Chapter Five

Soo-Jin laughed heartily, feigning enjoyment as she engaged in small talk with the chairman of a group seated across from her. In truth, she was eager for him to sign the contract and move on.

"Mr. Oh, I imagine your wife must always be thrilled to have you around," she remarked, her smile never wavering.

The chairman responded with a hearty chortle. "She's almost due, so I have to make her happy," he said, nodding contentedly as he continued eating.

Soo-Jin remained silent for a moment, then smoothly steered the conversation back to business. "That's why we've decided to invest more in healthcare this time around, that way-", she was about to continue when his secretary leaned in to whisper something into his ear. The reaction on his face was far from pleasing to Soo-Jin.

"Mrs. Nam, please excuse me," he said abruptly, standing up.

Rising gracefully herself, Soo-Jin asked, "what's the matter?" But the man hurriedly excused himself again, leaving the room in a rush. His secretary turned to her with a polite bow and explained, "It seems the madam is going into labour. We'll reach out to you soon. I must take my leave now, please excuse me."

Soo-Jin nodded in understanding, an 'oh' escaping her lips as the secretary exited. Moments later, her PA stepped in. With a sigh, she turned to him and said, "let's leave."

Meanwhile,

"Hello" Hyeon-Seok's lawyer greeted the trio with a bow. "Shall we get started?" He sat down not waiting for a response.

"Now, remind me why do you two want a divorce this time?" He asked briefly checking the time.

"She spends money like it's from a thrift " Hyeon-Seok sighed, frustration clear in his voice. Ah-rim's eyes widened as if she's been victimized."Same reason, fifth time in a row," Ji-hoon said with an annoyed chuckle, he added, "for God's damn sake " resting his head on the table.

"Why do you spend that way?" Min-Hyuk asked Ah-rim.

"My account gets frozen from time to time." She said defensively, and Hyeon-Seok let out a wry chuckle at her response.

Min-Hyuk huffed and turned to Hyeon-Seok, "brother, why are you making such a big fuss over this ? She's rich enough to pay you back -"

"Big deal?" Hyeon-Seok interrupted with a scoff. " Have you seen her walk-in closet? That amount of clothing is enough to start a five-star boutique."

"Brother, I haven't made my point yet, listen quietly " Min-Hyuk cut him off , bringing an awkward silence to fall on the table. He turned to Ah-rim, fixing her with a stren look. "Just make her pay you every single dime she's taken."

Ji-hoon chuckled at the unexpected bluntness coming from Min-Hyuk plus Ah-rim's reaction, "why do you do so, Ah-rim?" He asked his sister.

"I told you, my account gets frozen " she repeated, frustration creeping into her voice. Hyeon-Seok could hardly believe what he was hearing.

"Ah-rim..." Min-Hyuk began, glancing at his watch, "If we were in front of God, that'd be an utter blasphemy" he said flatly.

"Min-Hyuk " Ah-rim called out his name in a warn but he remained unfazed. "Use that money for charity" he said.

"I already give charity..." She retorted "...and I have an organization that does just that, can you believe that?!" Sarcasm dripped from her words.

His look made people squirm and she was no exception, "stop looking at me like that" she complained and he blinked.

A smile formed on his face as he blinked again. "Double the funds you give and stop spending when you don't need to." He ordered.

"And what if I don't?" She challenged. "Then both of you can go screw yourselves " he said bluntly.

Ji-hoon smiled at this exchange. "Ah...I can't believe this," she said in a surprised tone glancing at her husband, who mirrowed her shock. Min-Hyuk's gaze swept over them before lowering again.

"Hey! Don't give me this crap. I called you here for more important matters, not to throw **** at our faces!" Hyeon-Seok almost yelled, drawing the attention of some disturbed souls.

"I and Ji-hoon always meet up, at this rate people might think we're dating." Min-Hyuk said in a lazy tone. "Our breaks gone because of this..." He raised his head "...this soap opera. You need to stop calling my office with another name to book appointments anytime she spends recklessly. And maybe, just maybe, you could go punch a seagull before spending spending stupidly because of a bad mood and you need someone to fight with." He continued.

"I need lunch, don't contact me." He pushed his chair back and stood up to go accommodate another near the windows.

Ji-hoon started, "you two are almost celebrating a decade of union, so you'd better talk it out. And work on your mood, Ah-rim."

"We're fed up and you have a six year old,for God's sake -" his phone buzzed with a text notification, followed by a call. He glanced at the screen before getting up to answer it in a more secluded spot.

Ah-rim exhaled and stayed quiet for a moment before smiling, "our anniversary, it's in five days. How should we go about it? A cozy family dinner will do." She suggested.

Hyeon-Seok ran a hand through his hair and looked at her. "Yeah? Maybe we'll talk over lunch?" He smiled and she chuckled.

"Sure" and with that he called the waiter over.

Soo-Jin stepped on the first floor with her PA, Min-Soo, following closely behind. "I'll ask the driver to get the car ready" he announced before walking away.

Her gaze wandered to the window, where she saw a familiar face--- the stranger she met in her 'secret hideout'.

She made to walk past him but made a sudden U-turn and sat opposite him. The spoon not reaching it's destination as it was stopped by Min-Hyuk who looked at the woman in front of him like a cartoon.

"Hi!! Remember me?" She greeted with fake enthusiasm. Holding the menu to her face, she asked, "Wanna have lunch together?"

"Miss" Putting down his spoon, he called out to her. "Why are you here? A moment ago you wanted to ignore my presence." He pointed out, his tone direct. She smiled awkwardly. "Yeah... I had a change of mind."