Yerin sighed deeply as she got into Ihyeon’s car. The surprise meeting with Heejun and Seoyun was shocking, but Ihyeon’s actions perplexed her more.
“If my actions seemed necessary or if they made you uncomfortable, I apologize.”
“No, it’s not that.”
Yerin slowly lifted her head, street lights gently illuminating the dark car interior, highlighting Ihyeon’s profile.
“Thank you, Director.”
If Ihyeon hadn’t appeared, she wondered how she would have managed. Just the thought was dizzying.
Ihyeon started the car gently.
She felt she should explain the situation she faced earlier.
“The man earlier was someone I used to date.”
Ihyeon’s eyebrows shot up.
“And the woman with him stole him away from me.”
She spoke in a detached tone, as if narrating someone else’s story.
As the traffic light changed, Ihyeon slowed the car and turned to look at her.
“It must have been tough, Secretary Han.”
“More than tough… I just felt fooled again.”
“Wasn’t the first time?”
“Yes. I’m silly, aren’t I?”
She wasn’t sure why she was spilling her heart to Ihyeon, but it felt right.
Maybe she needed someone’s consolation.
Ihyeon spoke softly.
“That guy had no eye for people.”
“Not really.”
Seoyun had much more to offer, from her three-term congressman father to their affluent family background.
Ihyeon stated firmly.
“Anyone could see that Secretary Han was far more beautiful than that woman.”
“Me?”
“Not just outwardly, but I suspect inwardly as well.”
“…”
“From what Secretary Han says, that woman has taken several of your men?”
Yerin, gripping her seatbelt, slowly turned her head.
“People who covet others’ possessions seldom turn out to be decent. And this is not your fault, Secretary Han.”
As soon as she heard Ihyeon’s comforting voice, Yerin felt tears well up unexpectedly.
Her vision blurred, and tears streamed down her flushed cheeks.
“Ah….”
Startled by her own tears, Yerin hastily wiped them with the back of her hand.
“I’m sorry. Why am I like this?”
Embarrassingly, her tears flowed more intensely.
No matter how much she wiped, her vision remained clouded.
Yerin pulled out a handkerchief from her bag.
Just then, as Ihyeon parked in front of her house and unbuckled his seatbelt, he reached out and cupped her cheek.
Gently, he wiped away her tears with his thumb.
Before she could resist, Yerin found herself frozen in place.
Why the words Ihyeon had spoken that night came to her mind in this situation, she couldn’t understand.
“How can even your crying be so beautiful?”
And then, Ihyeon echoed a similar sentiment.
“Do you know?”
“….”
“That even your crying is truly beautiful, Secretary Han.”
Yerin dropped the handkerchief she was holding.
Ihyeon picked it up but chose to use his hand instead to slowly wipe her tears.
The warmth of his touch made her cheeks burn, and she could only bite her lip in response.
“A woman whose crying is beautiful… I’ve seen one more before.”
“….”
Yerin tensed, wondering if he was alluding to that night.
Her suspicions were confirmed.
“The woman I’m desperately longing to see now was just like that.”
My Step-brother Is Obsessed With Me (Female-dominant)
A gentle female protagonist vs pitiful in the early stage, and a sick male protagonist in the later stage
Cheng Songer transmigrated into the body of a vicious cannon fodder female supporting character with the same name as her in a female-dominant novel.
In the original story, the cannon fodder female supporting character was inhumane, committing domestic violence, gambling excessively, being lustful, and even wanting to sell her stepbrother to a brothel for money.
As luck would have it, she just happened to transmigrate at this time.
Seeing Cheng Qingzhi biting his lip, enduring the tears in his eyes, looking pitiful, her heart softened.
She stuffed the money back into the Madam’s hand and reached out to him.
“Brother, come home with me.”
