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“The Paganini Competition...”
Hee-jin closed her eyes for a moment, recalling her previous participation. Seok-hyun stared at the now-silent Hee-jin, and upon seeing consultant Song Min-young returning, he stood up and left the room.
“Did she say no, by any chance?”
Song Min-young, who had returned to her spot after spending some time, guessed the situation just by looking at Seok-hyun's expression as he stepped out.
“Yes.”
“An artist indeed. The type who wants to live nobly even while starving.”
Min-young wasn't particularly surprised or puzzled. The people who sought her out to increase their public recognition generally fell into two categories: those who would do anything for popularity and attention, and those who refused to let go of their dignity even if they died. As someone whose livelihood depended on creating a marketable image, she didn't dare judge which side was better. The former were simply a "Welcome," and the latter were a "Goodbye."
“You're not giving up, though, right?”
Min-young glanced at Seok-hyun, who was staring blankly at the meeting room through the glass door, and peeked inside with him. When people thought of violinists, those unfamiliar with classical music often imagined an image of elegance. Elegance. Delicacy. Fragility. Fastidiousness. Mystery.
Yoo Hee-jin seemed to be the human embodiment of that image. How could someone be that beautiful? In her time as a consultant, Min-young had met almost every kind of person, but she had never seen a face with such a story before.
“Yoo Hee-jin is someone who will absolutely become known to the public. I'll contact you again then.”
Min-young grinned, as if she had been waiting for that answer.
✾ ✾ ✾
“Ms. Yoo Hee-jin.”
Hee-jin, who was washing her hands in the restroom, looked up at the sound of her name being called. It was the third time she had heard that voice. She knew who it was without even checking. Moreover, the sound of high heels echoing against the restroom tiles provided confirmation.
A vivid color was reflected in the mirror. Did she come here knowing she was here? Or was it a coincidence? Though there was no evidence, Hee-jin naturally assumed the former.
“Interesting.”
*Click, clack.* Hong Yuna approached with the sound of high heels and stopped right in front of her. Hee-jin waited, thinking she had something to say, but the gaze scanning her from top to bottom was meaningful. It certainly wasn't a good feeling.
“What is it?”
“I heard you're receiving sponsorship? From Seok-hyun.”
The way she used his name revealed a desire to show off their intimate relationship. Considering when she had come to pick him up at the airport, it seemed they were personally close.
“Why 'Seok-hyun'?”
“Pardon?”
“No, it's just strange. There are foundations that professionally sponsor musicians, so why would you receive sponsorship from a third-generation chaebol who is a layman in that field? I just don't quite understand.”
“…….”
Even as Hee-jin's expression stiffened, Yuna instead curled her red lips upward and blinked repeatedly. As if asking for an explanation because she truly didn't know.
“This is none of your business.”
Hee-jin tried to walk past her. There was no need to deal with someone who displayed such aggressive psychology toward her. However, Hong Yuna's following words seemed to grip her ankle, making it impossible to move.
“Why is it not my business? I'm Go Seok-hyun's fiancée.”
Hee-jin's eyes widened at the news she was hearing for the first time. Fiancée? Her thoughts seemed to freeze at the unexpected words. Go Seok-hyun had never once mentioned having a girlfriend or a fiancée. Recalling what had happened in Japan, Hee-jin's face turned pale.
“I don't really know how great the violinist Yoo Hee-jin is, so I was curious. But well, it seems you don't have any awards from well-known competitions? Among Seok-hyun's friends, there's even a winner of the Tchaikovsky Competition. Even then, he didn't breathe a word about sponsorship.”
“…….”
Perhaps because she had just washed with cold water, her hands, now ice-cold, trembled violently. Hee-jin tried to clench her fists, but her fingers wouldn't budge.
“Aren't you curious too, Ms. Yoo Hee-jin? Why it's just a mere orchestra player like Yoo Hee-jin, and not an international competition winner. I wonder if that pretty face had absolutely no influence at all.”
Hong Yuna felt a surge of pleasure seeing the noble face—one for which "pretty" was far too insufficient—turn ghostly pale. *Clack.* Hee-jin's pumps struck the floor tiles hard. As Hee-jin hurried out of the restroom, the sound of Hong Yuna's scoff echoed behind her.
“Haa, haa...!”
Having rushed outside, Hee-jin felt she couldn't breathe properly and reached for her neck. She felt the scarf she had wrapped to hide any potential hickeys. Shaking convulsively, she pulled at the scarf to take it off, but it only tightened around her neck further.
To think he had done those things with her while having a fiancée. To say it was a mistake made while drunk, Go Seok-hyun's reaction hadn't changed since then. Even when Hong Yuna appeared at the airport, there was no sign of guilt.
“Cheating bastards should all go to hell.”
Her father had started seeing Yoo Da-ae's mother three years before their divorce. He probably didn't start by cheating, but eventually, he crossed the line, and the relationship with her mother deteriorated irreversibly. Hee-jin remembered vividly how much her mother and father fought, day and night.
Was that all? Even after she went to study in the US, her mother spent her nights drinking and enduring hours of agony. At the time, Hee-jin had been her mother's emotional trash can.
That was why it was hard to breathe now that she had become the shell of the woman her drunk mother used to curse at with fierce eyes.
“…Noona? Yoo Hee-jin!”
Hee-jin, who had been gasping for air while leaning against the wall, only realized after a while that Seok-hyun was holding and shaking her shoulders. Startled, Hee-jin reflexively tried to slap his cheek, but it came to nothing as Seok-hyun dodged.
“Noona, what's wrong all of a sudden?”
Seok-hyun, who had come looking for her because the person who said they were going to the restroom hadn't returned, was genuinely flustered for once. Seeing Hee-jin's pale face, it was certain that something had happened in a short amount of time. But he hadn't expected her to try and hit him.
“You... you had a fiancée?”
“Ah. That?”
Seok-hyun chuckled as if it were no big deal.
“That? To you, is that just 'that'?”
Fiancée. With that one word, Seok-hyun could figure out the situation. Based on a single comment from their parents saying it would be nice to marry the children off if they got along, Hong Yuna acted as if she were truly his fiancée. It was not a new occurrence for him to fend off women approaching him by using the hollow title of 'fiancée.'
“Are you shocked that I slept with you while having a fiancée? Are your hands shaking because you feel like you've become a mistress?”
Seeing Hee-jin breaking into a cold sweat, it was clear that her trauma had been triggered. It didn't seem like Hong Yuna had targeted this specifically, but she had luckily chosen the most effective method. He didn't like it. He grit his teeth, and as he relaxed them, Hee-jin nodded.
“If you're asking if I have a fiancée, it's both yes and no.”
“If you're playing with words...”
Hee-jin, who was turning away to avoid dealing with him, paused upon seeing the red clothing. Following Hee-jin's gaze, Seok-hyun also spotted Hong Yuna standing at the end of the hallway and silently curled the corners of his mouth upward. At that deep smile, Yuna, who had been secretly watching the situation, flinched. That was a clear signal that he was angry.
“Shall we marry the children when they grow up? They're the same age, wouldn't that be perfect?”
When Seok-hyun suddenly spoke in a feminine voice, Hee-jin started and looked back at him. He continued to act out a woman's voice with complete composure. Strangely, it wasn't funny at all. From that tone, Hee-jin could imagine Go Seok-hyun's mother.
“They're close too, so they'll live happily. Then we'll become in-laws, how wonderful is that?”
“…….”
Soon, Seok-hyun looked at Hong Yuna instead of Hee-jin and spoke in his original voice.
“What meaning could an engagement decided regardless of my will possibly have?”
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