Chapter : 09
“Take our Jaein with you to America. I’ll be fine on my own. That way, I can see my grandchild, right?”
“Mom! Don’t ask questions like that.”
“Why? Can’t Mom even ask something like this?”
‘We’re getting divorced.’
The words had risen all the way to the tip of Jiyoung’s throat, but as she looked at Jiyoung’s innocent face, she couldn’t bring herself to say them.
Tae-ha, who had been quietly watching her, finally parted his lips.
“I was actually planning to have one soon anyway. I’m going to stay in Korea from now on.”
‘What?’
Unlike the surprised Jaein, Jiyoung smiled happily.
“Really? It’s better to have a baby while you’re young. Oh, once you have a baby, Mom will have to look after them. Our Jaein works too, so she won’t be able to take care of the baby.”
“That’s true. Since I’ll be staying in Korea, then Mother-in-law can look after the baby.”
At his shamelessly casual addition, Jiyoung burst into delighted laughter.
Jiyoung had never smiled that brightly just because Jaein came to visit.
It had been even more so since her father passed away.
Seeing Jiyoung so happy, almost like a little child, Jaein was overwhelmed by an indescribable feeling.
Jaein’s gaze drifted around the room.
She was unaccustomed to seeing such a pretty fruit basket in the room. Normally, only Jaein and her father had visited the hospital room.
And seeing Jiyoung and Tae-ha sitting together and talking was just as unfamiliar.
Anyone who didn’t know their circumstances would probably think they were a close-knit family.
Why is he suddenly doing things he never used to do?
Jaein bit down on her lower lip.
“Mom, I’m going now.”
“Hm? Already? Why don’t you stay a little longer?”
“I have to go home and finish some work. I’ll come again this weekend.”
Jaein, who had been watching the two of them, suddenly stood up.
She knew that if she left, Tae-ha would follow her out.
After leaving the hospital room, Jaein walked down the hallway before stopping.
Just as she had expected, the footsteps following behind her stopped as well.
“My feelings aren’t going to change just because you’re doing this.”
Jaein turned toward Tae-ha as she spoke.
Only now had she made up her mind.
She would stop worrying about what his family thought and live her life as Seo Jaein, not as his wife.
Now that she had let everything go—
‘I’ve finally managed to feel at peace.’
There was no way she wanted to go back now, Sunbae.
“I mean it. I want to live doing everything I really want to do.”
“……”
“I want to live as freely as I want, freely enough that your family won’t be able to handle it.”
So stop.
Having said that, Jaein turned and headed toward the elevator again.
She quickly stepped inside and firmly pressed the close button.
But Tae-ha soon stopped the elevator doors from closing.
“I’m sorry.”
At the voice that seemed to shatter against her ears, Jaein’s hand twitched.
She stood there as if time had stopped for a moment before slowly lifting her head.
Jaein’s eyes trembled violently as she faced the man.
“…For what?”
Her face crumpled slightly.
She couldn’t even begin to guess what he was apologizing for. Her heart began pounding faster and faster.
“For making you wait. For not being by your side at your father’s funeral. For all of it.”
His voice melted into her ears once again.
“For not saying I was sorry.”
Jaein’s mouth went completely dry beneath Tae-ha’s unwavering gaze.
“I mean it.”
The words I mean it struck her more deeply than ever before.
“Seo Jaein, I need you. So trust me. Just this once.”
After saying that, Tae-ha released the elevator-open button he had been holding down.
Through the narrowing gap between the doors, Jaein could see the man.
Even though it seemed as though he had said everything he wanted to say, it looked as if there was still something left. His throat bobbed up and down.
Then, just as the elevator doors were about to close completely—
This time, Jaein quickly reached toward the button.
The elevator doors that had been closing opened again, and Jaein faced Tae-ha.
“Are you really confident, Sunbae?”
At Jaein’s sudden question, his gaze lifted.
Perhaps he hadn’t expected her to stop the elevator. His usually calm eyes rippled slightly.
“Do you really think there will be any meaning in maintaining our marriage for another year?”
Their marriage had been maintained until now solely because of Jaein’s determination.
She was the one who had desperately struggled to hold on to it.
She was asking whether a relationship that would end the moment she let go would really become any different just because they extended it for another year.
“Yes.”
His answer came without hesitation, and this time Jaein’s eyes trembled.
“It will be different. I’ll change everything.”
His unwavering gaze remained fixed solely on Jaein.
His eyes were so straightforward that they made her want to believe him.
Maybe we really can change.
Maybe the heart that was practically dead could have a spark lit inside it again.
“Sunbae, I want a divorce. The marriage will only be maintained for one year at most.”
In truth, she had been thinking about it the entire time.
‘If I endure just one year, all the problems will be resolved.’
The immediate problem of the missing cast member, the financial problem, and—
‘Even the divorce.’
“I don’t want you to make things difficult for me over the divorce one year from now.”
And more than anything, this proposal was something Jaein had nothing to lose from.
She had always been the one making the effort, while this time, Tae-ha was the one saying he would change.
“I’m only going to think about myself. You were going to get divorced for my sake anyway.”
For the next year she had been given, she intended to act entirely for herself, even if it seemed selfish.
“Don’t expect me to fulfill my role as a daughter-in-law. Can you promise me all of this?”
She would no longer live constantly worrying about what the elders in his family thought.
So she was asking whether he would be okay with her behaving recklessly and doing whatever she wanted, unlike before.
Despite her bold question, he simply nodded.
“Okay. Seo Jaein, just stay by my side. I’ll do everything I can to prevent the divorce.”
At Tae-ha’s confident answer, Jaein let out a small, involuntary laugh.
The Tae-ha she knew had never been this passionate toward her.
After losing his memories, seeing this new side of Sunbae felt strangely unfamiliar.
“What if you start wanting a divorce, Sunbae?”
Jaein, who had been staring at Tae-ha, asked another question.
It was something she had wanted to ask all along.
Whether he regained his memories or later wanted to return to his first love—
What would happen if Tae-ha was the one who wanted a divorce first?
“If you decide first that you want to end this marriage, will the conditions you mentioned still remain in effect?”
“That won’t happen, but if I want to end it, I’ll pay everything in a lump sum.”
Tae-ha continued speaking while looking at Jaein with an unwavering gaze.
“Your mother’s hospital expenses, our newlywed home, and alimony. Everything.”
Jaein swallowed the hollow laugh that almost escaped her.
He wasn’t some generous tree that gave everything away, yet he was saying he would give her absolutely everything. It was absurd.
“Isn’t that too unfair a deal for you, Sunbae?”
“It has to be unfair. The person who doesn’t want a divorce has to make concessions. What else can I do?”
The great Woo Tae-ha, voluntarily putting himself in the weaker position.
It was certainly something worth living long enough to see.
“There’s one more thing.”
At Jaein’s words, Tae-ha’s eyebrows lifted into an arch.
His expression seemed to ask, What could possibly be left after all this?
“Your family elders won’t be happy about you appearing on a variety show.”
The biggest reason Jaein didn’t want to appear on <깨알 부부> with Tae-ha was Junhee and the rest of his family.
They already looked upon her existence with disapproval.
She knew very well that if they found out she was appearing on a variety show, her mother-in-law Junhee and the rest of his family would vehemently oppose it.
More than anything, they cared greatly about their public image.
‘If.’
If they managed to get the show aired safely despite all that opposition, then there would be no turning back.
Thinking about how stunned and speechless her in-laws would be, Jaein thought it might not be so bad after all.
No. To be honest—
‘I think I’m actually looking forward to it a little.’
“To be honest, I don’t want to climb over every single mountain by persuading your elders one by one.”
“……”
“I’m going to do things my way, however I want. Are you still okay with that?”
At Jaein’s bold question, the corners of Tae-ha’s mouth curved upward.
“As much as you want. Do whatever you want. If you want to cause a scene, then cause a scene.”
“You said it, Sunbae. You told me to do whatever I want.”
“I’m looking forward to it. I wonder what Seo Jaein is going to do.”
Tae-ha simply grinned as he said it.
‘He says he’s fine with it without even knowing what I might do.’
Watching him remain completely unconcerned, Jaein suppressed a laugh.
“Okay. Let’s do it, then.”
As she said that, Jaein held out her hand toward Tae-ha.
It was a handshake, meaning I look forward to working with you.
They were going to fire her anyway if they couldn’t find another cast member, so what was there to endure when the arrangement would last only one year at most?
Tae-ha stared at the hand she held out before taking it.
“Then I look forward to working with you, honey.”
‘H-honey?’
At the form of address she had never heard before in her life, Jaein’s face helplessly twisted.
“Let’s move in together first. We have to live together if we’re going to film the show.”
They were going to live together for the first time in five years of marriage, and seeing that Tae-ha’s expression hadn’t changed in the slightest, Jaein suddenly felt competitive.
“Okay. Then let’s start by sharing the bedroom. We’re married, so shouldn’t we sleep together?”
At her straightforward question, a peculiar smile appeared around Tae-ha’s lips.
“Sounds good. That’s exactly what I wanted.”
He lowered his head and leaned closer, holding her gaze intently as he spoke.
“Let’s do everything. Everything a married couple is supposed to do, without leaving anything out.”
“Go ahead, then. I have somewhere I need to be, so I’ll see you later.”
Jaein said that and turned around.
She had confidently said it and turned away, but seeing Tae-ha respond that he was happy about it made her wonder why she was suddenly nervous.
Barely managing to hold on to her spinning mind, she closed the elevator doors.
‘Wow, what am I going to do?’
She had said she would do it, but—
Would it really be okay?
And despite those worries, everything proceeded at lightning speed.
Less than half a day after Jaein firmly decided that she would appear on the show, a detailed schedule along with a filming proposal arrived.
As though they had been waiting for her all along.
