Chapter 6
The day after she had fled from Do-hyun’s house, even though she had done nothing wrong, Inah faced his mother again.
As if she didn’t even want to share a cup of tea with Inah, she hurriedly opened her mouth before the coffee Inah had ordered was even placed in front of her.
“I’ll get straight to the point. I hope you stop seeing Do-hyun.”
Inah had seen a scene like this somewhere before.
Yes, it was a trope often found in melodramas.
A mother who treasures her son above all else, handing an envelope of money to his girlfriend to threaten her into breaking up.
“I want our Do-hyun’s future wife to come from a good family. After marriage, I just hope she takes care of him properly.”
“Ah…”
“You came to our house yesterday, didn’t you?”
Inah nodded slightly, wondering how she could have seen her from a distance in the dark.
The woman snapped at her bluntly.
“Well, since you’ve seen everything, I’ll tell you. There’s actually a woman Do-hyun wants to marry. Her mother’s a professor, and her father’s a doctor at a university hospital. Don’t you think that’s a huge difference?”
Why would she speak so cruelly to a twenty-four-year-old girl?
Why was she trying to push Inah away from her son so harshly?
Inah clenched her fists tightly on her lap.
Her parents had passed away long ago.
Her parents, who had run a business, often took her along on trips, but on one rainy day, their car skidded on the wet road and had an accident. Inah’s older sister, I-hye, was ten, and Inah was seven.
Despite losing her parents, Inah had a childhood no less than others’, even quite privileged, thanks to her grandparents in the U.S., who ran a mid-sized company and had wealth and influence.
Seeing Do-hyun’s mother already looking at her through a lens of prejudice, Inah decided she needed to clarify things.
“But… Mother—”
“Who says I’m your mother?”
Caught off guard by the sharp reply, Inah swallowed hard and continued.
“My grandparents are in the U.S., even though my parents aren’t alive. They run a large business, so there’s no financial problem, and also—”
“Miss, so you think that means you can’t break up with our Do-hyun?”
“……”
“Just see him until he goes to the military.”
As if to end the conversation, she started gathering her bag, placed beside her.
Just then, Inah’s coffee was set on the table, steam rising in gentle curls. Staring at it, she felt as if her head had been struck hard—her mind went blank.
A woman who treasures only her son above all else.
Seeing a young woman, also the child of someone important, sitting in front of her yet unable to value her, Inah rose before the mother could even finish gathering her things.
“No. I won’t see him anymore starting today. I hope we don’t cross paths again. I’ll leave first.”
“No, you… you…! Where did you learn such manners?!”
Inah didn’t stop walking despite the insults shouted from behind.
That day, Inah broke up with Do-hyun.
“Do you really want to know why we broke up?”
Recalling that day, Inah looked at Do-hyun with a sharp gaze.
Did he really know nothing? Or did he know but deliberately look away?
Well, considering how precious his son was, his mother probably never told him the story. Inah leaned back against a bench, her eyes sharp as she stared at him.
Her red lips whispered in resentment.
“But… what difference would it make if I knew the reason?”
“What?”
“I’m asking, even if I find out now, what changes? Do you think it would bring our relationship back to what it was?”
She could have told him the truth at any time if he was curious about why they had broken up.
At twenty-four, full of dreams, with a stubbornness and pride she couldn’t bear to lose to others—she had been naive and immature at twenty-three.
After she ended it with a simple, sharp word, Do-hyun hadn’t contacted her again.
Inah had been disappointed by his lack of calls or messages, yet she still loved him deeply, her emotions swinging wildly dozens of times a day.
The love she had believed to be passionate had ended so emptily.
She resented Do-hyun.
Over time, every word and action of his became a source of bitterness.
And now, after so long, he asks why. How is she supposed to understand his actions?
“Seoh-inah.”
Do-hyun spoke her name gently, a hint of softness, though she said nothing, lips pressed tight.
Inah turned her head, murmuring quietly.
“I just saw you with Seorin.”
“…We’re not what you think.”
“You don’t need to explain. I was just going to suggest you meet her.”
“Why is everything so twisted? Do you know what I’ve been feeling all this time…!”
Do-hyun’s voice rose, heated with emotion.
But Inah remained calm, rising from her seat without a flicker of emotion.
“I don’t want to know what you felt all this time, or how you feel about me now. Let’s just say it happened because we were young. We were too young to know whether our choices were right or wrong.”
Though she spoke to him, the words were also for her past self—on the day she decided to raise a child alone.
The day she first learned she was pregnant at the airport, about to leave Korea, she could have told him, but she didn’t—because of his mother’s words and actions.
A child unloved by parents, could they give love to their own child?
Would she ever be recognized as a daughter-in-law by his mother, just because she was carrying his child?
Inah had asked herself that question countless times.
And even if, hypothetically, they married because of this situation, could she truly be happy? Every time she thought about it, the answer was always no.
Perhaps that was why she stubbornly wanted to persevere—she wanted to prove that she could protect both her dreams and her child.
“From now on, let’s keep this much distance.”
Stepping back, Inah drew an invisible line between them.
Do-hyun narrowed his large eyes at the slight distance between them.
“I’ll go ahead.”
Inah, already turned, slowly faced him.
Then Do-hyun grabbed her hand roughly and pulled her toward him.
Inah was caught in his arms before she could react.
Seeing his eyes draw her in like a magnet, her captured hand trembled.
Her heart raced as when she had first confessed at the start of their relationship.
His deep voice brushed against her ear.
“Are you just going to deal with this alone?”
“Let go…”
“I still haven’t forgotten.”
“……”
“For six years, I haven’t forgotten you.”
Like the day he said he wanted to marry her, his words felt like a ticking time bomb, and Inah’s heart started racing uncontrollably.
His single confession of never having forgotten her stirred the feelings Inah had long hidden, shaking them violently.
She swallowed dryly and twisted her wrist, trying to free herself.
But he only tightened his grip, determined not to let go.
“You might have moved on, but I haven’t. I’ve already forgotten everything else, and I don’t want to think about it anymore. So let me go.”
Even at her request, he pulled her closer rather than releasing her.
Falling into his arms, Inah grimaced slightly.
His voice, low and cold, resonated near her ear.
“Lies.”
“……”
“You say you’ve forgotten, yet your eyes, your trembling hands… just like our first kiss.”
Inah bit her lip, realizing he had seen through her feelings, her fingertips tightening.
Finally pushing him away, she glared at him fiercely.
“You’re the same now as six years ago. Nothing’s changed.”
“……”
“You still put your feelings first, ignoring the person in front of you, being selfish and rude.”
Perhaps hurt by her words, Do-hyun only stared at her silently.
“That’s why we broke up.”
Like a hedgehog raising its quills, Inah spat out every word sharply, then turned and walked away.
The click of her heels stung the air, and the tip of her nose prickled.
