Prologue (2)

Lee Hyun was sitting in a cafe. His appearance greatly differed from how he had looked while standing in Bae Hyunsung's office.

It had been two months till then, and now he no longer looked homeless. 

He had cleaned himself up, shaved his beard, and worn clean clothes. His messy hair and his wrinkled clothes were nowhere to be seen.

However, he couldn’t hide his troubled heart. His cheeks looked a bit sunken.

But this made him look a bit like his younger self, so the women around him were glancing towards him from time to time.

Ring!

The bell rang as the door to the cafe opened. Lee Hyun looked towards the entrance, and his face brightened.

A woman had entered the store. She looked to have put on a bit of makeup, and she wore a fluttering white one-piece dress.

She had worn many jewelry items including earrings, necklaces, and rings embedded with many precious gems.

She looked like a big spender. Still, she looked beautiful. At a glance, she looked to be in her late 20s.

However, Lee Hyun knows that she was older than how she looked. 

Lee Hyun raised his hand to make himself known to her. The woman had her chin up high as she surveyed her surroundings.

She looked almost arrogant and snooty. She noticed Lee Hyun’s presence after some time.

Tap! Tap!

High heels rhythmically tapped the floor. She walked like a model, and most of the male customers kept glancing at her.

Some couples bickered with each other when their significant other was caught stealing glances.

However, she and Lee Hyun didn't pay attention to their surroundings. They were used to such reactions.

"You seem to have changed a lot."

Lee Hyun said as he looked at the branded clothes and jewellery that seemed to be newly bought. 

"I should say the same about you."

The woman sat down in front of him. Her familiar voice seemed particularly cold to Lee Hyun today. 

She put her branded handbag on the seat. Lee Hyun glanced at the logo on the handbag and asked.

"Why didn't you come to meet me in prison?"

Prison.

After beating up Bae Hyunsung, Lee Hyun was captured by the police and sent to jail.

Getting bail was hard because of the power Bae Hyunsung possessed. None of his so-called friends came to help him and he was alone.

After spending lots of money, he was finally able to get bail but he still spent two months in the prison. 

"I was busy."

"Huh? You were busy? What nonsense is that?"

Lee Hyun asked in a slightly pitched shaky voice. 

The woman in front of him was his wife. A former idol, Yoo Yijae.

They had met when Lee Hyun was producing one of her group's songs and they had instantly hit it off.

They had dated for four years before marrying.

Yoo Yijae had retired from the idol scene after their marriage. It was her own decision and Lee Hyun supported her with that. 

He had supported her throughout their marriage but now, she was saying that she was too busy to even meet her husband who was in prison. 

"I'm not saying nonsense. I'm just stating the truth."

"What were you busy with?"

"Of course, I was shopping and going around in the clubs."

Lee Hyun stayed silent when he heard that. 

He wondered where his wife got the money to buy luxurious clothing and accessories.

Although his wife was a former idol, she didn't have much money to buy luxurious things. He was the one who was supporting her expenditures. 

He would have gotten a message if she had withdrawn money from his account but there was nothing like that. 

"Where do you get the money from?"

"I'm dating a rich businessman currently."

Lee Hyun was dumbfounded when he heard that. He asked again just to confirm. 

"D-dating?"

"Yes, I'm cheating on you."

He felt flustered hearing the word 'cheating' straight from his wife's mouth. It was a great shock for him. 

His wife who he loved so much was cheating on him and she was even accepting that herself.

There can be only one reason for this…

"I want a divorce."

Lee Hyun wordlessly opened and closed his mouth when he heard that. He wanted to say many things. He wanted to shout but the words got struck in his throat. 

He felt that his mind was wavering like he had a few drinks but he was completely sober. 

"W-why are you doing this? Is it because I got kicked out from Top Entertainment? My career isn't over yet and I got some offers…"

"Even if you signed with other agencies, your music had already died."

Yoo Yijae interjected him and said. 

Those words seemed to have pierce his already stabbed heart.

Lee Hyun felt that the woman in front of him was not his sweet and caring wife but a devil in the skin of his wife. 

"I would again start making good music and I still have money."

He knew that his wife liked to buy expensive things. 

"For how long will that last? You have already used quite a sum trying to get bail."

Lee Hyun bit his tongue when he heard that.

His wife's every word was like an arrow and it was directly piercing through his body.

"Moreover, look at you, you look old now. You are not in shape and you don't even look handsome. I would rather be with a young guy."

45 years.

That was his current age. His wife was 39 but she still looked young whereas he looked even older than 45.

"Y-you can't do that. I love you. You can't just leave me like that."

Yoo Yijae sighed when she saw Lee Hyun's pleading. 

He was a man who had lost everything. His wife was the last straw. If he even lost her, then he didn't know what he would do. 

"I don't want to discuss more. I would send you the divorce papers."

His wife stood up from the seat after that.

Lee Hyun wanted to grab her but his whole body was freezed. It was even shaking and he could just watch his wife leave the cafe. 

From the window, Lee Hyun was able to see her getting into the car of a rich handsome guy. 

As soon as she sat on the front seat of the car, she leaned towards that guy and kissed her…

"Ahh…"

Lee Hyun closed his eyes seeing that.

He couldn't believe that he had fallen for such a shallow and materialistic whore in sheep's clothing. He had given her everything, and yet, this was how she decided to repay him?!

Overwhelming feelings of anger, remorse and disgust ate away at his mind and heart. 

It was said that 'There is a thin line between love and hate.'

This saying couldn't have been any more true. 

Lee Hyun hated her. 

He hated her with every fibre of his being.

As he continued to sit alone in the cafe, Lee Hyun's tears flowed endlessly.

* * *

Lee Hyun kept his head lowered as he walked across the streets. 

He was messed up and in his mind, he was continuously thinking about the events that had happened in the past two months. 

He was fired from his agency and his contact was terminated. His wife betrayed him and they were now getting divorced. 

The worst part was that he had lost his music.

He was not able to make good music. Lee Hyun doesn't know what the problem was. It was like his talent had reached a bottleneck. 

'Was it because I didn't fulfill my father's last wish? Is this karma because I was selfish?'

Those thoughts occupied his mind as he walked. At that moment, he noticed something. 

An Audi sped towards him.

Caught in its bright, dazzling headlights, Lee Hyun forgot to evade it.

The piercing, screeching noise of friction resounded as hasty deceleration fought against tarmac, the man and woman in the front passenger seat screaming in panic.

Lee Hyun felt himself fly into the air, the sensation of weightlessness momentarily overtaking him.

There was also the sensation of pain, but it persisted only for a fleeting moment.

After that, there was silence.