MBWI 08

Chapter : 08

Gaeun and Seokjin walked around the Dawn Temple early in the morning, checking out nearby tourist spots.

Since it was on the opposite side from the royal palace, there weren’t too many people today, maybe because tourists had gone that way.

Thanks to that, Gaeun and Seokjin could slowly and leisurely look around.

As the sun set, they boarded the dinner cruise they had reserved.

Sitting in the cool river breeze, Seokjin leaned close to Gaeun and whispered:

“Don’t expect much from the food.”

“Oh? I care most about the taste of food,” Gaeun said.

“Then… I’ll give you the hotel buffet voucher you gave me as an apology next time.”

“Oh! I’ll gladly take it.”

She had heard that the hotel buffet she was given was difficult to reserve.

A pre-reserved meal voucher was a popular gift, perfect for feeding a penniless chaebol.

As she imagined going with her mom to enjoy a luxurious meal at the hotel, Gaeun smiled naturally.

Even the normally bland shrimp seemed rich and juicy in her imagination.

“It must have been an awkward request, but thank you for agreeing.”

“It’s more fun traveling together than alone.”

“Really?”

“Ah, of course, if I were alone, I would have eaten and drunk whatever I wanted, though.”

Seokjin laughed silently when he saw Gaeun peel a slightly chilled lychee and pop it into her mouth, covering his mouth with his hand.

“Is something on my face?”

Without a mirror, Gaeun nervously wiped her cheek.

“It’s because your cheek looks like a squirrel’s,” Seokjin said, pointing at her.

“Oh.”

She quickly chewed the lychee and spat the seed into the tissue.

“Did you never see someone eat lychee before? Why laugh like that?”

“Over there, the Dawn Temple.”

Gaeun looked where Seokjin pointed and let out a short gasp.

The Dawn Temple lit up at night, showing a beauty different from the daytime.

“Thanks for telling me about the dinner cruise.”

“I’m glad you’re satisfied.”

“Yes, although the food isn’t great.”

They briefly made eye contact and laughed together.

Had she come alone, it might have been scary and lonely.

Gaeun felt relieved she had insisted on a fully private trip without contacting her secretary or using the exchanged money Seokjin had arranged. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have had such a good travel partner.

After the morning massage, Gaeun left the shop.

Since she was the first customer, the masseuse used a lot of strength, and her tired body felt as light as if it were flying.

“I should bring President Joo here tomorrow too,” she thought, imagining he might also enjoy a massage. She decided to spend a bit more than planned from her card balance.

With that generosity, she bought two cups of coffee in front of the massage shop, one for Seokjin, and headed back to the hotel.

“Oh?”

Seokjin was pacing anxiously in the lobby, as if waiting for someone.

“Gaeun,” he said.

She guessed he was waiting for her. Why?

Ah, maybe he needed some quick cash.

Gaeun regretted not giving him some money earlier and offered him the coffee.

“I was waiting,” she said.

“How much do you need?”

“Huh?”

“If you tell me how much you need, I’ll give it to you.”

Even hearing that, Seokjin didn’t relax.

Could he have damaged hotel property?

Her mind went blank thinking about using up her emergency funds.

“Let’s go up to the room.”

“Yes.”

Seeing him glance anxiously around, Gaeun became more certain that he had probably broken something.

If they went to his room, maybe together they could fix it.

In the elevator, Seokjin walked ahead quickly.

If even a chaebol was panicking like this, the accident must be huge. Did he even break a wall?

Gaeun grew increasingly nervous.

“Let’s go in.”

“Yes.”

Once inside, she recognized a familiar face.

“Hello,” said Tak Jihoon, Seokjin’s secretary.

Gaeun almost shouted with relief. If Tak Jihoon was here, it meant this wasn’t her responsibility anymore.

Now she could hand Seokjin over to his secretary and enjoy the rest of her trip.

“Hello,” she said.

“Please, both of you, have a seat,” Tak said.

“Me too?” Gaeun asked, surprised.

Ah! Tak was going to settle the money Seokjin owed, so she needed to be at the table.

“I’ve already reported to the president. You can see this first, Gaeun,” Tak said, sliding a file toward her.

“What’s this? …!”

Gaeun’s eyes widened when she saw printed articles.

[Modern Cinderella: Who is President Joo Seokjin’s Fiancée?]

The article had photos of Gaeun and Seokjin entering the hotel together, having breakfast, and sightseeing.

The angles made them look like a couple.

“According to airline staff, they sat next to each other on the same flight and openly showed affection… sharing food, looking at each other lovingly…”

She had given him bad papaya, and this was called “loving looks”? Ridiculous.

“Sources say President Joo enjoys simple dates with his non-celebrity girlfriend…? Who are these sources?”

Gaeun looked at Seokjin, who had his eyes tightly closed, lips pressed together, deep in thought.

“A Korean journalist was staying at the same hotel. Since there’s little news these days, they targeted the president.”

“Didn’t dramas show that journalists would call to take down articles? Were the articles removed?”

“They went up around midnight before anyone could stop them. Sorry.”

“Then you can just issue a statement saying it’s a misunderstanding,” Gaeun said.

Tak handed her another article.

[President Joo Seokjin to Marry in September]

“The hotel staff apparently leaked the reservation for the wedding hall.”

“My name on the reservation was a big mistake.”

Seokjin glared, and Tak fell silent.

“Ah, President Joo is getting married? I’ll tell the fiancée this is all a huge misunderstanding!”

It seemed urgent since he had reserved the wedding hall in September.

“There’s a serious issue,” Seokjin said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll explain to the fiancée myself,” Tak said.

“Actually, Gaeun, our president…”

“No bride exists,” Seokjin interrupted.

“Huh?”

How could he reserve a wedding hall and date without a bride?

“Tak, explain,” Seokjin commanded.

“Yes, sir,” Tak said.

Seokjin rubbed his forehead, walked to the window, and looked outside.

“Do you remember what happened at the hotel that time?”

“Yes.”

It was impossible to forget the strange bride interview he had attended.

“Due to internal circumstances, the president must marry this year. That’s why he held the interviews to find a bride.”

“The person he interviewed…?”

“She originally matched their intentions, but she suddenly left for Paris with her boyfriend, so it didn’t work out.”

“Then you should have canceled the wedding hall reservation. Leaving it caused this mess.”

Seokjin turned from the window, serious:

“I was planning to find the right person soon.”

“Then once you find the right person, have the wedding, and publish an article clarifying we have nothing to do with each other,” Gaeun said, clapping her hands.

She couldn’t understand why he worried so seriously when all that was needed was a simple explanation.

“It’s not easy in the current situation,” Tak said.

He showed them scraped comments from the article:

• “If he doesn’t marry her, curse Joo Seokjin’s retail empire.”
• “The chairman opposed, so Joo Seokjin set the wedding date himself. That’s why people admire him.”
• “If they break up, may Joo Seokjin’s group fail.”

Most comments wished for their happiness, with some criticizing him if he broke up.

“Also, the chairman is angry they traveled without informing him.”

“No, it’s not like that! We ended up on the same flight by coincidence and had no choice but to travel together,” Gaeun said, frustrated.

Then Seokjin, looking at her carefully, spoke:

“Gaeun, may I make a serious proposal now?”