TTD Chapter 8

She had hoped never to see him again, but all that remained were endless encounters she could not avoid.

Heeju sharpened her senses more than ever, carefully observing her grandparents’ movements.

One day, she had visited a hanbok shop to have her wedding attire tailored. In a moment of impulse, she had slipped away midway.

She had never had much freedom in movement—short distances were usually handled by the household staff, and for longer ones, she was accompanied by a driver. But this reckless act had only intensified their surveillance.

Her grandparents were frantic, unwilling to let their carefully laid plans fall apart at the last moment.

One night, Heeju stood before her bedroom door, her face drained of color as if something were strangling her.

Then, as if possessed, she locked the door.

A strange sense of pleasure washed over her.

But it was fleeting.

By the time she awoke to loud noises, the doorknob had been completely removed.

She had never realized how easily a door could be torn apart.

“It is truly regrettable to send her off with nothing. She is a lacking daughter, but from now on, she will become a member of the Ryu family and must fill in what she is missing. Please, take good care of her.”

She hadn’t expected things to progress this quickly.

The piece of meat she had swallowed ten minutes ago still felt stuck in her throat.

She took several gulps of water, trying to force it down.

“What could possibly be lacking? I know well how dearly you have raised your daughter, treasuring her like gold.

And besides, President Ryu—our Iseok—has had his eye on her for quite some time.

We are simply grateful to you for raising Miss Heeju so well.

Miss Heeju, if there is anything you want, feel free to ask. I will grant whatever it is.

Is there anything I would refuse?”

“Chairman, you are too modest.”

“If you ask for the universe, I’ll at least send a rocket to the moon for you. Ha-ha.”

Three years ago, Chairman Ryu Jitaek suffered a stroke and effectively stepped down from managing the company. Yet, for the sake of the formal family meeting, he personally traveled from his private residence in Jeongseon, where he had been recuperating, back to Seoul. His face, even showing a subtle flush of color, gave the impression that his health had improved.

It was well known that he cherished his grandson dearly. If one looked further back, he had been an affectionate father as well. As a devoted family man and a skilled businessman, he was once admired by young people as a role model.

He did have another son, but that child was not born from his legal wife. If Iseok’s father, the son of the legal wife, had not passed away, the other son’s existence would never have even come to light.

Ryu Jitaek was someone who despised anything that could tarnish his honor. He had always maintained a dignified public image, but just once, he allowed himself to be swept away by temptation. That fleeting indulgence resulted in an affair and an illegitimate child.

When the woman reappeared after giving birth to his child, he had tried everything—coaxing, threatening—to make her disappear. That was when he first realized just how cowardly and despicable he could be.

Yet, the more he struggled to suppress the truth, the more the world moved against him.

The moment the scandal reached the media, his wife—already frail—was overwhelmed by the shock of her husband’s betrayal, compounded by her chronic illness. She never even lived to see their son, Seungwook, get married.

But fate was relentless.

Not long after, Seungwook himself died in a car accident—before Iseok had even finished elementary school. His wife, Yuran, Iseok’s mother, perished alongside him.

So, it was no exaggeration to say that Iseok was the only bloodline Ryu Jitaek truly cherished. The boy who lost his parents in an accident at a young age had become Jitaek’s greatest source of pain.

Now, that very grandson had finally chosen a woman he loved and was preparing to start a family.

This was Jitaek’s greatest wish—his only remaining joy in life.

Perhaps that was why he appeared to be in better health than before.

“Our Iseok must have been quite eager, wasn’t he?”

Avoiding the old man’s gaze, which regarded her as if she were something precious, Heeju clutched the porcelain cup of jujube tea that had been served as dessert. She cast a quick glance across the table.

Iseok sat there, his face unreadable, sipping his tea with an air of indifference, as if none of this concerned him.

What is he thinking? What is he up to?

“If there’s one thing I wish for… it would be to hold a plump great-grandchild in my arms before I close my eyes for good. Call it an old man’s last desire.”

“Of course! Ha-ha. We, too, are eagerly looking forward to such a joyous occasion.”

Her grandfather laughed in agreement, while her grandmother gently stroked Heeju’s shoulder with a warm smile.

“A family that cherishes its lineage—how fortunate that they desire a grandchild.”

Under the table, Heeju clenched her hands into fists, her skin pale.

She had already taken precautions. She had bought and taken the necessary pills.

That would never happen.

Besides, it wasn’t even the right time in her cycle.

So… it’ll be fine.

“Oh! Goodness!”

Her fingers, unsteady from the tension, lost their grip on the steaming cup.

The deep red, sweet-smelling tea spilled over her hand and onto the warm ondol floor.

“My dear! Are you alright? That must be scalding—oh dear, oh dear!”

“…Ah.”

Clutching her burned hand, Heeju instinctively stood up.

For the first time, Iseok’s gaze, previously indifferent, landed fully on her hand.

“I-I need to go to the restroom…”

“Oh, your poor hand…”

“I’m sorry.”

What should I do?

Heeju ran cold water over the burn, then braced herself against the sink with both hands.

Her legs threatened to give out beneath her, but she forced herself to stand.

It felt like she was being pushed, little by little, toward the very place someone else wanted her to be.

No matter how hard she tried to swim against the current, she was just another powerless human being, being swept away.

What should I do? What should I do?

She bit her lip hard, repeating those words like a desperate mantra.

That was when she sensed another presence behind her.

She looked up into the mirror.

“……”

Iseok had walked straight into the women’s restroom without hesitation.

Without a word, he took her wrist, examined the burn, and then forced her hand back under the running cold water.

“You need to go to the hospital.”

Her gaze shifted to the mirror, to the reflection of Ryu Iseok’s face.

He clicked his tongue, indifferent as ever, as he examined her reddened hand.

Her frightened eyes met his. She muttered defensively,

“Ryu Iseok… I’m different from the women you’ve been with. You’ll find me boring. No matter what you want, I won’t be able to satisfy you…”

Iseok pulled a handkerchief from his inner pocket, soaked it thoroughly in the cold water, wrung it out once, and wrapped it around her burn.

“You planned this from the start, didn’t you? From the moment you made me sit in that strange place, watching me. You intended this all along.”

“…….”

“Why are you doing this to me?”

Her unsteady voice echoed against the tiled walls. She tore off the handkerchief and threw it aside.

“Why? Why are you doing this to me?!”

“It’s entertaining. Like watching someone wake up to the world for the first time.”

His eyes slowly lifted to hers, glinting with childlike fascination. He rested his chin on his hand, studying her, the look in his gaze suddenly vivid with life.

“There was no one before. Not until I found Yeon Heeju.”

“…….”

“I’ve never fought like that before. That much, in a single night.”

His voice carried an odd, almost boyish undertone. She was the one caught off guard this time. Had she sensed it? She covered her ears, dreading whatever he was about to say.

“I don’t want to hear it. That… that night I don’t even remember…”

She shook her head, but her body wavered. He caught her before she could fall.

“What’s with the trembling? Come on, darling, it’s a little late for that. We’ll be doing far more from now on. Plenty of new positions to try.”

“Wh-what makes you think I’d—”

“You already did. You spread your legs just fine when you were sucking me off. Don’t remember?”

Her eyes trembled at the memory he so casually unearthed.

“You were so thorough, licking every inch, making sure not a single hair was left untouched. Of course, it had to be me. You sucked me off all night, after all.”

She shook her head desperately, but the more he spoke, the more those submerged memories floated to the surface—like the dark strands of hair swaying between her legs, the sensation of her fingers digging into his scalp as she sobbed.

“If you don’t remember being sucked off, do you at least remember doing the sucking? You were so into it, I thought you’d rip me out by the roots.”

“You—”

“If you don’t believe me, we can check right now. You can see mine, and I’ll see yours.”

Her teeth chattered. The humiliation, the disgust, made her vision shake.

Undeterred, he stepped even closer, whispering,

“Come on. Remember. It was too hot a night for you to just forget. And honestly… it didn’t seem like your first time at all.”

She shoved at his chest.

“…I didn’t know.”

She glared up at him with tear-rimmed eyes.

She hated him.

She had never liked him, but now, she truly hated him.

The way he spewed vulgar words, dredged up filthy memories, toyed with her shame—he was cruel and despicable.

Iseok reached out and gently wiped away the single tear tracing down her left cheek. His gaze followed the wet path as though licking it up, then halted right in front of her eyes.

His expression, which had been lighthearted and teasing all this time, shifted into something unsettlingly persistent.

“What do I do?” he murmured. “I just… want to breathe beside you.”

“…What?”

“For the first time, I feel like I can live like a real person. And you think I’d let you go?”

“What are you even—”

His hand cupped her right cheek, stroking it softly before pulling away.

But his eyes only deepened, heavy with an insatiable hunger, suffocating in its intensity.

As his lips curled into an almost stunning smile, Heeju saw it—the trap that had already snapped shut around her.

“Yeah. I admit it. Finding Yeon Heeju… was the greatest fortune of my life.”