Chapter 6
“So… let me get this straight.”
“You moved in here four years ago. Instead of paying rent, you split the maintenance fees fifty-fifty. You also shared the grocery expenses equally?”
Seung-hyun crossed one leg over the other and stared intently at the woman who looked as though she were about to burst into tears.
At first, he’d thought she was some kind of stalker who had followed him home.
But the longer he looked at her, the more convinced he became that he’d been wrong.
Still…
It was hard to believe she was Min Ji-hyun’s friend.
They couldn’t have been more different.
If Ji-hyun was a fully grown ostrich, this woman was a chick.
No…
Maybe more like a puppy that had only recently been weaned.
But no matter how small or harmless she looked, she was still a woman.
A woman who had boldly groped him in her sleep—and even slipped her hand inside his shirt.
Seung-hyun rubbed his face in irritation before looking up again.
“That room.”
“Is it yours?”
Seo-ah nodded vigorously.
Each time her large, earnest eyes blinked, Seung-hyun’s suspicion eased a little more.
“So you were drunk…”
“…and that’s why you touched me?”
“I-I’m so sorry! I thought you were a stuffed animal!”
“What exactly do you usually do with your stuffed animals?”
“N-No! That’s not it! Why do you keep saying that?”
“Then what are those?”
“…The books?”
“Yes.”
“Half of them are mine…”
“…and the other half…”
“…belong to Min Ji-hyun?”
Seo-ah gave another tiny nod.
Grinding his teeth, Seung-hyun took several deep breaths.
He squeezed his eyes shut and forcefully erased the explicit images that had flashed through his mind the moment he’d opened one of those books.
Seo-ah lowered her head in embarrassment.
Even the tips of her ears had turned bright red.
“Get out.”
Those two words struck like an atomic bomb.
Seo-ah slowly raised her head.
The color drained from her face.
Only moments ago it had been flushed crimson from alcohol.
Now it turned pale…
…then practically gray.
“I’ll untie you.”
“But I want your things gone before noon.”
Standing up, Seung-hyun reached behind her chair.
He had tied the knot in a panic earlier, so it had become hopelessly tangled.
As he struggled to undo it, he felt her breath against the side of his face.
“…Are you going to live here?”
“Is that why you’re making me leave?”
Her desperate voice grated on his nerves.
He focused on the knot instead.
“Isn’t that obvious?”
“Don’t tell me you couldn’t even save enough money to find another place.”
“You look like an office worker.”
“What have you been doing all these years?”
“Excuse me!”
“I may be living here, but I have my reasons!”
“The rent is 10.5 million won a month.”
“The maintenance fee alone is another 2.5 million.”
“You’ve been living here despite that.”
“And you’re saying you don’t have any money?”
“…What?”
“Two and a half million?”
Seo-ah stared blankly.
Until now, Ji-hyun had only asked her for 300,000 won.
She’d even said she was charging generously.
Ji-hyun had always told her not to worry because her father covered most of the maintenance fees.
So where had this figure—2.5 million won—come from?
Watching her bewildered expression, Seung-hyun sighed.
“People are coming this morning to throw everything in this apartment away.”
“So gather all…”
“…those horrifying things.”
“And leave.”
Startled, Seo-ah hurriedly protested.
“How can you do this?”
“Please give me some time!”
“I need to find somewhere to live!”
“I have to go to work today too!”
“And tying someone up like this is—”
“Then would you rather leave right now?”
His icy tone instantly shut her mouth.
At last, the knot came loose.
Looking at his favorite necktie—now stretched and ruined—Seung-hyun clicked his tongue in annoyance before tossing it beside the trash can.
As he dusted off his hands, his gaze fell on Seo-ah’s wrists.
They were bright red.
“If noon’s impossible…”
“…be out before you finish work.”
“I’m only giving you that much because you’re Min Ji-hyun’s friend.”
“And honestly…”
“How much did you drink?”
“You slept tied up like that for two whole hours.”
“Tsk.”
Clutching her marked wrists, Seo-ah looked up at him.
Her face was filled with betrayal.
She sniffled.
“You’re so mean.”
“What’s your name?”
“…Bae Seo-ah.”
Silently committing her name to memory, he turned away.
Her reddened wrists bothered him.
But…
She had brought this on herself.
“Move out.”
Twenty minutes later…
Even though her blouse covered her wrists, all her attention remained fixed on the angry red marks beneath the sleeves.
And because that man had occupied her bedroom, she’d barely had the chance to fix her hair before leaving.
Standing in front of the apartment elevator, Seo-ah glared at the man who emerged behind her while talking on the phone.
Then she quietly took a step farther away.
He’s ridiculously handsome.
Dressed in a perfectly tailored bespoke suit with just the right amount of sheen, he looked like someone from an entirely different world.
Broad shoulders sculpted by exercise.
Long legs that would make a mannequin jealous.
The entire Min family must have inherited long-leg genes.
Standing next to someone as tall as Ji-hyun’s brother only made her own legs feel even shorter.
But what’s the point?
His personality is a complete disaster.
And he says he’s “being generous”?
This?
Seriously?
How does someone skip straight to the ending without any build-up?
“I’m on my way.”
“I had a rather unpleasant incident first thing this morning, so I’m running late.”
“Push the meeting back by an hour.”
After ending the call, Seung-hyun looked down at Seo-ah with quiet arrogance.
His expression practically said,
“How dare someone like you even look at me?”
The elevator arrived.
They stepped inside together.
Seo-ah pressed 1F.
Seung-hyun pressed B1.
“Your company.”
She blinked.
“I don’t answer questions that skip straight to the point.”
“I have to go.”
“I asked where.”
“Under the Personal Information Protection Act…”
“…I’m not obligated to tell you.”
“Breaking into private property.”
“Living here without permission.”
“Property damage.”
“And distributing obscene material.”
“Why are you living your life like this?”
“What?!”
“What does it matter how I—”
She exploded.
Seung-hyun merely frowned slightly and continued staring ahead as though he hadn’t heard a word.
More than anything, Seo-ah wanted to escape this elevator.
They’re siblings.
How can they be so different?
Ji-hyun had her prickly moments…
But she had never been this unreasonable.
She missed her already.
The elevator doors opened at the first floor.
Seo-ah stepped out.
Before she’d even taken another step…
The doors closed immediately.
Ha.
He definitely pressed the Close button on purpose.
Grabbing the back of her aching neck, Seo-ah groaned.
“Seriously…”
“What’s wrong with that guy?!”
She wanted to swear at him until she felt better.
But she was already running late.
Clutching her handbag, she sprinted toward the street.
Just then, a sleek luxury sedan shot out of the underground parking garage and sped past her.
She hadn’t gotten a good look.
But she was certain the driver was him.
Watching the car disappear into the distance, Seo-ah let out a hollow laugh.
“He really lives life completely on his own terms…”
No time to dwell on it.
She was late.
She threw herself into a waiting taxi.
Pressing her fingertips against the dark circles beneath her eyes, she silently prayed that not every Min Seung-hyun in the world was like that.
But…
Where am I supposed to live now?
Seo-ah’s entire morning was a disaster.
A dead end.
Every apartment she could move into immediately was too expensive.
Every place she could afford was too far from work.
And somehow…
Last night’s events still felt like a dream.
Ji-hyun had barely left to study abroad…
…and suddenly Min Seung-hyun had appeared.
She still couldn’t believe he was real.
Rubbing the necktie marks on her wrists, Seo-ah gently knocked her forehead against her desk.
“This is impossible…”
Even if she emptied every last won from her savings account to pay a security deposit…
Would she really be able to move somewhere today?
And what about moving all her belongings?
Her head pounded with worries.
She grabbed fistfuls of her own hair and sighed repeatedly.
It wasn’t impossible.
The odds weren’t zero.
But…
She hated being forced into something so suddenly.
Taking a deep breath, Seo-ah clenched her fists.
She pulled a carton of banana milk from her desk drawer, stuck in a straw, and called Ji-hyun.
She had wanted to sort things out before calling.
But the more she thought about it…
…the more hopeless everything seemed.
She needed help.
The call connected.
“Hello?”
“Jiii-hyuuun…”
“…What’s wrong with your voice?”
“Hold on a second.”
Background noise poured through the phone.
Seo-ah waited.
She could hear Ji-hyun cheerfully greeting complete strangers without a trace of hesitation.
It made everything feel strangely unreal.
The office was empty during lunch break.
Walking over to the window, Seo-ah leaned against the frame and gazed outside.
April had arrived.
The trees lining the streets were covered with flower buds.
The city below looked heartbreakingly beautiful.
Looking down at it only made her own miserable situation feel even more pathetic.
Some people go flower viewing…
…and others end up desperately searching for a new apartment during peak moving season.
“Okay.”
“I’m outside the pub now.”
“Tell me.”
“Aren’t you at work?”
“What happened?”
“Why do you sound so serious?”
“…He’s here.”
She sighed and leaned back against the window frame.
“…Who?”
“Your ‘him.'”
“The ridiculously handsome devil.”
“Your second older brother!”
Silence.
Then she heard Ji-hyun sharply suck in a breath.
“Min Seung-hyun?”
“For real?!”
Ji-hyun practically screamed through the speaker.
Hearing that reaction made Seo-ah’s knees go weak.
It proved this nightmare was real.
There was no going back.
Her heart sank.
Seo-ah told Ji-hyun everything.
How he’d occupied her room without permission.
How he’d tied her to a dining chair.
How he’d covered their treasured manga collection with a blanket and walked all over it.
And finally…
How he’d hired people to throw everything in the apartment away.
At that point, Ji-hyun finally exploded.
“That psychopath…!”
“You stay right there!”
“Do not move out!”
“Absolutely not!”
