Chapter 2: I slept together yesterday. “

Life takes unexpected turns.

That was my current situation.

The sight that greeted me the moment I opened my eyes was a complete mess, as if a wild drinking party had taken place the night before, with empty bottles rolling everywhere and furniture in disarray.

As I got out of bed to clean up immediately, a piercing headache surged over me.

I didn’t know if it was a hangover or something else.

My skull felt like it was splitting open.

“……Is it that nightmare again?”

I let out a sigh.

The moment I parted ways with Joo Eunha kept coming back to me.

It had gotten better since Joo Eunha’s return a few months ago, but it felt like I was experiencing sleep paralysis again this time.

A glass of cold water would surely clear my head.

I wobbled out into the living room, like a newborn fawn.

‘What’s that smell?’

Then, a vibrant scent wafted to my nostrils.

It smelled like someone was living here.

This kind of scent was definitely new to me.

Unlike the room I had just left, this place was neatly organized.

As I rubbed my blurry eyes, a white-haired beauty walked out from the kitchen.

She was grumbling, “He only eats frozen food.”

‘Is it a ghost?’

I must still be half-asleep.

That cute face, which made me want to pinch her cheeks, was unmistakably Joo Eunha.

But how could that be?

Joo Eunha would surely not be able to find me.

If she did, I would stop her.

Chairman Joo would undoubtedly be furious if such an unsavory incident occurred.

As I pressed my wrinkled brow, I felt a slender hand grasp my collar.

I felt it?

My breath hitched.

A hallucination?

Or was I going crazy and creating a delusion?!

Startled, I immediately fell to the floor.

“You’re awake, Ajusshi?”

I blinked and looked up at Joo Eunha.

Soon, my face turned as red as a beet.

My hazy memories became clear.

Last night, I with Joo Eunha…

Oh, what an embarrassing situation to have a guest witness.

Calm down.

I can handle this.

I tried to compose my expression as naturally as possible.

“Yeah.

Sorry.

I just woke up.

It’s my first time having someone else in my house.”

Joo Eunha smiled sweetly at my words.

She was only wearing my shirt, and provocatively, her underwear was visible through it, creating a seductive atmosphere.

I could also smell a woman’s scent.

‘The scent is nice.’

I had always had a sensitive sense of smell.

This comforting scent was new to me.

As if entranced, I almost approached Joo Eunha, but then I tightly gripped my sanity.

What else would I do if I let go again!

What happened yesterday alone was already a grave sin.

I couldn’t commit another sin.

Joo Eunha gazed intently at my complicated expression, then approached with a practiced model’s walk and tidied my disheveled clothes.

“I’m fine.

And by the way, I feel good.

I took your ‘first’ again, didn’t I?

Seeing as you don’t let others into your house, you probably don’t have a girlfriend either.”

“……”

I averted my gaze.

We two… what should I say?

‘We played a certain ‘adult game’.’

Very, very intensely.

To be precise, it was more like I was devoured.

They say that when mantises reproduce, the female devours the male’s head, don’t they?

It was a similar situation.

Red lipstick marks still lingered on my neck and collarbone.

Truly, I raised this child poorly.

After raising her, she turned out to be a true tiger.

Joo Eunha chuckled at my troubled face.

The strength drained from my body at her whispered words of love.

As if I were hypnotized.

“By the way, your house is nice, Ajusshi.

I was curious how you lived after abandoning me all this time.

One mystery solved.

It’s good to see you living well.

Heh.”

Embarrassed, I lowered my head.

It was awkward to look her in the face.

A feeling, perhaps self-reproach, squirmed within me.

Like a fetus quickening.

The assumption that Joo Eunha would come looking for me didn’t exist.

But I ruminated on Chairman Joo’s personality.

He would surely think his daughter had entangled herself with someone low-class and unworthy.

He would rage like a dragon whose treasure had been stolen, trying to reclaim his kin.

When I sat on the sofa and explained the situation, Joo Eunha made a blank expression, as if asking what the problem was.

“That’s fine.

He can’t make a fuss for nothing.

That trashy human.”

I almost bit my tongue.

To be able to call the group chairman that.

What kind of scheme was she planning?

“Wait.

Aren’t you being a bit harsh?”

“While you were gone, Ajusshi.

A lot happened in the group.”

Joo Eunha stroked my face.

“You can just grab some popcorn and watch the melodramatic family drama unfold as we tear each other apart.”

“No way.”

“He’s going to step down after the upcoming shareholders’ meeting anyway.

So there won’t be any problems.”

I recalled Joo Eunha’s background.

『Seongpung』Group, ranked among the top 5 in South Korean politics.

The fact that such an extraordinary power was held by a mere child, whose blood hadn’t even dried, was chilling.

‘This terrifying child, without searching for means or methods, just me—’

My thoughts didn’t last long.

Joo Eunha tugged at my pale cheek.

I had been lost in thought, but her reason was clear enough.

“I was waiting for you to wake up, Ajusshi.

You were so cute last night.

It was the first time you called my name so pleadingly.

Don’t worry now.

I’ll take responsibility for everything.”

Isn’t it a person’s duty to reciprocate?

Joo Eunha explained.

Lying together on the sofa, it felt just like a happy newlywed couple.

Though, when I considered our age difference, it felt like I had become an old goblin who lured and devoured babies.

“Joo Eunha, face reality.

Ajusshi isn’t suited for you.”

“……Not suited?”

Joo Eunha narrowed her eyes.

She exuded a chilling aura, as if displeased.

“Compared to you, I’m greatly lacking and incompetent, and—”

My words were cut off.

Joo Eunha ravenously explored my lips.

My words were indeed cut off.

How many minutes did it last?

A lack of oxygen to my brain made me feel lightheaded.

*Paaah—.*

Joo Eunha finally pulled away.

A string of saliva stretched and then drooped as she moved away.

I gasped for air to compensate for the lack of oxygen.

My ragged breaths lengthened and quickened several times.

Joo Eunha held my cheek.

“I’ll do everything for you.

Everything of yours, Ajusshi.”

As soon as I heard her answer, I covered my face with both hands.

She wasn’t my biological daughter, but I had raised her like one.

No, to put it more lightly, she was like a younger sister.

And such a child was asking me to marry her.

Looking at Eunha now, my head cooled.

Would any man refuse a woman of breathtaking beauty who came to him on her own accord, asking him to marry her, promising to love him for life?

At the very least, if one were to refuse that, they would possess self-control equal to or greater than that of Shakyamuni Buddha.

*Tap—.*

Joo Eunha playfully poked my nose with her index finger.

“That face.

You don’t usually show that one.

I took your ‘first’ again, Ajusshi!”

Joo Eunha smiled lovingly, looking at me immersed in guilt.

“There’s no need to blame yourself.

It’s what I wanted.”

****

“This way.

*Sigh*, I managed to get this shop for a relatively cheap price in Gangbuk.

I even went out of my way to hide it, fearing my whereabouts would be discovered.”

I led Joo Eunha into the cafe.

A groan escaped me involuntarily.

Perhaps because she came on an empty stomach, Joo Eunha’s stomach rumbled.

My freezer at home was full of frozen foods that couldn’t guarantee health, only serving to fill an empty stomach.

That’s why I led Joo Eunha to my cafe.

At least there were ingredients there.

Joo Eunha pouted her lips, glancing at a few children going to and from school.

“Do a lot of kids come to the shop, Ajusshi?”

“Of course.

There are private elementary, middle, and high schools, and a cluster of cram schools near the apartment complex.

Just past that alley, and you’ll find the shop.”

“Do you like kids too, Ajusshi?”

“I do.

They’re cute and innocent.”

Joo Eunha leaned in close to my ear without hesitation and whispered.

“I like kids too.

Am I a kid?”

“You’re not a kid.”

“Ha, we used to walk side by side like this back then too.”

Joo Eunha put her hands behind her back and pushed her upper body forward.

“Hehehe.

Look at this.

Haven’t I grown a lot?”

Feeling my face flush, I immediately pushed Joo Eunha away.

“Can’t you behave yourself a bit?”

“No.

Hehehe.”

I pressed down firmly on Joo Eunha’s baseball cap.

Given that she had recently returned from a hiatus and was the center of public attention, it was obvious that a huge commotion would ensue if her cap came off and her identity was revealed.

I didn’t want to cause any scandal.

We arrived at the cafe, wary of our surroundings.

While Joo Eunha scanned the vicinity, I grabbed her and pulled her inside.

I quickly went inside and closed the door.

I pulled down the window curtains and put up a ‘CLOSE’ sign on the shop door.

After I put it up, Joo Eunha hugged me from behind.

Unlike the startled scream from earlier, her smile was relaxed.

It was as if she was celebrating a victory.

“While I was gone, you set up such a decent place?”

“It… it made some money.”

“Retiring at thirty.

You’re truly amazing, Ajusshi!

Running a shop like this too.

As expected, you’re talented.”

“There.

Sit down for a bit.

I’ll get you something.”

I rolled up my sleeves and went to the kitchen.

I fell into thought in front of the grill.

‘Is she eating well?’

‘Is she not hurt anywhere?’

‘Are her relationships with friends smooth?’

All sorts of questions sprang up, but I immediately erased them.

I took out ingredients, chopped them, and cooked with dazzling skill.

“Oh.

As expected, you’re a good cook, Ajusshi.”

Today’s breakfast menu was a pork sandwich, fried egg, pasta salad, and a cafe latte.

I served it to Joo Eunha and then sat down on the opposite side.

Joo Eunha scanned the entire menu, then her lips curved upwards.

“You haven’t changed at all, Ajusshi.

The taste too.”

She took a bite of the sandwich and closed her eyes as if savoring the taste.

Then she stared intently only at me.

She repeated that several times, completely clearing her plate.

After finishing the meal, an awkward silence fell.

Joo Eunha’s lips twitched as she observed me.

“Didn’t you miss me, Ajusshi?”

“I did.”

“Really?

How much?!”

“Every day, I looked for news or articles about you.

You were practically retired.

I was surprised when I saw you had just returned a few months ago.”

“That’s right.

You saw the news, didn’t you?

[Joo Eunha Appears on Entertainment Show! ‘Her Grand Return!’].

I came back because of you, Ajusshi.

I was sure you’d see it.”

“Then… why did you come looking for me?

It doesn’t seem like you just came to confess.”

I slowly sipped my mug.

“I came to confess, Ajusshi.

What do you take me for?”

“……Still a clueless kid.”

“Heh, then I’m a snot-nosed brat who can’t live without Ajusshi.”

*Aigoo.*

I groaned, clutching my head.

What nonsense was she spouting now?

“Ajusshi, can’t you make a comeback?”

Joo Eunha said with a serious face.

As if this was exactly what she wanted.

I have my own reality, my own work.

I’ve come too far.

I wanted to express my refusal, but in front of a dejected Joo Eunha, I couldn’t bring myself to speak.

“Comeback, you say…”

“Yes.

A comeback.”

“Are you… are you okay?”

Joo Eunha tilted her head, then finally registered my question and scratched her cheek.

Her flushed face still showed that she was just a girl.

“Yes.

I felt good.

Um, that is…”

Her averted gaze was cute, but I reminded myself that the girl in front of me was the tiger who had moved the unyielding chairman to the brink of a hospital bed.

Unlike her foolishly charming beauty, she was extremely calculating.

‘The medicine she gave me too…’

It was definitely, how should I put it, a drug that excited one’s mind.

While Joo Eunha stood there, unable to say anything, only fidgeting with her fingers.

*Ding-dong—*

Just then, the door alarm rang.

Had a customer arrived?

I was about to turn my head to look.

“Wait.”

Joo Eunha stopped me.

Her upper body leaned towards the table.

“Ajusshi.

What are you doing right now?”

“Th-that’s enough.

A customer’s here.”

“It’s my sister.

Joo Seongyoon.”

Joo Seongyoon.

She was the group’s Vice President and Joo Eunha’s half-sister.

She was known for being competent and charismatic.

If my ears weren’t deceiving me, there was only one reason for Joo Seongyoon to come.

‘Does Seongpung want me back?’

Then it made sense.

Joo Eunha finding my location must mean that top-level secrets were leaked.

I could imagine it.

I stroked the back of my neck with my hand.

Then Joo Eunha’s brow twitched.

“My eccentric, incomprehensible, four-dimensional sister might do something terrible to you, Ajusshi.”

‘Given the Vice President’s personality, she wouldn’t create a situation where she could be exploited, would she?’

As I was about to retort, Joo Eunha’s face became expressionless.

“Because she’s someone who’ll do anything to get what she wants.

I’m telling you to be suspicious, suspicious.”

“W-why would the Vice President be looking for me?”

Joo Eunha stroked her arm.

“……I stirred up some trouble to find you, Ajusshi.”

“Trouble?”

The moment I heard her explanation, my head went cold.

“So, you made the company look for me?”

“Yes.

I threw a tantrum, saying they couldn’t do it without you, Ajusshi.

S-sorry.”