H Hotel Restaurant Room. Alicia recalled the past as she waited for her parents. A life she had lived as Ms. Jo’s avatar, from the moment she was born until now. Ms. Jo wielded a whip at even minor rebellions, but she was also a mother who granted wishes if her daughter was obedient. Her life after college graduation proved it. She had been promised a free life if she graduated from a prestigious German university. But only until she entered into a political marriage for the Inno Group, or more precisely, to fulfill Ms. Jo’s objectives.

‘Once you become a chaebol daughter-in-law, you’ll have to watch your behavior for life. Before that, meet as many men as you want and enjoy yourself to the fullest.’

The freedom she tasted for the first time, albeit late, was intensely sweet. And to a daughter who only pursued life’s pleasures, Ms. Jo was a staunch supporter. She provided ample living expenses and even personal tutors for her desired hobbies. That’s when she met Heo Kyung-soo. She instantly fell for Kyung-soo, who was so different from the obvious men she had met until then. Frightened by her own feelings, she intentionally met other men, but Kyung-soo remained steadfast. As if he knew why Alicia was acting that way. For the first time, she even considered marriage, but Kyung-soo was not a satisfactory son-in-law to Ms. Jo. Alicia slowly exhaled and muttered.

“Heo Kyung-soo, just wait a little longer.”

I’m coming to you now. It was the first time in her 30 years of life. Rebelliousness against her parents, and deviation, a life she decided for herself for the first time. Her shallow will and courage had wavered dozens of times, but in the end, thinking of you, I gathered my courage. So please, just be alive.

“If you’re really dead, just you wait. I’ll hate you and resent you terribly.”

At the news of Kyung-soo’s death, she cried endlessly and cursed. She was so angry and frustrated that she refused to eat, fainted, and barely survived. Then, it suddenly came to mind. What Kyung-soo always used to say with a smile to Alicia, who couldn’t trust a man’s love.

‘Even if you leave me, I’ll always be waiting for you in the same place. Because I want to settle there once we’re married.’

A quiet, secluded rural village about 20 minutes from Hamburg, Germany. Kyung-soo just smiled, watching Alicia recoil at the thought of the countryside. She felt she had to go there first. Just then, a knock sounded, the door opened, and her parents entered. Her mother’s eyes were always devoid of warmth, but today, they held a sharply honed blade. Anxious to tear her to shreds.

“Ungrateful bitch. You don’t even know the grace of being born and raised by me, and you side with that dirty thing and betray me?”

Under the relentless accusation, fear of Ms. Jo slowly consumed her body. Nevertheless, Alicia endured stubbornly. I’m an adult now. I’m no longer Mother’s puppet. She repeatedly chanted to herself.

“It was an absurd plan from the beginning. How could you fool a man like Seo Kang-joon? You should be grateful you weren’t sued for fraud.”

At Alicia’s retort, Ms. Jo let out a cold, mocking laugh.

“So what if you got caught? It was a marriage of agreement between companies, not love. Sued for fraud? Don’t make me laugh. Why would Hanshin do something so foolish that would only ruin both their images and cause damage?”

“Mother didn’t tell me that far!”

Alicia was flustered. She truly hadn’t thought that far. She had only tried not to get caught and thought it would be over if she did.

“Do I have to tell you every little thing? You were completely fooled by that foxy, dirty thing!”

Joo Se-hee. That was the only point where the usually calm Ms. Jo would explode in anger.

“It serves you right. Betraying me and being abandoned by Inno, and getting divorced without a penny of alimony.”

“I couldn’t help it either. That man threatened me fiercely to divorce, what power did I have to refuse? Honestly, that man was not someone I could handle!”

Ms. Jo sprang up and hit Alicia hard on the head with her handbag.

“You idiot, who said you had to live with him forever? It was a matter of finding an opportunity, sleeping with him a few times, and getting pregnant! I told you you could live however you wanted after you had the baby!”

“Am I a baby-making machine? Mother, you saw Seo Kang-joon too! He wasn’t the type of man to be swayed by anything I did!”

Alicia also screamed back, equally enraged. Then, Ms. Jo finally grabbed Alicia by the hair.

“Why do you think I let you fool around dirtily in Germany?! Why did I even assign you a tutor?! You’ve dealt with countless men, and you’re telling me you couldn’t handle that one man? If you couldn’t use your head, you should have used your body, or captivated him in bed! What else did I want from you besides that?!”

More shocking than being grabbed by the hair were Ms. Jo’s words to Alicia. The free and sweet life she had enjoyed for several years in Germany, which Ms. Jo had actively supported. She had thought it was a mother’s concern for her daughter, who would face a suffocating prison-like life after marriage. To think that even that was a meticulously planned scheme. With her hair still in Ms. Jo’s grasp, Alicia stared blankly at Young-guk. Did Father know too? No, did he also treat me like some object?

“...”

But Young-guk’s gaze, watching the mother-daughter drama, was ice cold. He clicked his tongue in contempt and turned away from Alicia. Tears, which hadn’t flowed even in the face of pain, suddenly burst forth. As thick tears poured down and soaked her cheeks, Alicia realized. In the end, I was a worthless daughter, recognized by no one. She had come to this meeting with hope, alone. Still, I’m their child, even if Grandfather is like that, surely my parents will eventually forgive me. The moment that faint hope shattered, Alicia pushed Ms. Jo away with all her might.

“Do you two ever think of me as your child?”

At Alicia’s words, Ms. Jo snorted.

“You have to act like a person to be treated as a child. I regret giving birth to a fool like you. I’d rather have given birth to a well-behaved animal.”

Her vision, looking down at her clenched fists, was blurry with tears. Looking down at her own hands, whose knuckles were white from how tightly she gripped them, Alicia said.

“I regret it too. Being born the daughter of Yoo Young-guk and Jo Young-hee.”

“This one still doesn’t know her own fault!”

To Ms. Jo, who raised her hand as if to strike again, Alicia yelled fiercely.

“Just try hitting me again. I’m not going to quietly take it anymore.”

Passing by Ms. Jo, who glared as if she wanted to tear her apart, Alicia turned back again before opening the door.

“Do what you want, whether it’s disowning me or whatever, and enjoy your meal before you leave. Wouldn’t it still be polite for a child to treat their parents to a meal?”

She succeeded in exiting nonchalantly, but as soon as she got into the elevator, she collapsed.

“Hoooh...”

She felt pathetic. Now that she was completely alone, in this moment when someone’s comfort was desperately needed, there was no one she could contact. Only that kid came to mind. Joo Se-hee, that tough one.

________________________________________

9 PM, a sudden call from Alicia.

‘Want a drink?’

The place Alicia mentioned was a bar in Gangnam without even a signboard. But the interior of the two-story bar was a space completely adorned with luxury, secret and secluded. How on earth did she even know about a place like this? Alicia was seated at a table, guided by a staff member in a black suit.

“Tonight, you’re buying the drinks, since you have more money than I do.”

As soon as she sat down, Alicia blurted out.

“Fine by me.”

Se-hee replied calmly and scanned the table. As she stared at the half-empty whiskey bottle, Alicia chuckled.

“I can hold my liquor. Don’t worry, I won’t ask you to take responsibility. I’ll drink it all, walk out on my own two feet, take a taxi, and go to the hotel.”

“Who said I’d take responsibility? I’m just going to pay and leave.”

“You tough bitch. When I see you like this, I think you’re more like Mom than I am.”

“Don’t speak so carelessly.”

Se-hee retorted in a low, cold voice. To her, that was a more terrible thing to hear than being called ‘like mother, like daughter.’

“So sensitive. Take your drink, toughie.”

“I don’t drink anymore.”

“What? How boring. Then why did you come?”

“I figured you must have been desperate to call me.”

The smile disappeared from Alicia’s face.

“Knowing Aunt’s personality, why bother meeting her? You should have just gone to Germany.”

At Se-hee’s words, which hit the mark like a ghost, Alicia’s eyes reddened. But she roughly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and retorted curtly.

“You know you’re really annoying? I shouldn’t have called you.”

“Shall I leave now then?”

“Hey!”

Se-hee chuckled and calmly scanned her surroundings. For a secret place, most of the young customers seemed to be couples, and the atmosphere was, shall we say, refined.

“How did you know about a place like this?”

“As soon as I came to Korea, I paid a thousand and bought a year’s pass. It’s a good place to meet people safely. More about conversation than one-night stands, I guess. I needed someone I knew in Korea.”

Only then did Se-hee realize. The men and women at the tables hadn’t come together; they had joined up here.

“Don’t worry. I told them in advance I wouldn’t be joining anyone today.”

“No smoking indoors, right?”

“Probably? But you’re so rigid, arguing about things like that in a place like this.”

Alicia took a sip from her glass and replied half-heartedly.

“Of course I should argue about it. I’m pregnant.”

Poof. Alicia spat out the drink she had just taken and coughed.

“What did you just say?”

“I said I’m pregnant. Three months, to be exact, 11 weeks.”

“Surely the baby’s father isn’t Seo Kang-joon?”

“Yes.”

At her overly nonchalant answer, Alicia looked stunned. After a long while, she gulped down water instead of alcohol and muttered.

“So that’s why Seo Kang-joon rushed the divorce. For the child, to marry you.”

“Mr. Kang-joon only found out I was pregnant yesterday. And I have no intention of marrying him. I’ll raise the baby well on my own. Loving it deeply, for both parents.”

Se-hee looked at her still-flat belly with soft eyes and gently caressed it with her hand.

“Why won’t you marry him? It looks like he’s completely smitten with you.”

Like Jin-kyung, Alicia also looked bewildered.

“The whole relationship was wrong from the start. Do you think it’ll be easy to fix that? There’s a lot to handle, but I don’t want to be vulnerable to Aunt again. I don’t want to harm Mr. Kang-joon, but I want my baby to grow up normally and be happy. You know, sister, how heavy and demanding the lives of children born into chaebol families, known to the public, are.”

Yes, I know that. Nevertheless, Alicia clicked her tongue.

“This is why being too smart and thinking too much is a problem, isn’t it? You really live a complicated and difficult life.”

“And how well did you, who lived a simple and easy life, do? You called me because you didn’t even have a single drinking buddy.”

“Hey! How is it that you never lose an argument?”

“Why should I concede to you, sister?”

Alicia shook her head, as if fed up with Se-hee, who never lost an argument.

“Fine, you’re so great. My appetite for alcohol is gone because of the pregnant woman, so let’s get up. I’m going to the restroom, so pay the bill, okay? I’ll buy dinner.”

Se-hee chuckled and got up, watching Alicia head to the restroom. But before she had walked a few steps, a man in a neat suit blocked her path.

“I haven’t seen your face before. You two came together, but coincidentally, my friend and I also came as a pair. Shall we join tables?”

The man’s eyes, smiling slyly, were full of temptation. He clearly had the main purpose of visiting this bar in mind.

“The atmosphere here isn’t great, so we were just about to leave. So please find other companions with the same purpose.”

After replying indifferently, Se-hee tried to pass, but the man blocked her again.

“Then let’s leave together. We were getting bored too. Oh, by the way, I’m this kind of person.”

Se-hee sighed softly, looking at the business card held between the man’s index and middle fingers. Why do men always find it so hard to accept a woman’s refusal? Just as she was thinking about how to effectively reject him, a long arm reached out from behind her and took the man’s business card instead of Se-hee.

“Executive Director Park Han-yi of Dongseong Construction, huh.”

Se-hee half-turned her head at the familiar low voice and strong scent that enveloped her. She saw Kang-joon, standing close behind her, looking at the business card.

“...Mr. Kang-joon?”

Kang-joon met Se-hee’s eyes gently, then slowly raised his gaze again. He looked at the man with a distinctly cold gaze and held out the business card back to him.

“Stop trying to flirt with my baby’s mother and go on your way, Executive Director Park Han-yi.”

“This lady... is a mother?”

The man looked surprised, but Se-hee was even more surprised. Regardless, Kang-joon calmly and smoothly wrapped his arm around Se-hee’s waist. The warmth from Kang-joon’s large hand placed on her belly warmly enveloped her. It was such a natural action that she had no time to defend herself. Kang-joon leaned his face onto Se-hee’s shoulder and whispered tenderly, as if melting.

“Freya, Daddy’s here.”

His gaze, looking down at Se-hee’s belly, was as soft as spring sunshine. Se-hee had something she wanted to ask Kang-joon even more than how he got here. Who on earth is Freya?