His ex-fiancee looks impeccable as ever as she stands tall in Ri Jeong-Hyeok's office, a long tan Coach trench coat thrown over a periwinkle dress. The gaze she's throwing at Ri Jeong-Hyeok is completely calm. The only sign that she's feeling any emotion at all is the way her fingers are clenched around a copy of that cursed magazine.
"Ah," she says, looking at the identical copy on his desk. "So you have seen it."
Silence stretches across the room, as it always seems to when the two of them are together.
"Care to explain?" asks Seo Dan, sitting down stiffly at the edge of his visitor's chair.
"I'm not sure that I can," says Jeong-Hyeok honestly, after a moment of pause. This does not sit well with Seo Dan.
"Do you know why I threw the glass of water at you that day, Ri Jeong-Hyeok-ssi?" says Seo-Dan, after a moment. "It wasn't because you ended our engagement, actually. That's not what made me so upset. It was because you wouldn't tell me why."
"Tell me, Ri Jeong-Hyeok-ssi," Dan points to the blurred image in the paper. "Is this woman the reason why? Were you cheating on me with her? The author of this paper certainly seems to think so. After all, it's only been five days since we broke up."
This is perhaps the most the proud and cold Seo-Dan has ever opened up to him. Jeong-Hyeok feels a stab of guilt; of course she's reached this conclusion, given the timing of this particular picture.
"Dan-ah," his voice is as gentle as he can make it. "The end of our engagement had nothing to do with this girl. You were to be my brother's fiancee. We all grew up together. I just – how is it fair? If I steal the life that was meant for him?"
"It felt right to you when you agreed to the marriage," points out Seo-Dan, and the old veneer of coldness is back in her voice. "You didn't have any problem with it then. But when wedding invitations have gone out, when I've picked out a dress, then you suddenly get cold feet?"
Jeong-Hyeok doesn't know how to tell her that what she's saying isn't actually true. He doesn't know how to tell her about the nightmares he's been having ever since he agreed to this engagement; dreams of all three of them running around happily on the playground in preschool, morphed into images of Ri Mu-Hyeok, his face scratched and broken from glass, rising from the grave to ask his brother why he's marrying his one true love.
"Mu-Hyeok loved you," he says instead. "And I – you know I never could."
Seo-Dan flinches, and then Jeong-Hyeok feels terrible. In the world of business, being direct has always paid off, but what's been his greatest asset in the company now seems only to cause pain to others.
"I don't care if you think you would have loved me or not," she says. "You would have learned to. But humiliating me like this? That's below you, Ri Jeong-Hyeok-ssi. And that's something I won't forget."
Is that a threat? Jeong-Hyeok wants to ask, but before he can voice the words, Seo Dan's standing up to go.
"If you were cheating on me," the magazine is now crumpled in her hands, though her voice is still steady. "I will find out. And I'll find out who the girl is, and then I'll have a juicy tabloid story to share with the world."
And with that, Seo Dan storms out of his office, tossing the paper in his garbage can as she goes.
***
After she's gone, Jeong-Hyeok rubs the bridge of his nose reflectively. It's hard to imagine how that encounter could have been worse.
He pulls out his cell phone, and the stares at the number he's been thinking of dialing since this morning.
Should he warn Se-ri about Seo Dan's threats? Should he apologize for this mess? She's probably not used to such media attention...
Before he can talk himself out of it, he quickly presses the green button next to her name. And – it goes to voicemail.
Jeong-Hyeok hangs up and tries to rationalize away the disappointment that's materialized in his chest. What could she be doing?
Work, he reminds himself, turning on his laptop. He does have a company to run. He will just focus on work. Yes.
That morning, Jeong-Hyeok reads every app notification that comes on his phone – the Twitter notifications, his home alarm system's updates, every news article from The Economist. At 12pm, he's about to start opening a coupon from the Home Shopping Network when finally – finally – Yoon Se-ri calls him back.
"Hello?" Her voice is oddly cheerful, given the circumstances. "You called this morning?"
"Ah, Yoon Se-ri." He takes care to make his voice sound as casual as possible. "I wanted to call you about the news that came out today. I'm sure you must have been flustered to see it."
"What news?" Ah, so she hasn't seen it. "Wait, you mean that blurry picture that came out in Dispatches? Why would I be flustered over that?" Never mind.
"I thought that you wouldn't be used to being in tabloids," he feels vaguely foolish now. "I thought I would provide you with some comfort, as someone who's used to being in the media eye."
"You can't even see my face in the photo," Se-ri points out logically. "So why would I care? You sound more flustered than me."
Jeong-Hyeok scoffs loudly. "That's ridiculous! Why would I be – I don't know – well," he sighs, giving in. "My ex-fiancee thinks I was two-timing her with you. So does the entire population who subscribes to this sorry-excuse-for-news."
Se-ri tsks on the other end. "Ouch. And in five weeks, you'll break up with me, and then you'll really seem like a player."
"A player? Of what?" Some sort of game?
"Ri Jeong-hyeok-ssi, exactly how old are you? Don't tell me you don't know what a player is! It's a man who has many different girlfriends. Who can't settle down!"
"Oh." Jeong-hyeok finds his lips turning downwards. "I don't like that." She laughs merrily at his words.
"It's okay. I mean, nobody who meets you will actually believe you're a player. You didn't seem like one to me."
"What did I seem like to you?" Jeong-Hyeok leans forward as he talks, feeling oddly curious.
"A baby," comes the response.
Jeong-hyeok splutters. "A baby? What? Why?"
"You pout a lot, like a baby. Aren't you pouting right now?"
He straightens his mouth. "No," he says petulantly. "I can't believe you said I'm like a baby. I think I'd rather be the other thing."
He's greeted with peals of her laughter from the line.
"A baby or a cartoon character," she sounds extremely amused. "One whose plans keep going hopelessly wrong."
Jeong-Hyeok doesn't know what's wrong with him. He can't seem to stop smiling. He's about to say something about Tom and Jerry when a male voice comes over the line, rubbing him in a way he doesn't like.
"Ah, got to go!" Se-ri says. "My employees need me."
"Uh, wait a second." he's not really conscious of what he's saying, wanting to draw the phone call out for as long as possible.
"Yes?"
He casts about for something to say, and then remembers something he'd wanted to tell her earlier this morning.
"The reporters will be watching me closely right now, so it would be best not to be seen in public together for some time. We can either delay our interview this week, or you can come to my apartment. It's a large complex with good security, so no one will know you're visiting me."
There's radio silence from her. He wonders if he's overstepped boundaries, and is just about to backtrack when her voice comes over the line.
"Sure, let's do that. I'll come by your place on Saturday afternoon."
YOU ARE READING
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Fanfiction"Jeong-Hyeok," his father says in a tired voice, "This is how it's going to be. The general shareholder meeting is in five weeks from now. If you are not firmly engaged by then - I am going to recommend that the board make someone else the Chairman...
