A Marriage with A Reason - Chapter 39

“Team leader, you’re here.”

“Yes, good morning.”

“Huh? Team leader, did something good happen today?”

“Haha, well…”

As usual, Jaehoon arrived at work, but the way his team members looked at him was different from usual.

“I don’t know what happened, but it’s been a long time since we’ve seen you smile so brightly, Team Leader. It looks good on you.”

Everyone was commenting on how bright his face looked today, saying it suited him well.

“Haha. Thank you. Let’s all do our best today.”

“You too, Team Leader.”

And for some reason, Jaehoon didn’t find their words meaningless or noisy. Instead, they felt pleasant—really pleasant.

It was no surprise. Jaehoon was truly in a good mood. Just as his coworkers had said, his face was unusually bright. Unlike before, when he was trapped in revenge for his mother and burdened with guilt toward Hyeyun, now he had accepted his feelings and followed his heart. How could he not be happy?

On top of that—

[Senior, the sandwich was really good. Also, let’s definitely have dinner together today. Stay strong! Fighting!!]

He had even received such a delightful message from her. However, feeling a bit embarrassed, he muttered,

“Geez, since when did I like her this much?”

But despite his grumbling words, his hands had already started typing a reply: ‘Okay, I’ll come home early.’

After sending the message, Jaehoon chuckled to himself like someone with a screw loose. He was reminded of Dayun’s sleeping face that he had seen first thing in the morning. At first, he thought it was a dream, so he had simply hugged her and fallen back asleep. But waking up and realizing it was reality had startled him a bit. Still, seeing her sleeping in his arms like a child, breathing softly, had sent a thrilling sensation through his entire body, as if he had been electrified.

In the end, he couldn’t focus on work, constantly finding himself smiling for no reason while working.

Then—

Knock, knock, knock.

A knock on the door snapped him back to reality. Jaehoon immediately put on a serious face, as if he had been working diligently from the start.

“Yes, come in.”

One of his team members entered and handed him a file.

“Here’s the report you requested.”

“Ah, thank you. You can go now.”

“Yes.”

The employee bowed and turned to leave but then hesitated and turned back carefully.

“Um, actually, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“Oh, it’s nothing major. Hyeyun is on vacation right now, right? She was supposed to return tomorrow, but she said she needs an extra day off.”

At the mention of Hyeyun’s name, Jaehoon’s expression darkened. It reminded him that one of his biggest problems was still unresolved. He had planned to end things with Hyeyun right after the trip with Dayun, but her unexpected leave had delayed it. Now, just hearing her name made his heart feel heavy.

“Ah… I see. I’ll take care of it.”

“Alright, then.”

After the employee left, Jaehoon let out a deep sigh.

“The more sorry I feel, the more I need to be honest with my emotions.”

But his eyes showed determination. As he had said, ending things quickly was the best way to prevent more pain—for Hyeyun, for himself, and for Eun-bit as well.

“Hmm… onions, I need onions… and I should get this too.”

Dayun was happily shopping for groceries, excited about finally having dinner with Jaehoon. Even though it wasn’t their first meal together, she couldn’t help but put extra effort into planning it. She even looked up recipes online and browsed through cookbooks in passing. For some reason, it felt like things would be a little different from now on.

At that moment, her phone rang, making her jump in surprise despite it being her own ringtone.

“Ahem…”

Feeling embarrassed for being startled, she quickly pulled her phone from her bag. But when she saw who was calling, she smiled brightly as if nothing had happened.

“Hello?”

“What are you doing? I’m about to leave work.”

It was Jaehoon.

“I’m at the supermarket, buying groceries. Oh, is there anything you’d like to eat?”

“Something I want to eat? Hmm, not really. Just whatever you make.”

His words sounded like something a newlywed husband would say, making Dayun blush with happiness.

“Then how about budae-jjigae? Do you like it?”

“Of course! But isn’t that hard to make? I don’t want you to overwork yourself.”

“No, it’s not hard at all. I can definitely make it.”

Maybe he was just saying it casually, but to Dayun, it sounded like he was genuinely concerned about her. That made her even happier.

“Well, based on your cooking skills, I’d say you’re really good.”

“Hehe~”

“Should I come pick you up?”

“Huh? But aren’t you tired? Won’t that be a hassle?”

Dayun widened her eyes in surprise at his offer. It was still hard to get used to how much he had changed, though she liked it very much.

“It’s no trouble. Your bags will be heavy, so of course, I should come pick you up. I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Okay, got it.”

After ending the call, Dayun focused on shopping again. She wanted to finish quickly so she could wait for Jaehoon instead of making him wait. But the world didn’t always go as planned—there was an unexpected twist.

“Oh~ Choi Dayun!!”

A familiar voice called out enthusiastically. Turning around, she saw Junseok and Hyunsoo running toward her with bright smiles.

“Huh? Oppa? Hyunsoo?”

Behind them, slightly hidden from view, were Minseok and Gyumin, waving at her from a short distance away.

Meanwhile, outside the supermarket, Jaehoon parked his car, smiling as he imagined his evening with Dayun. Without any idea of what was about to happen, he got out of his car, eager to see her. However, as he approached the supermarket, his smile vanished, and his steps froze.

Because—

“Hey, buddy! How’s it going?”

“Hyung, we meet again.”

Standing next to Dayun were four people who were nothing but obstacles. Four of them! Seeing them made Jaehoon speechless. Why? For what reason? Why were they here with Dayun?

“What the hell? Why are you guys here?”

Instead of answering, they shamelessly walked toward his car.

“Come on, let’s get in.”

“Yeah, let’s talk in the car.”

Without waiting for permission, they started getting in, leaving Jaehoon both furious and dumbfounded.

“Hey! Who said you could get in? When did I agree to give you a ride?!”

But they ignored him completely. And to make matters worse—

“We’re coming over to your place!”

“Yeah, we’re eating dinner at your house.”

“And drinking, too!”

“Sounds like a plan!”

Jaehoon was speechless. So was Dayun.

Tonight was not going as planned.

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