The hour was only ten and the streets of Seoul were still packed with people, but Mari opened the door blearily with sore muscles. Baekhyun definitely hadn’t been kind with their training, forcing her to perfect self-defense movements. It looked easy enough when he did it, but it was a totally different concept when Mari had to do it. Safe to say, her muscles begged for a warm shower and to just call it a day, snuggle under her blankets and wait for tomorrow to come.

At her arrival, Chanyeol looked up from his paperwork on the dining table. His hair brushed at the top of his brows with glasses perched on top of his nose, already clad in pyjamas. He looked so soft and so handsome under the dim light that Mari would’ve been fooled that he was husband material, but she only snorted at him. “You’re home late,” he remarked, taking his glasses off and placing his hands in front of him. “I didn’t see you at work today. Is everything okay?”

“Do you actually care where I’ve been?” Mari raised a brow, while Chanyeol released a sigh while pressing the bridge of his nose.

“Listen, Mari, what I said before about wanting us to get along, I meant it, okay?”

“As opposed to everything else you said?”

“I never wanted to hurt you,” he insisted, his hands curling in front of him. Mari noticed the way his brows hardened and his shoulders turning rigid, as if trying to control himself from toppling over. His self-restraint was impeccable, and his muscles loosened the same time his gaze weakened, as if defeated by the situation. “I didn’t have a choice.”

“You always have a choice to do the right thing.”

“Don’t—” he slammed his fists down the table as he stood up. “—act like you’re some sort of saint, okay? You’re not the only one who’s struggling here. In fact, I lost all my dreams the moment you came!”

“Did you think I wanted this to happen? Did you think I wanted to be here?”

“Quite frankly, you did! You were so stuck on this fantasy of yours that you and I would fall in love, and what? Have children and live happily ever after? Life isn’t perfect, Mari, and I’m not your prince! Just because you saw how ugly the world can be, doesn’t mean you get to ruin my life!”

“I’m divorcing you!” a vein in her neck bulged at the intensity of her voice, and Mari was sure her face had gone red. Chanyeol went silent for a moment by her outburst, while her nostrils flared with every word she spoke. “I’m divorcing you once I uncover my past. You’ll never have to see me again because I’ll vanish like I never even existed. Does that make you happy now?”

Chanyeol pushed his papers aside as he stalked her way. Mari watched as his footsteps thundered until he got closer, but no longer did she feel intimidated by his ferocious gaze and towering frame, not even when he huffed, “You can’t divorce me. Do you know how bad that’s going to look on the tabloids? We’re going out there as the couple of the century and then you’re divorcing me just like that?” He ran his hands through his hair as he let out a dry chuckle. “How selfish can you be? That’s going to ruin my company’s reputation.”

“It’s what will keep you safe.”

“No, I’m the one keeping you safe,” he pointed to her. “Don’t you get it already? There are people who want you dead! Your parents wanted us to get married for your safety, and in exchange you said you’re going to help me.”

“You made it clear you don’t want me here and you’re more than fine on your own. Now I’m offering a divorce so both of us can get our freedom, and you’re refusing?”

“Because what’s the point,” he scoffed, gesturing to the empty and cold penthouse around them. It was supposed to be their home, but they didn’t have anything that symbolized their relationship—not that they had one in the first place—and the place felt more like a prison than anything else. “It’s all over anyway. Evelyn doesn’t want to marry me unless I cancel our wedding—”

“Then marry her when we get divorced. I don’t care.”

Chanyeol took a step back. “You don’t care?”

“Why should I?” she rolled her eyes. “I’m not the one making a grave mistake here. Be with who you want to be—I don’t care. But unless I’m not done with you, you’re going to keep pretending to be mine.”

Chanyeol growled, the sound threatening and deep from his throat. He raised his arms up in the air before they rested beside his hips, his anger barely restrained. His fists shook beside him as he resisted the urge to just rip her apart. “Why don’t you just leave? Why can’t you just disappear and go back where you came from before you had to ruin everything for me? Why do you have to take everything I ever wanted and ruin my life just because people want you dead! You should’ve died that night instead of your Mother!” His eyes widened with fear, then guilt, and he took a step towards her as he realized his words. “Mari, I didn’t mean—”

“You’re right. I should’ve died,” she stepped away from him, and much to his surprise, she only showed him a sinister smirk. “I ruin everyone’s lives, don’t I?”

“I didn’t mean it. I’m so sorry.”

“No, I get it, you’re right. I should’ve died—but I didn’t, and not even you can take me down,” she snarled, then shook her head. “I ruined your life, huh? Well, Chanyeol, unless you don’t keep your act in line, I can’t guarantee I won’t do the same to others.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Let’s get this marriage over with. Let’s fool the world while I uncover the secrets of my past, and I’ll help your company rise to power. But until then—” she threateningly poked his chest. “—You’re not going anywhere. So, dear fiance, if you want me out of your hair as soon as possible, I suggest you endure me ruining your life for a few more months and break up with your girlfriend.”

“I am never doing that.”

“I warned you not to make me your enemy,” she raised a brow when Chanyeol opened his mouth to speak. He looked conflicted, but shut his mouth anyway. “Have I not made myself clear? Do you really want me to go against you?”

She saw his jaw tighten. “You need me as much as I need you.”

“True, but that doesn’t mean I can’t exercise more of my power,” she let out in one breath. Mari’s blood heated until she felt her heart beating on the tip of her tongue, the tips of her finger growing cold. She’d never felt this way before, to wield such dominance in her hands. Mari wasn’t sure if she liked it, but kept her stance strong anyway. “I only need your protection, Chanyeol, but you need my power. If you don’t do your job right, I won’t keep my end of the deal.”

Chanyeol looked appalled. “I always knew you were manipulative, but I didn’t think you’d be like this,” he shook his head to himself, “You’re not the same person anymore, Mari. You’ve changed.”

“No, I’ve simply run out of choices, and what’s a woman got to do when her people aren’t in line?” Chanyeol stared back at her in confusion. “She reminds people who’s in control and warns them of the consequences when they don’t listen,” she snapped, raising her head at him. “Do you want me to do that? Do you want me to show you?”

“I don’t care what you say. Evelyn is my girlfriend, and my marriage to you won’t mean anything.”

“I never asked for it to mean anything, but Chanyeol…” she sighed and closed her eyes. She should’ve known he wasn’t going to let go of her that easily, but that only meant she was left with no choice. She didn’t want to do any of it—she didn’t like Evelyn, but even Mari was aware of the graveness of her actions. It would hurt both of them, but Mari didn’t have a choice. Right now, she could only pray he’d be able to handle this, and she gazed back up at him sadly. “...I’m really disappointed in you. If only you’ve listened, then none of this would’ve happened.”

“Mari,” Chanyeol called out when she walked to her room. “Mari, wait!”

She paused at the door, her body already inside the room. Chanyeol looked back at her with the darkness of the hallway covering his features. Even though Mari couldn’t see his desperation, she felt it rolling off of him in waves. Mari forced a smile his way. “Good night, Chanyeol. I’ll see you at work tomorrow,” she mumbled before closing the door. Below the door line, Mari could faintly see his silhouette before he walked away with silent footsteps, and once sure he was out of hearing, Mari dialled her phone. “Hello, Jongdae?”

He picked up on the first ring, sounding taken aback. “Ma’am. Good evening.”

“Am I interrupting something?”

“It’s nothing, Ma’am. I was just feeding my baby girl.”

“I see. Well, how’s the press?” She fiddled with her collar as she heard Jongdae scooping something from the other line. It sounded like metal clanking against metal followed by the murmur of a woman—probably his wife—before Jongdae heaved.

“They’re all just waiting for your go signal, Ma’am.”

“Broadcast it.” There was no room for argument in her tone. Today would be the day she’d show the slightest shred of mercy, but tomorrow? Tomorrow they’d see what she could do. Her heart clenched uncomfortably at the thought of the aftermath of what she was about to do, but Mari assured herself this was for the best. She had to do everything to keep those close to her safe.

“Noted, Ma’am,” she could hear the frown in his voice. “But are you sure about this? Everyone’s going to talk about this.”

“That’s the point. Let them talk.” Mari may not have been a native Korean, but she knew enough about them that their cancel culture was something you shouldn’t underestimate. Once backed up with evidence and the news hitting all the right people—taking Evelyn Wang down would be as easy as breathing.

“Okay, Ma’am. I’ll make it happen.”

***

Chanyeol cursed to himself when the ink on his pen spilt. It stained his hands then a splotch on his pants. It was a good thing he wore black slacks today, otherwise it would’ve been a mess. He picked up a tissue from the other end of the table as he pushed his papers away to avoid further damage when the TV playing a random commercial buzzed with a news flash.

The reporter greeted him with a stoic face, although her eyes said otherwise. Chanyeol’s line of sight travelled from her face to the portrait of a beautiful woman on the other side of the screen. Chanyeol’s heart fell.

“Breaking news. An anonymous source has reported over some scandalous events of the internationally adored South Korean model, Evelyn Wang,” a trimmed footage of Evelyn walking the runway in exquisite makeup played in the background. “At age 28, Wang has already walked three runways in the span of a month due to high demand. Known as the Angel of Prime, Princess of Vogue, face of multiple fashion brands worldwide and even the ambassador of the Woman of the Future movement, the shock of Wang’s scandal blew up the internet last night,” another video played, but the one holding the camera seemed to be hiding behind a wall as the footage was tilted and shaky.

Chaneyol took a deep breath at the way Evelyn was shouting and poking her finger in a smaller woman’s shoulder. “As you can see from this footage taken by backstage crew, Wang shows aggressive and degrading behavior to her makeup artist, who is now in the line with us under the alias Olivia. Olivia, what can you say about Miss Wang’s mistreatment of you?”

‘Olivia’s’ voice crackled through the phone. “Miss Wang hadn’t always been this way, but the moment she rose to fame after being the face of Prime’s first issue, she hasn’t been the same,” she said. “The fame got to her and she became arrogant. In that video, she sneezed and I accidentally smudged her eyeliner, but she was already on call for the runway. It would take time to fix everything and she blames me for everything. I apologized even though it wasn’t my fault, then she dumped boiling hot tea on me.”

“Boiling hot tea?” the reporter scowled, while her co-worker beside her paled. “That’s atrocious. Miss Wang was always shown to be so sweet to her fans and her colleagues. Are you sure she wasn’t just distressed at that time?”

Olivia scoffed. “Her distress shouldn’t be an excuse. I received burns and she refused to pay for my treatment. If anything, she lied to my boss how I purposefully ruined her makeup so she can’t walk on the runway, and they had me blacklisted. It’s been six months ever since and I’ve been jobless, all because of her.”

“And she never apologized?”

“No, she didn’t. She said poor, insignificant people like me don’t even matter.”

From the table, Chanyeol’s phone angrily vibrated, but he ignored it, his eyes glued to the screen. “It’s very disappointing to know her true colors. Thank you so much for your time, Olivia. We’re hoping you can find a job soon. Is there anything else you’d like to say, either to Miss Wang’s supporters or Miss Wang herself?”

There was a pause. “I was initially afraid of this phone call because I know Miss Wang is capable of spreading fake rumors to further ruin my career, but I got a call from a journalist who promised justice for her mistreatment. Not only to me, but her other colleagues as well. I’m not the only victim to Wang’s attitude. And to all her supporters, let me tell you she doesn’t even appreciate you that much. If anything, she gets mad when she posts a photo and she doesn’t go trending, even going as far as calling