For Im Nayoon, the latter was a more unbearable demand. How could she reverse the pitiful and pathetic act that she had acted out so desperately?

“What do you want me to correct? Is there anything wrong in those rumors? It’s a fact that we were engaged.”

“The Im Nayoon I know… Even though her personality is not great, she was a quick-witted woman.”

With harsh words, Junhwi stepped forward. Instinctively, Im Nayoon took a step back.

“How did even this fall apart like this?”

“Shut up!”

Kwon Junhwi treated everyone as inferior to himself. He had seized the opportunity to suppress their arrogance and awkwardness, enjoying their torment.

However, involving Kim Seungho, this kid, made people even more miserable.

“One week. Solve it within that time.”

“…”

Explanation? Correcting the rumors?

That would never happen. They did it just because they liked it, regardless of who it benefited.
For a while, Im Nayoon and Junhwi’s gazes, which had been silently fixed on the floor, became entangled. Resentment. Hatred. A mixture of awkwardness filled their intensely boiling eyes.

“You scoundrel.”

A venomous tone was imbued with deep animosity.

She brushed past the two and walked straight out. Kim Seungho, who had collided quite forcefully, groaned as he lightly grazed her shoulder.

⭐⭐⭐

News of Attorney Im Nayoon’s resignation spread quickly.

Having only been at Ro&Yul for a few months, the story of her returning to Hong Kong as if being chased out was once again the talk of the town.

Who else would be the cause of it all but Yeonwoo, and thus, the end of the repetitive story pointed to him. The baseless rumor expanded and reproduced, growing into a huge scandal.

A pitiful woman who lost her fiance to Kim Yeonwoo, who enjoyed approaching men, and even lost her job. That was the public’s evaluation of Im Nayoon.

“Well, at least it might be more comfortable now that the person involved is gone.”

Although Yeonwoo had decided to focus only on his relationship with her, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy due to external factors like this.

“What are you thinking?”

Junhwi, who had noticed that his mind was momentarily elsewhere, asked. Yeonwoo blinked in surprise.

It was on their way home together from the office.

The car he was driving smoothly traveled through the streets of Seoul, coming to a brief stop at a traffic signal.

“Um… Time flies, doesn’t it?”

When dating Im Nayoon or going out with colleagues, Yeonwoo tried not to think about such things.

Yeonwoo, who made an effort to clear his mind of distractions, absentmindedly looked out the window.

“The days are getting shorter, and the wind is getting cooler. It seems like autumn is coming.”

After Chuseok passed, the humidity that had been like a lie disappeared from the air. The sky was clear, and the sunlight, as if filtered through a thin layer, was no longer intense.

Yeonwoo felt the mountain breeze coming through the slightly open car window. While contemplating, he threw a glance outside.

“Indeed. The wind is surprisingly gentle.”

The gentle spreading sunset, the fragrance of shampoo, everything was soft. Junhwi reached out and swept Yeonwoo’s hair blowing in the wind behind his ear.

Because of Im Nayoon, or more precisely, because he couldn’t prevent Im Nayoon’s misdeeds, his cheeks, which had become pale, were revealed. Junhwi clicked his tongue inwardly.

“Do you have anything you want to do for your birthday?”

The traffic light changed. Junhwi started the car again and turned his gaze back to the front. This time, Yeonwoo looked at his neat profile.

“Is it my birthday already? There’s still a month left.”

“Time goes by quickly.”

Although he had never attached meaning to the changing of seasons in his life, now, autumn meant that Junhwi’s birthday was approaching for Yeonwoo.

“Think about what gift you want or what you want to do.”

“I want to receive Kwon Junhwi as a gift.”

“Oh. That might be hard to handle.”
He answered as if letting it slip, but perhaps Junhwi himself didn’t know if it was a statement directed towards him. It was a self-addressed remark about the emotions that were gradually becoming overwhelming toward Yeonwoo, intensifying day by day.

Slowly, without giving time for it to mature and mellow, the emotions that rushed in without a break were difficult to handle every moment.

For example, moments like right now, when Yeonwoo, who was right beside him, was so lovable that it was unbearable.

Although unfamiliar, she might also feel the same emotion. Concern disguised as curiosity flooded in.

All sorts of worries.

Junhwi, who had swallowed his conscience, chuckled softly.

“It’s okay. Take your time to think. Even before we started dating, I’ve been diligently handling Kwon Junhwi.”

“Is that so?”

“Who else would handle Kwon Junhwi other than me?”

Her clear eyes narrowed gently. Why was even that seemingly stimulating? Junhwi involuntarily furrowed his brows.

Kim Yeonwoo wouldn’t know. How much his smile could drive someone crazy.

If she could smile at me for a lifetime, for that one thing, I feel like I could do anything.

Watching her in the backlight of the setting sun, which was falling in yellow, felt like being paralyzed from head to toe. This kind of feeling was new.

The well-running car suddenly came to a halt on the side of the road.

Before Yeonwoo could even question why, Junhwi, who had deeply sighed, poured out his words toward her.

Softly pursed lips.

Even though they only touched, Yeonwoo’s sweet and juicy scent rushed in.

“Ah…”

Caught off guard by the sudden kiss, Yeonwoo made a sound of surprise during a brief pause. Then, as he kissed Yeonwoo’s lips again, the kiss deepened.

Two breaths merged into one, and a tingling sensation ran from head to toe. Even though their lips were touching, he wanted to go deeper and deeper.

No matter how much he drank, Kim Yeonwoo was insufficient.

It seemed fine to give up everything like this and immerse himself in her.

The large hand that wrapped around Yeonwoo’s back pulled her even closer, embracing her greedily.

The gentle and soft kiss, which seemed to stop, suddenly became intense again. Changing the direction of their heads, they embraced each other endlessly.

Hmm, in the muffled sound of Yeonwoo getting lost in the haze, Junhwi slowly parted his tightly pressed lips.

“Because you’re beautiful.”

“Is this all of a sudden?”

Without waiting for an unasked question, Junhwi brushed his thumb over Yeonwoo’s remembered cheek.

Because I like you. Because I might go crazy. Because I can’t endure it any longer.

If all of this isn’t love, then what is it?

What should I do? How can you, just by locking eyes, make someone’s reasoning and judgment numb?

He simply encapsulated all of his certainty in the words ‘Because you’re beautiful.’ To avoid burdening her with his confession soaked in thirst, he did his best to package it.

It was the first time he found a presence so reluctant to let go of everything—everything in the world. Purely, literally, he didn’t want to let go from his hands.

“Kim Yeonwoo. You’re beautiful.”
It seems I must have this woman. If having her is not enough, I won’t let her go for a lifetime.

As if reading Junhwi’s determination, Yeonwoo’s arms wrapped around the back of his neck.

His eyes wandered disorientedly over Yeonwoo’s flushed face. From flickering pupils to the tip of the nose, then back to plump lips and down to the jaw.

Then, when their lips touched again, it was a late summer evening where even the twilight disappeared.