The Day I Quit Being a Wife (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 9
Hyuk Joo let out a brief sound.
When he opened the door, the laughter he’d heard from outside vanished instantly—as if it had only been a figment of his imagination.
Eun Soo’s face, which had just been smiling brightly, now showed no expression at all.
A faint crease formed on Hyuk Joo’s smooth forehead.
Watching the silence fall over the room because of his entrance made him feel like an unwelcome intruder.
“Must’ve been an important call.”
“Yes.”
Hyuk Joo gave a short reply to Hwang In Woo’s question and sat down next to Eun Soo.
He had no appetite.
Noticing that Eun Soo, who until just now had only been finishing her bowl of porridge, seemed to be in the same state, Hyuk Joo glanced at his wife’s plate.
The dish in front of her, which had been clean when he sat down beside her, now bore traces of food.
Oh Eun Soo—just what do you think of me?
Hyuk Joo swallowed hard, forcing down the hot lump rising in his throat.
He didn’t care that others found him intimidating.
It was only natural for people to tread carefully around someone with power, and he’d never thought there was anything strange about ruling that way.
But his wife was different.
Husband and wife.
Bound together under the name of marriage, they should have been closer than anyone else in the world.
They even shared flesh and blood—wasn’t that the very definition of intimacy?
Yet Eun Soo, his own wife, made no effort to hide how uneasy she felt around him.
Why couldn’t he be someone comfortable and easy for her?
Hyuk Joo couldn’t understand it.
‘Just let my mom get treatment. That’s all I ask. I won’t care what you do after that.’
Eun Soo’s words suddenly struck him in the chest.
She had spoken, more than once, about why she remained in the role of Moon Hyuk Joo’s wife.
As if reminding him never to forget that she stayed out of obligation—solely for her mother’s treatment.
Each time, Hyuk Joo couldn’t shake the bitter feeling of humiliation.
Hyuk Joo reached out and picked up his water glass.
Eun Soo had resumed her conversation with Hwang In Woo.
“I’d like to visit Dr. Kim. Can you tell me where he’s been laid to rest?”
“He’s buried beneath a tree in the yard of our Gangwon-do villa.”
“Beneath a tree?”
“Yes. We chose a tree burial. The facility’s closed next Wednesday—if you’re free, would you like to come by for a bit?”
“Oh…”
When Eun Soo turned to look at him, Hyuk Joo took a sip of water before replying.
“I’ll need to check with Director Song to see if I have any other appointments.”
“As far as I know, you don’t have any fixed schedule.”
“…Something might’ve come up in the meantime.”
Wiping his hands with a napkin, Hyuk Joo spoke coolly, his gaze indifferent as he looked at Eun Soo.
He couldn’t comprehend how she could so casually suggest going alone with another man all the way to Gangwon-do while her husband was right there.
Because of that, his response came out sharper than intended—
even though he knew his cold tone was making Eun Soo’s eyes grow emptier by the second.
It was childish and cruel.
But if he didn’t act this way, he feared even harsher words would spill out.
Eun Soo, who had initially shown disappointment, soon sighed in resignation and spoke gently.
“Please ask Director Song and let me know.”
“Fine.”
Interpreting his promise to check his schedule as permission, Eun Soo’s face soon brightened with a smile.
“In Woo Oppa, I’ll call you again.”
“Okay.”
“You’re busier than I am—sorry for acting like I’m the one with time to spare.”
Eun Soo said this with a smile directed toward Hwang In Woo.
Hyuk Joo, watching her quietly, clenched the napkin he’d been using to wipe his hands into a tight fist.
Eun Soo’s eyes, usually so dry and lifeless, now sparkled with warmth.
Had he ever seen her eyes shine like that?
It felt as if he were looking at a stranger—not the Oh Eun Soo he thought he knew.
Seeing Eun Soo wear the title of “wife” like a costume she merely draped over herself alone, Hyuk Joo felt as though his whole body were being pricked by needles.
***
Eun Soo turned her head to look out the car window.
Should she mention having met Seo Yeon Ji today?
No.
It’d be pointless.
She silently shook her head.
Hyuk Joo had already told her about that woman first, making it clear he wouldn’t involve her in their affairs going forward.
All she needed to do was fulfill her duties as Moon Hyuk Joo’s wife.
Then, as he’d always done, he’d ensure her mother’s treatment continued without disruption.
Just as it had been until now—and just as it would be in the future.
Even though she was certain their marriage would remain perfectly dutiful on both sides, why couldn’t she escape this crushing sense of despair?
Remembering Seo Yeon Ji casually calling her husband by his first name right in front of her, Eun Soo felt her breath catch.
It was as if she’d been dumped onto dry land without water—like a fish gasping for air.
She bit down hard on her lips.
When they got home, Hyuk Joo went straight into the bathroom.
As soon as she heard the sound of running water from inside, Eun Soo pulled an envelope containing her medical records from her bag.
Thud.
A business card fell out along with the envelope.
It belonged to an OB-GYN at a hospital located in a new town in Gyeonggi Province.
On the back, a reservation date and time were written.
Her father, worried she might only talk about getting treatment without actually following through, had already made the appointment himself.
“Seriously…”
Eun Soo let out a quiet sigh.
Ever since her marriage, her father had been promoted to president of Myung Jin Apparel, and recently he’d openly expressed his desire to move to an even larger conglomerate.
He’d made it clear he expected great things once Eun Soo had a child, insisting no one would leave him alone if that happened.
Holding her phone and medical records, Eun Soo left the bedroom and walked down the long hallway to the small room next to the study.
It was technically a room, but practically used as a storage space.
Because the boiler pipes had been shut off, a chill ran through her arms as soon as she stepped inside.
She turned on the light and called her father.
— What’s so urgent that you’re calling at this hour?
She could hear loud voices in the background. His slightly slurred speech told her he was in the middle of a drinking session.
“I need to talk to you.”
— Hold on.
Perhaps sensing something off in her tone, she heard a door close—likely as he stepped away from the gathering.
— What is it?
“I’m canceling the hospital appointment.”
— What?
“I don’t see why I need to go all the way to a hospital I don’t even know, especially when there’s nothing wrong with me.”
— What? You don’t know why? Have I ever seen such a pathetic woman?
Eun Soo bit her lip at her father’s curse.
Whenever things didn’t go his way, he’d fling such harsh words without hesitation.
Since this was familiar territory, she replied in a calm, detached tone.
“Should I go ahead and cancel the appointment myself?”
— Cancel? What cancellation! Do you have any idea how hard it was to get that slot? Do you think I’m doing this just for my own benefit?
“…”
— Honestly, you only care about yourself! Your mom’s lying there like that—shouldn’t you at least try to do something? What if hearing you’re pregnant makes her jump right up? How can you be so heartless?
“Father…”
Eun Soo squeezed her eyes shut.
Sliding down the wall she’d been leaning against, she sank onto the floor.
— Your mom did everything imaginable just to keep you alive! And you—what have you done besides sitting there massaging her hands? If there’s something you can do, shouldn’t you do it, no matter what?
Her father’s shouting made Eun Soo’s eyelashes dampen with tears.
How did he always know exactly where to strike?
He’d long since figured out that the surest way to control Eun Soo was through her mother.
From her marriage to the issue of having children—
She could see so clearly this wasn’t the end, and it made her throat tighten with suffocation.
— Who knows when your mom might go? Wouldn’t she be so happy to hold her grandchild while she’s still alive?
“…”
— Eun Soo. Shouldn’t you at least try?
Perhaps hearing the tremor in her breathing, her father’s voice softened slightly.
— Your mom prayed at dawn and made pilgrimages to famous temples all over the country just to keep you alive. And you’re just sitting there doing nothing? After everything she’s done for you, you can’t behave like this.
“I know. I said I know.”
Eun Soo cut him off before he could go on.
She knew he wouldn’t stop bringing up her mother until she agreed to go to the hospital.
Even though she understood he was using her, she had no choice but to nod like a puppet.
“I get it, so please stop. I’m hanging up.”
She set her phone down on the floor and wiped her tear-streaked face with her palms.
After blinking several times, her blurred vision cleared.
Ha.
Feeling short of breath, she took a slow, deep inhale. Pushing herself up with her hands, she picked up the medical records she’d left on the floor.
She opened a box where she’d stored a few personal items from before her marriage and placed the records at the very bottom. Then she pulled out a thick diary.
It was the journal her mother had kept when Eun Soo was sick.
There were three volumes in total—so thick they couldn’t be held in one hand.
“Mother…”
Flipping open a random page, Eun Soo looked at the diary and called out to her mother, lifting her head to hold back tears.
She’d noticed the smudged ink scattered across the pages—her mother’s tear stains.
How many times must her mother have cried while writing this?
Wiping away the flood of tears with her palms, Eun Soo set the diary down.
Her eyes grew misty with memories as she pulled out a folded handkerchief from the side of the box.
“Only one left.”
She gently fingered the handkerchief her mother had made, hoping for her full recovery.
[Someone once said the meaning of a blue rose is “miracle.”I wish a miracle would find our Eun Soo too.
She gave Eun Soo this handkerchief embroidered with blue roses during her chemo treatments, when she kept throwing up.
“Mom, why is the flower blue?”
To that question, she told a little lie:
“It was red, but God changed it to blue just for you, to secretly tell you you won’t be in pain anymore.”
The sweet girl recently asked if she could give this handkerchief to a woman she met during a walk—
saying that woman seemed to be in even more pain, since she’d been crying again just yesterday.]
Eun Soo pressed the last remaining handkerchief to her cheek.
Its soft texture felt like her mother’s warm touch, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.
“If only I’d known, I would’ve saved it.”
She recalled a memory from long ago.
It had been a cold day like today.
She’d felt sorry for a man who, drunk, was struggling to hold back sobs—so she’d handed him the handkerchief from her pocket. Taking it, he’d murmured to himself:
“It’s warm.”
Though it had been a trivial moment, his quiet words had stayed deeply etched in her mind.
As a child, always on the receiving end of care during her illness, she’d felt touched that she could offer comfort to someone else. That’s why she clearly remembered the man who’d said those words to her.
When she’d first seen Hyuk Joo at their arranged meeting, she instantly recalled that brief encounter—because the memory had been so vivid. But Hyuk Joo, thoroughly drunk at the time, hadn’t recognized her at all.
“Back then… he must’ve just broken up with that woman.”
Her mother had once said a man only cries like that over a woman.
He must’ve been sitting there, crying on that cold winter night, heartbroken over Seo Yeon Ji.
It hurt—like a fresh cut from a sharp blade. Just thinking of her husband’s woman always made her chest ache like this.
It was like a finger wound she’d dismissed as minor, thinking it would heal quickly—but because she’d never properly treated it, the pain only deepened with time.
Eun Soo quickly wiped away the tears pooling at the corners of her eyes.
“Maybe I just need to give up.”
If only she disappeared, her husband and that woman could be happy…
Should she beg Hyuk Joo to divorce her—as long as he promised her mother could keep receiving treatment just as she had been?
Eun Soo lowered her head.
Tears immediately began falling fast from her eyes.
She couldn’t understand why letting go of Hyuk Joo felt as impossible as waiting for her mother to miraculously wake up.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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The extreme miscommunication is getting on my nerves now.
I wish he could actually say what he fully means for once
Hyuk Joo does not mess around. When dealing with someone like this you have to be direct!