Did I Ever Love You? (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 1

That Sunday was unusually cold and pouring rain.

My husband Min Woo’s distant cousin’s younger sibling’s wedding.

Obeying my father-in-law’s instruction that we attend as family representatives, we set off early in the morning for the countryside.

“This traffic is absolutely unbearable.”

Min Woo’s irritated voice echoed through the quiet car, and Ji Yeon, watching his mood, grew anxious.

Amidst all this, a message from my mother-in-law Joo Ran was more than enough to make Ji Yeon flustered.

[There’s a famous bakery in XX-dong near there—go buy some XX bread. You won’t be coming this way often, so you absolutely must bring some back! Min Woo will be tired from driving, so after the wedding, go by yourself to get it.]

Where on earth had she heard about this place?

Maybe she’d even looked it up on purpose just to give Ji Yeon a hard time.

But Joo Ran had messaged multiple times insisting, “You absolutely must go buy it,” making it impossible to pretend not to see it. Just imagining how annoyed she’d be if they didn’t bring it back sent shivers down Ji Yeon’s spine.

After much deliberation, when Ji Yeon finally told her husband Min Woo about Joo Ran’s errand, his face—already irritated from the traffic jam on the way there—darkened even further.

“So you really have to go looking for that bread… in this rain?”

Seeing his furrowed brow and the deep wrinkles on his forehead, Ji Yeon could tell at a glance that his patience had completely run out.

Fortunately, though, Min Woo didn’t say another word and simply turned the car toward the bakery.

After pushing through the gridlocked roads for about thirty minutes, they arrived at a shabby building tucked into a narrow residential alley.

The bakery seemed incredibly popular—even in the rain, a long line of people was already waiting.

“Min Woo, judging by the line, it’ll take at least twenty minutes. Why don’t you go to a nearby café for a coffee while you wait? I’ll quickly go buy it and call you when I’m coming out.”

Carefully choosing her words, Ji Yeon glanced at Min Woo’s mood and hurriedly grabbed an umbrella before stepping out of the car.

She ran to the bakery without even opening her umbrella, getting drenched in the rain—but Min Woo didn’t even notice.

His own frowning reflection stared back at him from the rearview mirror.

“Hmm… I guess I really need some caffeine.”

Though unwilling to do as Ji Yeon suggested, it was obvious even to him that it would easily take thirty minutes as she’d said.

He drove out of the narrow residential alley, and after about five minutes spotted a café. He parked in front and went inside.

It was a small neighborhood café with an unfamiliar name and tacky interior decor.

Definitely not a place Min Woo would ever normally visit.

But not wanting to wander any longer through this complicated neighborhood, he simply walked in—and luckily, there weren’t many customers, so he could order right away.

“One Americano.”

“3,500 won.”

After paying with his card, he stepped aside to wait for his coffee when suddenly a loud clatter came from the kitchen, followed immediately by an irritable voice.

“Seriously, Se Ah, how many times is this now?! What are we going to do if you keep this up? Even if the boss cuts you slack, you’ve got to do your job properly! Ugh, now I have to clean this whole mess myself!”

“I didn’t do it on purpose—it was just an accident!”

“You can’t keep making the same mistake over and over! Then you clean it up and organize everything yourself!”

The argument, completely inconsiderate of the customers, echoed loudly—then someone suddenly burst out from the back.

“If it was just an accident, why do you keep yelling at me? And why are you asking me to do your own job?”

The silhouette of the muttering woman looked strangely familiar to Min Woo.

“Jung… Se Ah?”

Could it really be…? Staring hard at her, Min Woo began doubting his own eyes.

“Se Ah!”

At Min Woo’s shout, the woman turned to look at him—and her eyes widened in shock.

“Min Woo?”

The woman, addressed as Se Ah, gazed at him blankly for a moment as if unable to believe it—then suddenly sank to the floor and began sobbing like a child.

The café staff and the few customers present all turned to stare at the two with curiosity.

Min Woo didn’t care who was watching—he rushed over and tightly embraced her as she sat on the floor.

“Se Ah!”

“This… isn’t a dream, is it, Min Woo? We really did meet again, right?”

Whimpering, Se Ah clung to Min Woo and cried even harder.

“It took way longer than I expected. You must be exhausted from waiting for me, Min Woo.”

After standing in line for a long time—and additional delays at checkout—more than thirty minutes had already passed by the time she left the bakery.

She scanned the area for Min Woo’s car but couldn’t see him or his vehicle anywhere.

Rrrr Rrrr

The phone kept ringing, but Min Woo didn’t answer.

“If his car’s not here, he probably went somewhere nearby.”

She called again several times, but only the ringing answered her.

“He’ll probably call back soon.”

The residential area only had the bakery and a closed hair salon—nowhere else for him to have gone—so she decided to wait under her umbrella right in front of the bakery.

Her shoes quickly soaked through from the heavy rain and wind, along with both hands full of the bread bags Joo Ran had asked her to buy.

Thirty minutes. An hour.

Time kept passing, but Min Woo never answered, never called back—and never showed up.

That day, Ji Yeon eventually had to take the train back to Seoul alone late at night.

“Let’s get divorced.”

It was the spring of Eun Ji Yeon’s thirtieth year. Spread out before her were divorce papers from her three-year marriage to Cha Min Woo.

“We’ll make it official in six months—but until then, let’s live separately. Don’t worry. I won’t interfere in your life during our separation, just like I haven’t until now. I’d like to end things sooner, but I need about six months to prepare before telling my family.”

Her voice came out calmer than she’d expected, surprising even herself.

“But during our separation, I’d like you to spend time with me once a month—just that. No other reason. We’ll just share updates on our lives so it won’t look suspicious to our families before the official divorce. I also hope we can talk together about how to explain this to our parents. I’d like you to promise me that.”

Seeing Min Woo immediately scowl, Ji Yeon briefly felt a lump in her throat—but she tried her best not to show it.

“It’s not like spending one or two extra days with me will change anything since we’ve already decided to divorce, right? Can’t you at least do that much for me, after being my husband for three years?”

It had been a marriage born purely from Ji Yeon’s deep affection for her husband Cha Min Woo.

Because her love had been one-sided, the gap between them never closed.

For three years, she’d given her all in love—but finally realized, bitterly, that she could never become the love of his life. She now understood all too well how deeply that truth had wounded her.

“Six months before divorce… and on top of that, meeting once a month? Are you really suggesting we meet once a month with absolutely no hidden motives?”

Just stop already.

After everything that’s happened, do you still have feelings for me?

Don’t you have any pride left?

His eyes spoke volumes—so clearly that it felt like salt rubbed into her wounds—but Ji Yeon pretended not to notice.

“The husband who walked out on me to live with another woman right before my eyes—I hate that now. Frankly, it’s horrible, not good at all. Right? So please rest assured—I truly have no ulterior motives whatsoever.”

Awkward words spilled from her lips, sounding as if played back from a mechanical recording.

“Aren’t you worried about your father? If you suddenly announce a divorce, do you really think he’ll just let it go—for either of us? What if he forbids you from divorcing? Wouldn’t it seem more natural if, over six months, we gradually drift apart and occasionally argue in front of him? That goes for me too. Meeting once a month would let us discuss how to handle things based on what’s happening around us.”

At the mention of Chairman Cha Seung Jo, Min Woo immediately frowned.

It was glaringly obvious his father would explode if he found out—and would do everything he could to block the divorce.

As she’d said, perhaps the safest approach really was to spend a few months appearing to drift apart naturally before bringing up divorce.

“Fine. We’ve already wasted three meaningless years—what’s another six months? It’s not like I have to see you every day, just once a month. That’s not hard. I’ll promise—but you have to promise me too that your feelings won’t change in six months.”

“Don’t worry.”

Ji Yeon bit her lip to hold back tears that threatened to spill from her sorrow.

She absolutely refused to cry in front of him—especially now.

“I’ve written the alimony amount in the documents. You’ll agree this divorce is your fault, right? If the amount I proposed seems questionable to you, just let me know. Also, please check the transfer date I noted in the documents.”

“This amount won’t be a problem.”

After glancing at the alimony figure on the paper, he replied immediately—as if it were nothing—and tossed the documents onto the table between them.

“What about your C&C shares? How about this—I’ll increase your alimony if you just transfer those shares directly to me right now. They probably don’t mean much to you anyway?”

The C&C shares. Truthfully, she’d started investing only because she liked Min Woo—and had gradually collected C&C shares since then. Over the years, they’d accumulated into a considerable amount.

Her family had also bought a significant quantity of C&C shares around the time of their marriage.

“We’ll think about it… when we actually divorce in six months.”

Not getting the answer he wanted, Min Woo narrowed his eyes and scowled.

Until recently, whenever he asked her for anything, she’d simply replied “Yes” or “Okay”—so her unexpected reply caught him off guard.

“You can keep the house. I’ll move all my things out right away.”

It had been a large, beautiful house—but devoid of human warmth.

For three years, Ji Yeon had cleaned and decorated it daily, yet it remained an awkward space for both her and Cha Min Woo.

“No, I’ll be moving out soon—just give me a little time. I’ve already started looking for a new place.”

After all, until just a few months ago, Min Woo had at least come home regularly—now it had been over three months since he’d set foot inside.

When he did come back, it was only briefly—to pick up his belongings or when his mother was visiting and he’d given advance notice.

“Are you living with her now?”

She couldn’t even bring herself to ask—the fear that his answer might shatter her completely held her back.

“When will you tell your family?”

“Not until the official divorce in six months. I need that time to gradually prepare them emotionally as well.”

Min Woo desperately wanted to cut ties immediately—but as this had been a strategic alliance between two families, he had to be cautious.

Remembering that his father-in-law’s company, Onyu Pharmaceuticals, had invested in his business, he swallowed his boiling frustration and stayed silent.

It would be far less damaging—for both his business and for explaining things to Chairman Cha—if the divorce appeared mutual rather than solely his fault.

“For now, let’s attend each other’s family events together and keep up appearances as best we can. And please, don’t make the same mistake again. Just six more months—that’s all we need to pull this off perfectly.”

Ji Yeon was referring to an incident a while back—when Min Woo had taken Se Ah to a concert.

Many of their mutual acquaintances had attended that concert, including Ji Yeon’s older brother and his wife.

“I’ll be careful.”

“As I always have—over the next six months, I won’t contact you at all, so don’t worry. Of course, you must do the same.”

“You don’t have to worry. You’ve always been free—if you want, even right now.”

Min Woo gave a short, incredulous laugh.

They handed the documents to Attorney Kim Cheol Min—a trustworthy lawyer who would never reveal this—and stood up to leave.

Having spent three years together, even briefly sharing the same roof, they now left the lawyer’s office as strangers—worse than strangers, even.

Two o’clock in the afternoon, bathed in unusually bright sunlight.

Ji Yeon struggled to open her eyes against the blinding glare.

“Where are you headed? Let me give you a ride.”

Min Woo, who usually never paid her any mind, suddenly asked.

“No, it’s fine—really, there’s no need to go out of your way. We’ll meet again in a month. I’ll contact you later about the time and place.”

Without waiting for Min Woo’s reply, Ji Yeon turned and walked away from him.

Now, only six months remained in our relationship.