Postponing Divorce (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 4

At Chae Yoon’s question, the ends of his thick eyebrows lifted faintly.

Jae Oh stared at Chae Yoon for a moment before responding.

“I didn’t already tell you the reason back then?”

At that, Chae Yoon gave a slight nod.

“Yes. I know now that your need for my father’s company and Grandfather agreeing to our marriage because of my father’s request—it’s all clear to me.”

Recalling the reason Jae Oh had once given her for their marriage, Chae Yoon shrugged her shoulders once and continued.

“Given your capabilities, I figured you could easily find a corporation like my dad’s anytime.”

There was no real need for him to be bound by marriage.

“Also, from what I’ve seen of you, you’re the type who never does anything you don’t want to do, no matter what anyone says. Yet you readily agreed to marry me and even share a room, so I was curious.”

These were things she’d come to understand through years of knowing him.

Even if the institution of “marriage” held no meaning for him—making it easy to agree to—it wasn’t the same for everything else.

He was very particular, and that included people too. Especially with ‘women,’ he kept an unusually wide distance.

She’d learned this three years ago, overhearing a conversation between Hae Sang and Ji Pil.

[Jae Oh doesn’t seem very interested in women.] [Nope. Seriously, all his friends are guys—how’s he ever going to get married at this rate?] [With someone like Jae Oh, women would line up for him.] [All shine, no substance. You haven’t dealt with his nasty temper, so you wouldn’t know.] [Really? He didn’t seem that way to me…]

Because of those words, she’d unknowingly let herself hope.

Jae Oh, who never kept women around, had proposed marriage to her.

Maybe—just maybe—he saw her as a woman.

Holding onto that sliver of hope, she endured one year, then two, and as the third year drew to a close, she finally realized:

She could never be a ‘woman’ to this man. She’d simply been mistaken.

Now that she understood, it struck her as strangely curious.

Given Jae Oh’s reserved nature, he should’ve insisted on separate rooms. So why was he sharing one with her?

Hence, she’d asked:

“Was there another reason you married me?”

They wouldn’t be facing each other like this much longer, so she wanted to know his true feelings one last time.

“…….”

Jae Oh couldn’t answer right away.

He hadn’t even considered that aspect.

[Marry Chae Yoon.]

When Ji Pil first said those words, Jae Oh had been stunned.

[Securing your position with CS Chemical wouldn’t be a bad move.]

It made sense, but Jae Oh wondered if marriage to Chae Yoon specifically was truly necessary, so he asked.

[Hae Sang even entrusted Chae Yoon to me before he passed.]

Before he could even ask again whether marriage was absolutely required, the image of Chae Yoon sitting alone at Hae Sang’s funeral flashed in his mind.

The moment she saw him and Ji Pil, tears had streamed from her wide eyes. Seeing her body trembling uncontrollably, he’d wanted nothing more than to hold her.

And to tell her:

“It’s okay. You’re not alone.”

He’d been surprised even himself by that almost instinctive thought, but he’d chalked it up to seeing her as the ‘younger sister’ he’d known since childhood.

But why did that memory resurface now?

Why did he briefly wonder whether marrying Song Chae Yoon might not be such a bad idea? Still, he was certain living with Chae Yoon was better than sharing a house with any other woman—because, from the start, she was the only woman who never got on his nerves.

So he’d simply gone along with Ji Pil’s suggestion.

“There’s no special reason. I just couldn’t stand seeing you alone, so I agreed with Grandfather’s idea. As for sharing a room…”

He hesitated, searching for the right words, but Chae Yoon finished the sentence for him.

“It’s because I’m easy to be around, so you shared a room without really thinking about it, right?”

Jae Oh couldn’t deny it.

At that, the corners of Chae Yoon’s lips tugged downward bitterly.

‘So it’s true.’

Until now, she’d believed Jae Oh was simply indifferent—holding no feelings for her whatsoever.

But now she saw clearly: he saw her only as a convenient, comfortable ‘younger sister.’

A pitiful, orphaned girl he’d known since childhood.

It was pity—or perhaps a sense of shared experience—that had made him agree to Ji Pil’s words. And since she never did anything to bother him, sharing a room hadn’t mattered.

‘And all this time, I’d hoped in vain.’

Remembering how she’d once believed there might be a chance for him to see her as a woman, Chae Yoon bit hard on the inside of her lip, suddenly feeling desolate.

Her resolve to divorce him solidified once more. She took a deep breath and spoke.

“When I went to your office back then… I’d gone to ask if you could come to my graduation. But seeing how busy you were, I figured it was fine and just left.”

Hearing Chae Yoon’s answer, Jae Oh’s eyes narrowed slightly.

‘You came all the way just for that?’

He couldn’t understand why she’d gone to his office for something so trivial—she could’ve just asked at home. Just as he was puzzling over it, Chae Yoon spoke again.

“You have no more questions now, right?”

Having finished speaking, Chae Yoon stood up. Jae Oh called after her.

“Why did you need me at your graduation?”

Her body, already turning away from him, froze in place.

She hadn’t needed him.

“Why did you need me?”

Chae Yoon, who’d been looking elsewhere, turned to face Jae Oh directly.

“Because, for appearances’ sake or not, you’re still my husband.”

The husband she could only see at home—the husband on paper, and her first love.

And…

The man who would never see her as a woman.

It wasn’t that she’d needed him; she’d just wanted to see him.

“I just…”

She’d wanted to see him outside the house, in a place filled with her memories, looking at her.

“I wanted to see you once outside.”

For three years, she hadn’t seen him even once. So she’d used graduation as an excuse—just once, she’d wanted to see him.

But as always, his work had taken priority, and she’d turned away bitterly. Remembering that moment, Chae Yoon felt sorrowful all over again.

A shadow darkened her pale face.

Anyone could tell she was upset, but Jae Oh missed it entirely—he was too busy trying to decipher her words.

‘What’s going on?’

He’d clearly asked why he was ‘needed’ at her graduation, yet her answer was that, as her husband, she’d simply wanted to see him outside.

What on earth did graduation, his being her husband, and seeing him outside even have to do with each other?

Graduation held no special meaning for Jae Oh.

He’d never attended one, always believing it was better to spend that time learning something useful. So he couldn’t grasp what Chae Yoon was saying now.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said—I just wanted to see you once, somewhere other than at home.”

“So then…”

“Do we really have to keep talking about this?”

The coldest voice yet cut off Jae Oh’s words.

Chae Yoon looked straight into his eyes and said,

“It’s been over two months. Dwelling on this now is a waste of time. Please stop worrying about it and focus on your work.”

Her smile, lifting the corners of her mouth that refused to rise naturally, was the same expression Jae Oh had always seen.

After speaking, Chae Yoon headed not for the bed but for the door.

Seeing her deliberately leave so as not to disturb his work, Jae Oh’s brow furrowed.

[You seem busy—go ahead.]

Her expression and actions were no different from that time, yet for some reason, today he felt something was wrong.

Confusion filled his deep-set eyes.

A long, dissatisfied sigh escaped his finely shaped lips.

Ding.

「Managing Director. I’ve sent you a document.」

The message from Woo Jong forced him to stop pondering his confusion.

In the spacious room, only the sound of laptop keystrokes echoed emptily.

At dawn’s first light,

Chae Yoon opened her eyes. After blinking a few times, her vision sharpened, still groggy from sleep.

And there he was.

Her husband, sleeping soundly in the adjacent bed, remained as composed as ever. Even in the dim light, he was undeniably handsome and impressive.

Lying still, Chae Yoon stared at him, recalling their conversation from the day before.

[There’s no special reason. I just couldn’t stand seeing you alone, so I agreed with Grandfather’s idea…]

Having finished her thoughts, Chae Yoon got out of bed and walked to her vanity in the powder room.

Opening a rarely used drawer, she reached deep inside and pulled out a white envelope.

Inside the envelope was a document bearing the words:

“Divorce Application”

Sighing, Chae Yoon looked at the form—every section filled out except the part her husband needed to sign.

When Jae Oh had first proposed marriage, Chae Yoon had asked about divorce.

[Then… what about divorce?]

She’d looked straight into his eyes and asked,

[Since this marriage is based on necessity, won’t you ask for a divorce once you no longer need my father’s company?]

When she’d essentially asked if he’d discard her once she was no longer useful, his reply had been:

[At the very least, I’ll never be the one to bring up divorce first.]

His voice had been firm.

His gaze, unlike anything she’d ever seen from him before, had made her believe this marriage would never end unless Jae Oh himself broke it.

But three years had been more than enough time to change her mind.

In a period when anything could happen between a man and a woman, she hadn’t managed to take even a single step closer to him. And after hearing his words yesterday, she’d become certain:

No matter what she did, she could never be more than ‘the younger sister he knew’ to him.

Thus, though she’d resolved to divorce him, a lingering, stubborn hope—and that pathetic reluctance—had kept her from signing the divorce papers until now.

“…….”

Tiny tremors flickered in Chae Yoon’s eyes as she stared at the empty signature line beside her name, “Song Chae Yoon.”

It was time to give up.

Because to him, she could never be a woman.

If three years had passed without their paths truly crossing, then they simply weren’t meant to be.

It hurt deeply, but she didn’t want to stay by his side receiving only pity.

So Chae Yoon took out her seal and pressed it firmly onto her signature space.

Now, all that remained was to hand these divorce papers to Jae Oh.

‘Once I give him this…’

Jae Oh would surely agree to the divorce immediately—but Ji Pil stood in the way.

Three years ago, Ji Pil had firmly declared while looking at their marriage certificate:

[You both said you’d thought this through carefully before deciding to marry, so once this is filed, that’s it. No divorces.]

Ji Pil was indeed strongly against divorce, and Chae Yoon, believing Jae Oh would never initiate it, had agreed.

Yet now she was the one proposing divorce, and it left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Her eyes darkened as she stared at the divorce application.

“Managing Director.”

“…….”

“Managing Director?”

Jae Oh, blinking with his head propped on his right hand, looked up at Woo Jong.

“Did you hear what I said?”

His gaze, which had been fixed on Woo Jong, shifted elsewhere.

Frowning slightly, he replied,

“It’s strange.”

“Huh? What is? Nothing unusual in today’s schedule…”

Woo Jong tilted his head in confusion as Jae Oh spoke.

“Song Chae Yoon.”

Hearing Chae Yoon’s name, Woo Jong’s eyes widened as he stared at him.

“Is Madam acting strangely?”

“Yes.”

“How so?”

His cool eyes narrowed slightly.

Closing his eyes, Jae Oh began mulling over Chae Yoon’s odd behavior.