Sponsorship Stigma
Chapter 45
Chapter 45
Fool
“I really have no idea why I’m making this for you.”
Yeonjae grumbled as she set a large bowl down in front of Jeheon with a dull thud.
Inside was freshly cooked ramyeon.
“I told you, I haven’t eaten.”
“And why does that mean you have to come to me for food?”
“There’s nothing to eat where I live.”
Jeheon spoke flatly as he picked up his chopsticks.
The place he lived meant the Samseong-dong apartment. Having never been there, she couldn’t tell whether he was telling the truth.
Still, remembering how he used to be when staying at the Residence, it was entirely plausible.
He was a man accustomed to being served meals prepared by others, not the type to cook anything with his own hands.
Picturing Jeheon standing in a kitchen cooking felt utterly alien.
As his chopsticks lifted the noodles and an appetizing aroma drifted up, Yeonjae turned her head away sharply.
“There’s nothing here, either.”
She hadn’t moved in that long ago, and she tended to buy groceries only for whatever dinner she was making that day.
Because it didn’t feel like her home, she couldn’t comfortably stock the refrigerator with food.
Perhaps because of that, instant ramyeon was all she had to offer Jeheon.
“If you don’t want to eat it, leave it. There’s a twenty-four-hour restaurant outside, so you can just—”
“Who said I wasn’t going to eat?”
As if she might snatch the bowl away at any second, Jeheon quickly slurped the ramyeon into his mouth.
Once he started, he emptied the bowl in no time at all.
“It’s not bad.”
“What’s with you? Acting like it’s your first time eating ramyeon.”
“It is my first time.”
Taken aback, Yeonjae’s eyes went wide.
“Is this such an incredible dish? Enough that I ought to have eaten it before?”
‘It isn’t your first time, Gu Jeheon.’
They used to eat it together from time to time whenever they strolled along the Han River.
Soon, though, Yeonjae relented. It seemed he truly still had no memory of it.
Which was why he believed this was his first time.
“Yes. It’s a very famous dish. Most people have tried it.”
Shaking her head, Yeonjae placed the bowl in the sink.
Come to think of it, he wasn’t an ordinary person. Maybe he just never sought it out because there were plenty of foods far better and more delicious than ramyeon.
The fact that he wouldn’t even encounter ramyeon if not for her—
The stark reminder of their difference left a bitter taste in her mouth, even as she washed the bowl.
“You’re leaving now, right?”
It would be trouble if Jiwoo woke up to the sound of their conversation.
Placing the neatly dried bowl on the drying rack, Yeonjae took off her apron.
By now, she should have heard a response, but the room was silent.
Turning back toward the dining table, she saw the kitchen was already empty.
Stepping out of the kitchen into the living room, Yeonjae looked around and headed toward the hallway.
And there, walking back down the hall, she ran straight into Jeheon.
“Jeong Yeonjae.”
Before she could even ask what he was doing here—
Having closed the distance in an instant, Jeheon braced a hand against the wall behind her.
Leaning sideways against it, he looked down at her, locking eyes.
His gaze, which had carried a playful nonchalance only moments ago, was now deeply settled.
“Doesn’t it exhaust you, living like this?”
Her eyes drifted past him, glancing toward the pantry at the end of the hallway.
It seemed he had gone to check and seen that her luggage remained completely untouched.
Judging by the displeasure written clearly across his eyes.
Her lips parted slightly as she searched for an answer.
Whether to make an excuse or tell him the truth, she hesitated even in that split second.
“I gave you this massive place, and you’re staying in the guest room without even unpacking your bags.”
“…”
“You have that huge walk-in closet, yet you pull out clothes from storage one by one. Do you really want to live in such misery?”
Jeheon pressed a hand to his forehead.
Between the fingers dragging down his dry face, the bridge of his nose was drawn into a deep scowl.
Utterly unable to understand her behavior, a palpable frustration washed over his features.
“Yeonjae-ya, let’s be reasonable.”
Letting out a heavy sigh, he took a step closer to her.
“Seeing you like this makes my stomach churn.”
Blocking her path entirely, Jeheon stared straight into her eyes.
His gaze was so unyieldingly direct it felt overwhelming, forcing Yeonjae to look away.
“Why are you avoiding my eyes?”
“I’m not. It’s just… you’re too close.”
It was only because his breath kept tickling her skin, close enough that their lips might brush at any moment, and she couldn’t bear it.
Just as she swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to add—
“You really never back down, do you?”
Jeheon gripped her wrist.
Before she could pull away, he took hold of her and strode purposefully down the hallway.
“Gu Jeheon-ssi!”
Yeonjae called his name in a hushed, strained voice.
Unable to raise her voice, she could only fret, casting anxious glances toward the room where Jiwoo was asleep.
Before long, Jeheon came to a stop in front of the room at the deepest end of the Residence.
Knowing exactly what lay behind his back, Yeonjae’s eyes wavered helplessly.
“I said I don’t want to.”
She tried to pull free, but she was nowhere near strong enough to push the resolute man away.
The bedroom door swung open.
A deep darkness hung over the bedroom. The only sliver of illumination was the moonlight filtering through the large window.
Pushed back endlessly, something solid caught against the back of Yeonjae’s heels and calves.
Even without looking back, she knew it was the bed.
Because the bedroom they were in was the master bedroom they had stepped in and out of countless times—Jeheon’s bedroom.
Only after coming to a halt before the bed did Jeheon finally ease the grip on her wrist.
“What on earth are you doing?”
Just as she snapped the question at him—
Under the force of Jeheon’s shove, Yeonjae’s body fell back onto the bed before she could evade.
The plush, soft bedding met the small of her back.
And the gentle, familiar scent of cotton fabric softener grazed the tip of her nose.
At the old memories conjured by that familiar scent, Yeonjae bit down hard on her lip.
The tip of her nose flushed crimson before she knew it.
Had not a single thing in this place changed?
Why did he have to preserve it exactly as it was five years ago, making her feel like this?
This was precisely why she hadn’t wanted to set foot in here.
Ever since moving into the Residence, she had strictly divided her movements, going back and forth only between the guest room and the common areas.
Do you have any idea what it took for me to endure this?
Yeonjae felt like bursting into tears right then and there.
“Since you’re lying down anyway, use this room from now on.”
“…”
“Once you and Jiwoo leave, I’m going to dispose of this place anyway. So use it freely without holding back.”
Only then did she seem to understand why he had dragged her into this bedroom.
It might have been his own version of consideration, but that didn’t erase the miserable ache inside her.
“If you keep refusing to listen, I’ll have Secretary Oh unpack your things tomorrow.”
Jeheon was naturally indifferent to other people.
Since his memories were frozen in the days when he disliked and despised Yeonjae, it was only natural for him to cut off all interest in her.
He had secured the Foundation contract he wanted, so his business with her was done.
So why did he keep peering into her life and paying attention to her like this?
You were never this kind of person.
“…Fine.”
Her throat tight, Yeonjae forced the word out with difficulty.
At that, Jeheon’s eyes narrowed to slits. Even in the darkness, his unblinking gaze lingered on her.
“Are you crying?”
As Jeheon stepped onto the bed, the mattress dipped under his weight.
Bending at the waist, he drew closer until their eyes gradually met at level.
“I’m not crying.”
His eyes were strikingly clear even in the dark.
The gaze fixed on Yeonjae was so straight it felt suffocating.
Feeling her heart slowly tighten, she tried to turn her head away to avoid his stare.
“Lying again.”
With a low voice wrapping around her ear, he tilted her chin upward.
Before she could turn away, their gazes locked.
The distance had shrunk so close their noses might touch with the slightest movement. It was on a completely different level from when they had faced each other in the hallway.
Terrified that her tears would truly be discovered at this rate, Yeonjae pushed Jeheon away.
Expecting he wouldn’t budge, the man actually stood up from the bed without resistance.
Then, seeing him move toward the light switch, Yeonjae urgently parted her lips.
“Don’t turn on the light.”
Though her voice was small, it must have reached him, as Jeheon stopped in his tracks.
She didn’t want to show him her face in such a mess.
Wiping away her tears with the back of her hand, Yeonjae pushed herself up after him.
It felt so foolish, how every single thing he did sent her emotions soaring and crashing.
She thought she had emptied out every last feeling, yet lingering remnants kept sprouting back to life.
Whispering that maybe, just maybe, things could work out between them again.
That maybe his memories might return.
She hated herself for constantly nurturing such foolish hope.
“And please, just leave now. Please.”
When weight settled behind the word ‘please,’ Jeheon’s expression turned subtle.
With his gaze pressing distinctly upon her even in the shadows, Yeonjae brushed past him.
Then she stepped into the nearest bathroom and locked the door.
Walking over to the sink, Yeonjae turned on the faucet.
Only after washing her face beneath the gushing stream of water did she finally look up.
Through the trickling drops of water, the reflection of her face was still flushed red.
“Do you still have feelings for me?”
“Even after this, you’re saying you don’t like me?”
At the low voice echoing in her ears, Yeonjae squeezed her eyes shut.
“You really are a fool, Jeong Yeonjae.”
If you still have feelings for Gu Jeheon, you truly are the biggest idiot in the world.
