Part 31

Her legs shake as she gets out of the car. Seowoo barely managed to keep her back straight and walked slowly. When Jung-ah spotted her, she quickly ran over and put her arm around Seowoo.

“Are you okay? What did that crazy woman say? Ugh, she’s so annoying.”

Jung-ah looked angrily at the sedan.

Seowoo was so tense and stressed that all she wanted to do was lie down.

“Jung-ah, sorry… can you take me home?”

“Yeah, okay. Let’s go.”

Seowoo took a deep breath as she and Jung-ah slowly headed to her home.

“I’m sorry, we were supposed to eat together.”

“Don’t worry about that now. Why did she have to come and cause all this trouble?”

Jung-ah expressed her frustration with harsh words.

She barely managed to support the exhausted Seowoo and get her up to her home. After laying her on the bed, Jung-ah sat by her side with a worried expression, unable to leave.

“Are you going to keep seeing Kwon Jiwook?”

“…”

“It’s really a persistent toxic connection. You’re still dealing with this. Ugh, it’s so frustrating.”

Jung-ah sighed deeply.

Jung-ah was frustrated to see her friend who had just gotten divorced and still couldn’t cut ties. It was obvious from the visit of her vicious former mother-in-law.

It was clear that Jiwook and Seowoo had gotten closer again.

“No. I’m really trying to sort things out now.”

“That’s good. You’ve made the right decision. You’ll forget all about this when you meet someone new. It’ll only be hard at first, but you’ll be okay.”

The more Seowoo thought about it, the more it seemed right to break things off with Jiwook. 

There’s no definitive answer to life, but at this point, it was clear as Jung-ah said, it was a toxic connection.

“I’m sorry. I need some rest.”

That was a request for space, to leave her be.

Seowoo was grateful for Jung-ah’s concern, but she wanted to be alone for now. Her eyes began to sting, and Seowoo clenched her teeth, swallowing back tears.

“I’ll call you. Get some good rest, okay?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Jung-ah reluctantly left, her footsteps heavy.

In the distance, she heard the front door close. Seowoo clutched the blanket tightly, tears streaming down her face.

“Sob.”

To forget that hellish life, Seowoo had buried those past times deep in her memory.

To survive, she had no choice, because otherwise she would die.

But facing Myeong-hye again brought back the lonely and difficult life vividly.

Even the figure of Jiwook, who seemed to have married her out of obligation of getting her pregnant.

Whether she had forgotten because it was so long ago, or whether she wanted to believe that Jiwook’s changed demeanor was really sincere.

‘I’m sorry.’

There’s no way he didn’t mean those words.

The problem was that her feelings for Jiwook, which she’d been suppressing, had grown again.

Seeing Myeong-hye today resolved the feelings she had been struggling with recently. 

It was a relationship that was never meant to work out, so it was time to let go. 

Seowoo curled up and wept for a long while.

***

“Sigh.”

Jiwook breathed heavily, gripping the steering wheel tightly. His face was full of anxiety as he drove.

As he neared her house, his heart began to race.

“Why…”

He was so nervous.

He usually didn’t get tense, so it’s strange to see himself like this. Inside his jacket was a ring for her.

“…Proposal.”

Jiwook muttered the unfamiliar word and tried to hide his nervousness.

Since Seowoo’s last shoot had ended, she’d had a busy schedule for more promotions and hadn’t been able to make time for him.

Whenever she was a bit free, Jiwook was busy

So it had been a long time since they’d seen each other.

“I miss you.”

A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he remembered Seowoo’s face.

Even if he proposed, he didn’t expect her to accept his heart right away. But he decided not to be disappointed. 

As he pulled into the parking lot, he saw Seowoo already waiting for him.

He pulls up in front of her and she immediately hops into the passenger seat.

“Have you been waiting long?”

“No, not long. I just got out.”

She could feel his eyes on her even as she finished buckling her seatbelt. Seowoo turned her head to look at Jiwook.

“Why?”

“You look unwell.”

“I’m tired, that’s probably why.”

Seowoo fumbled with her face, making excuses. She had to cancel today’s plans with Seung-min as well.

Once things with Jiwook were sorted out, and once she calmed down, she’d talk to him.

For now, just cutting ties with Jiwook was draining enough of her energy.

“Let’s go have a nice dinner.”

Jiwook gently pressed the accelerator. Seowoo turned her head to look out at the night view.

Despite the turmoil in her mind, the twinkling lights were serenely beautiful. His scent filling the car was unusually saddening today.

Her chest ached slightly, and Seowoo sighed softly.

“I’m trying to reduce my workload. That’s why I’ve been so busy.”

Breaking the silence, Jiwook spoke first. Seowoo just listened quietly.

“I didn’t know what was more important then…I regret it a lot.”

To him, work had always been the priority.

Carrying on the family business was important, and he had lived diligently, fearing he might fall out of favor with Young-jin.

All the while, unaware of how his beloved’s heart was deteriorating.

A neglectful father. A mother who still hadn’t come to her senses. And Young-jin, who saw him only as a tool to continue the family business.

Jiwook was sick of it all.

“I shouldn’t do things I’ll regret again.”

Suddenly, his hand reached over.

Jiwook’s large hand overlaid Seowoo’s on her lap.

“…….”

Seowoo stared at his hand.

Why is his hand so warm?

She had made up her mind countless times, but seeing him beside her made her waver like a reed.

You’re so pathetic, Yoon Seowoo.

Seowoo forced herself to look away, steadying her wavering heart.

***

Dinner was over.

She doesn’t know if it was because of her heavy heart or of her pregnancy but Seowoo barely ate. Unlike the early pregnancy days when she had cravings, lately, she had no appetite at all.

“You don’t seem to have any appetite.”

Watching her struggle to eat today, Jiwook voiced his concern. Throughout the meal, Seowoo only responded briefly to his various questions.

Jiwook, seeming to notice her poor mood, appeared worried and observant.

It was both strange and bittersweet that Kwon Jiwook was being so attentive to her now. He hadn’t been like that before.

“Seowoo.”

After sipping some chamomile tea, Seowoo slowly raised her head to look at him.

“I have something to say.”

She opened her mouth with determination and Jiwook nodded his head in response.

 “I have something to say, too, but you go first.”

Seowoo tightly clasped her hands under the table. Her lips quivered as she slowly began to speak.

“Let’s stop seeing each other.”

Upon hearing these words, Jiwook’s face turned cold. He seemed completely taken aback. Even so, Seowoo continued calmly.

“I came out today… to see you one last time.”

It had already been half a year since they had been together like this.

She had reconnected with Jiwook from the time she made her comeback.

It was a relationship that had started somewhat forcibly due to his insistence, but lately, she had found herself waiting for Jiwook’s calls without realizing it.

“Why?”

Jiwook’s deep voice resonated in her ears.

She was scared. Not only because her feelings had grown, but also because she was afraid that she might go back to that lonely time again.

She decided it was better to stop now before it was too late.

Especially since she was pregnant.

“I had forgotten for a moment what our relationship was like.”

“Tell me what I can do.”

“Just stop coming to see me.”

Jiwook took a deep breath and placed a small red box in front of her.

“Let’s start over.”

“…”

Her eyes welled up with tears as she realized the meaning of the box.

“I knew you probably wouldn’t accept it. I was prepared for that. I know it won’t be easy. But just don’t say we should end it.”

He had only thought of her refusing.

But with Seowoo’s words to end things, all the thoughts he had been holding onto evaporated.

Her unusually cold demeanor today had made him anxious, and as that anxiety became reality, he no longer saw a reason to hesitate.

“I’m not asking you to marry me right away. I’m just asking you to give me a little more time and…….”

“I heard you met Sung-hyun.”

Seowoo interrupted, cutting him off. Jiwook’s eyebrows shot up at the mention of Sung-hyun.

“……What?”

“Sung-hyun said he met your mother too, and you know all about it.”

Jiwook’s brows furrowed deeper. 

The bastard had told her everything after all.

He moistened his dry lips and began to explain calmly.

“It’s true. I didn’t want you to know, because it would do nothing to repair our relationship.”

He was afraid.

Afraid that if she knew the truth, her feelings might waver. That’s why he couldn’t tell her.

Seowoo’s gaze sank low in response to his answer that he knew.

“Nothing has changed.”

“Seowoo.”

“Being with you, these things will just keep happening.”

The image of Myeong-hye, fiercely protective of her beloved son, flashed before her eyes.

“I don’t have the confidence, not anymore.”

“It’s different from that time. I will take care of it, I’ll solve everything.”

“No. You don’t have to. We’re like broken glass anyway.”

Putting the pieces back together won’t make the painful past go away.