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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: I came to see you?
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Yeongin's eyes widened, almost popping out, after a brief moment of hesitation.
"What are you doing?"
Seonghyeok took a step forward, his expression composed.
"Why are you so surprised? You told me to come in, so I did."
"Because I didn't know it was you, Seonghyeok."
"Does that mean if you knew it was me, you wouldn't have let me in?"
His brows furrowed slightly.
"Why are you discriminating against me?"
"..."
Yeongin was utterly dumbfounded by his audacious remark.
Was this really discrimination?
Even if it was, discriminating against an ex-boyfriend from ages ago wasn't exactly a grave sin, was it?
"Arim's mother called her to the kitchen, and Beomjun's on the phone. No one knows I came up here, so you don't have to worry."
"That's not what's important right now."
"Then should I have just announced it and come up? 'I'm going to Chae Yeongin's room'?"
"..."
Yeongin only parted her lips a few times, unable to respond. Absurdly, after hearing his words, she felt a flicker of gratitude that he had come up secretly.
As Yeongin pressed her lips together, Seonghyeok's mouth curved into a gentle smile. He slowly surveyed the room with a nostalgic expression.
"It's been over ten years since we first met, and only today do I finally step into your room."
The first time he came to this house was in his first year of high school when he and Beomjun became classmates. He didn't come often to begin with, but during the six months he dated Yeongin, he consciously stopped visiting.
The reason? Chae Yeongin wanted him to.
She was the one who suggested they keep their relationship a secret, and she was the one who told him not to come to her house.
Though it might have seemed like he was being whimsical, he always went along with what she wanted, even if he didn't feel like it.
Ultimately, even agreeing to break up.
"It's definitely Chae Yeongin's room."
It was a room that perfectly reflected its owner's personality. Spotless and uncluttered. The white-toned interior gave off a clean, somewhat cool impression, just like its owner.
The only decorations were a small green plant on the bedside table and a single framed photo on the dresser.
Before Yeongin could stop him, Seonghyeok strode towards the dresser, bent down, and peered at the photo.
The subject was a girl of about five or six.
"You were cute when you were little."
Her braided pigtails, eyes that curved into crescent moons, and plump cheeks brought an involuntary smile to his face.
"I know. I'm not cute now."
Seonghyeok looked away from the photo and glanced at Yeongin.
"You're beautiful now."
She’d retorted defensively, but when he replied with complete sincerity, not a hint of playfulness in his tone, Yeongin quickly changed the subject to hide her fluster.
"If you came to see your brother, why didn't you just see him and leave? Why are you doing this, coming all the way up here?"
"Who said I came to see Beomjun? I came to see you."
"..."
Her bewildered eyes trembled slightly. She had tried so hard to deny that he had come to see her, but it seemed she had wasted her time for nothing.
"It's true Beomjun invited me over, but I came hoping I might see you. If you didn't live here, I wouldn't have come."
Yeongin wanted to ask Seonghyeok, who had slowly approached and stopped in front of her, why he was doing this, and what he wanted. But it wasn't the kind of conversation to have while anxiously worrying if someone might come up, so she could only utter empty words.
"...Go, go down quickly."
Seonghyeok merely nodded obediently but didn't move. He still had something to say.
"From now on, check who it is before letting them in. Don't just let anyone into your room."
Yeongin let out a hollow laugh.
"This is our house."
"An outsider could come in, couldn't they?"
"Surely you don't think you're not 'just anyone'?"
"Of course I'm not."
"..."
Yeongin was so dumbfounded she lost her voice. It was so preposterous it made her question if those words had truly come from the person who best fit the descriptions of 'outsider' and 'just anyone.'
And that wasn't even the end of it.
"Did you take your medicine?"
Yeongin's eyes narrowed, wondering what he meant now.
"What medicine?"
"Headache medicine. Your head hurts right now, doesn't it?"
"..."
Yeongin tried to recall if she had told him her head hurt.
Of course, she couldn't remember. Because she hadn't said anything.
"You have a habit of wrinkling your nose when you have a headache."
"I do?"
As Yeongin's eyes widened, a playful smile spread across Seonghyeok's face.
"Yes, you do."
"..."
Yeongin silently looked up at him, who knew a habit of hers that she wasn't even aware of.
"Don't hold it in. Take your medicine."
Seonghyeok said that and turned around, leaving the room. As Yeongin plopped down on the bed, staring at the closed door, a quiet murmur escaped her lips.
"It's all because of you, Seonghyeok..."
The cause of her headache, and the reason she couldn't take the headache medicine in her bag, was all because of one person.
The person who made her head complicated, and the person who prevented her from going down to get water, was Cha Seonghyeok.
She decided to blame everything on him.
Only then would she feel less pathetic for being so helplessly swayed by him...
How much time had passed?
As Yeongin sat there blankly, staring into space, the door suddenly burst open, and the sound reached her ears. Then, a voice laced with irritation shot through the air.
"Hey, dinner's ready!"
Yeongin lifted her indifferent eyes. She had long since given up, so her sister bursting in without knocking didn't elicit any particular emotion.
"I don't feel like eating."
"I don't care what you feel like. Father told me to come get you."
Arim twisted the corner of her lips, as if she couldn't care less if Yeongin starved to death.
"He's home early, isn't he?"
"So, you have a problem with that?"
"No. I'll come down."
It was an unwritten rule that when Father was home, the entire family would gather around the dining table for meals, so Yeongin didn't even think of being stubborn. Unless one was too ill to even move, no one was exempt.
Why was everything flowing so differently from what she expected?
It was a huge misconception to think that just staying cooped up in her room would be enough. Seonghyeok coming up to her room, and her father telling her to come down, were completely unexpected.
"You went on that blind date with Seonghyeok, not Changgeun, right?"
"Yeah."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"It's nothing big."
Arim, bristling, gritted her teeth at her calm reply.
"You cunning little thing."
"..."
"Seonghyeok said he wants to marry you? Don't you dare lie. If you spout such nonsense again, I won't let it go."
Arim warned her fiercely, with an expression that suggested she could chew her up and still not be satisfied, then left the room.
Yeongin quietly followed her.
She didn't have time to feel relieved by the much milder reaction than she'd braced herself for, because she had to sit at the same table and eat with Seonghyeok. She already felt nauseous.
Feeling like a cow being led to slaughter, Yeongin descended the stairs and entered the dining room.
A lean, dark-complexioned middle-aged man sat at the head of the table.
Chae Byeongguk, Beomjun and Arim's biological father, and Yeongin's adoptive father.
He was the CEO of Chaeseung, a mid-sized company that manufactures and sells women's apparel. Chaeseung was also where Beomjun and Arim worked.
"Welcome home."
Yeongin bowed slightly towards Chairman Chae.
"Yes, sit down."
To the left of Chairman Chae, who sat at the head of the table, was Seonghyeok, and to his right was Ms. Gwak. Beomjun sat next to Ms. Gwak, and Arim, who had come down a step ahead of Yeongin, had snagged the seat next to Seonghyeok.
As Yeongin sat next to Beomjun, Chairman Chae picked up his spoon as if he had been waiting for that cue.
"Let's eat."
He had canceled his prior engagements and rushed over as soon as he received a call from his wife saying Seonghyeok was at their house.
It was to make a good impression on the second son of Chairman Cha Hyeonung, the head of SL Group.
SL Group was South Korea's top-ranked conglomerate, a massive corporate group with various affiliates in electronics, automobiles, finance, telecommunications, distribution, and more. Its influence across South Korea's economy, politics, society, and culture was also immense.
So, it was perfectly natural for him to hope that Beomjun would remain close friends with Seonghyeok for a long, long time.
"Is the Chairman in good health?"
"Yes, he might even be healthier than I am."
"I was hoping to have a meal with the Chairman sometime. Seonghyeok, could you arrange that?"
"I'll mention it to him."
It meant he couldn't guarantee it.
"Oh, right..."
Chairman Chae, having subtly pushed his agenda and now feeling awkward, quickly changed the subject.
"By the way, Seonghyeok, why did you suddenly go to America?"
The fact that Seonghyeok had abruptly left for SL Motors' U.S. branch remained a mystery to many.
"At that time, I didn't want to be in Korea."
It had been an impulsive decision made because of a certain woman.
Seonghyeok watched her flinch and considered a hypothetical.
If I had stayed in Korea then...
He wondered if he wouldn't have been able to resist rushing to Chae Yeongin.
"Now that I think about it, you were really weird back then, man. I thought you'd been heartbroken or something."
Beomjun interjected casually, busy with his chopsticks.
"I didn't realize you'd noticed."
"I'm pretty sharp, you know."
Beomjun chortled in response, thinking Seonghyeok was joking.
No one except Yeongin thought Seonghyeok's words were true. The idea of Cha Seonghyeok being rejected by a woman was unfathomable to them.
Clearing his throat to lighten the mood, Chairman Chae brought the conversation back from its tangent.
"So, has it been decided what position you'll be taking?"
The answer came from Beomjun.
"Head of the Management Planning Division."
His face was alight with pride. A satisfied smile also played on Chairman Chae's lips.
"That's wonderful. Congratulations."
The Management Planning Division was the very heart of SL Group. For the second son to become the division head, bypassing the eldest son, also signified a shift in the succession structure.
Seonghyeok responded only with a faint smile.
He had received the command to take on the position of Head of the Management Planning Division on the evening of his blind date with Yeongin, during dinner with his father.
He had naturally accepted it. Because there was no reason to refuse.
But now, a reason had appeared.
The reason he wasn't bothering to mention that he might be taking a different position was because of the very person who had created that reason.
His meaningful gaze drifted towards Yeongin, who had her head bowed low.
