“Angie!”
Yujin shouted, his face going pale, but the child’s reaction was completely unexpected. Laughing and kicking her legs, his daughter looked so carefree that he could only stare blankly, stunned.
What’s going on?
Lying comfortably in a long lounge chair, Yujin unconsciously furrowed his brow. What on earth had happened? Winston and Angela’s relationship had grown much closer than before. How did they manage to soften the child while he was away?
It had only been a few days.
Or maybe it had started even earlier? Now that he thought about it, there had definitely been signs. At some point, Angela stopped being afraid of Winston. But to become this close... what kind of magic did he work?
Even though he showed no interest in my own child.
Yujin felt a sudden surge of frustration but quickly calmed himself down. It was probably just temporary. That man was merely being capricious.
He didn’t even understand why he insisted on being discharged in the first place, but Yujin gave up. Was there anything about that man he could understand? Better to just give up.
...But.
Furrowing his brow again, Yujin watched the scene before him. For the past hour, he had been half-reclined, watching models walking back and forth. Flanked by large bodyguards on both sides, the situation was so tight that anyone attempting to harm him wouldn’t dare try.
Since arriving at this mansion, it had been like this nonstop. Yujin was only alone when using the bathroom. Winston acted as if someone might attack him at any moment, fussing over him excessively.
“That won’t happen again.”
Unable to hold back, Yujin said sharply, but Winston just smirked and twisted the corner of his mouth, as if to say “What do you know?” Despite his anger, Yujin could do nothing.
What was most frustrating was how much Angela was enjoying herself. Every morning, she went somewhere to play. After hearing she’d started talking, Yujin somewhat understood, but still felt a pang of disappointment. When she returned in the afternoon, Angela would babble nonstop about how cute she sounded and how well she communicated. Although it was good that the child was happy, Yujin felt utterly bewildered.
Would she end up hating me when we leave here?
Everything here was an illusion. How was he supposed to explain that to Angela? Just thinking about her disappointment made his heart ache.
“Don’t try to buy the child’s affection with money.”
Finally, Yujin turned his frustration toward Winston. He was the adult, the only person controlling this situation. Winston responded shamelessly to Yujin’s heavily dissatisfied words.
“What’s wrong with using what I have?”
Yujin was momentarily speechless. Then, stammering a bit, he resumed the attack.
“We’re just contract partners. Eventually, we’ll break up — what about the shock Angela will suffer then?”
He pointed out reality coldly, but Winston just looked at him impassively. What was that reaction? Nervous inside, Yujin watched as Winston finally spoke.
“That’s for later. Enjoy the present, darling.”
“Hah.”
Yujin was dumbfounded and let out a short sigh. Enjoy the present? Did that really come from him?
But Winston was indeed enjoying the moment more than anyone else. Evidence: Winston sat beside Yujin with a serious face, watching the models walk by and occasionally nodding. The models would then quickly approach, showing off their jewelry or slowly turning to reveal the lines of their clothes.
“How’s this outfit?”
Angela herself modeled the baby clothes. Having already changed into her fifth outfit, she skipped over and spun around in front of Yujin. His vigilance melted, and a smile broke across his face.
“You’re cute, Angie. Definitely my daughter.”
Opening his arms wide, the child immediately crawled into his embrace. Yujin hugged her tightly with a beaming smile, then suddenly sobered up. Glancing sideways, he saw Winston watching them—his mouth curved up softly, absurdly calm.
“I’ll try on the next outfit!”
After Angela kissed Yujin’s cheek with a quick peck, she pulled away and ran off again. The child’s energy seemed endless. Left alone again, Yujin let out a short sigh, and only then did Winston speak.
“Pick out baby clothes, too.”
“Again?”
Yujin blurted out without meaning to, then hurriedly closed his mouth. They had already bought enough clothes to fill a whole room for a baby who didn’t even exist yet. And now more?
“That’s enough. The baby won’t wear most of them anyway... babies grow fast.”
Winston gave no particular reaction and simply replied,
“You’re probably right. You’d know better than me.”
Yujin stared Winston down intently. Noticing the gaze, Winston frowned and asked,
“What’s wrong?”
Still suspicious, Yujin asked back,
“Who are you?”
Seeing Winston’s frown deepen, Yujin continued.
“The Winston Campbell I know isn’t like this. He’d have mocked me more than ten times /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ already. Are you putting on some kind of show I don’t know about? What’s your game?”
As he spoke, the bodyguards quietly disappeared, as if to give the couple privacy for their private conversation.
By the time Yujin finished, no one was left. The large hall suddenly felt eerily empty. Winston sat with his legs spread, elbows resting on his knees, staring at Yujin. The wrinkles between his brows had disappeared, but his face had become expressionless, making it hard to read his thoughts. Watching warily, Yujin was suddenly surprised when Winston stretched out a hand. Startled, he shrank his shoulders, but Winston froze his hand in midair, then slowly lowered it. Pulling the blanket hanging down, Winston wrapped it around Yujin’s shoulders and said,
“Aren’t you cold? Should I turn up the heat?”
No matter how much the heater was on inside the huge mansion, the cold still lingered. But this mansion was different. The floors were warm everywhere, comfortable enough to walk barefoot. Was this the reason they came here instead of Delight? Yujin thought so.
“...I’m okay.”
He reluctantly replied. What mattered more was that Winston was avoiding the topic again. Just as Yujin tried to change the subject, Winston spoke first.
“Buy whatever you need. My child deserves that right.”
Those words made Yujin’s chest ache. Angela had received nothing. Worse, the child who almost died inside Yujin’s belly was being spoiled like royalty.
Even though Angela was truly this man’s child.
Feeling unfair and tight-hearted, Yujin’s eyes filled with tears. Despite the piles of baby items in front of him, he felt no attraction to them. Irritated, he rubbed his eyes and grumbled,
“I won’t give to the other child what Angie didn’t get.”
Since the other child didn’t even exist, there was no chance he cared about it. Winston answered casually to Yujin’s angry tone.
“Angie will get everything from now on, including what she missed before.”
Maybe Winston thought that made up for it, but Yujin thought otherwise. Things you miss in that time never come back.
No matter what he said, it wouldn’t get through.
Yujin shut his mouth, no longer speaking. Thinking the conversation was over, Winston took out his phone and called the bodyguards. Soon the crowd returned, and the tedious shopping continued. Feeling his energy drain quickly, Yujin fell asleep.
After laying Yujin on the bed, Winston went to the next room. There, Angela was trying on the new clothes she’d just bought, admiring herself in the mirror. Seeing Angela hopping around between the towering piles of stuff, Winston’s lips naturally curved into a smile.
He thought, Is this what it feels like to be helpless before your own children? and approached the child.
“Do you like the gifts?”
“Yes!”
The child shouted happily, hugging a large new doll. Her flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes were just like Yujin’s. Overwhelmingly adorable, Winston couldn’t help but laugh.
“Thank you! It’s the first time I’ve gotten so many presents!”
Angela shouted excitedly. Still smiling, Winston said,
“You’ll get even more at Christmas.”
“Are you going to buy me gifts at Christmas too?”
Startled by the child’s question, Winston gently corrected her.
“There’s Santa. You have to ask Santa for presents.”
Until then, Winston was in a good mood, unaware of the answer to come. But Angela spoke in a tone much more serious and stiff than before.
“Santa only likes rich kids.”
