Chapter 7 …

Jeonghui squeezed her eyes shut, suppressing the anger rising all the way to her throat, as if telling him to do whatever he wanted.

By now, she knew better than anyone.

She knew exactly what kind of man Ji Seohun was—the extent of his arrogance and selfishness down to his very bones.

Even the kindness he had shown her had been nothing more than twisted obsession and a desire for control.

There was no point provoking him further. Nothing good would come of it right now.

For now, she decided to let him do whatever he wanted. Organizing her thoughts, Jeonghui slowly opened her eyes and met his gaze.

“Seoyun is your real sister.”

As though he had seen straight through even that resignation-filled thought, Seohun watched her with cold eyes and let out a low laugh.

“I know. She’s my one and only twin.”

“Then stop this.”

“There’s nothing to worry about. It’ll end quietly.”

All we have to do is get along and congratulate her so she won’t worry.

“What are you so anxious about?”

“……”

“Hm? Jeonghui.”

Seohun’s hand slowly rose, his voice soft as though soothing a child.

He gently brushed aside the strands of hair that had fallen near her ear before burying his face against the back of her neck and slowly inhaling.

“…Ji Seohun.”

Jeonghui slowly clenched her fist.

“That voice still sounds nice too.”

“You’re out of your mind.”

“It’s been a long two weeks, hasn’t it?”

His voice was low and languid.

Licking his lips lazily, he stared at her without looking away.

His eyes were filled with desire, like a beast in heat.

Unable to endure the way he looked at her as though he might swallow her whole at any moment, Jeonghui quickly turned her face away again.

“What kind of conversation am I supposed to have with a lunatic like you?”

Watching her let out a disbelieving sigh, Seohun curled the corner of his lips upward as if amused.

“Who told you to disappear without a word?”

“I told you. We’re breaking up.”

“Do you think that’s something you can decide on your own?”

Unfortunately, I’m done going easy on you now.

There was a cold warning hidden in his low voice.

“Ji Seohun, does this honestly look normal to you?”

“Well, maybe it all depends on how you look at it.”

The face looking back at her so casually no longer wore the mask she had always known.

At the very least, she now knew for certain that he had no intention of pretending to be kind in front of her anymore.

Rather than regretting that his true nature had been exposed, Seohun seemed to be enjoying the situation itself—the fact that he held all the control.

That attitude alone was enough to make Jeonghui feel suffocated.

“Fine. Then at least back off.”

Irritably brushing her hair back, Jeonghui shoved Seohun away when he tried to pull her into another embrace.

“Why would I?”

Not even moving an inch, Seohun tilted his head crookedly.

“You… are you seriously asking that?”

“If you were going to make me worry this much, you should’ve been prepared for this.”

His cold warning reeked of possessiveness.

Jeonghui scowled.

“What, are you going to drag me away and lock me up again?”

“As if. Do you know how much I cherish you?”

“Don’t make me laugh. Is this something someone who cherishes another person would do?”

“I don’t have much choice when you refuse to stay still.”

Not even a trace of guilt could be heard in his voice as he spoke as though reasoning with a stubborn child.

His shameless and relaxed attitude made Jeonghui bite her lip in anger as she glared at him.

“Ji Seohun, you can’t keep holding onto me forever.”

“Then try running away again if you’re so confident.”

His answer carried the arrogance of someone convinced he would find her no matter where she went.

Was this what it felt like talking to a wall?

Growing increasingly frustrated, Jeonghui glared at him as though she had given up on reasoning with him.

“Move. This is an emergency exit. People come through here.”

Even if traffic was light, the emergency stairwell was still an open area where people came and went.

Someone could appear at any moment.

No—that wasn’t even the important part.

More than anything, Jeonghui didn’t want to share the same space as this crazy man for even a single second.

“I don’t care. Let them see.”

“Ji Seohun, you really—!”

“And what exactly are they going to do if they see?”

His attitude remained as relaxed as ever.

That was true.

Even if someone caught them right now, he had nothing to lose.

The only one who would suffer from the rumors afterward was her.

Forcing herself to steady her troubled emotions, Jeonghui pushed against him with an arm that had already gone limp.

This time, Seohun obediently stepped aside and, with impeccable manners, opened the emergency exit door for her.

* * *

After the tedious officiant’s speech, commemorative photos, and a few formal procedures, the wedding ceremony was drawing to a close.

Seoyun was still surrounded by friends who remained behind to congratulate her.

“Wow, your face is practically glowing today.”

“Thanks. Even hearing that makes me happy.”

“More importantly, how does it feel to be a married woman?”

“It still doesn’t feel real yet.”

After briefly glancing at his sister, Seohun frowned slightly and turned his head away.

He hated noisy, crowded places.

Standing a short distance away from the center of attention with his arms crossed, he looked toward Jeonghui, who was standing beside Seoyun.

There was deep affection in the way Jeonghui looked at Seoyun.

It was a complete smile—one she had never once shown him.

A smile without even the slightest hint of caution.

Something twisted unpleasantly inside Seohun as he watched from afar.

It was always like this.

Jeonghui’s blind devotion toward Seoyun had always irritated him.

Seeing her again after a full two weeks, she captured his attention more than ever.

Her neatly tied half-up hairstyle and the dress that revealed the line of her neck suited her surprisingly well.

“Wear this to the wedding. It suits you best.”

That wasn’t the dress he had given her.

It felt almost like a rejection—as though she had decided not to accept anything he gave her ever again.

Though his expression hardened in displeasure, Seohun couldn’t bring himself to look away.

Oddly enough, even while smiling, her eyes occasionally drifted through empty space before turning toward the opposite side of the hall.

There, Shin-a was laughing brightly among her friends.

Every time Jeonghui glanced toward Shin-a, her expression seemed to tighten ever so slightly.

The negative emotions that flashed across her face for only an instant were perfectly visible to Seohun.

What is she thinking so hard about now?

His brows furrowed irritably.

It had already been a month since Jeonghui learned about his engagement to Shin-a and told him they should break up.

He had assumed she would have calmed down by now, but she was no different than before.

Perhaps because she didn’t want Seoyun to worry, she still acted polite in public.

But whenever they were alone, Jeonghui drew a firm line between them, as though everything was over.

As if that had always been the correct answer from the very beginning.

“Which one is the real you?”

“The Ji Seohun you’ve seen all this time is also me.”

“No. That’s just what you want to believe.”

“I don’t know what you’ve been hearing.”

“You already have a fiancée.”

“You don’t need to worry about that. It’s not even finalized.”

“So it was true. The fact that you’re not denying it says enough.”

Recalling the conversation from their last fight, Seohun frowned in confusion.

He hadn’t expected her to truly disappear and ignore all contact from him for two whole weeks.

A fiancée was simply someone chosen by their families.

It wasn’t as though they were getting married immediately.

It wasn’t as though he had secretly cheated on her.

He genuinely couldn’t understand why she was so upset.

…It’s irritating.

For some reason, everything about it annoyed him.

Jeonghui trying to leave him over something he considered trivial.

Jeonghui being hurt while consciously comparing herself to Shin-a.

Even the way she kept drawing boundaries as though she were preparing herself to move on.

Every single one of those things scratched at his nerves.

That was why he had decided to throw away all the kindness he had shown until now and push forward in his own way.

If she truly wanted to leave, he wouldn’t stop her.

That is, if she can get away.