Chapter 44

EP.44 Amplification of Betrayal #2

@@

Sehwa, who was walking down the street, called Seunghyun.

After a few rings, her boyfriend answered the phone.

– Sehwa. Hi?

It was the kind of calm voice that would have soothed her heart in the past.

But now, Sehwa hated that boring voice.

“Are you working?”

– Yeah.

“Come out. I’m almost at the hotel.”

– Huh? Now? You’re back from Jeju?

“Yeah. Is that a problem?”

– No, I’ll be right out.

“I’ll be sitting on the bench near the hotel entrance, so come there.”

Sehwa spoke almost as if she was giving a notice, and as soon as Seunghyun said he understood, she hung up.

After sitting on the bench and waiting for about 3 minutes, Sehwa saw Seunghyun rushing out and scanned his entire body.

His hair was poorly cut, and his suit looked like it hadn’t been washed in ages.

The tie was neatly tied, but the design didn’t match the suit at all.

His shoes had some dried liquid stains, whether it was a drink or alcohol.

Completely different from the always dandy Jihyuk.

She couldn’t help but sigh.

Seunghyun used to be so neat, why has he changed so much… She suddenly felt a surge of irritation.

Maybe it was because she had been living in Jihyuk’s clean house every day.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Sehwa greeted Seunghyun with an indifferent expression as he approached.

“Hi?”

Seunghyun smiled brightly and greeted her back.

“Hi. Did you have fun in Jeju?”

“Sort of. Do you have time?”

“Plenty. Should we go to a café?”

Sehwa hesitated before answering.

She felt a bit embarrassed to be seen with Seunghyun, who had gained weight and was dressed like that.

She said,

“Let’s just talk in your room. Are you still using the hotel room?”

– Yeah. Should we go in then?

Sehwa silently got up from her seat.

After going up to the top floor with Seunghyun, she cautiously stepped inside when he gestured for her to enter first.

Once inside, Sehwa couldn’t help but frown.

A musty smell filled the room.

The bed was clean, but the room itself smelled off.

The smell of cigarettes from the guests and hostesses that had seeped into Seunghyun’s suit mixed with the room’s odor, creating a foul stench.

Sehwa sighed inwardly and was about to sit on the bed but changed her mind and sat on a chair by the small coffee table instead.

Seunghyun then asked,

“Should I make some coffee?”

“No, it’s fine. You sit down too.”

At her cold tone, Seunghyun gulped and sat across from her.

Sehwa bluntly asked,

“Do you know what you did wrong?”

“To be honest, I have no idea. But I do know one thing. If you, who never laid a hand on me before, hit me, then I must have done something incredibly shameful. Tell me what it was, and I’ll deeply reflect on it.”

Sehwa sensed sincerity in Seunghyun’s words.

For a moment, she saw the honest and upright boyfriend she used to know, and her expression softened a bit.

“…. What you said that day… When you were drunk, you loudly asked me to transform into Leona. You said you wanted to see that.”

Seunghyun’s face was filled with shock.

Among all the wrong things he could have said, this was the worst, and he couldn’t believe he had said it.

After being stunned for a while, Seunghyun slapped his forehead with a loud smack.

“I was really pathetic…”

“Yeah, you were.”

“I know how important that is to you, yet I blurted out something like that. It’s no wonder you’re so angry. I’m really sorry.”

“…..”

“I’m going to quit drinking from now on. I promise.”

“Are you serious…?”

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I realized it right after you slapped me and told me not to contact you for a while. I’ve been living too carelessly. I hate making you sad or angry more than anything.”

Sehwa’s expression softened a bit more.

Seeing this, Seunghyun continued,

“I’m also sorry for only talking about myself during the few times we met after a long time, when we were supposed to open up to each other. It’s all my fault.”

Sehwa nodded.

“Right. It’s your fault. But… since you seem to be sincerely reflecting… I’ll accept your apology.”

“Thank you so much.”

Seunghyun’s face brightened like the midday sun.

Sehwa said,

“Make sure to keep your promise.”

“I swear. I won’t touch alcohol ever again.”

“Haah… I should get going now.”

“Ah, if it’s okay, could you wait here for a bit? Just about 5 minutes… I have something I want to give you.”

“…. Alright.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Seunghyun got up and almost kicked the door open as he rushed out of the room.

Seeing this, a faint smile appeared on Sehwa’s lips.

She swayed back and forth while looking around the room and then noticed Seunghyun’s phone on the bed.

A phone covered in fingerprints.

Seeing it made her frown again.

She considered opening a window to air out the room but then had a sudden thought.

‘Should I take a look…?’

While being with Seunghyun, she had been curious about what was on his phone.

They had never checked each other’s phones before, respecting each other’s privacy.

Thinking about it, she and Seunghyun had a beautiful love.

Now it felt naive.

What could be on Seunghyun’s phone, who only had eyes for her?

Were there any girls’ numbers? He was quite popular in school, so there must be some girls he kept in touch with, right?

Sehwa’s curiosity made her unconsciously lift her butt.

She couldn’t wipe off the fingerprints without it being obvious… but holding it like this was unpleasant.

Sehwa used her nail to press the home button on the phone.

The phone immediately turned on. Sehwa was startled.

‘It’s not locked?’

Sehwa looked around.

Even though she knew no one was in the hotel room, she felt guilty.

Ignoring her pounding heart, she started exploring Seunghyun’s phone.

The wallpaper had a photo of her and Seunghyun, which looked terrible.

She realized how plain she used to look.

Looking at the call history, there were many girls’ names.

But they were all prefixed with [Perfume], indicating they were hostesses from entertainment establishments.

There was nothing interesting in the messages either. Too bland.

Just as Sehwa was about to press the power button, she noticed a Twinkle app in the menu.

‘Did he start using Twinkle?’

Seunghyun never used Twinkle before.

Thinking he might have written some weird love poem about her, Sehwa tapped the app.

Since the app wasn’t fully closed, the Twinkle Seunghyun was viewing appeared on the screen.

And…

“Huh?”

Her eyes widened.

[Morning and Evening]

[Early 20s, 165cm, 184cm]

[Beginner Twinkler/Deviance/Couple/Post when bored/DMs and retweets blocked/No offline meetings.]

[0 Following, 137,291 Followers] [Currently Following]

Seunghyun’s Twinkle had her and Jihyuk’s account on it.

He was even following them.

Gulp!

Sehwa unconsciously swallowed hard and with trembling hands, pressed the home button to close the app, then pressed the power button to turn off the screen.

Even in her shock, she meticulously checked the phone’s position.

Breathing heavily, Sehwa sat on the chair and shook her head several times.

Could it be… could it be that he watched the videos?

Since he was following them on Twinkle, he must have seen them.

Even recently. The app wasn’t fully closed, so she knew.

Her heart pounded, and a wave of discomfort spread throughout her body.

Her whole body trembled.

Feeling immense shame, she placed her hand on her chest.

“Hoo… hoo…”

Taking deep breaths, she spent 5 minutes adjusting her clothes, and then Seunghyun opened the door and came in.

“Sorry, was I late?”

“Huh? Oh, no…”

“What’s wrong? Your face is all red…”

“Ah… it’s just a bit stuffy in here…”

“Yeah, the room is small. Let’s head back soon and rest. Here, take this.”

Seunghyun handed her a fairly large box.

Inside were all sorts of chocolates and candies.

As Sehwa absentmindedly took it, Seunghyun continued,

“These are for the guests, but I saved the leftovers and picked out the tasty ones for you. Have some when you’re bored.”

“Ah… thanks. I’ll enjoy them. I… I should get going now? Work hard.”

“Okay. Be careful on your way back. Contact me when you’re free. And thanks for not taking off the ring. I’ll work hard to be a boyfriend who suits you.”

Sehwa flinched.

The ring with the engraving [Jihyuk’s Slave, Sehwa].

This, combined with the Twinkle incident, amplified her sense of betrayal.

“I’m going.”

Sehwa answered curtly with her back to Seunghyun and quickly opened the door to leave.

Trying to act nonchalant, she took the elevator, exchanged glances with the lobby staff, and once outside, let out the sigh she had been holding in.

“Puhah…”

Seunghyun had seen the video of her moaning intensely with Jihyuk, passionately giving him a handjob.

The shock was overwhelming. Her head was spinning.

‘Does he think it’s me…’

No, that’s not it.

The Seunghyun she knew would have confronted her directly if something like that happened.

He would have asked if she was being blackmailed.

Besides, if he knew his girlfriend was with another man, he wouldn’t just apologize so meekly.

Sehwa thought of Jihyuk.

Always cool, her second… no, her first boyfriend.

Her mind and body calmed down, and the shame turned into excitement, bringing a pleasant shiver.

Her lower body tingled, and her body twisted.

She needed to tell Jihyuk what happened today.

How would he react?

She didn’t know, but he would probably be very pleased.

Sehwa tapped her flushed cheeks with her fingers and walked away.

@@

‘I didn’t expect this.’

I smiled as I leisurely watched Seunghyun from the sofa.

I never dreamed that Sehwa would open Twinkle on Seunghyun’s phone.

I thought they would just reconcile… an unexpected harvest.

Seunghyun made the best choice.

He bragged about paying off his debts but held back and apologized, which was the best move.

Not saying things like “Will you forgive me?” or “I’ll walk you out” was also good.

Asking her to contact him when she’s free instead of saying “I’ll contact you” was also well done.

Through this, he held onto the scales and managed to rise again.

He didn’t fall into the abyss. Sehwa still likes Seunghyun.

Getting this result under such bad conditions is quite an achievement.

Ding dong! 25th floor.

The elevator sound echoed in the hallway.

I turned on the news, drank beer, and acted relaxed.

Beep! Clunk!

Sehwa swiped her card and opened the door, giving me a suggestive smile.

“I’m back.”

“Hey. I made up with him.”

“Good job.”

“I’ll shower first. I went into Seunghyun’s room, and since then, I feel like there’s a weird smell stuck in my nose. It’s dirty and gross.”

“Doesn’t he air out his room?”

“Exactly. I’ll wash up quickly.”

I responded with a bright smile.

Now, Sehwa has broken free from her calm relationship with Seunghyun and craves big thrills.

After doing exciting things with me, she started seeing Seunghyun as boring and now sees me as an interesting and new person.

She truly, deeply loves me.

Everything I do gives her pleasure.

At first, she thought of me as an occasional soda that wouldn’t harm her body, but now she’s at the point where she feels like she’ll go crazy if she doesn’t have a lot of me every day.

This intensity will only increase over time.

Think of it as a drug.

At first, a small dose gives pleasure, but as tolerance builds, you need more to get the same feeling.

Sehwa is the user, and I am the drug.

A highly addictive drug.

As mentioned, Seunghyun did well.

But that’s it. He can’t do anything.

From the moment Seunghyun kept apologizing and Sehwa saw Twinkle, she finalized the hierarchy and marked him as beneath her.

Now, Sehwa will use Seunghyun without any guilt, for me and to satisfy her own pleasure.

Seunghyun, it’s already too late.

I’ll give you Yuria soon, so don’t worry too much.

Ah, you probably think you had a sweet reconciliation with Sehwa, so when Yuria tempts you, you’ll be deeply conflicted.

I’ll make good use of you as a toy.

Sorry. And thank you.

To be continued―――――――――――――――――――――

---