“I’ll drive.”
“Go ahead.”
He didn’t have the energy to drive anyway, so he got into the passenger seat, letting Jaehyuk do as he pleased. He had just fastened his seatbelt and was waiting for the car to move when a chill ran through his body.
As he pulled his hood up while hunching his shoulders in the cold car where his breath was visible, Jaehyuk hurriedly started the engine and turned on the heater and seat warmers.
“Should we just go to the hospital? You don’t look well.”
“I’m fine.”
“You keep shivering. I think you might be coming down with something.”
“It’s just that my body hasn’t adjusted to the sudden cold weather. I’m fine, really.”
“…Alright, then let’s go straight home so you can rest. I’ll come home early today too.”
Saying this, Jaehyuk adjusted the side mirror and the seat before shifting gears. As he slowly pulled out of the parking lot, he casually asked:
“…Have you had lunch?”
“Not yet.”
“Then eat when we get home. Eat and rest right away.”
“Okay…”
After that brief response, silence fell for a moment.
Until just a few minutes ago, he had just woken up and then unexpectedly met Jaehyuk, so he hadn’t had time to feel awkward. But now that he was more alert, being alone with him felt uncomfortable.
It had been five days since they’d seen each other face to face, and after what had happened, he wasn’t sure how to act around him.
Acting as if nothing had happened seemed too shameless, but bringing it up first felt even more inappropriate.
At times like this, it might be better to act thick-skinned, but that wasn’t easy.
Strangely, with this person in particular, it was difficult.
While he was struggling with what to do, Jaehyuk, who had exited the parking lot and was accelerating, suddenly asked:
“By the way, did the surgery go well?”
“…What?”
“Lee Jiwon’s leg surgery.”
“Oh… I was going to tell you about that. The surgery went well. Thank you for your concern.”
Thanks to scheduling the surgery for the very next day after admission and having the head of orthopedics personally perform it, Auntie’s right leg surgery had been completed successfully.
She was still hospitalized for observation, but he’d heard she was scheduled to be discharged within the week.
“That’s good. I should visit before she’s discharged.”
“Yes, you should…”
“I’d like to go with you to pay my respects, but it might be burdensome for her to meet me right after surgery, so please tell her I’ll visit later.”
Junghyun felt a strange sense of disconnection at the flow of conversation that seemed so natural, as if everything was perfectly normal.
While it was better to talk like this than to endure suffocating silence, the flow was too ordinary and peaceful.
It was as if nothing had happened.
Feeling uneasy, he kept glancing at Jaehyuk from under his hood, who smoothly changed lanes and shifted the topic.
“And if you don’t have any urgent work, how about not going to the office for a while? You’re not as robust as you think.”
“…I’m just having a hard time with winter.”
“You haven’t been feeling well lately. Why not take this opportunity to get a complete health checkup…”
Jaehyuk stopped mid-sentence, seemingly realizing that a health checkup was the last thing they should mention before divorce.
Junghyun, who had flinched at the mention of hospitals, finally relaxed a bit and wrapped up that conversation.
“I’m just sleeping well because I’m finally relaxing. I’ve always been a heavy sleeper. And last month was busy…”
“Then take it easy this month.”
“I still need to go to work. I have to fulfill my work hours to get paid.”
“Is there really a need for you to receive a salary?”
Surprised by this sudden comment, Junghyun turned to look at him.
It seemed so out of place in the current situation that he wondered what Jaehyuk’s intention was.
“Until now, I thought it was better not to say anything to minimize your confrontations with Director Jang, but you should actually quit the company. Grandfather’s side is also starting to pressure you to resign, so you might want to consider quitting at this opportunity.”
“…Resign?”
“Since there’s no news yet, it seems Grandfather is waiting for the next heat cycle. We should at least pretend to be making an effort.”
Not immediately understanding the flow of conversation, Junghyun turned to face him directly.
The meaning of those words was that Jaehyuk intended to maintain their marriage.
“…Hyung…”
“I’m not forcing you, but think about it. If you resign, Director Jang will adjust his work hours. If we tell Grandfather we’re preparing for pregnancy, he’ll accommodate us somehow. For breakfast, there’s a restaurant in the apartment complex, so we can eat there. When you go out for exercise or errands during the day, you can arrange for cleaning and meals. If that’s inconvenient, we can hire someone specifically to prepare meals.”
Junghyun was uncharacteristically bewildered by Jaehyuk’s rapid-fire suggestions, as if he had prepared them in advance.
He had no idea what Jaehyuk was thinking.
“Hyung, I don’t think this is the time for us to be having this kind of conversation.”
“This is exactly the time. You’ve gotten somewhat used to married life, and since it’s hard for you to get up in the morning, take this opportunity to rest and think about what you want to do. Or you could take a position as an outside director at our company.”
This was truly absurd—perhaps the fifth most absurd thing he’d experienced in his life.
“…Why would I do that?”
“An energetic guy like you would feel stifled staying cooped up at home. Or you could take on something like running a foundation. Working with Director Han of Hanju to run the Hanyul Foundation would be good too. Hanyul will soon be acquired by our side anyway.”
“…Hanyul?”
“It was originally funded largely by Hanju. To be honest, it was created as a slush fund, but it wasn’t very useful, so it was transferred to Jaesung Steel, and Director Han of Hanju inherited it. We still hold the majority stake.”
Suddenly everything made sense.
Why his aunt had been so submissive about the marriage talk. And why this person had been so confident from the moment they met that they would get married.
He had suspected some connection between Jaesung Steel and Hanju when his aunt got involved, but he hadn’t known the Hanyul Foundation was also connected.
So that’s why his aunt had made such an unreasonable request.
To be politely rejected and come back.
Because they couldn’t possibly refuse from their side.
He had been too overwhelmed at the time to investigate the relationship between his aunt’s side and Hanju, but apparently that was the nature of their relationship.
“It’s good that you suddenly understand the situation… but I have no interest in running foundations and don’t plan to in the future.”
“You’d be good at it. You’re perceptive and quick-witted.”
“I won’t do that. My dream is to be an elderly person living alone with many hobbies, and I don’t want to get involved in unnecessary problems.”
“Having many hobbies is good, but give up on living alone. That’s not going to happen.”
The conversation was becoming increasingly incomprehensible.
He wasn’t sure if he was being stupid or if Jaehyuk was talking nonsense, but as the flow of conversation became more bizarre, Junghyun pushed back his hood.
He was about to demand what Jaehyuk was talking about, but once again, Jaehyuk was faster.
“It’s good to have hobbies. Learn what you want at a leisurely pace. Your hobbies are too focused in one area. Start something you’ve wanted to do rather than just what you’re good at. Something other than hitting, throwing, and bursting things.”
“Hyung, you’re…”
“It doesn’t have to be a hobby; it could be study or work. If you want to try something completely new, we could hire a consulting firm to help you start. You can do it on a large scale or small scale. Just not carelessly like Yoonho.”
This conversation was going nowhere.
Like when they first met, Jaehyuk was speaking one-sidedly from his own perspective.
Until a moment ago, Junghyun had been too confused by his attitude to grasp the situation, but now he understood.
Jaehyuk was saying that nothing had happened.
That nothing had happened and nothing would happen.
For whatever reason, he wanted to continue this marriage.
But that was strange.
He wasn’t that type of person.
He was someone who hated deception and had strong pride.
No, regardless of Jaehyuk’s position, Junghyun couldn’t continue like this.
“Hyung…”
“We’re here. It’s the coldest day of the year, so let’s talk inside.”
As they were talking, they had already arrived at the complex, and Jaehyuk immediately cut off the conversation.
It was a signal of termination.
That he wouldn’t listen to anything more.
Junghyun felt more frustrated now than when he couldn’t even see Jaehyuk’s face.
His thoughts had become even more complicated after talking with him.
But he couldn’t say anything more, so he had to keep his mouth shut.
Because nothing would get through right now.
* * *
“I’ve finished preparing dinner, so after eating, just put the dishes in the dishwasher. You can do that much, right?”
“Yes. Thank you. You can go now.”
“Then, I’ll see you tomorrow. Director, and you too, Junghyun.”
As if Jaehyuk had contacted her in advance, Director Jang approached them as soon as they entered the house and left with quick steps after saying goodbye.
After she disappeared through the front door, Jaehyuk, who had entered first, finally spoke to Junghyun.
“Change into comfortable clothes and come out. I have a call to make.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
