Apollo’s Heart

Chapter 126 – Abducted (1)

The bartender glanced at a corner seat when Jae-won arrived at the bar. Sprawled on the table, an empty bottle serving as her pillow was Si-yeon.

Jae-won carefully shook the girl. “Hey, Si-yeon Yoon, wake up!”

The bleary faced beauty raised her body, eyed the man with tipsy eyes, then bluntly shot out in an irritated voice. “Why are you here?”

Jae-won was taken aback by the question. “You said to come.”

“When did you start listening to me so well? You traitor!”

Jae-won jumped at her words. “Why am I a traitor?”

“You, you knew that Ms. Yuri Han was your cousin’s woman. Actually, not even going that far, you knew that he was meeting a woman after our engagement. You avoided my calls using your New York business trip as an excuse after knowing that, right? Since when did you know?” She roared.

Si-yeon seemed to have seen through things, and Jae-won could not get out of this mess easily since he and she had been with each other, for better or worse, since childhood. He made excuses as he sat in the next chair.

“It hasn’t been that long. I really only found out by coincidence.”

“Why didn’t you say anything after knowing? Were you going to tell me only after I got married?”

“You wouldn’t get married anyway. It was supposed to blow up sooner than later. I wanted Tae-jun to reveal it himself. I just didn’t expect you to be faster. How did you know?”

“I investigated Tae-jun after noticing some things.”

“You can do that now? You grew up, Si-yeon.” Jae-won chuckled.

Jae-won made to stroke her head but Si-yeon turned away. He sighed while she raised her hand towards the counter.

“Give me another bottle.”

“Is it all right?” The bartender looked at Jae-won, the lady was as it is piss drunk.

Jae-won simply nodded in reply. Now, he too was desperate for a drink. As he opened the bottle of whiskey the bartender had brought them, he asked, “Did you like Tae-jun?”

“Of course not! My mother liked him though, she even told me that the best thing I did with my life was getting engaged to Tae-jun.”

“She must have been disappointed when the engagement was called off.”

“It’s far more than that. She went out saying she would argue with the Chairman and only came back when she heard that he had fainted. It’s chaos.”

Si-yeon took Jae-won’s glass and gulped down the contents. She must have fought with her mother. Most of her problems during her teenage years had to do with her mother. Her father recognized his daughter’s capability, saying that one smart daughter was better than two stupid sons. However, to her mother, she always lacked something and would incessantly pester her to find a ‘perfect’ spouse. The reason she had refused all hands of marriage that came from all over was because of her mother.

Si-yeon spoke quickly after emptying the glass. “Is this right? I know Tae-jun is outstanding, but what do I lack? My background, my schooling, my looks…well, I don’t have a gold medal. However, Tae-jun’s the one who did me wrong, so why pick on me?”

“Was she that angry with you?” Jae-won asked, referring to her mother.

“I thought she would be angry at Tae-jun, but she blamed me, saying how could a girl not endure when a man’s affair lasted only for a while. Isn’t this funny? How could a woman who suffered from her husband’s affairs force her daughter to go through the same hell? Is the Daejin Group more important than her daughter’s happiness?”

Tears trickled down the beautiful eyes, as her tone rose. All along, Jae-won had been gazing at her with a stiff face. He soon reached into his pocket and brought out a handkerchief. However, at the sight of the little piece of cloth, Si-yeon began to wail loudly.

He gingerly looked around the bar. Fortunately, it was near closing time, so there were no other customers. Eventually, he, who couldn’t even have a drop of alcohol, handed his credit card to the bartender.

“Let’s go, it’s closing time.” Jae-won urged her.

“— You’re the worst.” She slurred.

What’s this now?!

Jae-won immediately turned defensive. “What did I do wrong? I came here to listen to your drunken rants. How better a friend can I be?”

“I don’t know. I hate you for keeping a secret from me more than my mother or Tae-jun.”

Keeping secrets? What, are we elementary school kids?

While Jae-won wanted to retort, he had nothing to say when he saw her wet eyes. It had always been like this. Had she been his girlfriend, he would have consoled and coaxed her with sweet words. However, when the Si-yeon who had been smiling and playing would cry, he could not do anything. He did not know what to do, not then not now. He was just that helpless. He sighed and patted her.

“Yes, I’m a bad person. I admit that, so stop crying now, will you?”