A Real Married Couple - Chapter 28

Hee Won liked that Joo Ah was worried about her, but she wished she wouldn’t.

[Isn’t that senior the closest friend of senior Cha Hyuk?]

She was worried that Joo Ah might get into an argument with her boyfriend Cha Hyuk because of her.

[Ah, I don’t know either. Elder brother knows too. But he said it could happen. Elder brother seems to have noticed that his friend has some ulterior motives for you. I really don’t think much of senior Min Tae Hyung as elder brother’s friend, but there’s something creepy about the way he looks at you. So never get close to him. He gives off the feeling of some kind of villain or mastermind.] [Pfft, what’s that? You’ve been reading romance fantasy lately, so you’re judging everything like that?] [Hee Won, you know my intuition is never wrong, right? That senior clearly likes you. And it doesn’t feel pure at all. So never get close to him. This elder sister has dated many men, so listen to me. Got it?]

However, contrary to Joo Ah’s words, Tae Hyung was a well-known popular figure at school.

Min Tae Hyung was the son of the current Minister of Justice and an elite among elites born into a family of legal professionals for generations, including the Prosecutor General, Chief Justice, and Chief Prosecutor of the Central District. With his looks and excellent manners, he was the object of admiration for all female students.

Though they were in different departments, they had overlapping elective courses, and by chance, they ended up doing a group project together, and they were just on greeting terms when passing by.

But as Cha Hyuk and Joo Ah started dating, Tae Hyung began to actively acknowledge her.

Of course, due to Joo Ah’s sharp vigilance, she hadn’t been alone with Tae Hyung much.

In fact, she had never seen him as a man before, so she wasn’t even interested in Tae Hyung.

But at some point, it became known to almost everyone on campus that Tae Hyung had feelings for her.

And one day, when Joo Ah and Cha Hyuk took a day off from school to celebrate their anniversary, Tae Hyung confessed.

[Hee Won, I like you.] [I’m sorry, senior. I don’t like you. So I hope you won’t do this.]

Hee Won firmly rejected him on the spot.

“But Min Tae Hyung is unexpected. He seems to have a lot of pride.”

At Joo Ah’s words, Hee Won gave an awkward smile. She remembered the last thing Tae Hyung had said.

[Is that so? It’s okay. But I won’t give up on you. It’s fine if you reject me. I’ll keep telling you.]

Tae Hyung asked to meet, and of course, she refused. This was followed by three more confessions.

Each time she firmly rejected him, but Tae Hyung’s feelings didn’t seem to have changed.

“Who knows.”

Hee Won, feeling Tae Hyung’s gaze even from afar, pretended not to notice the intense stare fixed on her as she answered.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re married now.”

As Joo Ah said, there was no reason to be entangled with Tae Hyung anymore.

* * *

Late in the evening, Hee Won sat across from Kang Woo, who had returned from work, at the dining table.

Today, she had decided to have dinner with him.

When Hee Won just nibbled without really eating, Kang Woo examined her face.

“Do you have something on your mind?”

Hee Won looked up at Kang Woo’s worried voice coming from above her head.

When their eyes met, her heart wavered.

“…I.”

She had been constantly worrying after receiving the call from Chairman Seong. Whether she should tell him about the conversation with her father or not.

[What did you say to Director Cha about us that made him treat us like that? No matter how great he is, how can there be a son-in-law who disrespects his in-laws? Or is it that Director Cha doesn’t like you?]

It was because her father had taken issue with his attitude.

Of course, Hee Won knew that Kang Woo had a resolute side. But he wasn’t a person without manners. Moreover, from what she had experienced, he wasn’t someone who would act rashly or impulsively.

‘Father must have called first. And he must have said something. I wonder what Kang Woo said in response?’

She pondered amidst the endless questions that kept arising, but in the end, she couldn’t come to a conclusion.

“Is it something you can’t tell me?”

“…Kang Woo.”

“If your current worry has something to do with me, I hope you won’t suffer alone. We might not be able to solve it right away, but we can think of a solution together.”

“……”

Finally, persuaded by Kang Woo’s words, Hee Won decided to ask directly.

“Actually.”

“Yes, Hee Won.”

“Father contacted you, didn’t he?”

Kang Woo answered without hesitation to Hee Won’s question.

“Yes, he did.”

“Ah.”

“So that was what was worrying you.”

Kang Woo rubbed his chin, folded his arms, and looked at Hee Won. Then he shared what Chairman Seong had said.

“He asked me to come to the house to talk about business. In conclusion, I refused because your father’s demands seemed excessive.”

“…Demands?”

Demands? This was the first time she was hearing about this.

“What kind of demands?”

An uneasy feeling suddenly reared its head.

“He wanted to relocate the company building, so I refused.”

“What? The building?”

Hee Won unknowingly raised her voice in surprise.

“Yes. The LS Media building in Bundang is currently vacant as they’ve relocated, and your father said he wanted Jinsung Foods to use that empty building.”

“…How could he say such a thing? How could he…”

Hee Won’s face turned deathly pale. She was seething at her father’s outrageous act that didn’t consider her position at all.

Kang Woo unfolded his arms, stood up, and moved to sit next to Hee Won.

“I’m, I’m sorry. I, my father…”

Kang Woo embraced Hee Won’s trembling, delicate body and pulled her towards him.

“I’m fine.”

“…I didn’t know, I didn’t know father would say such things.”

She knew that Chairman Seong’s greed was boundless. And she also knew that this marriage was solely for the company. But hearing it with her own ears, Hee Won couldn’t bear it.

If Kang Woo had despised or hated her because of it.

The thought was too terrible to bear.

Kang Woo’s gaze fell on her trembling shoulders and then lifted. His brow furrowed.

“Our relationship won’t change because of what was said. And I refused your father’s proposal.”

At Kang Woo’s words, Hee Won looked up. He tucked her disheveled hair behind her ear and continued speaking.

“Don’t misunderstand. This is an objectively drawn conclusion. Even though he’s your father, I have no intention of giving special treatment to Jinsung Foods. This has nothing to do with what kind of relationship you and I have. Regardless of our relationship, it wouldn’t be good for the company, and even if things went well, if they didn’t, it wouldn’t be good for you either.”

“……”

“After that, he asked me to come to the house, and I said I’d visit next time, citing my schedule as a reason.”

Although Kang Woo offered comfort, Hee Won couldn’t say anything due to the feeling of humiliation. Unable to control the surging emotions, she bit her lower lip hard.

Kang Woo reached out and held her hand as he looked at her.

“And I’m sorry. I should have been the one to think about visiting your parents first. I was short-sighted due to impure thoughts.”

Hee Won just stared blankly at Kang Woo instead of answering.

“What your father wants is beyond what I can provide, I hope you understand.”

“Yes. Of course…”

If Kang Woo had accepted her father’s proposal, it would have been an even greater shock.

Hee Won was rather grateful that he had refused the offer.

“Thank you for not accepting it.”

“…Hee Won.”

“This might sound strange, but I want to be equal with you, Kang Woo.”

Kang Woo silently looked at Hee Won.

“I’d like you to judge matters related to Jinsung Foods objectively. In the future too.”

He quietly nodded at her words.

Even now they weren’t on equal footing, but if Kang Woo had done as Chairman Seong wanted, it would have truly become a superior-subordinate relationship.

“You can refuse unreasonable requests in the future too. And may I ask one favor?”

“Tell me.”

“Can you tell me what my father says when he contacts you?”

Even if knowing wouldn’t change anything, at least it seemed like she could completely let go of any lingering affection for her legal family, including Chairman Seong.

“And I think we should visit home once. I don’t want you to hear words you shouldn’t because of that incident.”

Her father would surely pester her and Kang Woo until he got what he wanted. So in the long run, it might be wiser to endure it once and be done with it.

“……”

“Just please don’t be disappointed in me no matter what you see there.”

“There’s nothing that could make me disappointed in you because of other factors. So you don’t need to think that way.”

Hee Won felt like a thorn had been removed from her throat at Kang Woo’s answer.

The situation might change when it actually happens, but his words were what she wanted to hear.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

“And I’ll do as you say. From now on, whatever happens, I’ll tell you first before you hear it from someone else. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay.”

Hee Won was smiling with a calm expression. But Kang Woo knew.

Even though she was pretending to be fine, even though she said that, her body was still trembling.

Overwhelmed by emotion, Kang Woo pulled Hee Won into an embrace.

“Thank you for understanding.”

Kang Woo gently stroked her slender back, waiting for her trembling to subside. It was the only thing he could do right now.