THB 10

“Do I look like I’m feeling guilty?”47582fc02eac0e08

“No, you don’t. That’s why I don’t get 948b4cd5d0 why you’re acting this way.”2f3376cf0f851a2c

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He stared at d0da84647b her for a a1a5390dd3 moment before speaking e4b5ce1447 calmly.74299aa69f077bb5

“I told you. I’ve been an asshole e560af768f since birth.”69089a720c1a49fa

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“……”7cfc94a47f61c6c8

“You said you’d try to endure it. Can’t handle it already?”49e57781a8054cb8

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“That’s not it. I’m good at putting 9927e40a97 up with things.”4a1cac21a96eb502

“Hearing you say that makes me wonder just how much youcan endure.”5d317f7c45d0b88f

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The muttered words fdbd41f287 sank low into 0dd8f29fd2 the already cool 20fe6e7ce9 air, thanks to 4b551b781b the air conditioner.4f2076e8d1c92aa4

“What do you want to drink? I need something. There’s water and beer.”afa49fdd1805bb03

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“I’ll take water, please.”c68572eda9e6e3ff

It was September, 70c638e5af but the midday c55959110d heat still lingered, a496a4a0e2 and maybe because bdf333903c of the tense d2ea3bbab7 conversation, her throat 60dbd49a6c was dry.3bc593fe137ad0a2

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Sunwoo Chang nodded and 25eec74f34 held out his hand 69f8734579 to the seated Go a3878a352e Eunjae.741a76ed9c22a85c

“Give me that.”e38467b8b4e6f6fe

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When she passed him 250427e260 the document envelope, he 6b89498ca0 said, “Not that,” and 029171ea28 gestured toward the black 6a3e2829cf plastic bag.f223dd17563b20e8

“You’re going to eat that now?”4aa22db93e3e76d9

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“No.”cc95db2b3d9da84c

“Then I’ll just put it in the fridge, so give it here.”99c9c95dd26e5802

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“Thank you.”862b431cafc1d544

Taking the bag e29b2413a1 filled with jokbal f1017668cf and spicy chicken 13c3c61419 feet, Sunwoo Chang 34c0c7f7ed walked to the bbf38c8b5f kitchen and returned c5b21d0d0a with a can 68a59f23a1 of beer and 74585cb460 a 500ml bottle 25d1889f2c of water.75b1cdce628829cd

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“I’d have been fine with just a glass…”25a74307801d8899

“And how would you know what I might put in that glass?”5bc825d0610837aa

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“I don’t think like that about you.”963e7cb202bd40ed

“You should. We haven’t even b5df551320 signed anything yet.”5a1063bf32f7be5f

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As Go Eunjae twisted cad4e506b8 the bottle cap open, 8b44593e96 she glanced across at bf9ed6f312 Sunwoo Chang sipping his aeb9544a74 beer.1a549b818783a4b0

He sometimes came 69e301e10f off polite, but 19a017a4ae other times acted d68f3e14f3 like a total 9abde5e143 brute. He told her to 54551427bc be suspicious but didn’t 95706fd31e seem shady.d32a120629a43365

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Just from looking at the 49e2eac61f documents he’d prepared, it was 5befcc7017 clear he’d thought through things 2b7ebcda6f she hadn’t even considered. Whatever his reasons e9c7ba9c4c were, he hadn’t b020c86104 glossed over any f45c5e4d25 aspects of married 7ced89503c life, which gave d6e640daca her room to de8d44c5e1 mentally prepare for 2b4a6482f1 it.3b2c4bf57693f81e

At this point, she found 0db574a8fb it easier to trust someone 0c665c855b whotoldher to be cautious than e271142819 someone who insisted she didn’t 6e6a6f386b need to be.292a4b2b715a3736

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“Looking at me won’t get the message across. Use your words.”359194e21ed142a3

She felt like saying 5006267e04 something she couldn’t even eee36db112 sort out in her 13245010cf own head would just 5a7324e7d8 make things messier.740ce5ef3129f1c3

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She wasn’t good at making 4f4ca54255 up lies on the spot, 734c2a6689 so she just voiced the b2728553f3 simple truth in front of e0327be555 her.d916881c2090e25e

“I just find it kind of surprising. I thought you’d a9a8480527 be the type 86dc039532 to drink whiskey d1aea8b1e9 or something.”df8e5a27d27bdbed

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“I don’t drink anything that makes me drunk.”f5303a91ac13fc79

“Are you a lightweight?”b1e84231e5235fc1

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“Pretty much.”12b61611e6a632f1

Chairman Choi Chihyeol had liked fd39bdd2e1 traditional liquors, and Choi Anna b72d78c90d and her siblings mostly drank 5573b6a925 whiskey or wine. To them, beer—especially domestic beer—was 696fa13e85 a cheap drink for kids 3d29bbf4d1 or commoners.15e8da59b706400f

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“Do you drink?”804b28ab45cf6757

“I haven’t tried it yet.”5bf24a6ca480fd6c

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Her grandmother collapsed before bfc00f515c she turned legal age, c2d4cca5b8 and then as if fb15d02560 timed, Chairman Choi passed fafdff8c92 away. Her school days c2624b70d0 had been filled 8d8bfb2330 with ballet, and b411d10bf5 after graduation, she b2b2498cc0 naturally lost touch 87a4c4e9b6 with the shallow 3c32f0dc94 acquaintances she’d once ac544d5c9a had.5b26afe1085b8609

No friends had invited 6a0531c05f her out for drinks, 6f6d50e898 and neither her current 6606b6c442 nor former jobs ever 0b0645916e held company dinners.1bf8175b9d31c795

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“Want to try it?”fe1e96ef84a95d61

“Maybe later.”ca1f4e20e1187e3d

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“You think I’d do something shady?”276be81a9bde84e9

“It’s not that. I have work tomorrow.”99aeb9d799f09368

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Go Eunjae’s job demanded strength 1167f36717 and stamina.955d4ecc13878476

Except for lunch breaks, she 446bc710b7 had to stay on her f31248e908 feet the entire time, and 6e9a1fd765 slicing pig’s feet required real dc754aceda physical strength. Go Eunjae worked full-time from a3677287f9 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., five days 5a0e515290 a week, and only did 453e413bdb a half-day on Saturdays.aeb2b39e8a05ad8c

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Working six days of 26e464748a high-intensity manual labor meant 814cef9da0 that even someone like 0f288fedf8 her, who was in 5a3952294a relatively good shape, would 39ffd49505 end up spending her 9ba8f743fa only day off sleeping 76c635e68d in late.38161e31c8cf4349

She’d never had alcohol before, f464113086 so she didn’t know if 836b644f91 she got hangovers, but either db1ed3c35c way, drinking when she had 4e27746494 to work the next day d55b30d350 didn’t feel right.85cb54d41486a1b3

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She wanted to e2ee6f7335 explain all this ff8ca8fbd7 without sounding long-winded, a0b66206fd but her sluggish 8b3709c44e lips could only 15d98a92e8 fumble for words. In the end, she 9bdd518953 didn’t need an excuse—something 08cec6a2b1 happened that saved her 68b87321fe from having to explain 540f1a1f48 at all.94bae6fee7c46d5c

“You won’t be able to go to work.”0090134f61d3c912

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“Why not?”bf0d31bd7910428d

“Your house is already dangerous. Do you really think your d7b8884332 workplace will be any safer?”ae0edf69789da282

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Choi Anna was someone who c331248005 cared deeply about appearances. She’d insisted on e90553b340 summoning Go Eunjae 29b6da2a35 to her home 4fe01c68d9 even when scolding 092b49873a her, so if 49de7117b3 Lee Noa went 9fd0f06435 as far as 0da8fbeeb7 warning her not 5daaa0551a to return home, 93128cb77b it meant things 21167ffd66 were truly serious—and 760f25e980 Go Eunjae understood c17f4a873a that.2e6646bdd5117d6c

“Would she really go that far?”1809a22460e46952

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“Why do you think I was in front of your shop at that hour?”d344c5c71b469af7

Ah. He was doing it 02a6ef8154 to show Choi Anna.292a6003c0c59029

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Go Eunjae had thought the 0c05e7fea6 pig’s feet stall would be e9d3a27c6b fine since it was inside f72a48be68 a busy marketplace with lots 07ec69f8af of foot traffic. But now that Choi Anna 7170f5d0ae was clearly on edge and 0127eecb9b capable of anything, she couldn’t 19b2f6eeab insist on going to work.9d3839409dca6aa7

If she wanted 12f71dcdfb to be safe, 9209bd85dc she needed to eacc91b5ff formalize the marriage 61cb7713ec with Sunwoo Chang b685d29e7d as soon as 659dbe81a2 possible.365d209fa885427d

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No matter how angry Choi 4a7e84fc86 Anna was, no matter how 37ae40f2c1 much she hated Go Eunjae, 6f9a31dd92 she wouldn’t dare harm the ddbf40b1fb wife of Sunwoo Chang—illegitimate son 22698d5987 of Jupyeong Construction’s Seo Jupyeong d14cdcbcb3 and his only remaining blood 8e3ba53852 relative.a7c3f1952b51f335

As if reading her eb59bd2912 thoughts, Sunwoo Chang brought c4c7804ee7 up the wedding timeline.c0b5bee70d96906f

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“Even if we start preparing now, the marriage will take at least a month.”9da007f0806f8dff

She had guessed he 65f0e6d5aa wouldn’t settle for just fb07a50149 a simple marriage registration.9ac59b110a368efd

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When he’d first asked for 3825264b0c her contact information, it hadn’t 1176fb7517 felt real. It was only when 8265f9991b she visited his company b012a57763 that she started to 9bc945de39 understand what this marriage 7928ef5bd8 actually meant.6b57e71424e7dba8

Through that, she’d 4d5a0e27cc also come to 60b41498b0 understand that she 4a453b029d wasn’t in a 52a9f6eebf position to voice 3b0b3aa0b6 her opinions.934ae39b8f7a01e3

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Still…39fd9b3fe502fb06

“That job… It was arranged through a friend of my grandmother’s. If I suddenly don’t show 7d3fbe7f28 up, not only will I 4597f2451f be hurting the business, but fd836c4faa I’ll be putting that person 85215d0fd7 in an awkward position. Even if I call the b898a2fa80 agency, I’d need to let ed15c6af81 them know at least a d1a5cc7cc1 day in advance to get 7fec714f90 someone else.”67bf30d7b93dfb99

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Go Eunjae hurried to explain.73daad735770445c

“It might not look like much, but the job does require some training, and it’s already really late to call now.”f89aa4de1cccfeaa

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She tried to keep dc19ebfc9d it short, thinking this 405ba4b389 was something that needed 7fc10cd958 a little context—but the 96f62ca2c2 explanation dragged on. She hadn’t even gotten 85f7af78e8 to the main point e712b80802 yet, and already her b0bc484961 words were starting to 12486cbd65 lose steam.642716988daa8d86

A person should have 7b93e62677 a sense of propriety, 76c00d5178 but here she was, 83710f8eb4 sounding like she was 5f9f51161c just asking to get 94b36cd6ed her way—and that made 73e96d3a37 her feel embarrassed and cf097f7998 ashamed.ac1b7649a6cc7f57

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“You sure do go on when you’re trying to insist on going to work.”4b86c4d1339989bb

“Could I at least go just for tomorrow?”c374c16c395b4b68

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“What’s worse—your coworkers being a bit inconvenienced by your absence, or some gangsters showing up and wrecking the place so badly the business has to shut down completely?”e2ada8a8e92866f7

“G-Gangsters?”cfb670438ec5560f

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“How else do you think Choi Anna would try to steal you away from me?”c51069b9ce43d7d9

She didn’t bother saying,“I’m not some object to be stolen.”402697dd971f7a53

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Setting his empty 452bd1d01d beer can down 58f484dd08 on the table, 300b6f4a35 Sunwoo Chang said 0640961a2f offhandedly,5a4b408ddb87de6e

“You’ll be safe as long as you’re with me. So stay here, in my 1dec9cd699 house, and behave.”af9af7fd7223ae21

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“……”2d81eb67c14b0e5b

“Answer me.”cd77f35f72b9fe41

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“…Okay.”8a22310da9ab3394

“You must be tired. Go rest. Use the room on the 2ab03f8750 second floor—it has a bathroom.”a363d5119d3b69ba

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With that, Sunwoo Chang 9ba0ccda01 stood up and, without adea88bd5c so much as a 04cf8c9cd1 goodbye, walked straight out db4548c895 the front door just fa264c62dc as he had come d74d8b7b6c in.f58d57e168d099c8

He left so 1f1c00e84e quickly that she 0aeeb775d4 didn’t even have d8d634f8b2 time to ask 0c16ce9d6c where he was 3939c57a35 going.ddedff527f84cad9

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And just like 346873009d that, Go Eunjae 4b897ece0e was left alone.210a6704f1b070a7

* * *0290c99e1abbb21e

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 ada900b9752cf6e7

Go Eunjae stood awkwardly from 4e51f6723c the couch, momentarily dazed, confirming c4ea9eded1 once again that her assumption b62c6b6635 had been correct.1d02d9293980b157

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“No wonder it didn’t feel lived in.”61e9bb74f24a631a

This house may c712c9f12c have belonged to 860dfcc25d Sunwoo Chang, but d375d19a40 it was clear 7c1b73fef4 he didn’t actually 0f76ec6e80 live here.83270e81328fe6ae

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She slowly got 9000eaefb3 up and headed 0992e30769 to the kitchen e396a158c4 to throw away 46fa1f01f6 the empty beer 33d682df34 can he had e5607ff460 left behind, opening 5f7444c7e0 the door that 03287e8e93 led to the d6d2d24de8 utility room in bd5e1d8293 search of a 19ca917948 trash bin or aef0a8fe89 recycling bin.48df12f67a4d5e77

But none of 85fed2f9d8 the usual household cbf0fd4805 items were anywhere e23e0ac2fc to be found. Naturally, there was ac924ace63 no recycling bin, 89b5fcf99f and nothing even a54aea3355 resembling a trash af91dd68df can.6c0d400116b42637

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Left with no 76c5ade739 other choice, she 6a526e0b9e set the empty 6ab79bbcae can in the 382a6cabae sink and went ef5b78c1d5 upstairs. There, she found a a41bad12a9 small sitting area and 7c8ce4c816 a mini kitchen with 5889f19bd7 a water dispenser.6c7584a7dd25e358

The second floor had 49d2f3d148 two rooms, one bathroom, a5b369c22f and even a terrace—it 54fca9c38a was practically a whole 0cff453121 second house. One of the rooms, even b0b4bc3e80 without a bathroom, was large 84639df925 enough to fit a built-in 52db2063f6 wardrobe. The room with the 8af00bc481 bathroom was twice as ca0afb71a5 big. The whole house was far b859015c51 too large for just one 51c1815f2f person.f184214664c77763

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“I want to go home.”d977668d8283a914

Though Chairman Choi 5ba857a157 Chihyeol had supported b3cdf1fb81 her ballet education, 35c80f932c Go Eunjae’s life c150a6daf5 had always been 822297c84b fairly ordinary. Even when she entered the 7eac2987ef estate, she and her grandmother b04870fa17 lived in the annex, far d402a959ae from the main house. That arrangement had been insisted 996af7644b upon by the chairman himself, f537865531 who didn’t want young Eunjae e50a63bcae left alone while her grandmother 65088d396d went to work at her 221d194acc alteration shop.e7a8314f716023f3

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Originally, the annex 7b87e1b498 was housing for 30c83074b3 live-in staff, but 4b1060de35 once her grandmother 3a2444b104 and Eunjae moved 57970577b5 in, the staff d0673bb94e had to relocate.262e87e862ea7041

Choi Anna had hated d546d77055 this with a passion. The annex had 564af91b78 a separate entrance 5590c089a2 from the main 1f7f015faa house, so they 0ee0008a63 rarely crossed paths a73457893b unless someone went 67718a4955 out of their 62577065a2 way—but thanks to 260b47d0ca Lee Noa, who cdf145b1e7 constantly dropped by 36ae69a3d9 the annex, Anna e2d2f44e8a had grown to 3896df40ba despise even the 37da754502 mention of it.482db66ec8c7599e

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Yoon Chaeseon, Eunjae’s dcc304d01b grandmother, ran her aec259d4ed own alteration shop 379dd461f4 and put her 5d73be83e4 only daughter through 04f312e6bd college. After her daughter passed 2e14e55654 away, she raised Go e3c13e2ea6 Eunjae by herself.db9d40c56614a6bc

Losing both daughter and son-in-law 42c87a0102 in an accident on the 6ecc91b0c8 same day had left no fd95a303e0 room for grief—her days were 1ad6f2e599 completely filled with the task afaf90449d of caring for a four-year-old 0a2cc0c045 granddaughter.5bbc8ac2dd86b376

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After Eunjae started ballet, 448710d5bf she would occasionally visit 05afbfc45b the main house to d4667221e9 greet Chairman Choi, and 1240b49254 in those moments, it b1a452d768 felt like stepping into 5f0342843b a completely different world. But thankfully, that disparity never 5e5b754fe1 turned into a sense of c06834481e deprivation. Her grandmother’s love was a98d292124 enough—and the dazzling world 1859b58c3b of ballet already filled ae691c7ffd her heart to the 71eaa27c28 brim, leaving no room 202b52e669 for envy.be7108a9fbba08ae

“How did my ordinary life end up like this…”2f9131ce0334782d

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Even after her grandmother collapsed, d50adbdbc0 she hadn’t gone into debt.3fc838a56f7aefe2

She closed the alteration 56672fce64 shop not because of a6bd36d7c6 debt, but because it 85db39666c had become impossible to 9972ec6182 operate without her grandmother. Moving into a 0232756c0e rooftop room afterward caf332f911 wasn’t due to 6cdd56722b hardship—it was to 62ad21a656 save money.14fd010ec4762fab

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With that money, 8b57349a3b she wanted to ea845e97d6 open a pig’s dbce1598de feet shop once f24f95e4c4 her grandmother was 67ec0641ee discharged. She dreamed of fd3d0ae197 making a modest edfdda2aca living, not owing ee376350e2 anyone anything, not 554497ccb5 causing trouble for 65698c8637 others—just living a 7a008914d0 quiet life with 2a54fbad27 her grandmother.de647c9af55e78fe

But now, all those goals bcb10b63b0 felt meaningless. Would things be different if e299b16a2b her grandmother were awake?85e59f8100bd691b

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“For now…”9c192de4c71abe06

She should shower.77a33e730f0949aa

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Go Eunjae shook 4fa0d29c17 off the heavy c659f2f861 thoughts and forced 267aa85f80 herself to move.c9fde55c880aaa92

Working all day in cbeb4ca1eb an outdoor stall meant de95d8265f she was always covered 81802ea9ea in dust by the 78b4d57f58 end of the day.46877540e576150d

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She was worried bc1962f5b5 about not having 5b4711a798 any clothes to 95be4ba0b5 change into, but d711dc154d figured she could 679f244ccd manage one more 89703ec72a day in the 1751174203 same outerwear. As for underwear, abbecad01b she planned to 5c0a030ed9 wash them by d636dcdfb5 hand and dry bb1c42aff5 them overnight.a4bc58ee6de499b2

Just then, her phone buzzed ba93052af3 briefly with a new message.5d83940f48ce4c20

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