Side dishes, a bottle of alcohol, and glasses quickly filled the table that had a burner turned off. As soon as Do Hyuk sat down, he opened a bottle of beer as if he was parched. Seeing Jang Hye Yoon approaching, he poured another glass and placed it next to him.
He absentmindedly watched the beer froth rise in the glass. Hye Yoon also followed his gaze and sat next to him.
“By the way, I met senior An Ji Ho a while ago. We briefly talked about you, writer.”
“Really?”
“You didn’t hear…”
He casually emptied a glass of beer.
His gloomy feelings seemed to lighten a bit, as one of his eyebrows raised in a contented way. As quickly as he set down the empty beer glass, Do Hyuk reached for the beer bottle again.
“Yes, it was the movie premiere day.”
“… I see.”
Hye Yoon whispered her response as softly as her breathing. The subject of a conversation to be shared between Ji Ho and Do Hyuk wasn’t exactly a pleasant topic for her.
She didn’t need to make an effort to recall the movie premiere day. Every scene was so vivid, it felt like she was there on that day. Because it was the happiest day for her.
It was a day that floated by for her like a balloon, but who would have thought Ji Ho had moments when he felt dragged down. Thinking about his day, when he might have hidden a sting behind his warm smile, made her heart heavy.
“Wow, thinking about it scares me. I didn’t know he was such a cold and sharp person.”
“… …”
She also imagined moments when a person accustomed to suppressing emotions broke down. Even then, a simple reply like ‘I see’ hardly came out.
Yet, she couldn’t easily tell Do Hyuk, “I want to stop this conversation.” His face, as he took another sip of beer, looked so sour that she couldn’t even imitate.
Maybe that moment wasn’t a good time for Do Hyuk either.
“But no matter how much we talk… no one would believe it.”
Do Hyuk idly fidgeted with the rim of the empty beer glass. Hye Yoon secretly set aside her comforting thoughts for Ji Ho and looked at Do Hyuk.
She focused intently, the noise of the restaurant not reaching her ears. And after a while, she managed a small smile. In response to her faint snort, Do Hyuk looked her way.
“Ha… You’re looking at me like that again. It’s really confusing.”
Do Hyuk scanned her pale face. Hye Yoon was the same as when he first saw her. Those attentive hazel eyes, the mysterious smile at the corner of her mouth. Always captivating, always complex.
He didn’t realize when he finished one bottle, but he had another in hand. No sooner had he taken the bottle opener, Hye Yoon took everything away.
“Just… I wish you wouldn’t.”
“Pardon?”
“Don’t get hung up over minor jealousies. You’re a person with so much more going for you.”
With a surprising ease for her delicate hands, Hye Yoon opened the new bottle of beer. As the glass filled, unfamiliar consolation filled her heart at a similar pace.
“To me, you’re especially precious.”
“… Me?”
“Yes.”
Her voice, as well as the words flowing with it, was all so beautiful.
“Actually, I’ve been confused all of last season. But now that you’ve made me realize… you’re a savior to me.”
“What… did you realize?”
“Oh, that I like Ji Ho a lot… or something like that.”
Do Hyuk’s lips slightly parted. He never imagined he would get such a perfect answer without even asking. Hye Yoon, seeming pleased with her newfound sincerity, continued her words.
“He was so sharp that it became incredibly desperate. How wonderful it would have been if I had been by his side then.”
“…”
“I would have soothed him…”
Jang Hye Yoon’s face tilted towards the floor. The weight of regret grew as she thought more about it.
In that moment, Hye Yoon wished she was beside An Ji Ho when he was being consumed by darkness rather than light. Holding his hand and accompanying him into his darkness seemed fine. No, she wanted to.
Pursuing that thought, she encountered a strong conviction. She realized how deeply she had come to care for every aspect of him.
‘So even now… I just leave it be. Because Hye Yoon saw Mr. Cha Do Hyuk as a good person.’
As her brown eyes began to shine with conviction, Do Hyuk mulled over Ji Ho’s words. In truth, he had two questions for Hye Yoon today: Was her relationship with Ji Ho real? And did he appear insignificant in her eyes?
“Senior Ji Ho said that, right? That the writer sees me as a good person.”
“Ah…”
Hye Yoon’s lips puckered as her voice, filled with surprise, resonated. Her lips briefly curved upward, but the smile faded quickly, perhaps due to Do Hyuk’s ensuing cold tone.
“What are you up to? Being jealous of a successful senior, hovering around the work they’re doing. Even now, trying to strike a conversation while knowing he’s her boyfriend.”
“…”
“The more I speak, the more… it seems there’s no bigger rascal.”
He gritted his teeth hard. As always, whenever it came to Ji Ho, he reacted like this. A series of words he’d regret soon after voicing them. Always, his skewed emotions manifested this way.
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
