“Huu…”
I held my head up straight, embracing Hajin deeper to avoid falling from the chilling sensation. Having reached his climax, he looked up at me with the expression of a satiated lion. I brushed away the hair stuck to his forehead and kissed him. He smiled at me with his eyes half-closed.
“Don’t smile. What did you do well that deserves smiling?”
“What about you? Why did you kiss the forehead of a boyfriend who hasn’t done anything good?”
“Because the handsome forehead is innocent.”
“And I’m guilty?”
I nodded slightly. Hajin laughed, saying he didn’t realize he ranked lower than his forehead. Then, looking over my shoulder, his face suddenly crumpled.
“Why are you making that face with your handsome features?”
“I think I missed a good show.”
Since Hajin’s gaze was fixated somewhere on my body, I rolled my eyes, thinking he meant watching me was the good show. But he seemed to mean something else as he carefully placed me down beside him and grabbed the remote to turn on the news.
What news would he want to watch on a weekday morning?
Hajin flipped through channels before stopping. I was quietly watching his actions, forgetting to pick up and put on my clothes. I couldn’t take my eyes off his body reflecting in the sunlight. Maybe because I’d only seen it at night for a while, but seeing his well-defined muscles in broad daylight made him look even more impressive.
“What are you doing?”
“Huh?”
“Stop looking at me and watch the news.”
Hajin gestured toward the news with his chin, lifting the corners of his mouth. Only then did I turn my attention to the news.
[This is HBN Social News Part 1. This morning at 10, a broadcasting station reported on several events shaking the business world that occurred simultaneously. HBN will quickly investigate the related individuals and schedule special broadcasts at 2 PM and 4 PM today. The content for each time slot is as follows.]
2 PM – Spotlight on business figures involved in scandals
4 PM – The reality of Y-dong development project tainted with drugs, gambling, and organized crime.
Over the caption, I could hear the anchor’s voice naming those involved. Even listening carefully, there was no news related to Fashion Group H. The only unusual thing was that several incidents were reported simultaneously, unlike the regular news. So I tilted my head and looked at Hajin.
“Is this the good show?”
“Oh, I missed the original broadcast because I was with you. I would have given them an exclusive tip… This is all because you’re too sexy.”
“You tipped them off? Why?”
There’s no way Hajin, who’s indifferent to matters unrelated to him, would have tipped them off out of overflowing righteousness. Like how he handled Secretary Kim’s case, he probably first passed the materials to a prosecutor and then dropped sources to the media. Could it be that he created this case to divert public attention focused on me? If so, that would be something to be grateful for, but it seemed too large in scale just to get rid of annoying reporters.
Hajin looked at me with a meaningful expression, then bent down to pick up his shirt. With nothing underneath and all the buttons torn off, wearing just the shirt looked even more provocative than being naked. I quickly averted my gaze and methodically collected and put on my clothes.
“Answer me. You wouldn’t have tipped off a broadcasting station about people who have nothing to do with you.”
His lips, which I thought wouldn’t give me an answer, finally opened.
“This isn’t related to you, it’s just my sense of debt… I couldn’t let it go.”
The gentle voice that didn’t match his cold expression made me certain. That the things covered in that news were related to Yoon Juwon.
“You probably don’t remember, but Chairman Seo made you do dirty work, and you got the main model position and money in return. I knew all that but didn’t do anything for you. I was too busy resenting you to notice how much you were falling apart.”
He spoke with a detached attitude as if it were someone else’s story. Yet I, the actual outsider, couldn’t be as detached as Hajin. I was confused, fearing he might still be captivated by the past Yoon Juwon. Worried that at this rate, I might live forever as someone else’s shadow.
“Then I realized. That not once had I ever stopped loving Yoon Juwon. That even my hatred and resentment were all because I loved you.”
His sincere confession continued. I rested my forehead against his chest to hide my expression. It felt like I might cry at the slightest touch, but I bit down hard and held back.
“Of course… I find you more lovable now that you’ve lost your memories. You in the past…”
Hajin, having said this much, laughed silently. Then continued.
“Wasn’t very lovable, was he?”
Even if I couldn’t erase the past Yoon Juwon who was his first love, it was enough if he loved me now. That was like taking away a man’s first love. So I decided not to waste my life obsessing over traces left by the past Yoon Juwon anymore.
With the brothers’ help, I cleared my false murder charge, and the sponsorship issue that was Yoon Juwon’s weakness was also cleanly resolved. From now on, I just needed to live as a reformed Yoon Juwon.
Since when did I become so greedy, trying to monopolize someone’s heart? Even I wasn’t giving my heart only to Hajin… That would be too selfish.
“Loving me now is enough.”
I spoke with a forceful voice, trying not to sob. Hajin removed my head from his chest and looked into my eyes. The corners of his eyes looking down at me curved downward.
“If such a personality was hidden inside you, why didn’t you show it earlier?”
“What personality?”
“Your second personality. I found out that even in a state of dissociative identity disorder, the second personality is aware that there was an original personality? Do you know that too? Second Juwon.”
I was so shocked by Hajin’s unexpected words that my mind couldn’t function properly. For a while, I just stared at him blankly. Then, belatedly coming to my senses, I thought.
Second personality?
Does Seo Hajin think the reason I’m acting like a completely different person isn’t because of memory loss but because multiple personality disorder manifested late?
It was a more convincing argument than possession or reincarnation, but since Hajin had never revealed his true thoughts to me before, I didn’t know he was thinking this.
“Why are you so surprised? Are you afraid I might long for Yoon Juwon’s original personality now?”
Hajin wrapped his arm around my shoulder and whispered in my ear.
“I’d like your current self to win over your previous self. Do you understand what I mean?”
The moment I heard his words, my vision blurred and my head buzzed. I never expected to hear such words at the very moment I’d resolved not to cling to him loving the past Yoon Juwon. It felt as if all the anxiety I’d been feeling melted away with just one sentence.
Hajin’s eyes looking at me were filled with trust and affection. Feeling overwhelmed, I kissed his lips. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss.
From the way his hand pressed against my head, as if unable to bear even the brief moment our lips separated, I could feel his desperate heart. I deeply inhaled his breath that invaded my mouth. My jealousy was gradually disappearing in our mouths.
* * *
After the cold winter passed, spring arrived. I felt the seasons in a way I hadn’t before. The trees in the front yard began wearing green clothes, and flowers revealed their faces one by one. I often became languid from the warm energy that rushed in just by opening a window.
It felt like a year had passed since I came here, but it was amazing that only two seasons had gone by. I sniffed the air, wrinkling my nose to catch the scent of the wind. Smelling the flower fragrance carried by the wind, I realized I was a living person.
During this time, Hajin stabilized the stock price with diligent management. But sometimes he would neglect company work, saying he couldn’t lose to Hahyun, and on those days Hyunwoo would call as if he’d been waiting and take him away.
Today again, after eating a late breakfast, I was sighing as I watched Hajin being lazy with various excuses when my phone rang.
I handed the phone to Hajin and said:
“Here, a call from your office wife.”
“As if I’d have such a thing…”
After saying that, Hajin smirked at the name displayed on the phone.
“Hyunwoo is my wife?”
“You can’t deny it, can you? He’s the one who searches for you most desperately.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“What do you mean ‘that’s true’? Just answer the phone already. It’s so loud I’m going crazy.”
Hajin answered the phone and uttered “I don’t know,” “Why,” “So,” “I don’t want to,” and “Figure it out yourself” before hanging up. Even though it was obvious that Hyunwoo would come all the way to the house anyway, I couldn’t understand why he was causing unnecessary trouble.
