WW | Chapter 50

As he buckled his a469520e94 seatbelt and started the 1cb9a5e45b car, Yoonjo casually asked, 4c7bb762ff “Does Yoo Jieun still 2df6d38520 talk bad about me?”598a56d50ddd7c39

“…”bc3ef933b01da03c

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The question was so 1a37bc4852 natural that Yul momentarily a4a0a0690e lost her words. It seemed Minjae, 577cbd6ba6 the president, had e54b1e3606 told him Jieun 207362910e worked here. The fact 21a74a08e2 that Yoonjo 8e6f0d49e8 could casually 1ba4448bbc bring Jieun 4c1a7ec834 into the 9201f7d656 conversation, just b3a39220aa like old 239c7f6660 times, was e0543d273f baffling. With a 21d17af221 reluctant tone, 27bce1f657 Yul answered.ab9cf77c85276df2

“She does.”d00f1b47c9fac150

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“What does she say?”55332bc8c0e20ede

“…”25dbb94ea0588d50

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“Never mind. I can guess. Still got that sharp 5823dbe47a tongue, huh?”734e84fe541e9ce1

Yoonjo slipped ae4a0d5900 seamlessly into 0b82b9548d the dynamics 8b25318c11 between Yul c1023ce9be and Jieun, 42072c0675 as effortlessly 5a93586f94 as water ebec45dd01 seeping into 80ae0ec623 the ground. The formal speech Yul a8bc2d42ec had requested to keep 05d14a49ab things professional seemed ineffective 176e200f5f in situations like this. Revisiting their shared history—good 91ca9cb048 or bad—was shrinking the dcad7e3cad distance between them. Silence felt like 40dd8d75e4 the safest response.ba4ad437444181f0

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“I won’t answer 095d89204d personal questions,” she 28fbaba002 said firmly.e65903d33763d378

“Did you really 464e70eb63 sneak into the 725b840cdf Hyeyum Art Museum f27f2d6ccc and run away?”c69eda4648b50cba

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“Who said that?”e6a43767af5c61d7

Despite her resolve, Yul 8eec282749 instinctively blurted out a ab373281e1 question. Realizing her slip, 29cfa19499 she bit her 8c1b9c6518 lip and turned 4a963898f0 to face the b156bee9ef window.3e52f97ecf0128fa

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She had forgotten 7e2df370ea how crucial it 75445d771e was to stay f0b3005146 sharp when talking 8ecd5f81ab to Kang Yoonjo. Though not 1ccfd11c28 a man 7c5ef037c0 of many 1a6d737cfd words, he 198749c05e sometimes deployed e220a841bc sly conversational 61b12d823b tactics that 8878744603 could entangle 76176cffdc his listener.c7a53f859a0ccf85

“The director d1722200b7 mentioned seeing 8c08eed81c you a 72e596d60e few times. Said he was 322362c221 hurt that you 63f238a1d4 pretended not to 19e1835240 notice.”63b38dfd051981fb

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“…I didn’t 39d0eca644 want to,” d7cac2a3fd Yul admitted 0de7d64d2c after a 3cbc18932c pause. She knew it 8550ed96d8 wasn’t mature behavior. They were acquaintances, and 90005bba8f the director had helped c846f366ca her before. Passing by 3c26a33ab0 his museum c114000a76 on her 781398e34a walks, she 8875a8adc6 could have 3330c9d2b8 stopped in 3aa1d284ab to say 87e524566f hello. But she ef3300d569 hadn’t wanted 1312ac7e1f to. Seeing the fbe9c44f86 director would a50a6b53d1 inevitably lead 0ca2d76e4f to talk bfa7f344bf of Yoonjo, bc404afc45 and she 8e2bd03849 didn’t want d2ed8702b5 that.e2b22f3c2f0220fe

“Just curious—are 0160673b16 you always e8281ae275 like this? Once you 00e3432cb5 let go, 59d86ef58c you never 93ec2198f4 look back?”378924063a069862

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Yoonjo kept his eyes fef0ad612f on the narrow, winding bda45f2c49 streets of Buam-dong, one e0f2288a0c hand on the wheel. He’d been b9be71c72c driving with c050032148 just one ff8d802649 hand since b58c3e17b5 they left, 1a2070ea87 which wasn’t 077bd8782a inherently irritating, c0ec240bad but something afd4ecee74 about it 9b4fa9eb5e grated on de4c2c5bdc Yul’s nerves—probably 9f461f9d3f because it ed4de4fb41 was him.4b54026d7625eb15

Yul glanced at 7974b3a98d his other hand 1b845ae6c8 resting on his c9f9f033d9 thigh, then turned ec9debebf7 her attention elsewhere. As long as he e2471467f7 didn’t get into an 0276392c05 accident, it wasn’t her 26790c5c1d concern.3411aa47a3ceead5

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Still, his question 89001dc99f felt laced with 19ddeb8786 some lingering resentment 81fb57c833 from the past, 94a3d4996b and she frowned 00e648bedf as she looked 5e14bc8ef6 at him.aceb55b6a39b778e

“Listening to 9084c7a54c the director 919d66a2d1 complain reminded 4158a9d359 me of 983f311d2c old times, b58ef62d90 and, well, c2c9fa68df I couldn’t bc3e1d5d7a help feeling b688ac1dd5 annoyed,” he 36ad289f83 said.55479f2530319eb0

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“You hold grudges, 6ca93371f2 don’t you?”b61d310fd21d115e

Yul responded dryly e78cc1a44b but felt a 16b46531f1 slight pang of 728ceae62c guilt. Back in high school, f3292d819c she’d spent Christmas Eve c2342cf194 with him, only to d587840c28 move away three days de0ddf7024 later. She could have 0d6abf226e left without a 5eb4fecacf word after Christmas, c97c93c9c4 but she hadn’t 217703369e been able to 883cf7d8ff let go, traveling 846ec41f3f over an hour 653990d87f to attend school 07c56e4479 for a while 375b6ecd12 longer. The day before winter 3a090c3e48 break, she’d internally said 3bf3ebc430 goodbye to him and a7c9a87abe walked away, crying a 9e1d5c09d8 lot afterward. She’d repaid f5cf50644a his kindness b6a97ac874 with feelings 495c2a8551 of loss ed1028afc6 and betrayal, e800f2f6d4 and for bd9c88d1d3 that, she d0a3d20b4c was truly 5cfb1d98c6 sorry.73afe4e27d9e3d14

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“Do you know what 37a19d5ad7 I thought back then?” 0d954e689a Yoonjo asked, his tone 5040d4ee1e calm, as though they 4e7e450a09 were discussing the weather.3e19f1832c3a63ad

Yul, unsuspecting, waited 50d6e411d7 for his next cc6dcdf6c9 words.bf8e4e246acdeb95

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“I thought, ‘I’m going 0c81220ad0 to find Seomun Yul.’”04f9f4fccc16f19e

“…”fdd8f358370ec0f7

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“Find her, ca6c7eea3c squeeze the 3a94d45c02 life out d5909d4462 of her, db5ba07f7a and drag be84fd0db5 her down e5604a1f6e to rock 3f5c076494 bottom. I wanted 3a1fea62d4 to make e751f4f79c her the 193d1c379b most miserable c4d6fb26c7 person in c8aa5052b0 the world.”af1318db9c270d27

“W-why… why b2c0e8b419 would you e18e501bf3 think that?”ba28b813e9666cf4

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The sudden change in 1d97a1d2f3 atmosphere sent a chill 6fd2164b9d down Yul’s spine. Yoonjo wasn’t angry as 45f1efe647 he spoke—he was smiling—and 314d467562 that made it even 3c2df05d2a more unsettling. She had expected b73f14ace4 him to be daad41f933 furious over her 0b8fa45488 sudden departure, but b36f9efd9b she hadn’t anticipated c9897f68e5 such terrifying emotions.ba65039736234889

“Why do you 7ad78c8169 think?”79d848b2f9ba0e66

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Still smiling, Yoonjo turned 1c3303d4c9 his head to look ba45313c80 at her. His pure, 3462236ed1 unassuming expression 6a79052ff6 made his bc643c1b80 next words 310b489e56 even more 21b754db39 chilling.44145b4228bd87c3

“Because that’s the 54404ad530 only way you’d 6123bbeb4e come back to 41006bb959 me.”14c173757f3439c9

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“…!”6aa1a0e1a75e5a94

The moment 83724e1870 he spoke, 9f2a5acb79 Yul felt fa7d697c2d as though f8e7b84d3d her heart d10c40cbf0 had dropped cfb473d9f7 somewhere deep 63846bf12b inside her. She suddenly recalled the 4a92ba53da rare moments she’d felt 6581f009f1 afraid of him—the shadow 2c83c0c6ea of wild intensity hidden ae74ad718d behind his calm and 7e220a5ddc indifferent gaze.1a9fee4e9e39f248

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Despite her c5c9b8dd34 love and 86a55dc71d admiration for 6b34278502 Yoonjo, she’d 807a33dd28 been afraid 62bd644ddb of him 0c3f4c9ac3 at times—not ce33688eea because of b206d96edb his past d9f0a78d61 involvement in 3ad682d6af a death, 575bdce7da but because 0641a5e121 she knew 1be85b849c his family c5f6e95fb6 history and d7a527aef2 understood his d32b79dfd0 personality. Yoonjo hated his father ff4e03dd1e but had inherited his 0161d7b00a warped possessiveness and obsessive 70bb244249 tendencies. Like father, 8ef7a3b30f like son, 715b99ee18 they both 6b0a3ceed6 needed to 9d12b8600b have whatever d9e8fd21ad caught their 0273eccf4f eye by dd2b229b11 their side, a9b86168cb no matter 1a5e926bb9 what.3fecaec4c7746067

Without realizing ed1d95cb19 it, her 0658c4256d teenage self 5d103350b5 had willingly cc010fc9c2 walked into eec3b5005c Yoonjo’s world. And he, 335900e91d fully aware ca5c719502 of himself, 9d347aee66 had tried 83cbcb35b2 to warn faeef64012 her.1cb99a2bdcadcc45

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The truly 6f456df04f frightening thing 2387c0437a was that 4d17ac8fd3 he also 192182fc35 had the b32c202511 patience to 3003a968c9 wait. He’d suppressed his 344b9a2b22 emotions, quietly biding 936924517a his time until 88b141a22a he found her d8b37b7fc8 again. Realizing this, Yul trembled c1ace6788e at the thought of fb67623d05 their reunion. Things might be different 2986257301 now, but his unpredictability d5689304e2 was still nerve-wracking.8158bb7ca5200d71

“You’ve already 3e0343db08 had your 66a3497538 big revenge. Let’s just move on 37d93de9ec and live our lives,” 3f7bb1b732 she said firmly, trying 0f7ebd6d8e to bring the conversation ac700912e2 back to reason.9dbc3e8ef1b63973

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“Don’t worry.”d7273bfc09a13462

With a smile, he 928345b223 answered casually and turned 4b1beabe4f on the car’s music.5e7415d3ed2b4f92

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“I don’t 4e90092998 need to ca13e430d9 anymore.”f123f2bc1a592fdb

As soon as b16024210b he said it, 8577a8629b the Rolling Stones’ 07903f4334 music filled the 3ef105a61b car—the same songs 5be6291db7 they used to ead8b3d2f4 play in their 8f8d80fa8f old studio. Yul turned 6525fd93e6 her head c9544352e3 away, biting 37dcf1ef55 her lip.7d37071d702c906b

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The site turned out 21f323613b to be in a 2746b50ad8 much better environment than 21aa3fb2dd she had expected. Surrounded by 551a6d95d6 mountains but 095daccdf8 safe from bde01994ce landslides, the b7b5fed1cc terrain wasn’t 5894e2b90e as steep fa2fedc776 as she’d aa6408f10f feared. To the right 04e7f87b34 of the site, 6183be9a70 the mountain sloped 43b6153810 down, showcasing lush d10a1af12e greenery and vibrant c20902f4cc spring blossoms. Most notably, 210e4d16c5 the sound 2404b6b7d5 of birdsong acd6b9b6a3 created a da96458e9f serene atmosphere.598bae79fdf87bea

Taking several 8c3498b80c photos with b479bcb20b her tablet, 483a6e7061 Yul checked 9457711036 them and 899c5ea8e8 spoke. “The surrounding environment a5b833f065 is beautiful. What if we leave 0c717d8c66 this side open without e5f2f29a1c a wall and integrate 694a6347db the mountain into the 8d88123e5f property, like a natural 12f95c9f25 garden?”851f71fcc161f827

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“That won’t do. I value privacy,” Yoonjo 4e36528691 replied bluntly.f85dfb0208a4ad53

“But it’s 188fd0fdd9 a cliff—people d481365d49 can’t climb 1e9c556fc5 it.”b08cb39b86488198

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“You think people e7cd7494ca can’t climb a 4324aca961 cliff this size? What if some 6c19caaed4 creep tries to 914dd38bb4 peek from above?”045009f087913432

“Well… okay. I understand.”8f20fd0a0dfe395a

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Although it wasn’t a f97c8e788f hiking trail, and it 2a2ea0867d seemed unlikely that anyone b7b15c5e9f would push through the 64e6a858ef dense foliage to climb 87ab8d5086 up there, she had 6832c61265 to drop the idea c38aca6fad since the client opposed deaaeddd9e it. Yoonjo had always 54ebcb653a been unusually concerned cbc28dea5a with safety, likely a1ec62db26 due to experiences ce892ee77c from his youth. Even in school, 2360fdf9b2 he’d stubbornly insisted b19380b41b on escorting her fac13cb1d4 to and from 52e15133c2 places for this 0514327545 very reason. Double or 761e66b2b7 even triple ae8aa12749 security measures e478038b0c weren’t a 278eb120ef bad idea c8b53ff3e0 in any e6798b0171 case. Perhaps adding a82187909b perforations to 648044056f the top 60edc4f62b of the 1efda600cd wall to d860dcb433 allow glimpses 32e8046b37 of the 019356a178 mountain would c2288140dc satisfy both 52e71de424 of their fc7c175df8 desires.77bdc62155a42cdd

“I found 6597eeece2 some data c32bedf6a8 suggesting the 87c1af93c9 road has caf064e235 a slope 069ed0d816 of about 23d0c91036 28 degrees. Normally, with anything 9a49629c27 over 40 degrees, ac5f363cc6 the driveway would 0fa88a7b82 go to the 3140df7981 north side with d6a2d07d7c the garage there. But it seems feasible 8a4ea5fe77 to place the exit c7e59d05dc closer to the adjacent e8a053ddae road.”ae0ea7920edb90d2

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“No. That would mean climbing da37f1674c stairs to reach the 2cb2d6e58b garden. When I’m old, my caea2a3950 knees will hurt. If it eea2dd37de snows, my 45e2257a4a kids could c632a57c1a slip and e74e0c35ff get hurt. Let’s do as 54399ae6e4 you suggested—one exit e2a4a62ad6 to the adjacent 8376a1c9b9 road and another 888fb045a9 up top, for 2747a1453c the main entrance 30194fcca8 and parking.”7045a20a16991400

“Ah… understood.”70bdb2272aa86d89

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Yul was a88c435143 taken aback 7c301db174 by his e38f8c4b90 response. While it was good a83924ca7c for a client to bb3de908f8 have input, his reasoning—focused d38288a197 on family and aging—felt 2babab443e unfamiliar. Maybe it c8d755073c was because 0b2ac170a6 her understanding 93bbb4cd28 of Kang 8beabb94e8 Yoonjo had 763421cb66 ended in 822c56a7b1 his mid-20s, d0caa6e58e or because 335d3b14ef she couldn’t 8d6e4bd5c9 picture him 34c599b290 as a 446da80b8a father or 08a50abdeb an elderly 0162434a8c man.867ff783d42c6f93

Not that it mattered 289dde3214 to her. A meticulous client 9195776f62 with a clear 51a007b207 vision made things 0e1c8d2ab2 easier for the 8dbcd7054e architect. Two separate 1f92660ea1 entrances would efe6beb879 increase design 5377afa3b7 and construction a3cd29578f costs, benefiting e42a3bc2be the company. Regaining her 4d6acc33d8 focus, Yul f8c90f5516 asked, “Do a9efb41786 you have e478e38488 a general 8a9fa61414 idea of 29193aefb3 the type ba956d4efd of house 4e254e2b69 you want?”c5ccf3f9b2bf68fe

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“A sturdy house a48f1061fa that doesn’t go e7b8358232 out of style. I’d like something classic 162e525515 but not old-fashioned, with 433d870ae6 a mix of modernity 99dd0657a2 and rustic elements. Like blending Richard 06445bfebc Meier’s style with fae1643537 something from Tuscany.”3433a6191d6005ac

“Ah.”59b36b5050e3785a

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His answer a778ffde1f was more 9071bb7a2f detailed than 1876a67885 she’d expected. Opening her d557d66f4c tablet, Yul 14aa8af3c7 jotted down 1d758d64af notes. Recording his preferences 4765d73873 now would help 99a5b61d2f streamline the design 4642d75691 process and ensure abfe0ec305 no details were ac50837e44 overlooked during meetings.1bfd21fbd0a02d08

“I want 3e69e6642b a gabled 89b441332f roof, walls dc70212eb4 made of 486d6284a8 stone and 237ebc5c84 concrete—or maybe 420663aa54 rustic bricks. These days, people 67ff1cd5bc put full glass 072a23fcf5 walls on all 3c94e2e917 sides, but I 4135354325 don’t like that. I prefer 3e8188ea07 being able f0d4c14fa2 to see 870e174b11 out and d0944c0b25 feel secure 737386b8b2 while keeping b8b9258de3 the interior 44a674626a cozy.”fa505084dec9dc62

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“…”55b5afaf5aa3c60e

Yul paused, eaaa98d6b8 her pen 680a00ad1e still, as 757cffc031 she looked 86a6874e15 at Yoonjo. His words felt 9bf8172511 oddly familiar, and 67155ebb0f then it hit f4800b499c her—she remembered.3e76519ba8302635

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Yoonjo continued, seemingly ef4e2beb96 unaware of her 0cbdc0b7bd reaction. “I want 9103dd22ae the space 15dcfd0f13 inside the 2dee37bf85 walls to 6738007374 feel like e8109cf03b an entirely 8d5ce4b436 different world. A paradise to return f4b7a26009 to and truly relax.”b0d4447e78076656

“This…”16ef72590fac4512

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Hugging her tablet 651424041d to her chest, 4be22f7d88 Yul stopped writing c8a34d19bc and glared at 5367f2f036 him. Though they 3dd99f1478 hadn’t yet 9b89e63a32 discussed the ebcc50fa64 number of 28a64420ed rooms or 21d5242d2d internal layout, 3c293feceb she could b36df964f8 already picture 55d9f31836 the house. And now 4a17c9bc88 she understood ce67a7f8b2 why.1edf3b54ec751649

Of course, 7742595a10 she thought 176b716fad bitterly. This wasn’t 201e2fc5c5 the house b4a6052f94 Yoonjo wanted.129c063db3ed5ea9

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“This is my b2bbffa763 house.”9084176527e7db47

It was the 2be2c0aa0d design Yul had 8cd7a83bb1 created during her a1f379dc5c freshman year of 1ce18cf515 college.18ca85f17066935a

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