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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Drunken Truths
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Yeongin trudged to the powder room between the bedroom and the bathroom.
She didn't know whether to laugh or cry at how familiar she was with the layout of this house.
Standing before the mirror, her brows furrowed in a sudden frown. Her disheveled appearance displeased her.
"What are you doing here right now...?"
Setting aside her own bewilderment and absurdity at being in her ex-boyfriend's house like this, she wasn't angry at Seonghyeok for bringing her here on his own accord.
It was a complex, subtle emotion—not wanting to say he did well, but not wanting to say he did wrong either.
Yeongin loosely tidied her hair and clothes, then left the bedroom.
As she walked down the hallway towards the living room, a deep sense of nostalgia washed over her face. The house was as unchanged as its owner.
Pausing briefly in the empty living room, Yeongin turned her head toward the kitchen. The homeowner was standing at the dining table, spreading out takeout food.
"I'll be going."
Seonghyeok glanced up.
"Eat before you go."
He continued calmly.
"Don't disregard the effort of someone who painstakingly read reviews to find out which place was tastier, all so you could eat."
"..."
Yeongin hesitated for a moment, then approached the table. She pulled out a chair, sat down, and quietly looked up at him as he opened the lids of the disposable containers.
It was only because she couldn't ignore his sincerity. That was all.
She decided to pretend she didn't feel grateful to him for giving her an excuse.
Just for today.
***
Yeongin finished a bowl of warm soup.
Her churning stomach had settled quite a bit, and her parched mouth felt much softer.
As Yeongin set down her spoon, Seonghyeok, who had been watching contentedly, showed a lingering expression of regret.
"You should have eaten some rice too."
"I can't eat rice. It won't go down."
"Right, it would be worse to force it down and get indigestion."
"I'll clean up afterwards."
"Please do."
Seonghyeok didn't stop her, not even out of politeness, because he wanted to see Yeongin a little longer. If he didn't, she would leave right away.
As expected, Yeongin said her goodbyes as soon as she finished cleaning up.
"Thank you for everything. And I'm sorry for being a bother."
Seonghyeok frowned, clearly displeased. He would have preferred her to snap, "Why are you doing this?" rather than these formal greetings that created distance.
"You don't need to say things like that to me. Don't say thank you, and don't say sorry."
"Then what am I supposed to say?"
"Let's hang out, let's eat, I miss you—there are so many things you could say."
"..."
Yeongin answered by glaring at him.
"Alright, let's save those words for later. For today, just ask me to take you home."
"I'll take a taxi."
Seonghyeok retorted calmly, as if he'd expected it.
"How will you take a taxi when you have no money?"
"Why wouldn't I have money?"
"Isn't your wallet in your bag?"
"Oh, right, where's my bag?"
"Ms. An Haeyun will bring it to the office."
Though flustered for a moment, Yeongin quickly found an alternative.
"It's fine even without my wallet. I can pay with my phone. Who doesn't have a credit card or two registered on their phone these days?"
A smile spread across Yeongin's lips, born of satisfaction at neatly thwarting his obvious ploy. But that smile vanished without a trace the moment Seonghyeok asked his next question.
"Where's your phone, then?"
"..."
The flustered person's pupils darted about. She remembered putting her phone in her bag in the lounge bar's private room.
"You'll be late if you walk home. Is it okay to be late starting from your second day of work?"
Seonghyeok knew Yeongin's tendencies better than anyone. He knew that Chae Yeongin, who was meticulous about school, work, and appointment times to the point of being obsessive, would never choose to be late.
"If I go straight to the office from here, I won't be late then."
Yeongin watched him shrug nonchalantly, clenching her fists tightly.
"I'm going home to shower, change, and then go to work."
"How do you plan to get home?"
Seonghyeok's smile seemed to say, 'Just give up and ask me for a ride.' But Yeongin wasn't about to surrender easily.
"Lend me some money."
That was a line that wouldn't work on him.
"They say you shouldn't have financial dealings with people you're close to."
"Then we can do it, can't we?"
"I'd do it with anyone else, but not with you."
"You're really petty..."
Seonghyeok watched Yeongin grumble, arms leisurely crossed, confident in his victory.
Eventually, the answer he wanted came from Yeongin's lips.
"Please take me home."
The corners of Seonghyeok's mouth curved gently.
"That's the best thing you've said all day."
Of course, for Yeongin, it was the least favorite thing she'd said all day.
"Let's go."
Yeongin consoled herself that she had no choice and followed him.
***
The two of them went down to the underground parking lot together.
Yeongin, in the passenger seat, cautiously asked Seonghyeok.
"Did I get in by myself?"
"No. I carried you in, and I carried you out on my back."
"Ah..."
Feeling awkward, Yeongin thought she'd asked an unnecessary question and fumbled with her seatbelt. From today on, she decided to engrave the adage "ignorance is bliss" deep in her heart.
Thankfully, he remained silent until they arrived in front of her house.
More precisely, Seonghyeok's car stopped not directly in front of Yeongin's house, but a few meters from her front gate.
It was the spot where Seonghyeok always dropped Yeongin off three years ago. It was also the spot Yeongin had wanted.
"Thank... Drive safely."
As Yeongin quickly changed her words, a pleased smile spread across Seonghyeok's face.
"Alright, I'll be careful."
How admirable it was that even when she acted like a feisty cat, she would obediently follow his words at crucial moments, like a well-behaved child.
It was the reason he had granted all of Yeongin's wishes, even if he was reluctant to do so.
Of course, he had no intention of granting all her requests from now on. To grant them all, he would first have to disappear from Yeongin's sight.
"Oh, right, Yeongin."
Yeongin, who was about to open the car door to get out, paused. Her heart fluttered at the affectionate address.
Yeongin tried to act indifferent as she turned to face the driver's seat.
"Beomjun doesn't know yet that I went to SL Entertainment. He certainly wouldn't know that Hyesung Entertainment was absorbed and merged into SL. Tell him yourself before he finds out from someone else."
Seonghyeok knew full well that Yeongin was treated like an ugly duckling at home, and it was frustrating and regrettable that he couldn't do anything to help. But since she didn't want him to, he couldn't interfere rashly.
"Understood."
Swallowing her thanks, Yeongin got out of the car and walked towards her house, feeling his gaze on her.
Soon after she stepped inside the gate, a car passed by with a heavy rumble, driving past the front of the gate.
Yeongin stood quietly until the sound faded, then started walking again.
***
As Seonghyeok drove, he recalled the conversation he'd had last night while carrying Yeongin on his back up to her house.
"If it was going to be like this... when I said... let's stop seeing each other... why... did you agree...?"
It was a question he never imagined would come from Yeongin's lips. So he turned the question he had only asked himself back to Yeongin.
"If I had said no then, would we not have broken up?"
"No... we would have broken up anyway..."
Even knowing there was no need to regret his actions, he didn't feel relieved at all. Just as he felt a bitter pang at the thought that the outcome would have been the same anyway, he heard a faint mumble, barely audible.
"Still... it would have been... a little less disappointing..."
Even though she'd said it while completely drunk, he wondered if it wasn't the most heartfelt thing Yeongin had said since they'd reconnected.
Drunken truths.
It was a confession as meaningful as saying "I love you."
***
Yeongin quickly showered, changed, and immediately headed to work. Fortunately, she arrived at the office without being late.
"Good morning."
Following the greetings asking if she got home well yesterday, groans of "I drank too much, I feel like I'm dying" erupted from various corners.
Haeyun, who had been waiting for Yeongin to arrive, sprang up from her seat and rushed over.
"Team Leader, let's get some coffee."
Without a chance to say anything, Yeongin, led by Haeyun's hand out of the office again, naturally spoke first.
"Haeyun, did you get home alright yesterday?"
"Yes, though it was a struggle taking care of all the voluntarily drunk people who went crazy for expensive liquor and sending them home."
It was as if Haeyun had done Yeongin's usual job yesterday.
"Did the CEO drop you off well, Team Leader?"
"Oh, yes, he dropped me off well."
Yeongin omitted "to his own house" and gave an awkward laugh.
"Your bag is at your desk, Team Leader."
"Thanks. Anything happen after I left?"
"Seungchan went on and on about why he sent you ahead and came back alone..."
After a brief moment of wrinkling her brow recalling yesterday's events, Haeyun's eyes began to gleam.
"Don't you have anything to tell me?"
"What do you mean?"
Yeongin feigned ignorance for now. She had to be cautious with her words since she didn't know what conversation had passed between Seonghyeok and Haeyun yesterday, or how much Haeyun knew.
"The CEO is your brother's friend and your senior from school, right?"
A flicker of relief crossed Yeongin's face.
"Yeah."
"Is that all?"
"...Huh?"
A meaningful smile spread across Haeyun's lips, as Yeongin's darting eyes were answer enough. So she naturally changed the subject.
"CEO, you came to that lounge bar on purpose yesterday, didn't you?"
"He said his appointment was suddenly moved up, and he remembered you saying the place was 'hot,' so he decided to check it out."
"Ah, I see..."
Haeyun grinned, drawing out her words.
She decided to pretend not to notice the clumsy lie for now. Her mouth was itching to say how well the CEO and the Team Leader suited each other, but she decided to hold that in too.
"Haeyun. Please keep my relationship with the CEO a secret."
Yeongin instinctively knew Haeyun had caught on to something. But she didn't know how to phrase that they used to date, so she had no other words.
"My lips can only be sealed with meat, though."
"Let's go eat beef tonight."
"A true woman of culture, indeed."
The two women, having quickly reached an agreement, entered the break room.
