episode_0016

That night.

“You decided to meet Yoo Seol-hee?”

When I asked in surprise while sitting on the sofa, Hye-yoon, who was sitting on the floor cutting her toenails, nodded.

“I wanted to meet you anyway… You contacted me first to meet you. The daughter of Hwarang Group is acting all the time, so I should meet her sometime?”

Hyeyoon, who was cutting her toenails with one leg stretched out in front of her, looked up at me and added.

“Where did you go today? You went out earlier, right?”

“Ah? That?”

Um… Should I tell you the story of when I met Yeonlim…

I don’t really feel like it……

By the way, Hye-yoon, why isn’t she wearing pajama pants?

He’s wearing only a baggy t-shirt and underwear and he’s cutting his toenails in front of me.

Am I comfortable to this extent… I’m a bit stimulated…

When I avoided eye contact and didn’t answer, Hyeyoon, who had finished clipping her toenails, sat down next to me and opened her mouth.

“Look at your nails. Oh my. Why are they so long? Should I cut them? Huh?”

Hyeyoon, who was sitting next to me, held my hand and began to carefully cut my fingernails.

It’s a very slow and careful movement, like cutting someone else’s fingernails.

“When I was young, at the orphanage…….”

Hyeyoon was cutting my index fingernail when she got lucky.

“Yeah.”

“Do you remember when you cut my fingernails?”

Yes, that’s right. Back then, I took care of Hye-yoon from start to finish.

It’s something that’s unimaginable now.

“I remember. That happened. But why?”

“No. Just……. Back then, you cut my fingernails and toenails so nicely. You were such a neat and diligent kid back then. Why is it like this now?”

“Huh? Are you saying I’m not clean right now?”

“That’s not it. It’s just…….”

Hyeyoon answered vaguely and then snapped the nail on my little finger.

What should I say… At that moment, I felt a little relieved.

I had a thought that Hye-yoon wouldn’t hurt me. It was a random thought, but it occurred to me.

So I decided to be honest.

“I met Yeonlim today.”

After saying that, I looked at Hye-yoon.

Hyeyoon’s expression didn’t change. It seemed like she wasn’t feeling any particular emotions.

“Huh……. Really? What did you talk about when you met?”

Phew. Thank goodness. It seems Hye-yoon doesn’t get angry or show any strange symptoms because of Yeon-rim’s problem.

So I told her exactly what I had talked about with Yeonlim at the cafe today.

Hyeyoon just listened while trimming my nails here and there. She had a calm expression.

When I finished telling my story, Hyeyoon, who was sitting across from me, shrugged and pushed the bag containing the nail clippings aside.

“She’s a crazy woman. She’s regretting it now.”

“Huh? Huh, regret it?”

“Yeah.”

Hyeyoon, sitting cross-legged, hit her knee with her hand and continued speaking.

“I don’t really care about that girl. She’s not worth caring about.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I know it well when I see your reaction. I know you better than anyone in the world.”

Oh, is that so?

Hyeyoon continued talking while hugging her knees.

“You lost interest in her a long time ago, and now she wants to get you back. And for very real reasons.”

“Realistic reasons?”

“Money. Money. Okay. Isn’t that it?”

Hyeyoon, who had been thinking for a while while hugging her knees, slightly frowned.

“Humans are so ugly, right?”

“……That’s true. But I don’t intend to curse.”

“Why?”

“Because we used to date.”

“It’s funny. You don’t have to act cool. No one will say anything if you swear at that girl.”

Hyeyoon muttered like that and fell backwards.

I looked at Hye-yoon’s stretched out legs and asked.

“Put on your pajama pants. Your panties are showing.”

When I couldn’t hold it in anymore and started talking, Hyeyoon, who was lying down and staring at the ceiling, answered.

“This is my home. I want to be comfortable.”

“You want to brag to me about your pretty legs?”

When I asked playfully, Hyeyoon raised her head slightly and glanced at me.

“Honestly, a little bit. What do you think? Are my legs pretty?”

“Yeah. I’ll tell you it’s pretty.”

“What is that?”

Hyeyoon suddenly stood up and sat cross-legged and asked with an expression full of curiosity.

“You know, you did it with that girl named Yeonrim?”

Oh, this is driving me crazy.

Why are you asking me this again?

I was annoyed, but I held it in and answered.

“I don’t want to answer.”

“Really? Then you’ve never done it. I can tell just by looking at your expression. When you’re asked a question that’s uncomfortable to answer, you squint your left eye slightly. How’s that?”

…….This is so detailed for no reason.

Damn……. Hyeyoon was right. I dated Yeonrim for about half a year, but we never slept together.

From the beginning, when Yeonlim started dating me, it seemed like she had no interest in that kind of thing.

Yeonlim didn’t love me. Yeonlim… was a woman who always looked elsewhere even when she was with me.

During the time we were dating, it was a one-sided love for me.

Thinking about it, it was even more miserable because it was true.

When I was dumped by Yeonlim for the first time in a while, that miserable feeling came back to me in my chest.

When I didn’t answer and just made a bug-biting expression, Hye-yoon suddenly stood up, stretched, and whispered.

“You or me… I’m still a virgin too.”

huh?

really?

***

Lunch the next day.

A very spacious, high-class restaurant in the style of a Hanok.

Hye-yoon got out of the luxury car and headed to the meeting place, the room, under the protection of her subordinates.

-Knock knock.

When Hye-yoon opened the door with both hands, she saw Seol-hee, who had arrived first and was waiting.

The two women had a staring contest for a moment.

“You guys are waiting outside.”

Hye-yoon gave that order to her subordinates, slammed the door shut, and sat down across from Seol-hee.

The table was already filled with more than thirty Korean side dishes.

“You’ve chosen a pretty good place to meet. This place only accepts guests who are really high-ranking.”

Seol-hee was the first to speak, politely yet slightly provocatively.

Hyeyoon tilted her head, wiping her hands with a towel, and answered as if she would not give in.

“I’m watching over this fairy boss. Just making a reservation here-“

Hye-yoon put the towel down on the floor and made a confident expression.

Seol-hee met Hye-yoon’s eyes and was surprised again.

Yes. These are the eyes. Bin Hye-yoon’s eyes are like magic.

If you look at these eyes too closely, you will be irresistibly drawn to Bin Hye-yoon.

Hye-yoon’s eyes were radiating magical confidence and an unknown charm.

Seol-hee avoided Hye-yoon’s gaze and muttered leisurely as she placed the braised ribs on her plate with tongs.

“…….If you like Seongwon that much, wouldn’t it be better to just propose?”

“Yes?”

“There was no need to make a show of blowing up Seongwon’s studio apartment with a bomb. Why did you do that?”

“Hwarang Group Miss? I’ve never done that before?”

Hyeyoon’s voice is even more provocative.

What a sexy voice.

Seriously, this woman was born to be a mafia boss. She can seduce other women too.

Seol-hee thought so and smiled as she answered.

“We also have our own information network. The story that the small-time mafia was after Sung-won is all a lie. Isn’t that right? Didn’t they stage a scene to drag Sung-won to Hye-yoon’s house?”

“What a rich imagination. Having too much imagination is hard.”

Hye-yoon answered like that, picked up the spinach that was lying on the other side with her chopsticks, and started crunching it.

Hyeyoon deliberately made an exaggerated chewing sound.

I wanted to embarrass Seol-hee by deliberately being rude… but Seol-hee wasn’t embarrassed to that extent.

Hyeyoon wiped her mouth with a napkin, put down her chopsticks and spoke.

“If you do that, you’ll die. You.”

“Ha- Me? That’s what you came to me to say?”

“Once I decide to kill someone, I will. But these days, the girl from Hwarang Group is acting too boldly… Honestly, I want to kill her about ten percent of the time. But there are about ninety percent realistic reasons to keep her alive, so don’t worry too much.”

Ten percent, ninety percent… It’s a clever threat.

Seol-hee quickly smiled and answered, thinking that she shouldn’t be pushed by Hye-yoon.

“I’ll put everything aside and be honest. At first, I wanted to somehow destroy Hye-yoon. That’s why I approached Seong-won.”

“Hmm- But?”

“Give up. I’m going to give up. No matter how I look at it, Hye-yoon is not someone I can deal with. That’s what I wanted to say when I asked to meet her.”

Hyeyoon took a sip of the shikhye in her cup, tilted her head, and thought.

What? Are you serious?

I can’t tell just by looking at your expression.

Hye-yoon’s specialty was exploring other people’s true feelings by observing their facial expressions, eyes, and reactions.

But that method just didn’t work on Yoo Seol-hee.

Seongwon is right. She is a woman with many hidden agendas.

I can’t quite figure out what he’s thinking.

This type is difficult to deal with.

“You were trying to kill me… but you gave up?”

When Hye-yoon asked, Seol-hee nodded innocently.

“Yes. That’s right. How could I possibly handle the world’s Bin Hye-yoon? I gave up. I’m quick to give up and quick to compromise.”

“Then……?”

“I want to get along well with Hye-yoon from now on. We’re the same age, right? Right?”

What the heck?

Hyeyoon looked at Seolhee with eyes that seemed to shine with a unique magical power and asked back.

“Do you want to be my friend?”

“Yes. I think that’s not lacking at all?”

Hyeyoon snorted and drank her shikhye again before answering.

“The mafia doesn’t have friends. Nonsense.”

“Aren’t you a friend of Seongwon? Hyeyoon likes Seongwon a lot, right? Why can’t I?”

“Seongwon is a special case. I’ve never made any friends other than Seongwon.”

Seol-hee smiled a little melancholy, put down her small glass, and poured herself some ginseng wine.

Seol-hee, who had taken a sip of her drink in one go, spoke elegantly.

“Let me join your world too. It seems fun.”

“Our world……. Are you talking about the mafia world? The Hwarang Group girl?”

“No. It’s between you and Sungwon. Hye-yoon and Sungwon… The more I watch them, the more interesting they become. They’re like the main characters in a novel. Starting from their childhood story… It’s really dramatic.”

For a moment, fire flared up in Hye-yoon’s eyes, but she quickly tried to calm herself down.

You know my weakness and you’re coming in to stab me. This girl with a silver spoon in her mouth…

Hye-yoon asked, tilting her head to the opposite side.

“Then let me ask you something. What do you think of Seongwon?”

“As a friend? As a man?”

“As a man.”

Seol-hee made a mocking expression and answered as if it was funny.

“I am the youngest daughter of Hwarang Group Chairman Yoo Seon-ho. I am the daughter of a wealthy family. Do you think I would like such a petty man? Do you know who all the men who have hit on me so far?”

Hyeyoon opened her mouth with a clumsy smile as she looked at Seolhee like that.

“Lies.”

“Yes?”

For a moment, Seol-hee was slightly embarrassed.

Then Hye-yoon burst out laughing. Then she covered her mouth and giggled without making a sound.

That laughter made Seol-hee feel embarrassed for no reason. Later, she became slightly angry.

Why are you laughing like that? Are you making fun of me?

Seol-hee’s face turned bright red as she couldn’t hold back her anger.

Hyeyoon, who had been holding her stomach and laughing for a while, suddenly stopped laughing and said after wiping her mouth with a wet tissue.

“I’m Bin Hye-yoon. I’m the same age as you and I became the boss of Black Emily.”

“……”

Hyeyoon leaned her head in and whispered in Seolhee’s ear, barely audible.

“You little brat. Don’t try to climb over my head.”

Hye-yoon, who had whispered like that, immediately stood up from her seat. Then, without even saying hello, she opened the door and tried to leave.

“Hye-yoon!”

Seol-hee called Hye-yoon.

When Hye-yoon looked back, Seol-hee smiled and opened her mouth.

“Everything I said was true. I really like you too.”

Hyeyoon frowned slightly.

You too?

***

That evening.

I think Hyeyoon will come home late today because she has a lot of work to do.

I was sitting on the sofa blankly watching the huge wall-mounted TV, then suddenly got up from my seat.

No. You can’t just lie here like this.

After moving into Hye-yoon’s house, I became lazier.

This is what happened because I lived without worrying about money or housing.

Didn’t you live more diligently in the past than now?

I quickly took out my laptop and prepared to search through job search sites.

Right then.

-Beep be …

My phone rang.

Ah…. shit. I was trying to act cool again and then I got a call like this.

I scratched the back of my head and checked my phone screen.

Um…? What’s this number?

I picked up the phone cautiously.

“Yes. Who are you?”

“My name is Alex, the boss’s secretary.”

Hyeyoon’s secretary?

Ah. That tall, handsome, mixed-race guy?

“Ah? Yes. I know. What’s the matter-”

Then the man named Alex answered in a serious voice.

“I am now in front of the boss’s house. I would like to speak with Mr. Seongwon about something important. Would you mind coming out?”

A voice that was subtly threatening.

Why would the secretary want to meet me? Hmm……