The Youngest Son of the Hanjeong Group (2)
Ju Hyeon-jin, the youngest son of Chairman Ju Min-jae of the Hanjeong Group, had lived without ever needing to watch his step. After all, the conglomerate was destined to pass to his eldest brother, who was much older than him, so there had never been any reason for him to worry about other people’s opinions.
He did whatever he pleased, and even at home no one really put a leash on him. He lost his temper often and caused trouble just as often, but the family always cleaned up after him. For a long time now, he had had Sung Yoon-ah in his sights.
He had planned to play around for a while, then, when the time was right, break things off with the women he’d been seeing and marry her instead. But a few months ago, the situation had changed all at once.
Because of the Primus incident, Executive Director Yang Jeong-uk had been shoved aside, and her mother had become the heir to the DA Financial Group!
Naturally, attention had turned to her only daughter as well. And that made Ju Hyeon-jin anxious.
I can’t let her slip away.
Using the fact that they’d known each other since childhood, he had made repeated, aggressive attempts to contact her and show his interest, but Sung Yoon-ah had kept refusing, always hiding behind the excuse that she was busy.
Then Christmas drew near. It was the perfect season for a man and a woman to grow close. He had decided they absolutely needed to meet, and luck had finally brought them face-to-face at the department store.
He didn’t like seeing her with a man, but when he heard the other man was a colleague from work, he actually thought it worked out well.
Compared to some nobody with nothing to his name, I’ll look even better.
But then the situation started to veer in a strange direction.
Among the people he knew, there were plenty of ordinary civilians who weren’t chaebol heirs. They tended to respond to him in one of two ways: either they bent over backward to curry favor, or they tried their best to ignore him. But the man in front of him was neither.
He acted as if Ju Hyeon-jin didn’t matter at all.
Worse, he had openly humiliated him. Sure, he’d waved it off as a joke, but after that Sung Yoon-ah’s expression toward him had turned cold.
If there hadn’t been any women there, he would have thrown a punch right away.
His anger had surged so fiercely it felt like it might split his skull, but losing his temper in a place like this would only make him look ridiculous. So he gritted his teeth and forced himself to calm down. His hands and feet were shaking from the effort it took to hold it in.
While Ju Hyeon-jin stayed silent, Han Miru chatted happily with Sung Yoon-ah and Min Ah-reum. Whatever they were talking about, they were laughing nonstop.
Min Ah-reum laughed and said, “Mr. Miru, you’re a really funny person.”
“Oh! Someone I met not long ago said the same thing.”
“Who did?”
“Someone who’s basically a prince, if we’re talking status.”
“Oh my! A prince?”
“Yes. Someone I can’t just meet whenever I want. The good thing is, even though our backgrounds don’t match, he didn’t seem bothered by it at all. I guess only people with a bit of a chip on their shoulder make a big deal out of that kind of thing. Real high-status people probably don’t care much.”
Every word was a needle under the skin.
Anyone could tell he was talking for Ju Hyeon-jin’s ears alone.
That fucking bastard.
* * *
The meal itself had been warm and lively.
That is, except for the fact that Ju Hyeon-jin kept glaring at me with murder in his eyes from time to time. Was the slight tremor in his hand when he held his fork from nerves, or did he actually have a condition?
Trying to cool his rage, Ju Hyeon-jin gulped down wine one glass after another. At that rate, the second bottle was emptied in no time.
When he was about to order another, Min Ah-reum clapped her hands lightly and said, “I think it would be better if we headed out now.”
Ju Hyeon-jin blinked.
“Already?”
“Yes. I got a call from home telling me to come in.”
He looked at Sung Yoon-ah. “Yoon-ah, what about you? If you’re free—”
“I should head back too.”
“Then should oppa give you a ride?”
“No, it’s okay. My driver is coming soon.”
“I-I see.”
We all stood up together.
While Ju Hyeon-jin was paying, Min Ah-reum held out her phone to me.
“Since we ended up meeting like this, why don’t you give me your number?”
“Sure.”
I didn’t know whether we’d ever have a reason to contact each other, but we exchanged numbers anyway.
“If you ever need to come to a department store or duty-free shop, make sure to call me. I’ll take the very best care of you.”
I asked casually, “Could I get it a little cheaper?”
Min Ah-reum winked. “Of course. I’ll take care of you at the discount price.”
Now that changed things.
I saved her number. Sung Yoon-ah’s expression looked a little off for some reason. Was that just my imagination?
I turned to Ju Hyeon-jin. “Thanks for the meal. If I get the chance, I’ll treat next time. I didn’t bring my card separately, so I’ll text you using the business card you gave me earlier.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
He nodded halfheartedly, as if he hadn’t really heard a word I said.
Min Ah-reum waved at Sung Yoon-ah. “Sorry for interrupting your time together. I’ll head out first. See you next time.”
“Yes, unnie.”
Ju Hyeon-jin forced a smile. “I’ll get going too, Yoon-ah. See you later.”
“Okay. Get home safe.”
After the two of them left, Sung Yoon-ah pouted slightly and said, “Nice. You got unnie’s number.”
“No, well…”
Didn’t I get her number instead?
“Was it awkward eating together?”
“Not at all. It was fun.”
“But when it was just the two of us earlier, did Hyeon-jin oppa really say something like that?”
“Well, he did say something similar.”
Sung Yoon-ah sighed. “I’m sorry. I’ll apologize for him. Just think of him as that kind of person and don’t let it bother you.”
“It’s fine. But are you close with Ju Hyeon-jin, by any chance?”
At that, she looked startled and waved her hands in denial.
“Not at all. I just saw him a few times when I was little, that’s all.”
I gave a short laugh. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”
From the way she said it, she seemed to know at least roughly what Ju Hyeon-jin was really like.
Then again, the Hanjeong Group family was famous for having rotten personalities.
“Want to take a walk?”
“Huh? Didn’t you say you should head back? Your driver was coming.”
Sung Yoon-ah winked. “If I hadn’t said that, oppa wouldn’t have left.”
“Well, he did seem a little dense.”
That also meant he’d lived his life without ever having to read the room.
We walked side by side down the street.
Even with the cold weather, the streets were crowded. Carol music drifted softly from the shops, and a Christmas tree stood at one corner of the road.
At the bakery, an outdoor stall had been set up in front of the entrance, and a sale on cakes was in full swing.
It really did feel like Christmas.
Maybe because of the wine, Sung Yoon-ah’s cheeks had gone a little red.
She looked cute like that.
“This feels kind of strange, doesn’t it?”
“What does?”
“Just... everything that’s been happening. Even talking to you this comfortably, Mr. Miru.”
“Yeah.”
In the original timeline, she would have quit the company two years later.
After that, I never heard anything else about her. Knowing her, she probably would have married a good man and lived well.
So what would happen this time?
I stopped walking for a moment.
“What is it?”
Music was drifting out from a shop on the left.
I asked her, “Do you know this song?”
“It’s C-Lab’s new song, isn’t it? Was the title Your Photo?”
“That’s the one.”
It was the very same song I’d heard in my first life. But the female voice in the chorus was completely different from the one I remembered.
When I checked later, I found out the featured vocalist was Kena, the leader of the girl group Pink Girls.
I smiled to myself.
I’d only mentioned it offhand, and she’d actually done it.
So many things had changed in such a short time. As time went on, they would drift even farther from the future I’d originally known.
Sung Yoon-ah pulled on my arm. “Let’s go to a café. I know a nice place nearby.”
I went in with her.
It was called a café, but they also sold alcohol and simple dishes. Because it was Christmas, the place was packed even though it was late.
After we sat down and ordered coffee, Sung Yoon-ah took something from her bag and handed it to me.
“Here. It’s your Christmas present.”
“Wasn’t the suit from earlier the gift?”
“That was just something I bought for you. This is the real present.”
Was she really asking me to meet her today just to give me this?
“Can I open it?”
“Of course.”
When I unwrapped it, it turned out to be a watch.
“It’s a Rolex. I was actually thinking of buying one anyway.”
The reason I hadn’t bought one was simple: all the famous models were sold out. There was no telling when they’d come back in stock, and they didn’t even take reservations.
Because of that, rich people just used resale shops and paid twice the retail price.
I’d considered looking into it myself, then gave up because it was too much trouble. Did I really need to go that far for a watch?
“Try it on.”
I put the watch on my wrist. She must have had the strap adjusted in advance, because it fit perfectly.
“Do you like it?”
“Yes. But is it really okay for me to accept something this expensive?”
The watch cost several months’ salary for an office worker.
No matter how much money her family had, there was no way she could just spend that casually, so it must have been a heavy burden for her.
“Expensive? Compared to the present you gave me last time, it’s nothing.”
“The Ranks painting?”
“Yes. I hung it where I can see it from bed. It makes me happy every time I look at it.”
A good painting had that effect. Just looking at it could make you feel strangely pleased.
She seemed to like my gift, and that made it worth giving.
“Thank you. I’ll wear it well.”
We talked for a while over coffee.
“Should we head out?”
“Yes.”
I said to her, noticing her reluctance, “I had a great time today. Get home safely.”
“You too, Mr. Miru. Let’s go shopping together again sometime.”
I put Sung Yoon-ah in a taxi and sent her off first.
Just as I was about to call a designated driver and go home, my phone rang.
I checked the caller name and answered.
“Hello?”
“This is Ju Hyeon-jin from earlier.”
“Yes, did you get home safely?”
“You’re not still with Yoon-ah, are you?”
“No. We just parted ways.”
“Good. Then let’s have a drink, man to man. I’ve got something to talk to you about too.”
“What is it?”
“Just come over here first. You’re not far away.”
Judging by the way his tongue had started to slur, he’d already had quite a bit to drink.
I didn’t know what he had to say, but building some familiarity in advance couldn’t hurt.
After a short pause, I said, “Fine. Where should I go?”
* * *
Ju Hyeon-jin hung up the phone.
Then the friends sitting beside him laughed and said, “Damn! We’re going to get something fun to watch on Christmas.”
“Heh, what was that punk from last time called again? He was acting all tough and shit, but when we told him we’d make his store go under, he was crying and begging us to spare him.”
“Seriously, it’s hilarious watching guys with no money try to act proud.”
The men here all hung around with Ju Hyeon-jin on a regular basis. On the surface they were friends, but in reality their relationship was closer to that of superior and subordinate.
Ju Hyeon-jin thought back to what had happened earlier.
That bastard with no background dared hit on Yoon-ah?
He’d even spent a small fortune on a gift for her. And he still hadn’t been able to hand it over. All of it was because of that bastard.
But why was she still with him until this hour?
There was no doubt he’d kept her there by force, just as she’d been trying to go home.
That was unforgivable.
Ju Hyeon-jin clenched his glass so hard it looked like it might shatter.
How dare someone like you humiliate me? I’ll make sure you pay for it.