“Ah~ Seun-ssi~ long time no see!” Chae Yeonha ran up to Han Seun—who will probably become her daughter’s mother-in-law if things go alright—and hugged her. The woman also returned her hug, because it was basic courtesy. Sujin did not fail to notice the subtle disdain she had in her eyes, with a slight mix of arrogance of course. Yep, she did not want her as her mother-in-law anymore.

It was probably eight or nine years ago she saw this ajumma last time. Back then she looked like all the other old women including her mother, short hair—with curly perm hair to make her appear fashionable and… well, that was all. The current Han Seun in front of her though…

Her hair had gotten even more curlier, and Sujin could notice the use of branded hair color. Not to mention the Louis Vitton purse she had.

‘Oookay, now I am even more surprised as to why the talk is even happening. The old lady is clearly not okay with what is going on.’

‘Who knows. Let’s just see what happens.’

She saw her father shake his hands with her probable-father-in-law. She paid close attention to the man’s demeanor and attire, which was the complete opposite of his wife. His attire was quite… bland.

His eyes were extremely sharp though. And he seemed like the ideal example of what you would call a stoic person.

“Long time no see, Hangul-nim.” Her father, Lee Beomseok said.

“It’s good to see you again, Beomseok-nim,” The man, whose name probably was Seo Hangul, continued with a slight smile, “I am glad that we are finally able to unite our family. I promise that our family will take care of your daughter just like how your family took care of mine back then.”

‘Oh, so that’s how it is.’

‘...Fuck. When I heard about these kinds of stuff from Gurpreet, I found it quite off putting. Even if you feel grateful towards someone, or you want your friendship with someone to deepen, you should never force your children together like that just because of that! They are not commodities to pay back with! I thought this was Korea and we were in the 21st century! I do not expect stuff like this here, countryside or not!’

While Jason was clearly unhappy with the revelation, Sujin was having conflicting thoughts. On one side she agreed with Jason and was angry. On the other side…

Her pragmatic self—one that was born out of her continuous failures and struggles—was finding this as an opportunity. The guy had a stable job with high income, and with where he works, he would only gain more money and influence with time. Was this not a golden opportunity?

No need to think hard on this. Just think of all the money.

‘How shallow.’

‘Shut up. I’m doing this all for Doyoon.’

She decided to ignore whatever Jason was saying inside her head. She saw the young man affectionately patting the heads of her younger siblings. Hmm, he’s good with children. That was a plus.

Okay then—for now, her goal was to make a positive impression on everyone. What was the right action? The Seo family lived in a rural area, right? So maybe they would prefer a docile well-mannered girl? But the son—what was his name again? Ah, Seo Joojin. He attended the Seoul National University, right? What if studying there changed his outlook and now he preferred more… outgoing people?

Or should she just stay on the middle ground? Not too docile but not too outgoing either? Then adapt to the situation? Yeah, she should do that.

“Hello Uncle, Hello Aunty. ...H-Hello.” Polite with the parents and a little bashful with the soon-to-be husband. That should be fine, right?

The lady… what was her name again? Han Seun gave her a condescending look. Seo Hangul returned a satisfied nod. Okay, that was not so bad. Their son just smilingly returned hello. She had been in the industry for long enough to recognize a fake business smile. Fuck. How was she supposed to proceed now?

‘Try to impress the old man. He is the one who runs the house from what it seems. If that whole gratitude thing is true, then the son’s opinion does not hold that much importance anyway. And the lady is hopeless.’

‘So I should just decide to stay with a guy who holds no affection for me for the rest of my life?’

‘...For the rest of your life?! Bwahahahahhaha—’

‘Just shut up if you don’t have any good advice!’

Sujin just decided to ignore the annoying voice inside her head. 

“Why don’t we all take our seats and then we can continue our talk?” Seo Joojin escorted everyone to the table. She took a glance at her own parents, who seemed extremely content to see such a gentleman about to become their daughter’s husband.

Okay, so the real drama started now. Up till now, she had only seen dramatic scenes of mind games on the dinner table in K-dramas. Or maybe C-dramas. Why did her own life have to become so dramatic as well?

 

 

---

“So, Sujin, right?” Han Seun said her name with the same condescending tone, “what job did you have again?”

“It’s celebrity management, madam.” She replied calmly while calling all sorts of names inside her mind—some of them even scaring Jason.

“Could you guess who’s manager she is, Seun-ssi? It’s actually Min Seoyoung! Just imagine that! Hohoho~” Sujin ignored her mother’s casual boasting. Heck, it was not even because of her own merits!

Han Seun, however, did freeze for a few seconds. Sujin could see a lot of gears turning inside her head, but at the end, she returned back to her ‘holier than thou’ attitude. So what if she could get her Min Seoyoung’s autograph? Or maybe convince her to attend his son’s wedding which would allow her to one-up on her peers? His son dealt with ministers and business tycoons on a daily basis! (or at least, according to her)

“Humph. I heard you got the job after you failed to become a celebrity yourself?”

“...Yes.”

“Humph, good thing you didn’t. I’ve heard that many young girls there have to meet the demands of the producers and directors to get roles?” Sujin saw everyone (except Lee Doyoon) getting tense thanks to the hidden meanings implied by the lady as she continued, “I surely hope that you did not have to suffer a lot due to their unreasonable requests?”

Sujin just blankly stared at the lady’s face for a moment, trying her best not to throw the bowl of soup to her face. The lady just calmly sipped from her bowl of soup, completely ignoring the scowl of her husband.

‘Calm down Sujin, you already expected that one. Remember the drill.’

“...Yes, I’ve heard of incidents where the producers and directors make the girls work hard as you said. But people at LME… uh, the place where I work, are really considerate. They always refrain from making unreasonable demands to us. It is a big company after all, and is under constant attention. I mean, what if the journalists find out everything and report that the poor young girls are suffering from too much pressure?” Sujin calmly replied. She could also speak in italics, it was no big deal.

“Humph. I guess they do have a reputation to maintain.” The lady replied with a stiff face.

“They do. And if they actually had made me work hard, then I would have already been successful, right aunty?” Sujin ignored the murderous glare from the lady and continued eating from her soup bowl. She took a little moment to observe the other’s reactions. Her own family members (except Doyoon) were staring at her dumbfoundedly. Yes, your daughter grew up.

Seo Hangul looked expressionless as usual, but Sujin—or rather, Jason could see that he was a little impressed. A daughter-in-law who could calmly handle any conversation thrown at her—it was a positive thing. What about the soon-to-be-husband then?

He was visibly amused, with his eyebrows raised. Did that mean she earned some plus points? Sujin did not know. Well, so much for being bashful.

Seo Joojin coughed and brought everyone’s attention to him.

“I can say that the LME is quite considerate towards its trainees. One of the relatives of my superiors is a board member there. I have heard a lot of praise about it from him,” he added on to Sujin’s support, “I can say that Miss Sujin is lucky to work in such a good environment.”

Okay, he earned some plus points as well. Maybe she would be a little less reluctant about the blowjobs in the future.

‘Wow, just look at the virgin brag—’

“Really? May I learn of his name?” Sujin asked him.

“His name was Kim Hantae. I guess you know about him?” Seo Joojin replied.

“Oh, it’s him,” Sujin recognized that name. That guy was famous for trying to shove his own personal acquaintances into various roles and positions, a perfect practitioner of nepotism. He would always get refuted by the CEO though, who was quite a man of principles. She could guess just what kind of praises Seo Joojin heard.

“Hmm… he must have been quite proud of the company then?” Sujin asked with a smirk. Seo Joojin just shrugged in return. Yeah, no kidding.

---

After the meal was over, both families suggested leaving the two alone to get to know each other. Sujin knew it was coming. She assumed that she had put a positive impression on the father, and the mother was… hopeless. She did not know anything about the other siblings as they were not able to come here. But the most important part was what this man, Seo Joojin, thought of her.

“Miss Sujin, do you prefer tea or coffee?”

“...Coffee.”

“With or without milk? What about sugar?”

“...Without both, please.”

Joojin called a nearby waiter and told him to bring both of them coffee—well, without milk or sugar for her and only with milk for him.

“Miss Sujin, before everything, I’d like to apologize to you on behalf of my mother. She can be a little… brash sometimes.”

“It’s not something you have to apologize for, Mr. Joojin.”

“Thank you,” he took a sip from his coffee, “although I must say that I am beyond impressed as to how you handled the situation. Neither me nor my father wished to sully the amiable relationship both of our families have.”

“I wouldn’t want it either,” Sujin also sipped from her cup of coffee. It was fortunate that both she and Jason had a preference for black coffee. Otherwise, this was something she would never compromise about, even if the world ended.

“You are quite an intelligent person, miss Sujin. Any man who will have you on his side will be a truly lucky man.”

“...Thank you.” Okay, it was a little embarrassing to receive praise from a man she was meeting for a marriage interview.

“Being a part of the entertainment industry, you usually have to deal with all sorts of people, right? I heard that you were in a coma after being injured by a crazy fan.”

“Yes, I kinda got hit in the head while protecting the celebrity I was in charge of.”

“Intelligent and brave. I must say that I am getting more and more impressed.”

“Gentlemanly and eloquent. I must say that I am getting more impressed as well.”

They both chuckled. Then the man suddenly stopped smiling and looked a little… guilty?

“...Miss Sujin.”

“...Yes?” Now what was this gloomy aura about?

“I don’t really know you that well, but from what I have seen so far, and from my own experience in dealing with all sorts of people—I can proclaim that you are an amazing lady,” the man continued without meeting her eyes, “it would have been my blessed luck to be wed with you, and I can say that I... would have been very proud to be able to introduce you as my wife and... lead a very happy and successful life with you...”

“...”

‘Is this just me or this guy is talking in the third conditional?’

‘...He is, just in my language. Oh God, please don’t tell me this is happening…’

“Miss Sujin, I… I have someone else I love and wish to be with.”

And the bomb dropped.

‘Sujin, leave the talking to me from here on.’

‘I’m fine—’

‘No you aren’t. Even if you have no romantic feelings for him, we all have our egos. Just leave everything to me if you don’t want to embarrass yourself in front of everyone and suffer from the cringe for years to come.’

Sujin was confident that she would be able to handle everything. She was fine! ...Okay, maybe she was feeling a little shitty. But it was not much! Just feeling a little bad for her parents who were quite optimistic. And maybe a little disappointed because she lost the chance to obtain a stable source of income and influence. And—

She decided to leave her body to Jason for now.

“Oooh. Who’s the lucky girl?” Seo Joojin felt a little relieved seeing the girl in front of her grinning. She did freeze for a second, but soon recovered. She was taking it quite well, unless she was a talented actress. Damn.

“It’s uh, my girlfriend.”

Jason raised his eyebrows. “Girlfriend? You have a girlfriend and you’re here sitting in on a marriage interview? You damn player!” He slightly hit Joojin’s shoulder, and then narrowed his eyes. “Please don’t tell me that you two had a quarrel and now you’re using this whole marriage thing as a way to make her feel anxious.”

“No, that’s not it,” he grimaced, “it’s just… my parents were happy about this... marriage.”

“Your mother doesn’t seem that happy to me though?” Jason retorted.

“She… uh, she eventually would have accepted things. And I couldn’t bring myself to hurt them.”

“So you decided to see another girl for marriage while already having a lover? Have you told her anything about this?”

“...No, I didn’t,” he said while looking downwards. Jason felt his eyebrow twitching, and so did Sujin.

“So? You’re going to end this talk, after bringing my parents here?” Sujin asked. The man in question grimaced, but then looked at her with guilt and resolve.

“Actually, uh... I was hoping that you would be the one to break the marriage talk.”

“...”

‘THIS MOTHERFU—’

“And why should I hurt my own parent’s feelings just because you cannot bring yourself to hurt yours?” Jason calmly asked.

“Because... because I’ll owe you a favor then,” he replied while staring right into his eyes, “I believe that you are an intelligent lady and you know how having a connection with me can benefit you.”

Both Jason and Sujin pondered over it for a moment. It could be extremely helpful to both of them in the future, but the problem is—

“Why should I trust that you would keep your word? You’re already a half-politician, after all. From what it seemed, your father seemed to hold some gratitude towards my family. Maybe I should prioritize becoming her daughter-in-law instead?” Jason amusedly said.

Joojin narrowed his eyes. “You do realize that you will never receive the love of your husband?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Maybe I don’t need your love? Maybe I’ll be able to trick you to slip one day and give me your seed? Your parents will be happy, right? Regardless of your lover, you are a man and I am a pretty lady and lawfully available to be fucked by you—”

“Y-YOU!” Joojin was dumbfounded to hear the vulgar words the girl in front of her used. Even Sujin was astonished for a moment.

‘J-Jason? What in the name of—’

‘Just shut up and watch.’

He continued, “also, there are many influential people out there who have a side-chick or two—”

“LEE SUJIN. DO. NOT. CROSS. YOUR. LIMITS.”

Jason expressionlessly stared at the menacing man in front of them. Maybe if Sujin was alone, she would have been really scared. But he was pissed at the man in front of him throwing his weight around, and so he decided to mess with him a little more. Sujin would understand.

“So you want your lover as your legal wife even though you cannot even bring yourself to mention her in front of your parents?”

Seo Joojin just kept glaring at her, but soon became puzzled as the girl in front of him just sipped her coffee.

“Your coffee’s getting cold, you know?”

“...What do you really want?” He asked. He knew the girl was just messing with him. A part of him was really impressed, but his heart was steadfast.

“What do I want? For now, show me a photo of her.”

“...Why?”

“Just curious about the lady you are so deeply in love with. Come on! I am about to get blasted by my own parents if I do what you said. Can’t I at least ask for this much?” Jason just shrugged his shoulders.

Joojin just stared at him for a moment. Then he brought out his smartphone and showed a photo of him and his lover.

“Here. Is that enough?”

“Oh! Lemme see… Whoa!”

Both Jason and Sujin were surprised to see the pretty girl that was hugging Joojin. She had long, wavy hair and a model-like face. But the most astonishing part was—

She was freaking tall! Almost as tall as Seo Joojin! Was she a supermodel or something? But then Sujin would have known her.

“Wow, she’s a true beauty. Your coffee is getting cold, you know?”

“Hm.” The man did start taking sips out of his mug cup again. Jason waited till Joojin was midway of drinking his coffee—

“So… if I marry you, will I get to have threesomes with her?”

Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!

Jason calmly sipped the coffee as Joojin spilled the coffee out of his mouth and kept coughing for more than 10 seconds and Sujin… just kept screaming at him.

After a whole minute, he finally stopped coughing. He wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and just incredulously looked at the girl in front of him.

“Y-You can’t be serious!”

“But I am though? Normally I would have accepted your offer, but… damn she’s hot,” Jason grinned, “if you don’t give me any affection as a husband, it's fine. I will get it from her instead.”

Sujin just dumbfoundedly stared at Seo Joojin as he just pointed a trembling finger at her with shock and disbelief in his eyes. The man worked in a ministry—however recent, and he might have faced a lot of difficult situations in such a short time. But this kind of situation? It was definitely a first.

“You… YOU…”

“Yes. I will not be breaking the marriage talk. I will agree to marrying you, get your parents on my side and...” Jason just grinned, making Joojin even more disturbed. He continued, “Well then… what will you do, Seo Joojin? Will you just let things happen as it is, or you will be ending this thing yourself?”

Joojin looked at the crazy girl resting her chin on both of her hands, slowly tracing her fingertip over the coffee cup in a circle. He immediately made his decision.

---

The Lee family returned back home on their second-hand car.

“I can’t believe it! Why did they even arrange this meeting without ever talking things out with their son!” Chae Yeonha was fuming.

“Let it go, honey,” Lee Beomseok tried to calm her down, “Hangul-nim has already apologized to us.”

“Ah~ My poor Sujin~ don’t feel sad, okay?! Next time, Mom and Dad will find a man who will be a hundred thousand times better than that fatso,” she said as she tried to console her daughter.

“It’s okay mom. I’m fine,” Sujin said, willinglydonning an extremely sad expression on her face. She continued, “Mom, can I go to my room? I think I need some time alone.”

“S-Sujin…” Her mother got all teary-eyed, looking at the sad visage of her daughter.

“And Mom, can I… get my laptop as well? I feel like watching some movies… to distract myself a little...” Sujin said with the saddest expression she could mutter.

“O-Of course my daughter! I will bring it to your room right now!”

Sujin watched her mother run into her room to get the laptop. While she was not completely happy about everything that had happened, and she strongly believed that Jason went way too overboard, what had happened had happened.

‘You will owe me a favor? Hah! There is one thing you should always remember, Sujin, and that is to never ever take any verbal agreement for granted. Especially from someone involved with politics. They eventually learn to lie as naturally as breathing.’

‘And what if he actually takes everything personally?’

‘That pussy boy? Nah, that chicken who could not even talk about his lover in front of his parents would never think that far. He even let go of the chance to have two beauties at the same time—well, one and a half beauties.’

‘...Oi.’

‘What? You are at most 50% compared to her. And he will also one day be grateful for the push we gave him. Someday, he will be able to use this experience in his own career as well—about how not to get agitated by whatever unexpected things a girl—or any person says.’

‘Well, at least Mom will finally let me use my laptop.’

‘Yeah. When life gives you lemons—’

‘—you might as well make lemonades out of them.’

They both chuckled inside, still maintaining the somber expression.

Now then, all the pointless things were over. It was time to concentrate on the real stuff.

 

It was time to make some games.