Not for the First Time (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 10
Hae Yoon tightly grabbed Young In’s arm, which kept wobbling as her legs gave way.
“Where’s the restroom?”
She looked around, but the hall was so huge that she couldn’t figure out where the restroom was at all. There wasn’t even a staff member nearby to ask. To make matters worse, the body she was desperately holding up was getting heavier and heavier.
“Team leader, please snap out of it.”
The person who was completely unconscious didn’t say a word.
“Ji Seung Chan, you bastard.”
Hae Yoon gnashed her teeth as she recalled the face of the guy who had gotten Young In this drunk.
No matter how decent-looking he was or how good an actor he might be, how could she possibly have good feelings toward a pervert who was desperate to get his hands on her precious team leader just once?
“Did you think if she got drunk, you’d be the one to take her home?”
The sinister intention behind suggesting that game was so obvious it almost made her laugh.
She had reluctantly come along for the sake of the other team members who were curious about a celebrity’s birthday party, only to watch her team leader become the target. Hae Yoon was looking down at her with pity when she sensed someone approaching and raised her head.
Her round, widened eyes fixed on the man standing in front of her.
“CEO!”
Sung Hyuk, who had been frowning at Young In, shifted his gaze to Hae Yoon.
“Why did she drink so much? It’s not even her birthday.”
Hae Yoon couldn’t help but gauge his mood—he looked somehow angry.
“Because of the consecutive penalties from the game…”
His already narrowed brow furrowed even more.
“I’ll take her.”
Hae Yoon’s eyes narrowed.
It overlapped with the way that guy had said, “Team leader Young In, I’ll take you home,” and her guard instantly went up. It was also bewildering that he suddenly appeared and acted like she should just hand Young In over.
“Why would the CEO do that?”
Sung Hyuk actually liked that Hae Yoon was wary of him. He hadn’t said it to test her, but he was grateful she didn’t immediately hand Young In over.
“What’s your name?”
He had heard it that morning in the elevator and again at lunch, but he genuinely couldn’t remember.
“Ahn Hae Yoon.”
He stored the three syllables in his mind and answered her question.
“I have a personal connection with Young In.”
“What kind of…”
“Oppa’s friend. University senior. Is that enough?”
As if.
Hae Yoon was naturally suspicious. Still, she couldn’t exactly demand proof from the man who held her livelihood in his hands, so she answered indirectly.
“I’ve never heard anything about it.”
The limp body suddenly twitched at that exact moment.
Hae Yoon’s face lit up as she looked down.
“Team leader.”
When Young In slowly lifted her bowed head, Hae Yoon decided to pass the decision to the person herself.
“Should I take you home, or do you want to go with the CEO?”
She was prepared to think of another way if she didn’t get an answer, but Young In’s hazy, alcohol-clouded eyes turned toward the face that looked like a meticulously carved statue.
Young In stared blankly at Sung Hyuk’s face for a moment before her lips parted slightly.
“Cha… Sung Hyuk…”
Having received her answer, Hae Yoon quickly untangled her arm from Young In’s.
“Please take good care of our team leader.”
She had only called him “CEO,” yet Young In clearly said “Cha Sung Hyuk,” so no further verification was needed.
Sung Hyuk supported Young In’s swaying back with his hand and pulled her toward him. Her slender body collapsed softly into his chest. The way his hand naturally wrapped around her slim waist looked utterly practiced.
Hae Yoon watched the two of them, an odd atmosphere flowing between them, with meaningful eyes.
Oppa’s friend and university senior—was that really all? She felt something that couldn’t be explained by just that.
As her imagination started to run wild and her eyes narrowed further, they suddenly shot open.
“Ah, right. I’ll go grab team leader’s bag.”
“Have Ahn Hae Yoon-ssi bring it to the office.”
Sung Hyuk didn’t want to keep Young In standing here any longer.
“Yes, understood. Go ahead.”
Hae Yoon turned away after briefly watching the two walking off and the one man lingering beside them.
“But why was the CEO here in the first place?”
It couldn’t be a coincidence—she clearly remembered him saying at lunch today where the birthday party was and how excited the team was because it was a place too expensive to visit with their own money.
“So my hunch was right after all?”
Hae Yoon’s face was visibly excited as she walked toward the private room.
[This is the timeline separator]The man who thought Hae Yoon was hovering around Sung Hyuk and Young In was Ji Sang.
His eyes, which had widened the moment Sung Hyuk suggested they leave, showed no sign of returning to normal size.
Half dazed and half amazed, he kept sneaking glances at Young In’s face.
“I never thought I’d get to see her like this.”
He could guess why Sung Hyuk, out of all the seats available, had chosen one near the entrance.
“Did you follow her here because you knew Young In-ssi would be coming? You sat at the entrance because you wouldn’t know when she’d leave if you were in the private room?”
Ji Sang snickered knowingly and bounced his legs.
“Turning the great Cha Sung Hyuk into a stalker—Young In-ssi really is an incredible woman.”
“There was a reason I had to come. Who’re you calling a stalker?”
As he walked toward the entrance, Sung Hyuk shot back gruffly and gestured somewhere with his chin.
“Stop yapping and go pay the bill.”
“Me? I only had one glass of whiskey.”
“One glass is still something. I didn’t touch a drop, so you’re paying.”
“Huh? Uh…”
Ji Sang floundered for a moment before rushing to the counter.
By the time he finished paying and came back, the two were already gone.
He hurriedly ran up the stairs, and Sung Hyuk’s back came into view.
Young In had her eyes closed and was quietly resting her head on his shoulder. Seeing Sung Hyuk’s large hand cradling the back of her head, it seemed less like she was leaning and more like he had made her lean.
Ji Sang smoothed down his twitching lips and stood next to Sung Hyuk, who was waiting for the valet to bring his car.
“Did you bring the car from the start planning for this? That’s why you didn’t drink?”
“I did plan for something like this, but I didn’t expect it to actually happen.”
“Huh?”
What was he talking about?
Half of what Sung Hyuk said today went over Ji Sang’s head.
A black SUV pulled up in front of the three of them at that moment.
Ji Sang stepped forward and opened the passenger door, and Sung Hyuk lightly lifted Young In and placed her in the passenger seat. Every small movement was extremely careful, as if handling something fragile.
After closing the passenger door, Sung Hyuk glanced back at Ji Sang.
“I’m heading out first.”
“But didn’t you say you had something important to tell me today?”
“It’s less important than taking Young In home.”
Ji Sang’s expression turned sour.
“Sure, sure, whatever you say.”
“I’ll call you.”
Ji Sang waved flamboyantly at Sung Hyuk as he walked to the driver’s seat. Of course, Sung Hyuk didn’t even glance back.
[This is the timeline separator]The moment Sung Hyuk sat in the driver’s seat, he turned toward the passenger seat.
As he leaned slightly to pull the seatbelt, a faint rose scent brushed his nose. The desire to freely touch Chae Young In’s body and breathe in her scent as much as he wanted, just like before, surged up.
He forcibly pushed down the impure desire, fastened her seatbelt, and straightened up.
Just to be sure, he placed a finger under her nose—a faint but warm breath could be felt.
Relieved, Sung Hyuk openly admired sleeping Young In’s face.
Even if he hadn’t come, Hae Yoon probably would have taken good care of her, but he still felt glad he had.
Originally, he was supposed to meet Ji Sang tomorrow. After finding out where the birthday party Young In was attending would be held, he moved it to today.
During the meal, something Hae Yoon said while momentarily forgetting he was there became the decisive trigger.
“I’m worried Seung Chan-ssi will obsessively pour drinks only for the team leader again like last time. His intentions are obvious, but I don’t know why he does it.”
He had come because he was concerned, but he hadn’t expected Young In to actually end up this wasted.
That was when he heard a timid tapping on the passenger window.
Looking up, he saw the valet attendant politely extending both hands toward the car.
Realizing they wanted him to move the car, Sung Hyuk sat up straight, fastened his own seatbelt, and immediately started driving.
He quietly smiled as he recalled Young In, who had tried to follow him earlier, then glanced at the passenger seat when he stopped at a red light.
Young In was blinking with dazed eyes, apparently awake now.
He absolutely hated watching drunk people, whether they were men or women. Especially when he was the only sober one. Yet he couldn’t understand why this woman didn’t look unpleasant even when completely plastered.
“Sleep more.”
Young In, having slightly turned toward the driver’s seat, moved her lips.
“Hey… Cha Sung Hyuk…”
The corners of Sung Hyuk’s eyes softened gently. Hearing his name from Chae Young In’s mouth—who had stubbornly called him only “sunbae” even when they were dating—sounded wonderful.
“Are you… maybe… upset that I dumped you…? Is that why… you’re doing this…?”
To answer Young In’s question, Sung Hyuk carefully examined his own feelings.
No matter how much he thought about it, he wasn’t upset.
He only regretted.
He bitterly regretted not having broken up that way, not having accepted it so easily.
“If you… regret… not dumping me first… then I’ll let you dump me… That way… it’s even…”
Naturally picking up the conversation after snapping out of his deep thoughts, he replied.
“For me to dump you, we’d have to start dating again first.”
“Uh… that’s a bit tricky…”
Was even her slurred voice supposed to be this cute?
“Cancel what I said about you being cute only when you were younger. You were cute back then, and you’re cute now.”
Even while drunk, Young In lowered her gaze in embarrassment, and he laughed out loud. It felt refreshing—it had been so long since he laughed like this.
“Sleep until we get home.”
Sung Hyuk stretched his right hand sideways and covered both of Young In’s eyes. Instead of an answer, he felt a tiny nod up and down.
When he checked a moment later, Young In was soundly asleep like an obedient child.
Looking at Chae Young In completely unguarded in front of him made his heart ache.
“Maybe I should get her drunk every day for a while.”
He fell into serious contemplation.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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