‘”Is this bastard still bothering our Si Hyun?”‘
Woo Jin abruptly intervened, grabbing Tae Ha by the collar.
“You’re in trouble today!”
Before Si Hyun could express her surprise and stop him, Woo Jin had already swung his fist towards Tae Ha.

Luckily, due to their height difference and Tae Ha tilting his head at the last moment to avoid it, the punch only grazed his chin.
“Huh, this bastard? Did you dodge it?”
Seemingly angrier at his missed punch, Woo Jin tried to throw another fist.
“What are you doing?”
Si Hyun hurriedly hugged Woo Jin from behind, trying to pull him away.
“Let go, Si Hyun! Today, it’s either you or me, bastard.”
“Can’t you stop?”
“Oh, let me go!”
Woo Jin roughly shook off Si Hyun. As a result, Si Hyun ended up rolling on the ground.

For a moment, a fierce look flashed in Tae Ha’s eyes.

Thump!

With a dull sound, Tae Ha’s fist firmly struck Woo Jin’s chin.
“Uh!”
Letting go of the collar he had been holding, Woo Jin groaned and staggered. This time, Tae Ha grabbed Woo Jin’s collar and punched him in the cheek.
“Cough!”
Woo Jin’s mouth tore open and blood immediately started to flow.

Tae Ha still seemed to be furious. Si Hyun clung to his arm as he raised his fist again.
“Stop it, please!”
Only then did Tae Ha flinch and look at Si Hyun. She stared straight back at him and said,
“He’s the man I’m going to marry. You can’t hit him in front of me.”
Tae Ha’s fist dropped powerlessly. At the same time, the hand that had been gripping Woo Jin’s collar also let go.

Si Hyun quickly rushed to Woo Jin, who was rolling on the ground.
“Are you okay, brother?”
While Si Hyun worriedly checked on Woo Jin, Tae Ha turned his back and walked away.

((()))

“Ouch!”
Woo Jin screamed as Si Hyun carefully applied disinfectant to his torn mouth with a cotton swab.
“Is that bastard really a programmer? Isn’t he a gangster?”
He seemed to be in great pain. Well, the sound of the punch did seem like he got a proper beating.
“I’ll see. I’m going to sue him to the police.”
Watching Woo Jin grit his teeth, Si Hyun felt a heavy weight on her heart. Seeing them fight was bad enough, but she couldn’t bear the thought of a lawsuit.
“But it’s mutual assault. You were the one who hit him first, right?”
“Are you taking that bastard’s side now? Even after seeing me like this?”

Si Hyun sighed. Previously, Si Hyun had seen Tae Ha’s body through the shower gown. His was a body that, by any standard, didn’t neglect a single hour of exercise.

On the other hand, Woo Jin simply had the body of an extremely ordinary office worker, with no time for things like exercise due to being engrossed in work.

He was beginning to develop a slight belly as he got older. It wasn’t just about height, but the weight class itself was different from the start. It was so baffling to think what motivated him to attack.

“You should have stopped when I told you to.”
Woo Jin flared up in anger.
“Who wouldn’t go mad when someone messes with his woman?”
She almost blurted out, ‘Does a person who knows that go on to meet another woman?’ but Si Hyun swallowed it back down.
“Anyway, you didn’t do anything great either. Just let it go for the sake of my face.”
After suddenly looking at Si Hyun’s face, Woo Jin spoke.
“It’s all because you’re too pretty.”
“What are you talking about?”
Si Hyun smirked, but Woo Jin didn’t follow suit.
“Didn’t you see the way that bastard was looking at you? Any man can tell at a glance. That kid, he definitely likes you. No, he’s completely crazy about you. His eyes have rolled back.”
Even after receiving a confession, she couldn’t just deny it. But if she told the truth, it was obvious that it would cause an even bigger fuss, so Si Hyun stuck to her previous stance.
“How many times do I have to say it? Tae Ha is just a child to me.”
But it seemed like it didn’t reach Woo Jin’s ears. While touching the inside of his busted mouth with the tip of his tongue, Woo Jin muttered as if spitting out,
“We have to get married quickly. So that kid wouldn’t dare to overstep you.”

((()))

“The Le Blanc restaurant at the Grand Hotel. I booked it for Saturday at one in the afternoon.”
The place Woo Jin had chosen for the meeting with the parents was the hotel restaurant that Si Hyun had once visited with Tae Ha, causing Si Hyun to frown. Wasn’t it that Tae Ha had accidentally seen Woo Jin having a meal with another woman at that restaurant and had deliberately taken Si Hyun there?
“Why there of all places? We have adults there, why not a traditional restaurant?”
“My mom said, ‘Do we have to eat Korean food which we eat every day at home, even when we go out?’ So I made the reservation because the atmosphere of the French restaurant there is rumored to be excellent.”
‘Rather, it’s because you have been there and liked it.’
Si Hyun barely swallowed the words that had risen to her throat.

Even though she had decided to forgive and tried to forget, there was nothing she could do about these thoughts popping up from time to time.