unexpected cheating

As I was about to leave the office and head to the Day and Night Café to meet Luka,, my phone vibrated in my hand.

Unknown number...

I froze. A strange chill crept over my skin. Only a handful of people had my personal number — it wasn't just given out freely. Who could this be?? I hesitated before unlocking the screen. Luna,, standing by the doorway,, looked at me with a curious expression. "Rimi,, you're not leaving yet??"

"Just a second," I whispered,, barely hearing my own voice.

I opened the message...

Hello Rimi. It's important... It's about Clara. Please see the photos. I know you might think this is a prank or fraud,, but it's not. Look at the pictures first — then I'll tell you who I am. Thank you...

One text. Five photos...

My fingers trembled as I tapped the first image. I sucked in a sharp breath.

Ji-hoon... Clara's boyfriend. Her soon-to-be fiancé.

He was hugging a girl tightly. Too tightly... At first, I thought it was Clara… but it wasn't. Her hair was different. Her back,, her figure — not Clara.

My heart started racing... I tapped the next photo.

Ji-hoon again. Holding hands with the same girl. They were entering a hotel together. My lungs tightened. Thoughts raced wildly through my head. This couldn't be…

Third photo.

They were inside a hotel room... Ji-hoon was kissing her.

My stomach turned. A dizzying wave of nausea hit me. My fingers, cold and trembling, hovered above the fourth image.

He was with her again — in a robe. She was in a robe too. He was hugging her from behind. Intimately...

And I knew her.

His secretary.

She'd been with Ji-hoon for over six years... Loyal. Silent. But now, in this moment,, everything made sense. Late-night meetings. Business trips Clara wasn't invited to.

My thumb hit the final image...

Ji-hoon,, kneeling on one knee.

In front of her...

A velvet ring box open in his hand. Her face lit up with joy...

Not Clara. Not even close.

My phone nearly slipped from my grip. I stood frozen, my breathing shallow,, as if someone had sucked all the air from the room. I couldn't move. I couldn't think...

Then — snap — the phone was snatched from my hands.

"What are you looking at??" Luna's voice jolted me. I hadn't even heard her approach.

"Rimi! I called you three times!! Are you okay??" She glanced at my face,, then looked down at the screen.

She froze.

The photo of Ji-hoon proposing to his secretary stared back at both of us...

The phone slipped from her hand,, landing with a soft clack on the floor.

"No... this can't be real,," she whispered.

I sank to the ground,, knees folding beneath me, eyes still locked on the photo. I didn't touch the phone. I couldn't... My whole body felt numb.

Luna sat beside me on the cold marble floor.

"Rimi... is this real?"

I nodded slightly, voice hoarse. "Maybe. This isn't the first time he's cheated on Clara..."

Her eyes widened. "What??"

I stared blankly. "The first time,, we had no proof. Clara didn't believe us. She was too in love."

Luna picked up the phone again and flipped through the photos. Her fingers trembled...

"He was supposed to propose to Clara tonight…" she said,, stunned. "How can he—?"

"I don't know," I murmured. "Clara's been planning this engagement for months. She was so excited."

Luna's voice cracked. "Should we tell her??"

I looked at her with tired eyes. "If we tell her now, we'll destroy her. Her trust. Her hope..."

She stared down. "So what then?? We sit and watch him break her heart??"

"I don't want that," I whispered. "But she's not ready to hear this."

We sat in silence for a moment. Then Luna said, slowly, "Maybe we talk to Luka first. He asked to meet you… and he said it's about Clara. What if he knows something more??"

My eyes lit up. "Wait — that unknown number. Could it be Luka??"

Luna blinked. "Let me check..."

She pulled out her phone and typed in the number from the message. Her eyes went wide.

"It's not Luka."

"Then who?"

She turned her screen toward me...

Aiko...

My breath caught. "Mr. Kwon's grandson?? That Aiko??"

She nodded. "Why would he—??"

"He was at the party… but I barely interacted with him,," I murmured.

Luna leaned closer. "He must have known. Or maybe… he's involved??"

I stared at the screen. At the photos. At the final image — Ji-hoon kneeling before another woman...

This wasn't just about betrayal. It was about timing. Clara was preparing for a proposal — but Ji-hoon had already given his heart to someone else...

Or maybe he never gave it to Clara in the first place.

My fingers clenched. "I need to go. I need to talk to Luka. Now."

Luna stood with me... Her face was pale but determined. "I'm coming with you."

I paused. That thought hadn't crossed my mind.

Why Aiko?? Why now??

And what did he really want??

As I turned toward the exit,, phone in hand, heart pounding, one thought echoed louder than the rest:

What if this was just the beginning??

To be continued...