“Ah, yes. I understand……”

Beom Jun hung up the phone with a dumbfounded expression.

The person he just spoke to was Chang Geun’s lawyer. He relayed an unbelievable message that Chang Geun wanted to convey.

That Chae Young In is Cha Sung Hyuk’s woman.

That he vented some anger on Chae Young In and ended up battered after getting on Cha Sung Hyuk’s bad side.

Beom Jun knew that Chang Geun was in custody. However, he only learned today about the connection with Sung Hyuk.

Beom Jun was also questioned by the police after Chang Geun’s arrest. It was a natural course of action since he was part of their frequent social circle.

The result was no charges. He didn’t feel particularly wronged since he knew about the drug use of Chang Geun and some others.

He only felt belatedly proud that he didn’t give in to their temptations, even while being teased as a coward.

“So that’s what it was……”

All the things that had occasionally made him tilt his head in confusion finally made sense. Everything fit together perfectly, like puzzle pieces falling into place.

Now that he knew about their relationship, there was nothing strange about Sung Hyuk stealing Chang Geun’s blind date, suddenly going to SL Entertainment, or Sung Hyuk coming when Young In asked to be picked up.

He was bewildered at how he hadn’t noticed until now.

He wondered if his belief that the great Cha Sung Hyuk wouldn’t date someone who was merely adopted had prevented him from thinking rationally.

After sitting in a daze for a while, he got up and went out to the living room.

Ah Rim was lying stretched out on the sofa with her head on her mother’s lap. He suddenly wondered if that mask pack of hers actually had any effect.

The mother and daughter, who had been chatting excitedly, turned to look at Beom Jun simultaneously when they sensed his presence.

Ah Rim sat up with a bright expression and tossed her mask pack onto the coffee table.

“Elder brother, come over here for a bit.”

As Beom Jun walked over leisurely and sat on the sofa, Ah Rim asked with eyes full of curiosity.

“Do you know what the third son of TW Distribution is like?”

“I know.”

“What’s he like?”

“He’s trash.”

Her face, which had been full of expectation, crumpled unattractively.

Ah Rim turned to Mrs. Kwak with an irritated expression.

“Mom, please ask about some verified guys.”

“Alright. I’m sorry, dear.”

Mrs. Kwak fidgeted nervously, afraid her daughter might throw another tantrum.

“Ugh, why aren’t there any decent guys……”

Since being humiliated by Sung Hyuk, Ah Rim had been diligently going on blind dates.

She knew the chances of meeting a man with better conditions than Cha Sung Hyuk were zero, but she was determined to marry an impressive man to show him up.

Watching Ah Rim grumble, Beom Jun opened his mouth with a rather solemn expression.

“Chae Ah Rim, that’s not what’s important right now.”

“Then what is important?”

“I just heard some unbelievable news.”

Ah Rim raised one eyebrow.

“Unbelievable news?”

“It seems Sung Hyuk and Young In have been dating without our knowledge.”

For a moment, silence fell over the living room.

Receiving the stares of Mrs. Kwak and Beom Jun, Ah Rim moved her lips with an incredulous expression.

“……What?”

Beom Jun relayed exactly what he had heard from Chang Geun’s lawyer.

When he finished speaking, Ah Rim muttered while chewing on her lips.

“I knew something felt off……”

She finally understood who the owner of the black SUV she had glimpsed in front of the gate four days ago was. And that Young In hadn’t stayed out overnight because of work, but had spent the night with Cha Sung Hyuk, who then drove her home.

“That cunning girl stabbed us in the back like this?”

Mrs. Kwak, who had been listening quietly, chimed in with her daughter’s words.

“They say the quiet cat is the first to climb on the stove, but she really snatched her father away.”

Mrs. Kwak couldn’t bear the thought of Young In, who didn’t share a drop of blood with her, marrying into a better family than her own daughter.

She felt angry at her husband again, thinking that if he hadn’t gotten into gambling and incurred such an enormous debt, she wouldn’t have volunteered to raise that lump of flesh.

“Mom, what are you saying? Does Young In know her father?”

Mrs. Kwak came to her senses at the questioning voice. She turned to see Ah Rim staring at her with wide, puzzled eyes.

“Didn’t you say she was abandoned by her parents and brought from an orphanage?”

“Well, that’s……”

Mrs. Kwak’s pupils darted back and forth.

“I heard that some minors had an accident and just gave birth to a child and abandoned it……”

“You never said anything like that before.”

“Well, it’s not exactly a good story to tell.”

“But Mom, if minors had an accident and gave birth to a child, they couldn’t have been that well-behaved, right?”

“That’s just a figure of speech, you know.”

Mrs. Kwak hurriedly got up, saying she needed to drink some water, and disappeared into the kitchen.

Although Ah Rim and Beom Jun thought something didn’t quite add up, given the current situation, they didn’t have time to dig deeper.

“Elder brother, have you contacted elder brother Sung Hyuk?”

“No, I came out right after talking to Chang Geun’s lawyer.”

“Don’t contact him under any circumstances until I beat that Young In girl.”

Ah Rim glanced at the wall clock and picked up her phone. Then she called Young In.

“Hey, where are you? When are you coming home?”

−I’m almost there. I’ll arrive in about 10 minutes.

Hearing the calm voice made her mood worsen.

−Why? Do you want me to buy something?

Since childhood, Ah Rim always made Young In run errands whenever she wanted something to eat. When Young In wasn’t home, she had to buy it and bring it back, and when she was home, she had to go out and buy it.

So Young In’s question was very natural. However, to Ah Rim’s ears right now, every word sounded twisted.

“I’m on a diet!”

Ah Rim snapped and hung up the phone.

There was a reason she had suppressed the curses rising to her throat with all her might. She was afraid Young In might not come home if she said it over the phone. She intended to make her pay for deceiving everyone while looking at her detestable face.

Ah Rim couldn’t sit still for just 10 minutes. After pacing back and forth in the living room, she went all the way to the entrance to wait for Young In.

And when Young In opened the door and came within arm’s reach, Ah Rim slapped her face and grabbed her hair.

The barbaric act only ended when they reached the middle of the living room.

Young In raised her head with a disheveled appearance, and her eyes fell upon two people standing with their arms crossed.

It was Mrs. Kwak and Beom Jun.

She didn’t expect them to intervene, but she couldn’t understand why her heart felt so empty.

Young In had no strength to stand up. So she remained seated and looked up at Ah Rim.

“What do you think I did wrong, elder sister? Is it wrong that I’m dating senior Sung Hyuk, or is it wrong that I’m dating him secretly?”

“It’s wrong that someone like you is dating Cha Sung Hyuk in the first place.”

Ah Rim no longer had any lingering feelings for Sung Hyuk. She was sincere when she said she lost interest during the blind date.

But Cha Sung Hyuk becoming Chae Young In’s man was a different matter. She didn’t want to feel a sense of defeat to Young In, whom she had looked down upon all her life.

“How dare someone like you set your sights so high.”

Young In let out a snicker. She knew it wouldn’t go beyond the level of ‘how dare someone like you’, but hearing it with her own ears made her laugh.

Since the topic had come up, she decided to tell them something they didn’t seem to know yet.

“Elder sister, I dated senior Sung Hyuk three years ago too. We broke up and got back together this time.”

“……What?”

Ah Rim, who had been trembling, suddenly raised one corner of her mouth.

“Don’t you have any pride? Can’t someone who dumped you once dump you twice? It’s pathetic that you’re happy to date him again, pathetic.”

“He won’t dump me.”

“What are you saying?”

“I was the one who dumped him three years ago. I broke it off.”

Realizing that Young In meant Sung Hyuk had clung to her, Ah Rim clenched her fists tightly in anger. Her nails dug into her palms.

“You ungrateful girl. You knew very well that I liked elder brother Sung Hyuk.”

“Elder sister, it wasn’t just elder brother Sung Hyuk that you liked. You liked anyone who was handsome, tall, and rich.”

“You!”

Just as a shout burst from Ah Rim’s mouth, the doorbell sound rang through the living room.

Sung Hyuk waited until Young In disappeared from view before starting the car. As he passed by Young In’s house, he confirmed that the gate had closed and made a call.

−Why?

A questioning voice tapped his ear, and a smile spread across his face.

“I just wanted to hear your voice.”

−We just parted, what’s this about?

A clear laugh tickled his ear.

“Just stay on the call until you get inside.”

−Okay.

Time passed quickly as they talked about going to Sokcho again someday.

−I’m at the front door. Hang up now.

“Call me before you go to bed.”

−Alright.

Along with the words to drive carefully, he heard the sound of the front door opening. He thought the call had ended like that, but it hadn’t.

−What are you doing here?

Sung Hyuk realized that the words weren’t directed at him and that Young In thought the call had ended.

Who’s at the entrance?

It was then that he heard the sound of a slap followed by Young In’s groan.

He also heard the sound of something hitting and falling.

Soon after, he heard Ah Rim screaming at the top of her lungs.

He immediately turned the car around.

As he parked in front of Young In’s house and ran to the gate to press the doorbell, his face was pale.

Sung Hyuk kept pressing the doorbell even though he could hear the sound ringing.

Is this what it feels like when your blood runs cold?

He was anxious and nervous about something happening to Young In. His heart was racing and he felt breathless.

After a long while, the bell sound stopped.

−What brings you here?

“Open the door, Chae Beom Jun.”

−Now’s not a good time.

Sung Hyuk leaned against the pillar with his right hand and brought his face close to the camera.

“Don’t lay a finger on Young In and open the door.”

His low voice was chillingly cold.

“You won’t open it? Should I call the police?”

−…….

“Open it quickly!”

Click.

The tightly closed gate opened.