Impossible Romance - Chapter 7

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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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7.

“Who are you?”
The Unknown Male Student frowned the moment he saw Jun-hee, his tone casual and dismissive.
As my senses cleared, I noticed the name tag on his school uniform blazer: Kwon Seok-ha. His handsome face bore a fresh wound, and flecks of blood spattered his uniform in several places. He looked as though he’d just come from a fight.
‘A delinquent?’
My chest tightened. I’d never seen a delinquent quite so handsome, but regardless—he was clearly a troublemaker.
Fear widened my eyes, and my grip on the broom handle weakened.
“I’m asking you. Who are you?”
Kwon Seok-ha asked again. Despite the wound on his face and the grime on his uniform, his eyes gleamed with a sharp, penetrating intensity.
“I live here.”
I immediately felt intimidated by that gaze. A sense of indignation washed over me—I wanted nothing more than to sneak up and flick him on the back of the head as he turned to leave.
“You live here? So what grade are you in?”
He nodded curtly, then raked his sharp, discerning eyes over me from head to toe.
Despite his youth, a hint of mischief glimmered beneath those raw, unrefined eyes.
Unaware of such subtleties, I shrank back—I’d never encountered someone with such a frightening gaze before.
“I’m a first-year high school student.”
“Then you’re quite a bit younger than me. Don’t cause trouble and get out of here.”
‘He’s barely older than me, yet he acts like he knows everything.’
As I grumbled inwardly, Kwon Seok-ha lay back down on the bench with an expression of utter indifference, as if he’d already heard it all. The old, weathered bench bore his weight as though resigned to its fate, dust clinging to its surface.
My anger flared anew at the sight.
‘Delinquent or not, this is my house, and he just sprawls out like he owns the place?’
“Listen. This is our house. This yard belongs to us! Leave before I call the police! You don’t know how scary rural people can be!”
I steeled myself and shouted from a few paces away.
My heart hammered with fear, but I couldn’t simply stand by and let a delinquent trespass in my family’s yard.
“This is your yard?”
His smile was peculiar—enigmatic, as though he harbored some secret.
“Yes! So why are you lounging around in someone else’s house like this? How shameless! Are you a delinquent?”
“Troublemaker. Delinquent. Ha.”
He repeated my words as though savoring them.
I was about to press my argument further when—
My grandfather, one of the Villa’s caretakers, appeared.
Relieved to see my ally, I tattled to him like a child.
“Grandfather! This person trespassed in our yard!”
But instead of chasing the intruder away, my grandfather bowed respectfully to Kwon Seok-ha.
“Young Master, I heard you weren’t feeling well. Are you alright?”
Kwon Seok-ha rose from the bench and returned the bow.
“Hello.”
My eyes widened as I watched them. Even if he was older than me, he was still a high school student. Yet seeing my white-haired grandfather treat him with such deference felt deeply unsettling.
Grandfather approached Jun-hee.
“You should greet him too. He’s the young master of Seonjin Group. They say he’s the future owner of Seonjin.”
At Grandfather’s introduction, Jun-hee found herself in an awkward position.
After all, she’d just snapped at the real owner, claiming she was the one in charge.
‘Still, what does “young master” even mean in this day and age? Young master, really.’
Embarrassed, she vented her frustration by keeping her gaze fixed on the ground, when Grandfather spoke to Kwon Seok-ha.
“Young master, this is our granddaughter. While you’re here, she’ll handle any errands you need. She may look rough around the edges, but she’s quite capable with her hands—feel free to ask her for anything.”
At Grandfather’s words, Jun-hee’s head snapped up in surprise.
Errands?!
Before she could stop Grandfather, Kwon Seok-ha looked down at her. Even when he’d been lying on the bench, she’d sensed he was tall, but standing before her now, he loomed like a tree that had grown impossibly high.
“Understood.”
A slight smile played at the corners of his mouth as he regarded her.
Jun-hee answered by puffing out her cheeks and glaring at him.
“Your name is Ahn Joon-hee? Let’s see each other often.”
Kwon Seok-ha paid no attention to her expression and, after glancing at the nameplate on her school uniform, turned away.
“Jun-hee, grab the medicine kit and go help the young master.”
Grandfather, oblivious to her true feelings, sent her off on the errand.
“Huh? I, I don’t think that… that person needs anything.”
Unable to bring herself to say “young master,” Jun-hee spoke evasively, her eyes fixed on her feet. Grandfather’s voice grew firmer as he spoke sternly.
“Both his parents have gone up to Seoul. How difficult it must be for him, alone in this remote area. Go quickly and apply some ointment for him.”
“Yes…”
Jun-hee answered reluctantly, her head bowed low.
Her meeting with Kwon Seok-ha had begun this way—from the very start, a relationship defined by hierarchy, orchestrated by Grandfather’s appearance.

And even now, that relationship remained unchanged.
I thought I’d escaped him and come far away, yet here I was, meeting him again—and the realization drew a heavy sigh from me. Worse still, I was now bound to him, forced to live between home and the Company.
I’d been saving money to flee far from my family someday, but reality stubbornly refused to grant such opportunities, no matter how hard I worked.
That was when it happened.
Bang, bang, bang!
The violent pounding on the door startled me so badly I leaped from my seat.
The door was nothing but thin metal plating, so I could tell someone was standing right outside.
“Who is it?”
I called out from inside before opening the door.
“I live downstairs.”
A slurred, drunken male voice boomed from beyond the door.
“Ah.”
The moment I heard that voice, a sigh escaped my lips.
It was the Downstairs Neighbor—the man who constantly harassed me about noise complaints between floors. I didn’t know what he did for work, but whenever I ran into him, the reek of alcohol was so strong it was clear he was an alcoholic.
“What’s the matter?”
My chest tightened, and I couldn’t bring myself to open the door carelessly.
“It’s so loud I can’t sleep at all! Open this door right now!”
The man pounded on the door again, harder than before.
“You won’t open it? Are you ignoring me? Hey!”
When I remained silent, he pounded even harder, now shouting at the top of his lungs.
Inside my apartment, I fidgeted anxiously. This commotion would disturb the other residents in the building.
The thought of causing such trouble to others made me deeply uncomfortable.
‘What do I do?’
With a sigh, I reluctantly cracked the door open slightly.
As expected, the man was swaying, thoroughly drunk.
“Hey! Why are you only opening it now? Huh?”
The moment he saw me, he started picking a fight.
“I just got home moments ago. If there was noise, it couldn’t have been from my apartment.”
Though frightened in the darkness, I spoke as calmly as I could manage.
“Hey! So you’re saying I’m lying? I can’t sleep because it’s so loud! And this place has no soundproofing at all. How are you going to compensate me?”
A stale, unwashed stench wafted from him.
“I’m sorry. I’ll be quieter.”
Though I’d only been home for less than five minutes, I apologized rather than escalate into a major confrontation with this man.
Part of me felt wronged, but I wanted nothing more than to get him out and finally rest. Today had felt unusually long and exhausting.
“An apology is all? Then give me money, or pay with your body instead.”
The man’s eyes raked over me with disgusting intent, and he licked his lips. Then he suddenly yanked the door open forcefully.
“Don’t do this! Get out!”
I screamed in terror and tried to slam the door shut, but the drunk man’s strength overpowered mine. The door swung open, and he wedged his foot inside.
I stumbled backward, searching frantically for my phone. I tried to call the police, but my hands trembled so badly I couldn’t manage it.
The Downstairs Neighbor had always made me uneasy and afraid. Ever since he’d moved in a few months ago, he’d come upstairs constantly to complain, and once he realized I lived alone, his harassment had only grown worse.
Greed gleamed in the eyes of the oily-faced man as his tongue slicked across his lips with anticipation. The way he advanced made my skin crawl.
Jun-hee was terrified, backing away while desperately searching for anything within reach to throw.
That was when it happened.
“Ugh!”
The drunken man screamed and vanished from Jun-hee’s sight. Since the zombie-like figure who had been lurching forward suddenly disappeared, “vanished” was perhaps the most accurate description.
Clutching my startled heart in relief, I saw Kwon Seok-ha.
The moment I laid eyes on him, relief flooded through me first. My heart seemed to melt, and I could finally breathe. Simultaneously, a small question arose.
‘Wasn’t he supposed to have gone home?’
Kwon Seok-ha, whom I thought had gone home, was now beating the drunken man senseless.
Straddling the man’s crumpled body on the ground, Kwon Seok-ha swung his fists relentlessly.

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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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