Chapter Nineteen: A True Gentleman

Although Rachel Liu was emotionally intelligent, she had never been in a romantic relationship before and lacked real experience, so she didn't catch the deeper meaning behind Kim Won's words. She merely smiled casually, as if she had no idea what expression to wear and used a smile to brush things off.

"Whatever," she said, turning to look out the car window. "Didn't my brother tell me it'd be best if I broke off the engagement?"

Kim Won said nothing, focusing on driving instead, for he truly didn't know how to explain his own contradictory feelings.

The car fell quiet again, and Rachel Liu couldn't help but think of Cha Eun-sang.

She had lost her temper with Cha Eun-sang that day, saying things that were surely biased and deeply hurtful. Now, looking back, it all seemed almost laughable—was it really worth becoming a shrew over a man? She was only seventeen; her life wasn't confined to Kim Tan alone. Besides, it was better to see things clearly now than to find a Cha Eun-sang appearing after she was married—by then, there would be nowhere left to cry.

And seeing Cha Eun-sang so drunk tonight, Rachel felt there was no need to waste her energy on her. Let her go her own way; since Rachel had decided to give up on Kim Tan, what did it matter?

With that thought, a weight seemed to lift from her shoulders, and her expression lightened considerably.

Kim Won parked the car in a small square not far from Rachel’s home.

"Let’s get some air before you go back. You smell strongly of smoke and alcohol."

Rachel’s clothes reeked of the bar—a mixture of cigarettes and liquor. A walk in the night breeze would help dissipate the odor and hopefully avoid any argument with Esther when she got home.

She stepped out of the car, gazing at the moonlit sky, her mood brightening unexpectedly.

"Won," she called as they walked into the square, "have you let her go?"

Kim Won paused, as if searching for the right words. "I'm not sure. It was painful when we parted, but in the end, I realized that no matter how hard I tried, this was always going to be the outcome."

He didn’t deny his feelings for Hyun-joo. There was no need to conceal or avoid them. In life, people cross paths with many others—sometimes it’s just fate without destiny. If he had to put it into words, it could only be: once, I loved.

Rachel wasn’t bothered by his answer, though her feelings were complicated. "I suddenly feel like I can let go of Tan. There’s no point clinging to someone who doesn’t like me. He can love whoever he wants; one day, I’ll find someone who loves me."

She was still young, and her words brimmed with hope.

"Yes," Kim Won replied gently.

That night, Rachel Liu returned home at eleven. By then, Esther was already back—a still-elegant woman, though she looked weary. The past few days, mother and daughter hadn’t quarreled much; their interactions were as usual. But Rachel, for reasons she couldn’t explain, felt she understood more. Suddenly, she realized how tired her mother must be, how hard she worked. She thought her own circumstances were a kind of gift from fate and that she couldn’t go on living as she had before.

She said nothing, simply turned off the bright chandelier, switched on a softer lamp, and warmed a glass of milk for Esther.

Esther was startled by this unexpected tenderness, even a little nervous.

Seeing her mother like this, Rachel suddenly felt tears welling up, but she was too stubborn to let them fall. The apology stuck in her throat. Esther soon composed herself and asked, "Why are you back so late?"

She suspected her daughter might have something going on with Kim Won, but more pressing problems occupied her mind.

"Lee Bona invited me to a party."

The only reason Rachel dared return so late was because Esther had always encouraged her to make friends with her classmates.

Hearing this, Esther smiled. "That’s good. You should spend more time with them."

Rachel smiled faintly and went to take a shower, but couldn’t help asking, "Is something wrong at the company?"

Esther’s hand trembled as she held the glass of milk. "It’s nothing—everything’s fine."

Meanwhile, after seeing Rachel off, Jeremy hurried upstairs to find Uhey. Hwang Tae-kyung had disappeared, probably gone home, and Shin-woo had taken Uhey to change clothes… to change clothes!

Alarms blared in Jeremy’s mind—his Uhey, his idol!

He rushed into Shin-woo’s room to find Uhey wearing one of Shin-woo’s oversized t-shirts, drying her hair.

Uhey couldn’t stand it any longer—the more she thought about it, the more disgusted she felt, so she had taken a quick shower. Shin-woo had set up the hot water and then stepped out, now standing on the rooftop for air.

Jeremy stopped short in the doorway at the sight of Uhey, completely at a loss. He glanced around helplessly.

The shirt was big and long—it was one Shin-woo used to wear while dancing, later repurposed as sleepwear. With no other clothes available, Uhey had to make do. Thankfully, it covered everything it needed to, looking like a comfortable, oversized dress.

"Jeremy~," Uhey called out cheerfully. "I’m done. It’s fine, you can come in."

The boy looked so adorably awkward standing in the doorway that Uhey couldn’t help but smile. She didn’t mind; the shirt was actually longer than most of her skirts.

She picked up a hairdryer and started drying her hair as if nothing were amiss, while Jeremy fidgeted, not knowing where to put his hands or eyes. Just then, Shin-woo came in and couldn’t help but laugh.

"Jeremy, you’re back already?"

Thank goodness! "Hyung!" Jeremy looked at Shin-woo with what almost seemed to be tears of gratitude. If Shin-woo hadn’t come back, Jeremy wouldn’t have known how to handle being alone with Uhey.

Shin-woo ruffled Jeremy’s hair as he walked by. "Someone came to pick her up, so I thought I’d come check on you guys," Jeremy explained.

At that moment, Lee Bona entered, sweating profusely. "I finally got that drunkard settled. I’m never getting involved in this kind of thing again. Huh? Uhey, are you wearing Shin-woo’s pajamas?"

Jeremy swore he saw Shin-woo blush.

…How suspicious.

Uhey, however, was completely unconcerned. "Yeah, I couldn’t even look at my own clothes after what happened, so I just tossed them." She couldn’t help but complain, "That Go Mi-nam really ought to quit—he doesn’t know the first thing about being humble."

Shin-woo smiled at her puffed-up cheeks. "He’s new and doesn’t know how to turn down girls’ invitations yet, that’s why he ended up so drunk."

Uhey pouted, ruffling her hair. "Hey, Shin-woo, your shampoo is the same brand as mine~"

Her tone was offhand, but Jeremy’s imagination started to run wild.

And then Shin-woo said, "I saw you using it at the hotel last time, so I bought it too."

For a man, brand loyalty didn’t mean much—he’d seen Uhey using it, remembered the brand, and just picked it up at the store. But to Jeremy, that sentence sounded very different.

"What?? Hotel!!" Hotel!

His voice was nearly a scream.

No one had misunderstood before, but with that outburst, everyone now did.

And so the night ended like this—

To ease the awkwardness, Shin-woo suggested with a gentle smile, "Why don’t we all have some tea together?"

Meanwhile, Kim Won returned home to find a text waiting for him.

Won! I did you a favor and brought that girl some juice~

(It was from the bartender at the club, if you remember.)