Chapter 10

“The one who upset our Ayeon. Sunwoo, you shouldn’t be like that. How could you block your Sunbae’s future…”

Jooheon lightly tapped Sunwoo’s arm with a playful smirk.

“Hey, honey!”

Ayeon interjected, and Jooheon dropped the teasing.

Sunwoo let out a quiet breath as he watched him.

“I think what you just said upset her even more.”

“What, what?”

Sunwoo’s words hit Jooheon’s nerves.

“I’m sure Ayeon Sunbae and I were both strong candidates. It’s not because she lacked anything, or because I was better than her.”

“What?”

Jooheon frowned.

“I guess I just got lucky this time. But it doesn’t change the fact that Ayeon Sunbae is a capable psychologist. Anyone who knows her knows that.”

Sunwoo turned to her with a gentle smile.

Jooheon was left speechless by the undeniable weight behind Sunwoo’s words. A faint smile formed on Ayeon’s lips.

His words were unexpected but strangely comforting.

A capable psychologist.

The way he said it in front of Jooheon wasn’t shallow or teasing. His attitude was serious.

She wasn’t yet in a place to fully accept such praise, but it was the kind of thing she’d always longed to hear from someone.

Even if she kept failing to get appointed as a professor, she still loved psychology and wanted to become a skilled psychologist.

Sunwoo was right. There was no need to despair over not becoming a professor right away. Even if it took longer, she would get there eventually.

“Of course. I know better than anyone how amazing Ayeon is. What do you know.”

Jooheon begrudgingly agreed, his face still sullen.

“Is your business going well, Jooheon Sunbae? I heard sculpture investment is booming in the US but starting to cool down.”

“We’re on the rise… So I’ve been busy lately.”

He shrugged, glanced at Ayeon, then looked away again.

“Anyway, congrats on your glorious return. Let’s grab a drink sometime. But tonight I have to spend a special evening with Ayeon. It’s our fifth wedding anniversary.”

The irritation on his face was finally replaced with a bright smile.

The pride of being Seon Ayeon’s man.

On campus, that fact had always made him shine.

It had been a while since he’d felt this way, and he didn’t hate it.

“Wow… Time really flies.”

Sunwoo nodded with a bittersweet smile.

Jooheon waited for the expected congratulations in return.

After all, he had congratulated Sunwoo on his appointment.

But no such words came back.

“Professor Jin, I’ll get going. Jooheon, let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

Ayeon tugged on his arm.

As he let himself be led away, Jooheon glanced back.

Jin Sunwoo stood rooted to the spot as if his feet were glued to the ground.

What was it about him that always lingered.

The courtyard lights of the Social Sciences building flickered on one by one as night fully fell.

The last light illuminated Jin Sunwoo.

His figure stood out clearly now.

His sharp eyes, unyielding before anyone or anything, were fixed on them.

Even back in undergrad, no one could match his tall, solid build.

His model-like presence had drawn plenty of admirers, but none had ever truly caught his interest.

He had been unshakable in any situation, with anyone.

The girls who were curious about him always lost interest quickly.

Because the only thing that had ever caught his interest was…

Jooheon furrowed his brow, cutting the thought off.

Sunwoo had always had a way of getting under his skin.

And now he was back, orbiting around Ayeon again.

It bothered him more than he wanted to admit.

But Seon Ayeon was his wife.

That much was undeniable.

He turned toward her, wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and kissed her forehead.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“No, I’m fine.”

“You should eat dinner anyway. Let’s go somewhere nice.”

She gave him a small smile and nodded slowly.

“The wind’s a little chilly. Must be the season changing.”

“I’m fine.”

“Still, I don’t want you catching a cold.”

He took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

He wanted Jin Sunwoo to keep watching them until the end.

* * *

Jooheon and Ayeon had dinner at a skyscraper lounge restaurant near their home and then returned.

They spent a long time laughing and reminiscing about their undergraduate days.

The tennis club inevitably came up.

Back then, many freshmen had joined just to get a look at tall, handsome Jooheon.

But Ayeon hadn’t shown even the slightest interest in him.

Maybe that was why he’d grown so curious about her.

Under the pretext of teaching her tennis, he’d stuck close to her constantly.

No matter how much the other freshmen complained about why he wouldn’t teach them, his attention never wavered from her.

At the afterparties following matches, the seat next to Ayeon had always been his.

He hadn’t cared about stares or whispers. He had only ever looked at her.

Back then, she’d found his persistence overwhelming. But now she could smile at that steadfast devotion.

She’d often told him, half teasing and half in awe, how he’d only ever had eyes for her.

“Do you ever want to play tennis again? I can’t even remember the last time we did.”

As they stepped into their home, she asked him.

“Not really. Tennis was fun back then, but that’s because I didn’t know how many other fun things there were in the world.”

“What’s so fun now?”

“Huh? Oh, work. The more I do it, the more I want to do it well.”

“Wow. You’re such a model husband.”

She looked at him with a fond smile.

He walked into the dining area, tilted his head at the bread and melted coffee on the island.

“Ayeon, what’s all this?”

“Oh… I went to your office yesterday.”

“Oh, really?”

He sounded caught off guard.

“But you weren’t there. So I wasted a trip. Where were you pulling an all-nighter anyway?”

“Ah… I have another workspace the company set up. Like a container studio outside the city. We’ve been getting more pieces, but the main storage is running out of space.”

“I see.”

So there had been something she didn’t know.

She finally felt a sense of relief.

She felt a little embarrassed at how far her suspicions had gone.

“It’s good that your collection’s growing. Looks like work’s really paying off.”

“Of course. Whose husband do you think I am?”

He hugged her from behind.

He spun her around to face him and kissed her lightly.

“Ayeon.”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for staying by my side for the past five years without changing.”

“Me too.”

She smiled softly.

He pulled something out of his pocket and held it out.

A jewelry box.

He opened it slowly.

“!”

Her eyes flickered.

She had expected a bracelet, but inside was a necklace.

She quickly masked her surprise and admired the elegant shine of the necklace.

“Do you like it?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

With a pleased expression, he lifted the necklace and clasped it around her neck.

“It looks beautiful.”

He gazed at her for a long moment, then began undressing her.

“Take a shower first.”

“Let’s just do it. Please?”

“You said you pulled an all-nighter. Don’t push yourself.”

He pouted.

“Fine.”

While he went to wash up, she looked at herself in the mirror.

The gorgeous necklace now hanging around her neck didn’t quite feel like it belonged on her.

A necklace.

Not a bracelet.

Then where had that bracelet gone…

She stood there blankly for a while, then shook off the uneasy feeling and began tidying up the messy kitchen island.

She also picked up the clothes he had tossed off.

“So this is what you wore.”

Muttering to herself, she picked up his jacket to put it in the clothes steamer, then stopped.

Her hand slipped into the pocket.

She felt a crumpled piece of paper.

Her heart dropped.

No way.

No way.

She slowly unfolded the paper.