I Think I've Poked a Sleeping Bear
Chapter 15
Chapter 15
A Runaway Train, Sudden Brakes, and Prime Ribeye
Lee Heon quickly handed Dan-a a tissue. She let out a deep sigh—phew—and dabbed away her tears.
“Are you all right?”
“Oh, no. Yes. No. I-I’m fine… Haah. Um, but…”
She adjusted her posture and pulled herself closer.
“Um, I saw the articles, and they said the synergy between the two conglomerates is worth trillions of won…”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“And even so, you’re not going through with the marriage?”
“Yes.”
“Could it be because of my confession…?”
“Yes, that’s right. Your confess—”
“Yes! Understood! I got it, so please, just don’t say another word for a second.”
Haha. Haha.
She suddenly burst into laughter.
Is she happy about it?
Seeing her laugh made his chest feel warmly heated.
I want to make this woman laugh. From now on, always.
“President?”
Moisture glistened again in her smiling eyes, shining like stars.
“Yes, Dan-a-ssi.”
“It’s not like this is your first time receiving a confession like this, President. Right?”
“It is my first time.”
“Pardon?”
“It is also the first time I have seen such love for me.”
“No, um, like… even if I liked you… love is… not quite…”
“It’s all right. I have already heard your feelings loud and clear, Dan-a-ssi.”
“No, you misun—”
“I like you too, Dan-a-ssi.”
He looked at her with an unwavering, direct gaze.
“Let’s get married.”
What did he just say…
Marriage? He wants us to get married?
Marriage? Maaa-rriage?
Sob.
Right, you blabbed this much, so take responsibility, Lee Dan-a. Hahaha.
I always wondered how people went crazy, and now I know. This is how.
Where should she start, and what on earth was she supposed to say?
A broken engagement was overwhelming enough, but marriage?
I mean, even for a straightforward man, there had to be a limit.
Wasn’t this level of bulldozing completely ridiculous?
He wasn’t just charging ahead; he was a runaway locomotive.
Dan-a’s mind went completely blank, having no idea where to even begin.
“Um, President.”
Should I just leave it to fate?
Won’t it just work out somehow?
‘No.’
Can’t you see how brushing it off got you all the way to a marriage proposal?
If I don’t reveal the truth right here, I’m literally going to wake up as a daughter-in-law of Saja Group!
“Um, President. The truth is…”
Dan-a squeezed her eyes shut and opened them.
“I, I d-don’t like you, President.”
“…”
“Actually, twice now, I’ve lied—”
“It is all right now, Dan-a-ssi.”
“Huh? All right? What is…?”
“I know you are saying this out of fear that problems will arise for the company and make things difficult for me. I understand your worry over what I will have to endure going forward.”
Well… yeah? I am worried about you too, President, but right now I’m worried about myself…
“I am worried about you as well, Dan-a-ssi. Out of so many people, you ended up falling for me, so you, too, will face a difficult road ahead.”
No, not ahead—it’s already difficult right now.
“I will stand with you until the very end. So that it will be as painless for you as possible.”
What’s with him? Why is the President so ridiculously kind…
If I actually liked him, I’d be so overjoyed I wouldn’t even go home tonight.
The problem is, I don’t like him.
Deceiving someone like this is practically begging for divine retribution.
“Um, President, the thing is, I really…”
“Since I was young, I was raised solely for Saja Group.”
Lee Heon lowered his gaze.
“I lived as if I were born for that alone, never even realizing my life was being ground away for the sake of the company’s profits. Up until now, that was never an issue. I had no idea another world existed beyond it. Much less the feeling of having feelings for someone.”
His expression looked terribly lonely.
“That was why I intended to marry into Dongyeon Group. Because I considered even marriage to be nothing more than business. In marriage, that so-called momentous milestone of human life, there was no room for love.”
…It’s so… so heartbreaking…
Seeing Lee Heon’s sorrowful expression made Dan-a’s chest ache.
“You may find this absurd and baffling, but it is the truth. Thanks to you, Dan-a-ssi, I came to learn what human emotion is. That something of mine can make another person happy, and that someone else’s happiness can bring joy to me as well.”
Damn it. There’s no way on earth I can tell him that confession was fake now.
I guess I’ll just take the karma.
“It was the first time. For someone to say they liked me so much.”
“There’s no way that’s true. Not with a face like yours.”
Trying to comfort him, her unfiltered thought slipped straight out of her mouth.
That probably sounded like a confession too. Even though it was just a plain fact.
Sure enough, a small smile touched his lips.
“I want to start over. With you, Dan-a-ssi.”
“Pardon?”
“Please marry me.”
Gasp. In-tro-duc-tion… mar-riage…
“Of course, this isn’t an official proposal. I will do it again. Formally.”
You’re going to do this twice?!
Ah, I’m in deep water myself, so who was I feeling sorry for? Seriously.
At this rate, the next time I come to my senses, I’ll be standing at the altar!
“President, I’m sorry, but I cannot get married!”
Right. The window to confess the lie had sailed. Time for a different approach.
“You don’t even like me, President.”
And I don’t like you either.
Come to think of it, what are the two of us even doing here?
Neither of us even likes the other.
“Just because I like you doesn’t mean it works. Marrying someone when we don’t mutually like each other—how is that any different from marrying into Dongyeon Group? In the long run, it’s the exact same thing! If so, wouldn’t marrying Dongyeon Group be far more beneficial in every way? At least that protects the company. Of course, hearing this might sound cruel coming to someone who’s lived only for company work, but at the very least, you won’t suffer any disadvantages. So please, forget my confession. I am really, truly fine.”
Without pausing for breath, she blurted it all out and scrambled to her feet.
She hastily grabbed her bag and tried to flee, when—
His voice drifted from behind her, low and steady.
“An interest.”
He lifted his head.
“I do have one. In you, Dan-a-ssi.”
…Excuse me?
Rising from his seat, Lee Heon stepped toward her frozen figure.
“Every time I see you, Dan-a-ssi, it’s fun and delightful, and I find myself wondering about our next meeting. I wonder what you’re doing right about now, what face you’ll make if I say something like this. I even catch myself wondering if there’s anything I can do for you. Isn’t that what interest is?”
“…”
“Us.”
He took one step closer.
“Can’t we start with mutual affection?”
Her heart thumped against her ribs, fluttering wildly.
Thump, thump, thump.
Heart, stop acting up and stay still!
“Of… of course not. Who gets married just on good feelings?”
“Can we not?”
He tilted his head, leaning his face in closer.
Seriously, is he allowed to weaponize those desperate eyes with a face that handsome?
“It’s not… that we can’t, but…”
The man claiming to have an interest in her was way too good-looking.
She had clearly known he was handsome, but still.
To look at her with such an entreating expression, eyes tugging at her protective instincts…
It melted a person’s heart completely.
“S-Still, marriage is a bit…”
His gaze clouded with disappointment, making her worry he might shed tears any second.
For no reason, she wanted to solve all his problems.
She wanted to cover for him completely.
That gaze of his felt powerful enough to trigger a volcanic eruption of maternal instincts she didn’t even possess.
But I can’t get married.
Absolutely not.
“D-Do you… want to date?”
I did it! I crossed the line!
“…Pardon?”
“No, well, it’s not like you’re in love with me, President, so jumping into marriage is a bit much. S-Starting with dating…?”
What am I even saying?
I stopped the word ‘marriage’ from coming out of the President’s mouth, so I’m doing fine, right?
“Will you date me, President?”
“…”
“Well? Date me, President.”
Is that a no? He isn’t answering.
Thank goodness. I hadn’t planned it out, but it seems my tactic worked.
“If you don’t want to, then just—”
“Is today… our Day 1?”
“Huh? Right. Today is Day 1!”
He smiled shyly.
Why is your face turning red?
Now you’re making me blush too.
“Well then, President. It’s late, so should I head home… now?”
“Eat before you go. You didn’t get to have dinner because of me.”
“No, it’s all right. I’m not hungry.”
“You must have had a rough time deflecting all those articles today. How does prime ribeye sound?”
“Thank you for the meal, President!”
The grill sizzled. Even before it was fully cooked, succulent, juice-dripping beef found its way into her mouth piece after piece.
Right, either way, I couldn’t get married…
Dating is way better.
I did well, right? I handled this right, didn’t I?
I put up a pretty solid defense, didn’t I?
…Like hell I did.
