Chapter 6
In-hyuk tilted his head slightly as he looked down at Min-gyu.
Seeing his cold gaze, Min-gyu flinched and quickly pulled his wrist free.
“What do you want?”
His voice was sharp, but In-hyuk ignored him completely.
“Are you alright?”
Instead, he looked at Hae-yoon, who was rubbing the arm Min-gyu had grabbed.
She glanced at Min-gyu before nodding.
“Ah, Hae-yoon.”
Only then did Min-gyu realize how tightly he had grabbed her.
He quickly reached toward her again.
She flinched and stepped back.
In-hyuk moved between them.
“Excuse me. This is between a couple, so stay out of it.”
“It looked like you were breaking up.”
In-hyuk answered casually.
Min-gyu’s face immediately turned red.
“Why were you listening to our conversation?!”
“I’m not the only one who heard it.”
In-hyuk nodded toward the entrance.
Only then did Min-gyu realize they had been arguing in the middle of the restaurant entrance where everyone could see.
“Hae-yoon. Let’s go outside first. We can talk there, okay?”
He reached out to her again.
Hae-yoon found it hard to stay there any longer.
Partly because of the strangers staring at them.
And partly because of In-hyuk.
Why did he have to witness something this embarrassing?
And even help her.
After thinking for a moment, she signaled Min-gyu to follow her.
She knew he would chase after her anyway.
It was better to end everything properly today.
“Go ahead. Say what you want.”
She stopped in a quieter place where there were fewer people.
Min-gyu scratched his head while constantly glancing to the side.
His restless behavior made Hae-yoon look as well.
In-hyuk had followed them and was standing some distance away, quietly watching.
She couldn’t say he didn’t make her feel self-conscious.
But strangely…
His presence also made her feel safer.
He had already seen her embarrassing situation.
At least if something happened, she wouldn’t be alone.
Depending on In-hyuk felt ridiculous.
But it was the truth.
“Do you have nothing to say? Then I’ll speak.”
“Hae-yoon…!”
“Let’s break up. It’s over.”
Min-gyu hurriedly grabbed her hand.
“I’m sorry, okay? I really didn’t want to go on that blind date. That’s true.”
“Fine. I believe you.”
“Huh? Really? Then…”
“Maybe you didn’t at first. But in the end, you still went.”
If Min-gyu had just been honest from the beginning, things might have been different.
She might not have understood everything, but she would have at least tried.
But the moment he chose to deceive her…
It was over.
“I’ve lost my trust in you.”
“Hae-yoon… I… I really love you. I regretted it so much when we broke up. You know that. You know how much I’ve always cared about you.”
Min-gyu shook his head desperately.
He refused to accept the breakup.
“If you really loved me, would today have happened?”
She tried to pull her hand away.
When it was almost free, Min-gyu grabbed it tightly again.
“You’re going to throw away everything I’ve done for you over the past two years because of this one day?”
Hae-yoon frowned slightly.
She couldn’t understand why he was saying things like that.
They had just been an ordinary couple.
It wasn’t like he had sacrificed something amazing for her.
If anything, their relationship had always been rather dry.
“We only kissed for two years. Do you think that’s easy for a man? I waited because I loved you that much.”
“…What?”
“Seriously, who stays a virgin until marriage these days? Do you know how much I held myself back?!”
To be honest, Hae-yoon wasn’t someone who insisted on staying a virgin until marriage.
“You’re blaming me for that?”
Actually, it had been Min-gyu’s fault that their physical relationship had stopped.
Not long after they started dating, he had tried to move too fast physically.
Feeling uncomfortable with the unwanted intimacy, Hae-yoon had quickly broken up with him.
Min-gyu had begged her to come back.
He promised to go at her pace.
After that, they barely had any physical intimacy.
The reason Hae-yoon had stayed with him was because she had never doubted his sincerity.
She had loved how constantly he told her he loved her.
Before he lost interest in the relationship, he had truly been a caring boyfriend.
“Do you know why I lost interest? Even if I was impatient at first, you still wouldn’t sleep with me after two years! That’s not normal either!”
“…”
“That’s why I suggested we get married!”
When they got back together, Min-gyu had been the one to bring up marriage.
Hae-yoon was twenty-eight.
Min-gyu was thirty.
It was the age when people naturally started thinking about marriage.
After agreeing to take the relationship seriously, they had gotten back together.
Hae-yoon had even been trying not to keep such a strong wall between them anymore.
Min-gyu ran both hands through his hair.
He had endured not sleeping with her.
Because she was so beautiful that he couldn’t imagine finding someone like her anywhere else.
Keeping such a beautiful woman by his side without being able to have her only frustrated him more.
So while dating Hae-yoon…
He secretly fooled around with other women.
Even while telling everyone that Hae-yoon was the woman he planned to marry.
“Once we’re married, all those problems disappear! That’s why I even went on that blind date while trying to convince my mom!”
He even stomped his feet like a child.
He wanted her to understand just how much effort he had made.
Instead…
The little affection Hae-yoon still had completely disappeared.
No matter how much he tried to explain, all she heard was:
“It’s because you wouldn’t have sex with me.”
“Oppa… honestly…”
Her face turned completely cold.
“I’m disgusted.”
“Hey! Yoon Hae-yoon!”
Ignoring Min-gyu’s desperate shouting, she turned away.
The moment he rushed after her and reached for her—
In-hyuk stepped in front of Hae-yoon.
“What the hell is wrong with you?!”
Min-gyu finally exploded.
He shouted a curse harsh enough to make anyone frown.
He had already been furious.
Now In-hyuk interfering had pushed him over the edge.
“Miss Yoon Hae-yoon.”
Despite Min-gyu’s anger, In-hyuk calmly called her name.
She looked at him with slightly red eyes.
“It seems you don’t have a boyfriend anymore.”
She wondered what he could possibly say at a time like this.
His words were so unexpected that she laughed in disbelief.
“Isn’t this usually the part where you comfort someone?”
“Do you need my comfort?”
She almost laughed again.
It wasn’t like they were close enough for that.
“If you do, I can.”
Then In-hyuk looked back at Min-gyu.
His face had turned every shade of red and blue from anger.
“First, I’ll deal with this situation.”
“Then let’s continue our conversation.”
What conversation could he possibly want to have now?
She simply stared at him without answering.
In-hyuk shrugged.
“One reason you couldn’t marry me has disappeared.”
“…What?”
“Excuse me for a moment.”
He grabbed Min-gyu’s arm and twisted it behind his back.
Min-gyu screamed in pain and struggled.
But his resistance was meaningless to In-hyuk.
Still holding his arm behind him, In-hyuk pushed him forward.
Min-gyu stumbled awkwardly away from Hae-yoon.
* * *
Left alone, Hae-yoon checked the time.
Ten minutes had passed since In-hyuk and Min-gyu left.
She had spent those ten minutes wondering whether she should actually wait for In-hyuk…
Or just leave.
“Sigh…”
She sighed yet again.
Leaning against the wall, she repeatedly rubbed her face.
Even if she hadn’t loved Min-gyu passionately…
The breakup still hurt.
It wasn’t something she could complain to anyone about.
He cheated because I wouldn’t sleep with him.
As her face twisted behind her hands—
Something was suddenly held out between her fingers.
“…I’m not crying.”
It was In-hyuk’s handkerchief.
She shook her head slightly and looked toward him.
How had he managed to deal with Min-gyu so calmly?
Min-gyu hadn’t looked like someone who would calm down easily.
Yet In-hyuk returned without a single hair out of place.
“He understood the situation and went home.”
“…That oppa?”
“Yes.”
There was no way Min-gyu had simply left.
Hae-yoon tilted her head in confusion and stood up straight.
“…Thank you for helping me.”
“If you’re thankful, give me some of your time.”
“…What?”
“You haven’t had dinner yet, have you?”
“That’s true, but…”
“Come with me. Let’s eat dinner while we talk.”
“Wait. Didn’t you…”
She looked around before lowering her voice.
“…have dinner plans with Actress Si-yeon?”
“Oh, I did. But Hong Si-yeon has probably already gone home.”
When Hae-yoon and Min-gyu had left together earlier, In-hyuk had secretly sent Si-yeon a message.
As expected, settling things had taken longer than expected.
He also needed to talk to Hae-yoon.
Sending Si-yeon home first had been the right decision.
“Mr. Do In-hyuk… I’m really grateful you helped me. But I don’t think I’m in the right state to talk right now.”
Even though Min-gyu had done something that completely disgusted her…
He had still been her boyfriend.
Finding out he had gone on a blind date behind her back couldn’t possibly leave her unaffected.
In-hyuk quietly looked at her pale face.
“Come on. I’ll drive you.”
She shook her head.
“I can go home by myself.”
“Do you know how bad you look right now?”
Hae-yoon avoided his gaze.
She had been filming since before sunrise.
The commercial shoot had ended later than expected.
On top of that, it had been a long time since she had worked as a manager.
She was completely exhausted.
In-hyuk sighed softly and gently placed a hand against her back, encouraging her forward.
“Don’t worry. I won’t ask you to marry me.”
She simply stared at him.
He shrugged.
“At least not today.”
