BUP 22

chapter 22

Taeheon groaned, pressing his hand to his forehead.

Earlier, it had been a musical, and now she was planning to go out wrapped in some piece of cloth.

He didn’t just dislike it—he wanted to keep her glued to his side so she couldn’t go anywhere.

Yet he had no grounds to oppose it. Dohee’s words from before also lingered in his mind.

“Isn’t that something you shouldn’t do to a woman? A marriage with a big social gap never ends well. She won’t adjust, will only get stressed, and will eventually give up.”

He had never thought about social status. From the start, Han Eun-se was already more than he deserved.

But Dohee wasn’t entirely wrong. Their worlds were too different.

So he couldn’t help but think about life after marriage: various events, countless anniversaries, charity functions.

Even Taeheon alone had several mandatory engagements every month, regardless of his personal wishes.

Taeheon’s mother, Min-young, had also played the role of the hostess impeccably at official gatherings, even if she avoided private ones.

It wasn’t something they could just avoid. Maybe experiencing it firsthand wouldn’t be so bad.

Taeheon reluctantly nodded, and Baek Dohee’s face lit up with a wide smile.

“Let’s see you get embarrassed today.”

Dohee had clearly realized something after seeing Taeheon today:

The one who strongly desired this marriage was unmistakably Yoon Taeheon.

No matter what tactics she tried, Taeheon wouldn’t waver.

And Dohee had no intention of backing down either. All that needed to happen was for the “bug” to be removed. Once it realized its place, it would fall away on its own.

Eun-se looked up at Taeheon with a bright smile. Even his handsome, downward-gazing face carried a charming grin.

Watching, Dohee felt her insides twist with bitterness.

She had nothing, yet this insignificant thing smiled as if it had always belonged there.

Not only did it shamelessly take Taeheon’s love, but it also monopolized Min-young’s affection.

With Taeheon’s face and the necklace both visible from the front, Dohee felt as if she’d been robbed in a single morning.

“Maybe this is for the best.”

Dohee decided to change her mind.

If Han Eun-se had been from a respectable family like others, with high standards and nothing lacking, it would’ve taken more effort and energy to bring her down.

Handling something as insignificant as Eun-se was as simple for Dohee as squashing a bug.

She forced a bright smile.

“It was nice meeting you today. Next time, make sure to wear that scarf!”

As Dohee turned away, the smile vanished instantly. Her face twisted fearfully, and her heels clicked sharply on the floor.

Watching Dohee walk away, Eun-se fiddled with the shopping bag in her hand, a gentle smile on her lips.

“I didn’t expect to receive a gift too. I should prepare something next time.”

After a moment of thought, she turned to Taeheon.

“Baek Dohee—or, Dohee unnie—does she often wear such bright-colored lipstick?”

Dohee had worn a vivid red-coral lipstick today, perfectly matching her bold image.

“I don’t know.”

“Or would it be better to give her coffee beans… She drinks coffee, right?”

“I don’t know.”

Eun-se frowned and looked up at Taeheon.

“You call her a friend, but you don’t even know that?”

“A friend?”

Taeheon shrugged with an indifferent expression.

“Well, I’ve never thought about it that way.”

“That’s too harsh. She’d be upset if she knew. She seems to think of you as a really close friend.”

Taeheon, showing no interest, changed the subject.

“A gathering… Isn’t that too much?”

“It’s not too much. I genuinely want to go.”

“Even if it were a musical, you just met Baek Dohee today. Is there any reason to want to go that badly?”

Of course, it was for Taeheon. But if she told him that reason, he would never allow her to go.

“Everyone is nice. Mother, grandmother… and Baek Dohee too.”

Eun-se fiddled with the pendant around her neck.

“Actually, I had some prejudice before.”

“Prejudice?”

“Yes. They’re all from wealthy families. I thought someone like me wouldn’t even be considered. But in reality, it was the opposite. Seeing them treat me without prejudice made me embarrassed.”

“You’ve watched too many dramas.”

“Maybe so,” Eun-se said with an awkward laugh.

“And I’ve hardly had a chance to hang out before. After school, I was always busy with part-time jobs. From now on, I want to make a few friends gradually.”

“I don’t have many friends either, but I’ve never felt lacking.”

Indeed, Taeheon didn’t have close friends. Classmates like Baek Dohee were merely school acquaintances to him, and he didn’t feel the need to get closer to anyone socially.

Eun-se gave a playful side glance.

“You’re different from me, representative.”

“Representative?”

His dark eyes fixed on hers.

“Oh.”

Eun-se blushed deeply.

She had been thinking about changing the way she addressed him. After all, she’d already received a proposal. She couldn’t keep calling him “representative” forever.

Then she happened to run into Dohee. She didn’t want to use “representative” in front of Taeheon’s friend.

It wasn’t a fitting title for someone about to be married. So she endured the awkwardness and used it—just this once.

After Dohee left, the old title naturally returned. Eun-se hesitated, embarrassed.

“Well… you introduced me as your fiancée, so calling you ‘representative’ feels odd…”

Taeheon merely narrowed his eyes slightly, offering no response.

“Oh, okay. Since I’ve already used it, I’ll call you… Taeheon from now on.”

“Who?”

“Taeheon…”

“That sounds nice.”

Taeheon relaxed his eyes, lowered his arm, and took Eun-se’s hand.

“Shall we go back?”

His fingers intertwined with hers deliberately. Eun-se, her neck flushed, nodded.

By then, all thoughts of Dohee and the gathering had vanished from their minds.

A few days later, Eun-se met Min-young and Deok-sim. It was the day they had planned to watch a musical together.

Before the performance, Eun-se presented the gifts she had prepared at a café. Min-young and Deok-sim were so touched they almost teared up.

“Why did you bring something like this? How much is your salary?”

“You probably don’t even have enough for yourself. We don’t need you worrying about us.”

They genuinely cared about her, not dismissing her income.

However, the conversation between Min-young and Deok-sim struck Eun-se as peculiar.

“I think this color would suit your mother better.”

“Alright, you handle it. I’ve only seen young people do this, I don’t know anything.”

“I’m not sure either. I’ll take it to the store and ask them. I’ll get a feel when I see it.”

Eun-se tilted her head, puzzled.

“Isn’t a scarf just tied around the neck?”

The scarf she had gifted was narrow and long, like a tie. Tying it should have been straightforward.

“I think it would look pretty just draped around the neck. Is there a special way to tie this scarf?”

Min-young smiled gently.

“This isn’t for the neck—it’s a scarf to decorate a bag handle.”

“A bag handle?”

“Yes. Look here. If there’s just a logo, it’s a normal scarf. But with a bag pattern like this, it’s a special edition.”

Eun-se examined the scarf’s end. Sure enough, the bag pattern was printed near the brand name.

Min-young explained that the scarf she had gifted was meant only for a specific bag from that brand.

Eun-se’s expression darkened.

Not only was it a limited edition scarf only VIPs of the brand could buy, but it also cost over a million won just to decorate a bag.

By Eun-se’s standards, this was incomprehensible—but what bothered her more was:

“Our gathering’s dress code is this Twilly scarf. Make sure to wear it.”

Even during the performance, Dohee’s words kept gnawing at her mind, making it hard to concentrate.

That evening, back home, Eun-se checked the scarf Dohee had given her.

“…!”

On the end of the scarf, a vivid bag pattern was printed.