My Neto Teacher (2)
“My wife?”
“Yes. I’d like to meet her once.”
“Why...?”
A flicker of unease stirred in me. I had no idea what this man was thinking. I couldn’t introduce my wife to someone whose character I didn’t even know. More than anything, I couldn’t think of a proper way to explain our relationship to her.
“Please arrange a dinner. I’ll invite you to a place I run.”
“Do I really have to introduce my wife?”
“Of course. Meeting her is essential if I’m to understand her disposition. What I’ve heard from you alone isn’t enough to fully know your wife.”
“Ah...”
“Do you not trust me?”
“Ah... it’s not that!”
“Then I’ll take care of the trainer issue first and contact you.”
“Yes...”
I had no choice but to nod. After all, what I needed most right now was to reclaim my wife. I had to drive that bastard Jang-woo far away from her before he completely stole her from me.
Vroooom... Rumble...!
Lee Hwa-soo’s Lamborghini sports car roared away with a powerful exhaust note.
Is this really okay...?
An immense fortune, a striking appearance... His reality was so different from what I’d imagined that chaos flooded my mind.
What the hell does he want?
“I had a great time, hyung. See you again.”
Jang-woo unloaded his bags with a sly smile. Then he tightly grasped my wife’s hand. Her slender wrist looked so fragile wrapped in his burly, muscular grip.
“T-take care...”
My beloved wife hesitated before barely managing a farewell to him.
How intense a night must they have spent yesterday? My wife’s bare face, without makeup, looked even paler than usual.
“I’ll contact you soon.”
The bastard waved his phone right in front of my face. What he held wasn’t a phone—it was my weakness.
He was openly mocking me.
You fucking bastard...
Once Jang-woo and Soo-hyuk left, only my wife and I remained. A hellish silence. The raucous moments of last night felt hazy, as if they had been a dream.
“Are you okay...?”
My wife’s expression as she looked at me seemed anxious, like that of someone who had committed a sin.
“I’m okay...”
I tightly held her hand. It was all I could do right now.
“Did you enjoy it?”
“No...”
The conversation cut off abruptly. Countless words remained in my heart, but I couldn’t bring myself to voice them all now.
No... I didn’t want to. The image of my beloved wife nestled in Jang-woo’s massive arms kept rising, filling me with rage.
I felt the impulse to slam this car into the guardrail right then and there.
“Let’s never do this again...”
Had reality hit her? My beloved wife finally forced out the words. Her lips pressed tightly together, she looked as if she were holding back tears.
“It doesn’t seem like it’s helping our relationship...”
“Honey... but my thing came back, didn’t it?”
“No... even so, this isn’t right. Let’s just stop.”
“What? Stop?”
“Yeah... if it’s going to be like this, it’s better not to do it at all.”
Was the sight of her sleeping soundly in Jang-woo’s arms real?
My wife now was coldly pushing me away. It seemed she was blaming all the chaos coming her way on me.
“Seung-yeon... you’re just worked up right now. Let’s think about it slowly.”
“No... forget it. Don’t ever bring this up again. I’ll just think of it as a one-time mistake. And I’m quitting the gym too.”
“What?”
“How am I supposed to face Jang-woo and Soo-hyuk? I want to stop. I want to quit working out and rest a bit...”
Should I be glad or upset? My wife was the one wanting to cut ties with Jang-woo first.
“That bastard Jang-woo won’t just sit still...”
“I’ll talk to him properly...”
I wanted to ask how she planned to talk to him, but I swallowed it down. She still thought words would get through to Jang-woo. That bastard was far more vicious than we’d imagined.
“Let’s just rest for now.”
Once home, my wife unpacked and went straight into the room without exchanging a single word with me...
This trip was supposed to help us recover our relationship. Instead, it felt like things had gotten worse than before we left.
Fuck... is this right?
Whirr... Whirr...
Before I could even settle my troubled mind, the phone rang.
Sigh...
“Hello.”
“Did you get home safely?”
“Yes... but there’s a big problem. My wife...”
“She’s resenting her husband, I take it.”
“How did you...?”
“It’s the obvious sequence of events. Now’s the timing to move on to the next step.”
“Ah...”
“The trainer problem has been resolved.”
I doubted my own ears. Just a few hours ago, Jang-woo had been toying with me with that sly expression.
But for a call to come this soon? I couldn’t believe his words.
“The trainer? You mean Jang-woo?”
“Yes. He probably won’t ever contact Seung-yeon again.”
“But... it hasn’t even been a few hours... how?”
“Don’t concern yourself with that.”
Lee Hwa-soo’s voice was firm. Arrogant yet not quite arrogant, it cut sharp.
“Ah... yes...”
He should say something that makes sense. Who the hell does he think he is, claiming he solved it?
A pointless defiance rose in me. It was a story that defied common sense.
“Anyway... this weekend evening. How does that sound?”
“What...?”
“The dinner I mentioned yesterday. With your wife, of course.”
“Ah... are we really doing that? Having her meet a stranger is...”
“It seems you don’t want to recover your relationship with your wife.”
“What...? That’s not it, but...”
“I have everything planned. It would be best if you trusted my words and followed along. If you truly dislike it, then let’s end our connection here.”
“Ah...”
I couldn’t answer easily. Blindly following his words had led to this. On top of that, the nonsense that defied belief. My trust in him was slowly eroding.
“Hmm... it seems it’s not that serious for you. Understood.”
Click...
He hung up as if he had nothing to lose. For some reason, his confident voice lingered in my mind, but I couldn’t easily hand over my wife.
Could I really recover my relationship with her? My head only grew more complicated.
“Honey...”
Just then, my wife opened the door and came out. In her hand was her phone.
“Look at this...”
She held the phone up to my face. There was a text message from Jang-woo.
What...? What is this!?
Even seeing the text with my own eyes, I couldn’t believe it. The sly face that had mocked me just a little while ago and the message sent to my wife seemed as if they had come from completely opposite people.
“I don’t know either... it just suddenly came...”
“Th-that’s a relief.”
I almost shouted without realizing it. Whatever the reason, the fact that Jang-woo was voluntarily stepping away was truly fortunate.
“I don’t know if it’s a relief...”
My wife looked confused. From her ambiguous expression, a suspicion bloomed—was she perhaps missing Jang-woo?
It felt a little unsettling... but Lee Hwa-soo was the real deal.
My idiot brain, which had briefly harbored doubts about him, felt utterly foolish.
Lee Hwa-soo... who the hell are you?
The man who had humbled that burly muscle monster. His true identity made me intensely curious.
“Honey. Keep this weekend evening free.”
“This weekend? Why?”
“There’s someone we absolutely have to have dinner with.”
“Who?”
“That... I’ll tell you later.”
I usually never arranged dinner meetings even with acquaintances. My wife seemed flustered by the sudden dinner plans.
“Just keep it free, okay?”
After firmly instructing my wife, I went straight into the room and dialed Lee Hwa-soo’s number.
Beep... Beep...
“I’d prefer if you didn’t call anymore.”
His deep voice. Unlike last night, the surroundings were quiet.
“I-I’m sorry. I was shortsighted. Please forgive me.”
Without realizing it, I was bowing my head toward the phone.
“Sigh....”
“Th-thank you. That bastard Jang-woo. He sent a text.”
“Faster than I expected. He seems to be someone who understands well.”
Surprisingly, Lee Hwa-soo’s voice was calm.
“How on earth did you do it?”
“I told you not to ask.”
“Ah... yes... I’m sorry. More importantly, I’ll arrange the dinner with my wife.”
“Sigh... from now on, you’ll need to listen carefully to what I say. I truly dislike things going back and forth like this.”
“Yes... of course. I’ll definitely do that. Thank you. Really, thank you.”
He was like a teacher to me. For my wife’s sake, I could kneel as many times as needed.
“Just the dinner will be fine, right?”
“I’ll be going with my partner. I’ll fill you in on the details then.”
Click....
He hung up immediately.
It was a relief.
Now, without anyone’s interference, I could continue a relationship with just my beloved wife and me alone.
Infinite trust toward him bloomed in my heart. Now I was the one looking forward to the dinner appointment with Lee Hwa-soo.
Seung-yeon, just wait a little longer. He’ll save us.