Embedded Files
Psst! We're moving!
“I’m sorry, but let’s just have this meal together today.”
“Alright. Looking at your condition, I can’t even suggest going out.”
Joo-eun frowned and put the pasta in her mouth.
It was his fault for forgetting his appointment with Joo-eun today. He wanted to forget about Eun-chae, at least when he came to meet Joo-eun.
But because Eun-chae noticed Joo-eun’s call first, his mind was completely focused on Eun-chae despite his headache. Or maybe Eun-chae was making his headache worse.
“How about the Maldives?”
“Huh?”
“I mean, for our honeymoon.”
Joo-eun put down her fork, wiped her mouth with a napkin, and continued.
“I’m not the type to travel around. So, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to just relax at a resort like the Maldives. What do you think?”
“I don’t mind.”
“Don’t you have any place you want to go?”
“No.”
Seok-kyung shook his head.
His only travels were a cross-country trip in the United States while studying business administration and a short trip around the world after graduation.
What he learned from those travels was that he didn’t enjoy traveling itself.
“Where did you go with your ex-wife?”
“......”
“You must have gone on a honeymoon, right?”
“Japan.”
“Japan?”
“Yeah.”
To be precise, he only worked due to his work schedule, but he thought it was a honeymoon, which was already unpleasant, so he was glad he buried himself in work. Maybe it would have been better if they hadn’t gone at all.
“That’s too much. It’s supposed to be a honeymoon. I’m definitely going somewhere nice. Even if it’s a political marriage, I’ll have everything I want, so keep that in mind.”
“As you wish.”
Seok-kyung took a sip of water.
Joo-eun continued to talk endlessly about the wedding hall, dress, and studio for wedding photos, all of which she had researched.
“I want to have my wedding dress designed by Wong.”
Joo-eun mentioned the name of a world-renowned dress designer and showed him some photos on her phone.
“How about this one and this one? I don’t have big breasts, so it won’t look too revealing even if I wear them.”
“Hmm, do as you wish.”
“Still, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime wedding dress. Shouldn’t I get my groom’s opinion?”
“I can’t really tell from these pictures.”
“Well, we’re meeting the wedding planner the weekend after next, so keep your schedule open.”
“Already? We still have time.”
“Already? We have less than half a year left. It’s not just any wedding, we need to prepare properly.”
Joo-eun spoke as if she was hearing nonsense.
Seok-kyung acted like he was listening attentively, but he didn’t hear a word Joo-eun was saying.
What did Eun-chae think of that marriage?
Eun-chae wasn’t the type to express her opinions honestly or say what she wanted, like Joo-eun.
“We can’t go far for our honeymoon right now. Since we’re busy, let’s go far when we have the chance. For now, let’s just go to Japan for a short trip.”
“Yes.”
“The wedding planner will arrange the wedding hall and studio, so consult with them. I don’t care where.”
“I don’t need wedding photos. One wedding photo is enough.”
Seok-kyung, disliking the hassle and awkwardness of wedding photos, nodded in agreement without asking Eun-chae for a reason.
“It would be nice to choose the dress and tuxedo together, but my schedule is so tight that I can’t say for sure when I’ll have time. So, if you choose the dress first, I’ll get a tuxedo that matches it later.”
“Okay.”
Thinking about it, Eun-chae never expressed her own opinions and always followed Seok-kyung’s lead.
“The honeymoon home...”
“I heard from your mother. We’re moving into the main house.”
“I’ll be staying in England, and I didn’t think it was right to leave you alone. I should have asked for your opinion first...”
“It’s okay. We can move out when you come back to Korea.”
Thinking about it now, it was a very inconsiderate marriage.
Moreover, after leaving for England a few days after the wedding, he never called Eun-chae once.
Eun-chae would call him first to ask how he was doing, or his secretary would call her to inform her of his schedule when he was going to Korea.
They probably only met for about ten days after the wedding.
It was called a married life, and they were legally husband and wife, but they never really acted like a married couple.
“He... got someone else. I want to live happily with the person I love.”
He had nothing to say to that.
He had made her so lonely.
Furthermore, he only felt that her divorce request was troublesome and bothersome. The feeling of betrayal came after they reunited at Studio FIRST.
It was ridiculous.
To treat her so harshly now, after three years.
“Are you listening to me?”
“Huh? Yeah, I’m listening.”
“Even though I’m in Paris, your mother says we should have a honeymoon home in Korea. It feels like she wants us to move into the main house, but I don’t want to.”
“Then you don’t have to.”
“Right? Your mother mentioned the K apartment, saying your current apartment is too small for two people.”
Seok-kyung’s eyebrows rose slightly at the mention of the K apartment. It was the place he had provided for Eun-chae.
“It’s rented out...”
“Is that so?”
“We’ll find another place.”
“That’s a trendy neighborhood these days. It has a private elevator and is very private, which I thought was perfect. Can’t you get the tenant out early?”
“......I’ll look into it.”
Look into it? Is he going to kick Eun-chae out?
No. It was a relationship that would have to end anyway after the wedding. Just like Eun-chae had said.
Damn it.
Nausea welled up from deep within his stomach.
“What’s wrong? Are you feeling really bad?”
Joo-eun frowned, seeing Seok-kyung’s expression.
“I don’t like men who drink a lot. I hope you’ll refrain from that after we get married.”
“Alright.”
“Let’s part ways today. I don’t like talking to someone who’s sick.”
She gathered her bag and coat and got up from her seat.
“I’ll take you home.”
“No. If I get in a car you’re driving right now, I’ll probably end up in the afterlife too. You should call a driver or take a taxi. I’m leaving first.”
Joo-eun turned sharply and left the restaurant.
Knowing he should follow her, grab her, and put her in a taxi, Seok-kyung just sat there and drank his water.
He wondered if Eun-chae, like him, didn’t care about anything because it was an unwanted marriage.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime wedding, yet she didn’t desire anything.
Seok-kyung shook his head vigorously, feeling overwhelmed by the emotions of the past.
________________________________________
-Hey! Come pick me up!
As soon as she answered the phone, her mother screamed. Eun-chae was startled and closed her eyes tightly, feeling her heart sink.
“What’s wrong?”
-I can’t live with your uncle anymore.
“Why again?”
-He’s telling me to work!
Her mother cried out.
“Work? What kind of work?”
Her uncle knew her mother couldn’t do anything. What kind of work was he telling her to do?
-Dishes. Your uncle and aunt are busy with work these days, and he wants me to help with the housework.
“Didn’t you hire a housekeeper?”
-I think your sly aunt fired her.
“What?”
-He’s probably saying there’s no need for a housekeeper when I’m just lazing around at home. When your father’s business was doing well, he came to our house asking for help with his company and got investment money, but now he’s so arrogant.
Her mother started crying again, complaining.
For the three years since her father was imprisoned, her mother and uncle’s fights always involved her aunt.
Of course, Eun-chae knew her aunt hadn’t done anything wrong.
She also knew that the reason her aunt fired the housekeeper wasn’t to make her mother do housework, but because her uncle’s business was struggling.
“Uncle’s business is struggling these days. It’s only temporary, so please help with the housework, Mom.”
-I don’t know how to do anything! How am I supposed to help?
“You can at least do the dishes, as Uncle said.”
-Hey! My hands are very sensitive to moisture. What if I get eczema from doing the dishes? Will your uncle pay for the hospital bill?
Eun-chae had a headache.
She wanted to persuade her mother to at least do the dishes, but that was unlikely. In the end, she would have to go to her uncle and aunt and bow her head, asking them to bear with it a little longer.
-Your dad’s coming out soon, so find a house for us in Seoul.
“How am I supposed to find a house in Seoul right now? We need at least two rooms. Even when Dad gets out, we’ll be staying at Uncle’s for a while...”
-No! Don’t say such terrible things.
“Mom...”
-Just look into the K apartment.
“K apartment?”
-Yeah, that apartment is the best these days. I’m not asking for a detached house like the one I used to live in. Just look for a place in the K apartment.
K apartment.
That was the apartment Eun-chae was sitting in, the one Seok-kyung had given her to live in.
There was no need to look for a place. She had already heard from Assistant Manager Yang how famous the complex was, and it was obvious that this house was far beyond what ordinary people could dream of.
“Mom, that’s absolutely impossible.”
“Why?”
“Where do we have the money for that? We’re struggling to find a single room right now.”
“Absolutely not? Then where are we going to live?”
“We can rent a two-room place, or until we can afford a decent house, we can stay at Uncle’s...”
-Oh, why is my life so miserable? What did I do wrong?
Her mother burst into tears.
-I’ve been so generous to people. I’ve done so much volunteer work and donations. Why is everyone trying to eat me alive?
Google Sites
Report abuse