Secret Temptation
Hyun-soo lingered in front of Yuri's unopened door. It was already past midnight. A woman's hand tapped his shoulder as he stared into the distance.
"Huh? Mei?"
"Hmm."
Startled by Mei's sudden appearance, arms crossed as she looked up at him, Hyun-soo asked, "How did you get here, Mei?"
"This is my house, you know?"
Hyun-soo's gaze followed her chin and stopped at the house next to Yuri's.
"Oh, is that right?"
"But how did you end up here, boss?"
"Well, that's..."
Hyun-soo avoided Mei's direct stare.
"Boss, you bullied Yuri unni, didn't you? Right?"
"What?"
"Or did you sleep with her? With Yuri unni."
"N-no."
"Hmm, well, unni isn't that kind of person."
Mei lowered her head, holding her chin.
"Well then, I'll be going."
"Mei, why are you leaving in the middle of talking?"
"Boss, please pretend you didn't see anything today."
"Then tell me what happened with unni."
"......"
"Unni left work and went straight to Su-heon oppa, her husband."
"What?"
"Why are you so surprised?"
"No, it's just..."
"Boss, I didn't expect that from you. I'm disappointed."
"......"
"Our Yuri unni isn't an easy woman like that."
"......"
"Well, I'll be going then."
"......"
Mei turned and entered her house. As the door closed, Hyun-soo also turned away.
'Was I making things hard for Yuri?'
Mei watched Hyun-soo's car leave the apartment complex.
'Unni sure has good luck with men. I'm a bit jealous.'
Mei chuckled and sat on the sofa. The boss had come all the way to her house. What happened with Yuri unni? And that Du-hwan guy said someone asked him to rape Yuri unni. Is that true? Why would a thug-like guy go after Yuri unni? Suddenly, one person came to mind.
'Come to think of it, Yuri unni too...'
Yuri, who had once asked her about Jae-geun's well-being, flashed through her mind. Mei jumped up from the sofa and made a call.
"Oppa, Su-heon oppa, it's me."
"Uh, yeah?"
The content of Mei's call from a few days ago lingered in Su-heon's mind as he sat in the office. He had just listened half-asleep at the time, but upon reflection after work, it seemed like no ordinary matter.
For days, the men around his wife wouldn't leave his thoughts. First, that boss guy. There was definitely something between that boss and his wife Yuri. Whether it was harassment or sex, it was clearly physical. Otherwise, a grown adult wouldn't flee to Su-heon like that. And another one, trainer Kang Du-hwan. And Kang Jae-geun. Du-hwan was probably just chasing after the single Yuri to try his luck, but what reason did Jae-geun have to appear before his wife again? Su-heon thought it was dangerous if it was that guy, even if not certain as Mei said. But he couldn't just follow Yuri back to Korea right away. Frustrated, Su-heon set aside his work and stared out the window.
'We weren't supposed to be apart like this.'
Su-heon stood up and went into Deputy Director Yang's room. Having decided to go to Korea, Su-heon said, "Yes, take care and call when you arrive."
"Got it. Honey, I'm so happy we can be together now."
"That happy?"
"Of course."
"Deputy Director Yang said he'll give an answer within six months, so wait until then."
"Alright, I love you, darling."
Yuri hugged Su-heon and kissed him.
"Me too, me too. Love you, kiss."
Hana jumped in between them, raising her hands and bouncing.
"Yeah, our Hana. Daddy loves you. Listen to Mommy, okay?"
The daughter, wife, and husband said their goodbyes again, promising a life together in Korea.
[Ding-dong]
"Who is it?"
"Unni, it's me, Mei."
The door opened, and Mei ran in with a bright smile.
"The living room light was on, so I came over, unni."
"Oh, haha, come in. I just got back too."
"Yes. Hana, hello?"
"Auntie, Auntie!"
Mei lifted Hana up and showered her with kisses. Yuri brought out fruit from the kitchen and sat next to Mei, who was rolling around with Hana on the sofa.
"Hana likes you that much?"
"Yes, I think I should have a Hana of my own soon."
"Haha, if you set your mind to it, you can anytime, right?"
"That's true, but there aren't any decent guys around, haha."
Mei and Yuri chatted and laughed about what had happened recently.
"Is Su-heon doing well?"
"Of course. He'll be coming soon."
"What? Coming here?"
"Yes, he applied for a transfer to Korea. He said the results will come out in a few months."
Mei barely suppressed the corners of her mouth from rising at Yuri's words.
'Ah, living next door to Su-heon oppa. Ah, Su-heon oppa.'
Mei showered kisses on Hana's cheeks.
"Hana's lucky, huh? Daddy's coming."
Mei expressed her feelings through Hana. Her body was already heating up. Yuri smiled contentedly at Mei, unaware of anything.
After chatting for a while, Mei suddenly turned serious as if something occurred to her.
"Oh right, unni, there's something I want to ask."
"What is it?"
"Du-hwan."
Yuri's face hardened, and she tensed up.
"D-Du-hwan? Why Du-hwan?"
Mei continued while observing Yuri's reaction.
"What happened between you two?"
"Oh, well..."
Yuri's gaze wandered anxiously.
"I heard from Du-hwan."
"What do you mean?"
"Du-hwan said he was hitting on unni, but unni avoided him."
"Oh, that..."
Yuri thought Du-hwan hadn't told Mei the details of that day yet.
"Mei."
"Yes, unni."
"Is that what Du-hwan said?"
"Yes, he said he was chasing after unni saying he liked her, but unni avoided him."
"Oh, I see."
"But honestly, I'm seeing Du-hwan now."
"Oh, really? That's good."
"But from what I see, Du-hwan isn't the type to like someone so purely."
"......"
Mei leaned closer to Yuri's face.
"How far did you go? You two?"
"What? What do you mean, how far?"
"I'll keep it a secret. How far? Kiss? Or..."
"What are you talking about now?"
"Come on, why are you like this? Unni, if I ask Du-hwan, I'll know everything."
"Such..."
Yuri lowered her head, avoiding Mei's gaze.
"Oh my, did you two sleep together?"
"No, no. Who would..."
Yuri waved her hands and jumped up. Finding it amusing, Mei kept smiling and pressed Yuri.
"Oh ho, so you didn't have sex, but petting is okay?"
"Hey, Mei, stop with the nonsense."
"No, I understand, unni. Who could resist a healthy, handsome young man coming at you?"
"Well..."
"I slept with Du-hwan. He won't bother unni anymore from now on."
Yuri looked up at Mei.
"You slept with him? With Du-hwan?"
"Yes, he fell for it right away."
Yuri felt disappointed that Du-hwan had so easily succumbed to Mei's seduction.
'Then, all those things he did to me...'
She even felt resentful toward Du-hwan for only lusting after her body. She felt ashamed of herself for momentarily hoping to be taken by him. Seeing Yuri like that, Mei smiled as if she understood something.
"Unni, you're disappointed, right?"
"What? No, why would I be?"
"Still, it's disappointing when a guy who said he liked you slept with me, right?"
"No, he's someone unrelated to me."
"Alright. Anyway, unni will have Su-heon coming back soon."
"Let's stop talking about that and talk about something else."
Yuri sighed and handed Mei a slice of apple.
"But unni, there's something else I'm curious about."
"If it's that kind of story, stop now."
"Jae-geun. Kang Jae-geun."
Yuri's eyes widened again. Trying to stay calm, Yuri said, "What? Jae-geun?"
"Yes, my ex-husband, Kang Jae-geun."
"Oh, why him?"
Even Yuri herself felt her voice trembling.
"Has that person contacted you before?"
"No, why would Jae-geun contact me?"
Yuri answered with a trembling voice, gripping her phone tightly. Her phone still contained Jae-geun's impressive cock photo.
"Is that so?"
"Why? Why? Mei, is something wrong?"
"Oh, no. I heard something strange from Du-hwan."
"......"
"I guess I was fooled again. Don't worry about it."
Yuri took a deep breath and calmed her startled heart.
"What is it? What did Du-hwan say about Jae-geun?"
After thinking for a while, Mei spoke.
"Unni, don't take it the wrong way."
"Okay."
Mei relayed exactly what she heard from Du-hwan to Yuri. Recalling the texts Jae-geun had sent her, Yuri was suddenly gripped by fear. Something she hadn't imagined was happening in reality. Jae-geun trying to have her raped by Du-hwan.
"So, the only person I could think of who would do such a thing was Jae-geun, so I asked."
"......"
"Probably Du-hwan lied to me because he was afraid I'd get another woman. Fooled again, really."
"......"
Seeing Yuri's stiff expression, Mei adjusted her posture.
"I'm sorry, unni. I unnecessarily brought up something unconfirmed."
Mei's voice shrank as if intimidated by Yuri's seemingly displeased expression.