For a moment, it felt as though a violent bolt of lightning had struck directly above her head.

A bolt from a clear sky.

Stopping herself from stepping inside, Da-hye quietly listened through the narrow gap in the door.

“Shh, I’m on the phone.”

Looking troubled, Ji-hoon pressed a finger to his lips and whispered softly toward Hyejung.

At that instant, Da-hye’s head rang violently.

A chill crawled down her spine, leaving her unable to move her lips even slightly.

Even as her entire body stiffened, the fingertips gripping the doorknob trembled uncontrollably.

“Aww… can’t you just hang up?”

Even after Ji-hoon told her to stay quiet because he was on the phone, Hyejung remained shamelessly bold.

Curled against his arms, she continuously breathed teasingly against his cheek.

As though deliberately trying to fluster him while he was speaking with Da-hye, she openly clung to him without restraint.

Watching the scene unfold before her, Da-hye nearly laughed in disbelief.

—”Ah, I should hang up now. I’ll call you once I arrive. Just wait a little longer…!”

Ji-hoon hurriedly ended the call.

Without Da-hye managing to say a single word, the call ended just like that.

Still clutching her phone tightly in one hand, Da-hye kept her eyes fixed on them.

“What are you doing? What if Kyung Da-hye hears us…!”

Flustered, Ji-hoon spoke with a reddened face as he slipped his phone into the inner pocket of his jacket.

Then he gently wrapped an arm around Hyejung’s shoulders and softly stroked her hair.

“Is my baby upset?”

At that, Hyejung boldly threw herself against him even more intimately than before, pushing him back toward the wall.

“How long are we supposed to keep hiding our relationship?”

With those words, Hyejung tugged lightly on his tie.

As though she might kiss him at any moment, she stared fixedly at Ji-hoon’s lips.

Ji-hoon let out a quiet laugh, looking at Hyejung as though he found her unbearably adorable, before gently caressing her cheek.

“Why is my baby being so needy today?”

The way he looked at her was unbearably affectionate.

Da-hye could not hide her shock at the unfamiliar look in his eyes.

More than that, she could not understand since when they had become that kind of couple.

The way they looked at each other.

The way their hands naturally wandered across each other’s skin.

The moment that realization struck her, Da-hye unconsciously furrowed her brows.

“I hate sneaking around to meet you like this.”

At Hyejung’s whining complaint, Ji-hoon bent slightly and tucked her hair behind her ear as though soothing a child.

“I hate it too. I want to love you openly.”

‘Love openly.’

Da-hye’s eyes turned cold as she silently listened to Ji-hoon’s words.

Though she had eaten nothing, it felt as though something heavy was lodged painfully beneath her chest.

“Then why do you keep dragging this out? Are you seriously planning to get engaged to that b*tch?”

Wrapping her arms around Ji-hoon’s neck, Hyejung twisted against him playfully as she spoke.

“Don’t you feel sorry for the baby in my stomach?”

“…!”

At those words, Da-hye nearly let out a startled scream.

“Engaged? You seriously think I’d marry some dull, pathetic woman like her I already told you—I’m only using her until she’s no longer useful, and then I’ll throw her away without a second thought.”

He dragged a hand through his hair in frustration, his expression darkening.

“And our child… don’t even start talking as if I don’t care. Do you have any idea how many times a day I feel sick with guilt over our baby? More times than I can even count. So stop acting like I’m some heartless b*stard who feels nothing.”

As he spoke, Ji-hoon wore a face that truly looked remorseful while gently stroking Hyejung’s flat stomach.

Grasping his hand tightly against her belly, Hyejung spoke in a tearful voice.

“I can’t wait anymore. Let’s tell Father soon too. Once my stomach starts showing, we won’t be able to hide it anymore.”

Da-hye’s trembling gaze slowly dropped toward Hyejung’s stomach.

“I’ll keep pretending I’m going through with the engagement while gaining your father’s trust. Then later, I’ll end things by making it look like it was her fault. Just wait a little longer.”

Watching Ji-hoon calmly spill those words without the slightest change in expression, Da-hye felt her entire world collapsing.

Even if she had never truly loved him, she had believed he would make her happy.

At the very least, she believed he would not leave her alone.

Because Kang Ji-hoon had always been incredibly kind and gentle whenever he stood before her.

But in that instant, every bit of that trust shattered completely.

The kind face he had shown her all this time had been nothing but a mask.

“I’m worried sick. My love for you only grows deeper every day… but you don’t look like you have any intention of getting rid of that woman.”

“Hyejung……”

“You’re not going to abandon me and our baby… right?”

Without her ever realizing it, the two of them had apparently been deeply in love all along.

The fingers clutching Da-hye’s skirt turned pale white.

“You worry too much. When I already have someone as beautiful as you, would I really choose someone as dull as her?”

“Kyung Da-hye… is boring?”

Hyejung laughed softly, her eyes curving into crescents.

“Not just boring. From the moment I first met her, she looked exactly like some pretty decorative object. There wasn’t a single bit of attraction.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah. But you were different. The moment I saw you, it felt like something inside me burst into flames.”

‘A pretty decorative object.’

Those words lodged themselves painfully in Da-hye’s ears.

Ji-hoon grinned shamelessly as he spoke, seemingly unaware of how cruel his words were.

Then, as though silently searching one another, the two exchanged heated gazes before urgently crashing their lips together.

“…!”

Da-hye instantly covered her mouth.

The hand gripping the doorknob trembled so violently she nearly lost hold of it.

The wet, expl*cit sounds of the two sharing breath echoed obscenely throughout the quiet emergency stairwell.

The sticky sounds of their kisses stabbed painfully into her ears.

Just how long had they been doing this behind her back?

She wanted to rush over immediately and demand an explanation from the both of them but she could not move.

Her legs had frozen in place, refusing to move no matter how hard she tried.

She was so shocked that she could not even feel anger.

No matter how desperately she tried to make sense of the situation unfolding before her eyes, nothing felt understandable, and that confusion tormented her.

So Da-hye simply stood there blankly, staring at the two passionately kissing each other.

At first glance, her dazed expression almost appeared calm.

But unlike her rigid exterior, the inside of her was being torn apart piece by piece.

It felt as though she might collapse the moment someone touched her.

And yet, she endured somehow through sheer force of will.

How much longer would she have to stand there secretly watching the shameless kiss between those two?

Just as even her senses were beginning to grow numb, someone approached from behind her.

A dark shadow fell over Da-hye’s small body, which was trembling pitifully.

“……”

But Da-hye, completely consumed by the sight of Ji-hoon and Hyejung kissing as though they shared one body while touching each other everywhere, failed to notice the presence behind her.

Then suddenly, someone placed a hand against the emergency exit door Da-hye was clutching.

“…!”

Startled by the sudden appearance of a large hand before her eyes, Da-hye quickly turned around.

A man was standing there, looking down at her with an unreadable expression.

Rather than knocking, he had quietly placed his palm against the door, perhaps out of consideration for the utterly distracted woman who had failed to notice him approaching.

“Aren’t you going to move?”

At that moment, the man who had been silently watching her finally spoke.

His low, refined voice was captivating enough to seize attention instantly, resonating heavily through the quiet space.

At the same time, Ji-hoon and Hyejung—still tangled together moments earlier—jerked apart in shock.

“W-What the h*ll?”

“Who is that?”

At the startled voices ringing out behind her, Da-hye hurriedly released the doorknob.

Then, without thinking, she grabbed the man firmly by the wrist blocking her path and rushed forward.

“W-Wait a moment…!”

Without even offering an explanation, Da-hye abruptly dragged him along and began running.

“Haa… haa…”

After quickly escaping through the opposite emergency exit, Da-hye bent over with her hands on her knees, gasping for breath.

There was not even a trace of color left in her face.

Had those two realized she had been spying on them?

Fortunately, she had turned away at the last second, so perhaps they had not seen her face.

They probably had not recognized her… right?

Da-hye bit down hard on her lip as her expression twisted.

“What exactly is this?”

Then the man’s cool voice sounded once more from behind her.

Before she could even begin sorting through what had just happened to her, Da-hye had no choice but to look up.

“Ah.”

Immediately releasing his wrist, Da-hye turned to face him properly.

Then she repeatedly bowed apologetically toward him.

“I’m sorry. You must’ve been startled……”

Trailing off, she lifted her head to properly look at his face.

“Ah…”

A man with looks striking enough to rival his captivating voice was staring directly down at her.

His lips, pressed together in a firm line, parted slightly as a faint sound of realization escaped him.

He looked well over 190 centimeters tall, and despite the neat suit he wore, the balanced, solid build beneath it was unmistakable.

His pale, flawless skin and sharply defined features were handsome enough to remind her of a famous actor.

At the same time, there was something subtly rough and rebellious about him, mixed with an effortless sense of composure.

A dangerous man.

A man who radiated a decadent, almost ruinous allure.

Yet the relaxed smile lingering at the corners of his lips strangely softened the sharp wariness that had risen within her the moment she saw him.

Unable to say a single word, Da-hye could only stare blankly at the man’s beautiful face.

Then—

“Why did you bring me here?”

he asked in a voice laced with faint amusement.

Only then did Da-hye’s gaze, which had been fixed on his face, waver slightly.

Her cheeks flushed red in an instant.

“Ah… I-I’m sorry. I was just so startled that I wasn’t thinking clearly……”

At that, the man casually slipped a hand into his pocket and glanced toward the emergency exit where Hyejung and Ji-hoon still were.

“That’s understandable.”

Though it sounded like nothing more than a muttered remark to himself—Da-hye felt as though he had said it for her sake, and slowly lifted the gaze she had lowered.

At that moment, the man’s eyes, which had been directed elsewhere, returned and settled squarely on hers.

“You were spying on them kissing, weren’t you?”

“Ah……”

Speech caught in her throat.

Biting down on her lower lip, Da-hye hurriedly shook her head.

“Then… I apologize for troubling you.”

Feeling that she should not continue speaking with this man any longer, Da-hye quickly turned to leave.

But the man, who had merely watched her silently as she turned away, finally spoke again.

“You’re Professor Kyung’s daughter, aren’t you?”

His deep voice caught hold of her shoulders.

Da-hye’s steps came to an automatic halt.

“And the woman you were just secretly watching kiss someone so passionately—she’s also Professor Kyung’s daughter.”

“…!”

Startled, Da-hye whipped around.

But unlike her obvious panic, the man remained entirely relaxed.

With leisurely eyes, he carefully studied Da-hye’s flustered face before slowly stepping closer.

The sudden closeness made Da-hye unconsciously retreat a step backward.

“And the man she was kissing is your fiancé.”

As she retreated, he closed the distance again just as easily.

“It’s practically like a morning drama.”

“……”

“Though they say reality is often worse than television.”

But standing before him, Da-hye could not force out a single word.

“Isn’t that right, Kyung Da-hye?”

The moment she became aware of the strange heat lingering in his eyes, an unfamiliar tension completely overwhelmed her.