Chapter 7
Secretary Shim drove smoothly and skillfully towards Do-heon’s house.
Cheong-yeon silently gazed out of the car window. As he looked at the dimming scenery, the car soon entered a familiar path.
Before long, they arrived at a neighborhood with spacious alleys and private residences enclosed by high walls.
His calm heart began to stir uneasily. He didn’t have many good memories here; he had always been lonely and depressed. It felt as if the gloomy emotions of the past were piercing through time and seeping into the present.
“We have arrived.”
Secretary Shim stopped the car in front of the familiar residence. He quickly got out of the driver’s seat and opened the car door on Cheong-yeon’s side.
Without properly inspecting the garden, Cheong-yeon strode straight to the entrance and stepped into the house.
“What is all this…”
As he entered the living room, he saw items packed as if for moving, scattered everywhere. They were all Cheong-yeon’s belongings. Clothes, accessories, vitamins, electronic devices, bags, books, and small items were all wrapped in plastic and boxes. It looked like a house preparing for a move.
“We have pre-packaged them for your convenience.”
“…Did Moon Do-heon tell you to do this?”
Secretary Shim, who had been explaining the situation, flinched at the word “Moon Do-heon” but quickly regained his composure and replied.
“That is correct, it was the master’s instruction.”
It seemed like a message to quickly pack everything and leave. Moon Do-heon might want to precisely cut out the person named Yoo Cheong-yeon from this house in any way possible.
It was frustrating to realize that until the end, he meant nothing to Moon Do-heon.
Cheong-yeon checked each of the many items. Expensive watches and shoes that Do-heon had bought him over time were all packed without exception, but he didn’t want to lift a finger for them.
His coldness was suffocating. The entire house seemed to desperately push him away, urging him to quickly pack his things and leave.
Cheong-yeon went upstairs. As he was about to go to his room, he noticed a familiar shopping bag on the living room side table. It was a gift set that had been in Do-heon’s room.
It seemed he still hadn’t given the gift to the new omega he was meeting.
After glaring at the shopping bag, Cheong-yeon entered the room he used to use. All the items inside had been taken out to the living room, leaving the room empty as if it had no owner.
Cheong-yeon immediately opened the dresser. Fortunately, the photo he had taken with Do-heon’s grandmother was still in its place. The grandmother holding a bouquet and himself with his arm around her shoulder. In the photo, both of them were smiling brightly.
It was regrettable that he had become a stranger to his grandmother due to the divorce. But it was inevitable. Cheong-yeon took the photo out of the frame and immediately left the room.
Then, Secretary Shim, who had been waiting at the door, approached.
“Do you not need to look around the storage room?”
“Ah, the storage room.”
Now that he thought about it, he had completely forgotten. Cheong-yeon belatedly turned his head to look at the room at the end of the hallway on this floor.
“…I’ll just go in and come out.”
“You can take your time to check.”
The smallest room in this mansion, known as the storage room, was where Cheong-yeon kept his props from his time as DEX. Although the activity had ended long ago, he didn’t want to throw away all the items he had used at the time, so he had gathered them in one place.
As he opened the door to the storage room, the past he had long forgotten unfolded vividly before his eyes.
Stage costumes, albums, goods, gifts received from broadcasts, and fan letters were neatly organized.
“Wow, this…”
Cheong-yeon unconsciously chuckled as he discovered a poster hanging on the wall. His appearance with almost platinum-blonde hair holding a microphone was unfamiliar. The past Yoo Cheong-yeon, smiling brightly, looked full of vitality.
Originally, Cheong-yeon had wanted to be an actor and had entered the entertainment industry, but he ended up debuting as an idol.
He believed that if he continued his activities, there would eventually be an opportunity to act, but DEX did not achieve any significant success, and with marriage, Cheong-yeon had to quit all entertainment activities. That’s what Do-heon wanted. The title of a mediocre idol singer didn’t suit the JT family anyway.
Since he couldn’t take everything in here, Cheong-yeon only picked out a few memorable items. He chose a poster, an album, a photo card, and a few fan letters and put them in the shopping bag.
“What do you need? We’ll do the moving, so please rest and have some fruit.”
As he came out of the storage room as if escaping, an employee brought a plate of sliced fruit.
“I’m full, so it’s okay. I’ll just go.”
After Cheong-yeon awkwardly smiled and refused, he turned his body towards the entrance. He wanted to leave this mansion now that he had packed his grandmother’s photo and a few old items.
However, Cheong-yeon, who had been walking quickly, stopped again. He saw a large wedding photo hanging on the wall at the end of the hallway.
“Huh.”
It was absurd that even though all his personal belongings had been packed and taken out, that was still hanging on the wall. The photo, taken in a studio with a relaxed atmosphere while sitting on a chair, was almost the size of Cheong-yeon’s torso.
Unlike Cheong-yeon, who was smiling in the photo, Do-heon was expressionless even there.
Cheong-yeon, who had been staring intently at the photo, suddenly approached and took the framed picture off the wall.
“If you’re going to take that down, we’ll do it…! Oh my!”
Rip! Rip!
Cheong-yeon took the photo out of the frame and tore it mercilessly. The employee and Secretary Shim, who were about to approach, stopped and stared blankly at the scene where Cheong-yeon was damaging the photo.
Rip! Rip!
Cheong-yeon tore the photo with all his might. Especially, he split Moon Do-heon’s handsome face neatly in half.
“Huh. Huuuh…”
Perhaps because it was an expensive photo, it was thick and didn’t tear easily. He wanted to shred it to pieces if he could.
But he decided to be satisfied with the photo being torn into a dozen pieces. Cheong-yeon gathered the pieces and stuffed them into the nearby trash can.
“Is there anything else?”
Cheong-yeon looked around the house to find more things to throw away. People couldn’t even think of stopping Cheong-yeon, who was possessed by madness, and stood far away, watching with a dazed expression. Cheong-yeon had never shown such a side before, so everyone looked quite shocked.
Whether they saw him as a madman or not, Cheong-yeon quickly scanned the living room with his sharp eyes. Now that he thought about it, there were photos taken together at parties and events, but there were no personal photos taken with Do-heon except for the wedding. They had lived together for three years.
No, upon reflection, it wasn’t even three years. During their married life, Do-heon stayed at the U.S. branch for a few months, so in reality, they had only spent a little over two years together.
Even when he cried and begged not to go, Do-heon left Cheong-yeon alone in Korea and went to the U.S. for several months without looking back.
Looking back now, it was fortunate. Thanks to his indifference, there was so little to sort out that he was grateful.
“Cheong-yeon?”
Now, to really leave this dreadful mansion, as he was packing the shopping bag, someone called his name. When he turned his head, a familiar man was standing at the entrance.
“Lawyer.”
He was the lawyer who had come as Do-heon’s representative on the day he demanded a divorce from Do-heon. He seemed to have come in a hurry after receiving Secretary Shim’s call, as he looked somewhat absent-minded.
“What brings you here? The divorce is over.”
“As you know, the divorce procedure has been completed well, and I visited today to finalize the amount adjustment. Since it was not on the schedule, I will briefly prepare the documents today and if you tell me the amount you need…”
“Why do you keep saying you’ll give me money? I don’t need that. I told you last time.”
Cheong-yeon said irritably, rubbing his shoulders. It was probably a few pennies given to shut him up, considering Moon Do-heon’s social position.
But Cheong-yeon had no desire to gain anything from the end of this marriage. He had taken too long to realize that coveting what wasn’t his would come with a great price.
He didn’t want to repeat the same mistake like a fool.
“I’ll go now. Please go in, Lawyer.”
The lawyer seemed to want to say something more, but Cheong-yeon cut him off unilaterally and opened the door.
Finally, as he came out of the house and crossed the garden, Moon Do-heon’s car was entering the parking lot.
“Ah, the timing is really shitty.”
Cheong-yeon muttered and took out his phone to check the time.
It was only nine o’clock at night, but why was Moon Do-heon already coming home from work? When he was told to come home early, he would come home late as if he was living at the company, but on a day like this, he was inconsiderate…
Cheong-yeon glanced at the car with black tinted windows and hurried his steps. Now that they were strangers, there was no need to greet each other.
“Yoo Cheong-yeon?”
