Boiling Desire (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 11
Ha Joon examined Seo Ah’s index finger, which had been tightly wrapped in the tissue he was holding. Thankfully, despite the amount of blood, the wound wasn’t deep.
He immediately fetched the first-aid kit and took out the antiseptic.
Seo Ah’s pupils trembled violently, and her face looked even more tearful than before.
Seeing her expression, Ha Joon grew restless. Had he done something wrong again? Or was she just in pain?
“Why, why!”
“Can’t… can’t we just skip that?”
When Seo Ah stared straight at the antiseptic and spoke, Ha Joon let out an amused snort.
“Ha.”
Seo Ah still seemed stuck at seventeen. What was the point of acting like a cold, aloof woman when she was clearly just a kid who was scared of antiseptic?
“Exactly. Who told you to get hurt? Why go through all this trouble doing something no one asked for?”
As Ha Joon opened the antiseptic bottle, Seo Ah took a step backward.
“I—I’ll do it myself. Give it to me.”
She was awfully determined to handle it alone. With one hand holding the first-aid kit and the other gripping her wrist, Ha Joon gently guided her toward the sofa.
He quickly placed the kit on the table, then sat on the sofa with his legs wide apart, settling Seo Ah firmly between them—so she couldn’t run away.
Flustered, Seo Ah tried to get up, but Ha Joon wrapped one arm around her shoulders, keeping her from escaping.
“This one’s mild. If you don’t sit still, I’ll use the strong one, okay?”
Seo Ah had no choice but to stay still—the strong one was truly terrifying. Resolving to endure it for just a moment, she squeezed her eyes shut tightly.
The instant the antiseptic touched the wound, tears welled up and rolled down her cheeks, and she instinctively pressed her whole body tightly against Ha Joon’s chest, trembling all over.
“It stings…”
Despite the tearful quiver in Seo Ah’s voice, Ha Joon ruthlessly continued disinfecting the wound.
But soon, Seo Ah slowly opened her eyes at the sensation of warm breath blowing gently against her finger.
She was met with a scene she never could’ve imagined.
Ha Joon had pursed his lips and was softly blowing on the wound.
Was this really the Kang Ha Joon she knew? Why was he suddenly so tender? Did the world look different after getting hurt? Or was he always this gentle with anyone who got injured?
She turned her head slightly to look at his face, quietly watching as he carefully applied medicine and meticulously wrapped a bandage around her finger.
This was the first time—not just sitting trapped in his reassuring embrace, but also the first time she’d ever looked so closely at his face.
She’d always been too shy to look directly at him before. She knew he was handsome not just because he looked good even from afar, but also because his photos flooded news articles online.
No matter when or where he was photographed—and no matter how blurry or unflattering the shot—it was impossible to get an unattractive picture of him.
Even if someone snapped a photo of him mid-rollercoaster ride, he’d probably still look stunning.
His thick eyebrows, deep-set eyes, perfectly straight nose, sharp jawline—and his lips…
Seo Ah’s face turned as red as a plum.
Last night’s kiss with him suddenly came rushing back. It felt unbelievable that she, of all people, had kissed this man so passionately.
For other couples, kissing was probably an obvious step before or after marriage, but she’d always assumed it would never happen between her and Ha Joon.
She couldn’t recall a single detail of what it felt like—all she remembered was being utterly lost in the moment—but the thought of herself as the leading lady in such a sensual scene made her blush with embarrassment.
Even their current position felt far too intimate. Though for him, it was probably perfectly natural. How many women had he held like this before?
It turned out Kang Ha Joon was the kind of man who could sleep with someone he disliked—or even kiss them.
They hadn’t slept together yet, but it would probably happen soon—maybe even today.
At this point, was it possible that Kang Ha Joon didn’t actually dislike her, but simply had no interest? Or was it really just about unsatisfied desire?
Suddenly, Young Joo’s words came to mind.
Now that you’re married, if things go wrong, the fallout will hurt more than if you were single—so maybe he’s trying to satisfy his urges with you, or perhaps he just has a strong desire to conquer you. It’s probably one of those two…
Whether it was about desire or conquest, as long as he wanted her, wasn’t that a good thing?
Maybe that would’ve been true before marriage. But now, was it greedy of her to wish he’d look only at her?
I think you have two options: keep rejecting him until he wants to find someone else, or… let yourself be conquered so he loses interest.
The problem was, once he got what he wanted, he might lose interest entirely.
But if she thought about it differently—couldn’t she just try her best to keep him interested? She wasn’t sure if she was attractive enough to stop him from looking at other women, and since she’d never dated anyone else, she didn’t even know where to start.
The crucial thing was that if she kept rejecting him, he might eventually seek someone else.
Today, if he wanted her, she’d let him hold her without hesitation.
Even if it meant he’d lose interest afterward, she wanted—just once—to be held by him.
By this man she’d loved so deeply,
the man she’d passionately loved and still loved just as fiercely today,
the man she’d tried so hard to deny,
though in truth, she’d already accepted these feelings long ago.
Young Joo had originally hoped Seo Ah wouldn’t get married at all.
Seo Ah had initially intended the same, but that resolve hadn’t lasted long.
During her time in France, her mind changed every single day—sometimes dozens of times a day.
She’d tried so hard to dislike him, convinced herself she did, and even returned to Korea with a bold plan to divorce him.
But the moment she saw him again at twenty-seven, after six long years—
You’ve grown so much, Han Seo Ah.
—that’s when she realized:
Ah. I’ll never be able to dislike this man. I never truly disliked him even once, and from now on, I’ll only love him more.
Whoever said “out of sight, out of mind” clearly never met someone like him—an existence that defied that saying entirely.
Maybe Seo Ah had missed Ha Joon even more than she’d missed her parents or friends.
She’d never been honest with Young Joo about her true feelings.
They were as close as sisters—so if Young Joo knew Seo Ah had married him for love, she’d probably spread his secrets far and wide just to stop the marriage single-handedly. No, she definitely would.
That’s why Seo Ah had pretended to plan a divorce—to reassure Young Joo.
She’d also kept it a secret from her parents. She knew they’d never force her into a marriage if they understood Ha Joon’s true nature.
They’d been thrilled at the prospect of strengthening ties with Korea’s top conglomerate through this marriage, and she didn’t want to disappoint them.
Even if she received a large settlement, a divorce would still hurt her family’s standing—whereas staying married would bring far greater benefits.
Above all else, she didn’t want Ha Joon’s image to be ruined.
She couldn’t bear to watch the first and only love of her life be tarnished.
Still, she desperately wanted to uncover his true self—with her own eyes. Being deceived knowingly was different from being deceived blindly.
Even if she knew everything, she’d have to pretend to turn a blind eye—because only then could she keep breathing and living.
Once she truly discovered who he was, she might genuinely want a divorce.
But he was a man who meticulously managed his public image—once married, divorce would be out of the question. She just wanted to stand by his side at official events.
It would only become harder to bear seeing another woman next to Ha Joon.
At the very least, she hoped he’d keep her by his side—even if only out of necessity. She wanted to become someone indispensable to him.
It would be wonderful beyond words if he ever truly looked at her—but since that would never happen, she hadn’t allowed herself to hope.
Even when he’d rushed the wedding forward by five years, she hadn’t let herself hold onto false expectations.
Because the greater the hope, the deeper the disappointment.
He’d become department head at such a young age—he must have hurried the marriage to solidify his position from the start. The timing was just too perfect to be coincidence.
She’d also tried extra hard to act colder toward him because she didn’t want him to see her true feelings. She couldn’t stand the thought of being mocked for her sincerity—just like when she was seventeen.
Instead of wasting time like that, go memorize another English word. It’s embarrassing enough having a wife with an empty head.
But it wasn’t something she could control with willpower alone.
Even the slightest closeness from him still stole her breath away, and the faintest brush of his fingertips made her whole body go weak.
After neatly finishing the bandage, Ha Joon turned his head away under her sharp gaze.
Their eyes met—but this time, Seo Ah, lost in thought, didn’t look away.
Seeing her flushed face with tears brimming in her eyes, Ha Joon suddenly realized his mistake.
In his eagerness to disinfect her wound, he’d ended up in an unexpectedly intimate position.
He’d held her in his arms many times before, but never like this—pressed so close, body to body. Even during their passionate kiss last night, their height difference had kept their bodies from fully touching.
Now, with her fitting so naturally and comfortably into his embrace—as if it were where she belonged—his heart clenched tightly, and his pulse quickened.
Startled, Seo Ah instinctively tried to pull away—but Ha Joon only tightened his hold around her.
Now back to her senses, Seo Ah couldn’t meet his eyes and quickly looked away. Gently, Ha Joon wiped away the lingering tears on her cheek with his large hand.
‘Don’t be kind to me. I’ll start believing things that aren’t true.’
Seo Ah flinched at his touch and pleaded silently with her eyes. But fresh tears immediately welled up again and spilled down her cheeks.
Unaware of what her tears truly meant, Ha Joon assumed she was just in pain from her injured finger. He wanted to comfort her—to ask if it hurt badly, to assure her it would be okay soon—but the words wouldn’t come.
He’d never comforted anyone before, nor had he ever been comforted himself.
He knew the best way to forget pain was to focus on something else—that’s what he always did. When hurt, he’d throw himself into other tasks until the pain faded into irrelevance.
At some point, feeling pain had become a luxury in Ha Joon’s life—unnecessary, wasteful. It was far more efficient to use that time to sharpen his focus and boost his productivity.
Soon, Ha Joon gently captured her small, delicate lips with his own.
Half because he wanted to kiss her, half because he wanted to help her forget the pain.
Caught off guard by the sudden move, Seo Ah’s body instinctively trembled.
This time, there was no warning like yesterday’s slap, no forceful push forward.
Moments later, he teasingly traced her lips with his tongue. She worried he’d forcefully enter like yesterday if she opened her mouth—but she hated how powerless she felt, dragged along by his every move regardless. Still, without a moment’s hesitation, she parted her lips.
And because she didn’t want him to pull away, she unconsciously clutched the open collar of his shirt.
Unlike yesterday, his breath now flowed in softly, tenderly.
It felt moist and soft like sweet jelly. Every time their breaths mingled, a tingling current sparked through her—just like the fizzy candy sold at the stationery shop near her elementary school.
With her body relaxed, every sensation became vividly sharp.
His signature fresh scent, the firm yet comforting warmth of his embrace, the sweet exchange of breaths, the sticky, intimate sound of their breathing entwining—all of it felt crystal clear, even with her eyes closed. She could almost see his face as clearly as when she’d first studied it closely just moments ago.
Right now, Ha Joon found her utterly endearing—unlike yesterday, she’d welcomed his kiss without hesitation.
The way she clutched his collar so pitifully, the way her small body trembled, the way she exhaled in uneven breaths—all of it.
Male lead first thought she played hard to get, only to realize she
really disliked him
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead
_____
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Girl…. lol. How? She’s so comfortable. Haha. In a deep sleeper too but this? I’m giving the crown to her. Haha 🤣
I’m cackling…. Hahaha 😂 He better be pretending to sleep. Hahaha… I can’t imagine this. Lmfao.
I’m feeling giddy imagining all of this too. lol. Who wouldn’t?