By Zephyria 
===
“How does the person seem? Did you talk much? Since you met, you should have talked more thoroughly. No, let’s sit first. Let’s sit and talk.”
Eun-won, pulled by Yeo Hee-jin’s hand, went into the living room and sat on the sofa. He then looked at Yeo Hee-jin, who was waiting as if urging him to tell her quickly.
“I asked for about a week more of time…. Fortunately, he said he would give it to me….”
“A week? Time for what?”
“…Ah, my father said he needed time to… settle the company affairs…. Uh… the articles about me probably won’t be released until next week, right?”
“Yes…. That’s right. That’s good. Thank you, Eun-won. But is that all?”
“Pardon?”
“Didn’t he say anything else? After all, the Sewon side must have come out to talk about marriage.”
No matter how many times he heard it, the word ‘marriage’ felt overwhelming just to listen to. Eun-won fidgeted with the hand resting on his leg with his other hand, his lips quivering.
“…Yes…. He said he… wants to get married….”
“Oh, really? He said it so directly even though you just met?”
“Yes…. But I didn’t go there… to get married. So I told him I would think about it and bought a week of time…. We agreed to meet again next week… I plan to tell him then. That I can’t get married….”
At those words, a momentary silence descended. Finding it strange that there was no response, Eun-won, who had been looking toward Yeo Hee-jin’s knees, lifted his gaze.
“…….”
“…….”
It was a face he had never seen since entering this house… No, it was an expression even colder than the frigid look he had encountered six years ago. Startled by that hardened face, Eun-won stared at Yeo Hee-jin, unable to react.
“…Yes, that’s how it should be.”
The tightly closed lips parted, forming a curve. It was as if the previous expression had been a complete illusion. Eun-won closed his eyes deeply and opened them again. As if confirming he had misseen, the madam wore her usual smile.
“Thank you for at least buying some time, Eun-won. Let’s leave the rest to your father. He’ll manage somehow.”
“…Yes….”
“You must be tired, go up and rest. I’ll call you when dinner is ready.”
“Yes….”
Rising from his seat, Eun-won bowed and climbed the stairs. A gaze full of chill clung heavily to his back as he ascended step by step, but Eun-won did not look back. As if he were afraid he might missee something again.
After washing up, Eun-won sat at his desk to do his assignments, but he couldn’t concentrate the entire time. His mind was too cluttered, and the shocks he had received remained, making it impossible for any letters to enter his eyes.
Closing his laptop, Eun-won stared blankly at the pen on the desk. As his surroundings blurred, the image of Cha Se-jin smiling at him came to mind.
‘I think for now, I just need to figure out how to avoid me.’
‘You avoid me? After that, it just plummets straight to the worst-case scenario without any middle ground. Right now it’s marriage, but once marriage with me fails, the next step is trafficking.’
Trafficking…. Marriage was shocking enough, but the next step was trafficking…. Eun-won chewed over Cha Se-jin’s words repeatedly. Of course, there was no way his father would traffic him, but the thought that he might be sold to a complete stranger made his heart tighten with anxiety.
He felt that Cha Se-jin, whom he had seen a few times and spoken with, was relatively less unfamiliar and therefore better. Of course, that didn’t mean he could marry Cha Se-jin.
He didn’t think a week of time would change much. Even without knowing how the company was operated or how to save it, he could sense that much.
“…….”
Eun-won opened his laptop and typed ‘Baum Construction’ into the portal search bar. The headlines of the articles appearing since a few days ago were all negative.
Baum’s Crisis, Tasks Baum Must Resolve, Baum Denies Bankruptcy Rumors, Baum’s Stock Price Drop….
And within them, his father’s name was omnipresent. Feeling a suffocating sensation in his chest, Eun-won closed the laptop again.
There was no one at the dinner table. Eun-won ate alone. He had no appetite at all, but feeling sorry for not eating the meal prepared for him, he barely finished a quarter of a bowl of rice before getting up.
“Young Master, if you have no appetite, shall I bring up some cake? Please have some of the cake Driver Oh brought earlier. The strawberry cake looked so pretty. Would you like to see?”
Butler Kang, who had been watching Eun-won eat from a distance, came over carrying a cake dome containing a beautiful strawberry whole cake. He had thought the box was too large for just two slices of cake, but it seemed they had been gifted a new cake instead.
“…….”
Recalling Cha Se-jin asking whether he would eat the cake there, take it with him, or throw it away, Eun-won lightly shook his head to clear his thoughts.
“It’s so pretty, isn’t it? The cakes from the Sewon Gallery Cafe are famous for being beautiful and delicious. I think the young master from the Sewon family provided it for you to eat. Have a slice. Yes? I’ll bring it up with some warm tea. You haven’t been eating well lately.”
“…Yes…. Thank you….”
“No need for thanks. If you go to your room, I’ll prepare it and bring it up.”
After bowing lightly to Butler Kang, Eun-won turned away weakly and left the dining room. As he was about to pass through the living room, he saw Yeo Hee-jin sitting there, drinking from a glass since early evening.
“Eun-won…. I’m just so heartbroken…. Your father… he didn’t come home yesterday either. And today, he’s not answering his phone and can’t be reached. Even when I contact the secretary, they just say he left work alone…. I really don’t know what he’s trying to do….”
Yeo Hee-jin poured liquor from the bottle and emptied the small glass in one gulp. Startled, Eun-won approached and sat beside her.
“…Please stop drinking, Madam…. At this rate, something terrible might….”
“…Madam?”
“…….”
“Right, to you, Eun-won, I’m still ‘Madam’! I’m the only one who sees you as a son, and to you, I’m still the Madam. Yes, that’s why… it must be that. Because I’m the Madam. Even if we live together as family, I’m not family to you!”
“It’s not like that…. It’s just… I’m still finding it hard to change the title….”
“Are we even family to you?”
Pushing away Eun-won’s arm as he tried to stop her from drinking, Yeo Hee-jin poured another drink and took a sip. Then, heavily intoxicated, she glared at Eun-won.
“If it were our Yun-han, he would have gone through with that marriage.”
“…….”
“If his dad and mom were suffering like this… he definitely would have stepped forward first. Because he’s a son. Because he truly cares for his mother and father.”
“…….”
“At times like this, I feel that you’re a stranger…. Yes…. What could we expect from you, who haven’t been family for very long. There’s also the way we acted six years ago… it must take a long time for you to adjust and open your heart to us…. Yes, I understand…. I understand everything.”
The sharp lament poured out, accurately attacking Eun-won. At words that dug into his weakest point, Eun-won was pushed to the edge. It’s not like that, it’s not because I don’t think of you as family…. It’s really not like that….
“Still… is it really impossible?”
“…….”
“Eun-won, can’t you just save your father? I’m scared he might do something desperate. This company is everything to Jun-hyeok. Do you know how hard he worked to build it… huh? If he loses it like this, Jun-hyeok won’t survive. Eun-won, please…. Just change your mind once. Please, I’m begging you. Please save Jun-hyeok! I’ll live my whole life, truly my whole life, prostrate at your feet…. Eun-won.”
Bursting into tears, the madam knelt on the floor and grabbed Eun-won’s legs. As she pleaded with her head bowed low, moisture gathered in Eun-won’s eyes as well. The words that Yun-han would have married would not leave his mind.
“Madam! Please get up, Madam. You’ve had too much. I’ll take you to your room. Oh, Madam. Hold onto me.”
“Butler Kang, no. I have to beg Eun-won more. If it’s not Eun-won, our Jun-hyeok will die…. Eun-won, please save us….”
At the sound of the madam’s wailing, Butler Kang and the servants rushed out and helped the kneeling madam up. Even as she was being led to her room, the madam’s voice, crying and pleading with Eun-won, echoed through the living room.
“…….”
Focus blurred in his smooth, tear-filled eyes. He wanted to cry, he really wanted to pour it all out, but contrary to his heart, he didn’t produce enough tears to actually cry. It was strange that while his eyes were damp and he could feel his eyelashes getting wet when he closed them, it wouldn’t burst forth beyond that.