episode_0029

While waiting for the pizza, I sat next to the man and engaged in various conversations.

Seeing the man with a face full of worry made me feel a little sorry.

Despite his concerns, the man didn’t ask me a single word about where I had been or what had happened.

Since those were things that were difficult to talk about even for the man, I felt relieved in a way that he didn’t ask, thinking that maybe he was considerate of me.

“I should look into it a bit…”

The man muttered to himself in a very low voice.

It seemed like he thought I couldn’t hear him saying it was dangerous, but on days when misunderstandings could happen, I felt cold sweat on my spine at the thought of a difficult situation arising.

“Oh, by the way! What did you go to your hometown for today, sir?”

To divert from this crisis, I brought up a different topic, and suddenly saw the man’s face brighten.

“It was nothing special, just had something worrying, but it was resolved smoothly without any issues.”

I don’t know what it was, but seeing the man smile so brightly like that made me feel good for some reason.

…Of course, it wasn’t because the man was patting my head. It was just that something good happened to the person next to me, which made me feel good too.

But why is he patting my head just because he’s feeling good?

Wait a minute, does the back of the man’s hand look a little red?

“Why are you suddenly like this? Did I get something on my hand?”

As I looked at the man’s left hand resting on his knee, he noticed my gaze and asked me.

“Why is your hand so red? It looks a bit swollen… Did you get into a fight with someone?”

“…It’s nothing.”

This time, the man wrinkled his face as I showed concern. Yeah, something definitely happened.

“Um, okay, I’ll leave it at that.”

Honestly, I was curious and worried, but if I asked about this, the man might also ask me about something I wanted to keep hidden, so I decided to keep quiet about this issue.

“But why are you sitting next to me instead of across from me? Isn’t it uncomfortable?”

“It’s not uncomfortable at all~ Uh… Do you not like it when I’m like this? Then I’ll move! I’m sorry, sir.”

“What’s there to be sorry about? It doesn’t bother me, so just do what’s comfortable for you.”

Thinking that he might be uncomfortable, I tried to get up, but the man turned his head slightly and grabbed my hand. Okay, if the man is okay with it, I’ll just stay as I am.

“…Isn’t this closer than before?”

“Just stay comfortable~ I like it this way!”

As I sat closer to the man, his voice trembled. It seemed like he might be uncomfortable, but since he didn’t show any signs of refusal, I decided to stay like this.

Above all, this really made my heart feel at ease…

But why does this man’s earlobes seem to be turning red for some reason?

“Sir, you seem strange since earlier~ Are you hurt or something–”

*Ding-dong~♪*

Just as I was pressing the man for answers while he kept avoiding my gaze, the pizza we ordered arrived, and the intercom rang. Immediately, the man got up and distanced himself from me.

Honestly, what a strange person, our man…

*

Even though I must have been very hungry since lunch, half of a large pizza was my limit.

If it had been me from before, I would have been able to handle this easily… Now that I’ve realized it, I felt a significant decrease in the amount of food I eat compared to when I was a man.

“I find it strange that I didn’t notice until now…”

As I stood in front of the mirror, reluctantly carried by the man who insisted on taking me to wash up after the meal, I couldn’t take a single step and entered the bathroom. With a waterproof cover forcibly wrapped around my foot to prevent water from entering the wound, I stood in front of the mirror and began to slowly undress.

Even though it should have been a routine task, I couldn’t shake off the unfamiliar emotions when I saw my reflection in the mirror, making even the man’s kindness feel faintly touching.

“Why is this happening… Huh, why won’t this come off?”

Although I knew in my head that I should take it off, my body seemed to forget, as I awkwardly tried to remove my bra with clumsy movements as if touching it for the first time.

Even though it was my usual self that I saw every day, why does everything feel so strange? Even facing myself in underwear felt odd.

Until this morning, there was no problem with undressing and dressing, so why is this happening…

” …!!”

After a while, I finally managed to take off my underwear and looked at the naked woman in the mirror. As the woman scanned my chest and lower body, I felt a burning sensation from my neck to my ears.

The woman, too, blushing and trembling, slowly began to move away.

— Thud

As the woman in the mirror disappeared from view, I felt a slight pain in my buttocks and leaned against the cold bathroom wall.

“Ah… Ahh…!!!”

With my head bowed and hands covering my face, the sight of my naked body through the spread fingers brought a wave of shame.

Why? Why does it feel like my body is not my own…

When I first realized that I had become Joo Eun-hye, I felt a slight strangeness, but I acted as if it were my own body… I didn’t feel this unfamiliar before.

Why is this happening now.

And this emptiness that feels so hollow…

“It’s gone… It disappeared…”

Something has left my body.

And that was a while ago…

I don’t know what it was, but something precious that must be with me…

It disappeared.

— Click,

“W-What’s happening, Eun-hye! I heard a scream just now–”

Suddenly, as the doorknob turned with a ringing sound, I looked up and met the startled gaze of the man who was shouting.

Only then did I notice that I was clutching my head, shedding tears, but my mind was blank, unable to remember what I said or did, and I faced the morning without any recollection.

#

As Kang Seon-woo carried Joo Eun-hye all the way to the bathroom, he was lost in thought.

Joo Eun-hye, who returned home with a pale face.

Kang Seon-woo, who noticed that something had happened and worried about it, decided not to ask her about it.

He was afraid that if she didn’t want to talk about it, she might show a more distorted face.

Looking at the closed bathroom door, Kang Seon-woo thought of Joo Eun-hye, who was not a formal wife but just a superficial one, and felt a strange emotion that he couldn’t express in words in his heart.

Even his visit to his hometown today was because of her.

The man who tried to do something terrible to Joo Eun-hye at a party not long ago.

When Kang Seon-woo heard that Kang Dan-i, the second granddaughter of the Taebaek Group chairman and his sister, had caught him, he rushed over and decided to deal with him without Joo Eun-hye knowing.

Arriving at his hometown after a long time, Kang Sunwoo found a man kneeling with his knees tied tightly with a rope.

From a young age, Kang Sunwoo knew that his sister Kang Dani wouldn’t capture a man in a peaceful manner.

He also knew that his trustworthy sister, who wanted to immediately deal with a man who had insulted her cute youngest brother’s wife, would leave the decision on how to handle the situation up to him.

The man, who tearfully pleaded after realizing that the woman he insulted was the wife of the Taebaek Group’s youngest grandson, was met with Kang Sunwoo’s unhesitating violence.

Knowing his innocent youngest brother well, Kang Dani thought she could quietly resolve the situation without bloodshed. However, witnessing Ju Eunhye’s helpless state, Kang Sunwoo was consumed by anger and without realizing his hand was already stripped of its flesh, he mercilessly punched the man.

While relieved by his sister’s change, Kang Dani, fearing that the man might end up dead due to a wrong move, physically restrained Kang Sunwoo and forcibly sent him away. However, she couldn’t help but be curious about the woman, Ju Eunhye, who had caused her brother to change so drastically.

Not knowing the truth, Kang Sunwoo trusted that his sister would take care of the rest, and felt a sense of relief that he wouldn’t have to face that man again.

However, he decided to keep this incident a secret, unsure of what would happen if he told Ju Eunhye.

Despite everything, Kang Sunwoo had no regrets for her. He had never even felt such emotions towards his girlfriend, Im Sujeong.

A year ago, Im Sujeong had suddenly come to Kang Sunwoo and asked to date him. Not knowing who she was or what kind of person she was, Kang Sunwoo, who was being pressured into marriage at the time, made the careless decision to accept her request.

Although relieved that there was no pressure in the household for a year, Kang Sunwoo and Im Sujeong were completely different people.

While mentally tortured whenever he was with Im Sujeong, Kang Sunwoo felt joy every moment since meeting Ju Eunhye.

“It’s really strange… Why did I date a 7-year-old…”

Ju Eunhye was not the same age or older, her face was not cat-like but closer to a dog-like appearance, and her body was not slim but closer to glamorous, making her quite different from Kang Sunwoo’s ideal type.

Unable to resist the words of his grandfather’s benefactor’s daughter, he reluctantly took her in, but unexpectedly accepted her as his decorative wife.

In other words, he accepted her as his fake wife.

His resolve to treat her like a younger sister had long since crumbled.

“Ah… Aaah…!!!”

At that moment, Kang Sunwoo, who was tidying up the pizza boxes on the table, began to lose his composure upon hearing her scream from the bathroom.

Something must have happened to her.

She might be in danger.

Unable to shake off these ominous thoughts, Kang Sunwoo, with a pale face, ran frantically and grabbed the bathroom doorknob.

“Ah… Sir… Sir…!!”

As he opened the bathroom door, Kang Sunwoo locked eyes with Ju Eunhye, who was crouched against the wall. His face, which had turned blue, now blushed even redder than a beetroot upon witnessing her naked body.

Finally, as tears streamed down her face, Ju Eun-hye took hesitant steps towards Kang Seon-woo, eventually throwing herself into his arms. Unconsciously, Kang Seon-woo embraced her tightly, trying to suppress the intense stimulation he felt in his lower body every time her skin touched his, as if he would lose his sanity in a different way.