Yuin could only gaze up at Gyeon in shock, as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have. She tried to ask why he was here, but her words crumbled, swirling helplessly in her throat.
Staring down at the dumbfounded Yuin, Gyeon wore an unreadable expression. It seemed like a mix of annoyance and amusement. But what was amusing?
“Who are you?”
Cutting through the suffocating silence, Jihan’s voice held a mix of wariness and discomfort. Startled by his tone, Yuin quickly glanced around at her confused friends before finally speaking.
“Ah, um… guys, this person is the director of my sister’s agency.”
“Oh? Yu-jin’s agency? Ilrang?”
“Yes.”
Nodding in confirmation, the quick-to-adapt Jaehui was the first to greet Gyeon with a still-dazed expression.
“Hello.”
“Hello,” Gyeon replied politely, smiling as his gaze moved from Jaehui to Jihan.
Jihan, however, barely nodded his head in a nonchalant greeting.
Gyeon’s smile deepened before returning his attention to Yuin, whose cheeks were flushed as she kept her eyes on him.
“Came for dinner with friends, I see.”
“…Yes. But why are you here, Director?”
“I’m here for something similar to Yuin.”
That wasn’t the answer she was looking for. Yuin’s eyebrows twitched in irritation at his evasive response, her mind returning to the image of the ideal couple she had briefly forgotten.
Her previously elated mood plummeted, spreading a gloom over her.
Observing her silently, Gyeon chuckled softly and lightly tapped her tender shoulder.
“I’ll talk to the manager. Feel free to order anything you like.”
“No, you don’t have to do that.”
“Just accept it for today.”
His voice was relaxed, but the hand on her shoulder gripped firmly before letting go.
“Enjoy your time, Yuin. And her friends too.”
“Goodbye.”
With Jaehui’s cautious farewell, Gyeon turned to leave, gesturing a phone call with his hand and tapping his finger twice.
What was that about? Yuin looked down at her phone lying innocently on her lap, and when she looked up again, he had already left the restaurant.
As Gyeon’s jacket disappeared from view, the excited Jaehui bombarded Yuin with questions.
“Hey, hey! That man is the director of Ilrang Entertainment? Really?”
“Yes.”
“Really? He’s so young to be a director, how old is he?”
“…Thirty-one.”
“Wow. I would’ve believed if you said he was in his twenties. But more than that, his face is insanely handsome! He’s tall, and his suit fit was just perfect! He could be a celebrity himself.”
Jaehui raved about the most handsome and stylish man she’d recently seen, while Yuin responded but was lost in thought.
‘Why did a man, who was with his girlfriend at the hotel, come here and acknowledge me?’ Her mind was filled with growing questions like ‘Why does he contact me when he has a girlfriend, and why tell me to eat well?’
“Why did he touch your shoulder if he’s just your sister’s director?”
Jihan’s voice, usually soft and low, sharply cut through her thoughts.
Surprised, Yuin looked at him to see his face marked with anger.
“Shoulder? Oh, he did… I…”
Yuin faltered, glancing at Jaehui for help. Why is he angry? But Jaehui just shrugged, clueless.
“What do you mean he did? How do you know him? And how do you know his age?”
“Hey, she must’ve known him through her sister, being part of her company.”
Trying to help the flustered Yuin, Jaehui intervened, but that seemed to irritate Jihan more.
“Nam Yuin, answer me.”
“Why does it matter to you? Does Yuin have to get your permission to meet someone?”
“Han Jaehui. Are you Nam Yuin’s spokesperson? Mind your own business.”
“Why are you backing out? Do you report to Yuin every time you drink with women? Or has Yuin ever grilled you about going out? As a friend, you should keep a proper distance.”
“When have I ever drunk with women? Did you see it? Do you really want to annoy me?”
“Do I need to see it to know? Besides, you’re the one who got annoyed first, you brat! You’re the one who’s spoiling the mood here.”
Yuin sighed deeply between her arguing friends, pressing her temples. She couldn’t understand why Jihan was suddenly angry, why Jaehui was so upset, or what was with the man who had turned her emotions upside down and left.
Amidst their quarrel, Yuin’s dress vibrated briefly.
She bent her head down and touched the notification.
The message, apparently foreshadowed by the earlier hand gesture, was from that man.
Yuin was conflicted. Should she ignore the man who had caused chaos and resentment, or should she confront him, emboldened by the alcohol? As her friends continued to argue and her rational judgment faded, she didn’t ponder long.
Yuin, holding her phone, pushed her chair back and stood up, halting her friends’ heated exchange.
“Yuin?”
“I need to use the restroom. Make peace by the time I return.”
Yuin sternly glanced at each of them and left her seat.
Standing up, her head spun, feeling dizzy and hazy.
As she staggered on the thick carpet, Jaehui asked to accompany her, but Yuin waved her off.
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.”
