Impossible Romance - Chapter 41

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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41.

Lee Sook-hyun jabbed Ahn Jun-young sharply with her elbow. The teacup on the polished mahogany table rattled, producing a jarring sound. The luxury hotel suddenly took on the atmosphere of a cheap auction house.
“Mom, mistresses are so outdated these days. It’s old-fashioned. Don’t use that word—’second wife’ sounds better.”
Ahn Jun-young adjusted his glasses with his finger and spoke as if he were an expert. Unlike Jun-hee since childhood, Ahn Jun-young had always moved in the outside world, and his expression suggested he knew all the trivial affairs of this world.
Whether mistress or second wife, neither was a particularly pleasant term, and Kwon Seok-ha’s brows furrowed. He couldn’t fathom what this mother and son were trying to say, but he was grateful he’d kept it secret from Jun-hee.
A few days ago, Ahn Jun-young had suddenly contacted him asking to meet. It wasn’t about repaying money, and he’d said he had something to discuss with Lee Sook-hyun—something that felt off. Now he understood.
Lee Sook-hyun, watching Kwon Seok-ha’s stern, silent expression, carefully opened her mouth.
“What I’m saying is that being a second wife requires maintenance expenses, you understand. I can’t speak of this anywhere else, and as you know, Mrs. Kwon disapproves. But the Executive Director cares for our Jun-hee so much. I’m her mother, but what can I do in a situation like this?”
Lee Sook-hyun’s eyes glistened with tears as she feigned pity. Whether she was pitying Jun-hee or herself was impossible to discern from her expression.
“That’s right. We’re family, so it’s frustrating.”
Ahn Jun-young also sighed as if performing in a play.
“What’s frustrating about it?”
Kwon Seok-ha asked with genuine curiosity.
Had others spoken to him this way, he would have immediately left his seat. The only reason he maintained patience in conversation with them was because they were Jun-hee’s family.
“Our Jun-hee’s marriage prospects have been ruined because of the Executive Director, so if you’d just provide this much, we’d keep quiet and live with it.”
Lee Sook-hyun, whose eyes had been glistening with tears, formed a circle with her thumb and forefinger. It was a gesture asking for money.
“Are you aware that Jun-hee finds both of you uncomfortable?”
Kwon Seok-ha regarded the two of them slowly. A chill emanated from his narrowed, piercing eyes.
“What? What do you mean? Why would Jun-hee be uncomfortable with us? She’s such a good girl, and you’re so funny, Executive Director. Hehe.”
Lee Sook-hyun laughed as if hearing this for the first time, attempting to brush it aside. Yet her confusion was evident.
“Of course! There’s no filial daughter like Jun-hee. And she’s so helpful at home.”
Ahn Jun-young spoke with a smiling face, but drank water nervously.
“You truly don’t know?”
When Kwon Seok-ha pressed with a heavy tone, Lee Sook-hyun finally turned her head slightly. She seemed pricked by her conscience. But she lifted her head again and opened her mouth.
“Jun-hee said that? We sent her to university despite our circumstances—how could she say such a thing?”
She seemed ready to contact Jun-hee immediately and confront her.
“Jun-hee didn’t say that.”
Kwon Seok-ha suppressed his anger once more. It was not a common occurrence for him.
Lee Sook-hyun’s expression brightened again.
“I knew it. I raised Jun-hee, so I deserve this compensation. It’s not a large sum for the Executive Director.”
“I also raised Jun-hee on my back, as you know.”
The moment Lee Sook-hyun finished speaking, Ahn Jun-young interjected. It was clear he was anxious about whether Kwon Seok-ha would give them money.
“Raised her on your back?”
Kwon Seok-ha finally let out a hollow laugh. Jun-hee had received scholarships since childhood and worked various part-time jobs, actually giving money to the household. Even now, while working at the Company, she still sent living expenses home.
“Of course. So you won’t provide the maintenance expenses?”
Ahn Jun-young brazenly raised his head and demanded money.
“It’s not that I won’t give money. I’m asking you not to let Jun-hee know.”
Kwon Seok-ha knew how much Jun-hee suffered because of her family. He also knew how strong her pride was.
If Jun-hee learned that her mother and older brother had come to Kwon Seok-ha demanding money, she might very well leave him. In comparison, giving them money was the better choice. After all, it was mere pocket change to Kwon Seok-ha—an amount that wouldn’t even be missed.
The moment Kwon Seok-ha finished speaking, both their expressions brightened remarkably.
“Of course! Don’t worry at all. We haven’t been in separate contact. Jun-young reached out this time and came to Seoul, and Jun-hee thinks I’m stuck at the Villa.”
Lee Sook-hyun’s eyes gleamed with excitement. Unlike her taciturn husband, she had quite an appetite for money. Previously, she had made demands of Jun-hee, but now, together with her son, she had decided to attach herself directly to Kwon Seok-ha.
“That’s right! Jun-hee doesn’t even know my contact information. I’ll keep quiet so she won’t worry about me.”
Ahn Jun-young clasped his hands together in a pleading gesture, as if in prayer, then lowered them.
“I’m not saying you should hide away. I’m just saying don’t tell her you received money from me. More precisely, don’t mention the reason you received that money.”
“A… a second wife payment?”
Lee Sook-hyun’s eyes widened and her voice grew louder.
“Jun-hee is not a second wife.”
“…”
“So don’t speak of it that way.”
Kwon Seok-ha’s eyes flashed with a savage glint.
Lee Sook-hyun and Ahn Jun-young instinctively recognized his fury. The atmosphere was such that it wouldn’t be strange if he suddenly stood up and overturned the table. Only Jun-hee remained unaware—he was, in fact, quite a fierce man.
And in that same moment, they also understood just how deeply he truly loved Jun-hee. A strange sense of relief washed over Lee Sook-hyun and Ahn Jun-young.
“If that’s the case, don’t worry at all. As long as you give us the money, we’ll do exactly as you say. We won’t spread a word about any of it.”
Lee Sook-hyun and Ahn Jun-young made a zipping motion across their lips and looked at each other. Even though Jun-hee was their own family, the thought of using her to extract money seemed to blind them to everything else.
Watching the two of them, Kwon Seok-ha felt his chest tighten with disgust.
“Understood. Please honor this promise. The money I mentioned will be processed shortly.”
Kwon Seok-ha rose from his seat. The smiling faces of the mother and son staring up at him were so repugnant that his stomach churned. The most important thing was ensuring Jun-hee never learned of this.
“As expected of our Executive Director! You’re so generous. Hahahaha.”
“Thank you.”
Lee Sook-hyun and Ahn Jun-young sprang to their feet and bowed deeply.
Kwon Seok-ha turned away without another word to them. In that moment, Jun-hee came to mind—the Jun-hee who had come all the way to the Blind Date Location. Her tender heart wrapped in a hard shell, trembling softly within.
He wanted to see her right away. He wanted to hold her close immediately.

***

I’d vacuumed the entire apartment and watched enough television to last me. Despite my efforts not to fixate on time, my eyes kept drifting toward the wall clock without my permission. My phone on the table remained silent—no messages from anywhere.
Quite a bit of time had passed, yet Kwon Seok-ha still hadn’t returned. Suddenly, Lee Ha-eun, whom I’d seen at the Blind Date Location today, came to mind. As expected, there wasn’t a trace of life’s shadows visible on her.
Her radiant smile overflowed with elegance and confidence. Draped in luxury brands with an air of nobility, she looked absolutely perfect sitting across from Kwon Seok-ha.
Enough to make me jealous.
No—enough to make my heart ache with a bitter, cutting pain.
Given their similar backgrounds, anyone would say they made a decent couple.
At this point, I shook my head. If I continued down this train of thought, I felt I might become sad. Even though it hadn’t happened yet, the probability of it becoming reality was so high that it already felt like it had.
I should do laundry.
I rose from the sofa. If I remained sprawled here like this, some thoughtless emotion would surge up again and drag me into pity. I hated that. I hated others pitying me, and I hated pitying myself.
I’d always thought there was nothing more pathetic than mistaking yourself for a tragic heroine. Probably since that time when I admired the boy Kwon Seok-ha and realized the pain of my first love.
I felt the deepest sorrow when I understood that our circumstances differed from what textbooks called equality—more precisely, when I realized there was an invisible glass wall between him and me.
I couldn’t even tell him how I felt about him. So the confession I’d written all night on pretty flowered stationery, filling it with hearts, was discarded without ever showing it to anyone.
That was when I realized I wasn’t a tragic heroine at all—I wasn’t even an extra at the ball. In my imagined stage, I was merely a servant baking cookies and carrying them around.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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