Until now, she had considered the child’s upbringing to be her sole responsibility. Frightened, So Yeon had no choice but to take his words sensitively.

“Don’t assume things! What kind of thoughts did you have with that little head of yours, Eom So Yeon!”

His anger-filled voice fiercely struck So Yeon’s ears.

It was an unavoidable concern. What would happen when things got this way? What if Hyun Woo turned away from me, or if he tried to take the child away? Even briefly considering such a scenario was a dreadful ordeal.

That fear turned into a dagger, stabbing her heart as if it were emptying out. Even her sobbing voice seemed to be filled with unbearable agony.

“No! I can’t live without Hyun Woo! I absolutely can’t…”
Certainly, I will translate the Korean paragraph verbatim into English while keeping the exact same number of lines as the original. Here is the translation:

But he had to endure an endless descent, almost akin to stealing what was his, and that was the natural order of things.

But my child…

So Yeon carefully explained that she couldn’t bring herself to say it, tormented by such agony.

However, Seo Jun continued to speak with a more intense expression, each word biting firmly.

“I would have delayed my military service, even gone after enlisting, just to come back to you as soon as possible, even if it meant returning from overseas duty the day after. I would have been there with the child being born, no matter how unexpected it might have been. I would have done everything I could if I had known the truth! But a mistress? Someone else? A burden? Forcing you? How far are you planning to push me, Eom So Yeon?”

Seo Jun’s thick eyebrows raised sharply.

So Yeon’s man.

I cursed, hated, and felt jealous of that damn jerk without even knowing who the child’s father was!

That damned guy didn’t even know I existed, like a nobody.

Seo Jun stood up and approached So Yeon step by step, speaking. Under his compelling presence, So Yeon’s back clung tightly to the backrest of the chair.

“So, So Yeon, how amusing was it for you? Ignoring me thoroughly, acting like I didn’t exist, while I pined for you, wandering around you, unable to have you. You must have found me quite entertaining.”

“Don’t say it like that! How could I…”

How could I toy with you! Just looking at you makes my heart race with joy like this. What if it gets tainted? I can’t even step into Tae Seo Jun’s shadow…

“No, you did. You thoroughly ignored me!”

Seo Jun clenched his hand.

A slender arm that seemed like it would snap with a little force.

Affection, stronger than any other intense emotion, was embedded in his long fingers as they dug into delicate skin. But So Yeon found his gaze, which was gripping her more firmly than his arm, even more painful.

As much as I love him, the betrayal is greater. Maybe this man has no intention of forgiving me.

The fact that I haven’t forgotten you for a single day since the child was conceived and born might now be of no use. So there was no other choice. I had to explain my situation and make a request as best as I could.

So Yeon, who had to hold back tears that threatened to pour out, calmly cleared her throat and said,

“My mother has taken Hyun Woo back to Canada. She said that if I want to raise the child in Korea, I should come with you. She also said that if we don’t become a family, Hyun Woo could get hurt, so she can’t introduce you as his father. But it seems like she said that out of a desire for us to become one family.”

“So, is So Yeon also hoping for that?”

When Seo Jun asked with a cynical gesture, sweeping his bangs to the side, So Yeon hesitated for a moment. She wanted to answer like that, but it wasn’t easy to speak those words without losing her dignity.

“Where do you draw the line, Mr. Lee?”

When she asked about his intentions, Seo Jun chuckled softly. Because of her, who had to choose despite not having met her own child yet.

“I’d rather you want me. Say that you need me as your man and as the child’s father. That would be enough. So why can’t you say that!”
Certainly, I will translate the Korean paragraph verbatim into English while keeping the exact same number of lines as the original. Here is the translation:

I wished she would take responsibility now and shout at me. I hoped she would pour out the resentment she had endured alone, the contempt from people around her, and the grudges she couldn’t express to others. But this woman was a fool who didn’t even know how to throw a small tantrum.

Seo Jun raised So Yeon’s chin, which had been lowered.

“So Yeon, you’re stubborn and arrogant. You didn’t even diagnose the issue properly.”

“Then should I kneel down? Should I beg and plead? Would that work?”

Thinking about it, it felt a bit unfair. It wasn’t as if I had created the child alone, and he was scolding only me with such coldness. So Yeon felt a sense of unfairness.

“Who said that…”

Seo Jun stopped speaking because tears quickly welled up in his large eyes.

It was the silence that followed a big collision.

With tears welling up in her large eyes and spilling onto her cheeks, So Yeon slowly began to speak, a story she had never been able to tell anyone.

“Suddenly, I became pregnant. At that time, I had only one choice. You weren’t there, and I had to become a mother on my own. With my parents’ help, I gave birth to the child. It was very happy but also sad, and the child was so, so beautiful. I didn’t want to make my child more miserable…”

Tears welled up in her large eyes and quickly streamed down.

“I couldn’t. No one could treat my child recklessly, so I had to become stronger. If I didn’t have this stubbornness, how could I have endured that process? Probably, I…”

Tears gathered on her lips and quickly fell down her chin. The sorrow soaked her all the way to her constantly throbbing heart.

“Sob…”

“Don’t cry.”

The intense gaze that looked down at So Yeon’s crying face seemed complex. As her tears turned into thicker streams, Seo Jun spoke again.

“Don’t cry, So Yeon.”

The more she cried, the more his heart burned. It felt like he was going crazy. Could he not embrace her after enduring difficult times and walking through thorny paths? Could he not make her cry, despite not knowing her or his own child, the ugly man who had abandoned his woman and child?

Unknowingly, Seo Jun was wiping So Yeon’s face with both hands.

Perhaps his touch was too tender, but So Yeon started to cry again. She became even more tearful than before, and Seo Jun’s chest burned deeper.

“I hate myself. But why are you wiping away my tears…”

“Hahaha…”

So Yeon spoke with a voice that was crushed by crying. It seemed a bit cute and funny, so Seo Jun chuckled.

“Do I hate you?”

“Who knows… I hate myself too… Why would you…”

Seo Jun lowered his head quickly and kissed her wet lips.

As Seo Jun kissed her and pulled So Yeon’s body closer, her legs naturally wrapped around his waist. At that moment, Seo Jun began to kiss her more intensely and passionately.

I hate myself to death, but you are incredibly lovable.