Chapter: 01
The End of Betrayal
Ding.
2 a.m., December 31.
After being summoned by Seol-ah, Yuri finally managed to straighten her hunched body and get out of bed.
“Bring everything to the Yangpyeong villa by seven. Clothes to change into, starting with underwear, shoes, bags, accessories—everything. There’s nothing to eat in the morning, so prepare something yourself. Oh, and hangover medicine, too.”
“Ugh! Who on earth did she bring along this time that she has to wake someone up at dawn? I’d like to get some rest on a day like this, too….”
Yuri let out a deep sigh. She had every reason to look irritated, but there was no change in her expression.
Yesterday, as soon as she finished her morning shift, she had planned to meet her fiancé, Hyun-woo, to prepare for their wedding. However, a sudden work order from her superior, Seol-ah, had caused their plans to be canceled.
As always, nothing ever went the way she wanted.
Because Baek Seol-ah, the director, had always been Yuri’s first priority.
She was the precious daughter of Baek Do-hoon, chairman of Royal Hotel, and Madam Joo Sang-hee, Yuri’s patron.
Yuri’s life had always revolved around Baek Seol-ah, as if following the hands of a clock.
After the sudden death of her mother forced Yuri into an orphanage until she was seven, it was only natural that she regarded Joo Sang-hee, who had reached out her hand to her, as an angel.
Joo Sang-hee had allowed Yuri to live in the same house as Seol-ah and had even supported her through university. She was someone Yuri had every reason to be grateful to.
However, because of their difference in status, Yuri had been made to call her same-aged Seol-ah “Miss” and Joo Sang-hee “Madam.”
From elementary school until now, Yuri had lived like Seol-ah’s avatar in order to protect her from the endless incidents caused by Seol-ah’s self-willed personality.
Whenever Seol-ah caused trouble, all the blame for her mistakes fell on Yuri. It had been painful at first, but now she had become indifferent to it. Perhaps it had even become a natural part of her life.
Ever since moving into this house, Yuri had never once made a decision for herself.
She had no choice but to follow every decision Joo Sang-hee made, and she believed that was only natural.
Because Joo Sang-hee had been the person who saved her from the unbearably lonely life she had endured at the orphanage.
If it had not been for her, Yuri’s childhood would have been filled with hunger and cold, constantly suffering from the other children’s bullying.
She never wanted to be left alone again. Her desire to live safely behind the shield that was Joo Sang-hee had only grown stronger, and she did not want to lose that protection.
Because she trusted and depended on Joo Sang-hee absolutely, she had even decided to marry the man Joo Sang-hee had chosen for her.
Yuri’s fiancé, Jang Hyun-woo, was the general manager of Royal Hotel’s restaurant division and the only son of Jang Moon-soo, Chairman Baek’s chief secretary and right-hand man. He was a fairly good-looking and capable man, so Yuri could not find any particular reason to refuse.
‘Yuri, you won’t find a better match than this. Besides, Chief Jang adores you like his own daughter. Isn’t that wonderful?’
Joo Sang-hee had told Yuri this many times, as though there would never be another opportunity if she let Hyun-woo go.
With two weeks left until her wedding, Yuri wanted to give him a meaningful gift to commemorate the first Christmas they would spend together, so she had asked him directly.
‘I don’t need anything else. I want you. Let’s spend the night together that day.’
‘Mr. Hyun-woo, I’m sorry…. I don’t want to until we’re married.’
Although Yuri had decided to marry Hyun-woo because of Joo Sang-hee’s strong recommendation and because there was nothing particularly objectionable about him, honestly, she was not attracted to him enough to spend the night with him beforehand.
Hyun-woo’s displeased expression had continued to weigh on her mind. Feeling sorry, Yuri had planned to make another dinner appointment with him on the last day of December to smooth things over.
Once she finished the task Seol-ah had assigned her, she decided she would contact Hyun-woo immediately. Yuri stepped out of bed and stretched.
“Yawn. If I want to get there on time, I’d better hurry and wash up.”
Dragging her tired body into the bathroom, Yuri quickly showered and headed to Pyeongchang-dong, Seol-ah’s family home where Yuri had lived until university.
＊＊＊
After packing her belongings in Pyeongchang-dong and arriving in front of Seol-ah’s private villa in Yangpyeong, Yuri opened the entrance keypad and entered the password.
Her entire body trembled in the cold winter morning air, but she had no time to feel cold. She first pushed several bags inside.
Once inside, Yuri saw liquor bottles scattered around the living-room floor and sofa, along with Seol-ah’s underwear, and let out an incredulous laugh.
“This is insane. How much did she drink yesterday?”
The task Seol-ah had urgently ordered Yuri to handle yesterday was none other than going to retrieve her fiancé, Park Hu-shin.
On the evening of December 30, Seol-ah had rented a suite at Royal Hotel and prepared a private year-end couples’ party with her friends. She had ordered Yuri to bring Park Hu-shin there by any means necessary.
Park Hu-shin was the vice president of PARK FOOD and a third-generation chaebol heir. He was also officially engaged to Seol-ah.
With an untouchable background, a handsome face, and an impressive physique, he was practically the object of admiration for single women everywhere.
He was practically a walking promotional influencer and celebrity in his own right, and thanks to his every move attracting attention, PARK FOOD’s sales had been steadily rising as well. He had already sufficiently proven his qualifications and position as the heir.
Seol-ah wanted to show off her impressive fiancé in front of her friends. However, Hu-shin had never spent personal time with her outside official events.
Being told to personally bring such a man to the party as nothing more than a secretary had put Yuri in a difficult position.
Naturally, Yuri had failed to bring him to the party. When Seol-ah heard the news, she became furious with Yuri and drank like a madwoman.
Whenever Hu-shin rejected Seol-ah or things did not go the way she wanted, she would come to the Yangpyeong villa to take her anger out by finding some man who was easy to handle.
Yesterday had clearly been no different, which was probably why she had sent Yuri on this errand.
Carefully taking one step at a time, Yuri approached the closed bedroom door. A pair of men’s suit trousers and a belt caught against her foot with a soft thud.
“Phew…. How long am I supposed to keep cleaning up this kind of mess? If Vice President Park saw this, it would be grounds for breaking off the engagement immediately.”
The moment she opened the bedroom door, she could already imagine what she would see.
It wasn’t the first or second time, yet for some reason, Yuri felt especially nervous today.
As Yuri carefully opened the door, a sigh escaped her lips involuntarily.
“Ha!”
The naked bodies of a man and a woman were tangled together beneath the white sheets.
The sight of an unfamiliar man’s exposed back suddenly made her stomach churn, and her face grew hot.
Yuri squeezed her eyes shut before opening them again, then quietly approached to wake Seol-ah.
At that moment, the man moved.
The thin sheet that had been tangled around them shifted, revealing his body almost completely except for the parts covered by the fabric.
Startled, Yuri opened her eyes again and fixed her gaze on the man’s face.
“Gasp! Ha….”
Yuri collapsed onto the floor.
The man who had turned his body around was none other than her fiancé, Jang Hyun-woo.
“This can’t be…. Why are you here, Hyun-woo? How….”
In an instant, Yuri felt as though her throat were being squeezed. She became dizzy, her consciousness fading as her mind went blank.
Even though she was seeing it with her own eyes, she could not believe what was happening.
Barely managing to get her trembling body upright, Yuri struggled to part her lips.
“Hyun-woo…. Get up. Right now.”
But he did not move at all.
Instead, Seol-ah, who was lying beside Hyun-woo, spoke to Yuri without even properly opening her eyes.
“How did you get here? Did I tell you to come…? If you came, you should have woken me up. What are you doing?”
“…….”
Seol-ah sat up in bed, picked up the robe that had fallen to the floor, and casually covered her body.
She met Yuri’s eyes as Yuri stood before her with a face drained completely of color.
“You saw us? It’s nothing. We just had a little fun a few times while we were drunk, so don’t worry about it.”
“…….”
Annoyed by Yuri’s silence, Seol-ah furrowed her brows and shouted.
“Ah, fuck! My head is killing me. Bring me some water. And hangover medicine.”
Yuri was dumbfounded. Clenching her trembling jaw, she barely managed to speak.
“How could you, Director…. How could you do this with Hyun-woo?”
“Why? Are you upset? Then why don’t you try doing something like this yourself? Though I doubt you have the ability.”
Seol-ah gave her a mocking smile and stared directly at Yuri.
At the sound of the two women’s raised voices, Hyun-woo stirred and slowly sat up in bed.
“Ah, what is it? Why are you making so much noise?”
The moment Hyun-woo saw Yuri standing in front of him, his eyes widened.
“Y-Yuri…. Ah, fuck. This is crazy. Baek Seol-ah! How could you call her here?”
Seol-ah snapped angrily at Hyun-woo’s irritated voice.
“Ah, I don’t know! I was drunk yesterday, and I don’t even remember sending her a message. What am I supposed to do about something that’s already happened? You take care of her.”
Hyun-woo shifted his gaze toward Yuri with an awkward expression.
“Look, Yuri…. I’ll explain everything. Just calm down first. Let’s go outside and talk.”
“…….”
Yuri ignored Hyun-woo as if his excuses were not even worth hearing.
She did not want to stand here any longer.
It seemed like it was finally time to put an end to this miserable life.
Perhaps being able to escape from being Baek Seol-ah’s servant, something she had desperately wanted for so long, because of their betrayal was a blessing in disguise.
She even felt that, by now, she had repaid Joo Sang-hee enough for everything she had done for her.
Unexpectedly, Yuri’s expression became calm again.
Slowly, she parted her lips.
