An Instinctive Proposal (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 23

In front of Tae Han’s resolute gaze, Yeon Woo couldn’t bring herself to utter a single word and could only stare at him blankly.

It looked as if flames were burning within his dark eyes. Just locking eyes with him made it hard to breathe.

“Seriously….”

Only after a long while did she finally come to her senses.

“I really don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

Yet her heart was pounding. It beat so fiercely she felt as if her whole body might sway.

“I know I’ve received a lot of help from you, and I truly am grateful—but I’m not your property.”

In her entire life, she’d never once heard herself described as someone else’s jurisdiction.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear what you just said.”

Tae Han, who could rattle her so easily with such an absurd declaration, had now become more than burdensome—he frightened her.

Having finished speaking, Yeon Woo quickly turned around.

She no longer had the courage to face him.

“Whoever it may be, if it’s in your womb, it falls under my jurisdiction.”

As Yeon Woo walked away, she bit down on her lips.

Why hadn’t those words felt horrifying the moment she’d heard them?

She should’ve been furious at being treated like an object along with her child—yet oddly, she felt the opposite.

A subtle comfort.

A strange sense of relief, simply because those words came from him—the child’s father.

She thought it was a bizarre emotion.

Feeling more confused about herself than ever before—more than she could understand herself compared to Tae Han—Yeon Woo quickened her pace. She felt she needed to escape this situation to cool her head.

“Seo Yeon Woo.”

But her name was called from behind.

When she didn’t stop walking, he grabbed her wrist this time.

Only then did Yeon Woo turn around, her eyes already glistening with moisture. Tae Han’s expression was twisted with tension.

“Is it really over just because you say you’ll pretend not to have heard it and then run away?”

“Then what am I supposed to say?”

She was genuinely asking because she didn’t know.

What could Seo Yeon Woo possibly do in front of Ki Tae Han?

No matter what she tried, would it ever get through to him?

“You already decided that yourself, didn’t you? So what else is there for me to say?”

At that, Tae Han took a deep breath, his chest rising fully, then stared intently into Yeon Woo’s eyes as if trying to pierce right through them.

“That’s right. Which is exactly why saying you’ll pretend not to have heard it doesn’t make sense.”

“…….”

“You heard it—with your own ears.”

Clearly.

At his next words, Yeon Woo unconsciously bit her lip again.

“I’ll do things my way.”

So stop pushing me away.

To Yeon Woo, it felt like a warning.

The setting sun, blazing as it sank, bathed Tae Han’s head in red before vanishing beyond the horizon.

It was the first time since she’d fallen in love with him

that she sensed—perhaps she’d never truly escape him.

Finally, the Jeju trip was over.

Though it hadn’t been particularly busy or complicated, the moment Yeon Woo arrived home the next day, she collapsed straight onto her bed.

Her whole body felt as if it were melting away.

She’d been exhausted on the return flight from constantly watching Tae Han’s reactions, and now that it was safely over, her tension had completely dissipated.

Moments later, the phone rang.

With her face still buried in the pillow, Yeon Woo reached around blindly with her eyes closed.

But she found nothing.

Only then did she remember she’d tossed her phone carelessly into her bag on the floor.

“Ah….”

Too drained to move, Yeon Woo just lay there until the ringing stopped.

Soon after, the call ended, and a notification tone signaled an incoming text message.

‘It can’t possibly be the CEO, right?’

Thankfully, when she finally mustered the energy to check her missed call log, she saw Gyu Bin’s name. The text was from him too.

[Did you get home?]

Now that she thought about it, he’d called right before takeoff, and she’d told him she’d boarded the plane.

[Yeah. Thanks to you.] [Good. About our plan to meet—would you happen to be free tomorrow? My mom and I have something to take care of in Seoul.]

‘Tomorrow?’

As Yeon Woo recalled her schedule for the next day, she realized she had nothing special after work and tapped the keypad.

[Yeah, I’m free.]

Instead of replying with another text, he immediately called.

But won’t you be tired if we meet tomorrow? Will you be okay?

“I’ll be fine. I’ll be heading to work anyway, and I can just rest well tonight.”

As she replied, she checked the time—it was 5 p.m. She planned to eat an early dinner and sprawl out until she fell asleep.

Then let’s meet after you get off work. We’ll come near your office.

“Alright, see you tomorrow.”

Having set the plan to meet Gyu Bin the next day, Yeon Woo moved to end the call.

Yeon Woo.

Just before she pressed the end button, she heard Gyu Bin’s voice again.

Nothing unusual happened in Jeju, right?

“Why do you ask?”

Just… your voice sounded off earlier.

Had she really been that obvious—enough for Gyu Bin to notice?

Especially since Tae Han’s seat had been closer on the return flight than on the way there, she’d even been self-conscious about talking on the phone.

“It was just because I was speaking softly—I was on the plane. Anyway, see you tomorrow.”

Yeon Woo quickly ended the call, put her phone down, and stretched widely.

She was starting to feel hungry.

Since the baby shouldn’t go hungry, Yeon Woo immediately headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge.

But all she found inside were a few bottles of water, a couple of beer cans, and some eggs.

She quickly closed the door and opened a food delivery app on her phone, planning to order while she showered.

‘Should I get chicken? No, something healthier than fried food…’

Bossam sounded perfect.

Since she’d enjoyed pork so much in Jeju, morning sickness probably wouldn’t be an issue.

Just imagining the tenderly boiled meat topped with spicy dried radish strips made her mouth water.

As she scrolled with her thumb to find a bossam restaurant, the sudden ring of the doorbell made her flinch.

The screen cleared, and in its place appeared a daunting name.

[CEO Ki Tae Han]

Yeon Woo froze, staring blankly at the three brightly lit characters on her screen.

“What? Why’s he calling?”

Technically, she was still on vacation until today—should she even answer?

But Yeon Woo still didn’t have the nerve to ignore him. Besides, she dreaded the backlash if she didn’t pick up.

In the end, she barely managed to answer just before the call cut off.

“Hello…?”

Why did you take so long to answer the phone?

Of course, he started with a scolding. Yeon Woo swallowed her explanation about almost not picking up and simply spoke.

“I was resting, so I’m sorry for the delay. Why did you call?”

Come downstairs if you haven’t eaten yet.

Yeon Woo was momentarily speechless at his blunt, straight-to-the-point statement.

Since he’d said nothing at the airport, she’d assumed they’d see each other again only at the office tomorrow.

He had offered to drive her home, but when she’d declined, not wanting to impose, he hadn’t insisted a second time.

Of course—Ki Tae Han wasn’t the type to give up easily.

“No, I wasn’t planning to…”

I’m already in your apartment’s parking lot.

Before Yeon Woo could finish her reply, Tae Han dove even deeper into the matter.

Flustered, Yeon Woo’s lips trembled slightly.

Had he intended to come over from the start? That explained why he’d yielded so readily at the airport—it had surprised her.

Even if she lacked the courage to outright refuse him, she certainly didn’t have the nerve to sit across from him and share a meal.

“I’m sorry, but I’d really like to eat alone at home.”

I know you don’t want to eat with me.

But why?

Come down before the food gets cold.

Yeon Woo’s eyes widened at his immediate response.

“What? Did you possibly… order takeout?”

But Tae Han, having issued his command-like statement, abruptly hung up.

Yeon Woo stared bewilderedly at the call duration—just over 30 seconds.

When she went down to the parking lot, a luxury sedan stood out as if it had been photoshopped into the scene, radiating elegance all by itself.

Yeon Woo unconsciously took a deep breath before opening the passenger door.

“Did you wait long?”

She’d been slightly delayed fixing her messy hair after lying in bed.

Tae Han wore the same outfit as when they’d parted at the airport. So he really had gone straight to get takeout.

“Here.”

He handed her a heavy plastic bag.

“What’s this…?”

Yeon Woo’s eyes widened when she saw the restaurant logo imprinted on the bag.

“Bossam?”

On the day of the secretarial team’s outing, they’d all ordered bossam lunch boxes from this very place and eaten together.

Though she usually liked meat, that particular meal had especially suited her taste, and she’d scraped her container clean. Still, there was no way he’d remembered that day.

“How did you know…?”

And she’d just been about to order bossam herself.

“You wanted to eat this?”

But Yeon Woo didn’t answer; instead, she murmured almost to herself,

“There’s way too much here for just one person.”

“Are you suggesting we eat together?”

“Oh—no, of course not.”

Flustered, Yeon Woo stumbled over her words, and Tae Han gave a soft chuckle as he placed his hand on the steering wheel.

“Go upstairs and eat.”

Yeon Woo fell silent for a moment and looked at Tae Han.

The old parking lot lacked proper lighting, leaving the car’s interior dim.

Yet some faint light from outside beautifully illuminated his face.

No—it wasn’t the lighting that was brilliant. It was Ki Tae Han himself.

Had he really gone out of his way to bring her bossam from this place, just because she was hungry? Her heart fluttered.

This restaurant was far from both his residence and her apartment.

“What are you waiting for? Hurry up and take it upstairs before the car fills with the smell.”

His scolding instantly cooled the warmth rising in Yeon Woo’s chest.

Of course. There was no way he’d genuinely care about her.

Yet despite that thought, the fact remained that he’d gone to get bossam for her—and it left her with a strange feeling.

“I’ll enjoy it. See you tomorrow.”

Worried her emotions might show on her face, Yeon Woo quickly bowed to him and hurried out of the car.

The bossam bag was so heavy she needed both hands to carry it.

Meanwhile, watching Yeon Woo disappear into the building, Tae Han’s eyes darkened.

After parting at the airport, he hadn’t wanted to wait until the next day, so he’d wandered near her apartment.

His eyes happened to fall on the bossam restaurant’s sign, and he remembered how delightedly she’d eaten it.

He’d called Sung Won to confirm which restaurant it was, then impulsively went to pick some up.

Truthfully, he’d wanted to eat it with her.

It wasn’t a dish he particularly favored—but he’d wanted to see Yeon Woo’s eyes light up again with joy while she ate, just like in Jeju.

Yet seeing how uncomfortable she’d been even making eye contact with him, he’d hastily sent her away.

“Sigh…”

Unable to contain his frustration, Tae Han exhaled sharply and turned the steering wheel—well, he tried to.

Rrrr.

If only the phone hadn’t rung shrilly at that exact moment.