The nurse hurriedly entered the examination room. She came out shortly after and walked back to Do Jun.

“There’s a long wait for appointments, so you’ll have to wait.”

At the nurse’s words, Do Jun had no choice but to find an empty seat in the waiting room. His eyes fell on a husband worrying over his pregnant wife.

For a brief moment, Do Jun imagined Ga Eun coming to the ob-gyn alone. Seeing the bright smile of another expectant mother, he was struck by a strange feeling as he imagined Ga Eun’s lonely expression.

After waiting in the reception area for a while, it was finally Do Jun’s turn and he was able to meet Moon Ji Soo.

“So you’re Yoon Ga Eun’s husband?”

Contrary to Do Jun’s expectation that she would be flustered upon seeing his face, she appeared calm with no change in expression.

“Is it true that Yoon Ga Eun is pregnant?”

In his urgency, Do Jun wanted to immediately confirm Ga Eun’s pregnancy from the doctor. At Do Jun’s words, Ji Soo simply stared straight into his eyes without speaking right away.

“I’m asking if you secretly gave her an examination to help her hide the pregnancy.”

Only after Do Jun’s pressing did Ji Soo’s heavy lips finally move.

“The ob-gyn sees many patients who aren’t pregnant as well.”

Ji Soo skillfully evaded Do Jun’s words and continued the battle of nerves.

“And even if you are her husband, I can’t disclose personal information without the patient’s consent.”

Ji Soo’s firm attitude calmed Do Jun’s agitated state after he had impulsively rushed to the ob-gyn.

“If you have questions, please visit again with the patient.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the doctor fixed her gaze back on the computer monitor. Do Jun rose from the chair in the exam room without having gained any results. Just as he was about to leave, Ji Soo spoke again.

“May I make one request, as a friend before a doctor?”

As Ji Soo suddenly made a personal request, Do Jun turned his body to look at her face again.

“Ga Eun absolutely must not be under any stress right now. I’m asking as both a friend and a doctor.”

Ji Soo did not know why Ga Eun had to hide her pregnancy even from her husband.

But Ji Soo knew there would be limits to how long Ga Eun could conceal it. As time passed and her belly grew larger, it would become obvious to everyone even without her saying anything.

Meeting Ji Soo’s serious gaze, Do Jun felt certain in that moment that Ga Eun was pregnant.

Her confession kept replaying in his mind.

“The reason I tried to leave you was because of that person.”

Just the fact that Ga Eun’s heart was pointed in a direction other than himself filled Do Jun with such intense emotion that he couldn’t regain his senses.

She had always acted as if he was her entire life. He couldn’t accept the fact that she now loved another man instead of him.

After visiting the ob-gyn, Do Jun’s mind became even more confused.

Do Jun was convinced the child growing in Ga Eun’s womb was his own. But he couldn’t understand why she was lying about loving someone else while deceiving him.

Recalling how she had pushed him away like an insect, Do Jun’s mouth went dry. He was afraid she might really have another man.

After leaving the ob-gyn, Do Jun stood blankly in place for a while, unable to get into his car.

[This is the timeline separator]

Ga Eun picked up the phone she had dropped on her desk. The fact that Do Jun had suddenly postponed the health checkup he had been so insistent on made her anxious.

‘Could he have found out about the pregnancy?’

Ga Eun recalled telling Do Jun she wouldn’t go to the hospital and even refusing medication. She had shown signs of nausea in front of him several times, so it wouldn’t be strange if he had figured it out.

A deep sigh escaped Ga Eun’s lips. As she stared blankly at the computer monitor, her phone suddenly rang loudly. Ga Eun quickly answered upon seeing the name on the screen.

[Your husband came to the hospital himself.]

The caller was none other than the ob-gyn, Ji Soo. Hearing Ji Soo’s voice, Ga Eun felt her heart plummet.

[He seemed to already know about the pregnancy to some extent when he came. I thought you should know.]

Ga Eun’s mind went blank as Do Jun had found out about the pregnancy much sooner than she expected. After a long silence, Ji Soo spoke again.

[May I ask why you’re hiding the pregnancy from your husband?]

At Ji Soo’s words, the events of the past 3 years flashed through Ga Eun’s mind in an instant.

“If you have a child, you must leave it to me. What if it takes after your family’s heredity?”

Ga Eun deliberately avoided the gaze of her mother-in-law Ji Ae looking down at her.

“Your father visited the chairman’s office of Shino Group again today.”

Ga Eun could predict what Ji Ae would say next even without her saying it.

Since Ga Eun’s marriage to Do Jun, Chairman Yoon Gi Cheol had continually sought help from Shino Group. The growth of Segae Group was also due to capital injections from Shino Group.

“This is why people should marry those of equal status.”

Ji Ae would act like a kind mother-in-law in front of Do Jun, but when alone with Ga Eun, she habitually spewed vitriol as if to relieve her stress.

“Shouldn’t you do something for Shino Group too? Well, it seems Do Jun hasn’t even looked at you since the wedding, so what can I expect? If it weren’t for you, Do Jun would have married Yu Jin and lived happily.”

To Ji Ae, Ga Eun was like an obstacle blocking Shino Group’s path forward.

Ji Ae spoke freely to Ga Eun about Yu Jin. Whenever Ga Eun heard praise for Yu Jin from her mother-in-law’s lips, she felt shame and humiliation, as if she had stolen someone else’s place.

Ga Eun did not want to raise Taeyang in such a home.

When Ga Eun did not answer her question, Ji Soo quickly apologized.

[I’m sorry. That was too personal a question.]

Only after hearing Ji Soo’s apology was Ga Eun able to break free from old memories and calmly explain her reasons.

“I’m going to divorce my husband soon, and I don’t want my in-laws to take the baby.”

Ga Eun revealed her true feelings to Ji Soo without hiding anything.

Surely it would be alright to tell the truth to at least one person. Pretending to have lost her memory and lying was becoming increasingly difficult for Ga Eun. To tell a perfect lie, she had to deceive even herself.

[If you ever need me, don’t hesitate to call. Okay?]

At Ji Soo’s kind voice, tears welled up in Ga Eun’s eyes for a moment. Ga Eun made an effort to show Ji Soo a brave face.

“Thank you.”

After hanging up, Ga Eun felt all the strength leave her body like a burst balloon. With the fashion show approaching soon, she was distressed that she couldn’t focus on anything during this crucial time.

Just then, there was a knock at the team leader’s office door. Thinking it was a team member, Ga Eun opened her mouth toward the door without suspicion.

“Come in.”

A moment later, the person who opened the door and entered was not a team member, but Seo Yu Jin. Seeing Seo Yu Jin, Ga Eun was so surprised she couldn’t part her lips.

“It seems I startled you by coming without notice.”

Unlike the tense Ga Eun, Seo Yu Jin appeared relaxed as if meeting a friend. Ga Eun tried hard to regain her composure as she moved her dry lips.

“What brings you here without notice?”

Hostility toward Seo Yu Jin was evident in Ga Eun’s voice. But she ignored Ga Eun’s attitude and moved her lips for her own purpose.

“There’s something I really wanted to ask.”

Ga Eun looked straight into Seo Yu Jin’s eyes. Her expression management was so skillful that Ga Eun couldn’t guess why she had come based on her expression alone.

“What is it?”

Ga Eun swallowed dryly as she waited for Seo Yu Jin’s next words.

“Do you remember talking with me the night before the wedding?”

The moment she heard those words, Ga Eun’s hand gripping the edge of the table trembled. Ga Eun seemed to understand why Seo Yu Jin had come to see her without saying anything.

She immediately realized that, like her stepmother Lee Yun Sook, Seo Yu Jin had come to verify if she had really lost her memory.

“Were we close enough to talk the night before the wedding?”

Ga Eun’s hand clenched tightly as she lied. She was struggling not to be overwhelmed by Yu Jin’s pressure.

“Ah, you lost your memory in a car accident, right? I’m sorry. I forgot for a moment.”

Ga Eun bit her lower lip, trying not to fall for Yu Jin’s provocation.

The memory of that day she wanted to forget came vividly back to life at Yu Jin’s words. The night before the wedding, when Do Jun suddenly became unreachable, Ga Eun had called him. Late that night, the person who answered Do Jun’s phone was Seo Yu Jin.

[Hello?]

She sounded deliberately confident, like someone who had meant to answer the phone.

“Where is Do Jun…”

Hearing an unfamiliar woman’s voice on the call she had made to Do Jun, Ga Eun was so shocked she couldn’t speak properly.

[Ji Do Jun is sleeping next to me right now.]

At the woman’s words, Ga Eun nearly dropped her phone in surprise. Faced with this unexpected situation, Ga Eun couldn’t even ask why Do Jun was sleeping next to the woman.

[Oh, I’m late introducing myself. I’m Seo Yu Jin.]

When Ga Eun still couldn’t say anything in response, Seo Yu Jin’s bold voice continued.

[I was also Ji Do Jun’s fiancée.]

At that overly confident voice, Ga Eun had no choice but to quickly hang up.

In front of Seo Yu Jin, Ga Eun had to keep up the act of having no old memories until the end.

“We do have quite a deep history between us.”

Seo Yu Jin continued the conversation without changing her expression at all.

“I came because there’s something Yoon Ga Eun really needs to know.”