The time of arrival at the pier was 5 p.m.
“We still have some time before the boat leaves.”
“Yeah.”
Hyeju’s cheeks were still flushed as she looked around. The aftermath of being embraced by Juwon hadn’t faded away yet.
Why was she so concerned about such a trivial hug? As she consciously tried to suppress her feelings by telling herself it was nothing, she became even more aware of them, to the point of going crazy.
“But there aren’t many people here, are there? If I had known, I wouldn’t have bought a roundtrip ticket.”
“Yeah.”
Juwon, too, felt the awkwardness, and their conversation often came to an abrupt halt.
Unlike Hyeju, who tried to pass it off as nothing, he recognized the hug from earlier as something significant. It was the first daring act he had ever committed in Kang Juwon’s life.
His heart fluttered strangely. Something hot, buried deep in his chest, seemed to beckon him, gesturing repeatedly.
“Huh?”
At that moment, Hyeju blurted out. Wasn’t there an old man outside the car window lowering the barricade at the pier?
“Sir, what are you doing right now?”
Hyeju hurriedly got out of the car and questioned him. The old man with a flat cap, as if he had already heard the same question several times, replied curtly.
“The wind is too strong, so the boat can’t sail today!”
“What did you say?”
“Just go back home cheaply!”
Suddenly, everything turned pale in her mind.
“Because we don’t have a house here!”
“Where’s your house?”
“In Seoul.”
“Oh, really? You live in a nice place.”
No, that’s not the response I was expecting!
Perplexed, Hyeju stammered in confusion.
“Sir, this doesn’t make sense. I already bought the tickets, and now suddenly the boat isn’t leaving? Look at this. It’s 6 p.m., the time for the boat.”
The old man with a flat cap pretended not to see the ticket Hyeju was offering.
“It’ll still be valid for tomorrow.”
“It’s not about the tickets. We have to go back today!”
“If the boat can’t sail due to a storm, it’s an unavoidable circumstance. If you blame me for that, it’s your problem.”
Hyeju’s mouth fell open as she looked at the nonchalant old man.
There had been times when she imagined such a situation while coming to the island with Juwon. What if they were stranded on the island alone, like in a drama? What if it became late, and there were no more boats or sudden heavy rain?
Of course, she had no impure intentions of portraying Juwon as a sinister wolf. She simply felt strange emotions when she looked at Juwon herself, and she wanted to avoid such situations as much as possible.
She had even bought roundtrip tickets and checked the weather forecast. They said it would be a sunny day without a single cloud!
But now, a strong wind advisory! The boat wouldn’t sail!
“…What should we do?”
Hyeju stared blankly at the back of the coolly departing old man, wondering.
“First, contact the company. I’ll find out about the accommodation.”
“Are we really going to stay here overnight?”
“Do we have any other options?”
To her surprise, Juwon calmly accepted the situation. It was even more bewildering to Hyeju.
Why isn’t he flustered? Why is he so composed?
“Excuse me.”
At that moment, the old man with the flat cap, who she thought had gone away, returned. He flashed a meaningful smile at Juwon, who was searching for accommodations.
“If you need accommodation, let me know. My aunt runs a guesthouse in a beautifully scenic place.”
“Don’t you have any hotels?”
“Seoul bumpkins are here too. Where can you find a crazy person looking for a hotel on a tiny island like this, with nothing but ant holes?”
“…”
“Hey, if you don’t hurry, things will go wrong. It’s not just one or two tourists stuck here because of the strong wind.”
As Juwon hesitated, the old man muttered to himself and turned away.
“There are only two rooms left… Oh well, figure it out yourself. Do you think there’s even a place to turn your back on in this vast island?”
“Excuse me. Wait a moment.”
The old man with the flat cap revealed his missing front tooth and smiled mischievously.
“Are you going?”
Half of what the old man with the flat cap said was true, and half was false.
It wasn’t just that there were only two rooms left; there were originally only two rooms in the house.
Hyeju looked perplexed as she saw the shabby lodging attached to the quiet road not far from the pier. She didn’t expect a hotel, but still, this was a bit…
“The exterior may look like this, but the rooms are clean. Auntie! We have guests!”
The old man quickly called the landlady, as if his heart had changed. An elderly woman with white hair came out, rubbing her eyes.
“Has Songhee come?”
“We have guests, guests! Hurry and prepare the rooms!”
One of the two adobe houses seemed to be the main house, with the adjacent detached house having two doors, thankfully suggesting that there were two rooms. It didn’t look like a proper door register but rather like a keytype lock, somewhat crude.
“It’s a good thing it’s not barred windows…”
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
