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Chapter 12
The hotel room was a mess, littered with traces of the previous night. Clothes were scattered all over the floor, along with crumpled wrappers and other remnants of carelessness.
On the large bed lay a man and a woman. Jaemin, who woke first, wrapped his arm around Yisoo’s waist as she faced away from him and whispered softly.
“Yisoo, wake up.”
“Mmm… no. I’m sleeping more.”
Her voice was muffled and drowsy. Jaemin smiled at her sleepy tone and nuzzled his face against her neck affectionately.
“Don’t you have class this morning? I’ve got one.”
It was a roundabout way of suggesting they go to campus together. Her response was blunt.
“Then go first. I’m sleeping more.”
She pried his arm off her waist and pulled the blanket up to her chin. Her head was pounding from drinking too much last night, and having Jaemin hover around made her irritation worse.
The problem was that Jaemin didn’t get the hint.
“Then let’s at least have breakfast together. You need hangover soup. You drank a lot yesterday.”
Even his sweet tone didn’t stir a reply. Instead, Yisoo curled up like a shrimp, moving farther away on the bed.
“Yisoo…”
Jaemin scooted closer and hugged her waist again.
“Ugh. You’re seriously annoying.”
Finally, Yisoo sat up, her voice brimming with annoyance.
“Didn’t I tell you to go first? Why are you being so clingy?”
“Yisoo, I just—”
“You saw how pissed off I was because of Han Seohui yesterday, and you still act like this? Are you clueless, or just pretending to be?”
She wasn’t the affectionate type, but Jaemin had never seen her this irritable. His face turned red in an instant.
“I just thought you might not be feeling well…”
“I said I’ll handle it. How many times do I have to repeat myself?”
Yisoo muttered under her breath as she glared at him. Han Seohui or Park Jaemin—both are just infuriating.
Whether she meant for him to hear it or not, her words struck Jaemin like a blow.
It would’ve been strange if he hadn’t been hurt. He silently lifted the blanket and got out of bed. Picking up his clothes one by one from the floor, he started dressing without another word.
The air grew heavy with an awkward silence. Then Yisoo reached for her bag, pulled out her wallet, and took out a 1 million won check. She handed it to him.
“Your birthday’s soon, right? Buy yourself something you need. Or use what’s left for hangover soup.”
Jaemin stayed silent, only looking at her with wounded eyes.
“I said take it.”
She waved the check impatiently. Jaemin stared at her a few seconds longer, then abruptly turned around.
“Hey, Park Jaemin! Take this with you!”
Ignoring her, he stormed out of the room.
“God, nothing ever goes the way I want.”
Yisoo threw the check in frustration. The white slip fluttered to the floor.
Sleep had long fled. Her stomach churned from last night’s alcohol, and her mouth was dry and bitter.
Letting Jaemin go just like that felt like a waste. She’d invested a lot of effort in him. Besides, she still needed him to prove she hadn’t lied to her grandfather.
People drink when they’re thirsty, she told herself bitterly. He can’t have gone far. I’ll at least pretend to stop him.
Cursing under her breath, Yisoo hastily threw on some clothes and rushed after him.
“Park Jaemin! Jaemin oppa!”
Luckily, he was still standing in front of the elevator. Whether he was waiting for the lift or for her, she couldn’t tell. She pretended not to care and caught up to him.
He didn’t turn around even when she called his name. Yisoo quickly ran up and wrapped her arms around his back.
“I’m sorry. I was just so angry and frustrated because of Han Seohui.”
It wasn’t because she liked him. It had started simply—because Han Seohui had shown interest in him.
They’d ended up taking the same class, then were assigned to the same group for a presentation. Seohui had said Jaemin seemed like a good guy—attentive and dependable as a senior.
Maybe that was when it began. Hearing that made him look better in Yisoo’s eyes, too. Plus, teasing Han Seohui had its own thrill.
When she saw how flustered Seohui got whenever she teased her about Jaemin, Yisoo found it amusing. Wouldn’t it be fun to steal him first, before Seohui could have him?
It had started as a petty game to spite Seohui… but somehow, it had gone this far. Not that the sex was bad. Still, it bruised Yisoo’s pride to have to chase after Jaemin now—but she forced a smile anyway.
She remembered the look in Seohui’s eyes when they’d met at the family house yesterday.
Just wait, Han Seohui. Let’s see how long you can keep that look on your face.
“Oppa, don’t be mad, okay?”
“…”
“It was my fault earlier. I’ve been irritated since yesterday and unfairly took it out on you. I didn’t mean it.”
“Don’t do that again.”
Still facing forward, Jaemin spoke flatly.
“I’m not seeing you just to get money or gifts like that.”
Jaemin, who hadn’t passed the bar exam, lived under his father’s constant disapproval. He even got a smaller allowance than his siblings. For Yisoo, that check had been pocket change—a generous gesture in her mind—but apparently, it had only insulted him.
Hah. So he does have pride after all.
She bit back the words she wanted to say and instead softened her tone.
“I understand. I was wrong. I’m sorry.”
Maybe that worked—Jaemin turned and hugged her tightly.
“Sorry for bothering you when you were upset.”
“It’s fine.”
Not really, but Yisoo forced herself to hold him.
“Should we eat before heading to campus?”
“Didn’t you say you had class?”
“I’ll skip. We need to talk about what to do with Han Seohui, anyway.”
“Okay. Let’s eat something nice and go on a date.”
It was a dramatic reconciliation between two cockroaches.
* * *
Leaving Pyeongchang-dong, Seohui got into a taxi heading straight for Sinsa-dong. She’d managed to avoid rush hour, but the roads were still packed.
It wasn’t an urgent errand, so she didn’t mind—the quiet gave her time to think.
Could my entire family be involved in Grandfather’s death? Were my memories distorted somehow?
She thought back to the night before—Taegyu’s sudden visit, his outrage when she said she’d work at Shinsung Electronics, and how he’d brought up the subject of marriage out of nowhere.
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that in the Han family, the person who feared her the most was Taegyu. Considering Yisoo was involved as well, they were the most likely suspects.
But could they really kill Father? Am I jumping to conclusions?
Her thoughts were interrupted by the taxi driver’s clucking tongue.
“Tsk, tsk. What’s happening to the world these days?”
Seohui looked up, their eyes meeting in the rearview mirror. The driver continued.
“You heard it too, right?”
“Sorry?”
“The news on the radio just now.”
“Ah… no, I was lost in thought.”
He turned up the volume.
‘According to police, Mr. Kim confessed he committed the crime due to conflict over debt. He is being charged with parricide…’
The driver lowered the volume again.
“The world’s doomed. How can someone kill the parents who raised them?”
“Right… but could someone really do that just for money?”
Her question came from genuine disbelief. The driver sighed.
“You’re still young, miss. You don’t understand how cruel life can be. It’s sad, but money can make people betray even their own blood.”
Taegyu had plenty of money—more than enough for a lifetime, and enough to leave a fortune to Yisoo.
Could someone like that really kill for more?
As if reading her thoughts, the driver added:
“Greed, miss. That’s the scariest thing in the world. When you’ve got nothing, you crave something. When you’ve got everything, you crave more. You’ll understand when you’ve lived a bit longer.”
He wasn’t wrong. Yisoo and Jaemin were perfect examples—driven by greed, they’d cornered her once before.
A bitter smile tugged at Seohui’s lips.
“We’re here.”
The taxi stopped at her destination. After paying, she stepped out, and the driver called after her.
“I said it because you reminded me of my daughter. If a kind young lady like you doesn’t wise up, the world will eat her alive.”
He wished her a good day and drove off without looking back.
He’s right. I need to keep my head clear.
Resolving to dig deeper into Taegyu’s family, Seohui walked into the building.
“Welcome!”
A cheerful greeting met her as she entered a luxury consignment store. She returned the greeting and placed the items she’d brought onto the table.
“I’d like to sell all of these.”
The staff smiled politely and began checking each item—verifying authenticity, jotting details on a form, and tapping numbers into a calculator.
After a few minutes, she looked up with a bright smile.
“All together, that comes to about ten million won.”
She slid the receipt across the table.
“Shall I proceed with the purchase?”
In that moment, the taxi driver’s words echoed in Seohui’s mind.
If you don’t know how the world works, it’ll rob you blind.
And she finally understood what he meant.
