Chapter 23 - Capture

The raspberry pink mermaid gown worn by Jinhee flattered her pale skin tone, and her hair was styled into a elegant bun. Coupled with the light male up, her appearance stood out moderately within the crowd.

As Jinhee stepped into the ballroom being Jaehyun's partners, she attracted multiple eyes towards her. Whilst some eyes showed surprise towards her, the others held scorn.

Their gazes was something Jinhee was used to for she received them a lot in her last life when she went somewhere public with Jaehyun. Even though being under these eyes made Jinhee feel anxious in the beginning, she was quite used to it now.

"Are you hungry?" Jaehyun questioned.

His voice held gentleness, bringing surprise to Jinhee. Usually when it came to talking with strangers, Jaehyun would use a nonchalant tone, and currently, he was nothing more than that to him.

"I'm alright," Jinhee replied.

Rather than staying at one corner and filling her stomach with food, it was better for her to come out to the crowd and communicate with them no matter how much better the former one sounded.

"I'm here," Jaehyun spoke out.

Jaehyun was not the one to bluff from as much as Jinhee knew him in her previous life, and every word of his were treated with great significance. Therefore, those words of his was earnest.

Jinhee's heart fluttered as those words reached her ear, and hope began to rise within her. However, as soon as that happened, Jinhee extinguished the hope within herself.

'No, Lee Jinhee, you can not be dependent on anyone and let yourself fall weak this time around.'

"Thank you, Jaehyun-ssi, but I'm sure I'll be able to handle it," Jinhee answered courteously.

"If there is anything that makes you uncomfortable, don't hesitate to let me know about it," Jaehyun voiced out. Him ignoring Jinhee's previous words showed how he was not in agreement to them.

With that, Jaehyun continued in his steps, and Jinhee followed after him. Scanning around the place, Jinhee's eyes landed on a golden masked man standing by the staircase.

Those green eyes of him radiated an strong atmosphere that even Jinhee was able to sense it, and it made one be at wary of him. Even though Jinhee found his features quite familiar, the green eyes of his was different; She had never seen them before.

No matter how ridiculous her assumption was, she left that those eyes of his was not similar to the ones she had seen in the birthday party last time. It made almost made Jinhee think that this male was someone different.

"Congratulations on your acquisition, Mr. Shin. As my father was troubled with his health recently, he was not able to attend. Nonetheless, he conveys his congrat," Jaehyun politely spoke out.

Jinhee's eyes stared at the middle-aged couple in front of her and recognized them. Shin Changmin and Shin Sekyung was a loving who treated Jaehyun like their own son.

In her last life, Jinhee visited their house number of times with Jaehyun and found the couple extremely hospitable. Since Jinhee was Jaehyun's girlfriend, they were welcoming to her, and unlike many, they accepted her without any objections.

"I hope your father on a well recovery. Who's the lovely lady beside you?" Changmin asked in a light-hearted tone.

"Lee Jinhee, my classmate," Jaehyun concisely answered.

After a respectful 45° bow towards them, Jinhee spoke out, "I'm Lee Jinhee."

"Come over at our house with Jinhee at Sunday. I'd like to know more about that girl that managed to capture your heart," Sekyung voiced out.

"I'll be there, Ms. Shin."

Surprise overcame Jinhee as she heard Jaehyun's words; He didn't deny Shin Sekyung's last sentence. Jaehyun was not the one to let someone he respected misunderstand without a reason, and with how things went in this life, it was not possible for Jaehyun to fall for her.

"The dance will begin in a while. You two should enjoy," Changmin spoke out.