Chapter 10 (Part 4)

On the rooftop of the officetel.  

Jinwon was carefully watering a row of plants. In-ah watched him, lost in thought.  

Unable to hold back her curiosity, she asked,  

“You said you met Jeong Shin-hye during your studies, right?”  

“Yeah.”  

“Were you close?”  

“Just classmates.”  

“You must’ve been close.”  

She pouted, mumbling.  

Amused, he sat beside her.  

“When did I say we were close?”  

“I asked if you were close, and you didn’t say no. So you were close.”  

“No, we weren’t. Okay?”  

He playfully pinched her cheek with a smile.  

“Jeong Shin-hye said she knows your secret. What is it?”  

The smile vanished from his face.  

“What secret? There’s no such thing.”  

He stood up and approached the plants again. Adding one more thing,  

“There’s no need to pay attention to what she says.”

In-ah couldn’t take her eyes off the back of Jinwon’s head as he tended to the plants. It felt eerie, like a woman’s intuition. There was definitely something there.  

***  

“So in the end, we can’t catch the culprit?”

Lunchtime.  

In-ah and the staff were chatting while eating at the company cafeteria. The topic was the Corners Hotel size error incident.  

“They say the investigation is ongoing, but there doesn’t seem to be much progress.”  

While listening to her colleagues chat, she noticed Assistant Manager Jeong sitting alone at a distance.  

Since the incident, Assistant Manager Jeong had become an open outcast. Yet, she hadn’t chosen to resign and continued coming to work, always eating alone.  

In-ah looked at him with a bitter expression, thinking she should eat with him next time.  

***  

In-ah was heading to Haejeong’s house with Jinwon.  

It was the day Haejeong had been eagerly anticipating to meet Jinwon.  

She insisted on preparing a meal herself, so they couldn’t delay any longer.  

As they neared Haejeong’s house, they saw a group of children gathered in a narrow alley.  

Initially, they passed by indifferently. But then In-ah suddenly stopped.  

“Wait a minute.”  

Returning to the alley, they saw Min-jun surrounded by the children.  

The kids seemed to be threatening Min-jun, who was cowering with his head down.  

“Min-jun!”  

She shouted and rushed into the alley, causing the kids to scatter instantly.  

Left alone, Min-jun ran to her and hugged her.  

“Auntie Ah-in!”  

“What happened?”  

Sitting down in the alley, she listened to Min-jun and shouted in excitement.  

“If someone bullies you, pick up anything! Like a stick! Pick it up and fight back!”  

“Fight back?”  

Jinwon, unable to watch any longer, intervened.  

“Isn’t that too dangerous? They’re just kids…”  

“You don’t know! You have to strike first.”  

Min-jun, confused, looked at her with wide eyes and asked,  

“Strike first?”  

Jinwon tried to smile and restrained her.  

“Telling a kid to strike first is a bit…”  

“If they try to hit your head, punch them in the stomach! If they aim for your stomach, hit their head!”  

“Their head?”  

Even more surprised, Min-jun stared at her.  

“Of course, their head. It’s not even worth calling it a head for bad kids.”  

For some reason, Jinwon was silent this time. Feeling guilty, she glanced at him.  

His mood seemed unusual.  

“What’s wrong? Is it because I spoke harshly? Are you turned off?”  

She cautiously asked, watching his reaction.  

He slowly turned his eyes to her and then embraced her gently.  

***  

When Jinwon was 10 years old.  

He was constantly bullied at school and in the neighborhood for not having a dad.  

That day, too, he was being beaten by local delinquents.  

Suddenly, eight-year-old In-ah appeared beside them, staring intently.  

“What are you looking at? Get lost!”  

One of the delinquents threatened her with a fierce look.  

Startled, she began to back away.  

Seeing her retreat with a blank expression, Jinwon continued to be beaten.  

But moments later.  

“Yaaah–!”  

With a scream that could tear the sky, she returned. Holding a stick thicker than her arm.  

She swung the stick at the boys hitting Jinwon.  

The startled boys scrambled to avoid her swings, creating chaos.  

“Hey! Take it from her!”  

Catching the small, darting girl was harder than expected.  

But soon, she was caught.  

Just as they were about to hit her after taking the stick,  

“What are you doing, you punks!”  

An adult’s appearance made them scatter instantly.  

She approached Jinwon, helped him up, and dusted off his pants.  

When she reached out to touch his bruised face, he winced in pain.  

“Ouch!”  

“I didn’t even touch you.”  

He looked embarrassed.  

“You could’ve been in big trouble. A girl with no fear.”  

“Can’t a girl be fearless? Hmph!”  

He grumbled, unable to retort.  

“Where did you learn to swing a stick like that?”  

“From Princess Mero.”  

“A cartoon?”  

She giggled and nodded. He laughed incredulously.  

“If you meet those punks again, just strike first!”

“What?”  

He looked at her, questioning his hearing.  

“If they try to hit your head, punch them in the stomach! If they aim for your stomach, hit their head!”  

He stared at her, dumbfounded.  

“Their head?”  

The excited little In-ah chattered on.  

“Of course, their head. It’s not even worth calling it a head for bad kids. Princess Mero said so. Hehe.”  

Suddenly, with a serious face, she declared to Jinwon,  

“I’ll protect you from now on. Just trust me.”  

***  

Jinwon never forgot the bright-smiling girl who imitated Princess Mero. Not for a moment in his life.  

He didn’t know how he managed to finish the meal at Haejeong’s house.  

All the way home, he felt urgent.  

“Hurry, hurry!”  

She hurriedly opened the front door at his urging.  

“Why do you suddenly want to see the marbles?”  

He didn’t answer her question and followed her inside.  

“You said they were treasures to you.”

She went to her room, found the marbles, and came out.  

He held out his hand, asking for the marbles, continuing,  

“They’re not worth much. The only reason they’re treasures is that the person who gave them is special.”  

“Are you jealous of my past guy now?”

She chuckled, not seeming displeased.  

He suddenly grabbed the two marbles from her hand and approached the window.  

Pretending to throw them out, she panicked and lunged at him.  

“What are you doing?”  

Startled, she reached for the marbles. He raised his hand, keeping them out of her reach.  

“You said you’d protect me. Where have you been all this time?”  

“What do you mean?”  

She jumped repeatedly, trying to reach his raised hand.  

He looked into her eyes and spoke again.  

“Was your promise to protect me a lie, Princess Mero?”  

She stopped jumping, and her eyes widened.  

“No way… no way…”  

“It seems like it’s true.”

He smiled.  

In-ah covered her mouth with both hands in shock.  

Her first love, the oppa who made her eight-year-old heart flutter! She never imagined it was Jinwon.  

Lying with her head on his thigh, In-ah kept looking between the marbles and his face.  

In the living room of her house, a movie played on the TV in front of them.  

“You said you wanted to watch a movie together, but are you just going to keep doing that?”  

He looked at her lovingly and asked.  

“Yeah. You watch the movie. I’ll watch you watching the movie.”  

She had been staring at his face and the marbles for over half an hour.  

Jinwon laughed and gently brushed her hair.  

“Why, do I look different?”  

“Of course! Don’t you think so? Can you believe we met 20 years ago?”  

“You said you barely remember.”  

His face was still full of smiles.  

She pouted and explained,  

“Still, I remember quite a bit from when I was 7 or 8. We share a memory!”

She emphasized with conviction.  

“Even if not then, we already share memories from our 20s.”  

He countered without backing down.  

“Is that the same?”  

She turned her gaze to the TV monitor with a sulky expression.  

“These days, you seem to get sulky easily.”  

“Why, don’t you like girls who get sulky?”  

He looked at her pouting lips, then gently turned her face to meet his eyes.  

“You’re doing it on purpose, aren’t you?”  

“What?”  

Instead of answering, he couldn’t take his eyes off her lips.  

Sensing the romantic tension, she abruptly sat up.

“Wait a minute!”  

But she couldn’t get up. He had caught her hand.  

“Where are you going?”  

She couldn’t answer. He devoured her lips with a fierce intensity.  

She couldn’t breathe! Gasping, she barely escaped his embrace.  

Sitting up, she spoke rapidly.  

“Should we get something to drink?”  

He gently held her wrist and whispered,  

“No, I don’t need anything. Just you.”

Oh my~ When did this man become so flirtatious?  

Feeling confused, she soon surrendered her waist to his hand.  

He wrapped his arm around her waist, drawing close. His elegant neck filled her vision.  

His lips touched her neck. She shivered at the soft touch.  

Ah! Her neck wouldn’t obey her. It tilted back against her will.

Is that sound really coming from my throat?

She heard a moan she had never made in her life. Embarrassed, she bit her lip to stifle the sound.  

Every place his fingers touched seemed to awaken her cells.  

Her mind was hazy. Just as she wondered when her shirt buttons had come undone, a warm hand smoothly slipped in.  

Suddenly, she opened her eyes wide.  

“Wait! Oppa, wait a minute!”  

He stopped moving.  

She raised her palms, hastily trying to regain composure.  

“We need to stay calm, oppa. We can’t get swept up in the mood right now. Let’s settle down first.”  

“Why should we?”  

He looked at her with a slightly aggrieved expression.

Seeing his face, she swallowed hard, trying to steady her wavering mind.  

“It feels a bit rushed today.”  

She continued, buttoning her shirt again.  

“I’m not prepared emotionally… or physically…”

She mumbled the last words almost inaudibly.  

Seeing her expression, he began to laugh with his eyes.  

“Alright, I understand.”  

He gently kissed her forehead.  

She bit her lip shyly and looked up at him.  

“That expression isn’t good. Do you want to start again?”

She shook her head vigorously, biting her lip.  

He seemed to love her so much that he pulled her close and held her tight.