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Chapter 8
Wait a second.
Haerin parted her lips as if to speak but stopped, quickly glancing around. She had just come from finalizing her appearance on a variety show. If anyone saw her arguing here and word spread, it could spiral into a mess.
Only after confirming that there were no witnesses did she begin.
“Honestly, I really don’t understand. Why are you disappointed in me, Anchor?”
“You said you don’t know who I am, Yoo Haerin. Would you understand if I explained it?”
“I probably wouldn’t. Because if you’re neither an anchor nor a chaebol, then I really wouldn’t have a clue. But let’s say we did know each other.”
“……”
“Then yesterday, you shouldn’t have said what you did. Instead of being disappointed, the first thing you should’ve done was apologize.”
His indifferent face seemed to deliberate for a moment before he asked,
“Did it upset you?”
Haerin frowned.
“Wouldn’t anyone be upset if they heard something like that?”
“I didn’t think it would upset you. That’s why I didn’t feel the need to apologize.”
An outrageous statement was followed by an even more outrageous one.
“If you want, I’ll apologize.”
“But on one condition. Remember who I am.”
“…What?”
“Remember me. That’s the condition.”
“……”
“The apology comes after that.”
His well-tailored figure turned away, and a sleek black sedan slipped out of the lot, leaving Haerin frozen in place.
“Shin Ihyun. You home?”
Garam barged into Ihyun’s officetel, chattering as usual.
Ihyun sat silently on the sofa in the living room.
“There you are. Good. I was about to call. Let me check your forehead.”
As Garam’s hand reached for him, Ihyun’s face twisted in annoyance.
“Get it away.”
“Hold still. No fever… Then what is it? Don’t tell me you’ve gone insane.”
“I’m fine.”
“Ihyun, I’m saying this because I’m genuinely worried as your friend. Go get a health checkup sometime. You’ve gone crazy. You’re not in your right mind.”
“……”
Was pestering people the first thing he did when arriving anywhere? Ihyun swallowed a sigh.
“I don’t see what the problem is.”
“Exactly. Crazy people never know they’re crazy. Want me to spell it out?”
Garam plopped down cross-legged on the floor.
“You’re Shin Ihyun. Why the hell are you going on a variety show?”
“Is it insanity for an STB anchor to appear on an STB variety show, or is it insanity for someone to barge in and slander me?”
“I’ve told you a hundred times—it’s you who’s insane.”
“……”
“You’ve rejected these offers over and over. You’re not planning to go freelance, you don’t even like variety shows. What, aiming for a career in entertainment now? Why else would you do it?”
It was a fair question, but one Ihyun had no desire to explain.
“…Because I felt like it.”
“Cut the crap. You’re not the type to do things just because you feel like it. There’s definitely another reason. Wait, who else is on that show again…”
“Just leave.”
Ignoring him, Garam pulled out his phone and searched <Self-Made Cooking King>.
“Let’s see… Lots of big names here. Wow, Nam Joo-ho’s even on this—oh? Yoo Haerin?”
“……”
“No way. Don’t tell me. It’s true, isn’t it?”
“……”
“Unbelievable. Shin Ihyun’s really lost it. Who are you? His twin?”
Looking appalled, Garam slurped from the drink he had brought with him. Half of the Unicorn Mint Choco Rainbow Frappe—limited seasonal item from some café—was gone in a single gulp.
“You should cut down on stuff like that.”
“Don’t change the subject. I’m more worried about you than my blood sugar. And let me guess—you didn’t even tell your parents before deciding this, did you? What happens when they find out?”
“I’m thirty-one. Hardly at an age to need parental permission.”
“They’re going to hate it. Think about your father. He’s already furious you won’t learn the ropes of management.”
Of course the family’s opposition was predictable. In fact, he had already received calls about the breaking news articles. Still…
“I don’t feel like caring about what he thinks.”
“…Hmph. Well, you can’t back out now anyway. Fine, go do your best. I’ll be watching over you like the good hyung I am.”
After finishing the drink, Garam collapsed dramatically onto the floor.
“At least you’ll get to see Haerin on set. That should be nice.”
“I already did.”
“Huh?”
He shot upright from where he had been lying down.
“You already did? When?”
“Yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Today, too.”
“Today too? Wow.”
The barrage of questions came fast.
“Then you talked to her, right? She must’ve been happy to see you? I haven’t seen her in forever—pass her my regards sometime. Our child actor group chat has been dead for years.”
“Mhm.”
Ihyun responded vaguely, neither confirming nor denying.
Garam narrowed his eyes.
“What’s with that reaction?”
“I met her, but… she doesn’t remember me.”
“She doesn’t? You didn’t tell her you’d met before?”
“I thought she recognized me.”
“Brilliant.”
“On top of that, she seemed angry at something I said.”
“You actually made her mad? In that short a time?”
“……”
No excuse to give.
Ihyun rose, heading into the dressing room. If he couldn’t answer, he might as well get changed for the evening’s plans.
“How do you even manage to piss someone off at first sight? I’m dying to know.”
Ignoring him, Ihyun emerged in a clean suit and headed for the door.
“Stay as long as you want.”
“Already leaving?”
“My birthday’s the day after tomorrow.”
“Oh, right. No wonder you’re going out. Go ahead—don’t worry about the house.”
Garam sprawled back down.
As Ihyun stepped out of the officetel, he suppressed a sigh.
“……”
Just thinking of the upcoming evening left him weighed down with fatigue.
“Having trouble deciding, sir? Is it a gift for your girlfriend?”
“A friend.”
“A friend around thirty? In that case, this line is very popular. It’s classic, easy to wear daily. Or would she prefer something flashier?”
“…I’m not sure about her tastes.”
“What’s her usual style? In clothes, for example.”
“She often wears dresses. Simple ones. Plain, without patterns.”
“Then going bold with jewelry could balance her look nicely. What about what she usually wears—earrings, necklaces?”
Ihyun hesitated.
I’ve never really paid that close attention.
At best, their encounters amounted to sharing the same table. Thinking harder didn’t help.
Sensing his uncertainty, the staff continued smoothly,
“These earrings pair well with the necklace. Clean, elegant, and definitely not a design that ever goes to sponsors.”
Ihyun nodded without emotion.
“Give me that.”
“She’ll love it. I’ll wrap it beautifully.”
Without a glance at the shopping bag, he made his way to a private restaurant.
Once he had ordered, there was a moment to breathe.
Closing his eyes,
“……”
His exhausted mind begged for rest, but the image of an angry face kept intruding.
Oppa.
Right on cue, his dinner companion entered the room.
“A birthday really is special, huh? I even get to have dinner with you.”
Yuri placed her mini-bag on the empty chair and sat across from him.
“It’s been so long. Can I give you a hug?”
“…Sit. We should eat.”
“I was joking. Don’t be so stiff.”
The unnecessarily formal dinner began.
For a while, only the clink of utensils filled the silence. Then Yuri spoke.
“I saw the article on my way here. You’re doing a variety show? Isn’t that exhausting?”
“It’s the weekend. Why would it be exhausting?”
“Hm.”
Her lips pursed into a pout.
“If you get busier, we’ll never see each other. Even now, I have to reach out first or we don’t meet at all.”
“I think I’m fulfilling my duty well enough.”
Yuri set down her fork and leaned her chin on her hand.
“You really think once a month counts as enough?”
“At least meeting like this keeps the family from complaining.”
“……”
“So I’d say I’m doing my part. It’s not like we have to meet.”
“That’s disappointing.”
Her voice softened, laced with hurt.
“So that’s all I mean to you.”
Suppressing a sigh, Ihyun reached for the shopping bag beside him and placed it on the table.
“Happy birthday.”
“What’s this? Am I supposed to just take it and stay quiet? Did you actually pick it yourself?”
“Yeah.”
Yuri pulled out the necklace and fastened it around her neck with practiced ease.
“Does it look good on me?”
He nodded.
While she snapped a photo of her gift, his eyes drifted to the lifeless night view outside.
He had shown up, congratulated her, and fulfilled his duty.
It was enough. More than enough. He wanted out of this suffocating evening.
“But Oppa… no other present?”
“What do you want?”
“You want me to say it myself? That’s humiliating.”
Her fingers tapped lightly on the table.
“A proposal.”
“……”
The silence that fell was sharper than broken glass.
Yuri studied him, then burst into laughter.
“I’m kidding. Did you think I was serious? Relax already.”
She lifted her wine glass.
When it clinked against his, the sound rang through the room.
“But still, it’s not entirely a joke.”
“……”
“Our families… they’re planning to move forward with our marriage soon.”
