CEB - 39

39. Go! Just Go!

“Mother, I’m here.”

Dan-jung, extremely nervous, entered the house carrying Yeon-ju’s favorite tiramisu cake. She had asked Min-hyuk about Yeon-ju’s preferences on the way to her in-laws’ house and bought them. Even though her in-laws were wealthy and lacked nothing, Dan-jung wanted to show her sincerity in this way.

“Oh, welcome! Are you hungry? Did you choose a dress well?”

Yeon-ju, much friendlier than before, rushed to greet Dan-jung.

“Yes, I chose one I liked. Min-hyuk said it looked pretty too.”

“He did?”

“Yes~ Mother, here. Min-hyuk told me you like tiramisu cake.”

“Thank you. We can have it for dessert later.”

As Yeon-ju took the cake from Dan-jung, Min-hee came down from the second floor. Min-hee still disliked Dan-jung, but she couldn’t treat her carelessly anymore.

“Sister-in-law, you’re here?”

“Min-hee, how have you been?”

As Yeon-ju went to the kitchen with the cake, Min-hee approached Dan-jung.

“What’s your secret?”

“Pardon? What do you mean?”

“The secret to capturing my brother’s heart.”

Min-hee was genuinely curious. He had rejected the country’s top marriage prospects and chose this woman, so she wondered if there was something special about her.

“Well, I don’t know either.”

Dan-jung couldn’t tell the truth. She couldn’t say that Min-hyuk had overheard her saying she would marry him if they didn’t divorce.

“Then how did you cure his illness? My mother tried to cure him for decades, but you cured him in just a few days?”

Min-hee was quite shocked by Min-hyuk’s changed face, which she had never seen before.

“He’s probably learning.”

“Learning what?”

“Love.”

When Dan-jung smiled brightly, Min-hee was convinced that her brother had fallen for her smile. She hadn’t thought she was that pretty before, but she was definitely very attractive when she smiled.

“Mother, what’s this?”

“It’s something I bought to give to my daughter-in-law. We agreed not to exchange wedding gifts, but I can’t return something I’ve already bought.”

After dinner, Yeon-ju took Dan-jung to her room and handed her a jewelry box. Yeon-ju had invited Dan-jung to dinner specifically to give her this.

“...”

Dan-jung carefully opened the jewelry box on the tea table. Inside were sets of expensive jewelry.

“Mother, I haven’t prepared anything. How can I accept this?”

Dan-jung hadn’t bothered to prepare anything since both families had agreed not to exchange wedding gifts. It was actually more comfortable not giving or receiving anything. Honestly, the jewelry was dazzlingly beautiful, but Dan-jung didn’t want to accept it since she hadn’t given Min-hyuk anything.

“This is a ruby. My mother-in-law gave it to me. You can pass it on to your daughter-in-law later.”

Yeon-ju put a worn but still brilliantly shining ring on Dan-jung’s finger.

“I thought about having it reset, but I couldn’t bring myself to because it was from my mother. When she gave it to me, she told me to live well.”

“Ah~.”

“I’m giving it to you hoping you’ll live well with Min-hyuk, so please don’t refuse.”

“…Yes, Mother. I’ll accept it gratefully.”

Dan-jung still felt burdened, but refusing any further seemed impolite, so she decided to accept Yeon-ju’s gift.

“And take this too. You’ll probably need a car.”

Yeon-ju handed Dan-jung a car key.

“Mother, I’ll buy my own car. You’ve already given me so much, I can’t accept this.”

Dan-jung put the car key on the table and bowed her head in refusal. But Yeon-ju didn’t look at the key Dan-jung had put down and simply picked up her teacup to sip her coffee.

“You’ll really need a car. Min-hyuk can’t drive.”

“Not that he doesn’t, but that he won’t?”

Dan-jung thought Min-hyuk didn’t need to drive since he had Secretary Im. But thinking about it, Min-hyuk always took a taxi when Secretary Im wasn’t around.

“Min-hyuk was a bright and lovely child. He smiled and cried a lot... He was a kind older brother who always apologized first when he fought with Min-hee.”

Yeon-ju, lost in old memories, put down her teacup and looked serious.

“That day, Min-hyuk had eaten something bad in the morning and said he felt stuffy and didn’t want to wear his seatbelt. I thought it was only a ten-minute drive to school, so nothing would happen. So I personally unbuckled his seatbelt.”

Yeon-ju’s eyes welled up with tears, recalling the unpleasant memory.

“A drunk truck driver caused a collision. I only suffered minor injuries, but Min-hyuk broke almost every bone in his body. He couldn’t move properly for several years and had to undergo surgery and rehabilitation.”

“Oh my.”

Dan-jung, listening to Yeon-ju’s story, covered her mouth with both hands, unable to hide her shock.

“And then, one day, I couldn’t find any expression on Min-hyuk’s face. He became someone who neither cried nor smiled. The doctor said it was post-traumatic stress disorder caused by trauma. He chose that method to survive because it was too painful.”

“Sob.”

Dan-jung couldn’t hold back the tears that flowed from her eyes. She had only thought Min-hyuk was an eccentric person because he calmly explained his condition, but she never imagined he had such pain. She had thought he lived better than anyone else, eating good food and wearing good clothes because he was a chaebol.

“So, I’m giving you this for my son. Please drive him when he needs it. Min-hyuk can’t do anything without Secretary Im.”

Yeon-ju held Dan-jung’s hands tightly.

“Please.”

“Yes, Mother. Don’t worry. I’ll be Min-hyuk’s feet.”

Dan-jung couldn’t stop the tears that streamed down her face. And she vowed to take care of Min-hyuk, who had suffered so much, for the rest of her life.

________________________________________

“Senior? It’s me, Hye-mi. Do you have some time now? Did you already leave work?”

Hye-mi opened the sushi set she had prepared for a late-night snack and called Min-hyuk. He liked tuna sushi the most, so he would definitely pick that one first. So Hye-mi had sprinkled the arousal drug on the tuna sushi. Si-woo had said that even a little would have an effect, so there was no need to put it all in. But in her impatience, Hye-mi had put almost all of what Si-woo gave her into the sweet apple juice.

“What is it?”

“There’s a problem with the opening. I think it would be best to get some advice from you.”

Hye-mi tasted the remaining arousal drug on her finger.

Even a small bite tasted strange, enough to make one suspicious. Hye-mi hoped the pungent taste of the wasabi on the sushi would mask it well.

-…Then come to the hotel. I haven’t left work yet.

Min-hyuk checked the time, and it was past 9 PM. Meeting Hye-mi at this late hour was somewhat uncomfortable, but he also had something he wanted to confirm with her.

“Okay, don’t worry. I won’t take up much of your time.”

After ending the call with Min-hyuk, Hye-mi smirked and got out of the car with the sushi. She was already in Min-hyuk’s hotel parking lot.

“Just you wait. Tonight, I’ll have you for sure.”

For Hye-mi, it was all or nothing. Either she had him tonight, or she would never have him. So, even if her actions were disgustingly dirty, she had to be desperate.

“Senior!”

A moment later, Hye-mi opened Min-hyuk’s office door with an artificial smile.

“Welcome, have a seat.”

Min-hyuk stopped working, got up, and led Hye-mi to the sofa.

“Senior, you’re about to get married, but why are you so focused on work instead of preparing for the wedding? Aren’t you hungry? I felt bad, so I brought some late-night snacks.”

Hye-mi quickly placed the sushi on the table and opened it herself.

“I’ll enjoy it.”

Min-hyuk didn’t intend to refuse what Hye-mi had brought. He was actually a little hungry after working so intently for a long time. And as Hye-mi expected, Min-hyuk picked up the tuna sushi first. Soon after, Min-hyuk tilted his head at the strange taste, and Hye-mi handed him a drink.

“Here’s a drink.”

“Thanks. So, what’s the problem?”

Min-hyuk drank the drink Hye-mi gave him without any suspicion.

“The pâtissier who was supposed to come from Lisbon suddenly broke the contract. He won’t come unless we double the payment.”

This was true. However, Hye-mi had already secured another pâtissier from Macau.

“What about a replacement?”

Min-hyuk asked, puzzled, as he thought Hye-mi could handle such matters on her own.

“I’ve secured a replacement from Macau. The problem is, they won’t be able to make it in time for the Jeju hotel’s opening day.”

“As you know, we’ve promoted ourselves in many media outlets as the hotel that’s opening the first egg tart shop in the country. We have to meet the hotel opening date no matter what.”

“So, I was thinking of going to Macau myself... Can you come with me?”

“...”

“You’re a negotiation expert, Senior.”

“I’m sorry, but I have a lot of work to handle on our end. Please handle this on your own.”

Although Min-hyuk knew Hye-mi personally, he clearly distinguished between public and private matters. This was entirely Hye-mi’s responsibility.

“Senior, you’ve become so harsh since you’re getting married.”

“Speaking of which, why did you meet Dan-jung...”

Min-hyuk suddenly felt dizzy. Moreover, his whole body felt burning hot, and his heart started racing wildly.

“Senior, are you alright? You must have worked too hard. Do you want to go to a room and rest?”

Hye-mi ran to Min-hyuk and looked at him with concern.

“I’m sorry, but you need to leave.”

Min-hyuk’s mind was so foggy that he didn’t know what he was saying to Hye-mi.

“No, I’ll take you to a room.”

“Go! Just go!”

Min-hyuk shouted, startling Hye-mi. And then, Hye-mi’s face trembled.

“What exactly did you give me to eat!”

Min-hyuk grabbed Hye-mi by the collar and looked at her with contempt.