Chapter 6
“No!”
Yoonseo quickly stepped back. But the glasses were already completely broken and shattered—so damaged that they couldn’t be worn anymore and would be hard even to keep.
Seungwoo stared at the broken glasses with a look of distress.
This wasn’t what he had intended.
Yoonseo collapsed to the floor as if her strength had given out and picked up the broken glasses with her hands. As she touched the shattered lenses, Seungwoo hurriedly grabbed them from her.
By then, the broken glass had already scratched her hand, and small drops of red blood formed on her skin.
“Where did these even come from for you to act like this?”
He knew that wasn’t the real issue. At this point, what did the origin of the glasses even matter? But the moment Seungwoo saw the blood flowing from Yoonseo’s hand, he nearly lost his senses.
Instead of saying sorry, he spoke harshly out of habit.
“They’re just glasses. You can fix them.”
At those words, Yoonseo’s face twisted as if she herself had been wounded. She stood up. When she wrapped her bleeding hand with her other hand, Seungwoo’s face tightened.
“It’s fine.”
A look of resignation flickered across her face. Staring blankly into the air, she let out a thin sigh.
“Go to sleep. It’s late.”
“I said I’ll fix them.”
Seungwoo growled as he looked at Yoonseo.
“How expensive could these glasses even be?”
The more she tried to avoid him, the more his words went astray. It was something he could do—at least this much, he could do.
In the end, his anger was directed at himself for hurting her. But Seungwoo couldn’t fully admit that.
Yoonseo squeezed her eyes shut. Moisture welled up between her closed lashes, and soon hot tears streamed down her cheeks.
Only then did Seungwoo realize his mistake, but it already felt too late to take it back.
“I’m asking how much they cost.”
When he spoke irritably, she turned her head away. As if she didn’t want to say another word, she walked inside.
“Choi Yoonseo!”
He grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.
“Why aren’t you answering?”
“Let go.”
She said it while glaring at Seungwoo with tear-filled eyes.
“I asked you.”
“Please, just let go.”
Tears fell from her eyes again.
Seungwoo released her shoulder. His eyes squeezed shut.
“I’ll buy you the same ones, so stop it.”
After biting down on his lips, Seungwoo said that.
His heart was focused on her injured hand, but he couldn’t even look at it. He felt like if he saw the blood again, he wouldn’t be able to control his emotions.
“I’m going inside.”
She said only that and turned away.
The door closed.
Left alone in the quiet living room, Seungwoo muttered a curse under his breath and rubbed his face with one hand.
His face was filled with deep exhaustion.
“Is that it? You brought back a box from the nursing home. I heard it was Grandma Kim Inja’s belongings.”
The next morning, Seungwoo went to see Mrs. Kim at dawn. After listening to him, Mrs. Kim thought for a moment before replying.
“Grandma Kim Inja?”
“Yes. The one who passed away recently at the nursing home.”
He remembered. Yoonseo had cried at the funeral as if she had lost her own family, repeatedly collapsing from grief. Even Seungwoo, despite being busy, had gone several times to check on things.
Of course, he had gone quietly without letting Yoonseo notice. Postponing meetings, arriving late to important conferences—just watching her cry, clicking his tongue, then returning to the office to work through the night.
So they were her belongings. Was that why she had reacted that way? As if the world had ended just because a pair of glasses broke.
Feeling empty, Seungwoo bit his lips.
After meeting Mrs. Kim, he went out to exercise.
Yoonseo came out of her room some time after he left. Her eyes were badly swollen, as if she had cried all night. Mrs. Kim was startled when she saw her.
“Um… do you have an ice pack or something?”
Yoonseo asked without trying to hide it.
Mrs. Kim quickly took an ice pack from the refrigerator and wrapped it in a towel.
“Um, the boss was asking about where the glasses came from.”
Mrs. Kim hesitated, then spoke. It seemed clear that the conflict between the two had started because of that.
Although Mrs. Kim usually pretended not to see or hear what happened in the house, she was a warm-hearted person and wanted Yoonseo to be happy.
“Oh, really.”
At that moment, Yoonseo’s eyes turned cold.
“I told him what I knew.”
“Yes.”
She replied shortly, as if she had no interest, and turned her head away, as though holding something back.
“He seemed worried.”
Mrs. Kim gathered her courage again.
Yoonseo turned to look at her. Judging by her expression, Mrs. Kim felt she should stop—but she spoke anyway.
“He seemed… sorry.”
Yoonseo’s eyebrow twitched.
Something stirred in her fixed gaze. Mrs. Kim didn’t know what else to say. Whether he was sorry or not was only her guess.
Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything.
Just as Mrs. Kim began to regret it, Yoonseo spoke.
“No way.”
It was short but firm.
“He’s not that kind of person.”
Her eyes twisted sadly again. Mrs. Kim thought she really had spoken unnecessarily. Whether it was true or not, she had only hoped Yoonseo’s heart might be comforted a little—but this wasn’t something that could be eased so easily.
Seungwoo came in while the awkward silence continued. Yoonseo had tried to calm her eyes, but they were still swollen.
He glanced at Yoonseo and sat across from her.
Without saying a word, Seungwoo picked up his utensils.
They usually ate in silence, but today the atmosphere was especially heavy. Mrs. Kim felt like she would suffocate just sitting there and quietly left the dining room.
Seungwoo usually replaced breakfast with a salad topped with chicken breast. Dry meat and tasteless vegetables—he always finished it without complaint.
But today, he barely ate.
Yoonseo lifted her head. Seungwoo’s eyes were dark, as if lost in thought.
Normally, he read economic news or stock trends on his tablet during breakfast. Even after work—and even after getting home—he had no time to look because of work.
But today, he didn’t even turn on the tablet.
Yoonseo took a spoonful of crab soup.
“Ah—”
Maybe because she was tense, she spilled it without realizing. The hot soup touched her injured palm, and a groan escaped her.
Seeing Yoonseo clutch her hand, Seungwoo suddenly stood up.
Before she could move away, he approached and grabbed her hand, forcing it open. The healed wound split open again, and she groaned once more.
“Did you… treat it?”
The warm air from his breath only made her more flustered.
“No.”
“Tsk.”
Looking irritated, he quickly left the dining room.
It’s fine.
She thought about standing up and leaving, but even that felt tiring now. She just held her injured hand.
When he returned, surprisingly, he was carrying a first-aid kit.
He could have called Mrs. Kim or another staff member. It wasn’t something he needed to do himself, especially when he lived by the minute.
Just as Yoonseo was about to say she was fine, he opened her hand again and carefully disinfected the wound and applied ointment.
She had expected his touch to be rough, but it was gentle—careful. Like the way he used to touch her in bed, when he loved her completely, as if he were a different person.
“He seemed… sorry.”
Mrs. Kim’s words echoed in her mind.
After straightening up, Seungwoo turned away as if nothing had happened and left the dining room, more than half his breakfast untouched.
“Madam, is the food not to your taste?”
A little later, Mrs. Kim came in and asked worriedly. Yoonseo forced her expression to steady.
It didn’t seem like she was truly curious about the food. Seeing both of them leave breakfast untouched in such a heavy atmosphere must have troubled her.
“No, it’s good. I just don’t feel very well.”
“Oh dear. Then should I make you some plum tea? It’s good for the stomach.”
“No, I’ll just rest and eat lunch later. I’m sorry—you worked so hard to prepare it.”
Mrs. Kim bowed, looking flustered.
“No, don’t be sorry. If you’re not feeling well, it’s better not to eat. Just leave it. I’ll clean up.”
Watching Mrs. Kim tidy up, Yoonseo asked quietly,
“Did he really seem sorry?”
Mrs. Kim looked up.
Seeing Yoonseo’s trembling eyes, she let out a light sigh.
“I can’t read minds. And the boss doesn’t talk much. But… that’s just how it felt to me.”
It couldn’t be true—but stupidly, she wanted to believe it.
Even knowing she would be the only one hurt.
“Thank you for being honest.”
Yoonseo said that and left the dining room.
She needed to see Seungwoo off.
When she stepped into the hallway leading to the entrance, Seungwoo was already fully dressed in his suit, holding his phone to his ear.
“Yes, Manager Han. Are all the documents I mentioned ready?”
It was an ordinary call, but just hearing the name “Manager Han” made Yoonseo’s spine feel cold again.
She couldn’t leave things like this.
“Alright.”
After ending the call, Seungwoo looked at Yoonseo with indifferent eyes.
“What is it?”
Yoonseo stared at him quietly, then let out a soft sigh.
Her palm—the one he had treated—throbbed faintly, as if sending a signal to her heart.
“Um… did you clean up the glasses yesterday?”
She wasn’t really asking because she thought so. She just felt like she needed to say something, but nothing came to mind.
Seungwoo looked at her with a strange expression for a moment. His lips moved, then closed again.
As if he was hesitating.
“Why?”
He asked, turning his gaze away.
“You stepped on them and broke them completely. What would you even use them for?”
“No… it’s nothing.”
Yoonseo sighed softly and looked up again.
He was right. There was nothing she could do with glasses that were already broken.
With only a month left, she didn’t know what would happen. She felt like she couldn’t just let today pass like this.
“Um… President.”
After taking a deep breath, Yoonseo looked at him with firmer eyes than before.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
Seungwoo, sensing the change in her attitude, looked at her with slight tension.
