AAGULT Ch 115

Chapter 115

“To be precise, it’s Jaeha’s maternal family that’s wealthy. Not on the level of a major conglomerate like Halla, but well-off enough to live comfortably.”

“Uh… sorry?”

Jaeha worried he might sound utterly foolish, but he couldn’t help it. What… what was all this?

“I heard that Mr. Song Ju-hyuk—your father—entered the family more or less like a son-in-law by marriage. Isn’t that right, Grandma?”

“Yes. If things hadn’t turned out this way, you would’ve lived comfortably too… But you ended up in the hands of that wretched man…”

“Uh, um…”

How was he supposed to react to this? Everything was being thrown at him so suddenly that all he could do was let out dazed responses.

“Since you’re busy… let’s talk in detail later. Once you’re back from the gate, the first thing we should do is look at your house.”

“House… my house?”

“Were you planning to live in the Association dorms? They’re small and uncomfortable.”

“…”

Technically, he was currently staying at Aiden’s house because the Association’s housing had been revoked thanks to the president. But that wasn’t the issue. The original lodging given to him was a spacious 36-pyeong unit with two bedrooms—pretty large for one person. The fact that Mr. Dowon described such a place as “small and uncomfortable” made Jaeha glance at him anew.

It was then—

“Jaeha-ssi, we should get going.”

He didn’t know when he had arrived, but Aiden, who had been quietly observing them from behind, finally spoke up.

Jaeha made a soft noise of acknowledgment and turned around. Aiden was smiling, but it was easy to tell the smile was fake. Whether it was a product of social grace or pretense, he couldn’t tell. What mattered was that, for some reason, he could now distinguish between the two.

“Uh… I’ll be going for now.”

He had a scheduled appointment to attend, and though it was unfortunate, the conversation had to end here.

“Sorry for taking up so much of your time.”

“Not at all! I was happy to hear it. See you next time.”

Though the ending was a bit awkward, everything about the experience left Jaeha in a buoyant mood. Just the fact that there was someone out there tied to him by blood…

“…”

Jaeha paused mid-step.

While he was glad, he couldn’t help but wonder if they were going out of their way to be too kind. Would he become one more person they had to take care of? He didn’t want to be a burden, so after hesitating, he finally spoke.

“Um, Dowon-ssi…”

“Yes?”

“Why… why are you doing all this for me?”

Dowon, who had been getting ready to escort his grandmother away, turned back at the question. Then he smiled, as though the answer was obvious.

“Because we’re family… I wish I could give you that kind of cool answer.”

“…”

“But I don’t think that’s the whole reason. You might not realize it because you see me in such a good light, but I don’t exactly have the best personality.”

“Is that so…”

Mr. Dowon chuckled. It was a gentle and calm laugh.

“It’s because you’re a good person, Jaeha-ssi.”

That answer struck Jaeha deeply.

If the only explanation for everything was “because we’re family,” it might have made him feel a little sad—as someone who had always lived firmly believing he had no family, and never expecting or relying on anyone.

So, he was relieved.

 

Jaeha and Aiden left the courthouse just past noon. Since there wasn’t much time left before the briefing, they took the car Aiden had prepared and headed toward the Association building.

“…”

“…”

As expected, the two didn’t speak. It should’ve felt awkward, but Jaeha’s mind was too preoccupied. The thoughts echoing beside him made him uneasy.

[What do I do. What do I do, what do I do… What am I supposed to do?]

“…”

[I’m screwed. What do I—Ye Aiden, you idiot. What do I do? How do I fix this?]

The thoughts were disordered and… frankly loud. Voices overlapped—sometimes double, sometimes triple-layered—resonating like an echo and grating on his ears.

He had been hearing this sort of self-reproach from Aiden for days now, and had also spent those days pretending not to notice. Though he could hear Aiden’s thoughts, he considered it impolite to address something the other person hadn’t voiced aloud.

At first, he was surprised that someone who had seemed so perfect could be so anxious and self-critical. But over time, he got used to it.

Still, it wasn’t like Aiden was leaking these thoughts to get Jaeha’s attention. He truly seemed like someone who had lost their soul. He moved with a dazed expression, went through the motions of work, but to Jaeha, it was clear he wasn’t the same as before.

So pretending not to notice could only last so long. Jaeha was starting to genuinely worry. To be honest, the conflict they had—it was hardly even worthy of the term—didn’t seem like something worth this level of distress.

“Aiden-ssi.”

“…”

“Aiden-ssi?”

“…Ah, yes.”

His previously unfocused gaze snapped back into place, and when he looked up in a hurry, the pretense was gone. There was no trace of the composed mask he always wore—just a confused, vulnerable man. Jaeha had only called his name, but the unexpectedly intense reaction made him laugh awkwardly.

“…Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Um… don’t overdo it. You really don’t have to worry too much.”

“…”

His thoughts came to a halt. Was what he said that shocking? Surely not…

“Uh… I didn’t mean to read your thoughts. I’m sorry.”

The only sound in the car was the faint hum of the engine. Other than that, it was nearly silent as Jaeha hesitantly opened his mouth.

Honestly, Jaeha didn’t understand why Aiden was this shaken. He had told him that he would continue to like him. He had agreed to cooperate with the Association to protect Aiden’s goals. He had told him there was no need to pretend to like him. From Aiden’s perspective… wasn’t that a good thing?

“If it’s really that uncomfortable, um… I’ll try to sort out my feelings as soon as I can.”

That was the one thing that stuck in his mind.

Jaeha smiled sheepishly as he said it. It pained him to rush the emotional process he had planned to take slowly, but he thought he could manage it for Aiden’s sake.

“…”

“…”

Aiden’s already pale face grew even more colorless.

“I’m sorry.”

He spoke in a panicked voice. It was as if his mind had gone completely blank—no thoughts could be heard. His unprepared voice trembled pitifully.

“Excuse me?”

Though the conversation had hit a wall, Jaeha couldn’t understand why Aiden was suddenly apologizing.

“I’m sorry, Jaeha-ssi. I… I did something wrong. Could you forgive me just this once?”

“For what…?”

Jaeha was dumbfounded.

“I approached you knowing who you were. I knew… and still tried to seduce you. And… and I used your guilt to get my way.”

“…”

There was a faint trace of tears in his stammering voice. Jaeha blinked. What was he apologizing for? The content of his confession didn’t strike him as all that surprising.

“I know.”

“…”

But unlike Jaeha, Aiden froze as if the answer had completely blindsided him. His lips moved, but aside from a faint whimper, no words came out. Growing concerned, Jaeha reached out awkwardly and patted his shoulder.

“Can’t we… can’t we start over again?”

“Uh…”

As Jaeha patted his shoulder, the man suddenly grabbed his hand and asked in a tone that sounded like pleading. But for Jaeha, the issue wasn’t whether or not to accept an apology. The apology itself didn’t even resonate with him. Why was he apologizing?

“Do we really… have to?”

“…”

That was all Jaeha could say. Aiden had done what he had to do—there was no need for guilt. And the hurt Jaeha felt was his own responsibility to manage; it wasn’t something Aiden had to carry. Though Jaeha’s heart ached at seeing his pained expression, he still drew a firm line with logic.

If Aiden had approached and seduced him as part of a plan, what wrong had he committed? Well, maybe it was the fact that he’d enjoyed it physically during that time. Was that why he felt guilty? If so, then Jaeha could somewhat understand.

To reassure him, Jaeha gave a soft smile.

“Everything will be fine soon.”

“…”

“Ah, we’ve arrived.”

Right on cue, the car pulled up in front of the Association building. Jaeha smiled easily and opened the car door. Then he quickly jogged around to the other side and opened the door for Aiden, beating the chauffeur to it. Aiden sat dazed for a moment, then sluggishly took Jaeha’s offered hand and stepped out.

“…”

Seeing how out of it he looked, Jaeha debated whether he should console him further. But he soon decided against it.

‘…He’ll be okay soon.’

That’s what Jaeha thought.

It was a complete misunderstanding.

 

Meanwhile, Aiden was thinking.

First of all, I’m screwed.

If he had been angry or upset, Aiden could have tried to appease him.

But even his clumsy apology hadn’t reached him. His plea had echoed hollowly against a wall. Even if he had prepared better and begged more earnestly, he was sure the result would’ve been the same.

And secondly… he was even more screwed.

‘Ah…’

It was only then that Aiden truly realized—

That he was in love with Song Jaeha.