“Did Mom love her that much? I didn’t know……”

When Hyang Mi first brought Da Eun to the family home, she didn’t think highly of her.

When told about the family situation, she flew into a rage and said to break it off immediately. But at some point, Hyang Mi started pushing for marriage with Da Eun.

“She was so obedient, perfect to order around. Mom’s getting old and can’t prepare ancestral rites tables or make kimchi anymore!”

Hyang Mi shouted angrily, as if for her husband to hear.

“What, hire a maid? Just don’t hold the ancestral rites! Just buy kimchi!”

“An ungrateful brat who won’t even lift a finger! I thought I’d finally get to enjoy having a daughter-in-law and live comfortably. Such a filial son!”

“…I regret it too. It’s a shame.”

Young Hoon, who had been getting hit, lay down to avoid Hyang Mi’s hands.

Young Hoon also regretted the broken marriage with Da Eun. He had no intention of calling off the wedding.

He didn’t want to be the bad guy to Da Eun, and thought it would be easier to marry someone who would support him, as his mother said. As a son who had always worried his mother, he firmly believed Da Eun would now show filial piety.

“Da Eun sent the wedding expenses breakdown to your email. If you don’t pay, she’ll see you in court!”

“C-court?”

“I’ll try talking to Da Eun again, so you hurry up and end things with that Ju Ri or whatever girl.”

Hyang Mi downed some cold water and ordered firmly.

“How are you going to talk to her? She looked at me like I was vermin.”

“If it were you, would you look kindly on her if she was pregnant with another man’s child?”

“Another man? I’d never forgive that. But Mom, she’s not that kind of person. I was her only one.”

“Oh, you fool! That’s not what I mean. How could she be in her right mind when her husband-to-be got his friend pregnant? First, help her cool down. Soothe her gently.”

“Alright…”

Young Hoon licked his lips regretfully, recalling Da Eun who only had eyes for him. He had never gone further than kissing with Da Eun.

That’s why he went through with the wedding and honeymoon despite Ju Ri’s objections. He thought she wouldn’t refuse in the honeymoon suite.

He wanted to conquer her at least once. He wanted to be the first to draw a line on that pure white canvas.

“But Mom, why do you like Da Eun so much?”

Da Eun was sweet not only to Young Hoon, but also to Hyang Mi and Sung Bok. Even with unreasonable demands, she silently complied without showing any displeasure.

However, Hyang Mi had a different reason for wanting Da Eun and Young Hoon to marry.

“Your son is fated to die young. He must marry well!”

A shaman had said that when Hyang Mi happened to visit a fortune-teller with a friend. Until then, Hyang Mi didn’t believe in shamanism at all, but she couldn’t laugh off talk about her son.

After that, she visited famous fortune-tellers across the country, but they all said Young Hoon was fated to die young.

Just in case, when she presented Da Eun’s birth date and time, the shaman urged her not to let this year pass, to marry them no matter what.

“The girl is nice. So you just work on convincing Da Eun to marry again. After that, do as you please. Have two households if you want.”

To save her son, she had no choice, though reluctant.

The use of a lowly daughter-in-law with an ailing single mother and unknown father was only that much.

[This is the timeline separator]

Several days passed after that.

With the long holiday, I decided to take care of things I couldn’t do because I was so busy. That is, sorting out the gifts, furniture, and appliances I received from Young Hoon.

I was planning to organize everything this time, but it seemed time would be short, so I added my days off to the holiday, which Yu Kwon readily approved.

Though it won’t cleanly erase the fact that the engagement was broken, I felt I needed to sort things out clearly to take a new step. I also wanted to repay my debt to Yu Kwon as soon as possible.

Fortunately, I was able to quickly sort out the newlywed home too. It was thanks to Jun Won being the owner of the apartment I had leased.

He also bought the appliances and furniture. He was rather pleased, saying he could raise the monthly rent if he leased it fully furnished.

But Da Eun could tell. Even if he pretended otherwise, Jun Won was being considerate of her.

If she had dealt with everything alone, she might have broken down crying again. When the electronics and furniture she had carefully chosen while going around department stores with Young Hoon filled the newlywed home, she would have recalled that thrilling moment.

Things were so different now from back then when she was happy imagining a future with Young Hoon. Her heart ached again at the stark contrast.

After organizing with Jun Won and returning home, Da Eun picked up her phone and sent him a message.

[You’re truly my benefactor, senior.]

She sent it with a crying emoji. The reply came quickly.

[What benefactor. Next time, don’t run away midway and drink properly.] [Of course. Don’t you think of running away either. Hee Ju said she’s coming soon, so let’s drink together, the three of us.]

Hee Ju was Da Eun’s cousin. Born the same year, they attended the same university and were like friends, and she also knew Jun Won well.

She had been calling constantly since the wedding, but Da Eun hadn’t been able to contact her due to the chaos. Being her aunt’s daughter, she couldn’t tell her true feelings. In case it got back to her mother somehow.

Da Eun put down her phone on the table and started tidying her room. Then she found a small teddy bear in the corner.

Young Hoon had given her a designer wallet for his birthday, but gave her a teddy bear for her birthday.

“I know your birthday is once every 4 years, but I couldn’t just ignore it.”

Da Eun’s birthday was February 29th. So it was once every 4 years. That’s why he generously gave her a teddy bear on February 28th.

How scary love’s blinders are – Da Eun teared up gratefully even upon receiving the teddy bear.

Young Hoon always said he wanted to give his heart rather than material things, as if brainwashing Da Eun.

She loved the little things – the letters he wrote for anniversaries, the messages he sent early in the morning, drinking beer together while watching dramas.

“What a fool I was.”

Da Eun smiled bitterly as she put the teddy bear in a garbage bag. Then she started cleaning. She wanted to throw away everything that reminded her of Young Hoon.

Fortunately or unfortunately, there wasn’t much to throw away since she hadn’t received much.

Just then, a call came from Young Hoon. The timing was ridiculous. Da Eun stared at the screen blankly before pressing reject.

She wasn’t without the desire to get angry, to ask how he could do this to her, but she felt that would take her back to square one. She didn’t want to feel that unpleasant emotion of being abandoned in the middle of the world again.

Da Eun blocked Young Hoon’s number.

What good would it do to listen to a man who hadn’t contacted her for days after the wedding, and then went on a honeymoon with another woman instead?

She didn’t want to hear things like it was a mistake, please forgive me. She hated those who try to gloss over their sins with words like “mistake”.

“I’m sorry, I made a mistake not realizing you were the director.”

Suddenly she recalled what she had said to Yu Kwon.

That night that had to be a mistake.

He had been saying and doing incomprehensible things lately. Giving 100 million won as a wedding gift, showing up at the pojangmacha, buying her meals and proposing.

Though she thought she knew quite a bit about him from being together every day, she was mistaken.

Thinking of him made her chest feel tight, like indigestion. She also felt uneasy, like something hadn’t been properly resolved.

Suddenly feeling hungry, Da Eun looked in the empty fridge and sighed.

“That restaurant back then was so delicious.”

Da Eun tearfully reminisced about the day she went to fine dining for the first time in her life.

She had been eating well when Yu Kwon suddenly proposed, making her eat half-heartedly and run away. He could have at least let her finish eating before saying anything. He’s so inconsiderate.

“I wonder if I could go there one more time?”

Fine dining, yeah right. I need to pay off my debt first.

Da Eun threw on a hoodie over her pajamas and left the house.

She was going to buy beer and ramen at the convenience store in front of her house. Spicy ramen and beer were the best when her mind was complicated.

She put ramen, beer, and a hot bar on the counter and took out her card when a pregnancy test suddenly caught her eye.

Come to think of it, it was time to do it, why haven’t I?

As Da Eun vaguely thought this, she suddenly recalled that day. The day she was embraced by Yu Kwon.

Shaking her head vigorously at the uneasy feeling, she carefully retraced her memories of that day.

A meticulous man like Cha Yu Kwon wouldn’t have not used protection. Thinking this, she still ended up buying the test kit. Her fingertips trembled nervously, like when she first bought sanitary pads.

It can’t be, it wasn’t even my ovulation day.

She put the test kit in her pocket separately, as her mother who should be home by now might discover it if she put it in the plastic bag with the ramen.

As Da Eun was about to reach home, she suddenly took out the test kit. It was an unfamiliar object she had never used before.

“I just bought this for peace of mind. It doesn’t make sense…”

Just then, she sensed someone behind her, and an unwanted voice suddenly spoke up.

“What doesn’t make sense?”

It was Young Hoon. He snatched the test kit from Da Eun’s hand.

“What’s this? Why do you have this?”

The timing couldn’t have been worse.

Young Hoon’s face hardened. No wonder, since they had broken up without ever sleeping together because Da Eun kept putting it off.

She wanted to avoid it because she felt repulsed by how blatantly he was pushing for it. Da Eun knew well that Young Hoon had been eagerly anticipating their first night at the honeymoon destination.

Of course, that was Young Hoon’s situation, and it was extremely unpleasant for Da Eun that he would come looking for her like this and question her when they had already broken up.

“Give it back. And why did you come here?”

“Why did you buy this! Did you cheat on me?”

“Cheat? You have the nerve to say that to my face?”