-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Will You Marry Me?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
As the empty bottles piled up, one by one, tongues started to trip and eyes glazed over.
Amidst everyone else swaying drunkenly, only one person quietly emptied his glass without a hint of discomposure.
Around Seonghyeok, it was as if a different world existed, quiet and still. In the chaotic atmosphere, he even appeared aloof.
The only reason he hadn't stormed out of the utterly tedious gathering was entirely thanks to the Single Malt Whiskey. The blend of vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger was quite to his liking.
He paid no mind to Beomjun, who was thoroughly drunk and whispering something with Changgeun. He didn't care when Beomjun bragged at length about likely being promoted to executive director, then staggered out of the room, claiming he needed to use the restroom.
A few minutes later, someone entered the room.
Assuming it was Beomjun returning, Seonghyeok's glance flickered up and froze.
It was a face he couldn't forget, much to his exasperation, even after three years.
The woman who came to mind the moment he set foot back in Korea, making the time he'd spent trying to forget her feel unjustly wasted—Chae Yeongin.
'Why is she here?'
Despite his surprise and bewilderment at the unexpected reunion, Seonghyeok's eyes couldn't tear away from Yeongin.
Her hair, which used to barely skim her collarbone, now fell long past her chest, and the black high-waisted wide-leg slacks paired with a cream-colored blouse made her look sophisticated and refined.
In short, she was still beautiful.
Her neat yet indifferent expression hadn't changed, nor had her uniquely cool demeanor.
Chae Yeongin, despite being flawless from head to toe, was somehow a woman difficult to approach.
It felt as though she had drawn a line around herself, warning others not to cross it.
He had casually ignored that warning and crossed it. Or rather, he thought he had.
It was only when she told him they should stop seeing each other that he finally realized.
His assumption that he had crossed the line was just his own delusion. To Chae Yeongin, Cha Seonghyeok was nothing.
Their connection ended as easily as it had begun, almost absurdly so.
Seonghyeok was pulled out of his past reverie the moment Changgeun's body blocked Yeongin from view.
As he frowned, he heard chortling voices nearby.
"That bastard Chae Beomjun, did he call Yeongin again? To pick him up?"
"Changgeun kept prodding him to call Yeongin, didn't he?"
"What? He still hasn't given up?"
"Given up? He's completely smitten."
Seonghyeok watched Yeongin's wrist being grabbed by Changgeun and rose from his seat.
Changgeun, who had a habit of messing around with various women, had always been annoying, but never unbearably so. Today, however, he was infuriatingly bothersome.
Even if she was a woman he had nothing to do with anymore, the thought of a pathetic guy like Oh Changgeun hitting on Yeongin was disagreeable. It felt as if he himself was being insulted.
After Yeongin turned and left the room, his expression was quite chilling as he approached Changgeun, who stood staring blankly at the closed door.
"Move."
Changgeun flinched and spun around.
Meeting Seonghyeok's murderous gaze, he couldn't utter a sound and meekly stepped aside.
***
A few days passed.
Seonghyeok had no intention of trying anything with Chae Yeongin again. Too much time had passed, and it felt too wasteful and unjust to start over now.
He thought of it as compensation for the past three years. Perhaps he simply didn't want to admit that the price of not letting go of his pride was too high.
His firmly resolved mind changed at the second welcome-back party, which he attended reluctantly due to Beomjun's insistence.
The moment he heard that Oh Changgeun was set to have a blind date with Chae Yeongin, his resolve, which he had believed to be unshakeable, immediately crumbled.
"She played hard to get with me, but she readily accepted a blind date? I wonder if she'll cry with joy if he proposes marriage."
Seonghyeok followed Changgeun, who was swaggering as if Yeongin was already his woman, before suddenly rushing out into the hallway, claiming his father was calling. He waited until Changgeun finished his call, then stated his business.
"Hand it over to me."
Changgeun, not understanding what he meant, blinked his eyes.
"...What?"
Seonghyeok, leaning casually against the wall, curved his lips into a smile.
"The blind date."
"...Huh?"
That's how Changgeun's blind date with Yeongin was stolen.
***
Exactly 6 o'clock.
Seonghyeok arrived at the H Hotel cafe.
He didn't need to look around; Yeongin was immediately visible. She was sitting by the window, deep in thought.
After telling the approaching staff member that he had company, he walked towards the window, a displeased expression on his face.
Yeongin was wearing a black dress that slimly hugged her body, and her hair was loosely tied up. Her slender, pale neckline captivated his gaze.
It irked him, wondering if she had dressed up so much to impress Oh Changgeun.
Simply because she was beautiful.
Her beauty annoyed him.
His stomach churned with resentment, imagining how gleefully Changgeun would have grinned if he had been the one here today.
Unless she'd shown up in rags with charcoal smudged on her face, Seonghyeok's reaction wouldn't have been much different, regardless of what Yeongin wore.
However, Seonghyeok didn't realize he was being unreasonable. From someone whose temper was already askew, no kind words were likely to emerge.
"I told him to hand this blind date over to me."
That was the end of his composure.
Seonghyeok's tone quickly turned cynical.
"You seem to have put a lot of effort into your appearance. Are you disappointed it's not the person you were expecting?"
"..."
Yeongin didn't know why he was being sarcastic, so she held her tongue. She also felt no need to mention that she had come straight here after a friend's wedding.
"Chae Yeongin, weren't you against marriage?"
His tone was accusatory, implying, "You, who used to freeze up even when I casually mentioned the word 'marriage,' are now here for a blind date predicated on marriage?"
"Values can change, you know."
Yeongin understood what he meant.
She still had no intention of marrying, but appearing at a blind date while insisting she was against marriage would seem contradictory, so she offered that excuse.
"That's good to hear."
"..."
Yeongin couldn't understand why her changed values would be good news to him, so she didn't respond.
"How do I look as a potential husband?"
"You're too good for me."
It was a sincere answer.
Cha Seonghyeok was so perfect that she feared her very existence might be his only flaw.
"Then will you marry me?"
Yeongin let out a small laugh.
The proposal was so preposterous that she didn't even have the energy to be flustered. She was merely curious why he was acting this way.
"Why are you here instead of Changgeun Oppa?"
"That bastard Oh Changgeun is quite promiscuous."
The words, "Why am I 'Seonbae' and he's 'Oppa'?" welled up to his throat. But knowing it was petty jealousy, he couldn't bring himself to say them.
"It wouldn't be surprising if a child suddenly appeared one day, calling him 'Dad'."
"And so?"
"Because I can't stand to see the woman who dumped me marry a scumbag like that. It would make me look too pathetic."
"..."
There was no way Cha Seonghyeok could ever be that pathetic.
She swallowed the thought that it would be hard to find anyone less pathetic than him.
"So, if you're going to marry a guy like Oh Changgeun, just marry me instead."
"Don't talk nonsense."
"What's nonsense?"
"Everything coming out of your mouth, Seonbae."
"What do you expect me to say on a blind date? Isn't this what a blind date is? Two people who know about each other and each other's families, talking about marriage."
Seonghyeok continued, giving Yeongin no chance to interject.
"I know about you, you know about me, and we're faithfully fulfilling the purpose of a blind date right now."
"It's just you, not us."
"There's no need for both parties to be proactive."
"..."
Yeongin silently watched him, sensing a hidden anger.
"It's not easy to know each other as well as we do. How common is it to know your blind date's preferences in bed? Where to touch to excite you, how sexy your moans are..."
"Seonbae."
"What?"
"Please, shut up."
A faint smile touched Seonghyeok's lips, having successfully provoked her. He was slightly giddy at seeing the only person who dared to tell him to shut up again.
"You know I get bored easily. If I get bored, I'll divorce you."
Three years ago, Yeongin had dumped Seonghyeok. Yet, she felt as if *she* had been dumped.
And yet, she found herself absurd for thinking that such arrogance suited him perfectly.
"Are you curious how long it'll take for you to get bored of me?"
"Yes, because I was dumped without any warning, I never got the chance to find out."
The last conversation Seonghyeok and Yeongin had flashed through her mind.
"Let's stop seeing each other."
"Fine."
For him to suddenly propose marriage now, without even asking for a reason back then, could only be explained as him being out of his mind. He was clearly insane.
"Are you proposing marriage just to confirm that?"
"I can't stand not knowing things."
"Then control yourself."
"But I don't want to."
"I have no desire to participate in satisfying your curiosity."
Suddenly, Seonghyeok's eyes darkened and deepened.
"If you're not going to participate, then don't come to these kinds of gatherings again. Oh Changgeun is absolutely out of the question."
Yeongin realized that if she didn't speak frankly, this pointless conversation would only continue.
"I didn't come to this blind date with the intention of getting married."
"Then why?"
"Just because I was bored."
She didn't want to go as far as saying she was a 'sacrifice' to him, who knew what she was like at home.
"I'll keep you entertained, so don't do pointless things anymore."
Seonghyeok glanced down at his wristwatch, unaware that Yeongin's ears had turned slightly red.
"I have to go. I'd like to have dinner with you, but I have a prior engagement."
"I never said I wanted to have dinner with you."
Why was her heart pounding at just the words "keep you entertained"?
She deliberately retorted more sharply, hoping to hide her feelings from him.
"I want to, that's why."
He shrugged nonchalantly and changed the subject.
"You still have the same number. Call me."
"I deleted your number, Seonbae."
"How heartless."
"Who keeps an ex-boyfriend's number for over three years?"
"I still have my ex-girlfriend's number, though?"
A flicker of surprise crossed Yeongin's face.
"...You're the strange one, Seonbae."
"I know. I am strange."
He admitted it boldly and rose from his seat.
She could only stare blankly at his retreating back, as if possessed.
