Chapter 34.2

Her words stumbled out of her mouth, shame overwhelming her. The housekeeper, who had seen her embarrassment, spoke with a comforting voice and a smile.

“It’s alright. If you decide on a dish to serve CEO Min by tomorrow, we can make it together. It’s not a difficult thing, really.”

“I’m just not proud of not being able to cook at my age.”

“There’s no shame in not being able to cook at any age, ma’am. My eldest daughter is about ten years older than you, and she can’t even peel fruits yet.”

“Really?”

When she asked if she was just trying to comfort her, the housekeeper nodded vigorously.

“She can do everything else, but for some reason, she just can’t peel fruits. Last time she tried, it took her over 10 minutes to peel an apple. The top part was already turning brown, so…she just said, ‘You can wash it for the rest of your life.'”

“What did your daughter say? Wasn’t she embarrassed?”

“Not at all. She doesn’t like the skin! And she asked her husband for a discount on the apple. He did it for her. She’s very confident about it. She’s still young, so it’s okay.”

As she listened to the housekeeper’s story, the corners of her mouth lifted with joy.

So what if she can’t cook now? She can learn and improve.

Though she had only heard the story, the pride of Yeoju’s eldest daughter seemed to have spread to Hae-gang.

“Stop dawdling and eat before the soup gets cold.”

Hae-gang nodded and turned towards the table. Her steps were plump, reflecting her lifted mood.

****

“This neighborhood is very quiet.”

The serenity of the town was palpable, as expected. The conglomerates, with their deep pockets, constructed their mansions on vast plots of land with little consideration for cost. They had the luxury of choosing the most plentiful one from their collection, while the exorbitant land prices didn’t deter them in the slightest. The result was a scarcity of households, and a tranquil environment that couldn’t be disturbed.

Following Gray’s lead, Hae-gang followed the walls surrounding Woo-jin’s mansion and made her way back to the café he mentioned. With her scarf pulled up to her nose, she opened the door and was greeted by a pleasant tinkling bell and a young woman’s voice.

“Welcome.”

Hae-gang’s gaze was instantly drawn to the delicious-looking apple pie in the display case. It seemed like a good idea to purchase it and have a chat with Yeoju over coffee.

“I’ll have a large Americano, please.”

“Would you like to order any food?”

“No, just the coffee to go.”

Although she had already made up her mind to leave, she couldn’t just walk out the door. As she fished out her card to pay, she remembered Woo-jin’s words.

“Please make it very hot.”

The coffee was a smoldering inferno, too hot to even utter a word. Hae-gang decided to forego the lid and brave the scalding liquid. As she walked, she took in her surroundings, realizing she had never explored this place on foot before.

“Come to think of it, I’ve always been here by car.”

She had avoided meeting Moon Ik’s parents entirely. The frigid spring air stung her ears and nose, but it was a minor inconvenience. Just a few months ago, Hae-gang wouldn’t have minded the cold, having only seen the world from the windows of a hotel suite.

“I want to see more,” she thought to herself, and she continued walking, determined to explore.

As she was about to cross the street, a familiar car passed by. Panic set in, and Hae-gang tried to move without betraying her fear. She hastily pulled up her scarf to conceal her face even further.

“What was I thinking?” she scolded herself. “I shouldn’t have let my guard down just because I’m with Woo-jin. I was foolish to think everything would be okay if I was by his side.”

Feeling dejected, Hae-gang quickened her pace and repeated her self-criticism.

Hae-gang’s heart leaped into her throat as a strong grip seized her arm, nearly causing her to spill his steaming coffee. She wanted to wrench her arm free, but managed to steady the cup before it overflowed. Yet in her mind, everything was topsy-turvy. A warning light flashed in her head, and her stomach roiled with unease. She couldn’t look back or meet the stranger’s eyes.

“I didn’t expect it, but you really were here,” the voice said, sending shivers down Hae-gang’s spine. It was eerily similar to the voice she heard over a pool of blood not too long ago. She could still see the gruesome image in her mind, the sight of a corpse that should never have been there and the person who stood laughing over it, who should never have been laughing.

Hae-gang and the stranger shared a secret from that day when all the images burned themselves into his memory.

“How much longer?” the stranger asked. “Two years?”

The surface of the coffee shook again as Hae-gang’s hands trembled, and the warning lights in her head flashed faster and faster. She tried to hold on, to somehow steady herself, but it was no use. She even had to check her own face to see if she was betraying anything.

“It’s been a while, sister-in-law,” the stranger said with a smirk.

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