Chapter : 47
Night had fallen, and the arboretum, where the rain had just stopped, was filled with humid, heavy air.
As if predicting the last moment of the two, the rain had stopped as if by a lie, allowing the dome-shaped ceiling to clearly reflect the sky.
A full, round moon hung in the middle of the dark night sky.
Under the soft moonlight, Joo-hye slowly made her way toward the garden connected to the main gate.
Since it was nighttime and all the lights had been turned off, only the pale moonlight illuminated the two of them.
“It’s cold because of the rain.”
“I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. You’ll get sick.”
Da-hyun approached from behind and gently draped a blanket over Joo-hye’s shoulders.
When had he even prepared this? Joo-hye accepted his kindness with an awkward smile.
It’s probably the last time anyway… I guess it’s okay to accept this small comfort.
It might have been a selfish thought, but if they couldn’t meet again, at least she wanted to carry a good memory with her at the end.
As if reading her thoughts, Da-hyun quietly stepped back, leaving only the blanket over her shoulders.
A long shadow stretched beneath his retreating feet.
“I’ll explain everything properly to the brothers.”
“……”
“I’ll tell them it wasn’t your fault. That it was just my health, that nothing serious happened.”
If she didn’t make excuses like that, Su-ha and Su-kyung might threaten to sue Da-hyun after learning the truth.
Da-hyun would probably respond that it didn’t matter, but Joo-hye couldn’t.
She hadn’t lost her love, only the purpose of it, which was why she had chosen divorce.
“I’ve already talked with the law office. The divorce papers will be ready next week, and I’ll send them through Secretary Kim. Once I’m discharged, we’ll start living separately.”
Da-hyun listened quietly to Joo-hye’s clear, measured voice.
“We’ll have to take another month of the divorce consideration period, but time passes quickly anyway…”
“If this is truly the end.”
Even seeing his wife, radiant at this moment, his forgotten desire stirred again.
“There’s just one thing I want to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
“What exactly did Seo Woo-hyun say to you?”
He had been curious about that even before locking Joo-hye in the villa.
What kind of threat had Seo Woo-hyun used that made Joo-hye actually consider giving him money?
“I know he asked you to lend him money. Other than that… didn’t he say anything else? He must have needed a pretext to threaten you.”
“I listened to the recording.”
“Recording?”
“It’s a recording of a call you made with Seo Woo-hyun a long time ago.”
Joo-hye fished her phone out of her pocket.
It contained a recording she had received from Seo Woo-hyun as a condition for an agreement.
When she pressed play, Da-hyun’s face immediately twisted in anger at the voice that poured out.
“I’ll do anything to ruin Woonaam Construction if I have to.”
“Anything?”
“Even if it means marrying a woman I don’t love… that’s how far I’ll go.”
Even hearing it again, her heart tore to pieces.
“From the beginning, Seo Dae-hyun liked another woman, and you were just deceived as a tool.”
When she first heard Seo Woo-hyun’s confession, her world went completely dark.
She had believed he had at least a little affection for her, which made the betrayal worse.
But now that her heart had moved on, looking back, if Seo Woo-hyun hadn’t confessed that day, Joo-hye would have continued to agonize.
Clinging to the meaningless hope that maybe one day Da-hyun’s heart would love her…
“I want to ruin Woonaam Construction even if it means marrying a woman I don’t love.”
“No.”
Da-hyun spoke urgently, wanting to explain that it was all a misunderstanding.
Even if it wasn’t entirely a misunderstanding, at least he didn’t have such thoughts now.
“That’s why I never said I wanted to marry you, I…”
“But in the end, Woonaam Construction failed, and you married me.”
Her voice drew a firm line.
“Even if I say no, reality shows me that your words were all true. That’s why I don’t want to hear it.”
She was asking to end the conversation just like that.
“Don’t make me overthink this. Please.”
“So there’s no reason to reconsider.”
“When you locked me in that villa…”
Joo-hye felt her voice tremble as she exhaled deeply.
“I was genuinely scared, thinking I might be trapped there for the rest of my life. Afraid that even while trapped, I’d still love you.”
“……”
“Yes. Some of what I said then was a lie. I still love you.”
“Joo-hye.”
“Still, I think ending this marriage is the right choice—for me and for you.”
“You’re wrong, Joo-hye.”
“Yes. Until now, I’ve been wrong. But now, I’m sure. I’m the right one…”
Reflecting on the past, she knew this choice was correct.
If they didn’t want to hurt each other anymore, they should never meet again.
“I collapsed just from a few days alone with you there. If we continue living together, it will happen again. There’s no guarantee it won’t.”
“I’ll try.”
“If trying alone solved everything, why would people suffer so much in the world?”
Joo-hye smiled lightly and whispered calmly.
“When I’m with you…”
She wanted to say it, even though it would hurt him.
Because that way, Da-hyun could more easily let go of his lingering feelings for her.
“I’d want to strangle you. That’s why I can’t.”
“You didn’t say you’d want to strangle me first.”
“I liked you first. So in this marriage, it’s mostly my fault.”
Even knowing he didn’t love her, she had stayed passive.
Thinking arrogantly that if she tried hard enough alone, their half-marriage could somehow last.
Maybe he’d change after the child was born.
The result was the situation before her eyes now.
“You might not know… but I really liked you for a long time. I never forgot you from the moment we first met.”
“……”
“It might sound funny, but you were my first love.”
Turning the words about divorce into a romantic confession, he quietly reached out and smiled.
A smile tinted with bitterness, despair, resignation… and a little hope, making it even sadder.
“For a divorce, that’s a surprisingly sweet confession.”
He gently grasped her thin, fragile wrist and whispered softly.
Joo-hye felt his fingers tremble slightly, but she didn’t show it.
“Even the last moment should be sweet, so I won’t regret this moment later.”
“I’ll regret it starting tomorrow.”
“That’s fine. I want you to regret a little, honestly…”
She was afraid she might impulsively take his hand again if she didn’t steel her heart.
She didn’t fully know the depth of her own heart, and that always terrified her.
“It will go the way you think, Joo-hye.”
Da-hyun pressed his lips to the back of her hand.
As his warm lips brushed over her cold skin, the wind blew, shaking the leaves violently.
Thanks to that, she could see his face, previously hidden in shadow.
“I’ll remember this moment… and regret it all my life.”
Da-hyun’s low, hoarse voice trembled, and his cheek was wet.
Finally free from the chains, she felt no joy at all.
Only emptiness and futility filled Joo-hye’s heart like poison.
A week had passed since they started living separately.
It had been the most leisurely week she had had in a long time, though there was one problem.
My body really isn’t well…
Even before the separation, her health had been gradually deteriorating.
At the arboretum, she would often doze off and sometimes couldn’t even sit due to stomach pain.
She had hoped that hospital fluids and rest would help, but there was little improvement.
Even her expected period was long overdue.
Skipping periods… this isn’t common.
She had missed two months due to overwork last year, but it wasn’t frequent.
A sense that something was wrong with her body began to rise.
I can go to work this afternoon. First, let’s go to the hospital.
Fortunately, there was a hospital near the arboretum where her regular doctor was available.
After quickly changing clothes, she called her secretary.
Even on the way to the hospital, she occasionally banged her forehead against the car window while dozing off.
No matter where she sat, an overwhelming sleepiness made it hard to stay alert.
Even after sleeping more than eight hours yesterday, it persisted.
Still, she trusted that nothing serious would happen before reaching the hospital.
“What did you just say?”
“Madam…”
“I think there’s been some mistake.”
When she heard the doctor’s words after the examination, it felt like thunder striking above her head.
“You must be surprised, but madam, you’re currently pregnant.”
