episode_0054

“Yu, where’s Yu Yeong?”

Mi Ju’s mouth hung open as she pointed at Yeong.

Contrary to her bold entrance, Yeong was simply standing there with her mouth agape under the pressure of Mi Ju’s presence.

“That’s right. Nice to see you.”

Lowering her sunglasses slightly, Yeong flashed a business-like smile at Mi Ju and casually approached with Director Park, her secretary.

“There seems to be a guest. A friend?”

“Yes.”

“Seems like you two get along well? Coming to visit so early in the morning.”

“Yeong didn’t tell me anything. But….”

I pointed to the article Mi Ju had brought.

“What is this? Why is there a scandalous rumor like this spreading?”

-Shocking Scandal! Famous actress A’s secret meeting. Who is the mysterious man?

-Dream Daily, Reporter Hae Su Lee.

My face and Yeong’s were pixelated in the article.

But, to be honest, it was a pretty half-hearted pixelation.

Anyone who knew us would easily recognize us.

It was a pointless pixelation, so Mi Ju must have hurriedly come to our house.

Yeong had made an effort to cover her face properly, though.

Me, as Yeong’s secret meeting partner?

Nonsense.

My voice naturally came out rough.

“It’s not from that side.”

“Of course. There’s nothing to gain from this kind of article. Everyone knows how damaging scandals can be for actresses, right? Of course, Reporter Hae Su Lee’s photography skills were excellent, but still.”

If it weren’t for the slight smile in her eyes, it would have been a lie.

Sigh.

“Let’s go inside and talk. It’s not something to discuss outside.”

“Okay.”

“Mi Ju, are you coming in too?”

“Yes.”

Mi Ju’s voice lacked strength.

She seemed deflated.

I seated everyone in the living room.

Yeong and Mi Ju sat facing each other at the small table in the living room.

“Director, aren’t you going to sit?”

“I’m more comfortable standing.”

I brought drinks for the three of them.

“There are a lot of exercise equipment in the living room.”

Yeong, who had been looking around the living room, asked.

“Yes. I have to exercise every day.”

“Hmm….”

The corner of Yeong’s eyebrow twitched as she looked around the living room.

She looked more and more sharp.

Her sharp gaze was saying something.

She definitely recognized it.

At that moment, Yeong’s train of thought was interrupted by me.

“Where have you seen it before?”

“Yes, the arrangement of this exercise equipment is similar to a gym….”

“I intentionally arranged it to be similar to a gym.”

“Similar?”

“Yes, I wanted to stimulate the desire to exercise.”

“I see.”

I quickly made an excuse.

It seemed to work, as Yeong nodded her head.

This must have been a weak effect of hypnosis.

To change the subject, I quickly spoke up.

“Shall we get back to the main topic now? Why did you come here?”

“Oh, right. I didn’t come here because of that.”

After a moment of silence, Yeong spoke up.

“I’m sorry.”

Huh?

Didn’t Yeong just say sorry?

“Did I mishear you? It sounded like you said sorry.”

“Yes. I’m sorry.”

“Um, well….”

A completely unexpected response came back.

“This is different from what I expected.”

“I thought you were here to blame me?”

“That’s not the case.”

From the way Yeong felt to me, I thought she would be annoyed and angry with me.

“How could a low-quality newspaper, desperate to increase subscribers, publish such a scandal? There’s nothing wrong with Jaeho. If we really have to point fingers, it would be my fault for kicking everyone out of the cafe.”

Huh?

She seems to know her mistake well.

She appears to be more sensible than I thought.

“Just now, it seemed like you were thinking something very rude.”

“No, not at all. Well, surprising. Are you here to apologize?”

“Yes. I came to tell Jaeho that he doesn’t need to worry about this issue.”

“…”

“From the agency’s perspective, we will publish a rebuttal article. We will truthfully state that it was a casting process for a photoshoot and that the person involved had no connection at all. And the legal team of the Jeil Group will handle it. It doesn’t matter for me as a celebrity, but Jaeho is just a regular person, right?”

The way Yeongeun looks at me is sharp.

“When a regular person is exposed in the media like this, it becomes very difficult. You will receive compensation for that.”

“Is that so?”

“If it doesn’t work out, I could pressure them with advertisements… but I won’t go that far.”

Everything she says sounds like a story from a different world.

I roughly understand.

Yeongeun plans to use her power to press the newspaper.

“Is everything settled now?”

“It will be. But…”

Yeongeun hesitated for a moment and licked her lips.

“It will be quite troublesome to go to school.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think? Everyone at school will know, right? They will know who the person involved in the scandal is.”

“Oh.”

“Jaeho’s friend came looking for you like this. How long do you think they were there at the scene?”

“Isn’t it Yeongeun’s fault?”

“That’s why I apologized.”

People at school will recognize me and bother me.

Actually.

Ring ring!

Ring!

Ring ring ring!

My phone was ringing like crazy.

Students I exchanged contact information with for group projects and anyone who had ever seen me at school were sending messages like crazy.

I didn’t even need to look at them to know what they were about.

They must be asking if it’s really me in the newspaper.

“So, what are you going to do?”

Director Park will give me a ride until the rumors die down.”

“…”

“We need to prevent people from approaching you as much as possible.”

“Won’t you ride in that car, Yeongeun?”

“I won’t be able to go to school for a while, so I can’t ride. Why? Do you want me to ride?”

She tilted her head towards me as if tempting me.

At that moment, I felt a sharp gaze from Miju.

She glared at me and Yeongeun as if she wanted to kill us.

“It’s okay.”

“Okay. The scandal talk seems to be over… Oh.”

Yeongeun clapped her hands as if she remembered something.

“Reporters will come for a while. I will try to block them as much as possible… but I won’t be able to completely protect you. I can’t help it.”

“It’s okay.”

“This could be an opportunity for Jaeho.”

An opportunity.

“Can I announce your name value before taking Yeongeun’s photoshoot? Is that okay?”

“You know well. Even if not, I will make sure it benefits you in the future. That’s my promise. It’s my way of apologizing to Jaeho for the damage caused by this incident.”

“You’re practical.”

“Of course.”

I thought she was just a spoiled rich girl, but she showed me this side as well.

It was unexpected.

‘She seems to care only about her ego and pride. Is she really from a chaebol family?’

I now have another reason not to let my guard down in front of her.

“Alright. Since you’re going this far, I will let go of my anger too.”

“Were you angry?”

“Of course. I just didn’t show it.”

“Good. Is this enough for you to be considered a woman with some backbone?”

Was she keeping in mind that I don’t have backbone?

“I have a little bit now.”

We smiled at each other.

That’s when it happened.

“Excuse me!”

Mi-ju, who had been listening to our conversation quietly, interjected.

“P-please, tell me the truth!”

Her voice was trembling.

The glass she was holding was shaking as much as her voice.

It was because of the force that Yeong-eun possessed.

“Really, nothing happened between the two of you, right?”

“Do you wish there was?”

Mi-ju shook her head vigorously.

“There was nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

Yeong-eun flashed a dazzling smile at Mi-ju.

Why did that smile seem to contain a hint of sarcasm?

“Well, the conversation seems to be over. The drinks were good.”

“It was nothing special.”

“Oh, and….”

As Yeong-eun was about to leave, she turned to me.

“Did you check the picture I sent you last night? I worked hard to take it cleanly. It was a bit embarrassing.”

And then she left.

No.

What if Mi-ju asks about the food pictures I received yesterday?

I sweated profusely trying to explain the food pictures Yeong-eun sent me to Mi-ju.

***

“It really looks like a gym….”

Yeong-eun, on her way back for her schedule, thought as she looked at Jae-ho’s house.

The path to enter, the view inside the house, everything felt familiar.

It was too similar to say it was just similar.

It was the place she had seen.

“It definitely looks alike.”

Similar? No, it was exactly the same as if it had been copied and pasted.

Wait.

“Where was it exactly the same?”

She remembered just a moment ago.

But now, she couldn’t remember when or where she had seen it.

It felt like wandering in a hazy fog, making her chest feel tight.

Should she go back and ask Jae-ho again?

But she shook her head.

There was no time until the next schedule.

It was a tight schedule even if she ran right now.

She couldn’t afford to break the appointment time.

“Phew, it’s fine. I’ll remember it someday.”

She didn’t want to think about it and give herself a headache.

Suddenly, she remembered Mi-ju who was next to Jae-ho.

“Is that girl his girlfriend?”

She seemed to have feelings for Jae-ho.

The way she looked at him, asking what was going on between them, with those innocent eyes.

She looked so pure.

It was quite pitiful.

Supporting Mi-ju’s unrequited love, she closed her eyes.

***

“She was definitely pretty.”

On her way back home, Mi-ju let out a deep sigh.

The actress had a remarkable appearance.

She was so attractive that even another woman would fall for her.

Wasn’t she one of the most famous actresses in Korea?

“It seems like she has feelings for him.”

That was her intuition.

She was sure that the woman was interested in Jae-ho.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have shown such a look.

“Why does he have so many women around him….”

She recalled the night she spent with Jae-ho.

“What is my relationship with Jae-ho….”

On the day she invited him to her house after chasing away Juyeonseok who was stalking her, she used the excuse of watching a movie together.

They had a warm and trembling night, and she still vividly remembered that experience.

Thinking back to that day, her face turned red.

“Did Jae-ho feel the same way?”

Jae-ho was her first experience.

The problem was.

Even though they had mixed their bodies and spent the night together.

They didn’t say they were dating, or that they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

Lost in the lingering memories of that night.

She was too preoccupied to think straight.

“Why did I act so foolishly.”

She should have asked.

She should have said something.

She should have confessed.

“Why didn’t Jae-ho say anything?”

Mi-ju didn’t know.

Jaeho was the epitome of a timid man, lacking in confidence.

Until he obtained hypnosis, he couldn’t easily talk to women.

Now, he finally gained the confidence to see himself as a man.

The two of them were too embarrassed and flustered to convey their true feelings to each other, leading to a superficial interaction.

“Was it just a physical relationship that we wanted? They call that a sex friend, right…?”

Even in such a relationship, Miju wanted to stay with Jaeho.

She wanted to get a little closer, but was afraid of being rejected and getting hurt.

For the first time, the girl who easily approached others was hesitating.

“What if he says no?”

She was pondering.

***

“Phew.”

After comforting Miju and reluctantly sending her away, I let out a deep sigh.

I was exhausted.

I put a lot of effort into comforting Miju, who was feeling down because of Yeongeun’s words.

I thought she understood… but I don’t know.

I still don’t understand women’s hearts well.

Ugh!

Just after I sighed, the phone, which had been quiet for a while, rang again.

Who could it be this time?

– Father.

It was a call from my father.

“….”

It was my father, who hadn’t contacted me once since I entered college.

I thought he had cut ties with me.

Why now?

I didn’t hesitate.

I answered the phone.

“Hello?”

– I saw the news.

My father’s distinct, deep voice resonated through the phone.