Chapter – 12
“Are you crazy?”
Startled by Seokjin’s unexpected behavior, Ga-eun shot him a look full of disbelief.
Her mother, standing beside her, was also frozen, unable to utter a word.
Seokjin—Seokjin Joo, the head of Joo Shin Retail—was going to spend the night in this tiny apartment, which was several times smaller than his own house?
“…As you can see, the place is small. There are only two rooms: mine and Ga-eun’s. Where else could I put you to sleep?”
“I think it’s fine to sleep here.”
Seokjin gestured toward the cramped living room.
“Mom, wait a moment.”
Ga-eun grabbed Seokjin’s arm and led him to the kitchen, lowering her voice so her mother couldn’t hear.
“Seokjin, are you in your right mind?”
“As you can see, I am.”
“No, but… you staying at our house? How is that reasonable?”
Ga-eun clenched her teeth, her face flushing with rising emotion.
Yet Seokjin’s expression didn’t change at all.
Seeing that, Ga-eun began to doubt herself.
“Ga-eun.”
His low, businesslike tone carried no emotion.
“When I have something I must accomplish, I use every method at my disposal to achieve it. Right now, what I must achieve is marrying you, Ga-eun.”
He continued, speaking as if giving instructions to a newly hired employee, his voice dry and heavy.
“Your mother is not approving of our marriage. If I leave now, she’ll probably tell you not to see me, right?”
“…That could happen, or it might not; I’d say fifty-fifty.”
“My guess is one hundred percent. Let’s think simply. You own the brand that wants to enter Joo Shin Department Store. If I reject it because it doesn’t fit our image, would you just step back?”
“…No.”
“Then what would you do?”
Ga-eun understood what he was implying.
The method he was choosing to somehow persuade her mother, who was opposed no matter what… this was it.
Seeing Ga-eun stay silent, Seokjin took a step closer and brought his face near hers.
“It’s a primitive method, but I will keep pushing until it works. Starting with camping out here like this.”
“It’s still inappropriate to do this all of a sudden.”
“I have no choice. I didn’t think your mother would oppose me. I thought she’d approve… but I was wrong.”
This confidence of his…
Ga-eun squinted at Seokjin.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Honestly, wouldn’t I be a decent son-in-law?”
“…There’s a saying: ‘Freedom to be mistaken.’”
“A mistake?”
“Nothing. Just a saying. But, I’m sorry, Seokjin, I can’t do this.”
“Why not?”
“As my mother said, there are only two rooms in our house. Even if you’re okay with it, you don’t make guests sleep in the living room.”
Ga-eun looked troubled.
She had asked her mother’s permission, but she hadn’t expected him to suddenly appear at her house.
Seeing the surprise on his face at the small, old apartment, she felt for the first time what it meant to feel ashamed.
She had always known objectively that her home was below average, but she had never felt embarrassed before.
Yet seeing Seokjin, someone exuding elegance, standing in her house… the thought struck her: this is such a mismatched scene.
Like oil and water, completely incompatible.
And at this moment, the thought only grew stronger.
“Then we don’t have to sleep in the living room, right?”
“Then?”
“Let’s just sleep in Ga-eun’s room. There’s a bed, isn’t there?”
“There is.”
Ga-eun nodded.
Wait a minute, what is this man saying?
He wants to sleep in my room?
Her cheeks flushed even deeper than before.
“Sleeping on the floor would hurt my back.”
“Why should I make you sleep in my room?”
“Who said I couldn’t sleep in the living room?”
She realized that by refusing the living room, she had unintentionally suggested he sleep in her room.
“…Are you doing this on purpose?”
“Yes.”
What audacity.
He even looked at her as if nothing was wrong.
Ga-eun sighed involuntarily.
“Seokjin, please go home for today.”
“I’ve decided to sleep at your house tonight. You’ll learn over time that I hate situations where I have to change my mind.”
With his firm words, Seokjin brushed past Ga-eun’s shoulder and had already reached her mother in the living room before she could stop him.
“It’s because Ga-eun said I could use her room.”
“Our Ga-eun?”
“Yes, ma’am. Then I’ll rely on you for tonight. Where is Ga-eun’s room?”
Awkwardly standing next to him, Ga-eun pointed to her room.
“Oh… that’s here.”
“Why suddenly so polite?”
Seokjin smiled softly.
“You must be nervous.”
“Mom, may we take a short walk?”
“Uh, sure.”
Even her mother had given in to his bold, forward manner and allowed them to go out.
Seokjin put his bag away and naturally took Ga-eun’s hand.
To anyone watching, it looked like a couple intimately strolling together.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay…”
With a bright, happy smile, Ga-eun left the house holding Seokjin’s hand.
As soon as they stepped outside, Ga-eun quickly pulled her hand away.
She had yanked it so abruptly that it seemed like she was rejecting him, and she felt a little guilty, giving an awkward smile.
But Seokjin didn’t seem to mind at all.
“Let’s walk a bit.”
“Yes.”
The streetlights dimly illuminated the alley, creating a soft, almost romantic glow.
The quiet neighborhood was so still that only their footsteps could be heard, giving the scene a subtle, mysterious atmosphere.
“Seokjin…”
Thinking this was her chance to back out, Ga-eun stopped walking and began speaking.
“I really think we should just forget about this.”
Seokjin tilted his head, silently urging her to continue.
“I acted too impulsively. I don’t think we suit each other. And I’m certain your family will strongly oppose me… I’m not confident.”
“So, you want to marry me even more?”
“Huh?”
Usually, when families oppose, people just give up.
Ga-eun was curious about his reasoning.
“Yes, your family will oppose, just as you said. They’ll probably say hurtful things along the way.”
“I don’t understand why you’d still go through with a marriage opposed by family.”
“I need to ‘sort out’ my family,” he said.
‘Sort out his family’? Ga-eun had never heard that phrase before. She couldn’t comprehend that she could somehow be involved in that process.
“There are complicated circumstances. You’ll understand in time.”
“I don’t know your circumstances, but I think it’s better to just forget about the marriage. I think it would be better for both of us in the long term.”
“Your long-term plan is to be a cool, relaxed girl on a Maldivian beach with some other guy, right?”
“Relaxed?!”
Ga-eun felt insulted, thinking he was mocking her.
“Oh, my expression was a bit over the top. Sorry about that,” he said, but his face didn’t show any remorse.
Ga-eun decided to just tease him back.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about. My dream is to be like Wendy Deng.”
“Wendy Deng?”
“Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife. She’s an amazing woman!”
“That woman…”
“Just the result, ignoring the process. Incredible results.”
Seeing Seokjin’s face harden, she felt a little pleased.
People must experience the consequences of their actions to realize when they’ve gone too far.
Like Seokjin, who was now wearing a displeased expression.
The desire to be like Wendy Deng was just a spur-of-the-moment thought.
If Seokjin ever looked her up, the first photo that came up would be what she had pictured in her mind.
“Wendy Deng or whatever, you’re not going to talk about canceling this marriage again.”
“That’s a bit…”
“Ga-eun?”
“You said your family will oppose, right? No matter the reason, you don’t need to hammer nails into their hearts…”
The word “family” caused Seokjin’s expression to twist slightly.
What could possibly be so complicated that this outwardly perfect man would go to such lengths?
“…I want revenge on them, and you just need to give me the opportunity.”
“Me?”
“I’ll come to your house tomorrow evening to introduce myself. You can do whatever you want there. Make your family lose it, and I’ll even give you a special bonus. It’ll be even better if the rest of the family freaks out too.”
How twisted must his family situation be for him to casually talk about revenge to someone like her?
“You really mean I can do whatever I want?”
Seokjin nodded.
It would be difficult to act freely in front of a chaebol family, but if the goal was to go against them, it was a rare, easy opportunity.
“And what if they complain about me?”
“Then I won’t stand by… so don’t worry.”
Seeing his confident expression and hearing his words made Ga-eun feel reassured.
She didn’t need to worry anymore.
“Then I really can do whatever I want?”
