Actually, It’s a Messy Melodrama Chapter 8

“Haeshin.”

Sure enough, Youngmin, his face stiff, called Haeshin. Haeshin naturally turned to Youngmin and said,

“You don’t have to refuse on my account. It’s fine, so talk comfortably.”

“Thank you for understanding, Mr. Haeshin. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other because we’re both busy.”

Taejun quickly took the empty seat next to Youngmin before he could say anything else. It was a seat diagonally across from Haeshin. Taejun spoke again.

“Come to think of it, it’s been even longer since we’ve seen each other.”

He kept talking to Haeshin to gauge Jin Youngmin’s reaction. Youngmin’s face, the last time he saw him in the previous loop, was still vividly etched in Taejun’s memory.

His eyes, gleaming with obsession and madness, were certainly different from the Jin Youngmin that Han Taejun knew.

Was this loop’s Jin Youngmin the same or different? Did the choices he had made in the last loop, which he had considered unrelated to Jin Youngmin, truly affect his life? Taejun wanted to know these things.

“Yes. I don’t go out much…”

“How are you doing these days, hyung? Is work going well?”

Youngmin hastily interrupted Haeshin. His stomach churned, seeing Haeshin looking at Han Taejun and answering kindly. He had told him countless times how to behave in front of others, but it seemed his training was incomplete.

Could there really be something going on between them? Was he mocking him right now? Somehow, he had been suspicious ever since Taejun suddenly asked to have dinner with Haeshin. There had to be something going on between them.

But how? Haeshin hadn’t left the house for months. He always had him under surveillance, so it was impossible for him to sneak out without his knowledge.

He couldn’t even contact anyone without going through him, so how could they have gotten together? Could there be another accomplice besides the guy he fired recently?

All sorts of suspicions swelled in his mind, making his head feel like it would explode. What made Youngmin even more furious was the fact that even if all of this were true, he couldn’t just grab Han Taejun by the collar right here and now.

Taejun’s secretary, who also acted as his bodyguard, would be nearby, and above all, if he got on Taejun’s bad side, it would be difficult to deal with the aftermath. It wasn’t just Jin Youngmin’s problem, his entire family was involved, so he had to be careful.

“I’m always the same. Busy.”

“Even if you’re busy, take care of your health. The chairman will only be at ease if you’re healthy.”

And Cha Haeshin, listening to the meaningless exchange of pleasantries between the two, kept glancing at Han Taejun. No matter how much he thought about it, it was suspicious that he had deliberately joined them.

He knew that Taejun and Youngmin were relatively comfortable with each other, but they weren’t close enough to join each other’s tables like this. If they were that close, Haeshin would have asked Han Taejun for help long ago.

After meeting Han Taejun in the last loop, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the world was subtly shifting.

Haeshin forced another piece of meat into his mouth to stop himself from humming. Even though he might be beaten to death, or actually die, when he returned home today, he felt happy. He definitely wasn’t in his right mind.

“How are you, Mr. Haeshin? Is Youngmin treating you well?”

At that moment, Taejun suddenly spoke to Haeshin again. This time, even Haeshin couldn’t help but be surprised. He hadn’t expected Taejun to show interest in him again.

“I’m… well, yes… thanks to Youngmin… yes…”

Unlike his inner thoughts, which had been enjoying the situation, Haeshin’s voice trembled uncontrollably. Not just his voice, but his hand holding the fork as well.

He was actually a little scared. The fear of violence and death, etched into his soul, sometimes shook him, regardless of how accustomed he was to it. But he wasn’t being swayed by that fear now. Haeshin was using it.

Haeshin quickly put down his fork and hid his hands under the table. Not because he really wanted to hide them, but to reveal them. He wanted Taejun to feel a sense of dissonance in this situation.

Ignoring Youngmin’s glare, Haeshin lowered his head and pretended to be scared, then felt another persistent gaze and looked up.

His eyes met Han Taejun’s again. They had already made eye contact several times, but this time felt different. And Haeshin noticed Taejun’s eyes subtly gesturing towards something behind him.

Under the table, Haeshin clenched his fists. A thrill ran down his spine.

He still didn’t know Taejun’s intentions, and it was highly likely that it wouldn’t be of much help, and it would be a moment that wouldn’t exist once he moved on to the next loop. Still, Haeshin liked this moment of seeing a glimmer of possibility in Han Taejun. It was thrilling. It was the moment he had longed for in this monotonous repetition.

“I’ll… I’ll be back from the restroom.”

Haeshin stood up unsteadily, looking back and forth between Youngmin and Taejun. Normally, Youngmin would follow him immediately, but he would be preoccupied with Han Taejun.

Feeling their gazes on his back, Haeshin slowly headed to the restroom. Hoping that his resolve to endure the terrible violence would be worthwhile, Haeshin did his best once again.

☂️

“I’ll also go to the…”

“How have you been lately?”

Just as Youngmin, fidgeting as he watched Haeshin walk away, finally stood up to follow him, Taejun casually stopped him.

“Are Mother and Father still not seeing Haeshin?”

Youngmin, who sat back down involuntarily, replied sullenly,

“Well, they’re much better than before.”

“I should have done more, but I’m sorry I couldn’t.”

“No. I was able to get married thanks to you taking my side back then.”

His words were partly sincere. It was thanks to Taejun’s protection that Youngmin had been able to push through his family’s opposition.

It was thanks to Taejun persuading his grandfather, saying that since everyone else married for family connections, it would be good for their image if at least one grandson had a romantic marriage, that he was able to marry Haeshin.

If even his grandfather had remained firmly opposed, even if he had married Haeshin, all support from his family might have been cut off. Youngmin was indebted to Taejun. In fact, Youngmin had always been grateful to Taejun.

But what if that was Taejun’s scheme? What if, instead of trying to help his beloved younger cousin, he had had feelings for Cha Haeshin from the beginning?

Realistically, it was absurd, but Youngmin’s already sick mind was gradually filling with suspicion.

“But hyung, back then…”

“Yes.”

“Why did you help me?”

Youngmin’s voice was sharp. It was unfamiliar to Taejun. The Jin Youngmin in his memory had always been quiet and submissive.

To think there were still sides to him he hadn’t known after repeating his life so many times.

A strange thrill ran through Taejun as he repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists. Youngmin continued,

“I was just curious after seeing you today. When we got married, why did you go so far to help me…?”

It was true that Youngmin had asked him to at least be on his side at the time. However, he hadn’t had high expectations. Taejun wouldn’t have been happy about someone with no family background entering the family.

He had always been grateful that he had stepped up, but now that he thought about it, everything was suspicious.

“What special reason would there be?”

Taejun spoke, carefully observing Youngmin’s reaction. He wondered if Youngmin really suspected something between him and Cha Haeshin, but then he remembered Youngmin’s crazed face from the last loop, ranting about them having an affair just because they had talked in the restroom.

“I just helped you because you seemed to really like Mr. Cha Haeshin.”

“Hmm…”

“I don’t care who you marry.”

Taejun spoke honestly. That was all there was to it. Whether Jin Youngmin picked up some pauper and married him or married the cherished only daughter of a leading domestic conglomerate, it didn’t matter to Taejun in the slightest.

Jin Youngmin’s marriage had no impact on Han Taejun or his company. That’s why he had just put in a word for him. If he liked him that much, then let him marry him.

But even as he answered, Taejun deliberately glanced in the direction Haeshin had disappeared. It was purely to provoke Jin Youngmin. He hoped to glean some more information.

Of course, Cha Haeshin might suffer a little more in the process, but so what? It would all disappear again anyway. Compassion and pity for others were luxuries Taejun couldn’t afford right now. He just wanted to find a way out of this hell.

“So… are you still happy in this marriage that you worked so hard for?”

Without a shred of guilt, Taejun drew Youngmin’s attention, who was glancing towards the restroom again.

☂️

“Mr. Cha Haeshin.”

As Haeshin entered the restroom, he turned around at the voice calling his name. A familiar yet not quite remembered man stood there.

“Who…”

“Greetings. I am Choi Jungho, Secretary to CEO Han Taejun.”

“Ah…?”

The corners of Haeshin’s lips curled up slightly. Sending his secretary instead of coming himself, he was a smart man. On the other hand, it was a little chilling. The fact that his secretary had followed him immediately meant that this was all pre-planned, but what, how, and how much did Han Taejun know to create this situation?