The Season of Prettiest You (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 9
A week had passed.
Yeoreum hadn’t slept at all, busy rewriting Lee Hyunjun’s role. Originally, the character only appeared briefly from Episode 5 as a minor supporting part before disappearing—but now he had to be reborn as a lead.
Increasing only that character’s screen time without altering the overall story proved far more difficult than anticipated. No matter how she wrote it, everything felt off. She barely managed to finish up to Episode 6, wringing every last drop from her exhausted brain.
She had truly done her absolute best, yet during the emergency meeting just moments ago, hearing someone say “only up to Episode 6” nearly made her snap and lash out. Everyone was on edge—the shoot was right around the corner.
‘Just hold on. Hold it together.’
In the end, she decided to overhaul the entire storyline. Starting from scratch might even be better. Sleep was already out of the question, so she resolved to push through one more week with superhuman willpower.
Just then, her phone vibrated.
His name shimmered again on the screen. She stared blankly at the letters. It still didn’t feel familiar. Yeoreum took a deep breath and calmly answered the call.
[Come home.]Without waiting for a reply, the call ended.
He acted as though others’ consent was unnecessary—as if the world should bend to his will. Perhaps he was right. That must have been why he’d been so deeply wounded when Yeoreum ended things with him.
She recalled their breakup two years ago.
“Let’s break up. I’ve lost feelings for you.”
He hadn’t understood what kind of heart could utter those words, and at first, he’d gotten angry—coaxing, pleading, even threatening her. Eventually, he dropped to his knees, begging.
“There’s no one but you. How can I forget you? Just tell me to die instead. Yeoreum-ah. I’ll do better. I’m sorry. Please don’t leave.”
“You’re pathetic. I really hate this version of Seo Taeseok who can’t even understand when things are over. Not anymore.”
She’d spoken coldly, and he’d clung to her desperately until the end. It would’ve been utterly pathetic if she hadn’t loved him—but she did, and that’s why it hurt. His tears had thudded heavily onto her feet.
She never knew which emotion was stronger within her—pride or love.
What was certain was that after Yeoreum walked away, Taeseok never looked for her again. Despite loving her enough to kneel, once rejected, he changed completely.
Seo Taeseok had bent so far that he should have gotten anything he wanted in this world—but instead, he’d been trampled. That humiliation turned his love into fury, in equal measure. Such was the man he was.
The doorbell rang exactly an hour later.
The woman’s footsteps echoed heavily down the long corridor. Taeseok stood silently against the wall, watching as she entered. Choi Yeoreum stepped inside, dressed plainly from head to toe—no trace of adornment anywhere.
Her hair was tightly tied back with a plain black band, an oversized dress draped over her, gray leggings, and a completely bare face.
Taeseok figured this outfit from Choi Yeoreum—who usually dressed quite well—was a silent protest.
She sat down on the sofa and said,
“The script.”
Yeoreum hesitated briefly before sitting across from him.
“No. Give me the script, Writer Choi Yeoreum.”
“I decided today to rewrite everything, so I’ll write it all again first, and then—”
“Give it to me.”
Yeoreum paused, holding her breath, then finally nodded. She pulled out the hastily printed script—up to Episode 6—and handed it over from her bag. Taeseok took it silently and began flipping through page by page.
There was no rush. It had been a while since his last drama appearance, so he wanted to review it thoroughly. He read at an almost exaggeratedly slow pace. She wondered if he’d stay in that exact posture until he finished reviewing all of Episode 6.
She sat prettily like a doll, eyes fixed solely on her own feet, as if looking anywhere else might get her dragged away.
Only the soft rustling of turning pages filled the room. Her long eyelashes blinked rhythmically, once at a time.
Taeseok broke the silence.
“The content changed a lot, Writer.”
“Yes. I’m doing urgent revisions. It’ll keep changing since I’ll start rewriting from today.”
“Specifically, which parts?”
“I’m planning to increase Lee Hyunjun’s presence—maybe have him appear from Episode 1 onward, and then keep building from there… I’m still thinking it through right now.”
As Yeoreum paused to catch her breath before continuing, Taeseok gave a soft chuckle.
“So what you’re saying is, filming starts in two weeks, and there’s still no solid plot.”
Her bare, makeup-free face flushed instantly. Seeing even her earlobes turn red, Taeseok lowered his gaze back to the script. Choi Yeoreum had always been like this—a woman whose delicate skin flushed easily.
“The situation… everything happened too suddenly.”
“You must be sleep-deprived. How many days has it been?”
Taeseok asked again. Yeoreum’s lips parted slightly, then closed again. She apparently wasn’t going to answer that question.
“If you don’t answer, I won’t let you go.”
And Taeseok was clearly determined to get a reply.
Yeoreum sucked in a sharp breath, then exhaled slowly as if taking a deep breath, and finally spoke in a quiet voice.
“Three days. About three days. I managed to sleep maybe an hour or two in between.”
“You must be exhausted.”
Taeseok shifted his gaze back to the script and continued reading. For all the near-threat he’d used to extract an answer, his response was oddly flat—simply nitpicking over minor details.
‘This is the textbook example of a rushed draft.’
And the newly revised script was terrible.
That was his conclusion after reading roughly half. Objectively speaking, Choi Yeoreum’s usual skill was far better than this—yet awkward lines appeared everywhere.
‘She’s clearly not performing at her best.’
Taeseok thought for a moment, then went into his room and fetched a red pen. The habit of manually marking up her scripts dated back to when he used to edit them alongside her.
He underlined key sections and jotted down notes as he checked each page with the pen. Taeseok never did anything halfway—he quickly became absorbed in the work.
After a long while, he glanced at the clock—it was already past 10 p.m. Looking up, he saw Yeoreum fast asleep.
She was curled up, still clutching the bag she’d brought with her.
Taeseok quietly placed the script and pen down on the table. Tilting his head slightly and propping it up with one hand, he began watching her sleep in earnest.
Her long lashes rested gently like butterfly wings. Her skin was fair and smooth, and her neatly folded hands occasionally trembled slightly in her sleep.
‘Why did she have to go that far?’
He had so many questions he wanted to ask her if they ever met—but the words wouldn’t come easily. And even if he asked, he doubted she’d answer honestly.
It was hard to imagine that this gentle, pure-looking face had once logged into the National Tax Service website and meticulously filed tax evasion reports based on documents found in Seo Taeseok’s home.
Taeseok had a fairly vivid imagination—he could even picture Choi Yeoreum as a monster—but no matter how hard he tried, he simply couldn’t visualize her filing those tax reports.
‘If you needed money, why not just tell me?’
He’d knelt on both knees, begging—but the next day, Yeoreum had left. Not only had she left, but she’d changed her phone number and even moved away.
What truly stopped Taeseok from chasing after her was the tax audit. A huge news article titled “Tax Evasion Allegations” exploded, and soon the National Tax Service launched an investigation. For an entire week, Taeseok was stuck attending mandatory hearings.
Later, he heard the whole story from Ji Hyeonjeong.
“She demanded money as compensation for dating Seo Taeseok. She threatened to leak the story if he didn’t pay. It was so absurd—even though she’s barely in her mid-twenties, she’s only learned how to be reckless. But what could we do? In love, we’re always the weaker side, so we eventually gave her what she wanted and ended it.”
She even showed him the bank transfer receipt. He didn’t believe it. If she’d needed money, all she had to do was ask.
Taeseok had repeatedly told her—as if it were his mantra—that if she ever wanted anything, whether money, a car, or even his bank account, he’d give it all to her. He thought she knew he meant it.
He started mobilizing people to find her. Then Ji Hyeonjeong spoke again.
“It’s useless, Taeseok. She’s probably already left the country—she said she was going to the U.S.”
From that moment on, Taeseok became a madman.
“Really? Fine. Then I’ll mobilize even more people and scour the entire U.S. I’ll find her no matter what it takes.”
He poured uncountable amounts of money into illegal agencies that specialized in locating people. He didn’t care about the cost—finding her was all that mattered.
It was the first time in Taeseok’s life something hadn’t gone his way.
Taeseok shook off his memories and returned to the present, gazing again at Yeoreum, who slept soundly. He couldn’t let her keep sleeping here. Just as he reached out to wake her, her phone rang.
Her phone glowed faintly on the table—no vibration, not even a ringtone. It was as if it didn’t want to leave even the faintest trace of sound in Taeseok’s home.
‘Ji Hyeok… Could it be Cheon Ji Hyeok?’
Even the caller’s name rubbed him the wrong way.
Cheon Ji Hyeok.
Back when Taeseok had openly admired him as his role model and hero, Ji Hyeok moved to Poo Entertainment and began openly despising Taeseok. He’d made it so obvious that staff members even discreetly asked whether the two had fought before.
Taeseok sort of understood why—but it wasn’t worth explaining, so he’d simply ignored it. Now, they’d ended up meeting again on this drama, and now, perhaps, he was calling Choi Yeoreum’s phone.
Taeseok lightly shook Yeoreum. He wanted to uncover the true identity of “Ji Hyeok.”
“You got a call while you were sleeping.”
As Yeoreum blinked drowsily awake, he didn’t give her a moment’s pause before asking,
“Is it Cheon Ji Hyeok?”
Yeoreum looked at him with a confused expression—her face radiating innocent bewilderment.
Could someone really put on a mask right after waking up? At this point, it felt more likely that this was simply her true self. But he quickly closed his heart again.
“I’m asking. Is it Cheon Ji Hyeok? Answer me.”
Yeoreum checked her phone for the missed call and gave a slight nod.
“Yes.”
“It’s already past ten.”
Discomfort seeped into Taeseok’s voice.
“That’s awfully late to be calling a writer for work-related matters.”
Yeoreum seemed deeply embarrassed about having dozed off and looked as if she wanted to apologize—but Taeseok pressed on relentlessly. Her sleep was irrelevant to him now.
“Why’s he calling at this hour? He’s the lead actor.”
Yeoreum paused for a beat before answering.
“We’re supposed to do volunteer work together tomorrow. That’s probably why.”
“…What? You’re going?”
“Volunteering at a shelter for abandoned dogs. Ji Hyeok and I go occasionally.”
Taeseok stared silently at Yeoreum. Even after a brief nap, exhaustion still clung heavily to her face. Starting tomorrow, she’d have to completely rewrite the script—she’d be tired for a long time to come. Yet she was squeezing in time for volunteer work… with “Ji Hyeok.”
It felt subtly ambiguous—and irritating.
“Go ahead.”
Yeoreum left without looking back. Taeseok stared for a long time at the empty space she’d left behind.
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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