CEB - 35

35. I’ll Just Look

“Are you done crying now?”

Min-hyuk looked at the sniffling Dan-jung with displeasure. He had even embarrassingly kneeled to improve her mood, but her incessant crying had soured his own. He was secretly threatening to fire Secretary Kim.

“I’m sorry.”

Dan-jung wiped away the tears clinging to her eyes and calmed herself down.

“Honestly, I thought you’d be happy. Didn’t you like the event?”

Min-hyuk didn’t understand Dan-jung’s feelings. If she had at least smiled once, he would have thought she liked it, but to him, a woman’s tears were simply a sign of sadness.

“Oh, no. It was really, really touching.”

Ah! Touching! Only then did Min-hyuk realize that Dan-jung’s tears were tears of emotion.

“Actually, I heard rumors about me at the hotel today. Related to Si-woo. So I thought you’d want to break off the engagement...”

“Why would you think I’d believe such nonsense?”

“Even if you don’t believe it, it’s true that the rumors will cause you trouble. If they cause you any harm, I’d be okay with breaking off the engagement.”

“You know better than anyone that I can’t break off the engagement. It’s not like I can find another bride now.”

Min-hyuk, his nerves on edge at the word “break off,” furrowed his brow. He had even drawn up a marriage contract for this reason, so why was she still saying such things?

“But there’s Go Hye-mi!”

Dan-jung, flustered by Min-hyuk’s change in expression, blurted out what was on her mind.

“…How do you know about Hye-mi, Choi Dan-jung?”

“Ah! That’s...”

Oops! Dan-jung realized she had slipped up.

“Did you meet her?”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you beforehand. I didn’t mention it because I thought I could just let it slide.”

As Dan-jung was flustered, the waiters began bringing in the prepared dishes one by one.

“Let’s eat first. We’ll talk about the rest at home.”

Looking at the dishes being placed on the table, Min-hyuk didn’t want to talk to Dan-jung anymore. He was quite displeased that she said she’d be okay with breaking off the engagement. And meeting Go Hye-mi... that was completely unexpected.

________________________________________

‘The atmosphere was good today, and I just had to run my mouth.’

On the way home, Dan-jung glanced at Min-hyuk, who maintained a long silence. His stiff face exuded such a cold aura that she couldn’t easily strike up a conversation. Dan-jung felt very sorry for upsetting Min-hyuk, who had even held a proposal event for her. So she started thinking about how she could cheer him up. In fact, she wanted to do something for Min-hyuk, just as he had done for her. But Min-hyuk, contrary to Dan-jung’s misunderstanding, was deep in thought about Hye-mi.

‘Why did Hye-mi meet Choi Dan-jung? Did she tell her to break up with me? Why?’

Min-hyuk couldn’t understand Hye-mi at all. Hye-mi was the one who left him. And she was also the one who came back after four years, asking him to marry her. He thought she had coolly accepted his refusal, but that wasn’t true. Meeting Dan-jung proved that. Moreover, his mother was also strongly insisting on his marriage to Hye-mi, unlike her usual self. And Min-hee, who had no interest in hotels and didn’t know anyone there, had told his mother about Dan-jung and Si-woo’s scandal faster than anyone else. Why hadn’t he thought of this sooner? Min-hyuk now had a good idea where the rumors had originated. And to confirm this, he needed to know exactly what conversation Dan-jung and Hye-mi had.

“So, when and where did you meet Hye-mi, and what did you talk about?”

Arriving home, Min-hyuk sat on the sofa and loosened his tie. He began interrogating Dan-jung like a detective questioning a criminal.

“We met at a coffee shop near my house on the day you proposed. And she told me to break up with you, but I refused.”

Dan-jung obediently began telling him about that day, as he had asked. Talking to Min-hyuk like this made her feel as if a stuffy chest had been cleared, and she felt completely relieved. She regretted not saying it sooner.

“Specifically, what did she say when she told you to break up with me?”

“That’s a bit difficult to say...”

When Dan-jung hesitated, Min-hyuk glared at her with a face that said he absolutely had to hear it. The more she refused to say, the more curious he became, as was human nature.

“She said... since you’re impotent, could I live without love... and would I keep a lover?”

“What...?”

Min-hyuk’s eyes widened at Dan-jung’s words. It was clear that Hye-mi had told Dan-jung the rumors circulating about him. It was a malicious rumor that had arisen because he hadn’t dated anyone for a long time after breaking up with Hye-mi. He hadn’t paid attention to it because it was completely untrue, but hearing it from Dan-jung’s mouth made him feel very unpleasant.

“And? What did you say, Choi Dan-jung?”

“Well... I don’t really remember.”

Dan-jung tried to recall that time, but she couldn’t remember what she had said. It seemed like she hadn’t said anything.

“In any case, that’s completely untrue. As you know, I’m physically healthy, and there’s nothing wrong with my sexual function.”

“Well, how would I know that? And they say a lot of men have that problem these days...”

Dan-jung unconsciously muttered what Jin-hee had told her.

“Choi Dan-jung!”

Min-hyuk, angered by Dan-jung’s words, shouted.

“Ah! You scared me! You startled me.”

“Then let’s confirm it tonight.”

“Huh? Confirm what?”

“I’ll show you that there’s nothing wrong with my sexual function!”

“But... yes! Okay.”

Remembering Jin-hee’s advice to check before marriage, Dan-jung threw away her embarrassment and agreed. She thought it was a very important matter.

________________________________________

Min-hyuk, who had finished showering, was lying on the bed, and Dan-jung, who had changed into the pajamas she brought from home, approached the bed. Seeing Dan-jung’s teddy bear-patterned one-piece pajamas, Min-hyuk felt like tearing them off and dressing her in his white t-shirt. Why did it have to be teddy bears today? When Dan-jung lay on the bed, Min-hyuk sighed and looked at the ceiling, trying his best to avoid looking at the teddy bears.

“...”

“...”

“...”

They both stared at the ceiling for a while without saying a word. But Dan-jung, who was very uncomfortable with this silence, started babbling again.

“But how are you going to show me that there’s nothing wrong with your sexual function?”

A rather direct question popped out. Min-hyuk, looking quite troubled, turned to look at Dan-jung.

“You’ll find out on your own.”

“Huh? How?”

“Like this.”

With that, Min-hyuk’s lips moved towards Dan-jung’s lips without hesitation. Then, he gently caressed her lips. Dan-jung naturally accepted his kiss without any resistance. She felt sorry for Min-hyuk for various things today, so she intended to be fully present in their physical intimacy. As Min-hyuk savored the gentle kiss, he gradually became rougher and more sensual in his handling of Dan-jung. He kissed her expertly, as if proving that there was nothing wrong with his sexual function. But unfortunately, Min-hyuk’s arousal wasn’t rising as much as he’d hoped, perhaps due to the pressure of being evaluated, or maybe because of the teddy bears. Min-hyuk suddenly worried that Dan-jung might misunderstand. So he decided to get rid of the teddy bears, which were a major distraction to his arousal.

“Hmm, hmm.”

Min-hyuk, pulling away from Dan-jung’s lips, looked at her, breathing heavily. Then, he revealed his honest feelings.

“I want to see.”

“Huh, huh. See what?”

Dan-jung asked, catching her breath. Then, without saying anything, Min-hyuk pulled up the hem of Dan-jung’s pajamas.

“N-no, you can’t.”

Surprised by Min-hyuk’s sudden action, Dan-jung grabbed his hand, which was around her waist.

“I’ll just look.”

“But...”

Even though they were about to get married, Dan-jung was embarrassed and didn’t know what to do about the sudden acceleration of their intimacy. But Min-hyuk’s eyes desired her so much. Feeling sorry for Min-hyuk, Dan-jung wanted to grant his wish, so she tightly closed her eyes.

“You really have to just look.”

As soon as Dan-jung gave her permission, Min-hyuk took off her teddy bear pajamas. And for a while, he couldn’t take his eyes off her naked, white skin. In fact, this was Min-hyuk’s first time seeing a woman’s body in person. So his gaze at Dan-jung’s naked body was half desire and half the curiosity of a sexually awakened teenager. He wondered what the touch of Dan-jung’s soft-looking skin would be like, and what her breasts, hidden under the apricot-colored bra, would look like.

‘I want to touch her.’

His heart began to pound with the urge to touch her soft-looking skin. But Min-hyuk had promised Dan-jung that he would only look, so he had to suppress his beastly instincts with reason. However, Min-hyuk’s rational nature was useless in such moments, so he had to do something. So Min-hyuk began to caress Dan-jung’s lips, which were already within his reach. Dan-jung’s heart pounded wildly at Min-hyuk’s touch. Even with her eyes closed, she could feel Min-hyuk’s hot gaze on her naked body. She felt embarrassed and ashamed. She had never shown her naked body to anyone before, which made it even worse. It was like a defense line she had built to protect herself, but it had collapsed helplessly in front of Min-hyuk.

‘He’s going to be my husband, the man I’ll give my first time to.’

Dan-jung comforted herself with those thoughts and endured the embarrassment and shame. But she couldn’t do anything about the physical reaction of her cheeks turning red.

“You’re beautiful.”

Min-hyuk praised her in a soft, low voice, looking at Dan-jung’s flushed face. Then, he kissed her lips again.