Yoon Sun Woo hurried out of the house. He was heading to the jewelry shop he had visited before to get the wedding rings fitted.

When he asked about the earliest possible date to receive them, the shop said they could have them ready by the end of this week, as they were a popular size.

Sun Woo couldn’t contain his smile the entire way to the hospital. As he rolled down the car window on the driver’s side, a refreshing breeze seeped into the car.

Let’s see. It seems like we’ve flirted enough, and we’ve agreed to date…

“So I can propose formally now, right?”

That day, as Sun Woo devoured Eun Jae’s lips, he had thought about it.

He wanted Eun Jae to experience everything by his side – cherishing each other in their hearts, having a sweet relationship, sometimes feeling jealous, loving passionately, and culminating in the fruits of marriage.

He had decided to take things slow.

“Slow, my foot.”

They had only flirted for a few days and agreed to date yesterday, but he was already thinking about proposing.

Even he found it ridiculous and absurd, but he didn’t want to delay things any further.

He hoped that their upcoming marriage, with not much time left, would truly be something they both wanted and sincere.

Maybe they could go to the suburbs this weekend.

“I heard there’s a nice fine dining restaurant nearby.”

Someone from the hospital had apparently proposed there. They mentioned how touched their current wife had been.

After briefly parking in the hospital parking lot, Sun Woo searched for the name of the fine dining restaurant he had heard about and immediately made a call.

When he asked about the earliest available reservation date, the staff said there was a cancellation this weekend and asked if he wanted to book it.

Sun Woo didn’t hesitate. Just like with the rings, it seemed like everything was progressing smoothly, as if everything was helping him.

After making the reservation, Sun Woo scrolled through the website introducing the fine dining restaurant.

The outdoor one-table fine dining was very atmospheric, with numerous light bulbs decorated like stars. It seemed like Eun Jae, who loved night scenery, would like it too.

There seemed to be no better place to convey his heart clearly while giving her the ring.

Since it’s outdoors, night would be better. But she shouldn’t just look outside and ignore the food like last time.

It might be chilly, so he should bring outer clothing.

“Whew…”

He felt nervous for no reason, even though he hadn’t even started yet.

If she rejected him, which he hoped wouldn’t happen, how would he deal with the aftermath?

The contract period would still remain, and things would become even more awkward than now.

“Ah, should I have accepted it in advance when she said she would call Attorney Shin?”

Then he could have let her go in a cool way.

“This is really ridiculous.”

The laughter that came out didn’t feel pleasant. He thought to himself that he was having all sorts of thoughts.

He didn’t think he could let her go in a cool way. He would probably cling on, asking why she didn’t like him, telling her to meet him once, and that he was a better guy than she thought. He hoped he wouldn’t be that clingy at least.

Sun Woo laughed, thinking it was fortunate that he hadn’t called Attorney Shin.

[This is the timeline separator]

Perhaps because it was the first class, it was full of clumsy mistakes.

The most difficult part was frying the egg garnish during the practical lesson. If the heat wasn’t controlled properly, it would easily burn, and it would often tear when flipping it. Who knew frying an egg was such a difficult task?

After the grueling four-hour class ended, Eun Jae was walking down the stairs with a tired body when she heard someone desperately calling from behind.

“Excuse me!”

Turning around at the voice, Eun Jae saw a bespectacled man who seemed to be around her age, panting and standing in front of her. Eun Jae scanned the man with curious eyes.

“Who are you?”

“Ah, I’m a student who took the class next to you.”

Was there someone like this next to me? I was so preoccupied that I didn’t have a chance to look around.

“Ah… yes, hello. But what’s the matter?”

“You dropped this pen. This is yours, right?”

“Ah. Yes, it’s mine.”

As Eun Jae received the pen from the man, a call came in on the phone in her hand. It was Sun Woo calling to pick her up from the academy. The man, whose eyes met hers for a moment, gestured for her to take the call.

“See you tomorrow.”

“Yes, have a nice day.”

As Eun Jae watched the man quickly descending the stairs, she pressed the answer button on her phone.

[This is the timeline separator]

Inside the car heading home.

Sun Woo drove leisurely and intentionally caught a red light at the next intersection. As the car stopped, Sun Woo’s body leaned toward Eun Jae as if he had been waiting.

“Let’s eat out this weekend. Not at the hotel we always go to, but somewhere else.”

“This weekend?”

“Yeah. Saturday.”

“Ah, Saturday…”

At Sun Woo’s words, Eun Jae trailed off and couldn’t answer easily. She was clearly hesitating.

“Why, do you have plans?”

“Ah, well…”

Sun Woo, who was watching her, sighed softly as if realizing something.

Who makes important plans like this unilaterally?

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t disappointed at all, but since he had made the plan without asking for Eun Jae’s opinion, it was pointless to push it.

As he continued to watch Eun Jae hesitating, Sun Woo smiled slightly and reached out to pat her small head.

He wanted to stroke her hair and tell her it was okay, that they could eat another time.

Before a voice flashed through his mind.

“Anyway, Ji Eun Jae, it’s Saturday. Keep that in mind.”

Back then, he was so displeased with just encountering Tae Gyu that he didn’t pay much attention to their conversation.

Why is that coming to mind so clearly now?

Sun Woo’s hand, which was about to reach for Eun Jae, stopped. The question he really wanted to ask was swallowed back with a bitter smile.

“Okay, then next time.”

[This is the timeline separator]

Maybe it was because she had been trapped in the lecture room all day, or because she had smelled too much oil, but her head was blank and she felt unwell, wanting to get some fresh air.

Before going down to the main house’s parking lot, she asked to be dropped off so she could walk to the annex to get some air, but the man said he would park and walk with her.

There was no conversation between the two as they walked towards the annex.

Did something happen at the hospital? Or was it because she didn’t give a definite answer when he asked to eat out earlier?

That brat Tae Gyu had planned this well. She was really shaken by the name Ji Young. She even considered going to see Ji Young for a bit. That’s why she was flustered by the man’s words without realizing it.

But is it really because of this?

Eun Jae, who didn’t like the awkward situation continuing, finally stopped walking and asked.

“Ahjussi, is something wrong?”

Sun Woo, who was walking a little ahead, turned around at the voice. As soon as he saw Eun Jae asking with a serious expression, Sun Woo laughed first.

That damn “ahjussi.” Ridiculously, the emotions that had made Sun Woo uncomfortable until a moment ago melted away in an instant.

“Yoon Tae Gyu is Yoon Tae Gyu, and I’m ahjussi?”

While showing childish jealousy.

“Of course. Is it because of the Saturday plans?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“I knew it, it’s because of that. Right?”

Eun Jae followed closely behind Sun Woo, who was walking ahead with quick steps.

“I said it’s not.”

“There’s a class reunion that day. I’m still debating whether to go or not.”

Sun Woo, who had been walking while only looking ahead, suddenly stopped. Eun Jae, who had been following closely behind, bumped her forehead against Sun Woo’s chest before she could stop.

Eun Jae rubbed her forehead and said to Sun Woo.

“If you say you’ll entertain me more, I’ll play with you, ahjussi.”

Sun Woo looked at Eun Jae and chuckled.

“It’s fine, you said it’s a class reunion. I misunderstood, I thought you were meeting Tae Gyu alone. There’s history, after all.”

“Oh, ahjussi. Are you jealous right now?”

At Eun Jae’s words, Sun Woo lowered his posture and warned Eun Jae, raising his index finger.

“I told you I’d make you call me ‘jagi’ if you keep calling me that. It’s already the seventh time today.”

“Huh? Oh my. You were keeping count?”

Sun Woo’s hand casually overlapped on top of her hand. Eun Jae wasn’t as surprised as before, but she couldn’t help her pounding heart.

“I’ll hear every single one without missing any.”

Despite his firm declaration of war, Sun Woo gently held Eun Jae’s hand and quickened his pace toward the annex again. Holding hands seemed to have become quite natural after trying it once.

Time passed slowly. Looking back, moments with the man always seemed to be like this.

As Eun Jae walked leisurely through the garden with the man, she thought.

It would be better not to go to the class reunion.

She could contact Ji Young separately when she had some free time. Yoon Tae Gyu’s gaze had been unusual lately, so what if she kept talking to him and got caught, as the ahjussi said?

Chirp, chirp. Chirp, chirp.

Listening to the sound of summer insects, Eun Jae, who was crossing the garden, suddenly stopped in the middle of the garden, and Sun Woo, whose hand was connected to hers, also stopped walking. Sun Woo looked down at Eun Jae with a face full of questions and asked.

“Why?”

“How many times did I call you ahjussi?”

“Seven.”

Eun Jae, who seemed to be thinking for a moment, began to fold her fingers one by one and quietly recite.

“Jagi, jagi, jagi, jagi, jagi, jagi, jagi, jagi. Is that enough?”

Sun Woo, who had been blankly watching her, rubbed his ear and quickly continued.

“What, you did it one more time. Is it a service for becoming my girlfriend?”

“Oh, did I?”

The man, who had approached right in front of Eun Jae’s face, smiled brightly, receiving the full illumination from the annex.

“It’s pretty half-hearted―”

At the sight of the man smiling prettily with the corners of his lips raised,

“It sounds nice.”

The gaze, full of heat, lingered for a long time on Eun Jae’s pink cheeks, which blushed as if shy.

[This is the timeline separator]

He couldn’t fall asleep at all.

The weather forecast from the radio he had turned on for a moment said it would rain from the day after tomorrow until the weekend.

He laughed. Even if it wasn’t for that reason, it would have been a postponed plan. The timing wasn’t right. The laughter came out at the thought.

He was in a rush.

Take a break, is someone trying to hit the brakes for me?

“Should I have just told her not to go?”

It really bothers me. I don’t want to be a narrow-minded husband who prevents her from even going to a class reunion. Why did she have to be classmates with Yoon Tae Gyu of all people?

I trust you, but I can’t trust Yoon Tae Gyu.

Sun Woo, who had been tossing and turning on the sofa for a while, got up and headed to the main house. He was going to bring up a bottle of wine.

Although there was a small kitchen in the annex, the main food and beverages were kept in the main house. As Sun Woo was coming out with a bottle of wine, he ran into Tae Gyu again.

It was a part he had been worried about since he heard Tae Gyu had entered the main house, but he didn’t expect it to be this frequent.

To think he had to spend a month like this. He already felt his blood pressure rising.

‘Right, it’s just a month. Let’s endure it a little.’

Tae Gyu looked exhausted, as if he was finishing work now.

Eun Jae’s voice, hesitating and avoiding an answer, and the awkward situation at that time suddenly overlapped.

It’s funny how I acted cool and unconcerned, but I was really bothered by it. He didn’t understand himself, being conscious of Yoon Tae Gyu and feeling jealous.

Please don’t say anything today, I beg you.

If they talked here, he felt like he wouldn’t say anything good. Sun Woo passed by Tae Gyu, pressing his throbbing temples.

“That marriage, you’re doing it because of the hospital, right?”

Tae Gyu’s voice came from behind Sun Woo’s back as he passed by.

Normally, he would have just passed by or reacted indifferently.

“Think whatever you want.”

But today, he seemed to be in a bad mood. A very bad one.

“You’re not denying it?”

Sun Woo stopped walking and turned around abruptly.

He shouldn’t have done that, he was being unusually emotional.

No. He had been very emotional lately.

“Would you believe me even if I denied it?”

“Eun Jae isn’t the kind of woman you can toy with.”

What? Toy with? Me with Eun Jae?

Sun Woo furrowed his brows roughly as he watched Tae Gyu reciting vulgar words with droopy eyes.

“You’re not one to say that to me.”

“Break off the engagement now. Then I’ll keep my mouth shut about that marriage being fake. I have the ability to pay off Eun Jae’s debt, so don’t worry.”

At his words directly poking at his mood, a sharp edge gleamed in Sun Woo’s eyes.

“Stop talking nonsense, there’s a limit to what I can listen to.”

“Why? Are you not confident?”

“There’s no way. Eun Jae is my wife.”

When Sun Woo judged that there was no more value in talking and took a deep breath to take another step, Tae Gyu’s desperate voice loudly echoed in the quiet dining room.

“Why did it have to be Eun Jae!”

It was a voice he heard from him for the first time. Full of pleading, full of sincerity.

“Lower your voice.”

Sun Woo’s low voice and eyes became even colder.

“I liked Eun Jae for a long time. Since high school.”

“Eun Jae has someone she likes.”

“I finally found her. I thought I could finally do something for her now.”

“He’s liked her since high school and had been looking for her for a long time.”

I don’t know why. At that moment, Ye Rim’s voice overlapped with Tae Gyu’s trembling voice.

Could that person be you, Yoon Tae Gyu? Was it you? He became somewhat certain about what he had doubted and questioned without realizing it.

Liking her since high school and searching for her for a long time. How likely was it that there was another person who met both of these conditions for Eun Jae? No, there could be, but the probability was slim.

The way Yoon Tae Gyu looked at Eun Jae, and the atmosphere flowing between the two.

When he thought that the man Ye Rim had mentioned might be Yoon Tae Gyu, his mind went blank. A hot sigh flowed through Sun Woo’s teeth.

“What are you trying to do now? If you liked her that much…”

Images of Eun Jae flickered like a mirage in front of Sun Woo as he roughly ran his hand through his hair.

You, whose heart must have sunk after encountering Tae Gyu.

You, who tried to swallow and overcome it alone again.

“You should have protected her.”

If so.

She wouldn’t have had to be chased by loan sharks every day or

If so.
She wouldn’t have had to get caught up with a guy like me and have an unwanted marriage… None of it would have happened.
I had thought that once.
If by chance this marriage became sincere for one of us, not both, I wished it would be me.
I was wrong.
It should have been you, not me.
Then I would have pretended to be defeated and let it go.
Then it would have been a bit easier.
Sun Woo’s gaze, which had been turned away, slowly returned to Tae Gyu.
“I’m the one by Eun Jae’s side now, give up.”