episode_0040

Parking our car in a nearby parking lot, the man and I sat on a bench, waiting for the person who was the man’s older sister.

I wonder what kind of person the man’s older sister is. Since she shares the same bloodline with the man, she must resemble him a lot. If she’s willing to help in this situation by requesting assistance over the phone, it must mean she’s someone he can trust and rely on.

Although I could hear a slightly irritated voice a few times, I reluctantly accepted it, so it’s likely to be correct.

By the way, if she’s the man’s older sister, how should I address her? Hmm… Since she’s the older sister of my fake husband, I should call her “sister-in-law,” but it’s only in name. Since I’m not actually going to marry the man, she wouldn’t be my sister-in-law, right?

But I don’t want to just call her “sister” casually.

“Um…”

Suddenly, the man, who had been using my leg as a pillow and dozing off, shifted his body.

Is it uncomfortable to lie down in a place like this? It would have been better to sleep in the car, but seeing his face relax as I gently stroked his forehead, it doesn’t seem so bad.

Seeing him fall asleep like this without a care in the world gives me a childlike feeling. Even the way he mumbles in his sleep looks quite cute.

But our man… how did he end up dating a woman like that? I heard they’ve been dating for almost a year, but no matter how old he is, it’s hard to believe he’s dating someone who doesn’t know the difference between what can and can’t be said.

Yes, I can tolerate being cursed at by a stranger over the phone. I’ve been through worse before being hit by a truck.

But to think that his lover, of all people, would curse at him? If she’s capable of saying harsh words to a complete stranger like me, what more has she done to him?

We agreed not to interfere in each other’s private lives, but…

“I can’t stand seeing our man being treated like that by her.”

After talking on the phone for an hour, even though we don’t know each other’s faces, I can guess what kind of person she is.

Our man should meet someone better than a woman who speaks so carelessly.

Yes, if there’s no one else, even someone like me dating our man would be much better. At least I wouldn’t say harsh words to him, and even if we break up later, I wouldn’t resent him at all.

I don’t know if someone like me would be a good match for our man, but if he’s okay with it…

“…Huh?”

With a sudden popping sound, foolish words escaped my mouth.

What? What? Why am I acting like this?

What was I thinking just now? Am I crazy to think of our man like this?

Yes, honestly, I don’t dislike the man at all. Absolutely not. But not disliking him doesn’t mean I like him… No, I do like him! He’s the only one who’s been by my side through tough times, so I can’t help but like him!

But, still, this liking doesn’t mean it’s love! It’s just liking him as a friend who’s always by my side!

Why is my face suddenly feeling hot?

What’s wrong with me?

“I must be crazy, seriously.”

**

The person who was the man’s older sister appeared before us a little past noon.

With long, neatly arranged black hair that reached her lower back, a neutral face, and a height of at least 170, she was more handsome than pretty in appearance.

However, she approached with a displeased expression, and due to her punching the man’s forehead, anger rose, and I almost lost control and lunged at her…

“Looking at her like this, she really does resemble the man’s daughter, it’s uncanny.”

As the car came to a stop at the red light, the man who had been gripping the steering wheel turned to look at me, sitting in the passenger seat.

His gaze swept over me from head to toe, not just my face.

But his smiling face was unsettling. Should I say it was like the eyes of a predator who had found its prey?? Shivers ran down my spine at his cheerful smile, so I just nodded my head without saying a word.

“I was quite surprised to suddenly have to live with a man I’ve never seen before, right? And Grandpa, insisting on making such a young girl his granddaughter-in-law, even though she’s the daughter of a benefactor…”

I couldn’t hide my confusion at his words, just nodding my head while avoiding his gaze.

“Hey, when I mentioned the benefactor’s daughter earlier, was I talking about you?”

“Huh? Of course. You didn’t know until now?”

“I-I’ve never heard of it before. I was kicked out of the house after hearing that a marriage was suddenly arranged, so I didn’t know anything…”

To think that Joo Eun-hye was the daughter of a benefactor, a fact that I hadn’t even heard from the man himself, let alone at home… And what did he mean by granddaughter-in-law??

“Ha, this Young-taeng really… Should have told you what happened.”

The man’s sister, Kang Dan-i, sighed and then took hold of the steering wheel again to continue speaking.

“It must have been over 10 years ago, when your mother saved Grandpa from a thug’s knife. Yoon Ji-seon came and saved Grandpa.”

“…What?!”

“I was young at the time, but I still vividly remember it. Your mother was really amazing, you know? She not only subdued the man with a knife but also took care of Grandpa until the ambulance arrived.”

“My mother… No, my mom really did that?”

“I can see that you find it hard to believe, but it’s a fact. I saw it with my own eyes.”

Through Kang Dan-i’s recollection of that incident, I could barely understand all these situations.

So, this forced marriage started as a way for parents to repay the favor they owed to their children… for Joo Eun-hye, who lost her mother and was mistreated even in her own home.

But Yoon Ji-seon, that woman, wasn’t such a good person…

“The problem is that when we found her again, she had already passed away. And to think that a person with no grudge against anyone would die in a hit-and-run accident… Instead, we found you, her daughter, but Grandpa couldn’t bear to lose you too, so he insisted on this marriage… How could he cause such a big accident?”

“But did it have to be a marriage? I have nothing to offer, and I feel like I’ll just be a burden to my family…”

“A burden? What is this child talking about… Well, suddenly being told about marriage… It seems like it was hard to accept all this time.”

No, it wasn’t hard to accept at first, but it wasn’t difficult either. As long as I live with him, I get money, and there’s no one to stop me from doing what I want.

Keeping those thoughts to myself, I was sweating coldly when Kang Dan-i suddenly hit my back and said, “Don’t worry too much!”

“Oh, right! I heard that you suddenly canceled the hotel reservation you had made, where did you two stay last night?? Do you know how much I struggled to get separate rooms in that nice hotel?”

Suddenly, the events of last night came rushing back to me, and I could feel my face burning.

Should I tell them about this?? Me and the man alone in a motel… and not just that, spending the night together in the same bed?!

But, nothing else happened, right? Even though I was half-naked, wearing embarrassing clothes while drunk, and clinging to you, I didn’t do anything beyond that, right?

It was embarrassing, but I did try to seduce you in my own way, but I didn’t expect you to resist until the end… Ugh, I’m imagining something ridiculous again! Ah!

“Surely, you two didn’t sleep together in a motel or something, did you?”

How do you know that!?? Stop it! Please don’t dig up my embarrassing past anymore!

However, after that, Kang Dani said, “Kang Sunwoo, really?” with wide eyes, making me bow my head in shame.

Seeing the man sleeping obliviously in the back seat, I felt resentful for no reason, but Kang Dani’s chuckling. I was mentally exhausted from her strange laughter.

“This is real. I knew it! Haha… Kang Sunwoo, this guy will never get married, right?”

Seemingly misunderstanding completely between the man and me, Kang Dani kept repeating embarrassing words. Stop it! Please don’t make me more shameful! No. We need to clear up this ridiculous misunderstanding quickly!

“Hey! We did sleep together in a motel, but we didn’t do anything, I swear! We just slept together! Nothing happened all night! And our man has a lover, so he wouldn’t do anything like that with me… Haha, anyway, he wouldn’t do that!”

I can’t accept that a woman like that has a lover, but if we had been dating for a year, maybe he would have… Yeah, it’s frustrating, but it must be true.

Wait a minute? Frustrating? What on earth are you talking about! Am I going crazy!

“You just mentioned that Sunwoo has a lover, what’s that supposed to mean?”

The question from Kang Dani calmed me down from screaming internally.

Could it be that this person didn’t know all this time that our man has a lover?