To My Brother’s Friend - Chapter 45

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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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Chapter 45
…Pregnant?
What did I just hear?
Unlike Hee-jo, who stood frozen in shock, Beom Hun-young’s Household maintained an unhurried demeanor as he carefully caressed the bonsai atop the side table.
“Whenever I attend gatherings these days, everyone says the same thing. That I’ll soon be blessed with great-grandchildren.”
“….”
“They say that with such marital harmony, the sound of a child’s cries will soon echo through Jeoksanwon, and they’re already offering congratulations. Representative Jung from Jinseong Group is apparently insisting on sending gifts?”
It’s become quite troublesome having to decline each time. Chairman Beom, who had been speaking playfully, suddenly stilled his hand and locked eyes with the frozen Hee-jo.
“Kwon Yeol will be going on a business trip soon. Why don’t you take this opportunity to get those overdue health checkups done? I’ll send someone to arrange it, so you just need to do as instructed.”
Chairman Beom spoke in a gentle tone.
As if to say: you must never carry the Beom Family’s heir.
If you did….
“Don’t worry about anything. Nothing will happen.”
I’ll make sure nothing happens.
“How has your health been lately? There shouldn’t be any problems, should there?”
My heart began pounding violently in my chest.
Now that I thought about it, I had missed my period this month.
But that was commonplace for me.
My body had always been frail, and living under constant tension meant I suffered from severe stress-induced polycystic ovary syndrome and irregular menstruation.
Besides, Kwon Yeol had been meticulous about contraception.
“You must not conceive a child.”
I had nodded to Chairman Beom’s cold command in the past precisely because I knew my body made pregnancy difficult.
I had even felt a strange sense of relief knowing the probability of my physical condition becoming a chain binding him was remarkably low.
My fragile body had become the perfect shield protecting this precarious contractual marriage.
Then Kwon Yeol’s low voice cut through my thoughts.
“Don’t show any weakness. You’re being watched even in places you can’t see.”
That was the moment his words became visceral.
The thought that even my menstrual cycle might be reported to Chairman Beom sent chills cascading across my entire body.
“I told you. Endure it a little longer, no matter how heavy and burdensome it feels. It won’t take much longer.”
“….”
“Why aren’t you answering?”
Beom Hun-young’s Household smiled with his eyes closed, regarding the rigidly frozen Hee-jo.
“You don’t need to be so tense. Once you’ve completed the checkup, simply return to being the harmonious couple you are now, and continue displaying the dutiful behavior you’ve shown. You needn’t worry about my gaze or your mother-in-law’s.”
Chairman Beom slowly brushed the bonsai’s leaves again. The dry rustling sound cut through the silence.
“Thanks to you, Kwon Yeol and the Group’s image has improved considerably. The next heir of Beomho Group, tenderly cherishing his scholarship-student wife—it’s precisely the narrative the public adores.”
He paused and stared intently at Hee-jo.
“But if, despite loving her so desperately…you were forced to choose separation because of your wife’s defect.”
“….”
“That tragic tale would appear quite noble and lamentable in the public eye. A Kwon Yeol who knows how to suffer for love—that boy’s value would skyrocket several times over. Wouldn’t it?”
I swallowed hard.
I had been intoxicated by that fleeting warmth, forgetting my own precarious position.
That I was merely a consumable to be discarded once my usefulness expired.
More precisely… I was the most poignant and perfect instrument—one whose true purpose would only be fulfilled through abandonment, completing his narrative with tragic perfection.
“At first, I worried greatly. I wondered how far down Kwon Yeol would sink if he took you as his wife.”
Beom Hun-young’s voice was gentle yet detached.
That callous insult scraped across Hee-jo’s heart like a blade.
“But now I’m grateful. Without you, Kwon Yeol would have remained a heartless monster, inheriting only the blood of a gang leader—devoid of mercy or tears.”
Chairman Beom continued, gazing quietly at a withered leaf that had fallen from the bonsai.
“But thanks to you, Kwon Yeol will be packaged as a magnanimous and compassionate leader. He’ll be praised as a sublime successor who embraced even the lowborn with love.”
Beom Hun-young’s eyes narrowed with satisfaction.
“You are the perfect stepping stone to elevate that boy, Hee-jo. How could I not cherish you for that?”
* * *
Leaving the office, Hee-jo walked alone down the long corridor with a vacant expression.
Silence clung to the air around her feet.
Then Kwon Yeol’s jacket, which had been draped precariously across her shoulders, slipped and fell to the floor.
….
Suddenly her shoulders felt bare and hollow.
Where his warmth had been, a cold chill seeped in.
As I bent to pick up the jacket, I paused, gazing quietly at the marks left on my blouse.
The stains were merely hidden, never truly erased.
I felt exactly like that.
Leaning against Kwon Yeol’s large, solid presence had only concealed my ugliness for a moment; my wretched essence remained unchanged.
‘…Somehow, I was so happy.’
With an expression caught between tears and smiles, I picked up the jacket from the floor.
Holding the fabric—still carrying his scent—close to my chest, I drew a deep breath.
But now his jacket no longer felt like a shield protecting me; it felt like an ill-fitting, undeserved shell upon my body.
Yes, this is exactly what our relationship is.
The one consolation was that I could continue the performance of being a harmonious couple without hesitation.
The more tenderly Kwon Yeol treated me, the deeper the public’s sympathy for him would become when we eventually divorced.
His value would only rise accordingly.
And the reason for divorce—the one who would first demand it—would be me, his wife.
Hee-jo suddenly turned her gaze toward the window, looking up at the moon rising in the darkness.
‘Be satisfied with this. I’m happy, oppa. So please don’t grieve too much. You understand, don’t you?’
Slowly steadying my breath, I draped Kwon Yeol’s jacket around myself again and moved toward the far end of the darkened corridor.
* * *
As Hee-jo’s inaugural speech drew to a close, Kwon Yeol’s phone vibrated loudly.
The fact that someone had violated his strict order never to contact him during the ceremony meant the situation was far from ordinary.
The moment he answered, Secretary Director Hong Se-gi’s urgent voice confirmed his ominous premonition.
-We’ve detected embezzlement by the local subsidiary director, and to make matters worse, the government has issued notice of license revocation.
A crisis had struck Beomho Construction’s carefully developed Southeast Asia resort complex project.
It seems you’ll need to handle this personally, sir.
At Hong Se-gi’s cautious words through the receiver, Kwon Yeol roughly rubbed his furrowed brow with his fingertips.
Glancing back at Hee-jo, who was smiling brightly from the podium, he answered in a low voice.
“Understood. I’ll prepare immediately.”
The moment he ended the call, Kwon Yeol rapidly scrolled through his screen issuing additional instructions before making his way toward the end of the corridor outside the banquet hall.
After speaking with the relevant parties for some time, once the situation was somewhat resolved, he attempted to re-enter the banquet hall.
Just then, Hee-jo emerged from a private meeting with Chairman Beom Hun-young and encountered Kwon Yeol in the empty corridor.
“Sorry, an urgent call came through. Congratulations on finishing your speech safely.”
Kwon Yeol whispered while gently wrapping an arm around Hee-jo’s shoulders, then glanced back down the corridor from which she had come.
“But you’re coming from the corridor, not the banquet hall. Where are you coming from?”
Kwon Yeol whispered while gently wrapping an arm around Hee-jo’s shoulders. But noticing her complexion had grown somewhat pale, he asked softly.
“Ah….”
Hee-jo hesitated for a moment before looking up at his face and speaking.
“I was looking for my brother.”
At those words, Kwon Yeol’s brow furrowed and he stepped closer, drawing her into his embrace.
Kwon Yeol cradled her head in his large hand and buried his face deep into the nape of her neck.
The noise that had been pounding in his head ceased all at once.
Breathing in Hee-jo’s distinctive scent, his sharp nerves finally began to settle.
“It looks like I need to leave on a business trip right away.”
Kwon Yeol’s low voice resonated against her ear. Hee-jo’s body tensed.
“A business trip…?”
“Yes. An urgent matter has come up.”
Kwon Yeol gently pulled Hee-jo away from his embrace and cradled her face in both hands.
“I’ll be back soon.”
This must have been the business trip Chairman Beom had mentioned.
She wanted to tell him.
That she couldn’t bear for him to go, that she wanted him to stay by her side, that she was terrified and anxious.
But….
“Yes, have a safe trip.”
Hee-jo offered a small smile and buried her cheek deeply into his palm.
“I’ll be waiting for you.”
Kwon Yeol bowed his head and captured her lips with his own.
Hee-jo exhaled a breath that seemed ready to break at any moment, desperately pulling his neck toward her.
His jacket, which had been draped around her delicate shoulders, fell limply to the floor once more.
Behind her closed eyelids, the stain that had soiled her blouse loomed large in her mind.
As if to hide it, Hee-jo clung to Kwon Yeol all the more desperately.
The deeper she burrowed into his broad embrace, the more vivid became the warmth of his large hand pressing against her body.
Ragged breathing echoed softly through the cold, silent corridor.
A poignant kiss lingered on and on.

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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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