Before their marriage, when her feelings for him had just begun, she had always been curious about how his voice would sound over the phone. Although they had gotten married without much chance for long conversations, she now knew all too well.
[There’s a lot to discuss.]Remembering Jae Oh’s reluctance to end calls in the past brought a smile to Chae Yoon’s face.
For some unknown reason, she felt a peculiar twist in her stomach. She began tapping her foot on the floor and then glimpsed inside the bag that Jae Oh had bought for her.
At that moment, his call ended.
“What did you want to say?”
It was the same question again.
Chae Yoon tilted her head slightly, puzzled.
“I said I had nothing to say. Why do you keep insisting?”
“You kept gazing at me as if you had something on your mind while I was on the phone.”
Recalling how she had observed him earlier made her think.
She assumed he would be too engrossed in his call to notice, but apparently, he had observed her.
“So, what is it?”
She was truly just observing him, but feeling that a straightforward reply would not end their exchange, Chae Yoon showed him the bag as a distraction.
“Just, thank you for getting this for me.”
Even though it was a simple gesture of gratitude, Jae Oh’s expression hardened.
It wasn’t something deeply pondered over. He just bought it because Chae Yoon said she wanted it, and he longed to see her smile.
But her being so thankful for it…
Weighed heavily on him.
“I didn’t do anything deserving of such gratitude.”
His voice, emanating from a place of bitterness, had dropped noticeably.
The dimmed tone, the furrowed brows.
Confronted with Jae Oh’s unexpected reaction, Chae Yoon blinked rapidly.
‘Why is he acting this way?’
Searching for clues in his expression and engrossed in her thoughts, Chae Yoon called out to him.
“Jae Oh.”
His gaze shifted to her.
“Jae Oh, you’re bothered by what Hyo Jung said, aren’t you?”
His composed face showed signs of distress.
So she’s still worried about that.
“Do I seem that way?”
Chae Yoon promptly nodded.
“I’m not sure if it’s just my perception, but you seem different since we met the kids.”
“How so?”
“More… subdued than usual?”
At Chae Yoon’s observation, the corners of Jae Oh’s mouth turned up faintly.
It was a weak smile, but to Chae Yoon, it seemed like he found her concerns baseless.
She wondered if she had pointed out something unnecessary.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, as Chae Yoon lowered her gaze, she felt Jae Oh’s deepening gaze upon her. A profound sigh echoed.
Despite her telling him not to fret about her feelings, she still cared for him.
For the past three years, he had isolated her from group conversations and prevented her from laughing.
What did she find appealing in him? What did she find beautiful that she cared for him to this extent?
Unable to grasp the depth of Chae Yoon’s sentiments, Jae Oh felt overwhelmed.
“It’s not what your friend said that bothers me. It’s because of you.”
Chae Yoon slowly raised her gaze to meet his.
“You’re kind and beautiful.”
“…….”
“The more I see you, the more I realize my shortcomings.”
And how foolish he had been.
This was a realization he had felt even before meeting Chae Yoon’s friends.
A feeling that something was amiss, a doubt about whether it was right to continue this way.
He had asked for a month because no matter how much he pondered, he didn’t want to let go of Chae Yoon.
He might not feel the same way now, but at least she had liked him back then.
So he thought, if he could stay by her side for that month and do all the things he hadn’t done before, the wounds from his neglect might gradually heal.
The past was already behind them. Instead of dwelling on it, he believed it was better to focus on the present and the future. But now, Jae Oh was realizing how naive that thought had been, especially when looking at Chae Yoon beside him.
The moments from the past that he believed he could brush off were deeply engraved in Chae Yoon’s heart.
It was only natural. The magnitude, depth, and warmth of the feelings Chae Yoon had for him and vice versa were different.
It’s obvious that the weight each of them assigns to their past would be different, but he hadn’t considered that aspect then.
He was just too preoccupied with his feelings for her.
Now, consumed by the realization that he truly can’t be without her.
He had failed to understand the pain she felt, even in the times when painful memories resurfaced.
She always considered his feelings above hers.
Despite all this clarity, he hoped time wouldn’t pass, knowing how he felt about not wanting to let go, and understandably, he couldn’t feel the same way.
Chae Yoon’s figure, which seemed to glow radiantly, was vividly embedded in his vision.
The more he saw that, the heavier Jae Oh’s heart became. He fixed his gaze upon her, tensing his jaw.
Would it have been different if she had been a bit less kind?
If she had expressed her hurt, saying since she had suffered so much, he should experience the same, he would have apologized for leaving her alone all this time and for only now realizing his feelings, begging for her forgiveness.
Why was she so kind?
Why so beautiful?
Making someone like him too unworthy to even approach her.
The more time passed, Jae Oh spoke while intently gazing into the eyes of the woman he felt he didn’t deserve.
“Just stop worrying about me.”
His voice sounded like a desperate plea, ‘Please.’
Chae Yoon, momentarily at a loss for words, simply blinked.
She was bewildered, unsure of what to say.
Just then, Woo Jong appeared, carrying desserts.
Seeing Woo Jong, Jae Oh said,
“Let’s go.”
His tone was so emotionless that it made the confusion Chae Yoon felt seem trivial.
Yet, in his eyes gazing at Chae Yoon, remnants of lingering regret could still be seen.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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