After some time passed, I looked at the clock and it had just gone past 10 PM.

“Shall we get up now?”

When So Eun spoke, Tae Min looked at her with an expression full of regret.

“Ah… Yes. You have to go now, right?”

“Yes. It’s gotten late.”

As So Eun briefly replied and picked up the bill, Tae Min said,

“Ah. I already paid earlier when I went to the bathroom. I said I’d treat you, remember?”

“Ah. Thank you. Shall we leave then?”

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

As Tae Min answered and nodded, for some reason one corner of his heart began to feel bitter.

Once we leave here, will I never see this woman again?

This was the first time I’d offered to buy drinks for a woman I’d just met…

Something more than regret swirled in his chest, causing small ripples.

As they got up and went out of the store together, Tae Min’s expression rapidly became gloomy.

Something indescribably sad and wistful kept pricking at his heart.

Whether she knew Tae Min’s feelings or not, as soon as they exited the store, So Eun bowed her head briefly and said,

“Thank you so much for being my drinking buddy today.”

“Ah, no. I enjoyed it too, thanks to you.”

As he replied, Tae Min struggled with an inner conflict.

Should I ask for her contact? Would it be okay to ask?

But he thought it wouldn’t be right to ask for the contact of a woman who had just gone through such a messy situation.

If he asked for her contact now, he felt he would just look like a man full of selfish intentions.

Unable to do this or that, he gazed at So Eun with a bitter expression, and So Eun slightly bowed her head and gave a final greeting.

“Well then, I’ll be going now. Get home safely.”

“Ah… Yes. You get home safely too.”

Caught off guard, Tae Min also bowed his head in response to her greeting.

So Eun bowed once more to Tae Min and turned to walk towards the taxi stand.

As he watched So Eun getting further away, one part of his heart throbbed and ached.

He felt so much regret, he didn’t want to let her go like this.

Should he follow her and ask for her contact now?

But strangely, his feet felt rooted to the spot, unable to move.

He could only stand there blankly, watching So Eun get further and further away.

A moment later, a taxi stopped, and So Eun opening the back door and getting in felt like it was happening in slow motion. And only when the back door was about to close did Tae Min, like someone just unfrozen from a game of freeze tag, make an “Ah” sound and take a step.

And as the taxi started, Tae Min began to run hurriedly.

But the taxi, faster than his feet, had already gone far away and soon disappeared from Tae Min’s sight.

“Ah…”

Heaving a deep sigh, Tae Min looked at where the taxi had gone with his hand on his forehead.

An indescribable ache and sense of loss began to spread in his chest.

It had been such a fleeting encounter.

How had his head become like this in such a short time?

As Tae Min closed his eyes tightly, a strange thought suddenly occurred to him.

Was this how the prince felt when he found Cinderella’s lost shoe?

But soon Tae Min laughed dejectedly.

At least Cinderella left her shoe behind…

As Tae Min turned around, a deep shadow fell across his face.

* * *

Over the weekend, So Eun’s phone had dozens of missed calls.

They were from Jung Hyuk’s number, which had been blocked.

She didn’t have to see any messages or texts because she had blocked them completely.

When everything was blocked, calls started coming from unknown numbers.

But since it was obviously Jung Hyuk, So Eun ignored those calls too.

Jung Hyuk, with his back against the wall, probably wanted desperately to come to So Eun’s house, but he probably couldn’t.

So Eun was living with her best friend Ji Ye, and Jung Hyuk knew well how fiery Ji Ye’s temper was, so he probably didn’t have the courage to come.

Ji Ye, who had spent her Friday night out, came home early Saturday morning and only opened her eyes after 11 AM.

And she acted cute in a nasally voice to So Eun, who was making bean sprout soup for her.

After eating a late breakfast together, while watching TV, So Eun said in a calm voice that she had broken up with Jung Hyuk. To Ji Ye, who asked why with eyes as big as saucers, So Eun told her exactly what had happened on Friday. As expected, Ji Ye shouted and got up, then bounced around like an orangutan in excitement.

She barely managed to calm Ji Ye down, who said she would rush over and cut off Jung Hyuk’s head right away.

Even though So Eun said not to worry because she would never see him again, Ji Ye continued to snort and couldn’t calm her anger. For quite some time after this, Ji Ye fumed, saying that if Jung Hyuk caught her eye, she would immediately grab an ax and rush over to castrate him.

After such a stormy weekend, Monday came.

As Ji Ye, whose work start time was an hour earlier than So Eun’s, was leaving through the front door, she said,

“Surely that bastard Jung Hyuk isn’t waiting downstairs, right?”

“He won’t be.”

“If he’s down there, I swear I’ll rip out all his hair!”

Worried about Ji Ye going down huffing and puffing, So Eun went out to the balcony and looked down, but fortunately, Jung Hyuk wasn’t there. Ji Ye looked up, gave an OK sign to So Eun who was looking down, and walked away.

An hour later, So Eun also finished preparing for work and left through the front door.

As she got off the elevator and was just about to exit the villa gate, she saw Jung Hyuk’s black SUV that wasn’t there earlier.

Just as So Eun was furrowing her brow, Jung Hyuk hurriedly opened the car door and got out.

He had undoubtedly been waiting for Ji Ye to leave for work before appearing.

Jung Hyuk rushed over and stood in front of So Eun.

“So Eun!”

Jung Hyuk said in an urgent voice and grabbed So Eun’s hand.

“Are you going to let go of this?”

So Eun said seriously.

“So Eun. Please… Won’t you listen to me just once? Hm?”

“I have nothing to hear, so let go!”

“Don’t be like that, please… We can’t end like this, can we?”

So Eun shook off Jung Hyuk’s hand and said in a cold voice.

“If you have any conscience, don’t even mention the word ‘we’.”

And as she tried to pass Jung Hyuk, he suddenly knelt down.

So Eun frowned at the sudden action, and a woman who was just leaving the villa gate glanced at the two of them.

“What are you doing? Get up.”

So Eun spoke in an angry voice, but Jung Hyuk remained kneeling and reddened his eyes.

“So Eun. I’ve committed a mortal sin. I must have gone crazy for a moment. How could I have done such a thing when I love you…”

Tears rolled down Jung Hyuk’s eyes, and So Eun looked down at him with a cold gaze at the performance that would make even the gods cry.

“I’m not interested in your crocodile tears, so if you want to play love games, go do it with that girl.”

As she was about to pass by after spitting these words, Jung Hyuk suddenly stood up and grabbed So Eun’s hand.

“So Eun. Please don’t do this. Hm? Her? She’s nothing to me. You’re the only one I love.”

So Eun closed her eyes tightly and let out a deep sigh rising from her dantian.

Then she opened her eyes and looked at Jung Hyuk with a look of contempt.

“You really… You’re a filthy bastard to the end, aren’t you?”

“Wh-what did you say?”

“You definitely told her you loved her too while rolling around with her, right? But now she’s nothing? Does she know you’re such a piece of trash?”

Jung Hyuk’s eyes shook as if an earthquake had hit.

“Tr-trash… So Eun. No matter what, aren’t your words too harsh?”

So Eun looked up at Jung Hyuk with a sneer.

“Isn’t it more harsh that you roll around with another woman and still expect to be treated like a human?”

“No, th-that’s not what I meant…”

“Those 8 months we dated? They mean nothing to me now. I can just forget a guy like you, so don’t ever show up in front of me again.”

As soon as So Eun finished speaking and took a step, Jung Hyuk roughly grabbed her hand.

So Eun’s body spun around, and Jung Hyuk shouted at her with blazing eyes.

“This is why!”

Jung Hyuk bit his lip and spat out in a low voice.

“This is why I go crazy! Because you’re so cold! Right? During the time we dated, did you ever act cute for me even once? I always had to initiate skinship first! How could I not go crazy dating such a wooden woman like you? Huh?”

So Eun looked up at Jung Hyuk with a chilly expression.

“Am I a monkey in a zoo? Why should I act cute for you?”

“No, that’s not what I mean!”

“Then you should have dated a woman with lots of aegyo from the start. Why did you date a wooden woman like me for 8 months?”

“No, So Eun. That’s because I love you so much…”

“Cut the bullshit.”

Jung Hyuk’s eyes widened at So Eun’s harsh words.

“So Eun. No, why do you keep using such rough language that doesn’t suit you?”

So Eun smirked as she stared at Jung Hyuk.

“Who’s making my mouth dirty right now?”

“So Eun. No matter what…”

“Even hearing my name come out of your mouth now is too creepy and disgusting. So don’t ever appear in front of me again and don’t contact me.”

So Eun shook off Jung Hyuk’s hand forcefully.

Jung Hyuk looked at So Eun with surprised eyes.

“If you come looking for me even once more after this moment, I won’t just stand by either.”

So Eun glared at Jung Hyuk with fierce eyes and turned around to walk away steadily.

Jung Hyuk stared blankly at So Eun’s retreating figure with bloodshot eyes.