The Wife's Second Face
The number of people burning was many, but the number of people getting off was few...
That was how the woman was immediately recognized.
It was his wife.
She had changed again.
The outfit from when he first saw her... the stockings... with the shoes... everything had returned to normal for his wife.
Back then... when she had come home wearing only the stockings she changed... instead of the stockings she usually wore... mesh stockings... when she had worn mesh stockings... Yoo Kang-soo had said something outright... He remembered.
Was it possible that... at that time... she hadn't changed everything but only the stockings... That doubt was now arising in the situation.
So this time... even the stockings... wasn't she wearing the original ones again... having a slightly overthinking thought... Yoo Kang-soo was thinking that.
In front of the shopping complex building... a taxi was parked.
It seemed like he had called a Kakao taxi.
His wife... had gotten into that taxi.
And... the taxi had immediately departed.
Yoo Kang-soo... had given up on chasing.
Seeing that he was wearing the clothes... back to normal... it seemed almost certain that he was going home.
After the taxi left, looking at the time again... it was past two o'clock.
Yoo Kang-soo... got on the elevator going up to the motel.
"Are you going to sleep?"
"Yes... I'm staying overnight."
"What should I do... The remaining rooms are only theme rooms...
Are you okay with that?"
"I don't know what it is, but just give me one..."
"The theme room is an additional 20,000 won on top of the accommodation fee."
Yoo Kang-soo handed over his card.
The motel fee was calculated, and Yoo Kang-soo received the card key.
Because the shopping complex building was structured to open wide to the side,
Compared to motels in 5th and 6th floor buildings that had only one building,
The number of rooms seemed much larger.
It was a 10-floor building that opened wide to the side... and from the 6th floor up,
All of it was used as motels.
From the basement to the 5th floor, there were all kinds of restaurants, karaoke rooms, and entertainment businesses,
And from the 6th floor to the 10th floor, they were operated as motels,
So... within one building, nonstop entertainment could all be enjoyed.
Young women wearing tight mini one-piece dresses,
called "hole clothes" in other words...
Were seen coming out from motel rooms with middle-aged men.
It felt like they had just come up from the entertainment business in the same building.
While thinking that there were really many men enjoying entertainment,
Yoo Kang-soo... entered a room on the 8th floor where he received the card key.
Actually, Yoo Kang-soo himself liked alcohol very much...
But he didn't really like taking women out or enjoying with women of the pleasure quarters.
Because throughout his married life... the relationship with his wife Ji Hye-in... was very good... and the couple's relationship had been smooth.
When looking at other peers around him... there were friends who became sexless after only one year of marriage... and usually after 10 years of marriage... most became sexless,
But strangely, Yoo Kang-soo... hadn't been like that at all.
Thinking about it, he had always been the one to initiate... he had done it because he wanted to,
But it seemed there had never been a single time when his wife Ji Hye-in had wanted it first... or demanded something.
The time when his wife Ji Hye-in had wanted it first...
The time when she had sent such signals...
This was the first time after the affair had been caught.
While having such thoughts, Yoo Kang-soo was looking around the motel room.
Because he often went on business trips to the provinces, the motel rooms were very familiar to Yoo Kang-soo.
But the motel room he had entered now was completely different from a normal motel room... Yoo Kang-soo could immediately feel that.
It was about twice the size of a normal motel room...
The bed was not a normal bed but a round bed.
There was a massage chair... and two love chairs of bizarre shapes were installed.
There was also a device shaped like a parallel bar...
Generally... it was a space prepared not for sleeping but for the sexual intercourse of men and women.
* * *
On Friday evening... around 6:30, he entered the house.
His wife Ji Hye-in had already come home.
"You must have worked hard..."
His wife Ji Hye-in came out to the entrance and greeted Yoo Kang-soo with a bright smile on her face.
It was the situation where he was pretending to have returned from a business trip to the provinces.
Actually... last night... he had slept at the motel.
Yoo Kang-soo... still... couldn't believe it.
Among all the stimuli in this world...
The most... intensely coming was the visual stimulus.
Honestly, even when Yeom Seong-bong had committed suicide...
More than Yeom Seong-bong's hundred words...
In that short video scene... Yoo Kang-soo had received a greater shock.
And... right last night...
Because of the outfit his wife Ji Hye-in had been wearing...
Yoo Kang-soo... really... had received an enormous shock.
Still... it didn't seem believable.
Too absurd... he had pulled the maximum zoom possible with his phone and taken several photos.
Yoo Kang-soo... didn't show any sign.
Now... whether he divorced or not...
That wasn't the problem.
Perhaps... the real problem... might be... much more... behind the scenes... that he was thinking.
While eating dinner with his wife... after the meal, eating fruits...
He watched TV together.
After eating all the fruits... he drank a cup of decaffeinated coffee each.
Before going to bed... Ji Hye-in was saying that decaffeinated coffee was better because it didn't disturb sleep as much as caffeinated coffee.
The two of them... sat side by side... watching TV together...
And prepared to brush teeth in order and go to bed.
And... late at night... they lay together in bed.
Their son Pil-jun had immediately fallen asleep as soon as he came back from academy.
"Yesterday... you were late?"
"Yes... yesterday... it was quite late..."
The two people were lying side by side in bed with the lights off... having a conversation.
"Around what time did you come?"
"Um... probably... it was past two o'clock..."
Yoo Kang-soo... was greatly surprised in his heart.
Because his wife... was speaking too honestly... compared to what he thought.
"Yeah... two o'clock?
Whoa... that's too late...
Was Pil-jun sleeping?"
"Of course... Pil-jun... as soon as he comes back from academy... he goes to sleep right away...
Otherwise... he says he won't have enough sleep the next day."
"Was the drinking party good?"
"Yes..."
"What was good about it?"
"Just... I hear about the experiences I haven't lived through... through other people's mouths.
Drinking makes the atmosphere feel free...
When you were in the military... I couldn't have such opportunities...
But... Pil-jun is also big now...
And you... as the time you leave the house increases...
I don't know...
It seems like only the drinking has increased a lot."
Yoo Kang-soo couldn't help but think that his wife Ji Hye-in's words were a bit long-winded.
But... he was greatly surprised by his wife speaking too honestly... compared to what he thought.
"Yesterday... where did you go?
Did you go to karaoke too?"
"No...
Yesterday... I ate eel.
It was really... expensive.
One of the acquaintances who gathers together... recently said his business is doing well...
And treated me to a big treat."
"Yesterday... were there only men... and you were the only woman?"
"No... yesterday...
Other than me... there was another sister.
It's an acquaintance sister who does other work...
She's a good person."
Yoo Kang-soo... now... was starting to feel a bit confused.
Because his wife... was speaking too straightforwardly.
"You know...
Hye-in...
Since you've been cheating on me...
Telling me these things while sharing one blanket with you...
It makes me think that I'm not a crazy person..."
Yoo Kang-soo... was simply telling his honest feelings... to his wife Ji Hye-in.
"Because you've liked me a lot...
Just like I've always been like that to you...
So... I'm even more sorry... and always grateful..."
His wife Ji Hye-in... turned her body... and hugged Yoo Kang-soo's torso with both hands... while speaking.
"Those men... when drinking... just pretty married women...
Taking them... and drinking... isn't it fun?"
"Well... it could be...
But... there is no such thing as what you think.
I'm... too resentful of Yeom Seong-bong...
He made me think only in that direction... no matter what I did.
Prejudices are really scary."
"You haven't done anything wrong..."
While speaking... Yoo Kang-soo... snapped to attention.
Suddenly, the outfit his wife had worn last night... flashed into his mind.
Now... he was greatly mistaken about something.
His wife Ji Hye-in... was lying now.
The thought that she was telling a bright red lie...
Instantly... filled his mind again.
While calming the confusion...
Yoo Kang-soo... continued speaking slowly.
"Yesterday... if you didn't go to karaoke... where did you go?"