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[Are you going to be late?]
Hae-in stared blankly at the message she had just sent. It showed as “read,” but there was no reply.
Today, yesterday… and even a week ago.
The chat window was filled with photos of meals Hae-in had prepared. Soo-hyun occasionally sent short replies—mostly monosyllabic words like “Yeah,” “No,” or “Why.”
In the months since their marriage, Soo-hyun used to come home every night and hold her close. But lately, he had stopped coming home regularly. Whether it was part of a new strategy or not, he barely even replied to her messages anymore.
‘How long do I have to keep doing this?’
Hae-in placed her phone on the dining table and gazed absently at the now-cold food. She knew she should clean up—it was well past dinnertime—but her body refused to move.
Every day, she cooked meals, waited for him, and spent hours staring at the unanswered chat window. Alone in the empty house, another lonely night stretched before her.
The only reason she could endure this endless cycle without growing weary was the news that her younger brother’s condition was gradually improving. The expensive medication seemed to be working.
‘Are you visiting the hospital regularly?’
Chairwoman Park occasionally called to subtly pressure her. Each time, Hae-in assured her that she was doing her best, though unease lingered in her heart.
It had only been 100 days since their wedding, yet each day felt precarious.
‘If only Sunbae would side with me…’
Soo-hyun was already trying hard to push her away, and if Chairwoman Park turned against her too, she’d be left with nowhere to go. What would happen to her younger brother? Her parents?
Everything felt like sand slipping through her fingers, vanishing into thin air. Anxiety gnawed at her.
‘Don’t give up. You knew all this when you came here.’
Slowly, Hae-in stood up and began clearing the dining table. She carefully packed the lovingly prepared dishes into small containers. By morning, when the staff arrived, she’d need to finish eating them herself.
Having people work in the house made physical labor easier, but it also brought discomfort. Watching her carefully prepared meals pile up untouched in the fridge made her self-conscious.
Surely, rumors would spread.
Recently, she had started cooking only enough for one meal. It was easier to handle that way.
Click, beep.
Just as she finished tidying up and straightened her back, she heard a sound from the entrance. Rushing out, she saw Soo-hyun returning home after work.
“Have you eaten?”
Hae-in quickly approached him with a warm greeting. Without so much as glancing at her, Soo-hyun walked straight into the dressing room.
“Shall I get something ready for you?”
“No.”
As he roughly pulled off his tie, Soo-hyun curtly replied.
“You look tired. Shall I massage your shoulders?”
Suddenly, Soo-hyun froze mid-motion while unbuttoning his shirt and turned to look at her. His chest was partially exposed because several buttons were already undone. Seeing her husband’s bare skin after so long, Hae-in felt her cheeks flush involuntarily.
“Leave.”
“What?”
“I’m going to shower and sleep right away.”
“Should I wait for you in bed?”
Each cold response tightened the knot in her chest, but Hae-in forced a smile and asked anyway. She strained to lift the corners of her mouth into an artificial grin.
“Yoon Hae-in.”
A bitter smirk crossed Soo-hyun’s face as he yanked off his shirt.
“If you’re that desperate, why don’t you go find someone else to fool around with? I won’t care.”
“What…?”
“If you get pregnant by anyone, I’ll pretend I don’t know.”
“How can you say such things…”
“It makes me sick watching your fake act day after day.”
Before Hae-in could respond, Soo-hyun pushed her out of the dressing room.
“Let’s sleep separately from now on.”
“Wait, Sunbae…”
“Good night.”
The door closed in front of Hae-in’s face. Soon, the sound of running water came from the bathroom inside the dressing room.
Hae-in crouched down outside the dressing room door. Since he’d probably leave again once he finished showering, she decided to wait until then.
‘If you get pregnant by anyone, I’ll pretend I don’t know.’
Burying her head between her knees, those words pierced deep into her heart.
She wasn’t thick-skinned enough to act unaffected after hearing such cruel words. At least, she hadn’t been before.
‘That’s too much… how could he say that…’
Leaning her head against the wall, both her body and mind felt exhausted. Though she hadn’t shed tears, she felt as if she’d cried her eyes out. Her heart felt heavy.
Forcing smiles, pretending nothing was wrong.
Every night felt like walking on thin ice, burning away slowly. Hae-in closed her eyes, trying to steady her weary heart. She was so tired.
At 4 a.m., Hae-in woke up earlier than Soo-hyun, dressed neatly, and waited to see him off before leaving for work. Whether it was midnight or 1 a.m., she stayed awake waiting for him to return.
Their mornings together lasted barely five minutes, and the same went for their evenings.
Still, for those five minutes, Hae-in worked tirelessly morning and night. She desperately wanted to connect with him somehow, to build some semblance of affection. Her longing drove her actions instinctively.
Click.
After a while, when Soo-hyun opened the door again, Hae-in was leaning against the wall, fast asleep.
“Haa…”
Soo-hyun looked down silently at Hae-in, who was sitting on the floor, asleep.
“Just how much more pain do I have to inflict before you give up?”
He sat across from her and studied her face. Her fragile shoulders moved slightly with each shallow breath.
“…I wonder if your wounds have healed.”
Since that night when holding her had caused her pain, Soo-hyun had stopped embracing her altogether.
He didn’t want to hurt her. He was startled by how uncontrollable his anger could become.
Peering through the slightly disheveled neckline of her clothes, he saw her collarbone. Her pale skin bore no marks—apparently, her wounds had mostly healed. Even her nape looked clean, unlike when he used to bite it.
“…You’d be better off far away from me. Then you wouldn’t get hurt physically or emotionally.”
Even if Hae-in decided to divorce him, Soo-hyun planned to continue supporting her family.
He had already looked into her younger brother’s illness and treatment. While Chairwoman Park might cause minor interference, it wasn’t something to worry about excessively.
Park Yoon-Hwa had no interest in failures that slipped out of her grasp.
If Hae-in failed to satisfy Park’s ambitions, she would discard her as a daughter-in-law immediately. Once Hae-in voluntarily left Taesung, Soo-hyun believed he could compensate her adequately afterward.
That was the best choice he could think of for Hae-in’s sake.
He thought they could discuss and agree on this plan beforehand. The problem was that Yoon Hae-in seemed utterly incapable of deception.
If their clumsy act were exposed, Park Yoon-Hwa’s retaliation would follow relentlessly—so that option was ruled out from the start.
‘Hah. If only you’d listen to me, Yoon Hae-in. Life would be so much easier for you.’
Carefully, Soo-hyun slid his hand under Hae-in’s knees and cradled her back. Despite being jostled, Hae-in didn’t wake up.
“You’re sleeping deeply.”
Her body remained featherlight in his arms. Soo-hyun carried her to the bedroom.
________________________________________
Early in the morning, Park Yoon-Hwa sat in her office at the main house, her eyes bloodshot.
She had spent the entire night tossing and turning. Normally, she rarely dreamed, but last night’s dreams were particularly unsettling. A certain deceased daughter-in-law appeared in her dream.
‘Am I getting old? To dream of such nonsense…’
In the dream, Kang Yeonhee said nothing but stared at her for a long time. Unable to decipher the emotions in her gaze, Park struggled to wake herself from the nightmare.
Drenched in sweat, she finally opened her eyes, realizing she had been groaning under sleep paralysis all night.
Pressing the intercom, Park summoned her personal secretary.
It was 6 a.m., but the ever-present secretary on standby at the main house answered immediately.
“Send in Teacher Im. Tell him to hurry.”
When plagued by ominous dreams, talking to Im Wooshik always helped.
Though not a shaman, he didn’t offer talismans. Instead, he read fortunes and rearranged interior designs based on geomancy. Even that alone brought her comfort.
Whether accurate or not, Park always interpreted his advice in ways favorable to her. Yet, his counsel had proven useful over the years.
For forty years, Im Wooshik had rushed to her whenever she called. Unlike Seok Ji-Hyung, who remained stiff despite decades of service, Wooshik grew increasingly sweet-talking, like honey dripping from his lips.
Had he been born in ancient times, Im Wooshik would undoubtedly have been a top-tier sycophant.
“You called?”
About half an hour later, Wooshik arrived in a rush.
“My dreams last night were terrible. Soo-hyun’s mother appeared.”
“The late Madam?”
“What Madam? She’s dead.”
Lost in thought, Park asked Wooshik,
“Didn’t you say my fortune this year lacked progeny luck?”
“No, that’s not true. Your progeny luck is strong. However, the new daughter-in-law’s horoscope lacks childbearing luck, which conflicts with yours.”
“Hmm…”
Park had initially liked Hae-in. She enjoyed seeing Soo-hyun unable to hide his fondness for her—it gave her leverage over her grandson.
To test their relationship, she suggested Hae-in cook a dish Soo-hyun despised. She wanted to gauge where they stood.
However, according to gossip among the staff, their relationship had grown distant since then.
If Wooshik’s prediction was correct, introducing another woman might be necessary to secure an heir.
“Teacher Im, isn’t Se-Young graduating soon?”
“Yes, she’ll be arriving shortly.”
“She expressed interest in working under Soo-hyun, didn’t she?”
“Yes, it’s her wish, though…”
Seeing Wooshik hesitate, Park inwardly sneered.
His intentions were transparent, but she decided to humor him. She knew what he wanted. If Im Se-Young managed to conceive using cunning methods, she wouldn’t object either.
Having reached a conclusion, Park told Wooshik,
“When Se-Young arrives, assign her to Soo-hyun. Perhaps starting as his secretary would work?”
Wooshik struggled to maintain his composure, biting his lips to suppress a smile. Watching him contort his mouth in suppressed amusement, Park smirked.
No matter what chaos unfolded between them, it would surely be entertaining to watch.
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