SS - 33

“Because of Joo-Hyuk? The KO report isn’t true, is it?”

Right after finishing a call with Center Director Joo-Ah and sending a message to Seolyoung to inform her that she wouldn’t be coming into the center, a reply arrived as if they had been waiting for her.

“Of course not. They wrote fiction without even verifying the facts. Do you think the term ‘trash reporters’ exists for no reason?”

“How much of it is true, then?”

“I’ll explain everything when I get back. Right now, I feel like I need to stay by Joo-Hyuk’s side.”

“Got it. I’ll coordinate the counseling schedule with Director Joo-Ah.”

After sending a thank-you reply, Sena spent a long while sitting on the bathroom toilet, lost in thought.

She had confidently declared him to be a good person, so it was only natural that Seolyoung would have doubts after this incident. Moreover, she hadn’t answered any calls from her aunt’s family since yesterday, repeatedly delaying them until later.

Should she explain the situation?

“Sena.”

“...”

“Sena?”

“Yes?”

Lost in thought while staring blankly at the house, Sena snapped back to reality when she heard her name called again.

“I’ll go inside first and unpack. You should call your aunt.”

“Huh?”

“You haven’t been answering their calls since yesterday.”

“Oh... Right, I’ll do that.”

But even after Joo-Hyuk went inside the lodge—no, the villa—with their luggage, Sena wandered around the front lawn for a long time.

She couldn’t figure out what to say to reassure her aunt.

In the end, she plopped down onto a large swing chair on the deck and stared blankly up at the sky. Surrounded by dense forest, this spot offered a wide-open view of the sky.

She wondered if it would feel eerie once night fell and darkness enveloped the area. But when she turned her head slightly, she noticed a few similarly sized villas nearby. It seemed the ski season had started, as there were cars parked outside and lights on in some of the houses.

Just then, the phone in her hand suddenly rang. It was her aunt.

“Hello?”

[Oh my goodness, child! Why aren’t you answering your phone? I was so worried about what might have happened. I even debated calling Joo-Hyuk!]

Before Sena could respond, her aunt fired off her words like rapid gunfire.

“I’m sorry. I’ve just been distracted.”

[What on earth is going on? Your uncle was beside himself after watching the news yesterday. I’ve never seen such a calm man lose his cool like that. He almost stormed out to your place, and it took all my energy to stop him.]

Suddenly, Sena heard her uncle muttering something in the background, and then he took the phone.

[Sena!]

“Yes, Uncle.”

[Is the news article true? It’s not, right? Not all news reports are factual, right? Tell me it’s not true!]

Hearing her uncle’s voice, trembling as if on the verge of tears, Sena felt her own eyes welling up.

“Of course not, Uncle. It’s absolutely not true. Joo-Hyuk and KMS have nothing to do with Father. How could they? They’re such upright journalists.”

[Right?]

“Absolutely.”

[We’ve been so worried that we failed to protect you…]

Her uncle’s voice broke, and he began to choke up.

Sena’s hands trembled, and tears streamed down her cheeks.

How could her father, who hadn’t contacted her at all during this entire ordeal, compare to her aunt and uncle? Her father was the one who pushed her into this marriage, yet he hadn’t shown even the slightest reaction—nothing at all.

“Don’t worry, Uncle. Please tell Aunt not to worry either, okay?”

[Are you at home? Is Joo-Hyuk alright?]

“We’re staying somewhere else for now. We’ll return once things settle down.”

[That’s right. KMS will handle it well. People probably just saw it as a small company and decided to stir up trouble. That’s all, exactly.]

Her uncle muttered these words as if trying to convince himself rather than her. After reminding her to take care of herself, he ended the call.

For a moment, Sena curled up her body and finally let the tears she had been holding back flow freely.

She had never intended to burden her aunt and uncle with worry. Ever since leaving her father’s house and living with her aunt, she had never once been the kind of niece who caused them concern.

Perhaps her habit of closing her mouth and shutting her heart off had made her an even more painful reminder of the past, but that was simply how Sena felt.

So, when she met Joo-Hyuk and got married in such a short time, she believed that showing them how happy she was with the man she loved would be enough.

But now, what was this?

Overwhelmed by sudden sorrow, tears welled up in her eyes. This was truly something she had never anticipated.

“Sena.”

Startled by Joo-Hyuk’s voice, Sena hastily wiped away the tears covering her face with the back of her hand. She had been hugging her knees and crying.

Damn it.

She didn’t want to show this side of herself to Joo-Hyuk, either—not just for her aunt’s family but for him as well. It wasn’t her problem alone; showing him how much pain she was in would only make him more troubled and uneasy.

“Are you done unpacking?”

Pretending as if nothing was wrong, Sena quickly rubbed the remaining tears from the back of her hand onto her pants. She could feel his deep brown eyes lingering on her hands, but she forced a bright smile.

“Come to think of it, we didn’t even go grocery shopping. Is there really nothing to eat here?”

“I asked the caretaker to stock the fridge before we arrived. There’s enough food for a few days.”

“That’s a relief. Guess I’ll get to see your cooking skills while we’re here?”

“Maybe.”

Joo-Hyuk’s previously expressionless face softened slightly into a small smile as he gazed at her.

She didn’t want to hear an apology from him, nor did she want to talk about why she had cried. She hoped they could move past it like this.

But it seemed that was only her wishful thinking. After he served her a delicious meal of kimchi bacon pasta and she ate her fill, he brought up the topic.

“Your aunt must be very worried, huh?”

“Well, yeah.”

Suddenly, the food she had enjoyed so much felt heavy in her stomach. The thought of eating the ice cream she had set aside in a pretty bowl for dessert completely vanished.

“I should’ve called them earlier to explain the situation. I was short-sighted.”

“You were busy too, Joo-Hyuk. They’re not the kind of people who would blame you for something like that.”

She tried to reassure him while hiding her face behind her coffee cup. Thinking about her tearful uncle made her want to cry again.

“I’m sorry.”

Ah, really. She didn’t want to hear an apology.

Sena bit her lip.

“You said there’s nothing to apologize for.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t apologize for something that isn’t your fault.”

“But because of me, you and your family are going through this hardship…”

“Stop it.”

She interrupted him as she put down her coffee cup.

“While we’re here, let’s not think about anything complicated, okay?”

“...”

“That’s why we came on this trip. So…”

Sena pushed her chair back, stood up, and walked over to him. She gently stroked his face.

As the space between the dining table and him naturally widened, she suddenly found the courage to sit on his lap and placed her hand on his shoulder.

“Do you realize how red your face is?”

“Ugh, I know, so can you please stay quiet?”

“Alright.”

Through the heat rising to her own face, she could easily imagine how flushed her cheeks must look.

As she stared at him trying—and failing—to suppress his laughter, she timidly reached out with a trembling finger to touch his lips.

She had never seduced a man before, nor did she have any intention of doing so—but this man was Joo-Hyuk.

He was her husband.

Slowly lowering her head, she kissed the tip of her own finger resting on his lips. When she slightly pulled her face away, their eyes met as he opened his, which had been closed.

It was just a playful kiss on her own finger, but seeing his face made her own burn even hotter than she thought possible.

I’m crazy. What have I done?

“What’s next?”

“Huh?”

“I’m wondering what comes next. I’m looking forward to it.”

Seeing him smirk and smile like that made her mind go blank. Her earlier actions had been impulsive, and she hadn’t thought beyond that moment.

To be honest, even sitting on his lap had been an unconscious act.

“Not doing anything?”

“…I can’t.”

“Hmm?”

“I can’t do it.”

As she tried to pull her body away and stand up, Joo-Hyuk suddenly pulled her back by the waist.

Their noses touched, and their breaths mingled.

He grabbed her hand and placed it on his crotch. Her palm was met with something hard and thick pressing against her.

“Ah...!”

“If you’ve gotten me like this, you have to take responsibility.”

“No, I... I didn’t mean to...”

Sena stammered, flustered by the rigid erection beneath her hand. She couldn’t believe such a small kiss had brought him to this state.

But as he watched her panic, he gave a faint smile and gently guided her hand inside his pants.

“Joo-Hyuk, wait!”

“Go ahead, feel it.”

She wanted to say no, that she’d never done anything like this before and was scared, but when she saw him narrow his brows and exhale deeply, her words disappeared before they could leave her mouth.

When Sena brushed her fingers over the tip of his penis through his briefs, his body twitched.

So this is what it feels like to touch him with my fingertips.

Heat rushed to her face, spreading all the way to her ears.

Thinking it might be easier to look at his penis than at his aroused expression, she rested her forehead against his chest and wrapped her hand firmly around his shaft.

“Ugh, careful.”

“Does it hurt?”

“If you squeeze too hard, it does.”

“I see.”

Sena nodded slightly.

“Move your hand up and down.”

Following his instructions, she began moving her small hand along his length. His penis pulsed and moved within her grasp, as if her palm were the walls of a vagina. The glans grew slick with pre-cum.

“Does it feel good?”

“Good? Hah... It feels insanely good.”

He chuckled softly, amused by her question.

“Do you know what would make it feel even better?”

“...What?”

“You could suck it.”

Suck it?

At the thought of the lewd image that word conjured, Sena shook her head vigorously and pulled her hand away from his penis.

“I can’t do that… something like that…”

“You can’t?”

His voice was filled with regret as he asked again. But truly, going that far was still...

“Then let me do it.”