Chapter 1
Unforgiven Vows
Crash!
> “How is this even remotely acceptable?!”
Porcelain shards scattered across the room. A sharp edge grazed Go Woori’s cheek.
It stung—but she didn’t flinch. She simply looked up at her raging father, who was pacing like a storm about to break.
> “I can’t wrap my head around this! You—my daughter! You couldn’t even properly handle one man? And now this disgrace?!”
Of course, she knew from the start that his fury would be redirected toward her.
Woori lowered her hands, which had been shielding her face from the impact, revealing tearless but weary eyes.
> “What do I do now, Dad? This isn’t fair. I’m so hurt… I just— I really thought I’d marry someone good.”
Her shoulders trembled as if she were about to cry.
Go Seongchul, CEO of Haseong Apparel and her father, briefly hesitated. For a fleeting second, he seemed to realize his daughter was a victim too.
> “What, now you’re crying? Is being dumped something to sob about? And not just dumped—by some common woman not even worth mentioning?!”
He was never the affectionate type. No pet names, no comforting words, just cruel indifference.
Woori peeked between her fingers, letting out a tiny sigh as she watched him explode.
> ‘Why won’t the tears come? Should I stab my thigh or something?’
She discreetly pinched her calf beneath the table.
Damn. It just hurt.
Woori wasn’t the type to cry easily, which made this whole performance even more exhausting.
> “I can’t sleep thinking about how much you bragged about that engagement! And now? A broken engagement? My daughter—Go Seongchul’s daughter—dumped like that?!”
Yes, just one month ago, Woori had found out her fiancé, Ha Yoonjae, had another woman.
Powerless to stop it, she watched the situation unravel—and today, that cheating couple was getting married.
> “That bastard. That worthless, thieving bastard.”
Her father was less outraged by her heartbreak and more furious at the dent in his public image.
But Woori wasn’t done yet. She had one more performance to give.
> “So I’m just supposed to live the rest of my life being humiliated and ridiculed? Me? Go Woori?! I can’t do it! I won’t! I can’t even leave the house like this! What am I supposed to do?!”
> “Shut up! You’re not helping yourself at all right now!”
Twenty-eight years old. Smart, savvy, and instrumental in building her father’s company.
He used to boast about how sharp she was, how much she resembled him. Now, he discarded her like an old shoe.
> “Go abroad for a while.”
> ‘Got him.’
She quickly lowered her gaze to the floor, hiding the glint of triumph in her eyes.
> “A-abroad?”
> “Yes. That trash wedding is today, right? So leave. Now. Book the earliest flight—doesn’t matter where. Contact Secretary Kim as soon as you land.”
> “For how long? A week? A month?”
> “Do you even think before you talk?! A week? You think this will blow over that fast? Just shut up and go. Don’t come back until I say so. And stop going to work too.”
Exactly what she wanted.
She forced her lips into a neutral line, hiding the grin tugging at the corners.
> “Leave. Now!”
Her cold, callous father was like this until the very end.
—
Outside his study—a.k.a. rage chamber—Woori quietly closed the door. Waiting for her in the hallway was her stepmother.
> “So? I guess all your perfect plans turned into garbage.”
Her arms crossed, lips curled in amusement. Clearly, she had been eavesdropping.
Circling Woori like a hawk, she tsked.
> “You shouldn’t have waited so long with your nose in the air. Ha Yoonjae was the heir to Youngdo Group. You think you can just toy with someone like that?”
> “About that preparation you mentioned… you did get it ready, right?”
Her stepmother’s words died on her tongue. Her eyes blinked slowly as her smug expression faltered.
> “What are you talking about?”
> “The ye-pum. The gift you prepared for the blind date—remember?”
> “What about it?”
> “Give it to me.”
> “Excuse me?”
> “It’s mine anyway. And you have great taste, don’t you? Be a shame to waste it.”
Woori smiled sweetly and shrugged.
> “I’ll be waiting for it.”
Of course, she didn’t plan to wait long.
She left the house with one goal: fly to New York and disappear.
On her way out, she called her secretary.
> “I’m leaving right now. Pack up and take the next flight.”
> “Yes, Miss. I’ll be right behind you.”
Red sports car. Favorite vehicle.
As she started the engine, she glanced in the rearview mirror. Her bag sat in the backseat.
> “A failed bride with nothing left but time and money.”
She gave a dry laugh and drove off.
> ‘Let me grow old somewhere in paradise.’
But before she could get too far—
Rrrrr. Rrrrr.
An unknown number popped up on the screen. She frowned and answered.
> “This is Go Woori.”
> “Your voice sounds brighter than I expected.”
> “Who is this?”
> “Ah… you didn’t even save my number?”
The relaxed, mocking voice made her jaw clench.
> “…Ha Yoonjae.”
Unbelievable. Her ex-fiancé. The man marrying someone else in just four hours.
> “Didn’t we delete each other’s numbers already?”
> “True. But some things… stay with you.”
> ‘What the hell does he want?’
> “Why are you calling? Regret the wedding already? Planning to swap brides last minute?”
She mocked. He chuckled.
> “Strange. I feel like I’m the one being attacked here.”
> “Afraid I’ll crash the ceremony? Too bad. That’s your problem, not mine.”
> “Then tell me.”
His voice suddenly dropped, serious.
> “Why did someone who looked ready to burn the world down… do nothing?”
A pause.
She tightened her grip on the steering wheel.
> “So now doing nothing is my crime?”
> “I assumed you were the type who does whatever she wants. That I wouldn’t be safe from you.”
Woori’s jaw clenched.
> “Get to the point. What do you want?”
> “You’re doing well. Keep it that way. Stay silent, stay away. But… if anything happens to her—”
His voice dropped to a whisper.
> “Your life might get a little… more interesting.”
The line went dead.
She slammed the steering wheel.
> “That poor woman marrying you. But hey, congratulations. You bastard who belongs under concrete.”
She scowled.
> “What the hell does she see in him?”
Love? That filthy word?
> “Ugh, gross. Seriously. Disgusting.”
Even imagining him being sweet to someone made her gag.
She thought of the bride—pale skin, thick glasses.
> “Love?”
What the hell was love?
Her father remarried right after her mother died. Her stepmother used her husband and stepsons to flaunt her power.
> “Keep your damn love. I don’t need it.”
No one ever loved her. And that was that.
—
> [Korean Airlines Flight to Honolulu, Departure 13:55 – Boarding at Gate 2]
She checked her ticket. That was her flight.
Woori stood up from the VIP lounge, sunglasses shielding her eyes.
One last look around the airport.
> “Hmm. Not much I’ll miss.”
Maybe her red car waiting in the parking lot.
She strolled toward the gate, but frowned.
> Too dark…
Ah. Sunglasses.
She pulled them off and shoved them into her bag—
Clink.
Something metallic hit them. She paused, opened her bag.
> “What the…?”
A platinum ring. A carat diamond.
> “No way.”
The wedding ring. The one she ripped off his finger in a fit of rage.
It must have bounced into her bag when she threw it.
Now she understood why Ha Yoonjae called. She had stolen the wedding ring.
> “Unlucky bastard.”
Woori laughed to herself and tossed the ring in the air, catching it playfully as she boarded the plane.
But…
A strange hesitation caught her just before stepping in.
A weight in her chest. She paused, shoulders tight.
Her breath caught.
> “Ah… ugh…”
Her vision blurred. Her body was collapsing. As if pulled by ropes, she crumpled, suffocating.
> “Ugh… s-someone… please help!”
Screams. Panic.
Her world was ending.
—
> “This afternoon, at 13:55, a passenger aboard Korean Airlines Flight 1555 bound for Honolulu… was reported dead… due to mental health complications…”
—
End of Chapter 1
