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It was extremely rare for Hee-jin to seek him out first. Because of this rarity, Seok-hyun rushed to the practice room in the middle of his work.
Due to the soundproofing facilities, the interior of the studio was not visible from the entrance. After passing through the glass doors and stepping inside, he saw Hee-jin gazing out the window. The smile on Seok-hyun's face, who had naturally assumed she would be practicing, gradually faded.
It was because the atmosphere emanating from Hee-jin was different from usual. His mind raced to guess the reason, but there were too few clues. Hadn't things been fine even during the sponsorship event?
There hadn't been any particular incidents since then. A thought occurred to him: perhaps Hee-jin's father had contacted her through Yoo Da-ae without his knowledge. Yes, that was the most likely possibility.
"Noona."
As he approached and called her lightly, Hee-jin turned around. The sunlight pouring in from outside made it difficult to read her subtle emotions. As he stepped closer to check her expression, he noticed that her gaze had become unusually firm.
The scent of anxiety had vanished. Having subtly caught Hee-jin's scent, Seok-hyun looked around with a stiff expression. The violin case placed neatly on the piano. The coat she was wearing...
"That's not the coat I bought you, is it?"
At Seok-hyun's words, Hee-jin looked down at her clothes and tilted her head slightly. Her reaction was essentially, So what? There was nothing strange about wearing her own clothes, but the fact that it happened to be today felt unsettling. Moreover, it looked a bit too warm for the current weather.
"I asked to see you because there's something I need to say."
Hee-jin spoke while looking straight at Go Seok-hyun, who couldn't take his eyes off her face.
"I'm going back to my place."
My place? Seok-hyun's expression distorted. Going back? Even the expression "going back" didn't fit the situation. If she had made up her mind, she should have said something like, "I look forward to working with you," or "Let's do our best together." For Yoo Hee-jin, the only remaining option should have been accepting the sponsorship.
"What?"
Seok-hyun tried to remain calm, but because he couldn't understand her at all, anger kept surging within him. Even as he urged her to think carefully and answer again, Hee-jin remained unchanged.
"My flight is tomorrow morning."
Watching Hee-jin speak calmly while glancing at her wristwatch, Seok-hyun took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
"Don't tell me you're... going back to Chicago now..."
His gaze wavered slightly, unable to hide his agitation, but he soon rubbed his face as if trying to regain his composure. It was an attempt to somehow understand and accept the situation. Nevertheless, the anxiety and anger filling his heart did not subside easily.
"Why would you make such a stupid choice? You're going back to be a mere cog in an orchestra?"
"Don't belittle it. It's meaningful to me."
"Does the word 'cog' bother you?"
Seok-hyun gave a short laugh and took a step closer. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly. That smile was far from warm; it was steeped in sharp ridicule.
"It's true. You're just one of countless cogs who can't complete a sound on their own."
Frowning, Hee-jin glared at him and spoke each syllable clearly.
"We think differently. I'm glad I didn't join hands with you."
She tried to pass him, but Seok-hyun naturally blocked her path.
"I'm sorry!"
While Hee-jin hesitated, nearly colliding with him, Seok-hyun apologized abruptly. He looked as if he regretted his slip of the tongue. The change in expression was so natural and swift that it seemed as if he were switching between two different faces.
"I only said that because I was angry that you're throwing away the opportunity to become the protagonist, even though I said I'd make you one."
"...I get it, so please move."
Seok-hyun took a step back, but the distance was still close enough that she couldn't easily pass. It was a distance that felt as if he had anticipated Hee-jin's every move. Lowering his head to meet her eyes, he studied her.
"What was lacking? I thought I prepared everything perfectly; was it not to your satisfaction?"
"I told you to move. I don't want to end up on bad terms with you."
"I was the first person to recognize your potential, Noona. That's why I was confident that I could make you the best."
His voice trembled slightly, as if his emotions were being suppressed. It wasn't a spontaneous remark, but clearly a revelation of the true intentions hidden deep within his psyche. At that moment, Hee-jin remembered Andy's words. Whether it was true or not, she felt that he desperately wanted her for his own sake.
— Exactly. The harder the challenge, the greater the euphoria upon success, right? No one believed Yoo Hee-jin would become a world-class violinist, but only I saw that potential and invested. He's a man addicted to that sense of achievement.
"Thank you for recognizing me. But the path I must take only has meaning if I decide it myself."
Those words touched a nerve in Seok-hyun. As if everything he had been holding back finally burst, he let out a rough sigh and tilted his head back. His gaze, staring at her with firmly closed lips, was fierce.
"Your path is already decided, Noona. I'm telling you I'll make you a masterpiece. Why do you refuse?"
Hee-jin flinched at his intensely burning gaze. Go Seok-hyun would probably never know until the day he died how much those words treated her as a tool. His objective—to manipulate her to his will, complete her, and feel a sense of achievement—was blatantly revealed. Hee-jin's entire body trembled, but she grit her teeth and tried to speak calmly.
"I don't want to be shaped and polished in your hands. That wouldn't be me...!"
"You have to admit there's a limit to doing things your way. You need me, Noona. I'm telling you, I will make you the most perfect Yoo Hee-jin."
Hee-jin felt a thick desire in his words and actions. A desire to control her and mold her to his taste. As expected, his intention was to bind her under the guise of sponsorship. The moment she incurred the debt of sponsorship, it would be no different from handing him her leash.
"Why me, of all people?"
She couldn't be the only person in the world with talent who hadn't seen the light. She couldn't understand why, among so many people, he felt such a twisted and blind possessiveness toward her.
"Stop thinking about useless things and just trust me."
"I can't listen to this anymore. Stop it."
When Hee-jin didn't change her mind despite what should have been a convincing argument, Seok-hyun was seized by uncontrollable emotions.
"......"
It was the first time in his life he had ever been this angry. Not even when he was forced into the treatment program in Canada, nor when he realized his own helplessness, had it been this severe.
Why? Back then, he was young and powerless, so he could accept it. That was why he intentionally avoided inheriting the family business, started his own company, accumulated wealth, and built a network to gain power.
But now, he absolutely could not understand Yoo Hee-jin. It felt as if she had completely closed her ears, showing no intention of listening to his persuasion. He could not accept this irrational choice—rejecting the best possible move he was offering.
Seok-hyun closed his eyes. Emotions that couldn't be named individually swirled within him. This feeling wasn't mere possessiveness or a desire for control. It was more than that.
"Just as you need me, Noona, I need you too."
Go Seok-hyun needed Yoo Hee-jin. She was a person essential to completing his life, to the point where everything he had achieved felt meaningless without her. Seok-hyun instinctively realized how much he needed Hee-jin and how much his world would crumble if she left. That was why he had to hold onto her.
Beings who needed each other. It felt as if the reason they were born incomplete was so they could find each other and become whole.
He had assumed she would naturally recognize such a special relationship, and the fact that Hee-jin was being stubbornly useless made him feel like he was going crazy from frustration.
"Honestly... you enjoyed being with me too, didn't you, Noona?"
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