Beauty Next Door (vsoo)

[11]

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Late at night, long after the employees had left the towering headquarters of KJ Technology and Management Consulting Industry, the sound of typing echoed through the empty office. The company, once known as Kim’s Web, had grown into a corporate empire under its owner, Kim Jisoo.

Inside the dimly lit room, a man sat in front of a large monitor, pressing the last key before switching it off. With a sigh, he turned his chair around and stood up, stretching his stiff shoulders. The office was eerily silent, save for the hum of the fluorescent lights. He took a deep breath and walked towards the elevator, his polished shoes clicking against the marble floor.

Ting!

The elevator doors slid open. He stepped in and pressed the button for the ground floor, standing still as the doors shut. He was exhausted, his mind clouded with stress and unfinished business.

As soon as the elevator reached the lobby, he stepped out—only to be greeted by someone waiting for him.

"Siabeoji (father-in-law)," a familiar voice called out. The man froze in his tracks, his eyes narrowing at the sight of the person approaching him.

"You… What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice laced with a mixture of irritation and unease. He hadn’t expected to see him tonight.

The younger man, dressed in a crisp black suit, smirked slightly before responding. "Mmm… you weren’t home. Sieomeoni (mother-in-law) said you hadn’t come back yet. So, I came to pick you up. Me and Sooyaa just arrived today… she was missing you both."

As he spoke, he reached for the stack of portfolios in the older man's hands, but the latter swiftly jerked his arm away, his glare sharp and untrusting. His jaw clenched as he studied the smirk plastered on the younger man's face.

"What do you want now?!" he snapped. "What have you done to her?"

His gut twisted with an unsettling feeling. He had never trusted this man, and tonight was no different. The tension between them was thick, filled with suspicion and barely concealed hostility.

The younger man exhaled dramatically, shaking his head as if amused by the accusation. Then, with a slow, deliberate motion, he opened the car door and turned back to face his father-in-law.

"Siabeoji…" he started, his voice dripping with mock innocence. "Your daughter… she's three months pregnant."

A sharp breath escaped the older man’s lips. "What?!" His eyes widened in shock, his mind racing. Three months?!

Before he could react further, the younger man pulled a small white napkin from his pocket and casually unfolded it.

A faint but unmistakable scent filled the air. It was sharp, unnatural… drugged.

A sinking feeling settled in the pit of the older man’s stomach.

Something was very, very wrong.

×××××

The morning started like any other for Kim Jisoo and her little baby boy, Ro-woon. After their usual morning routines, Ro-woon, always the fashionable one, dressed himself up in a classy outfit.

"Eomma, I'm ready!" he announced proudly, standing near the mirror.

Jisoo, in the middle of combing her hair, turned to look at her son. "Good boy," she praised, reaching out to pat his head.

"Eomma! You messed up my hair!" Ro-woon pouted, immediately smoothing his tiny hands through his hair to fix it. He was, after all, a little model in his own right—and everyone should know it.