BR - 59

Was it a nosebleed?

While she was blankly thinking that, Madam Cha yelled loudly, calling the secretaries who had gone outside.

Chairman Baek, who had come out wondering what was going on, looked at Seok-kyung, who was bleeding from his nose, with a surprised expression.

He must be really tired.

Seok-kyung pressed the tissue a secretary handed him to his nose, stopping the bleeding, and closed his eyes.

He could hear his mother’s tearful, worried voice and the secretaries’ voices telling him not to tilt his head back, all overlapping.

He just wanted to push everyone away and sleep with his head in Eun-chae’s lap.

________________________________________

Eun-chae, who had come to Baedo Group for the second time, took a deep breath.

Why did they call me? What do they want to talk about? Are they going to hit me again this time?

Her heart pounded with all sorts of thoughts and worries, refusing to calm down easily.

Still, she was somewhat relieved that it was Chairman Baek who had called her this time, not Madam Cha.

She remembered that Chairman Baek, like President Baek who had cherished her during his lifetime, had also been fond of Eun-chae, his granddaughter-in-law.

Of course, her step-grandmother-in-law hadn’t been.

When she informed the front desk of her arrival, Chairman Baek’s secretary came down to escort Eun-chae shortly after.

Riding the private elevator straight to the chairman’s office, Eun-chae’s body trembled more and more.

She mentally repeated the words she had decided on during the ride, wondering what to say and how to say it.

She passed through the large, heavy brown door, past several secretaries who stared at her, and entered the chairman’s office.

“Ms. Lee Eun-chae has arrived, Chairman.”

“Okay, you can go now.”

“Yes.”

The secretary left Eun-chae alone in the office, turned around, and closed the door.

Eun-chae swallowed hard and then took a step towards the inner part of the office where she had heard Chairman Baek’s voice.

Turning past a partition that had blocked her view at the door, the spacious office came into sight.

Unlike Seok-kyung’s all-black office or President Baek’s office she had seen recently, this one was neat and classic.

In front of one wall, on a raised platform like a dais, was Chairman Baek’s large desk.

Behind the desk, books filled a bookshelf that reached the ceiling, and Chairman Baek was selecting a book in front of it.

What should I say?

After a moment of hesitation, Eun-chae bowed her head first.

“You asked to see me.”

“It’s been a while. Lift your head and sit over there.”

At Chairman Baek’s reply, Eun-chae straightened up and went to the sofa, waiting for him to come.

A moment later, Chairman Baek approached her with a book in his hand and sat down first in the seat of honor.

“Sit down, sit down.”

“Yes.”

Only then did she perch lightly on the edge of the sofa.

Sweat trickled down her spine as she tried to avoid Chairman Baek’s steady gaze.

Why did he call me here only to stare at me without saying anything?

There must have been a commotion because of the broken engagement article; he must have called me because of that.

Feeling uneasy, she kept scratching nervously at her knee with her fingers.

“What’s your relationship with Seok-kyung?”

As expected, it was the question she had anticipated.

“We have no relationship.”

“Seok-kyung says he intends to get back together with you.”

“That’s not a rational decision.”

It was also an answer she had prepared.

If Seok-kyung couldn’t come to his senses, she would have no choice but to cut him off herself.

Because she was the only one who could save him.

“Why do you say that?”

“I have nothing. I can’t offer him any help.”

“And?”

“The only person who can inherit and grow Baedo Group in the future is Seok-kyung-ssi. Someone like that needs a spouse who is in no way lacking and can provide all sorts of support. I don’t fit that description.”

“Hmm.”

Chairman Baek gently stroked his chin with his fingers.

“Do you even like Seok-kyung?”

Eun-chae closed her mouth.

Say you don’t like him. Say you hate him. No, just say you despise him.

But her tightly closed lips wouldn’t open easily, contrary to her thoughts.

“Tell me honestly. Don’t you like Seok-kyung at all?”

“I do like him.”

Her heart melted at his soft voice, and Eun-chae, who had answered without realizing it, was startled and covered her mouth with her hand.

“You like him?”

“Actually...”

Since she couldn’t take back the words that had already been spoken, she decided to be honest with Chairman Baek.

“Actually, there hasn’t been a single moment when I didn’t love Seok-kyung-ssi.”

He was someone she liked and loved so much.

From the first time she saw Seok-kyung from afar at a social gathering she had been dragged to by her mother in high school, she had harbored special feelings for him.

Still, she had never imagined they would become a couple until a marriage proposal came around the time she became known as a pianist.

Knowing the other party was Seok-kyung, she had spent the entire night before their meeting wide awake.

It was a one-sided love, and Seok-kyung never even smiled at her, but she couldn’t believe she was marrying him and was simply overjoyed.

Because he was busy, she had given up the wedding photoshoot and even chosen her wedding dress alone.

Even while waiting for Seok-kyung, who stayed cooped up in his study even on their honeymoon, she had been happy.

That’s how much she had loved him.

“Could it be... an affair?”

“I never had an affair.”

“Why did you lie like that? If it weren’t for that lie, you wouldn’t have broken up with Seok-kyung!”

Chairman Baek scolded her, looking dumbfounded.

Eun-chae hesitated for a moment whether she should tell him about Madam Cha threatening her, but decided against it.

That would only escalate things too much.

“I heard that my father’s company was going bankrupt.”

“...What?”

“If my father’s company goes bankrupt, then Seok-kyung-ssi will have a burden that won’t be of any help to him. I thought it would be better for him to divorce me and meet someone new.”

Not all of it was untrue.

Clearly, a significant part of the reason she had brought up the difficult topic of divorce to him and even fabricated a non-existent lover was for Seok-kyung’s sake.

“But if we hadn’t divorced, we might have been able to help your father a little...”

“You might have been able to help a little, but at the time, Seok-kyung-ssi had no feelings for me and would have come to dislike me. Then, in any case, we would have become no different from strangers. The result is the same. It’s no different.”

“So you still think that since you’re of no help to Seok-kyung, it’s better for you not to be by his side?”

“Yes, Chairman. My not being by Seok-kyung-ssi’s side is the way to help him. Look even now. Because I stayed by his side, his life has become troubled.”

Eun-chae wiped the tears that had welled up in her eyes with her fingers.

Sadly, the truth was harsh.

She loved Seok-kyung, but if she stayed by his side, he would become unhappy. How could she continue to watch that?

“You don’t have to worry too much about Seok-kyung-ssi either. He may say he loves me now, but he will soon realize it was a mistake.”

“A mistake?”

“Yes. Somehow, he... ended up holding me.”

It was embarrassing to confess such a thing to an elder, so Eun-chae’s face flushed, but she continued, “He’s mistaking that for love. If he was going to like me, he would have liked me even when we were married. Now that we’re physically apart, he’ll come to his senses soon.”

These were words that wounded herself, but they were words she had to say for Seok-kyung’s sake.

And Eun-chae didn’t regret it.

“Hmm. I understand.”

Chairman Baek nodded, his face full of anguish.

“That’s all I have to say.”

Eun-chae had nothing more to say or hear, so she stood up from her seat.

“Just like before, and today too... thank you for being so warm to me, Chairman. Please take care of your health in the future.”

Having no more business there, she bowed deeply to Chairman Baek and turned around.

“Ms. Eun-chae.”

Chairman Baek called her.

“Just one more question.”

Please, stop.

Eun-chae turned back to face Chairman Baek with difficulty.

“Even if Seok-kyung is sick, does it mean nothing to you, Ms. Eun-chae?”

“Yes?”

“Even if you don’t have much time left to spend with Seok-kyung, will you just let him go like this?”

“Is... Seok-kyung-ssi sick somewhere?”

Chairman Baek didn’t answer and just gazed at her with a lonely and sad smile.

Seok-kyung-ssi is sick?

It was clearly not a hypothetical question.

After a few seconds of silence, Eun-chae turned around and ran out of the chairman’s office.

She couldn’t think of anything else.

She had to see Seok-kyung right now.

________________________________________

Seok-kyung, who was resting at home, frowned at the call from the management office.

They said someone was downstairs to see him. Her name was Lee Eun-chae.

Lee Eun-chae?

He almost asked if it was really her but managed to swallow the question and told them to send her up.

His pounding heart felt like it would burst out of his chest soon.

Every second was precious, so he opened the front door and watched the elevator ascend.

Why did he live in such a high place? He should have lived on a lower floor.

He was frustrated with the slowly rising elevator.

And finally, the elevator stopped at his floor, and the moment the doors opened, Eun-chae burst out, her face flushed with agitation.

The real Lee Eun-chae had come.

“Lee Eun-chae?”

“Seok-kyung-ssi!”

Eun-chae ran to Seok-kyung, grabbed his shoulders, and kept looking him up and down.

“Are you alright?”

“Huh?”

“I heard you’re sick? Where does it hurt? Why are you sick?”

Tears welled up in her large eyes, and her voice was filled with emotion.

“What did the doctor say? Is it serious? Why haven’t you gone to the hospital until now?”

A string of incomprehensible words kept pouring out of her mouth.

Sick? Me?

Seok-kyung cupped Eun-chae’s face with both hands, his own face a picture of bewilderment, and met her gaze.

“Calm down.”

“Why are your hands so cold? Did you turn on the air conditioning? How can you make your body cold when you’re not feeling well?”

“Stop, stop.”

Seok-kyung kissed Eun-chae’s lips. It wasn’t out of any other intention but to stop her words.

Fortunately, she was startled and widened her eyes, pulling away from him. Her lips were slightly parted, but the questions had stopped.