Chapter 9
“I’ve been thinking about you… for a long time now,” Woojin confessed in a husky tone, his hands gripping both of her arms as they sensuously descended along the smooth curves of her skin. Hyein winced, her body immobilized, her trembling gaze locked with Woojin’s, and her focus wavering.
“You’re incredibly soft,” he murmured, desire smoldering in his eyes, “I want to touch you, explore you.”
Deep down, Hyein knew she should resist his unfamiliar touch, but the overwhelming anticipation of what might follow left her paralyzed, and she chose to do nothing.
Taking her lack of resistance as consent, Woojin gently caressed her, his fingers tracing over a plump contour. Hyein almost involuntarily pressed her hand against the back of his veined hand. Woojin lowered his head, capturing her lips in a passionate kiss.
“Mmph, Director Shin, please wait,” Hyein managed to utter.
Hyein was conflicted. She felt a sense of humiliation, but the escalating madness overshadowed it as she observed their explicit reflection in the mirror. The sensation of his warm breath against her ear was torturous, laden with insinuation. Finally, when Hyein instinctively pushed him away with her shoulder at the brink of her composure, Woojin responded by biting her clavicle with his teeth.
A gasp and a moan escaped her lips.
She glimpsed her crimson reflection in the mirror, a testament to the moment’s intensity. Woojin stood behind her, arms wrapped around her, keeping her close.
Was it the memory of their past or his expertise that elicited such a response from her body?
With her heart pounding uncontrollably within her chest, Hyein admonished herself, I shouldn’t…
“Ah, it hurts,” she gasped.
Woojin continued kissing her passionately, sucking on her tender skin as if trying to absorb her essence. Eventually, he raised his head slightly and gazed at Hyein’s reflection in the mirror. His eyes had taken on an unusual shade of red; the strange energy she had sensed earlier now intensified. To make matters more provocative, she could feel the subtle outline of his excitement pressing against the hem of her skirt.
Hyein looked back at him in surprise.
“D-Director Shin?” she stammered, her doubts stemming from his unusually aloof expression. However, she could unmistakably feel his arousal. Uncertain of how to address it, she remained silent.
Woojin traced Hyein’s moist lips with his finger, and her mouth instinctively opened, forming an ‘o’ shape. His fingertip delicately traced the top row of her teeth before continuing its descent, trailing down her chin and neck, finally resting on the teeth marks he had personally left on her shoulder.
His breathing grew shallower, his voice a tantalizing whisper in her ear, “Seo Hyein.”
Hyein released a soft moan in response, their eyes locked in an intimate connection.
“Shall we stay here tonight?” Woojin suggested, his words filled with desire.
Unconsciously, Hyein reached out behind him, clutching the hem of his shirt, her desire undeniable.
Act 4
Hyein’s eyes trembled like a deer caught in the headlights as she locked her gaze onto Woojin. Aware of his aversion to uncertainty, she asked directly, without hesitation, “Would you like to sleep with me?”
Instead of responding immediately , Woojin turned her body towards him and gently stroked her flushed cheeks. His palm grazed her heated skin and, whether by accident or design, lightly brushed over her lips. Throughout this tactile exploration, he kept his unwavering gaze fixed on her as if attempting to decipher her thoughts.
He eventually belatedly replied , “There happens to be a bed here, and you’re quite attractive. Isn’t it inevitable that we’ll engage in a more intimate dance sooner or later?”
Upon hearing his answer, Hyein’s racing heart began to settle. Woojin had never resorted to vague excuses like this when he had confessed his love or expressed his desire for her in the past. He had always chosen honesty over ambiguity. Reflecting on his past passionate and sincere declarations, Hyein discerned the distinction between then and now, and she snapped back to reality.
To Woojin, this was purely a business transaction, spurred on by the presence of a convenient bed and a woman named Seo Hyein. She had mistakenly believed that he genuinely desired her, leading to her unnecessary question. She felt a pang of embarrassment.
“Please leave,” she uttered firmly.
“Seo Hyein?” Woojin appeared puzzled by her sudden change in demeanor, given that she had previously acquiesced to his touches.
They say poverty can erode good manners, and Hyein had rashly accepted his proposal without much resistance. However, she had harbored concerns about this very issue from the start. She feared she would blur the lines between the past and the present, reality and pretense. While Woojin was a shrewd businessman capable of separating business from personal matters, Hyein found it more challenging.
Their agreement wasn’t rooted in genuine emotions; it was a pretense. She needed to remain vigilant and cognizant of this fact. Hyein had already been swayed by emotions from the beginning, consenting to too many things, and she couldn’t afford to give any more ground to him.
“It’s time for me to go home.”
“You have a curfew even though you live alone?”
“I try to, precisely because I live alone… Besides, the security in my neighborhood isn’t the best, as you mentioned. You also pointed out that it’s only a matter of time before we become intimate. Perhaps next time.”
Woojin’s expression stiffened slightly. It formed an inscrutable barrier that Hyein couldn’t penetrate as she tried to gauge whether he bought into this flimsy excuse. They stood there, locked in a tense standoff, and an uncomfortable silence lingered between them.
Then, for reasons unclear, Woojin took a step back.
Their once-intimate closeness dissipated, and they retreated to their original positions. Perhaps they were meant to be these parallel lines all along, separated by a considerable distance—just right for a pair who had once loved each other passionately and then come to hate each other to the point of torment. Now, they found themselves in an ambiguous relationship that defied easy definition.
“I need to change my clothes. Please leave,” Hyein urged, her voice slightly irritated.
But Woojin had other plans. He stepped back and walked over to a table adorned with various accessories. He appraised Hyein’s appearance from a distance as if evaluating her overall look. After scrutinizing her from head to toe, he carefully selected a clutch and some accessories that complemented her dress, placing them on the table.
“Complete your look with these,” he directed.
Finally, Woojin handed a pair of nude-toned shoes to Hyein. She hesitated, unsure of whether he intended for her to wear them. However, Woojin brushed aside her concerns.
In an oddly incongruous move, he knelt on one knee and bent his back, gently placing Hyein’s left foot on his knee before silently sliding the shoe on.
“What are you doing?” Hyein exclaimed, surprised by his actions.
Without answering, he repeated the gesture on her other foot before looking up at her.
“Is it a comfortable fit? Let me know if it’s not.”
As he checked to ensure the shoes were a proper fit, Woojin ran his finger along her ankle to her heel. Each touch sent a shiver down Hyein’s spine, and she couldn’t help but glance down at him. His hair brushed lightly in the breeze, making him look exceptionally handsome.
Hyein examined the high heels ; they were the right size, yet they felt peculiar on her feet.
After a moment of hesitation, she finally spoke up, “Director Shin, did you know that wearing shoes that don’t fit properly can hurt your heels?”
“It doesn’t fit? That can’t be right,” Woojin responded, concerned.
“The shoes fit perfectly, but you’re the wrong fit for me, Director Shin.”
No matter how she looked at it, she would only get hurt. She knew that all too well.
Hyein couldn’t determine whether Woojin was aware of this as he gazed at her with his intense, unyielding eyes. Unable to maintain eye contact any longer, she turned her head away. Only then did Woojin rise to his feet and grasp her chin, forcing her to look at him. He delved deep into her eyes.
His tone grew sharp in an instant. “Didn’t I tell you to look at me when I’m in front of you? And wouldn’t it be more fitting to describe me as an unclimbable tree instead of the wrong-sized shoe?”
“That’s precisely why I’m telling you this. Whether you’re an ill-fitting shoe or an unclimbable tree, it doesn’t matter. We’ve already broken up once, and our relationship is strained. So, there’s no need for you to be unnecessarily kind to me. I know how to put on shoes.”
Woojin appeared unable to grasp her words, remaining silent as if urging her to continue. Hyein obliged.
“I’m telling you not to treat me well without reason. If you’re doing this out of guilt, thinking you need to repay some debt to me, then I believe a straightforward apology would be more appropriate.”
Upon hearing Hyein’s words, Woojin’s expression took on a peculiar twist, and he fell silent, his dark eyes filled with confusion.
Eventually, he stammered, “Isn’t that what I should be saying? You were the one who broke up with me.”
Hyein had assumed that this seemingly considerate gesture was because Woojin had finally begun to regret his past actions. The business arrangement was merely an excuse, and in reality, Woojin was being genuinely thoughtful.
Yet, even after eight years had passed, it seemed that Woojin still had no intention of revealing the truth. Hyein was convinced of this when she observed how wounded he appeared at the mention of their breakup.
Incredulously, she asked, “Do you truly have nothing else to say to me? I was the one who ended the relationship?”
“Isn’t it the truth?” Woojin retorted, his tone defensive. “Besides, I don’t owe you anything. If anything, it’s the other way around. Satisfied?”
With his response, Hyein felt like he had erected an impenetrable barrier. She had no intention of breaking it down.
Hyein’s voice still trembled despite trying to maintain her composure as she replied, “I understand. I’ll take the shoes. I want to go home now.”
Hyein descended the steps from the dressing area and headed towards the exit. As she bent down to pick up her fallen clothes, preparing to leave the dressing room, Woojin seized her arm on her way out.
“You’re leaving right now? In this weather?”
His eyes fixed on Hyein’s bare shoulders, and she let out a soft sigh before reluctantly retreating into the dressing room. With a swift motion, she pulled the curtains shut once more.
Amidst the rustling of clothes, the comforting bass of Woojin’s voice permeated the space, “Come out after you’ve changed.”
They were in the same room, yet they were worlds apart.
Cinderella jolted from a sweet dream back into a harsh reality, stood forlornly in front of the mirror. Meanwhile, the prince, bearing a glass slipper, walked away with confident strides.
The door clicked shut, and Woojin sighed deeply.
“The wrong-sized shoe?”
After taking a few more steps, he abruptly halted and bit his lip in frustration. “Am I really doing this to repay a debt? Is she serious?”
Woojin clenched both fists, attempting to contain his anger. He turned to gaze at the securely shut dressing room door. He believed he knew Hyein better than anyone else, but since the day she ended their relationship, understanding her had become an insurmountable challenge. He couldn’t fathom why she regarded him with such resentful eyes as though she were the wronged party here.
Chief Ha suddenly appeared before the agitated Woojin.