Chapter 4 – Cheap Romance (Part 6)

“Ugh…”

Soo-yeon groaned as soon as she opened her eyes. Her head felt like it had been scrambled, and her whole body ached as if she had been beaten. Just as she was about to fall back asleep, she felt a hand shaking her awake. Opening her eyes again, she saw Hee-tae offering her honey water. She wondered if this was how a corporate worker felt seeing their spouse the day after a drunken company dinner.

She had no clear memory of last night, only that they had s*x. Her body was so drained that she couldn’t even muster the strength in her waist. She wanted to curse him for being a beast, but she couldn’t be sure she hadn’t been the beast herself. Hee-tae, watching her drink the honey water, spoke.

“Just try drinking outside again.”

“I quit drinking as of yesterday.”

Soo-yeon replied quickly after swallowing the honey water. Something must have happened. She hurried to get out of the uncomfortable atmosphere of the bedroom. But her waist hurt, and she fell forward. Hee-tae caught her waist with one hand and sat her back on the bed.

She felt like an animal that had tried to escape its cage only to be put back in. A lewd déjà vu hit her. She remembered crawling on her knees across the sofa and bed last night, only to be caught by him. Despite his ruthless behavior, he spoke shamelessly.

“You can drink in front of me. You’re quite cute when you’re drunk.”

“I quit drinking.”

Embarrassed, Soo-yeon glared at him and tried to get out of bed again. The moment she took a step, pain shot up her spine. The shameless man who had made a mess of her body had no conscience. But she couldn’t argue with him, fearing he would recount her drunken antics. She prioritized escaping the bedroom.

“Soo-yeon, where are you going?”

At that moment, she heard Hee-tae call her from behind. She slowly blinked her sleepy eyes. It seemed like the first time he had called her name so tenderly. Even in her unclear state, she turned to see if she had heard correctly.

Hee-tae pulled her waist and kissed her cheek as she looked at him. Seeing her wide-eyed and frozen, he laughed heartily.

“Why didn’t you tell me you don’t remember anything?”

“I remember. Maybe…”

“Maybe? Should I remind you again?”

Afraid that his playful words might be serious, she weakly punched his chest. Her punch was so weak it was more like a pat. Hee-tae laughed as if it tickled.

He brought out a ring box from the nightstand. Inside was an old-fashioned ring, not a couple ring. It looked like something an 80-year-old rich man would wear with a cane. Hee-tae slipped it onto Soo-yeon’s right middle finger.

“What is this?”

Soo-yeon asked, looking at the ring on her finger. She had never heard of the significance of wearing a ring on the right middle finger instead of the fourth finger on the left hand.

Hee-tae tilted his head as if it was strange that the large gemstone ring suited her slender fingers and said,

“I asked them to bring it urgently, so I got this tasteless piece. But why does it look pretty?”

“What part of it…”

“It’s not meant for beauty, but it’s so pretty that it’s confusing. Turn the gemstone inside and make a fist. Good job.”

Even though it didn’t look pretty at all, Hee-tae kept saying it was. He turned the gemstone inward and helped Soo-yeon close her fingers around the bulging part, then said,

“It feels much more stable than just making a bare fist, right? This is how you hit someone.”

Hee-tae had thought about this since Soo-yeon had been so compliant last night. Chae Soo-yeon shouldn’t have such a gentle personality with such an innocent face. It was better if she had the aggressive demeanor she had when she glared at him and dug her nails into him. No one but Hee-tae should know how soft she was inside.

Soo-yeon looked down at her fist and then back up at Hee-tae, asking,

“Why are you teaching me this?”

“If someone tries to flirt with you like I did, asking for your number and pulling tricks, hit them like this. I’ll handle the aftermath.”

Soo-yeon was surprised that Hee-tae knew his approach had been a trick. Despite that, he had always seemed so shameless and confident. She found it absurd that the ring he had given her was for self-defense. Seeing her bewildered expression, Hee-tae kindly explained that there had been another option.

“Brass knuckles seemed too heavy for your hand.”

Why would I need to wear that? 

She couldn’t understand why he assumed she would need to hit someone in her life. Thinking about how he had chosen this ugly ring, considering its weight, she couldn’t refuse it.

Despite its large gemstone, the ring was relatively light. Soo-yeon looked at it quietly and asked,

“Where do you get a ring like this?”

“Why, do you like it? I didn’t think you had such bad taste, Chae Soo-yeon.”

“You bought it for me…”

Soo-yeon replied, incredulous. The gemstone was so large it could almost hatch an albatross. No one would wear this because they liked it.

Hee-tae laughed, thinking she liked it because he had bought it for her. He gently mocked her as he stroked her fist.

“I’ll buy you a hundred more. Wear them on your toes too.”

It was clear he was teasing her now. Soo-yeon glared at him, then took off the ring and put it on her left hand. It still didn’t look pretty. It had an appearance that couldn’t be overlooked, even with the excitement and freshness of early love. So, she rationalized that she couldn’t wear it alone and said,

“I just need one more.”

“To wear on both hands? Smart. You do punch with both hands.”

“No, for you to wear, Jang Hee-tae.”

She shook her head as she answered. She expected him to boast that his fists weren’t weak. But Hee-tae just looked at her with a puzzled expression. Soo-yeon had to say the embarrassing words out loud.

“I want us to wear matching ones.”

“Damn… I want to kill him.”

Before he could scold her for acting cute, a destructive urge came over him. Chae Soo-yeon was an unfairly sly and frustrating woman. Her innocent eyes made him doubt if she was really older than him. But seeing her calmly move the ugly ring to her left fourth finger, he was reminded that she was indeed an experienced adult. Soo-yeon asked, confused,

“Kill who?”

“Damn, I should have thrown him into the Han River n*ked in the middle of winter and then fished him out.”

Hee-tae deliberately omitted the subject. He didn’t even want to call him by name or refer to him as “your ex.” Soo-yeon, sensing who he meant, grabbed his cheek and stood on her tiptoes. After a short kiss, she slowly lowered herself and said,

“I’ll use the ring well.”

Soo-yeon only spoke briefly when she was angry. Seeing her convey her gratitude and lower her head shyly, Hee-tae pulled her cheek again. When he bit her cheek, Soo-yeon covered the bitten spot and glared at him. But Hee-tae, unsatisfied even after biting her cheek, furrowed his brow and said,

“Chae Soo-yeon, you’re so unfair. Do you know that?”

Soo-yeon had an uncanny ability to draw his attention to her. Hee-tae almost forgot what he was angry about. Instead, he wanted to bite her. He wanted to chew her up from head to toe, drenching her in his saliva. He wanted to make her cry uncontrollably. Sensing his gaze turning more predatory, Soo-yeon stepped back.

“It’s morning.”

“Why are you backing away? What did I do?”

Hee-tae, with a playful smile, followed her steps. Despite warning him that it was morning, Soo-yeon found herself trapped between him and the wall. He was so close that she could feel his breath on her skin. Reluctantly, she looked at him and said,

“You’re going to do it.”

“You’re quick.”

His admiring tone sounded like he was mocking her. Even if she wasn’t quick-witted, she couldn’t miss what was about to happen at this close distance. Moreover, she could feel his lower body pressing against her thigh.

As she tried to step back, Hee-tae pressed his lower body closer and pointed to her chest with his eyes, saying,

“Show me your br*asts. At least let me jerk off to them.”

“Are you crazy?”

Like a cat, Hee-tae quickly grabbed her waist and hugged her. Watching Soo-yeon struggle and curse, he let out a deflating laugh. She tried to wriggle free from his single-armed grip, but he just laughed and teased her.

“Already practicing? Make a fist like this.”

“Bite your teeth.”

“Wow, look at that stance. Are you going to make me get implants?”

Hee-tae laughed at her response, loosening her grip. As Soo-yeon blushed and bowed her head, he kissed her neck and lifted her up.

Love. Now he understood what it meant. This moment was lovely. Watching others break up and get back together repeatedly, he had scoffed, but now he understood the sweetness of it.