Chapter 18: Nowhere to Breathe

– “Now we’ll see each other at the office often.”

– “If it’s really uncomfortable, tell Seungji.”

A brief silence followed.

Since only the dedicated team occupied the same floor as the CEO’s office, the surroundings were silent.

Jiheum glanced around and quickly replied.

“No, where should we meet?”

She cut the awkwardness short.

After all, she was bound to run into him occasionally once she started working at the office.

Avoiding him would only look ridiculous.

Besides, being out for an appointment was better than being cooped up in her room all holiday.

– “I’ll text you the location.”

– “Check it carefully this time.”

A light laugh followed Kang Haejun’s words.

Jiheum gave a sheepish smile at his seemingly cheerful laugh.

“Okay. I got it.”

– “See you tomorrow.”

After hanging up, Jiheum opened her messages.

As expected, one was from Chae Youngchae and the other was from Kang Haejun.

[Are you free tomorrow?]

‘At least he’s not forcing me to make time like someone else.’

The thought of Ki Joyoon’s demand to “make some time” suddenly surfaced, and she squeezed her eyes shut before opening them again.

Then, a line from Chae Youngchae’s message caught her eye.

[Send 5 million won by tomorrow afternoon.]

She was so brazen and shameless that Jiheum couldn’t even bring herself to curse.

Chae Youngchae was the woman who had called on her recent birthday just to ask if she had any money.

She didn’t even know it was her own daughter’s birthday, yet she found it so easy to demand money.

“Phew.”

Swallowing a sigh, she puffed out her cheeks and exhaled.

No matter how many times she did it, the weight in her chest didn’t lift.

She deleted the message and tapped on Chae Youngchae’s contact, saved as ‘X’.

Her finger hovered over the block option.

As if those few letters were a powerful shield she wasn’t allowed to use, her wandering fingertip ultimately failed to press it, and she dropped her phone.

She was more afraid of the storm that would follow if she blocked Chae Youngchae.

****

The next day, having finished her preparations to go out, Jiheum cautiously opened the door to the second-floor hallway.

Yoon Jiyoon, who usually spent her time in the living room, was nowhere to be seen.

Exhaling a soft sigh of relief, Jiheum was tiptoeing across the living room when a ringtone sounded from her handbag.

Her heart plummeted.

It was a ringtone she had specifically set to be different from the others.

She stared at the screen for a moment before hitting decline.

She didn’t want to answer because she knew it would just be more demands for money.

‘Ah, maybe I should have just picked up.’

Her pulse quickened, and her chest felt tight.

Since she hadn’t answered yesterday or today, there was no telling what Chae Youngchae would do.

‘Should I call her back first?’

She was debating with herself when her phone screen lit up again, displaying ‘X’.

Chae Youngchae was persistent, as always.

“……Hello?”

Jiheum answered cautiously, keeping her voice low.

Fearing someone might hear, she thought it best to return to her room.

– “How long has it been since I told you to send the money? Why hasn’t it been sent yet?”

Jiheum, who was about to turn back to her room, froze at the sudden burst of irritation.

Her body wouldn’t move because of the rage boiling inside her.

‘I really shouldn’t have answered.’

“If you need money, go to a bank. I’m not an ATM.”

– “Look at your attitude.”

– “A daughter can give her mother some money.”

– “I heard daughters in other families give their parents plenty of pocket money.”

“That’s for a normal mother-daughter relationship. We aren’t that.”

Jiheum shot back coldly.

– “So you’re saying you won’t send it?”

“I don’t have money. Do you know how much you’ve already squeezed out of me? And did you forget that you said last time would be the absolute last?”

It hadn’t even been a year.

Claiming it was the last time, the money she had taken bit by bit totaled nearly ten million won.

Of course, Jiheum hadn’t believed it was the last time, but she had hoped for at least a year of peace.

She had sacrificed her savings for one peaceful year.

Yet, as always, all she got in return was this begging for money.

– “Really? Then is it okay if rumors spread at your company?”

“Ha!”

A gasp escaped her involuntarily.

– “Is it okay if I let everyone know you’re an illegitimate child?”

– “Should I post something on the LK Construction board about the reality of the Chairman?”

– “What do you think?”

Jiheum’s pupils shook violently.

She felt dizzy just imagining the fallout if such a post actually appeared on the board.

For Yoon Gwano, who was constantly eyeing a seat in the National Assembly, he would never tolerate his decades-old past blocking his path.

“Why are you doing this to me?”

Jiheum brushed back her hair, her voice thick with tears.

She really felt like crying.

Because of Chae Youngchae, who viewed her as an inexhaustible spring of wealth, her will to live was slowly withering away.

– What’s the point of having a daughter? Just send the money.

“I told you, I don’t have it!”

Jiheum whispered fiercely.

– “No, how can a girl with a job not even have five million?”

“Then why don’t you have that five million? You said your husband makes good money.”

–” Why bring my husband into this! Don’t you dare mention him!”

Chae Youngchae’s sudden shift to a serious tone was loathsome.

It seemed only her own family was precious to her.

It had been a long time ago, but Jiheum had once seen Chae Youngchae talking to her husband on the phone.

The memory of the contemptuous eyes turning soft and the voice turning sweet like a blooming flower made her skin crawl.

–” Mmm, mmm. Fine… if you really can’t… how about just 2 million won…?”

“I don’t have it. If you have a conscience, please keep your promise.”

Jiheum abruptly hung up.

She was thumping her chest with her fist and catching her breath when she felt a presence behind her.

Startled, Jiheum turned around to see Yoon Jiyoon in yoga gear, stretching behind the sofa.

‘How long has she been there? Did she hear everything?’

Jiheum’s eyes wavered with uncertainty.

“Oh… Sister, I didn’t know you were here.”

“Is there something happening that I shouldn’t know about?”

Yoon Jiyoon wiped her sweat with a towel from the sofa, her lips curving into a strange smirk.

Since she had been lying behind the high-backed sofa doing yoga poses, there was no way Jiheum could have seen her.

Knowing this, Yoon Jiyoon had deliberately stayed quiet.

“Ah, no. I just thought no one was here.”

“Why? Were you going to steal something if no one was here?”

Jiheum’s hand holding the phone trembled violently.

“What are you planning to offer her this time?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jiheum took a shallow breath and put her phone into her handbag.

She wanted to escape this place immediately.

Even if Yoon Jiyoon had heard the call, there was nothing she could do.

“Who knows if you’ll steal something and hand it over to that beggar of a biological mother?”

Yoon Jiyoon picked up a tumbler from the table, drank some detox juice, and glared at Jiheum.

She had spent her whole life managing her figure and skin, yet she could never catch up to Jiheum, who did nothing.

Despite being a bastard, the fact that Jiheum was born with such skin, face, and body made Yoon Jiyoon hate her as much as she envied her.

“That won’t happen.”

Jiheum felt a pang of guilt even as she spoke the truth.

Even though she had only given her the money she earned herself, she felt like a thief being caught.

A few years ago, Yoon Jiyoon had seen Chae Youngchae showing up at the house because Jiheum hadn’t sent money.

Furthermore, if she had heard the entire conversation just now… Jiheum felt there was nothing she could do even if she were framed as a thief under the guise of suspicion.

“How can I trust you? Who knows? Maybe we’re raising a thief in this house.”

“You never intended to trust me anyway.”

Jiheum’s suppressed voice came out in a low tone.

Yoon Jiyoon, who was seven years older, was once the only person in this house who was kind to Jiheum.

She had turned her back once she discovered Jiheum wasn’t just an adoptee but a bastard born from her father’s affair.

But until she knew the truth, she had been a sister more affectionate and reliable than anyone.

“Hey, relax your eyes. If you’re not a thief, fine. Why are you glaring at me?”

“You’re… being too harsh.”

“Why you—!”

Yoon Jiyoon raised the tumbler as if she were about to hurl it.

Jiheum instinctively squeezed her eyes shut.

Silence followed, and Jiheum slowly opened one eye.

“…Whatever.”

Yoon Jiyoon set the tumbler back on the table, as if Jiheum wasn’t even worth the effort.

In fact, Yoon Jiyoon used to throw things at Jiheum occasionally until her mid-twenties.

After joining LK Construction and having to manage her image as a member of the owner family, the physical throwing had stopped.

She had simply switched from objects to verbal abuse.

The bullying had never vanished.

“Actually, I should have called you an illegitimate thief.”

“……”

“I’ve really mellowed out, even if I do say so myself.”

Yoon Jiyoon stretched and disappeared into the bathroom as if nothing had happened.

Jiheum got into the driver’s seat, started the ignition, and leaned back.

She closed her eyes and steadied her breathing.

From Chae Youngchae’s phone call to Yoon Jiyoon’s insults, everything had hit her at once, and she needed to gather her wits.

If she didn’t send the money, Chae Youngchae would definitely show up at the office, given her personality.

Wasn’t she the woman who had stalked Jiheum to find out which school she attended and waited at the gates?

Finding out her workplace would be easy for her.

She was likely just saving it as a last resort.

A sigh escaped her, and her head throbbed at the mere thought.

Even if she fought back, it was clear that she would be the one to suffer the greater loss.

“I’m so sick of this, truly.”