Chapter 49………………………..
Her gaze slowly wavered.
Misook had always been on Serin’s side.
Whenever Serin asked her to eat together, Misook would come out without hesitation. If Serin suggested going shopping, she would walk with her. If Serin said she was having a hard time, Misook would quietly hold her hand.
Almost like a real daughter.
But today was different. She was cold to the point of feeling unfamiliar. A chill ran through Serin’s fingertips. Slowly, Serin lowered her phone.
The phone dropped softly onto the white blanket.
Sunlight was still streaming through the curtains, but somehow that warm light felt strangely cold.
Serin slowly closed her eyes. Beneath her eyelids, a strange emptiness washed over her.
It felt as though some important thread had quietly snapped without her even noticing.
‘Did something happen?’
Serin slowly lifted herself and walked toward the window. The sunlight pouring through the curtains was dazzling.
Outside was perfectly clear. Yet strangely, that clarity felt uncomfortable.
‘Did Geonwoo… say something?’
It was a gut feeling.
If it weren’t him, Misook wouldn’t have changed so abruptly. Serin slowly moved closer to the window. Her fingers tightened against the window frame.
‘It must be because of Seo Hana.’
Just thinking about it left a bitter taste in her mouth. That name always unsettled her.
Serin clenched her teeth. Everything was because of Seo Hana.
As long as that insignificant woman stood beside Geonwoo, Serin could never get close to him.
Her mind began turning quickly. The emotions that had built up over time condensed into one point and cooled into something cold and sharp.
She needed a method.
Serin slowly returned to the bed and sat down. Holding the phone resting on the blanket, she idly ran her fingers over it. After thinking for a moment, she pressed the screen as if she had made up her mind.
“—Yes, ma’am.”
Her secretary’s voice came through.
“Did you get the contact information for the person I mentioned before?”
—Yes, I received it.
“When can we meet?”
—Let me check. One moment.
A brief silence passed through the phone. Not long after, the secretary replied.
—He asked if Tuesday evening this week would work.
“Tuesday…”
Serin tilted her head slightly as she thought.
“Tell him that works.”
—Yes, understood. Where should I make the reservation?
“Somewhere quiet. Handle the reservation yourself.”
—Yes, ma’am.
When the call ended, Serin slowly set the phone down. The room became quiet again.
She looked out the window. The sunlight was still bright, but now it felt cold.
‘Now it begins.’
A faint smile formed on her lips. It was a perfectly refined smile, devoid of any emotion.
She had to separate Seo Hana from Geonwoo.
That was the only way. And there was someone who knew how to do it.
A name slowly surfaced in her mind.
‘Yoo Tae-oh.’
Serin repeated the name silently to herself. The man from Seo Hana’s past.
‘If it’s him… he must know something.’
Her gaze settled calmly.
All she needed was one weakness, one crack in Hana—just one fragment of it.
Serin lay back down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. Sunlight shattered across the ceiling. Even though the light was dazzling, her heart felt strangely dark.
‘Jeong Geonwoo… is mine.’
She murmured to herself slowly. Her lips moved ever so slightly.
‘No matter how much you struggle… in the end, you’ll come back to me.’
Serin closed her eyes. The room was completely silent. Only the sunlight outside slipped through the curtains, quietly covering her face.
* * *
Misook sat blankly on the living room sofa.
The phone call she had just had with Serin wouldn’t leave her mind.
The lingering warmth of the phone still remained at her fingertips. She slowly let out a breath. It was unclear whether it was a sigh or resignation.
‘It can’t be helped…’
She told herself that, but deep inside, uneasy feelings were still boiling.
Serin’s voice lingered in her ears.
That bright, kind girl. Always polite and thoughtful. Above all, she was elegant, and her family background was good.
She was exactly the image of the perfect daughter-in-law Misook had always hoped for.
But now she had to distance herself from that girl too.
Because Geonwoo had said so.
He told her not to meet Serin anymore. Otherwise, he wouldn’t see her again.
Misook still couldn’t forget the shock she felt then.
She had never imagined her son would speak so firmly.
“I can’t lose Geonwoo.”
Misook murmured quietly.
Serin was a good girl. But Geonwoo was everything to her. The son she had raised with all her life devoted to him. When he said he would turn his back on her, Misook finally realized
what truly mattered to her.
She lowered her head. Her fingertips trembled slightly.
Everything had become tangled. Nothing was going the way she had expected.
At first, she absolutely couldn’t accept Hana. Her background, her attitude—everything bothered her. To be honest, she felt Hana didn’t fit their family.
But now she didn’t even have the strength or reason left to say such things.
Geonwoo had already made his choice.
And now she had no choice but to accept it.
Misook recalled what Wooil had said—to accept Hana. To take it slowly.
‘…Can I really do that?’
Misook wasn’t sure.
A faint smile passed her lips, but sadness was mixed within it.
She closed her eyes. Sunlight filtered through the curtains and fell across her face.
The sunlight was warm, yet one corner of her heart remained cold.
Even so, Misook was slowly persuading herself.
For Geonwoo.
For the family.
And so that no one would be hurt anymore.
* * *
“Shall we head back?”
Geonwoo spoke carefully. The sun had completely set, and the darkness of the sky had swallowed even the faint red glow, leaving the evening dim.
“…Okay.”
Hana nodded with a small smile.
It had truly been a long time.
A day spent walking by the sea without thinking about anything—feeling the wind and gazing at the sky.
It felt like not her body, but her heart had been refreshed.
The two of them began walking slowly.
The sand beneath their feet gradually changed into solid asphalt. The sound of the waves behind them grew fainter.
Hana looked back several times.
Far away, the sea rippled quietly. Even as night approached, its blue color still seemed alive.
‘What a shame…’
Hana murmured inwardly.
The day had passed unusually quickly. She wished this moment could last just a little longer.
When they reached the parking lot, Geonwoo opened the car door for her.
Hana carefully got in. Geonwoo sat in the driver’s seat and started the engine. The soft hum of the engine came to life.
“Are you tired? You can sleep.”
“I’m okay.”
“Still, get a little rest. It’ll take at least two hours to get home.”
Geonwoo turned on the heater and adjusted the temperature. Warm air gently filled the car, gradually chasing away the chill of the sea breeze.
The car slowly left the parking lot and entered the coastal road.
The dark sea slid past outside the window, and the streetlights stretched long shadows across the road.
Hana turned her head to look out the window, then absentmindedly glanced at Geonwoo as he drove.
His apology on the breakwater. His sincere voice. That expression of unfamiliar honesty.
It was a side of Geonwoo she had never seen before.
Hana turned her gaze back outside.
Black waves broke slowly along the roadside.
A strange ache stirred in her chest.
There were many thoughts, but the answers didn’t come easily.
Still, one thing was certain.
The tightly closed door of her heart was beginning to tremble—just a little, ever so slightly.
Inside the car, it was quiet.
The radio was off, and only the soft sound of the tires rolling along the road could be heard.
