Brother, You're Mistaken (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 11
“Who said I wouldn’t accept it?”
“Have I ever told you I wasn’t interested? Not even once.”
Hye Ju froze at Joo Won’s sudden remark, blinking only her eyes. Had the owner not chosen that exact moment to bring out complimentary side dishes, the atmosphere would have turned unbearably tense.
“Complimentary side dishes are here! Oh dear, everyone else already left? There’s way too much for just the two of you—oh dear.”
The owner’s habitual addition of “oh dear” abruptly severed the thread of their conversation—perhaps, a godsend opportunity.
Seizing the perfect timing, Hye Ju quickly grabbed her bag and shopping bags and stood up.
“I’ll see you at the office tomorrow, President.”
Fleeing the skewer restaurant as if running away, Hye Ju immediately boarded a bus.
Past rush hour, the bus was nearly empty. Leaning against the window, Hye Ju couldn’t stop Joo Won’s words from echoing in her mind.
“Why’s he acting like this, seriously?”
His words sounded almost as if he were implying, “Just confess, and I’ll accept you.”
Not even a few weeks ago, this same man had treated her like a stalker and even filed a police report. What had suddenly changed? Nothing particularly special had happened between them to spark such a shift.
‘Did he grow some sympathy out of nowhere?’
If he felt belated guilt simply because she’d liked him for ten whole years, that might be somewhat understandable. But no matter how hard she thought, Kang Joo Won didn’t seem like the kind of genuinely kind person capable of such sentiment. Hye Ju couldn’t make sense of his psychology at all.
“So… is he just playing with me?”
If that were truly the case, how should she punish him?
The gap in their positions—President versus Assistant—was as vast as heaven and earth. On top of that, he was the older brother of her best friend, giving him a position of clear superiority. And even age-wise, she was at a disadvantage.
‘He’s probably better at cursing too…’
In short, any confrontation would be stacked against her.
“Huuu…”
A deep sigh lingered on her lips. Hye Ju leaned her head against the window, lost in thought.
She didn’t even realize that Seung Won’s image—storming out of the restaurant after Da Hee—had already completely vanished from her mind.
When she got home, Soo Cheol was already there.
“Dad, what brings you here without even a call?”
“You’re finally back? I happened to be in Seoul, so I thought I’d drop by and see you.”
“What would you possibly be doing in Seoul?”
“You wouldn’t know, but Dad’s got plenty of friends here.”
Soo Cheol, Hye Ju’s father, was famously known as a devoted daughter-loving dad. After Hye Ju’s mother passed away before she even turned five, he ran a gukbap restaurant by day and took full care of Hye Ju by night.
Never once had he lost patience with his little girl, even when she whined about boredom while tagging along at his restaurant for lack of childcare.
“You’ve clearly had a drink. Office dinner party?”
“Ah, never mind. I’m just tired.”
Though Soo Cheol’s hair had already started graying, in his eyes Hye Ju was still that five-year-old daughter. Seeing that her morning clothes—haphazardly discarded—had been neatly folded, Hye Ju flopped onto the bed.
“Just leave them. I was going to tidy up later anyway.”
About to nag her to at least wash up before lying down, Soo Cheol instead pretended not to notice how much thinner she’d become and kept silently wiping the floor.
“Is work really that tough?”
“Work’s always like that, isn’t it?”
The daughter who used to chatter nonstop as a child had now grown into a beautiful young woman. Understanding her irritability stemmed from guilt, Soo Cheol didn’t feel the slightest bit hurt.
“Why’d you come all the way here without warning? I told you not to bother playing housemaid in my studio apartment. You’ve got your own hard life—why keep coming up to Seoul?”
“It’s not hard at all. It’s just routine—it doesn’t matter.”
“Have you eaten dinner?”
“Already ate. I left galbijjim and beef soup in the freezer—take them out for breakfast tomorrow.”
“I eat just fine on my own, so please just take care of your own health.”
Meanwhile, Soo Cheol busied himself putting away the dishes. Watching his rough, hurried hands, Hye Ju asked,
“How’s Aunt Mi Ok doing?”
Mi Ok was a woman in her mid-fifties whom Soo Cheol had started seeing. After losing his wife early, Soo Cheol had raised Hye Ju alone until she turned twenty. Mi Ok had worked as a waitress in his restaurant and later became his late-in-life partner.
Though Mi Ok was genuinely kind—kind enough to need no rules to behave well—Hye Ju didn’t wish for her to become a stepmother. Precisely because of Mi Ok’s son.
Ever since middle school, he’d constantly caused trouble. Then, sometime after entering college, out of nowhere, he started claiming he’d become a rapper. You could call him optimistic—or, less charitably, just plain lazy.
Knowing full well Mi Ok’s tight finances, he never tried earning his own money; instead, he constantly schemed to extract cash from her, which only deepened Hye Ju’s dislike.
“Same as always. Living peacefully without any trouble.”
Knowing this, Soo Cheol rarely mentioned Mi Ok in front of Hye Ju. Though they lived in the same building—one floor apart—and lived almost like a married couple, he never expected Hye Ju to treat Mi Ok as a mother, fully aware of her feelings.
“I’ll go down to Cheonan soon and pay her a visit.”
“Really?”
“It’s been quite a while since we last saw each other. I miss her too.”
“She’ll be thrilled to hear about you.”
Seeing Soo Cheol’s delighted expression, a bitter smile crossed Hye Ju’s lips.
“I’m tired. I’m going to sleep.”
Hye Ju pulled the blanket up to her chin and lay down. Instantly warm, she began drifting off. Though she wanted to talk more with Soo Cheol after their long reunion, her eyes closed before she knew it.
“The bus leaves soon—I’ll head down in a bit. Anything you need washed? I can just run this one load.”
“Mm-hmm…”
Hye Ju nodded faintly, barely conscious.
The blanket Soo Cheol had washed all morning smelled of fabric softener. For some reason, this familiar blanket felt especially cozy today.
Whoosh!
The moment flames ignited on the grill, a firm hand wrapped around her shoulders.
His familiar scent and rock-solid forearms—
Even if molten lava were to engulf them, this embrace felt like it could shield her from anything.
‘Ah…’
Though she knew it was just a dream, she felt happy. It was sweet precisely because this person—whom she could no longer even look at in reality—was willingly offering his warmth.
In real life, she’d had to push him away immediately, without even getting to say thank you for saving her. Before she could process anything good, guilt over Da Hee had already overwhelmed her.
‘That’s why dreams are nice…’
A world entirely her own, where she owed no explanations or apologies to anyone. Hye Ju closed her eyes, nestled comfortably in Seung Won’s embrace.
‘Talk about unexpected fortune.’
Ever since learning about Da Hee and Seung Won’s relationship, she’d made relentless efforts to cut off her feelings. It hadn’t been easy, but by habitually emptying her heart, she thought she’d finally managed to cope.
Yet here was this dream.
Apparently, even emotions developed inertia. Having spent most of her life fixated on him, it seemed she hadn’t fully let go after all.
‘But… were Kang Seung Won’s forearms really this thick?’
Hye Ju stared blankly at the arm encircling her.
Seung Won had never been the athletic type. At most, he dragged himself to the gym once or twice a week just to stay alive.
‘So… is this “gamer muscle”?’
That made sense. Typing on a keyboard all day would naturally bulk up his forearms like this.
‘Wait, he’s even got visible tendons on his hands? And why are his long, slender fingers so pretty?’
She couldn’t look away from the line stretching from his knuckles to his wrists—masculine yet delicate.
‘I never realized Kang Seung Won’s hands were this beautiful. Fine, I’ll cherish them—just in this dream—uwu.’
Hye Ju lifted his hand and nuzzled her cheek against it like a puppy.
Just then, a chilling voice came from above her head.
“Are you insane?”
“Huh?!”
Boom! Crash!
A bolt of lightning seemed to strike inside her skull.
Hye Ju looked up with trembling eyes. A murderous glare, breath sharp enough to slice her forehead—
Meeting those pitch-black eyes, she froze in fear—even though she knew it was just a dream.
“Pres…ident?”
“What filth is this?”
Whack!
Joo Won flicked her forehead. In that instant, Hye Ju jolted awake.
“Ow…”
Rubbing her forehead, she opened her eyes. The pain felt so real she could still feel a dull ache where she’d been hit in the dream.
“Ugh, what the heck—what a stupid dream!”
Ugh, right when it was getting good.
Guess this was her punishment for failing to cut off her feelings, even after knowing he was Da Hee’s boyfriend.
“Of all the moments, why did it have to switch to Kang Joo Won?”
Muttering grumpily, Hye Ju jumped out of bed.
Soo Cheol had already left—the apartment was empty. Seeing the place tidied up neatly—unlike the morning—made her inexplicably glum. Thinking of her father, who kept going through all this trouble for his grown daughter who should be able to manage on her own, her nose stung.
Ding-ding-ding!
Just then, the laundry dryer chimed, signaling completion.
Hye Ju dragged her stiff body to the laundry room. As she pulled out the neatly stacked clothes and began sorting them on the floor, she spotted an unfamiliar item.
“Whose clothes are these?”
Frowning, Hye Ju picked it up by the hem.
Judging by the size, it definitely wasn’t Soo Cheol’s—and it was a bit small for her too.
“It’s blue.”
Her muttering faded as her face abruptly went pale.
Blue… blue…?
Kang Joo Won’s sweater!!!!!
“Oh no! How did this end up here?”
Hye Ju’s hands trembled as she held the sweater. Soo Cheol, unfamiliar with dryers, must’ve accidentally tossed it in with the other laundry.
Seeing the shrunken sweater, Hye Ju wailed in despair.
“Daaaaddddd!”
“You… can’t wear it anymore, right?”
The next day, Hye Ju brought the sweater—sentenced to death—to the President’s office. Joo Won, engrossed in work, glanced up with a raised eyebrow.
“What’s that?”
“The sweater you lent me yesterday…”
“Hand it over.”
He pressed the clearly shrunken sweater against his chest. Hye Ju despaired.
Behind the blue fabric, Joo Won’s broad frame was visible from every angle. The sleeves, which once reached his wrists, now stopped below his elbows; the hem, which used to cover his belt, now barely reached his navel.
“Would you wear it if you were me?”
Thud. He tossed the sweater back to Hye Ju, who caught it with both hands and immediately made a pained face.
“I’m so sorry. I’ll buy you a new one.”
“Do that.”
Normally, etiquette demanded at least one polite refusal in such situations.
Watching him nod without hesitation, Hye Ju ground her teeth.
‘What a heartless man!’
She highly doubted Kang Joo Won wore ₩10,000 sweaters from Dongdaemun. Already bracing for her wallet to lighten, Hye Ju felt utterly hopeless.
“I’ll take my leave, then.”
“Did you sleep well last night?”
Just as Hye Ju bowed and turned to leave, Joo Won’s offhand comment drifted into her ears. She turned back awkwardly and replied,
“Yes.”
“Anything hurting?”
“No.”
“Your face is red.”
That’s because I’m furious—how dare you make me ruin your sweater!
Inwardly grumbling, she replied with practiced nonchalance,
“I’m naturally flushed. It runs in the family.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. You’re not running a fever, are you?”
“No fever…”
—she started to say.
But before she could finish, a large hand suddenly pressed against her forehead, cutting her off. Hye Ju stared blankly as Joo Won checked her temperature by comparing it to his own.
“Right, no fever.”
Gulp. She swallowed hard.
His hand was warm—just like in the dream.
‘Ah…’
Standing close, he smelled of fabric softener. Mixed with a faint trace of cologne, his scent felt even more captivating than in her dream.
Her gaze drifted downward—and landed on his hand. Seeing the prominent tendons, she suddenly remembered being held in his arms in the dream: his firm chest, the gentle way his hands had caressed her shoulders.
“You’re fine. Go on, get out.”
His deep voice rumbled from above as his Adam’s apple moved forcefully—like slow motion.
Hye Ju looked up at him, stunned.
The scent from her dream. The firm grip from her dream. All right before her eyes. It was an utterly disorienting experience—so real yet unreal, leaving her constantly confused.
So much so she wanted to be held by him just once more.
“Now that I’ve confirmed you’ve got no fever, don’t even think about slacking off.”
“I’m not slacking off! I’m going—bye!”
His uniquely infuriating tone jolted her back to her senses. Hye Ju dashed out of the President’s office in a panic.
Then, she scolded herself.
‘You’re losing it, Oh Hye Ju! What were you thinking, getting all flustered there!’
Wrestling with rising self-loathing, she muttered under her breath,
“…Why am I like this?”
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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