mind and suddenly thought of a young man named Ga-eul. It was a sudden thought. Ga-eul, who didn’t seem to be around for no reason, was a man who didn’t give away his company easily and seemed unusually friendly.

‘Oh, my goodness.’

Yeong-ran shook her head as if it were absurd.

Ignoring Yeong-ran’s insistence on resting early, Sang-moon headed to the lounge alone. He thought about Go-yeo while having a dry martini for the first time in a long time.

‘She’s a lad who’s worth everything, but rather than seeing her hurt by others, it’s better to keep her by my side for life.’

“Chairman.”

At the sound that broke his thoughts, Sang-moon looked beside him to see Moon Ji-hyuk. Sang-moon turned his head expressionlessly as if there was no value in answering and drank his cocktail. Despite Sang-moon’s cold gaze, Ji-hyuk remained unfazed.

“I’ll excuse myself.”

Ji-hyuk sat down next to Sang-moon and ordered a Macallan Straight from the bartender. Ji-hyuk immediately downed the drink the bartender poured into the glass and ordered another.

“Chairman, I have something to tell you.”

Sang-moon remained silent and drank his martini with a cool expression.

“I don’t know if you’re aware, but we’ve been meeting continuously.”

Sang-moon knew that Go-yeo’s stubborn heart still belonged to Ji-hyuk, but he didn’t know they had been meeting continuously. Surely not. Sang-moon set his glass down with a thud, looking at Ji-hyuk as if to ask what he meant.

“There won’t be any engagement or marriage. I… I want to meet Go-yeo again.”

“…Are you out of your mind? Is our household a joke to you?”

“I don’t know how it sounds, but I’m sincere.”

“No. This time, I oppose it. It can’t happen. If Go-yeo wavers again, I can’t let it happen, even if I have to tear it apart.”

“I will abandon President Yun Seung-ok.”

For a moment, Sang-moon’s eyes wavered, but he quickly regained his composure. He couldn’t easily accept the idea of Ji-hyuk abandoning his parents.

“…It’s all in vain. Just stop. You can just not see each other. And not only your mother, but I never liked you from the start.”

Sang-moon spoke his mind to Ji-hyuk. He was never fond of him from the beginning. He realized that someone who he didn’t like from the start ultimately made things difficult for those around him. There was no need for Go-yeo to endure what would eventually be harmful.

“I know. But Chairman, you also know that you can’t break Go-yeo’s will.”

“You know one thing but not the other. Before anything else, I’ll remove what could harm Go-yeo.”

Sang-moon took out some bills and placed them on the bar counter before getting up. He didn’t hide his disdainful gaze towards Ji-hyuk. Ji-hyuk got up and gave a light bow. He watched Sang-moon’s back in silence, then sat back down and tilted his glass.

Talking to Chairman Han was a means to confidently meet Go-yeo again. It stemmed from the desire to legally acknowledge Go-yeo as Ji-hyuk’s person. It was a calculated move to finally make things right with Go-yeo.

“I didn’t expect a meeting like this today, but…”

Although the situation seemed odd, he had to see Jo Hee-chang himself to figure out what to do. That’s why he had come this far. He seemed to think that he didn’t have to marry Yoon-young if the money could do the trick.

If that was the case, it would be easy to use him. If Jo Hee-chang asked for something else, Yoon-young would naturally step back. If he could provide financial support to Jo Hee-chang and actively push out Yun Seung-ok, that would be ideal. But he had to be more than just a casual lover, for sure.