TUW | CHAPTER 45

Chapter 45

At Least Explain Yourself

“Did you see the message I sent you?”

What kind of message could it be to cause such a fuss?

Unlike usual, Sujin’s expression was unusually serious.

She set her hand on her waist, lips pressed tight as if holding back anger.

What’s going on?

“What message?”

Sujin gestured toward the monitor, telling her to check for herself.

Lee Yeon hurried to her seat and stared at the computer screen.

The quiet office was filled only with the frantic click of the mouse and the sound of her swallowing nervously.

Why were there so many piled-up company messages?

Skipping over Do hyun’s schedule requests and notes about meetings from the secretary’s office, Lee Yeon scrolled to the blinking flood of new messages at the bottom and clicked on Sujin’s name.

[Vice President Ahn Do hyun has a mistress!

Barely a few months after marriage, a new woman appeared!

They supposedly enjoy dates in his office and openly meet outside the company.

They were even hugging at a crosswalk!

And the mistress is none other than the ugly secretary, Yu ○○.]

“What?”

What was this?

Shock widened Lee Yeon’s eyes.

Her hand trembled faintly around the mouse.

As she read each word of Sujin’s note, her eyes grew larger and larger.

Do hyun’s marriage had only recently become a hot topic, and now this bizarre rumor?

Sujin watched Lee Yeon’s shifting expressions with interest, then finally spoke.

“Secretary Yu? Congratulations.

You’re famous now.

The employees say you’re the hot issue.”

“What is this supposed to be?”

“Why ask me?

They’re saying you and the vice president are having an affair.

That you’re the mistress of a married man.

Is that true, that you’re his mistress?”

How am I supposed to explain this?

If she had known this would happen, Lee Yeon should have told Sujin everything from the start.

Seeing the bewilderment in her friend’s eyes, she couldn’t lift her head.

How was she supposed to unravel this?

Should she just rip off the wig and declare that she was both wife and mistress in one?

She needed to explain she was actually his wife, but where could she even begin?

On the day at the crosswalk, when Do hyun had pulled her close, someone must have seen.

It had all happened so fast, she hadn’t thought to look around.

They had promised to be careful, not even holding hands near the company, yet they’d ended up hugging in plain sight.

It had been careless of them both.

Still, it was strange that the rumor had twisted into something so malicious.

Will the vice president be okay?

Her first thought after reading the absurd message was worry that Do hyun’s reputation might suffer.

Knock, knock.

“Hey, I’m still here, you know.”

You’re still here…?

Sujin tapped the desk to remind her of her presence.

Frustrated with Lee Yeon staring silently at the monitor, she had come in person to demand some kind of explanation.

“That’s… going to take a while to explain.”

“Then explain.

At least try!

Saying it takes a while means there’s some truth to it, doesn’t it?

The Lee Yeon I know isn’t the type to fall for a married man and live out that saying, ‘If someone else does it, it’s adultery, but if I do it, it’s romance.’”

“…”

“Is it true?

Is what the message said real?

How could you never tell me anything about it?

That’s what makes me angry.

Even if we only met through work, I thought we clicked like old friends, that we shared a lot together…”

Sujin spoke like a rapid-fire gun, and Lee Yeon had no rebuttal.

It was all true.

She just listened quietly until Sujin finished.

“My disappointment ends here.

I understand why you couldn’t say anything.

He’s the vice president, after all, and even if we’re close, it would’ve been hard to bring up at work.

I know it wasn’t because you didn’t trust me.”

She was a rare kind of friend, one who could acknowledge her own hurt feelings yet still try to understand.

And she was right.

It had been a contract marriage, not something you could easily share.

Especially not with someone from the same company.

If Hayul had worked at Wusung Card, she wouldn’t have told her either.

Lee Yeon pulled Sujin into a chair.

“Sit down for a minute.

Don’t you have to head back upstairs?

We could talk at lunch instead.”

She worried Sujin had stepped away from her duties.

“Twenty minutes is fine.”

Since she had time, Lee Yeon began unraveling the tangled story.

About the disguise, and how that led all the way to marrying Do hyun.

She left out the part about divorce, but told everything else as honestly as she could.

Sujin could only gasp “Oh my god” over and over again.

And that was just the rough outline.

“Wait.

So that woman spotted with him at the department store—that was you?

The celebrity-looking one?”

“I’m no celebrity.

We’re the same age, Sujin.”

“So this stiff hair, these ugly freckles, these glasses—they’re all fake?”

“You really hated the freckles that much?

And thank you for pointing out the state of my hair, too.”

“And you wore those baggy clothes on purpose, to look plain?”

“Plain, huh?

I see how it is.”

Lee Yeon’s lips twitched with suppressed laughter.

Sujin had often urged her to dress up more, so she wouldn’t be overlooked.

Now it was clear she’d really thought Lee Yeon’s messy hair, baggy clothes, and freckles were ugly.

But her words carried affection, too.

“And the vice president liked you this way.

Two people who weren’t interested in romance found each other and fell in love.

Now he knows your real self, and you’ll live happily ever after?”

“…What, are you reading me a fairy tale?”

Sujin sounded positively delighted.

“This is insane!

I’m so jealous!

And you didn’t tell me this juicy story?

That’s unforgivable.”

Slap, slap.

Her playful smacks held real feeling behind them.

“But it’s actually a relief.

If you’re the same person, there’s no problem at all.

Let the gossips keep talking.

Who cares?”

She sprang up with renewed energy.

“Right now everyone’s busy calling it an affair, saying Vice President Ahn has been exposed, that all men are the same, that appearances deceive.

Just imagine their faces when they find out you’re his wife!

The jealousy is real—some women are fuming, saying, ‘How did that ugly secretary snare the vice president?’

They even say you’re flirting with Um Jihoo on top of it, that you’re shameless for someone who looks like that.

Honestly, it’s hilarious.

I need popcorn.”

Sujin, you’re way too excited about this, aren’t you?

“And why is Jihoo’s name even coming up now?”

Lee Yeon grumbled, exasperated at the mention of him again.

“I told you before.

There was a rumor you were seducing the new guy.

I denied it right away, but rumors don’t die easily.

Who cares, though?

You’re the vice president’s woman.”

Why did I ever put on a disguise and make things harder for Do hyun?

For the first time, she regretted it.

She had never expected things to go this far.

She had only thought about separating cleanly, never about falling in love.

“Sujin, do you think the vice president knows about this rumor?”

“Of course he does.

Executives always hear first.

So what now?

When are you going to reveal yourself?

I want to see your real face too.

The reactions are going to be priceless.”

You’re not asking me to reveal myself just for your amusement, are you?

“People love to add details to gossip until it snowballs into ‘truth.’

That kind of stain is the worst thing for someone like the vice president.”

“I completely agree.”

“You might hear unpleasant things for a while, but it’ll pass.

The people who know you understand exactly why he fell for you.”

“Thanks.

I should’ve told you sooner.”

“Too late now.

Buy me a café mocha, pretty lady.”

“You haven’t even seen the real me yet.”

“I saw enough in those department store photos.

Even your silhouette gave you away.

I could recognize you from the back of your head.”

Pfft.

Thanks to Sujin, the heavy talk ended in laughter.

But as soon as she left, Lee Yeon’s smile faded, weighed down by unshaken unease.

After work, she dropped her bag and sat at the vanity.

The house was empty, only her inside.

Do hyun had dinner plans with executives after their meeting and wouldn’t return until late.

Facing the mirror, she studied herself.

She lifted her hand and pulled off the frizzy wig.

Then she tossed aside the glasses perched at the tip of her nose.

She had worn this disguise since graduating college, living this way every day.

The thought of suddenly showing up at work without it was unimaginable.

She was used to this face now, and wasn’t ready to cast it off.

Yet with Do hyun standing firmly by her side, what use was the disguise anymore?

It wasn’t

even that difficult a decision.

Better to tell the truth before baseless rumors dragged him down.

After a shower, she lay in bed, thoughts spiraling, until she heard him come in.

“What were you doing?”

Walking straight into the bedroom, Do hyun smiled down at her as she lay on the bed.

“Perfect timing.

I just made up my mind.”