Postponing Divorce (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 9

Chae Yoon, having confirmed that the caller was Jae Oh, answered the phone.

“Hello.”

Come out.

Out of the blue, he called just to say, “Come out.”

Moreover, his tone sounded anything but pleasant, so Chae Yoon cautiously asked back,

“What do you mean by that all of a sudden?”

I’m right in front of your office, so come out.

Though his voice was rough, as if spitting out the words, Chae Yoon was too startled by the fact that Jae Oh was standing outside her office to even notice how foul his mood truly was.

All she could wonder, in her dazed state, was why he had come here.

“What’s the matter…?”

She tried asking, but the call had already ended.

Chae Yoon stared blankly at the disconnected screen for a moment.

She didn’t know why he’d come all this way, but it was obvious things would get complicated if he entered her office.

Deciding she had no choice but to meet him, Chae Yoon took a quick glance around the office to check the team’s mood, then quietly slipped out.

“Madam.”

Waiting for her wasn’t Jae Oh, but Woo Jong.

“The Managing Director is waiting for you over there.”

The moment she saw Woo Jong’s face, Chae Yoon felt relieved; she patted her chest, calming the anxiety that she might be seen with Jae Oh by others, and followed behind him.

Jae Oh was waiting in a small meeting room a short distance from her office, his expression unusually dark.

‘Why does he look so upset?’

She wondered if it had something to do with their divorce talk that morning, but his demeanor now felt even colder than before, making Chae Yoon slightly nervous as she took a seat in front of him.

As soon as Chae Yoon sat down, Jae Oh wordlessly handed her an envelope of photographs.

Seeing the envelope placed carelessly in front of her, Chae Yoon looked up and met his gaze.

“What’s this?”

“Look.”

Hearing his voice—cold and perfectly matching his gloomy expression—Chae Yoon opened the envelope.

From inside, a photo emerged, held delicately in her slender fingers.

Her eyes widened in shock as she recognized herself in the picture.

“……”

Watching Chae Yoon’s stunned reaction, Jae Oh recalled the report Woo Jong had given him before coming here.

[Assistant Manager Lim Hyun Min. He’s thirty years old and has consistently good performance reviews.]

It hadn’t been difficult to find out about the man—he knew Ji Pil had mentioned Chae Yoon and Hyun Min were on the same team.

Besides, Jae Oh had absolutely no doubt that this man was the one who’d driven Chae Yoon home and whose voice he’d heard over her phone.

The license plate of the car parked outside her house that night matched the one in the photo.

While these thoughts swirled in his mind, Woo Jong added another piece of information.

[Word is, he helped you a great deal when you first joined the company.]

He’d helped her so much on the same team…

‘So that’s how they became close.’

She helped him, feelings grew, and they kept spending time together…

‘Ugh, this feels awful. Seriously.’

Reflecting on how affection naturally blossoms between a man and a woman, Jae Oh was hit by a sense of betrayal far worse than when he’d first heard about the divorce.

It was a completely new feeling—his head felt hot, as if sparks were flying from his eyes. Lost in this whirlwind of emotion, only one thought remained clear in his mind.

‘Song Chae Yoon’s man—Lim Hyun Min.’

Nothing else mattered. His usual composure, which had never failed him at any moment in his life, was now utterly blinded by betrayal.

He’d come here urgently, feeling he had to see Chae Yoon immediately to calm his turbulent, irrational thoughts—but why did her pale, shocked face after seeing the photo feel like confirmation that this was truly his home?

[Oppa.] [Jae Oh Oppa.]

Her cheerful voice, calling him affectionately with that innocent smile…

The thought that she’d shown that same smile to this man and then returned to him so casually, as if nothing had happened, made his jaw clench in fury.

In that instant, Kyeong Hee’s face flashed through his mind.

[Auntie is practically like a mother to you. No matter what happens, you must treat her well. Understand?]

Grandfather and Father had spoken so fondly of how devotedly she’d cared for him—but now that insincere, performative kindness kept overlapping with Chae Yoon’s face in Jae Oh’s eyes, his gaze sinking lower.

His heart twisted. Not wanting to look at Chae Yoon’s face any longer, he turned his eyes away and sneered coldly,

“I never expected that your request for divorce—because you wanted to live alone—would include something like this.”

Hearing Jae Oh’s accusation, thick with misunderstanding, Chae Yoon couldn’t find words to respond.

After all, anyone looking at those photos would easily assume they were a couple.

Chae Yoon closed her eyes tightly as she stared at the photo.

Hyun Min had been the senior colleague who helped her the most when she first joined the company, enabling her to adapt smoothly.

Their private closeness had begun when Hyun Min developed feelings for Eun Ha.

Eun Ha was someone Chae Yoon had known since childhood—aside from Ji Pil, she was the person Chae Yoon relied on the most. One day, Hyun Min had asked about her.

[Um… Miss Chae Yoon.] [Yes?] [The woman you were with yesterday—is she someone close to you?] [Eun Ha? Yes, she’s a close older sister. Why do you ask?] [No… I was just curious.]

But the flush on his face made it clear it wasn’t just simple curiosity.

The way he’d glanced at her while asking about Eun Ha…

Chae Yoon thought she understood Hyun Min’s intentions, so she asked him directly,

[Assistant Manager, have you fallen for Eun Ha, by any chance?]

Hyun Min didn’t deny it.

However, Eun Ha was currently focused entirely on building her career, not on relationships.

Their situation reminded Chae Yoon so much of her own relationship with Jae Oh—and seeing how earnest Hyun Min was, she did something entirely out of character.

[Assistant Manager, would you like me to help you out a bit?]

From that point on, Chae Yoon arranged several meetings between Eun Ha and Hyun Min, and a month later, good news came.

[Really? Did Eun Ha really accept your confession?] [Yes. Thank you, Chae Yoon.]

Chae Yoon rejoiced as if it were her own happiness.

At a dinner celebrating the newly formed couple, Chae Yoon ended up recounting to Eun Ha all that had happened between her and Hyun Min—and naturally, she found herself opening up about her own situation too.

It helped that Eun Ha already knew everything about Chae Yoon’s circumstances.

When Hyun Min heard that Chae Yoon was married—to Managing Director Han Jae Oh—and had quietly pined for him for four years, he was utterly stunned. But once he knew, he understood why Chae Yoon had gone out of her way to help him.

[Miss Chae Yoon… was that why you helped me?]

Hearing his question, Chae Yoon finally realized something.

The reason she’d impulsively offered to help him—

It was because his longing for Eun Ha had reminded her so much of her own feelings.

[I think so… I just wanted someone, even if it was you, to finally escape unrequited love…]

She’d thrown herself into helping him as if it were her own cause.

As she confessed this truth, she ended up pouring out every heartache she’d endured because of Jae Oh.

After that, the three of them grew even closer and began meeting frequently.

All the while, completely unaware that photos like these could ever be taken.

Chae Yoon’s brow furrowed.

She never, not even in her wildest dreams, imagined something like this would happen.

Although they’d only registered their marriage without a wedding ceremony, she was still legally Han Jae Oh’s wife. She should have acted accordingly, with greater care…

‘God, I’m such a fool.’

Blaming herself, Chae Yoon opened her eyes.

Anyone would misunderstand a photo that showed only her and Hyun Min, conveniently omitting Eun Ha—especially since she’d just asked Jae Oh for a divorce.

The timing couldn’t have been worse.

It felt as if someone had deliberately orchestrated this moment to ensure she and Jae Oh would break apart, leaving a bitter taste in Chae Yoon’s mouth.

‘Well, if we’re this mismatched, it’s no wonder nothing ever happened between us in three years.’

The conviction that she and Jae Oh weren’t meant to be grew stronger.

Yet despite the terrible timing, the misunderstanding had to be cleared up—so Chae Yoon opened her eyes and looked directly at Jae Oh.

“Anyone would misunderstand this photo, but I’m not involved with Assistant Manager Lim like that.”

Though her denial momentarily lifted his foul mood—as if he’d just been pulled out of muck—the image of Chae Yoon brightly smiling and waving goodbye to Hyun Min as he dropped her off at her doorstep shattered his composure again.

The memory of her being so drunk she could barely walk returned too, and his bitterness showed no sign of easing. Instead, his voice sharpened as he lashed out at her,

“If you’re not involved, then why were you drinking together until neither of you could walk straight—and he even drove you home?”

He’d gotten so drunk he couldn’t even stand—all because of this man.

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

She’d been deeply saddened that she’d never truly become a ‘woman’ to him, and heartbroken over having to finally draw the line she’d kept postponing—so she’d sought comfort from Eun Ha and Hyun Min.

That was why she’d ended up drinking more than she realized—but she never expected it would come back to haunt her like this. Chae Yoon let out a long sigh before replying,

“It wasn’t just the two of us drinking, and more importantly, Assistant Manager Lim…”

Her explanation trailed off.

Because Jae Oh wasn’t even listening to her.

The man before her, his face twisted with displeasure as he turned his head away, clearly had no intention of believing anything she said.

Seeing that, her urge to explain froze cold.

Would any justification she offered even register with someone who’d already concluded she was having an affair with Hyun Min?

No—more than that…

What hurt most was that Jae Oh hadn’t trusted her first. Instead, he’d judged her based solely on these photos, come to her like a prosecutor confronting a criminal, and stared at her with such condemnation that Chae Yoon was suddenly overwhelmed with hatred toward him.

And so—

Because even the time they’d shared together now felt utterly meaningless…

Chae Yoon chose admission over explanation.

“Yes.”

The moment she spoke, Jae Oh— who hadn’t looked at her until then—fixed his eyes sharply on her.

Though her heart ached painfully under his direct gaze now that she’d admitted it, she absolutely refused to show him a shred of her vulnerability. Keeping her voice as dry as possible, she said,

“Yes, he’s someone I’m seeing.”

The very words he seemed to want to hear.

“So I asked for divorce because of that. Please prepare the divorce papers as quickly as possible.”

Chae Yoon enunciated each word clearly while holding his gaze, then stood up and walked straight out of the meeting room.

The sound of the door closing behind her—thud—felt unusually cold.