Chapter 15: How much do I love it?
So-eun opened her booth eyes.
A couple of hours.
Checking the time on her cell phone as soon as she opened her eyes, So-eun jumped up in surprise.
"Hmph! Hmph!"
She almost fell asleep, even more startled than she was a second ago.
Director Kim Tae-joon was sitting right in front of her, playing a game on his cell phone. Tae-joon glanced over at So-eun, seemingly oblivious to her surprise, and went back to his game.
"It's after eleven o'clock," Han So-eun said, "and I'm waiting for you to wake up."
Even though she should have said, 'I'm sorry,' So-eun felt a twinge of resentment.
"You made Mr.... wait, too."
But she wasn't in a position to raise her voice. Tae-joon recognized the voice like a ghost.
"Do you think the value of my time is the same as the value of one of yours?"
I've heard the value of four hours of playing cell phone games before.
His heart cringed at the thought of trying to be equally sarcastic, but So-eun lowered her voice to a whisper. Her voice was still small.
"Isn't it the same for me to have 24 hours a day and for you to have 24 hours a day?"
In response, Tae-joon turned off the game and set his phone down on the desk.
So-eun was stunned by the direct look in his eyes. She hung her head in humility, wondering if she'd been too naughty.
"I thought you were just an idiot, but you're quite the tactician."
Contrary to So-eun's concerns, Tae-joon seemed amused.
"Yeah, I know how to pick. I just can't eat it."
"......."
"Did your boyfriend catch you with some kind of weakness?"
So-eun blushed at Tae-joon's lighthearted sarcasm. The incident at the hospital had become her weakness. You'd think I'm some kind of weakling for enduring such treatment from my prospective in-laws.
But I have my reasons.
I wanted to say something, but there was nothing I could say. While So-eun was biting her lower lip in frustration, Tae-joon stood up.
"Get up; I'll walk you home."
"It's okay. I'll take a taxi."
"Get in when he says he'll give you a ride."
"......."
"Don't make me get off in the middle."
I'd been kicked out of his car before; too many things had happened in the past to care. After Tae-joon drove off with a reminder of the past that didn't need to be brought up, So-eun snorted, grabbed her bag, and followed.
Tae-joon's pace was slow as he walked ahead. Like he was waiting for her.
"Did you eat dinner?"
"Yep. I ate at the office."
"I didn't."
So what.
He grumbled inwardly, but his hunger still bothered him. So-eun dug through her bag and fiddled with the sandwich. Yesterday, waiting for Tae-joon, she'd been hungry, and today she'd splurged. She bought two sandwiches but ended up eating only one and leaving one behind.
'If you hand me this...'
I'll be cursed.
Looking at the sandwich in her bag, So-eun hesitated but finally gave up and let go of it. Meanwhile, Tae-joon approached her, noticing that her pace was slowing down.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing."
"You want me to eat this?"
Tae-joon, who was quickly beside her, looked down into her bag.
Even though he was only looking inside her bag, So-eun felt embarrassed, as if she had been caught red-handed.
Tae-joon's hand stopped her from zipping up the open bag.
"I don't eat this, Nan."
"Yeah."
"But I'll take it out of the kindness of my heart."
A large hand slipped into the bag and snatched the sandwich. It happened so fast, she didn't even have time to react.
So-eun felt unnecessarily resentful. She grabbed the sandwich and shouted at Tae-joon, who was walking away from her.
It's just a sandwich! It's just a sandwich!
Don't put your heart in a sandwich. I was only trying to give you a sandwich, not a heart!
So-eun couldn't understand why people liked such a sarcastic person as sweet.
*.
The late-night car sped down the road. They were getting closer to home much faster than she thought. Tae-joon really did drive her home. By driving himself.
"I'm right around the corner; you can stop here."
"I'll go to the front of the house on the way."
"Uh......."
"Is that inconvenient?"
"No, thank you."
I was incredibly uncomfortable, but I figured it was better to go along with his wishes than to waste time arguing. It was dark outside my house, so I was grateful that someone was walking me right to my door.
Tae-joon's car turned into the alley and pulled up in front of So-eun's door.
"This is the front of the house."
"It's dark in front of your house."
At So-eun's introduction, Tae-joon tilted his head and scanned every inch of the villa through the window, his thoughts seeming to read, questioning how anyone could live in a place like this.
Even he admits that it's dark in front of the house, but when he points it out, So-eun gets a little grumpy.
It's dark in front of my house, and it's because of you that I get home from work late at night.
As I was pouting and looking for a chance to say goodbye, my bag vibrated. It was So-eun's cell phone. So-eun took her phone out of her bag. In the darkness of the car, the words 'Brother♥' on the screen glowed brightly. It was a call from Hee-wook.
So-eun hesitated, then put the phone back in her bag.
"Aren't you going to answer?"
"I'll answer it when I get home."
It was the call she'd been waiting for. He hadn't texted her first, so she didn't know exactly what he was calling about, but she could assume he was trying to reconcile. I was excited. I couldn't wait to get home and call him.
"I hope you and your boyfriend have reconciled."
"No."
I was cheered up to hear from my boyfriend. I felt vaguely emboldened to snap at this rude director.
"I've been working late every day, so I haven't had time to reconcile."
"Isn't that just an excuse? You'll find time somehow."
"......."
"So your boyfriend hasn't even apologized yet?"
However, So-eun's fierce defense brought attacks from the other side. Kim Tae-joon, who realized So-eun's situation, was no match for her. So-eun's lips tightened in anger.
"You didn't even come to see me in person, and now you're just going to slap me over the phone?"
"Because my boyfriend is busy, too."
"He's too busy to make up with you? Isn't it possible that your boyfriend didn't have the heart to make up with you?"
"......."
"He finally got back to you, and you're just going to take that as a sign that your boyfriend is awesome?"
"No, no. It's not like that."
"You should break up, then."
"You're ......?"
He hadn't even had a chance to think about my boyfriend before he blurted out the words to break up. So-eun's eyes widened at how rude he was.
"He's not even that great of a person, so why are you dating him?"
But he didn't seem to realize that he had crossed the line. The tone of his voice made her deeply uncomfortable.
So-eun retorted.
"Dating isn't about being amazing; it's about being with the right person."
"So, you're right? With him?"
He asked again.
It was clear he was sarcastically referring to his work at the hospital. His little smile was sharp, like incontinence, and she could feel him laughing at her life, trivializing its value.
"Why doesn't it look right to me?"
"No, it doesn't. It suits you."
So-eun, who had been listening, spoke up.
"I think you've only seen what happened in the hospital and misunderstood. Me and my boyfriend get along really well. We're like family, and we've shared a lot of time with each other."
"Aww......."
Tae-joon listened to So-eun's story with interest, his mouth open, then nodded in silence. The sneer at the corners of his mouth deepened a little more.
"You're like family; you eat your boyfriend's mother's byeongsuval yourself."
"......."
"You even took a month's vacation to eat your mother's byeongsu bal."
So-eun's lips parted wide, then closed.
His pointed words dug into her heart.
It hurt because it was true.
The month-long vacation was actually for her surgery and recovery, not for Malhee Kim, but somehow it ended up being a time to support his mother-in-law. She was also in the same hospital.
So-eun responded calmly, with tears in her eyes.
"Mr. Lee, I feel very uncomfortable saying that. I know you really don't like me, but I still want to."
"I don't have to like you. I like people like you a lot."
Before So-eun could finish her sentence, Tae-joon interrupted her.
"Someone with no ego. Someone who will do whatever it takes."
"......."
"I like that. I want you to know how I feel."
So-eun's face turned bright red.
She felt like her life had been mocked. This man, Kim Tae-joon, seemed to be an evil person who was only happy when she was unhappy.
Tears threatened to fall from her eyes. But she didn't want to show any emotion in front of this man.
"Thank you for the ride."
He hurriedly opened the car door, got out, and ran into the house.
So-eun ran upstairs as fast as she could.
Oof, she was out of breath from running up the stairs and swearing. Or maybe it was just a reaction to the humiliation she'd been unprepared for.
I was excited to talk to Hee-wook, but I felt completely crushed. The force of Kim Tae-joon's insult pushed her thoughts of her boyfriend away.
Calming herself, So-eun wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and composed herself.
Don't let the things they say break you.
Kim Tae-joon. Of course I told you to cross the line.
It's my heart's thought, so you can't hear it.
"Why are you interfering in other people's lives?
He was a man she could never like.
Her hatred for Taejoon made her burn.
'You need to get your life together.
I can't live by the will of someone who wishes me misery.
My destiny is my own.
So-eun pushed herself up and called Hee-wook. It was nearly midnight.
Tsk, tsk, tsk.
[He didn't pick up, so she left a voicemail.]
However, I couldn't get through to Hee-wook.
Hmph.
He should have just answered the phone instead of fighting with someone like Kim Tae-joon. You'll only make yourself feel bad and miss the opportunity.
So-eun thought about calling him one more time, but gave up and laid down on her bed.
"You know, I love people like you. People with no pride. You do whatever you have to do."
Kim Tae-joon's cruel words echoed in her head. I knew I would feel like this the rest of the night.
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