A Thrilling Divorce (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 8

So Myung hesitated briefly, then spoke with an awkward smile.

“He went… he went on a business trip.”

“Oh, I see? What can I get you?”

“Give me a bottle of soju.”

“Soju?”

The female president looked momentarily surprised, then quickly smiled and brought over a bottle of soju.

So Myung ordered a simple side dish and opened the soju bottle.

No matter how hard she tried to pull herself together, her thoughts kept slipping away, making her feel frustrated. The man Ji Sung kept circling in her mind.

“What do you think you’re doing? You.”

It was the first time So Myung was sitting alone in a bar. Even to herself, she looked utterly unfamiliar.

She looked around. There weren’t many customers, but everyone seemed cheerful—either with friends or lovers, enjoying themselves warmly.

Only she was alone there. No one was beside her.

It finally sank in—she had been utterly trampled and betrayed by her husband.

After drinking heavily without eating, So Myung paid and walked out, her steps repeatedly veering off course.

‘If Ji Sung were here right now, he’d help me walk. Or maybe he’d run to the pharmacy to get hangover medicine. Stop it. Why am I longing for the guy who ran away, saying he doesn’t want me?’

So Myung staggered toward home. At that moment, Do Ha stopped by the convenience store in his apartment complex. As he stepped out, he saw a woman stumbling toward him from afar.

She seemed very drunk. Yet, strangely, she looked familiar to Do Ha.

‘Oh no! It’s the woman from next door. Ugh.’

Do Ha felt extremely awkward. Of all days, to run into her again—this was already their second meeting today. Clearly, something must have happened to her. She was alone and looked terribly unsteady.

She had nearly reached the apartment complex when she finally collapsed onto a bench, lowering her head to rest.

Dizzy from the alcohol, her head spun as if everything was whirling.

Do Ha, expressionless, pretended not to see her and turned to walk away—taking about five steps—before he couldn’t hold back anymore. With a grimace, he turned around. She was still sitting right there.

“Ah. Seriously. Hmph.”

Scowling, he strode quickly back toward So Myung. As he looked her up and down, his eyes widened in shock.

Her feet were completely covered in blood. What on earth had happened to her? How could she walk around like that?

“Ugh.”

He sighed involuntarily. Do Ha walked back to the convenience store, bought antiseptic and ointment, and returned.

While he was gone, So Myung remained seated on the bench, her head hung low. Do Ha looked at her and spoke.

“Excuse me.”

Do Ha called out to So Myung. When she lifted her face, it was soaked in tears.

“What’s wrong?”

Do Ha asked, his voice filled with concern.

“Just go away.”

So Myung tried to speak coldly as she looked at Do Ha—but her tongue was too slurred, making her sound ridiculous instead.

“Where have you been walking with those feet?”

So Myung was annoyed and irritated by this man scolding her like she was a child.

“Just… go awa…y. Don’t bother… me.”

“No way I can just leave you like this.”

Do Ha crouched down beside her on the ground, applied antiseptic to her feet, then ointment, and finally covered them with large bandages.

“What are you… do…ing? Stop it.”

So Myung scowled fiercely at Do Ha.

“Your feet are covered in blood.”

Do Ha silently finished applying the bandage. So Myung shouted at him.

“Get lost! I said… get lost! You don’t know anything!”

“Sigh. Come on, let’s go.”

Do Ha turned his back toward So Myung.

“What are you doing?”

“Get on my back. We’re neighbors—I’ll carry you home. Or else, call your husband.”

“I’ll… go myself… mister. Just leave.”

“You’d better call your husband. It was thoughtless of me to offer to carry you.”

“I don’t have a husband! Just go—I’ll manage on my own.”

So Myung tried to stand up, stumbling, but collapsed back onto the ground a short distance later.

Do Ha crouched in front of her, pulled her arms, and lifted her onto his back.

He thought it was sheer luck that the distance between the convenience store and his home was so short.

“Put me down!”

“Let’s just go.”

Do Ha spoke gently to So Myung.

He carried her limp body into the elevator. Too drunk to resist, So Myung stayed quiet.

But soon, warmth kept spreading across his back—and before long, it grew damp.

An unfamiliar woman was crying on his back. Do Ha felt deeply sorry for her.

What had hurt her so badly? She seemed so pitiful.

When they reached her front door, he set her down. With her tear-streaked face, she gave him a slight nod and entered her passcode.

Then she staggered inside. Through the slightly open door, he saw a fallen picture frame on the floor.

‘A wedding photo?’

There was clearly trouble between her and her husband.

Though he felt sorry for her, Do Ha decided this was where he’d draw the line—he shouldn’t get involved in another couple’s problems.

Soon after, her front door slammed shut.

He worried she might step on glass shards again, and his heart grew uneasy.

‘Ah, enough. That’s it.’

Do Ha resolved not to interfere in her affairs anymore. Today had felt like an exhausting, long day.

Back home, he showered and immediately got into bed. His body was tired, his eyelids heavy—but his mind stayed clear.

What on earth was going on? He realized he couldn’t stop thinking about her.

Because he too knew well the pain of betrayal by someone he loved. Because he could understand her heart. He had a feeling he’d toss and turn before finally falling asleep tonight.

******

How long had she slept? So Myung looked around with blurry eyes. Her stomach ached terribly—probably because she’d drunk alcohol she never usually touched.

Instinctively, she glanced at the spot beside her. Ji Sung had always held her tightly. Mornings waking up alone after sleeping together always felt unbearably lonely.

She barely managed to sit up and place her feet on the floor when something felt strange—she looked down.

Large bandages covered her feet.

“Huh? What’s this?”

Then, like pieces of a puzzle clicking together, memories gradually returned: throwing the wedding frame, drinking heavily, sitting alone on the convenience store bench near her apartment…

Suddenly, she couldn’t help but scream.

“Aaah! I don’t know!”

She grabbed her hair with both hands in anguish—but the damage was already done.

“Gosh, I’ve gone crazy. Totally crazy.”

She’d cried so hard onto Do Ha’s back that his clothes were soaked, and he’d cleaned her bleeding, glass-cut feet and even applied bandages.

“Why am I so pathetic? Seriously.”

To trouble a complete stranger like this! Just thinking about how she’d face the CEO from next door made her face burn with shame. Her throat felt parched, so she barely stood up and headed toward the kitchen.

Her foot wounds throbbed painfully.

“Oh right, I need to clean up the glass.”

So Myung first drank some water in the kitchen, then picked up the scattered frame and photo from the floor and threw them straight into the trash.

She gathered the scattered glass shards, wrapped them in newspaper, and ran the vacuum cleaner.

The wedding photo of So Myung and Ji Sung that had been in the living room vanished in an instant.

Her wall now looked hollow without the frame.

But she silently vowed she’d never regret throwing it away.

Though she rarely met people like him, she was deeply grateful to the CEO. After drinking water, she walked back to her bedroom.

And there, she made a decision: she wouldn’t act so easily as Ji Sung expected her to.

******

Ji Sung visited a tattoo shop today to keep his promise to Ra Hee Chae.

She wanted to leave each other a permanent mark of their love.

Ji Sung wasn’t interested in getting tattoos, and he disliked showing their relationship openly, so he’d previously declined gently to avoid hurting her feelings.

But he thought, if this was something she truly wanted, what couldn’t he do for her? To them, this was a meaningful event.

When Ji Sung agreed to get a tattoo, Ra Hee Chae was overjoyed. Her overwhelming love left him dizzy. When she smiled, he felt happy too.

They sat side by side on the sofa, browsing through tattoo designs.

He’d worried she might want something too large or obvious—but she suggested getting small initials instead. They decided to tattoo each other’s initials on the inner part of their forearms.

Ji Sung got “RH” for Ra Hee, and Ra Hee got “JS” for Ji Sung. After the tattoo artist finished, they happily held their arms together, admiring each other’s new ink.

“Oppa, I’m so happy.”

When the word “happy” slipped from her lips, Ji Sung’s mouth unconsciously curved into a smile, his cheeks flushing red.

He felt their love was fate. He only regretted meeting her so late in life.

Just then, his phone suddenly rang. It was his mother, Madam Jung.

“Uh… Mom.”

[Ji Sung, when are you coming over today?]

“Huh?”

[Didn’t So Myung tell you?]

“What’s going on?”

[I called So Myung to have dinner together today.]

“I’m out right now. Call her and tell her not to come.”

[Ji Sung? What’s wrong? I just wanted to see my son.]

“Mom, I’ll explain everything later—but don’t be shocked when you hear this.”

[What are you talking about? You’re scaring me.]

“I’m going to divorce So Myung.”

“What? What did you just say?”

“I’ll come by in a few days. I’m not with So Myung right now, so tell her not to come. I’m afraid you’ll scold me for saying something absurd.”

[Divorce out of nowhere…]

“Mom, that’s all for now. I’m hanging up.”

Ji Sung ended the call, cutting off Madam Jung’s flustered voice.

Ra Hee Chae looked at Ji Sung with a worried expression after he hung up.

“Ra Hee? Why that look?”

“What if Oppa’s mom doesn’t like me?”

“That won’t happen. Mom’s always on my side. Hey, since you’re in such a good mood, how about we go to the department store?”

“Why the department store?”

“I was thinking of buying my Ra Hee a designer bag.”

“Really, Oppa?”

“Let’s go.”

Ra Hee Chae’s heart fluttered—already imagining the luxury bag Ji Sung would soon buy her, on top of getting matching tattoos.

She felt as if she were floating—no longer needing to live in that cramped officetel or worry about money.

All she needed was to get rid of his annoying wife as soon as possible.

******

Meanwhile, Do Ha lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. He dreaded going to his family home so much that he kept delaying getting ready.

Wasn’t this hard-earned independence worth something?

Yet they kept pressuring him to visit practically every day, which drove him crazy.

Visiting home always meant endless talks about marriage, which exhausted him.

He didn’t believe in love. Did eternal love even exist? He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d felt his heart race at the sight of someone.

Sighs kept escaping his lips—he was under extreme stress.

Then his phone began ringing persistently, as if on cue. Just as he’d expected—it was his father, Chairman Cha.

“Yes, Father.”