MHL 03

chapter 03

“I never threw this dress away. I kept it in my usual dressing room to wear when the season came. How could that be considered throwing it away?”

“Oh, really?”

Seeing Seoha’s unusually serious expression, Oksun fidgeted nervously and, without thinking, lightly brushed the hem of the dress.

“I thought it was old and meant to be discarded. You only wear designer clothes, after all. I didn’t know, I’m sorry, dear.”

Even if it was just a dress worth a few dozen euros, it was filled with memories of Seoha’s first trip around the world. That dress, which had always made her happy whenever she wore it, had gone to someone she didn’t know and returned soaked in the smell of fabric softener, stuffed into a paper bag smeared with greasy chicken stains.

“Even if you thought that, you should have asked me first. I didn’t just throw it anywhere—it was in my dressing room.”

“Enough, let’s sit down. Mom made a mistake, that’s all.”

Seung-oh stepped in with a slightly stern expression to calm the situation. Seoha resented her husband for not taking her side, knowing full well what the dress meant to her.

I’ll fight him when we get home.

Just as Seoha silently resolved to do so and tried to sit,

“I-I’m sorry!”

Suddenly, Lee Ji-soo jumped up and knelt in front of Seoha’s feet.

“I didn’t know it was your dress… the design is… and I heard you got married… it’s my fault, so please don’t scold Aunt Sun-yi. If I hadn’t wet the dress, nothing would have happened. I’m really sorry, I was wrong, Miss.”

Seoha was utterly bewildered. If anyone was at fault, it was Oksun for giving the dress away without permission. What could she say to Ji-soo, who had worn it without knowing?

“Why is Ji-soo apologizing? Stand up quickly.”

“I… I… Aunt Sun-yi took the dress out because of me, and you got angry… so I should apologize. I’m really sorry.”

Now Ji-soo placed both hands on the floor and kept bowing deeply, stuttering even more than when she first greeted them.

“Stop it! And why are you calling me ‘Miss’?”

Seoha’s voice rose, desperate to escape the awkward situation.

“Seoha.”

Seung-oh stood and gently held Seoha’s wrist.

“She apologized. Don’t reprimand her—accept it.”

“When did I ever tell her to kneel?”

“Looking at your expression, I’d be scared too and kneel first. It’s not Ji-soo’s fault, and in my eyes, it’s enough that Oksun acted rudely over a single dress. Our mom isn’t your housekeeper anymore; she’s your mother-in-law. Isn’t that right?”

The stress triggered a migraine. It felt like a blunt object was digging around her eyes. Seoha pushed Seung-oh’s hand away and grabbed the back of her chair.

“Oh, Seoha!”

Oksun rushed over to support her.

“Another migraine, right? Go upstairs and lie down. I’ll bring you some medicine, rest a bit, and wait until your mother-in-law comes.”

“No, I think it’s better to just go home and sleep well.”

“Okay. Wait a minute—I’ll pack some pancake batter for you. At home, put plenty of oil in a pan and fry them.”

Though she appreciated the gesture, Seoha wasn’t in a situation to take batter home. As she shook her head, Seung-oh lightly nudged her and answered for her:

“How would the princess fry pancakes? Don’t bother.”

Seung-oh often called Seoha “Princess.” Usually, it was pleasant, but today the word felt oddly irritating.

“Let’s go. Honey, help me a little.”

Seung-oh always took care of fragile, sensitive Seoha. Today, too, she believed she could rely on his strong arms to make it home safely.

But that trust shattered with a single scream.

“Ahhh!”

Ji-soo, flustered, stood up, lost her balance, and fell like a clumsy mermaid.

“Ouch…”

“Are you okay?”

Seung-oh’s hand, which always supported Seoha, went to Ji-soo. She hesitated, then took his hand, got up, and rushed to Seoha.

“Miss, please take the pancakes. You haven’t had dinner yet, and I’m sorry I caused trouble…”

“It’s fine. I don’t even like pancakes.”

“Oh… I’m sorry, Miss.”

Ji-soo’s face turned bright red. Watching her, Seung-oh grabbed the still-unopened bag of pancakes.

“I’ll enjoy it, Ji-soo. Smells good.”

After helping Ji-soo and taking the pancakes, it was Seoha’s turn. She refused Seung-oh’s hand and crossed the living room on her own.

She had come feeling joyful and excited, but the bag of pancakes and the dress soaked in fabric softener had chewed up all that happiness.

No one spoke on the way home.

Once home, Seoha quickly washed up and lay on the bed, expecting Seung-oh to come in soon with herbal tea for her migraine.

As expected, quiet footsteps approached and stopped by the bed.

“Drink.”

The familiar scent of herbal tea filled the air.

“…Later.”

“It’s the perfect temperature. Drink and lie back down.”

Seung-oh lifted her under the neck. He spoke little and was usually blunt, but he always took care of her with meticulous attention. Seoha accepted the warm cup, taking a few sips.

“How do you feel?”

“Better than before.”

“Drink it all. I’ll take you to the bathroom afterward.”

Seung-oh silently stayed by her side as she finished the tea. It was the stable silence Seoha loved.

“…Why were you like that earlier?”

After finishing her tea, she quietly asked.

“You know how much I care about that dress. I knew you’d be upset, and you didn’t take my side. I was also upset that I had to help Ji-soo up when I had a headache. And when Ji-soo laughed in front of me, while you don’t usually laugh much, that made me the most upset.”

Seung-oh placed the empty cup down and, with a seemingly indifferent yet warm touch, stroked her slightly dry shoulder.

“I’m sorry.”

“That’s all?”

“I didn’t take your side because I didn’t want Mom to be upset and stop being nice to you. Helping Ji-soo up was reflexive—someone fell in front of me, I was surprised. And the laughter… I’m sorry. I just thought the word was funny. That’s it.”

His hands slowly wrapped around her, pulling her into his wide, warm chest. Seoha took a deep breath, letting go of the earlier frustration and discomfort.

“Be careful from now on.”

“Of course, Princess.”

“Princess again.”

“What’s wrong with that? I’ll serve you, Yoon Seoha, as my princess for life.”

She liked the word again. Pouting, she hugged his waist and buried her face deeper.

“I love you. Really, so much.”

“I love you too.”

She couldn’t see his face as he gently brushed her hair.

Seoha felt extremely happy. She woke up at dawn for no reason, and a brilliant design suddenly came to mind. She couldn’t sleep, sketching the design she visualized, but her excitement outweighed her fatigue.

“Try to catch a little sleep on the way to work. You woke up at three yesterday, didn’t you?”

Seung-oh said while starting the car.

“I’m too excited to sleep. This is a completely new design. It’s going to be the signature of my brand.”

“Hmm.”

That was it. Seoha felt slightly disappointed.

“Aren’t you going to congratulate me? You know I’ve been frustrated lately without good designs.”

“It’s redundant. You’re always good at everything; if I congratulated each thing, it would never end.”

“This time, even a hundred congratulations wouldn’t be too much. I rarely get a design I’m this satisfied with.”

“Okay, okay. Congratulations, Princess.”

Seung-oh reached out and stroked her hair. The feeling was slightly awkward.

Their commute was usually the same. They shared the car to go to Kang Yoon Company. Designer Seoha got off on the third floor with the design team; Seung-oh, the management director, went to the fifth floor. Everyone knew the couple would inherit the company someday.

“Going to the CEO’s office?”

Seung-oh asked when Seoha pressed the top floor button instead of the third.

“Yes. I want to show it right away.”

She proudly hugged the newly completed design book. It was a treasure drawn after months of a creative slump.

“Want me to come? I’m curious too.”

“You know the answer—no.”

Work is work, love is love. The new brand’s signature couldn’t be revealed before production.

Seoha went up alone, clutching her design book. Just as she raised her hand to knock, the door suddenly swung open.

“Ah!”

Startled, she stepped back, and the design book fell open from her hands.

“Oh, dear.”

A man emerged, picked up the book, and dusted it off with little effort.

He was tall, broad-shouldered, in a suit, with a slim figure, slightly slanted eyes, and pale skin giving him a cold, sharp impression. He didn’t look familiar at all.

“Is this yours?”

The man asked bluntly. Seoha hesitated, unwilling to answer, and simply held out her hand. Normally, a reasonable person would apologize and return the book.

“…”

He stared at her quietly, observing. It was far from the behavior of a “normal person” in her mind.