Side story 3. Ch 1.3

My geography class was just before the lesson. Not knowing anyone who could save me a seat, I had to sit wherever was left. Naturally, the only vacant seats by then were at the professors’ table—students’ least favorite spot.

So I had to sit near the professor who had recommended this job to me. I couldn’t bring myself to refuse the drinks he offered with advice, so I ended up drinking one after another.

“Do you think opportunities like this will come around again? Think it over one more time.”

I nodded slightly at the words I’d heard so often they felt engraved in my ears. A bed of thorns—was there a better word to describe this situation? I glanced at the clock. I’d planned to just check in and leave, but the professor was delaying me far too much.

Under the table, I took out my phone and quickly texted Kim Joongdeok. “The professor’s holding me up, I might be a little late. Sorry ㅠㅠ” The moment I hit send, the professor offered me another drink. I quickly pocketed my phone and raised my glass to accept it.

“I liked you because you kept your eyes on your studies and didn’t get distracted.”

Just as the professor said, I had worked even harder after re-enrolling. It made sense—my tuition fees were entirely coming out of that man’s wallet. While that amount might have been pocket change to him, it was still his money, so I didn’t want to waste it. That’s why I studied harder, trying to get as much scholarship money as possible. Without part-time jobs eating up my time like before, getting good grades was even easier.

I used to think I could handle my liquor pretty well. But after not drinking for a while, my tolerance seemed to have dropped. I was getting dizzy far too quickly.

My vision flickered. When I came to, I was holding a glass again, tilting my head back along with everyone else for another toast.

My mouth filled with the bitter liquid. My body was starting to strongly reject any more alcohol. But I wasn’t the type to discreetly avoid drinking when a superior was offering it. The professor, now tipsy, kept repeating the same lines over and over like a broken machine.

…Why are you turning down such a great offer when you have no clear vision or sense of purpose? He was unbelievably persistent. Among the many students he could’ve chosen, I couldn’t understand why he was so fixated on me.

But it didn’t take long to find out why. Nodding along like a sick chicken, I flinched at something unexpectedly said by the professor.

“You heard the news, right?”

‘The news’—such a vague phrase. In a department with barely twenty students, rumors spread fast. Since I came back wearing luxury from head to toe, gossip followed me everywhere.

The land price of a rural property supposedly skyrocketed, or someone succeeded in stock investments—those were among the more respectable rumors. There were also tales of winning the lottery or meeting a rich madam at a host bar. With so many versions, it was impossible to know which one they meant.

Either way, I was already somewhat used to the rumors surrounding me, so I was confident I could listen to them without flinching. After all, none of them were true, and if I denied them, that would be the end of it.

But what came out of the professor’s mouth was completely unexpected.

“They say both your parents passed away when you were young.”

The moment he said that, the bar fell silent. In the stillness, I could feel glances flickering toward my face. It felt like all the blood had drained from my body. Unconsciously, I lowered my hand beneath the table and clenched my fist.

Ring—the ringing in my ears devoured my eardrums. In an instant, I was disconnected from everything around me. It felt like only my body and my hands were left in the world. I clenched my fist so tightly that my short nails dug into my palm, hiding my fingerprints. I felt no pain, which made everything feel even more unreal.

The bar, which had fallen silent for a moment, became noisy again. The dull roar of voices came crashing back into my ears.

“Oh dear, is that so?”

The professor, previously absorbed in conversation with the others, turned his face toward me. He furrowed his brows slightly, looking at me with pity. His eyes were filled with clinging sympathy. He hadn’t even seen my face more than a few times before. Yet just one mention of my parents’ deaths had prompted him to pity me.

The job he offered me—it probably came from the same cheap sense of pity.

I felt I couldn’t stay there any longer. If someone so much as gently nudged me, I would collapse like straw slashed with a sickle. Muttering to myself, I stood up from my seat.

“…I-I’ll be right back, just going to the restroom.”

As I stood, the dizziness hit harder. My body wavered, and someone caught my arm from behind. I was just about to disgracefully collapse to the floor, so I welcomed the support and leaned into them. I was barely conscious, but I had no doubt it was CEO Jang.

“Are you okay?”

“…My head hurts.”

“Want to get some air?”

Get some air? I heard the words, but my brain was slow to process them, taking a while to grasp the meaning. In the end, I neither agreed nor disagreed. And when I opened my eyes again, I was already walking outside.

We left the bar and sat on a bench in a nearby alley. When I came to my senses, I realized I was leaning against someone. I could hear a voice murmuring nearby, but my head hurt too much for it to register.

“How could the professor be so rude?”

Ugh. Even though it was summer, the night air felt cold. I shivered and let out a small groan. As I pressed my cheek against the neck of the person I was leaning on, I felt their body stiffen.

“You said before you didn’t have a girlfriend.”

My finger brushed against a ring. The other person twirled it gently, like a wheel, making it spin. I had originally worn it on my index finger, where it fit properly, but out of stubbornness I had slipped it onto my ring finger. Thinking it might fall off, I curled my finger.

If it weren’t for the next question, I would’ve continued resting my face against their neck without a hint of suspicion.

“But what’s this ring?”

At that question, my eyes shot open. That wasn’t something that man would ask. I snapped my head up to check—and there was Yoon Mihyun. Now that I looked, the shoulder I’d been leaning on was much too low. My neck had been bent awkwardly to the side. I hadn’t been in my right mind, drunk as I was. The shock made my tongue curl into the back of my throat, and I quickly hid my hand behind me. Surprised by my overreaction, Mihyun, who had been playing with the ring, backed away.

The atmosphere turned icy, as if cold water had been dumped on us. The intoxication that had clouded my head fled on two legs. I moved my alcohol-laced tongue to mutter an excuse.

“…Sorry, I was too drunk. I must’ve mistaken you for someone else.”

Mihyun gave a slightly awkward smile. It almost seemed a little bitter—but maybe that was just my imagination. Thinking I had overreacted, I was about to apologize again, but Mihyun stood up.

“Oppa, want some water?”

Normally I would’ve refused, but I wasn’t feeling well and asked her for the favor.

“I’ll go get it right away.”

Tap, tap—Mihyun walked away from me. I stared blankly after her retreating figure, then lowered my head again when my vision grew hazy. Time passed like that.

In the eerily quiet surroundings—

Footsteps approached. I caught a glimpse of a shadow through my downcast gaze. Without a shred of doubt, I assumed it was Mihyun, returning with water.

I thought she’d hand me the water soon. But for some reason, she stopped nearby. It didn’t seem like a stranger either. I could feel their gaze on the top of my head and the nape of my neck.

With my face still buried in my knees, I quietly called out to Mihyun. It was shameless, but I was desperate for water. My throat burned and my head throbbed.

“…Mihyun.”

My voice echoed through the narrow alley. With no answer and only the echo returning, I called out again.

“Mihyun…?”

Still no response. That’s when I sensed something was wrong. I cautiously lifted my head.

What I saw first were large dress shoes. Then came the long legs wrapped in a dark suit. A strange sense of déjà vu made my heart pound.

I tilted my head all the way back—and saw a man’s face.

“……”

The streetlamp above cast deep shadows across his face. Though his sunken eyes were entirely dark, I could tell. His gaze was fixed on me.

Just when I had been weighed down by a feeling of gloom, a surge of adrenaline shot through me. Startled by the sensation of something inside me expanding rapidly, I jumped to my feet. And then the world spun. As I staggered from the pain in my head, the man quickly closed the distance and grabbed my wrist.

“……!”

It hurt so much I couldn’t even scream. Tears welled up in my eyes. I tried to twist my wrist free, but he only pulled me in harder. I was helplessly dragged toward a car. With a strength that couldn’t even be compared to Mihyun’s, the man forcefully shoved me into the passenger seat.

Bang! The car door shut.

I nearly hit my head on the window. Clumsily, I steadied myself on all fours and waited as the man walked around to the driver’s side. The door slammed shut hard. Click—the locks engaged, sealing all the doors tight.

Then silence fell inside the car. I kept moving my lips. I definitely had something to say, but maybe because I was drunk, I couldn’t organize my thoughts. I tried gathering the shattered fragments one by one, but soon gave up and quietly spoke.

“My head hurts from the alcohol.”

“Is that why you were leaning on her like that?”

Leaning? What did he mean? I blinked, then realized what he was referring to. He was talking about how I had practically leaned on Yoon Mihyun earlier. …So he saw that. Just how long had he been watching me?

“I hadn’t drunk in a while, so I guess my body couldn’t take it…”

The man glared at me with a cold expression. I had to say something, anything, so I let my tongue move without thinking.

“I was drunk, I couldn’t help it…”

“…Because you were drunk?”

Shit. A filthy curse pierced my eardrum. I flinched in place like I had been slapped. The man grabbed my chin with his hand. His thumb slipped between my lips, slowly brushing across my teeth. When I opened my mouth, he rubbed his fingerprint across my tongue.

“Your tongue’s so twisted your speech is a mess,”

He lifted my chin with the back of his hand.

“And your eyes aren’t even focused.”

I shifted my aimless gaze to his face. His sharply defined face filled my vision.

“Who made you drink so much?”

“……”

“You’re usually alone, aren’t you?”

Huh? His voice was unusually gentle. There was something chilling in that coaxing tone. Even in my drunken state, I felt like I shouldn’t say anything, so I kept my mouth shut. The man gently rubbed my lips with his thumb.

“I asked who.”

I shook my head, saying I didn’t know.

“That girl you were with earlier—Yoon Mihyun?”

…A question mark floated up in my foggy head. How did CEO Jang know Mihyun’s name? But I wasn’t thinking straight, and that didn’t matter. I avoided answering and grabbed at the man’s shirt, then burrowed into his chest to avoid his gaze. The familiar scent that had lingered on me all day grew stronger, making me feel even more intoxicated.

…Come to think of it, I had something I wanted to say. But it didn’t matter anymore. My head hurt so much I just wanted to sleep. As I closed my eyes and adjusted my posture, my consciousness slowly drifted away.

Then my hair was grabbed from behind. My head was yanked back, and his face filled my vision.

“I asked you.”

He buried his nose in my neck. I shivered as he inhaled deeply.

“Your neck reeks of women’s perfume.”

His expression was one of utter disgust. I bit down hard on my lower lip. All day, I had only smelled his cologne. Women’s perfume? That didn’t make any sense.

“It’s not like that…”

I tried to explain, but he cut me off mercilessly.

“I was being generous, you know.”

“It’s really not—”

I wanted to say I mistook him for someone else, but—

“Shut your mouth while I’m still trying to calm down.”

He wouldn’t even let me say that. Holding the steering wheel with one hand, he rolled down the window and lit a cigarette. The ash-colored smoke curled out through the crack. A cold silence settled in the car.

“……”

“……”

I didn’t know what to do, so I just sat there blushing in the passenger seat. When I first saw him earlier, I was so relieved. I’d been exhausted in every way, and just the thought of going home with him had lifted a weight off my chest. It felt like I could finally breathe. How did it end up like this?

I took a cigarette too and put it to my lips. I didn’t know what smell he was talking about, but I figured it’d be better if I just smelled like smoke instead. So I lit one up.

As soon as we got home, I headed straight to the bathroom to shower. The heat from the water made my head spin even more, so I deliberately rinsed with cold water to sober up. I scrubbed the back of my neck—the spot he said smelled like perfume—especially hard. I washed until my skin turned red from the friction, then stepped out of the bathroom.

“I washed up.”

I loosened the waist tie and let the robe slide down. It slipped off my body with a soft sound as it fell to the floor. The man stared at me with a serpent-like gaze, scanning from my chest down between my legs. I staggered toward him and wrapped my arms around his neck.

“…I’m clean now.”

He stood still for a moment, without a word. Then he asked: Whose are you?

Before my brain could tell me what to say, my lips, trained by habit, spoke on their own.

…Yours, CEO.

Only then did he respond. He grabbed my waist hard. My body was pulled into him, clinging to him like suction.

“If it were the old me, I’d have ruined you on the spot.”

He said that as if we’d done it in that alley by the bar—where people sometimes passed by. Just the thought of it sent a chill down my spine. I shook my head fiercely and buried my face into his neck, begging him over and over, saying I was wrong. The man, now close enough to feel his heavy breath, exhaled as if suppressing his anger. It seemed he still hadn’t gotten over what happened earlier.

He pinned me under him. The relationship continued with the same threatening intensity. He drove into me roughly, as if venting the anger he hadn’t burned off. It had been a while since he’d forced himself in like this—it was hard, but I tried to match him. I didn’t want to be rejected. I’d thought about him all day, suffocated by the scent he’d left on me. If he rejected me now, it would be too unfair. I clung to him even harder, determined not to let go.