“I love you.”

At that moment, a tender voice flowed into her ears.

“I love you, Yulli.”

It was a voice as sweet and gentle as candy.

However, to Yulli, it felt bitter and rough. If she had heard the confession a few hours ago, she would have unquestionably accepted it as it was. But not anymore. Now, she had discovered the cruel truth she had hidden.

You don’t love me. You just need me.

Yulli swallowed the words she wanted to say and closed her eyes quietly. Now was not the time to reveal the truth. At least not tonight.

Kind gestures, gentle smiles, passionate embraces—everything felt like false acting. But what hurt her more than the betrayal was the fact that she had to break up with him. She knew their relationship had no future, but ending it like this felt empty.

For tonight, she pretended not to know, closed her eyes, and wanted to have him entirely. She wanted to hold onto the remaining fragments of the shattered illusion.

Not approaching with ulterior motives, just genuinely approaching him for tonight, Yulli decided to put a spell on him.

With her mind made up, Yulli tilted her head back and looked up at Jeho.

“When you come back, you said you’d kiss me passionately, right?”

“Yeah.”

Jeho nodded with a quiet smile.

“Do it now.”

“Okay, if that’s what you want.”

Jeho lightly brushed Yulli’s cheek with the back of his hand and slowly bowed his head.

The moment their lips met, Yulli gripped his shirt with both hands as if holding onto it tightly. It was an intense kiss that emptied her complicated mind in an instant.

Only after passionately kissing until their bodies heated up did he finally release his lips.

“Do more. Don’t stop.”

With a flushed face, panting heavily, she whispered desperately.

In response to Yulli’s request, Jeho lowered his head again, capturing her lips. The lips of the two separated and intertwined repeatedly, becoming even more deeply entangled.

But as the kiss intensified, Yulli’s heart dried up more and more. Even though she tried not to think, Jeho’s words echoed in her ears.

—That’s right. I approached intentionally.

—There’s nothing to be afraid of.

It made her angry. And it felt empty. She had only recently believed that she could open her heart to someone…

If he approached because of Minwoo, once he successfully got rid of Minwoo, he would ruthlessly abandon her.

“Ah…”

It stung like a thorn just imagining it. Yulli hugged him as if he were going to leave right away, putting strength into her arms, different from her usual response. Perhaps sensing that her reaction was unusual, Jeho withdrew his lips and looked at her intently. But instead of asking what was wrong, he gently stroked Yulli’s disheveled hair.

“You came here without a coat? Wasn’t it cold? Your whole body feels like ice.”
Jeho’s affectionate gaze made Yulli uncomfortable, so she bit her lip. However, he misunderstood, thinking her reaction was due to the cold. Brushing Yulli’s back with his palm, he led her to the bathroom.

“Let’s take a shower with hot water first. Warm up your body a bit.”

“No, let’s just go to bed.”

Yulli tiptoed and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Instead of that, hold me and melt me.”

At first, Jeho furrowed his brow as if he didn’t understand. But when Yulli overlapped their lips, he lifted her up. Yulli didn’t let go of the hands that embraced her until she descended onto the bed.

“Can you hold me until my mind turns white?”

“What happened today?”

Even though Jeho followed her lead, Yulli’s proactive approach felt unfamiliar to him. As he gently brushed aside the hair that flowed down to his forehead, Yulli buried her face in his neck.

“No. Just… Seeing a bed without you, Jeho, felt empty and lonely.”

In reality, it wasn’t sincere; it was the emptiness she felt after realizing she approached him for a purpose.

“I must look foolish.”

“No, not at all.”

Briefly denying, Jeho wrapped his arms around her slender waist, simultaneously moving up over Yulli and capturing her lips.

No, I’m the foolish one. I was innocently deceived.

Nevertheless, for tonight, Yulli wanted to forget everything for a moment. Let’s consider it memory loss. It was fine even if he laughed at her for desperately clinging to him. The pleasure filled with instinctual desires was the best reward she could give him.

It might be a bitter and sad comfort…

Hugging Jeho tightly, Yulli closed her eyes tightly.

“Don’t worry. It’ll be okay.”

In her drowsiness, a soft voice could be heard somewhere. Blinking her heavy eyelids, Yulli lay on the bed, looking around. Jeho’s figure talking on the balcony dimly revealed itself in the darkness.

“Don’t say that. Of course, I love you, rain or shine. … I know. No matter what, I always love you.”

Just hearing the voice made her feel the sincerity toward the other person. Who was it? Could it be his real lover?

“Huh.”

Yulli let out a low sigh. She wasn’t curious about who he was talking to. Anyway, he didn’t love her. Whether he had a lover or not didn’t matter.