To My Brother’s Friend - Chapter 63

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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 63
Inside the car cutting through the dawn air toward the airport.
Kwon Yeol’s mind was completely consumed by thoughts of Hee-jo.
“Thank you, oppa. For everything, from start to finish.”
That radiant smile she wore while saying those words kept flickering before my eyes.
There was something so light and beautiful about that expression that I found myself gazing at it for a long time.
Yet the sight of her sleeping before I left the house weighed heavily on my heart in ways I couldn’t explain.
Yoon Hee-jo, curled up like a fetus with her back turned to me, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as she slept.
Though her breathing was steady and peaceful, that defensive posture struck me deeply, lingering in my chest.
An inexplicable unease kept tugging at my heels.
I found myself stopping at the entrance several times—something I would never normally do.
“Don’t look back. I hope you achieve everything you want, oppa. Eat delicious food, sleep well… just take care of yourself while you’re away.”
Had I not recalled those words from Hee-jo, I might not have made it on time.
Kwon Yeol forced his heavy heart upward and barely managed to board the private jet.
The moment we took off, Hong Se-gi and the secretarial team sprang into urgent action.
Thousands of documents scrolled across the monitors as I issued directives relentlessly, trying to erase the lingering image of Hee-jo.
“Assemble the local team the moment we land at the airport. Prepare materials to suppress their pressure, even if it means working through the night.”
Even after arriving in New York, rest was fleeting.
Metro Fund pressed relentlessly, and I met them without yielding an inch, sharply exposing their weaknesses.
Day after day brought marathon negotiations, on-site inspections, and a grueling schedule that rendered jet lag meaningless.
Yet through that brutal ordeal, only one thing sustained me.
“Don’t worry and go.”
Whenever that tender voice echoed like a phantom in my ears, I regained my focus.
Just five days.
In less than a week, I had sealed a negotiation that seemed impossible.
“Everyone did excellent work.”
At my brief commendation, the exhausted secretarial team barely managed to smile and bow.
“You’ve worked incredibly hard, Director.”
The operational staff who had endured that hellish schedule with me marveled at my superhuman stamina.
I seemed like someone who had never known jet lag.
Even after going without sleep for several nights, I appeared the next day in a crisp, sharp suit, and without fail, I visited the Hotel Fitness Center even in the early mornings when everyone else was collapsed.
By pushing myself to the absolute limit, I finally grasped victory.
To those who tightened the noose using risk as leverage, I threw a counter-proposal instead.
The result was a success.
I had successfully secured the core shares necessary to elevate Beomho Construction to a holding company, bringing key stakeholders into our favor.
With this, I had obtained the ‘master key’ to the lifelong ambition my grandfather had devoted himself to.
Now the arranged marriage was no longer a weapon against Beom Hun-young.
Rather, the moment I—the only suitable person to complete this project—withdrew from the contract, the entire future of Beom Ho Group would be shaken.
The game had completely reversed.
“We have about three hours before departure, so you’re all free to spend the time as you wish.”
The employees’ faces brightened instantly.
Carving out personal time during such a grueling business trip was an extraordinarily rare privilege afforded by having a capable superior.
Leaving the dispersing employees behind, their fatigue forgotten, Kwon Yeol also departed the Hotel.
“Executive Director, where are you headed?”
Hong Se-gi’s question was met with Kwon Yeol’s composed reply.
“I thought I’d select a gift for my wife.”
Hong Se-gi was inwardly moved by how Kwon Yeol transformed in an instant from a cold-blooded executive director into an affectionate husband.
Having watched him since childhood, he had always hoped he would meet a warm person and build a home where he could truly breathe.
Fortunately, it seemed Kwon Yeol had found exactly the right person.
At first, he had worried about Hee-jo’s background being a concern, but now he could be certain.
Hee-jo absolutely had to be by Kwon Yeol’s side.
“I know a shop that Madam would love. I myself succeeded in my proposal with a ring from that very place.”
Upon hearing of the successful proposal, Kwon Yeol immediately headed there.
Though New York was lined with high-end brands, this shop was renowned for its elderly owner who personally cut raw stones to create one-of-a-kind pieces.
Given Yoon Hee-jo’s nature, she would surely prefer this place.
As he stepped inside, an elderly jeweler with silver hair greeted him warmly.
“I’d like to choose a gift for my wife.”
As Kwon Yeol spoke in fluent English, the old jeweler, who had been studying him carefully over his magnifying glasses, broke into a benevolent smile.
“What a fine young man, thinking of his wife with such care. What sort of woman is she?”
Kwon Yeol spoke, his mind filled with thoughts of Hee-jo.
“She’s a clear-minded person. She appears delicate, yet her core is stronger than anyone’s, and though she seems reserved, there’s an unpredictable side to her that occasionally surprises.”
A soft smile unconsciously spread across Kwon Yeol’s lips.
The old jeweler likewise broke into a warm laugh at the sight.
“It seems you love your wife dearly.”
Love.
Kwon Yeol slowly savored the word, then nodded gently.
“Yes. I love her. Very much.”
A confession he had never properly conveyed to the person herself burst forth first before this stranger in a foreign land.
It felt somewhat hollow, yet what did it matter?
She had told me to have a safe trip.
She had said she would listen when I returned.
So there was no need to rush.
“Then, how about this?”
The old jeweler produced an aquamarine pendant, transparent yet tinged with blue light.
It was a gemstone that resembled Hee-jo’s clear eyes.
“Long ago, I gave this stone to my wife and proposed to her. I told her I wanted to spend eternity with her. Now it sleeps beside her. So my wish has come true.”
Kwon Yeol gazed down at the jewel resting in his palm.
The “eternity” the old jeweler spoke of seemed to rest within his own hands.
“I’ll take this one.”
The old jeweler nodded with satisfaction at Kwon Yeol’s resolute answer.
“You chose well. This jewel reveals its true brilliance only when it meets someone who resembles its owner. It will surely make a wonderful gift.”
As I watched the box being carefully wrapped, a corner of my chest ignited with heat.
That a small, glittering stone—something I would have ordinarily dismissed without a second glance—could stir my heart so profoundly was solely because of Hee-jo’s face, radiant with joy as she wore it around her neck.
I would hand her this and finally pour out all the words I had swallowed until now.
I would cast aside this hollow contract and ask her to become my true wife.
I would spend my entire life looking only at her.
I would devote everything I possessed to making her happy.
I gripped the box tightly in my hands.
I wanted to return immediately and place it around Hee-jo’s neck.
Now that the contract had been finalized, Grandfather could no longer impose restrictions on our relationship.
Driven by urgent longing, my pace quickened.
All the preparations to bring Hee-jo completely to my side were finished.
Now, all that remained was to return to her as swiftly as possible.
I remember the light in Hee-jo’s eyes as she watched me eat omurice before I left on my business trip.
In that warm gaze, I found my certainty.
Her affection was directed at no one but me.
* * *
Upon arriving in Korea, I called Hee-jo immediately from the car heading to the Separate House.
While the phone rang, I imagined how she would greet me.
Perhaps tonight would be omurice again.
‘That would be perfect.’
Even the finest cuisine I had eaten in New York could not satisfy me as much as the simple bowl she had prepared.
Should I give her the necklace before eating, or after we finished?
Even as I entertained these pleasant thoughts, the ringing continued relentlessly.
It was 7:15 p.m.—too late to still be at the Company, yet too early to be asleep.
Was she absorbed in work in the Study Room?
Once she focused, she became so engrossed that she could not hear anything around her.
Upon arriving at the Family Home, I bypassed even the customary report to Grandfather and headed straight to the Separate House.
I needed to see Hee-jo’s face immediately—only then would the breath I had held for five days finally come free.
“Hee-jo.”
But what greeted me as I stepped through the entrance was only a cool silence and the soft glow of a desk lamp.
‘She must still be working.’
I called her again and headed toward the Bedroom.
If she was not here, she would be in the Study Room.
Yet Hee-jo still did not answer, and there was no trace of her in the neatly arranged Bedroom.
Just as I was about to leave the room and head to the Study Room.
Something glimmering strangely on the empty Vanity caught my eye with sharp precision.
Beneath the cold light, I saw it lying there—abandoned by its owner—and my face twisted in an instant.
One step, then another.
I approached with heavy, reluctant steps and picked up the object from the Vanity.
“….”
I hoped I had misread it, but what lay in my palm was a wedding ring.
The same one now adorning the fourth finger of his left hand.
A symbol of marriage that he had never once removed from his body since the day we wed.

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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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