CH 4

Ji-an should not have acted this way toward Seung-joon. This could not have happened if he had known even a little bit about the hardships Seung-joon had to go through in order to marry him. Seung-joon has already paid too much for Ji-an.

Of course, Ji-an also gave up something because of Seung-joon. Chairman Woo, who had to accept Ji-an because of his face, issued conditions on him after Seung-joon announced his marriage.

Retire from the entertainment industry cleanly.

It was a natural request for Chairman Woo. Seung-joon also agreed with Chairman Woo’s request.

After all, his career in the entertainment industry was short-lived. It was expected that someday in the distant future, Ji-an would recall the glory of the past and wonder what would have happened if he had continued to work at that time. However, he was sure that Ji-an would remember it as mere curiosity and that choosing Seung-joon right away was the best deal.

What Seung-joon gave Ji-an was more than just material wealth. Seung-joon gave Ji-an a rank. e made him reign above the career that could only be maintained by flattering the general public.

“It’s not as bad as it looks to me. How can I forget what I’ve been hearing in my ears over the past two years?”

“You’re going to get it one day… I, how much.”

Regardless, Ji-an stopped loving Seung-joon that day.

From that moment on, Seung-joon became lonely like a dusty winter clothes closet. Or like a doorknob in a warehouse that no one opens. As much as a multipurpose chair in the laundry room. To Ji-an, Seung-joon was no longer a man, let alone a person, but it seemed as if he had just become a thing. He didn’t know when or where he lost Ji-an.

“Come back.”

To me. Seung-joon pleaded with a painful frown on his face.

When he opened his eyes, he noticed Ji-an’s gaze was focused on his brows. A 1 cm scar could be found near the tip of his right brow. It was difficult to see with the naked eye after several laser treatments, but when his face turned bright red, faint traces were exposed. Seung-joon’s face was most likely flushed red.

Seung-joon took a deep breath and tried to calm down. He spoke in a colder tone than he had intended.

“I will forgive you for once.”

As he asked the previous time, even if Ji-an said he had someone else, he could turn a blind eye for once. Although love has an expiration date, no law states that marriage does. That was the case with Seung-joon’s marriage.

Ji-an’s expression changed as he stared blankly at Seung-joon’s scar on the edge of his brow. It turned cold and changed into an unfamiliar expression.

“Prepare the paperwork. I’d like to start by organizing everything if possible. That will be good for you too.”

“Then file a lawsuit. There is no agreement on my part.”

When a person was hurt, their mind became naive and cowardly. In fact, he did not believe the article that Ji-an was in the process of divorce. Ji-an was not foolish enough to file a lawsuit against Seung-joon. He didn’t have money for that. It was absurd to file a lawsuit against Seung-joon with Seung-joon’s money.

“Even if I don’t explain it, you know what will happen if you file a lawsuit against me.”

It could mean divorce, but it also meant he couldn’t receive alimony from Seung-joon. Seung-joon could have made it so that Ji-an didn’t have a single penny on him when he left this house. It was not for this reason that Son & Hong’s senior attorney, who was well-respected throughout the company, was hired as the legal team’s team leader.

Ji-an burst out laughing and rose from his seat in response to Seung-joon’s serious threat. He even shook his head left and right with an absurd and ridiculous expression.

“Can I give you a piece of advice?”

Ji-an put on his sunglasses, placed his hand on his back, and pondered his next words. Finally, he spoke to Seung-joon, who was struggling to breathe.

“It’s impossible to love you, hyung. So, be prepared when you meet the next person. That person is marrying you for your money.”

Ji-an turned and left the Sky Lounge.

Seung-joon’s week of binge drinking began on this day.

***

It was the seventh day that Seung-joon had been drinking whiskey on an empty stomach every night.

He had vowed that this would be the last day he did this. His health was harmed because he slept less and tortured his stomach with excessive drinking. He got drunk faster than usual.

Seung-joon rubbed the tip of his right brow habitually. It was a spot with a 1 cm scar that stood out white only when his complexion changed. This was also a decoration made by Ji-an.

When he was dating Ji-an, Seung-joon studied dating methods in various ways. He didn’t want to hide in a hotel like couples who have to be aware of their surroundings.

Seung-joon wanted a secret relationship with Ji-an, not a secret meeting. Seung-joon wanted to be a man invited to Ji-an’s house. As a result, he wanted to do everything a normal lover would do.

Seung-joon devised another method to avoid people’s eyes: sea fishing. However, Seung-joon’s efforts to take the time to even obtain a small ship pilot’s license were futile on the first date. Ji-an was only traumatized on this particular day.

The problem was Ji-an’s fishing hook, which he threw as practice. The hook got caught in Seung-joon’s brow when Ji-an swung the fishing rod behind his back without thinking. Ji-an had no idea and had even slightly pulled the fishing rod, causing Seung-joon’s face to bleed.

It was a needle with a long tip and a lot of barbs. He was relieved he hadn’t ripped his eyelids. Blood had seeped into his right eye, turning his vision bright red.

Ji-an’s reaction surprised Seung-joon more than the pain.

Seung-joon had previously thought that Ji-an was someone who maintained his composure no matter what happened. When Ji-an saw the blood, his face turned white and his entire body trembled. Seung-joon couldn’t make a single sound of pain because Ji-an looked like he would pass out if he did.

Seung-joon hurriedly cut the fishing line and, with a needle attached to his brow, rowed to the nearest shore and to a nearby clinic.

The doctor who ran a small rural clinic was elderly and had tremors. Seung-joon struggled to hide his anxiety and pain because Ji-an was nearby and, ‘Doctor, disinfect. You need to sterilize the scalpel,’ he interjected. His fists clenched tightly together and trembled.

Ji-an burst into tears as soon as the minor operation of tearing and stitching the skin on her brows and forehead was finished.

‘Doesn’t it hurt?’

‘I don’t feel much because I’m anesthetized.’

‘But what if it becomes infected? What if it leaves a scar?’

Ji-an trembled with his hands raised, unable to touch the gauze-padded piece. His eyes, twinkling with tears looked at Seung-joon. He had a worried and scared expression on his face and didn’t know what to do. Seung-joon smiled because he was in a good mood.

‘Then that would be great.’

Ji-an sniffed his nose and made a confused expression. Seung-joon smiled brightly while wearing a blood-stained T-shirt.

‘If it leaves a scar, you’ll be nice to me every time you see it because you felt guilty.’

Ji-an smiled and kissed him with a face glistening with tears and a runny nose. Seung-joon’s hand stroking his back wiped away his tremor. Ji-an’s sigh of relief crossed his lips and became Seung-joon’s breath. Seung-joon liked the fact that he could reassure Ji-an.

Even though he said that, he found it difficult to live with a scar on his face, so he underwent laser treatment for a half year. Thick makeup helped until the scars faded. Hair root transplantation was also performed in some areas where the brows had healed.

Seung-joon remembered Ji-an’s expression from a week ago while staring at the corner of his brows in the Sky Lounge. Perhaps it was because Seung-joon’s attempts to conceal the scar had gone too far, so Ji-an no longer felt guilty after seeing it. It was so painful that he couldn’t help but drink alcohol.

Alcohol didn’t solve any problems. But it made him forget the problem.

Seung-joon stared at the glass on the cocktail bar table, recalling the things he wished he could forget. As a result, Seung-joon called Ji-an while drunk a few days ago, bringing shame on himself.

‘Why do you want to divorce all of a sudden? Is it really because there is someone else? Really?’

Ji-an, who was bringing the divorce papers in by agreement, replied, ‘I can’t simply tell the truth.’ It wasn’t a total denial. Furthermore, Seung-joon’s suspicion was justified for another reason.

It had been a while since Ji-an had expressed boredom, but he was never cold even in bed. The situation in bed was always good. It was good enough to make him feel relieved that they were still together.

But just before he asked for a divorce, Ji-an had kept Seung-joon from touching him for about two months. So, apart from the conviction that Ji-an would not be a great person to have an affair even after waking up from death, it was difficult to speculate.

The answer that came back to Seung-joon’s question was speculative.

‘…I’m going to try to do it at least once from now on.’

‘What?’

‘Isn’t it a waste of my life to live like this, knowing only you? Shouldn’t I try to meet someone new at least once? Like an alpha eight years younger than me.’

Seung-joon pressed the call-end button. In any case, that sentence irritated him.

Seung-joon raised his glass to his lips and drank the whiskey. He signaled the bartender by tapping the empty glass.

“Let’s call it quits for the day. You’re going to get in big trouble, Director Woo.”