Chapter 1.9

Through her experiences, she had long since learned that behind men’s kindness and friendliness lay ulterior motives. 

Just a casual desire to toy with her for a while—that was usually the intention of the men who approached her. 

Was this man the same? 

She had hoped it was just simple familiarity, but was he wanting more than that? 

The man who approached her every time he saw her, throwing playful remarks, felt bothersome and uncomfortable. 

She could have shut him down with cold words, as she usually did with others, but Seo-hwa didn’t. 

Perhaps it was because she had glimpsed a part of him that he was hiding. 

“What’s your relationship with Seo Young-hoon? Did he catch you with something? Why are you always…” 

Lost in thought, Seo-hwa finally voiced the question she had kept buried inside. 

But the answer she received was teasing. 

“I can’t tell you for free.” 

“What’s so hard about answering that…? Never mind. I don’t want to hear it.” 

“Why? It’d be a pretty interesting story.” 

“I’m not curious enough to pay for it.” 

“That’s disappointing.” 

“There’s a lot that’s disappointing…” 

Whatever his relationship with Seo Young-hoon was, it was clear that the man was in a subordinate position. 

Just like Seo-hwa, who had to wait quietly until Seo Young-hoon’s games ended and then show her face to him, the man’s daily life also seemed to revolve around Seo Young-hoon’s whims. 

Seo-hwa felt a strange sense of kinship with him, yet at the same time, she found him unsettling. 

It was as though she was looking at a reflection of herself, a version of her life stripped of its autonomy, and it scratched at some corner of her heart. 

Maybe that was why she unintentionally snapped at him more than she did at anyone else. 

She couldn’t speak up against the others who tormented her, but with him—someone so similar to herself—she couldn’t help it. 

“By the way, when are you going to return my handkerchief?” 

The man tilted his head and asked, interrupting her thoughts. 

“Oh… that.” 

She had completely forgotten about it. 

The handkerchief he had given her at the summer party had seemed quite expensive. 

She hadn’t realized it at the time, but she noticed it when she got home. 

Seo-hwa had folded the handkerchief neatly and tucked it away in her drawer, only to forget about its existence. 

“Sorry. I haven’t washed it yet. I’ll clean it and give it back next time.” 

“Just give it to me as it is.” 

“No, I’ll wash it first…” 

“If you’re going to wash it, just throw it away. I don’t need it.” 

What kind of nonsense was that? 

Seo-hwa tilted her head in confusion. 

Then, she was shocked by what he said next. 

“I only needed the handkerchief because it had your scent on it.” 

His clear voice wrapped around her slowly, accompanied by a gaze that was overtly bold. 

“I was curious.” 

“…” 

“What kind of scent would come from something you used?” 

Seo-hwa blinked as she replayed his words in her mind. 

Even though his words carried an indecent implication, they sounded strangely elegant coming from his lips, as if dressed in a refined form. 

“Are you… a pervert?” 

“I’m not a pervert.” 

“Saying you want to smell a handkerchief I used—what else could that be but perverted?” 

“I’m just curious about your scent. I can’t smell it directly, can I?” 

As he spoke, his gaze wandered over her face and neck. 

The places his eyes lingered sent chills down her spine. 

His persistent gaze carried an intensity that made her feel as though he would bury his face in her and sniff deeply if she gave him permission.

Seo-hwa instinctively took a step back. 

“That’s what makes you a pervert.” 

“Oh, really? Then I guess I am a pervert.” 

“…” 

At that moment, Seo-hwa was certain: this man wasn’t normal. 

No wonder Seo Young-hoon could order him around endlessly without it bothering him. 

Come to think of it, the moment he had casually offered to lend her his lips, she should have realized he was strange. 

“…I’ll wash it and return it. Don’t even think about smelling it.” 

“Then just throw it away.”  

“No, just take it back.” 

“So cold.” 

Seo-hwa rubbed her goosebump-covered forearm and glared at him. A peculiar smile hung on his lips, making it impossible to tell whether his words were a joke or genuine. 

What kind of person makes such crude comments, saying things like wanting to smell her scent, after only seeing her a few times? 

Seo-hwa abandoned the fleeting sense of kinship she had felt toward him and bit her lip. 

“What are you two talking about so much?” 

While Seo-hwa was glaring at the annoyingly cheerful man, the tightly closed door to the room opened, and Seo Young-hoon appeared behind her. 

His eyes were heavily glazed over, clearly drunk. 

The hem of his white shirt was smeared with the lipstick of the woman he had been kissing earlier. 

“Seo-hwa, I’m drunk.” 

“…Why did you drink so much?” 

“Just felt like it. Something good happened.” 

The stench of alcohol mixed with the scent of his cologne, creating a suffocatingly strong smell that made Seo-hwa wrinkle her nose and hold her breath. 

“Hey, I already called a driver. Go clean up the mess inside.” 

Staggering out of the room, Seo Young-hoon leaned his body heavily against Seo-hwa’s shoulder and gestured toward the man with his chin. 

He had kept the man waiting to act as his driver but then called another driver and now asked him to clean up the mess inside. 

Seo-hwa instinctively glanced at the man. 

Even though the order was unpleasant, he accepted it calmly, as if it didn’t bother him. 

Without a word, he obeyed Seo Young-hoon’s command and entered the room. 

Watching him, Seo-hwa felt her mood sink. 

Perhaps she had been hoping for the man to rebel against Seo Young-hoon. 

Maybe she wanted him to do what she herself didn’t dare to do. 

‘…I can’t even do it myself.’ 

Even as she supported Seo Young-hoon, Seo-hwa kept glancing back at the man’s retreating figure as he entered the room. 

And then, she saw the state of the room. 

“Wait a second, what… what happened in there…?” 

The spacious room was a disaster. 

The messy table was littered with broken bottles, and on the floor lay a man dressed as a waiter, sprawled out and covered in blood. 

The man’s chest rose and fell as he gasped for air, sobbing weakly. 

“What are you looking at?” 

“Wait… What’s going on inside…?” 

“Oh, shut up. My head hurts. Support me properly.” 

Seo Young-hoon leaned even more heavily against her. 

The overpowering stench of alcohol made her stagger under his weight. 

“What did you do?” 

“Ugh, stop! Just be quiet. My head feels like it’s splitting open.” 

Even as Seo-hwa questioned him about the situation, Seo Young-hoon snapped irritably and told her to shut up repeatedly. 

Unlike him, who acted as if nothing had happened, the gasping sounds from inside the room continued. 

“If you make noise one more time, I’ll call the Director, got it?” 

Faced with his threat, Seo-hwa had no choice but to keep quiet and help him out of the building. 

Once outside, she handed Seo Young-hoon over to his personal driver, who was waiting nearby. 

The driver, accustomed to handling Seo Young-hoon in such a state, helped him into the car with practiced ease. 

It was clear this wasn’t the first time, as the driver didn’t show any sign of surprise. 

After the sedan carrying Seo Young-hoon drove off, Seo-hwa clutched her trembling legs and turned back. 

The disturbing scene she had witnessed earlier weighed heavily on her mind, and she decided to check again. 

But before she could enter, a familiar figure blocked her path. 

“Where are you going?” 

It was the man. 

He seemed to have finished cleaning up the mess Seo Young-hoon had asked him to handle. 

“That… What was that just now?” 

When Seo Young-hoon had asked him to clean up, the man had entered the room without hesitation, as if the situation was nothing unusual. 

His lack of reaction made Seo-hwa want to hear an explanation directly from him. 

“What?” 

“The employee inside… the blood… Why was there so much blood…?” 

She had seen Seo Young-hoon pick fights with random people while drunk before, but this was the first time she had witnessed him beating someone so brutally. 

The image of the pool of blood spreading across the floor replayed in her mind. 

“You didn’t know?” 

“….” 

“That’s how Seo Young-hoon plays.” 

The man’s voice was calm, almost indifferent, as he spoke.