Chapter 2.2

During moments when there were no customers, Seo-hwa began planning her future. 

How much money would she need to leave home and hide from her father and Seo Young-hoon? 

Should she graduate college first? 

If so, she would have to endure over two more years. 

Could she endure that long? 

As she sighed deeply and wrestled with her thoughts, the sound of the doorbell rang, accompanied by a cool breeze blowing in from the entrance. 

Seo-hwa’s head shot up. 

“Oh? How…?” 

She had deliberately chosen a small café hidden in an alley, yet less than two months into her job, she found herself face-to-face with a familiar figure. 

Yooheon had entered the café and was scanning her with a curious expression. 

Seo-hwa, equally tense, stared back at him. 

Her lips moved slightly, but all they managed to produce was a soft, “Ah,” followed by a faint sigh. 

He seemed as if he had just come from an important meeting, dressed sharply in a neat suit. 

His broad, solid frame wrapped in the suit and his matching features caught her attention one by one. 

Unlike other boys his age who still had traces of youthfulness, Yooheon seemed like an adult who had shed all immaturity. 

At least outwardly, he did. 

How old was he? 

Where had he been to dress like that…? 

As her private curiosity piled up, Yooheon’s deep, commanding voice interrupted her thoughts. 

“Working part-time?” 

The question snapped her back to reality, and she cleared her throat before replying. 

“No, I’m just helping out a friend temporarily.”  

Seo-hwa quickly thought up an answer. If Yooheon were to tell Seo Young-hoon, it would only give him one more weakness to exploit. If this fact were to reach her father, the escape plan she had dreamed of would be shattered into nothingness. 

“My friend said they had an urgent appointment and asked me to cover for them for a bit…” 

“…” 

“I promised to help for just two hours.” 

“Two hours of work, and yet you’ve got a name tag on?” 

Ah. Seo-hwa bit her lip and lowered her gaze. On the uniform she was wearing, a name tag with the words ‘Woo Seo-hwa’ was clearly displayed. It just so happened that this café required name tags to be worn at all times. 

“…” 

“…” 

A silence fell between them. Yooheon’s lips twitched slightly, as though he was holding back a laugh. 

“Could you… keep this a secret?” 

Seo-hwa cautiously asked the man who seemed to have already figured everything out. Her mouth felt dry from the tension that had risen sharply, and cold sweat trickled down her back. 

Still, it wasn’t the worst-case scenario. She had been caught by someone who shared her circumstances, not by one of Seo Young-hoon’s cronies. 

She believed Yooheon would understand her, as he was someone who knew better than anyone what it felt like to want to escape from Seo Young-hoon. 

“If you tell me why you’re doing this secretly.” 

Of course, he wouldn’t agree so easily. 

Recently, Yooheon hadn’t shown himself much. He had always been present at the gatherings Seo Young-hoon called him to, but his absence had been noticeable lately. 

Though she found it odd, Seo-hwa didn’t go looking for him. Those gatherings weren’t pleasant places, and seeking Yooheon there would be akin to cursing him. 

Still, she couldn’t stop the unbidden curiosity that kept creeping in. 

She kept thinking about him. 

She even wanted to tell him—’Because of you, I’ve started setting a goal for myself.’ 

But she hadn’t expected to say it like this. 

“You said something like this before.” 

She hesitated, unsure if she should bring it up, before speaking with difficulty. 

“You said… if you don’t want to endure anymore, you’ll end this nonsense.” 

“…” 

“I just… want to become like you.”

“…” 

“I want to escape someday. I want to end living like this.” 

Seo-hwa, who had once merely wished for the world around her to collapse, found the courage to break through it largely because of Yooheon’s influence. 

Despite being in a similar situation, Yooheon showed no signs of defeat. Meeting him had been a turning point for Seo-hwa, forcing her to reflect on herself. 

The unwavering expression he wore, as though he was always certain he could escape this cycle, lingered in her mind. 

That small spark had reignited her will to move forward. 

“If Seo Young-hoon finds out, it’ll be a headache for me. So please, keep this a secret.” 

True to his nature of always expecting something in return for his questions, Yooheon didn’t respond easily this time either. 

Though she tried to sound confident in her request, the longer the silence stretched, the more anxious Seo-hwa grew. 

Sweat formed in the palms of her tightly clenched hands. 

“Ah.” 

Yooheon seemed to be considering something, and after a long pause, he finally spoke. 

A faint, unreadable smile played on his lips. 

“So, you weren’t sticking close to Seo Young-hoon because you liked him?” 

Seo-hwa blinked, startled. 

“Hah.” 

She let out a small laugh and responded. 

“Of course not. I don’t like him.” 

“Then why are you sticking with him?” 

“…” 

‘Did he really think I was following Seo Young-hoon because I liked him?’ 

For a moment, Seo-hwa was at a loss for words. She hadn’t expected that question to come from Yooheon. 

“…For the same reason as you.” 

“The same reason as me?” 

“If I don’t do what Seo Young-hoon says, it’ll be a headache.” 

“What exactly happens?” 

“You didn’t tell me before. So, I won’t tell you either.” 

She avoided answering. To trace back to where this cycle began, she would have to dig through painful memories. 

‘Long ago, after letting you escape, I fled with my mother.’ 

‘After that, I lived with her for a while, but eventually, I was thrown back to my father.’ 

‘And then…’ 

Do you know what you’ve done? D*mn it, if you were going to run away, you should’ve done it alone. Why did you let him go? Do you know how much trouble that caused me…

I’m sorry, I’m so sorry… 

‘Because I helped you escape, one of my ears became a problem.’ 

‘How could I possibly explain that?’

She didn’t want to revisit those memories, and more than anything, she didn’t want to reveal her pathetic past to Yooheon. 

He probably hadn’t asked the question to hear such a heavy story anyway. 

“Anyway, I’ll take it as a promise to keep this a secret.” 

“Seo-hwa, do you trust me?” 

Yooheon’s lips curved slightly upward. 

Seo-hwa blinked at him, unsure of the intent behind his question, before nodding. 

“Yes, I trust you.” 

“On what basis?” 

“…We’re in the same situation, aren’t we?” 

“…” 

“You know exactly how I feel, don’t you?” 

Watching Yooheon suffer under Seo Young-hoon’s control had unknowingly left a deep impression on her. 

Looking back, the helplessness and humiliation she felt while waiting for Seo Young-hoon’s orders had been somewhat alleviated by Yooheon’s presence. 

“…The same situation.” 

“…” 

“That’s nice.”  

Yooheon laughed loudly as he mulled over Seo-hwa’s words, his shoulders shaking as he covered his face with his palm. 

When he finally lowered his hand, his expression was the brightest Seo-hwa had ever seen on him. His face radiated pure joy. His crescent-shaped eyes curved gently, and faint dimples appeared on his cheeks. 

His laughter was so strikingly beautiful that it almost made Seo-hwa blurt out how pretty he looked. She stared at him, mesmerized, until she snapped back to her senses. 

“…Why are you laughing?” 

“Because it’s cute.” 

“What is?” 

“You calling me someone in the same situation as you.” 

Even when they first spoke, there had been something oddly unusual about him, and now, even the things he found funny were incomprehensible to her. 

‘What exactly was cute? And what was so funny?’ 

Seo-hwa, lost in thought for a moment, asked hesitantly: 

“Did I offend you?” 

‘Was he laughing because he was offended that I had lumped him and myself together?’ 

Seo-hwa began to worry that her words might have been rude to Yooheon. She didn’t know much about him, yet she had grouped him with herself based on a superficial impression. 

“I didn’t mean anything bad by it. I just…” 

“I wasn’t offended. I liked it.” 

Seo-hwa scrutinized Yooheon with doubtful eyes. He still had a smile lingering on his face. She couldn’t figure out what emotions were hidden behind that smile, which made her feel uneasy. 

“…Anyway, I’ll give you what you want if you promise to keep this a secret.” 

“What I want?” 

Seo-hwa hesitated before awkwardly turning her back.

“Wait a moment.”

She said, leaving behind only those words as she headed to the changing room where her bag was hanging. 

She opened the locker and retrieved an item she had carefully stored in her bag. 

“Hold out your hand.” 

Out of breath from rushing back before any customers arrived, Seo-hwa pressed her hand against her pounding chest and raised her flushed face. 

Yooheon obediently extended his palm, and Seo-hwa gently placed the handkerchief she had taken out onto it. 

“…” 

His expression clearly showed disappointment, as if he thought. ‘This is all you’re giving me?’ 

Seo-hwa caught her breath before muttering with a red face: 

“I haven’t washed it yet.” 

Saying it made her feel even more embarrassed. Her already flushed face burned hotter from the shame of pandering to Yooheon’s strange preferences. 

She felt self-conscious for tailoring her actions to his peculiar tastes, but she sincerely hoped this gift would be the key to keeping his mouth shut. 

“…I’ll keep your secret about being a pervert too.” 

Seo-hwa whispered under her breath as she cautiously observed Yooheon’s reaction.