Sinner
Daughters of BusanThree months and 11 Saturdays later…
On the 12th Saturday Chaewon, Goeun, and Yena were inside of a homely, tiny restaurant accompanying three gorgeous women. Across from Yena is a pretty petite girl with long, dark straight hair name Jo Yuri and sitting to her left is her bestie Jang Wonyoung. Wonyoung is the daughter of a well-known music producer and CEO Jang Jiyoung of Pixiedust Entertainment. A label that houses over twenty artists and three unrivaled producers and directors. And Wonyoung seems to be interested in Chaewon, or rather Soul Group.
“So the golf course in Jeju, the resorts in Seoul, Incheon, and Daegu, and Sky Hotel in Gwangju all belong to your family?” Wonyoung asks.
Chaewon hums, unimpressed by the small list, “Basically,”
On the side, she feels Goeun elbow her before whispering, “Tell her Hope Orphanage in Ulsan and Hotel 9 are also yours,”
While Chaewon considers it, Yena does her a favor and changes the topic, “Let’s not talk about that stuff. We agree to go to the amusement park after this, right?” she asks, exchanging eye contact with Yuri. The lass curls her lips up in a kind smile and agrees.
“My family owns the amusement park on the outskirt of Seoul. We can go there,” Yuri says and make Yena pouts.
“What is my dad doing being chief of police? He should start buying buildings so I can brag too,” she mumbles to herself. In the meantime, Wonyoung smiles sweetly at Chaewon, putting her in an awkward spot. She swears she has had it with these group blind dates and would never involve herself in any more of them, but when Goeun drags her to every date refusing her refusal, there’s very little Chaewon can do but to go along with quietly.
On the side of the road, Chaewon curses herself out in her head for not having driven to the meeting. After the third date, Yena and Goeun they would all carpool in Yena’s car to save gas and to prevent any one of them from ever running late. So when Yena agrees to take Yuri’s car, riding with Yena is no longer an option. Then Wonyoung insists Chaewon ride with her in her bloody red Oullim Spirra, a 2-seater. That also clips off the chances of going with Goeun.
“I’ll take a cab,” Goeun says.
“Oh, no. I have a coupe so you can carpool with us,” Yuri interpose before Yena decides to take her own vehicle.
“It’s fine. Actually, I just remember that I have to be somewhere at noon so let’s split ways here. It was nice meeting you ladies and you guys have fun,” Goeun says before she smiles with a raised brow at Chaewon as if to tease and tell her not to have "too much" fun.
Chaewon frowns. She has yet to hear that Goeun has things to do that afternoon.
On the contrary, Yena hastily chimes in before she loses Chaewon, “O-oh, okay. Go do your thing, next time Chaewon and I will take you and the three of us will go together,” Goeun hums then wave to them before she hollers at an approaching cab. Before Chaewon can send her off properly, she feels Wonyoung grabbing her by the arm.
“Come with me, my car is over here,” she says and begins pulling Chaewon the opposite direction of Yuri and Yena. Once they were standing in front of the sports car, Wonyoung reaches for the handle but is stop by Chaewon.
“Do you mind if I drive?” Chaewon questions, Wonyoung appears puzzled before she shakes her head.
“Um, I don’t,” without a delay Wonyoung hands her key over to Chaewon and she took it before opening the door for the taller young woman. Wonyoung thanks her easily get in. Once Chaewon shuts the door, she looks two cars back and sees Yena readily getting into the passenger side of Yuri’s vehicle.
“Yena,” Chaewon calls over to the latter, “I’m taking Wonyoung somewhere else,”
“What?” Yena hollers back, “Where are you two going?”
“Just somewhere. I’ll call you later,” Chaewon informs then circle Wonyoung’s car without waiting for Yena’s response.
Once she hops in, plaster across Wonyoung’s face is an excited smile. She waits as Chaewon starts the car then she reaches around the shorter’s thin body and grabs a hold of her seatbelt. Catches by surprise, Chaewon presses her back against the seat until Wonyoung buckles her down.
Leaning back into her own seat, Wonyoung coos, “There you go, now where are you taking me? I heard what you said to your friend out there,”
Chaewon examines Wonyoung’s car, admiring the flashy interior, then answers a moment later, “I’m not sure yet. I only said that because I’m not fond of amusement parks,”
“Oh,” Wonyoung voices, “then how about we go for a ride? I have a lot of questions I’d like to ask you,”
Chaewon doesn’t object nor detest the idea so she lets Wonyoung ask away. And as she expected, the lass brings up Soul Group. Questions about Chaewon’s likes and dislikes were thrown into the mix once in a while but their conversation revolves mainly around Chaewon’s family business. Subjects like when will Chaewon take over and what changes did she plan to make were also mentioned. Lastly, Wonyoung is curious about Chaewon’s love life or if she has one at all.
The young woman shrugs as she carefully merges into traffic. Then she reveals, “What can I say? I’m a dating ,”
“So you’ve never like had a fling with anyone before neither?”
Chaewon chortles, “Never. I’ve seen the mess first hand. Unlike my dad, it’s either one person or no one at all. I plan to uphold Soul Group’s excellent reputation with as little drama as possible,”
Wonyoung in awe says, “That’s amazing of you,” then she heaves a depress sigh, “among us first class, it’s hard to find a loyal and faithful partner with a stable lifestyle and basis to fall back on. Everyone wants to live comfortably through their parents and grandparents’ wealth and establishments but you’re different. Not only maintaining but you want to enhance what’s rightfully yours. I think that’s amazing,”
Chaewon didn’t ask to be flatter but accepts it, “You’re implying I’m part of the loyal and faithful, right?”
“Of course,” Wonyoung answers with a soft laugh, “I’m also saying I want to be by your side as you expand your business,”
Chaewon can feel her heart racing and she feels extremely hot. Is Wonyoung confessing? Is this what it feels like to be respected, liked, and admired? Is this the feeling of being wanted? With a simple nod Chaewon, avoiding Wonyoung’s gaze, says, “After a few more dates, I’ll think about it,”
From the corner of her eyes, she can see Wonyoung smiling as if she has won the lottery. At the same time, Chaewon notices Wonyoung’s legs. They were pale, long, and slim. Why hasn’t she seen them before? Why did she imagine Wonyoung was in long pants? Whatever the reason is, Chaewon assumes her heart has started to open up a little. Wonyoung isn’t bad company after all. She was younger, visually pleasing, and her voice just melts Chaewon and makes her warm.
In the end, Chaewon brings Wonyoung to the pool her father has purchased for her. The pool she and Goeun visit often. By the door, Chaewon watches as Wonyoung squats down and dip her fingers into the cool water. “Whoa! The water is so clear it makes me want to jump in,” Wonyoung shrieks as if she has never seen an indoor pool before. “It’s the same size as the Olympic pool!”
“There are extra clothes in the locker room if you want to go in,” Chaewon assures the woman.
“It’s okay, I’ll just soak my feet for a bit,” Wonyoung happily sits on the cement and carefully puts her legs in. She yelps a little when the water came up to her shins and nearly touch her knees. Slowly, Chaewon joins the lass on the ground but didn’t touch the water. Instead, she sits crisscrossed and heaves a sigh.
“Do you like it that much?” she asks.
Gently, Wonyoung holds her long locks back as she bobs her head energetically, “I’ve always wanted an inside pool but my mom got a vacation house by the beach for me instead. She said the chemicals would be bad for me,”
Reasonable Chaewon thinks then says, “Well, if you ever want to swim, you can just come here. I’ll give you the passcode. We change the water every month and most of the time only run the cleaner so you don’t have to worry. We do use chemical but only to kill the bacteria and it’s odorless,”
Wonyoung brings her shoulder up, snuggly, then drops them with a mature smile, “Thank you, Chaewon,”
While Wonyoung washes her feet and legs in the bathroom, Chaewon blankly stares out the tinted window. Then her cell phone rings and breaks the ice. Reaching into her pocket, Chaewon fishes out the vibrating device and put it on speaker, then she holds it close to her chin, “What?” she asks, without checking who the caller is.
“Miss Chaewon,” it’s Mr. Oh, “the President wants you to stop by the company. He wants to discuss the details of your next assignment,”
“I’ll be there in thirty,” Chaewon states then hangs up. Then steadily she hears Wonyoung by the door frame.
“Do you have to leave?”
Chaewon turns her whole body towards the other’s direction, she sees Wonyoung drying her hair with a white towel, “Yeah,”
“Can I give you a ride?” Wonyoung offers. Chaewon hums then wait as Wonyoung goes back to the locker room to grab her belongings.
The headquarter of Soul Group is a thirty storied building with sky blue tinted windows. When Chaewon enters the busy building, everyone immediately stops what they were doing to bow and greet her. In the elevator, to the twenty-ninth floor, Chaewon senses the employees' anxieties shoot through the roof. Briefly, she wonders if her father disciplines them as harsh as the rumors have it.
There’s a no dating, no snacking, and apparently, no maternity leave policy. Any woman who shows signs of being pregnant are immediately fired. Her father has no tolerance for things that merits celebration.
Chaewon should have predicted the gloomy working environment when her father is like that of a tiger. Wherever he resides and marks, that place becomes his den. It’s one of the many reasons why she pushed Hyewon and her stepmother out of the house. If the mother-and-daughter duo has stayed any longer, Chaewon’s father would have eaten them up.
In the office, she sees her father at his desk. He has been removed from his wheelchair and put into the leather chair. Upon seeing her enter, he shuts the olive green folder in front of him and gestures for her to come closer.
Now standing in front of him and under the chandelier, he falls back into his seat with a creak. “Did anyone offended you on your way up here?”
Before Chaewon takes the elevator, she has gone to the women's restroom where she heard someone vomiting. When the woman came out of one of the stalls, she recognized Chaewon and begs her to forgive her. As if the woman has committed a sin.
A woman with a child isn’t a sinner. A woman that throws away and abandoned her child is. Mom and mother are two different people. And that is the part that Chaewon and her father disagree on.
“Everyone was respectful,” Chaewon answers.
A/N: I want to thank everyone who has been reading and commenting consistently! Please know that it fuels my motivation to update (it might sound bad but it's my real feelings haha). Now here's a question for everyone. What are some other couples you'll like to see? I know not everyone has been introduced yet, but perhaps I can milk some ideas off of your guys' answers. Otherwise please look forward to the next chapter. It should be out soon~
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