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Chapter 16
Meanwhile, in Cheongsong, where the morning begins with the crowing of roosters.
“-Ah, ah!”
The speakers in the center of the village crackled.
“-At Hanil Oriental Clinic right now, bachelors from Seoul are getting their flu shots. Residents who haven’t gotten their flu vaccines this year, please come quickly!”
And at Hanil Oriental Clinic:
Siwon, dressed in a white doctor’s coat, was holding a peanut caramel and playfully scolding someone.
“Grandma Younghwa, you really shouldn’t eat sweets first thing in the morning! You have diabetes, don’t you?”
“Whether I eat and die or don’t eat and die, it’s all the same, isn’t it?”
“Where are you going when you’re still high-risk?”
Siwon carefully placed a bandage on the spot where she had received her injection. Then, he glanced at the metabolic syndrome test paper he had just reviewed. She already had diabetes, and her fasting blood sugar level was 131—far too high.
“Grandma, is the caramel really that tasty?”
The grandmother smiled like a little girl and offered one to him.
“Would you like one too?”
“I’ll eat it. Actually, I’ll eat the whole thing.”
Siwon grabbed the bag of caramels and stuffed it into his pocket.
“Siwon, finish your breakfast first.”
Only after his colleague’s reminder did Siwon get up. Underneath the white coat was a black short-sleeved T-shirt with ‘885’ printed on the back in white letters.
It symbolized both “May we live long and healthy lives” and “The five energetic doctors.”
Although only three of the five could attend due to training today, these three young doctors were precious guests in a rural village with limited medical access.
A festive breakfast had been prepared for them, even though it was early morning.
“Thank you for the meal.”
After a hearty breakfast, Siwon stopped by the Barun Supermarket in the village center to buy something. Then he looked around for the grandmother he had met earlier.
“Grandma, a gift.”
The black bag Siwon handed over was filled with roasted peanuts.
The grandmother was delighted and laughed heartily, giving him a playful nudge.
“Doctor, do you have a wife?”
“Not yet.”
“No boyfriend either?”
“No. Why? Are you trying to set me up with your pretty granddaughter?”
Chewing a peanut, the grandmother pulled out a stiff piece of paper from her purse.
“She’s my granddaughter, working at a major company in Seoul. Extremely pretty.”
She handed him a business card:
‘Quality Control Team, Assistant Manager Jeong Dahee.’
Same company as Somang. Siwon slipped the card into his coat pocket.
Meanwhile, in Seoul.
Somang sat in the passenger seat, typing a long apology message. Her palms were sweaty, feeling as if she were disobeying her young master’s orders.
[Minchan, I’m sorry. I don’t think I can go to work together today. And about what we talked about yesterday—I have to decline.]
Buzz.
[Yes, Assistant Manager. I’ll see you at the office.]
Minchan’s polite reply made her feel even more guilty.
She had become a direct senior now—what was she even doing? Somang buried her head against the car window.
Ever since Yuhan-kyul returned, there hadn’t been a single peaceful day.
“Somang, did you forget our promise? Or are you pretending not to know?”
“……”
Somang pressed her lips tightly together in defiance.
“So you’re not going to marry?”
Why did she feel so angry?
“Marriage requires careful thought.”
Is he really okay with it? To marry me without love? Somang turned her head toward him in the driver’s seat.
The crease between Kyul’s brows, as he tapped the steering wheel, momentarily deepened.
“So you’re going to see other men before deciding?”
But Kyul misunderstood her words as rejection. The chance meeting between Somang and Minchan at the convenience store last night had looked like a date to him.
“Sigh, Baek Somang.”
A sigh of hurt escaped him. She felt a slight thrill seeing Kyul feel betrayed even though he had never reassured her.
Impulsively, her reason lost.
“Yes. I’m going to meet them.”
“So it’s Park Minchan?”
The car stopped at a red light, and his dark eyes fixed firmly on Somang.
She refused to lose to that gaze.
“Yes. I’ve always liked only you, Oppa, and it feels unfair. I need to see other men too.”
Somang opened her eyes wide, standing her ground against Kyul. Their gaze locked in tension.
“Date me, marry me.”
Clatter.
Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest.
“Oppa, you’re the exception. I only get excited when I see you—it could be a habit. That’s why I need to meet other men.”
“You—”
Somang cut him off immediately. There was no turning back now.
“So don’t interfere. This is my love life.”
By then, they were in the underground parking lot, and Somang got out of the car as if fleeing.
Kyul, flipping through paperwork, blinked slowly.
Through the blinds, he saw the busy employees moving around. But his eyes followed only one person: Somang, Baek Somang.
The name lingered tenderly in his palms as he covered his face with his hands.
He never wanted to lose someone he loved again.
Five years ago, Kyul went to the U.S. to support his mother’s cancer treatment. During her illness, he discovered too late that Jongsu had abused him, which worsened his mother’s stress and guilt.
Eventually, she couldn’t survive the critical stage.
The loss of a loved one. Guilt toward himself. Anger at Jongsu.
It took a long time to climb out of that dark, deep swamp.
By the time he came to his senses, five years had already passed.
Rrrrr. Rrrrr.
[Chairman]
“Yes, Chairman.”
-
I heard you met your brother. Don’t push poor Ani too hard.
Kyul felt annoyed at being called “poor.” He rubbed his eyebrows as he stood.
“I wouldn’t do that, Chairman.”
Since the first time he met his biological father, he had called him Chairman.
-
Remember, your role isn’t just about company matters, but also supporting your brother.
“Yes.”
He knew that meant he had to handle things carefully, since there was no one else to do it.
But up to now, he had always earned his own keep, never fed like some others.
-
Good. That’s enough.
After the suffocating call ended, he looked at Somang through the blinds—but it only made him feel more frustrated.
She was pressed close to Minchan, whispering to him.
“Assistant Manager, is your foot okay?”
Somang wrinkled her nose at Minchan’s question.
“Do you really smell the patch from here?”
Ah, she had applied it unnecessarily. Somang scratched her head in embarrassment.
She didn’t mention the “fake relationship” at all, acting as if yesterday never happened.
“Assistant Manager, are you dating the team leader now?”
“Huh?”
“So the fake relationship… is it no longer necessary?”
Seeing Somang’s worried expression, Minchan delivered the final blow.
“No, it’s a carpool. If you come separately, it looks suspicious.”
“No, that’s not it! But what if you say that in the office!”
Somang reacted playfully, jumping with excitement.
“Let’s talk somewhere else.”
She whispered, glancing around.
“Ahem. Minchan, will you follow me with this?”
Her loud voice, so others could hear, was awkward, like a squirrel hiding stolen nuts.
Minchan, watching her antics, almost burst out laughing but clenched his fists instead.
She’s just too cute.
“Yes, Assistant Manager.”
The two left the office to a more secluded place: Meeting Room C.
They entered, and Somang, pale, looked around nervously.
“So… how does the fake relationship work?”
“You want to do it?”
“No, but… I just want to make sure I won’t face any disadvantages at work because of this.”
Like being skipped for performance reviews, or transferred to a remote department.
“Me? Doing that to you, Assistant Manager?”
“Yes. It could happen.”
She was technically his illegitimate child. For him, getting rid of one salaried worker would be no problem.
The risk seemed too high for a fake relationship, and she hesitated.
“Probably…”
“It’s best to pretend to be a couple only in front of the team leader, right?”
“Only in front of the team leader?”
That sounded appealing.
“Yes. After all, the purpose of the fake relationship was to show him.”
True. Somang nodded, but paused.
“Why are you helping me, Minchan?”
“Let’s call it comradeship in unrequited love.”
Reassured, Somang linked her finger with his.
Thus began the fake relationship—with only Yuhan Kyul as the audience.
