By Zephyria The moment he saw that, Yu-jin stopped all movement. In his wide-open vision, he saw Winston slowly immersing himself up to his shoulders.
When he turned his head and asked the child, who had wet her knees, something, Angela nodded and answered. Then Winston disappeared completely, and Angela naturally floated on the water alone.
“Kyaahaha!” Soon after, Yu-jin watched Angela squeal with delight as she zipped through the water. Her arms were stretched out like airplane wings as she moved back and forth across the large jacuzzi, from one end to the other. Anyone could see that it wasn’t something a child could do on her own. After a few laps, Winston suddenly emerged from under her.
Angela burst into laughter above him as he rose, dripping water from his entire body. Incredibly, Winston was laughing too. And Yu-jin saw it. Winston naturally lowered Angela into his arms and kissed her on the cheek. That was shocking enough, but even more astonishing was the fact that Angela didn’t reject him.
Papa is not needed.
The child’s voice suddenly brushed past his ear, and Yu-jin suddenly felt uneasy. What on earth was going on? Even as he was bewildered, the two of them continued to splash and play.
* * *
Perhaps it was because she had played in the water all day, but Angela went to bed early and fell sound asleep. After putting her to bed, Yu-jin came out of the room and spoke to Winston, who was heading to his room, finally saying what he had been holding back all day.
“Since when have you liked children so much?”
Winston, who had just opened the bedroom door, turned to look at him. Seeing the look of disbelief in his eyes, Winston asked back in his usual emotionless voice.
“What’s wrong with liking your own child?”
“It’s a problem because she’s not your child.”
His heart felt like it was about to burst as he spoke. Afraid that his voice might tremble, Yu-jin was inwardly worried, but Winston replied in a smooth voice.
“She is my child. You married me, after all.”
If the next words hadn’t followed immediately, he might have actually fainted. He was relieved, but that didn’t stop his heart from racing. Yu-jin tried desperately not to be noticed and continued.
“You’re going to break up with me anyway, right? There’s no point in getting close to the child, is there?”
This time, an answer didn’t come easily. For some reason, after a few seconds of silence, Winston opened his mouth.
“I’m going back to the main house tomorrow. You’re coming with me.”
This time, Yu-jin paused. His eyes widened, and he belatedly stammered.
“G-going? Me too?”
“Yes.”
Winston, who had answered briefly, soon added with a sneer.
“You didn’t think you’d be living on this island forever, did you?”
“Of course not!”
Yu-jin immediately denied it, but that didn’t mean he could readily rejoice. Everything, including what happened with Angela, was just a series of surprises. Suddenly? Why? What are you thinking? As Yu-jin was confused, Winston continued.
“I never intended to keep you locked up here forever. I just decided that you’ve reflected enough and it’s okay to go back now.”
It was as if he was bestowing a favor. Yu-jin asked with a sneer.
“Should I say thank you for your kindness? Thank you, Your Highness. I am overwhelmed by your great mercy.”
He raised his tone exaggeratedly, put his hand on his chest, and exclaimed, then frowned. As if he was truly disgusted. Winston, who had been looking at Yu-jin with an expressionless face, opened his mouth.
“I’m looking into kindergartens for Angie.”
At the sudden word, Yu-jin paused and blinked.
“Kindergarten?”
“Yes.”
Winston continued smoothly.
“She made friends at her birthday party, didn’t she? If she goes to kindergarten, she’ll see those friends again, and she won’t have to be bored at home all the time.”
As he spoke fluently, he glanced down at Yu-jin’s stomach.
“You’ll be able to rest more comfortably too.”
At the meaningful gaze, Yu-jin felt a chill run down his spine for a moment. Should he tell him now? …No, there’s no need to do that.
He had finally managed to get off the island. What if he told him and Winston got angry and locked Yu-jin up on the island again? He could put aside a little conscience. What’s the big deal?
Think of it as payback for what that man did and said to you.
Winston would lose everything if he wasn’t careful, so it wouldn’t be the same, but Yu-jin just decided to turn a blind eye. He had no other choice.
But questions still remained. Yu-jin didn’t let his guard down and asked.
“Does that mean that’s why I’m leaving this island? Why?”
He locked him up as he pleased, so why the sudden change of heart?
Winston asked back to Yu-jin, who was expressing his doubts.
“You’d want to look around the kindergartens that Angie will be attending, wouldn’t you?”
Of course. But he never imagined that that man would consider that. Winston smiled crookedly at Yu-jin, who couldn’t answer.
“Don’t forget, you can always come back here.”
That one sentence was as good as knowing all the answers. Winston was confident. That Yu-jin would never escape from his grasp.
But that arrogance fueled Yu-jin’s rebellious spirit. He would somehow get out and see that man’s face contorted. Thinking that, he soon corrected himself.
He wouldn’t be able to see it in person, but he could imagine it.
Just thinking about that moment made him feel a lot better. He passed Winston, who had entered the bedroom first, and grabbed the doorknob of the bathroom, when he said from behind.
“I’m going to have a party as soon as we get back.”
“A party?”
Yu-jin inadvertently turned around, and he answered, holding up a bottle of alcohol on the table.
“I have to tell everyone that we’re having a second child. They’ll all be waiting.”
Yu-jin literally froze. He even forgot to breathe for a moment, but Winston didn’t notice at all because he had his back to him. Soon regaining his senses, Yu-jin hurriedly hid in the bathroom without saying a word.
Calm down, it’s okay.
Seeing his hand shaking as he adjusted the water temperature, he took a deep breath. It’s something he’ll have to go through anyway. Just calmly pretend you don’t know.
But could he even fool Mrs. Campbell?
Her cold eyes seemed to seize Yu-jin’s heart. For some reason, Winston seemed to believe that he was pregnant, but what about Mrs. Campbell? Would she believe it because it was what her terrible son was saying? Or would she never believe it because it was what her hateful husband’s mistress was saying?
He couldn’t even imagine which one it would be. In any case, what was certain was that things were unexpectedly getting bigger and bigger, and as a result, he had to get away as soon as possible.
He had to come up with a plan quickly.
Yu-jin was lost in thought as he was showered with water. The biggest variable right now was the man drinking alone outside. Unable to imagine what would happen in the future, he let out a deep sigh of frustration.
* * *
The Butler gathered the mail that had arrived at the mansion and took it to Lady Catherine all at once. As she enjoyed her leisurely afternoon tea time, she checked the pile of envelopes one by one, and then paused at one of them. Soon, she tore the corner of the envelope with a paper knife and checked the contents inside. It was after that that her expression, which had been expressionless until then, changed. Georgina, her daughter, who was sitting across from her, watched in bewilderment as her mother, who had been leaning leisurely on her chair, slowly straightened her back and rolled her eyes quickly, checking the contents several times. Eventually, Lady Catherine turned pale and jumped up from her seat. Only then did Georgina cautiously open her mouth.
“What’s wrong, Mother?”
Reaching out over the table, she stealthily checked the outside of the envelope, and Lady Catherine muttered.
“Oh my god, it can’t be… How could this happen?”
At her reaction, which even made her breathless, Georgina wondered if her mother would faint again. After checking the Butler’s position and looking at the envelope again, Lady Catherine opened her mouth.
“Winston is throwing a party. …He’s having a child, with that.”