Chained by Expectations | Park Sunghoon

Twenty (M)

Sunghoon told the second person knocking at his door to come in. This time, it was the person he was expecting. Getting up to greet the man, Sunghoon said, "Thank you for meeting with me, Mr. Kim," as he motioned for the man to take a seat.

"What did you want to discuss?" Mr. Kim asked as he made himself comfortable. Sunghoon observed the man carefully as he began to speak.

"I want to cancel the contract," Sunghoon said, getting straight to the point and catching Mr. Kim off guard with the request.

"Son, I'm afraid we can't. We agreed on a year, and I'm not willing to shorten the time fr—"

"I don't want to shorten the time frame. I want to cancel the whole thing," Sunghoon said, cutting him off.

"Cancel the whole thing? I'm not understanding. I thought this is something you two had agreed on," Mr. Kim stated.

"Things have changed, and I'm afraid that this contract will interfere with a lot of things," Sunghoon tried to explain.

"You'd have to be willing to give up more than half of your corporation's assets, Sunghoon. That's what we agreed on," Mr. Kim said sternly.

Sunghoon let out a frustrated sigh. "Is there anything else that we can negotiate on? You know that my parents will never agree," he said.

"You know the only way to get out of the marriage and the contract is if she's unfaithful to you, and I know my daughter. She would never do such a thing, especially when she knows the tabloids are watching her, and our name could be put at risk. Even if she were to do something as stupid, the marriage would be terminated, and I would still be sending her abroad to do exactly as you did. Her cheating on you would be my perfect excuse. I would serve it to her as a punishment. Rather, if you serve her with the divorce at the end of the year, I will send her away and tell her that it will just help her forget about you. Once the year is up, if you refuse to serve her with the divorce, you will have no choice but to hand over the said assets," Mr. Kim said matter-of-factly.

Sunghoon couldn't help but clench his jaw. "Don't you think she should be able to choose if she wants to go? Do you ever think about the repercussions of having her chained up by your expectations could be?" Sunghoon spat out.

"Sunghoon, you wanted this," Mr. Kim said, chuckling at his reaction. "You came to me with this proposition. Why are you acting like this is my fault?" he asked, amused.

"I made a mistake, and now I'm asking for you to please reconsider," he asked, frustrated. Mr. Kim studied his expression, "I'm afraid the contract is final and no negotiation is possible," he said, standing up.

"This marriage will be terminated either way, Sunghoon, as you wished from the very beginning. BY CONTRACT, it will last no more than a year, like you agreed on. If you bring me proof that she is or has cheated on you, then it will be less, of course," he said as he dusted his suit jacket. "And she will be going abroad to prepare to take her rightful spot as the next heir. I will get going now; I hope I haven't given you too much to think about, Sunghoon," he said as he turned his back to Sunghoon.

"Oh, and Sunghoon, I hope you're being truthful when you say that Haneul is aware of all of this. I would hate to see her reaction to you doing all of this behind her back," Mr. Kim said, taking one last look at Sunghoon before exiting his office, leaving Sunghoon in a frustrated state.

Unbeknownst to the two someone had not only been listening but recording their whole conversation, making sure to leave no trace of them being there.

Time Skip:

Sunghoon went back home late, having lost track of time at the office and failing to make it home in time for dinner as he promised Haneul. As he entered the dark penthouse, he removed his shoes at the door and followed the sound of the television playing in the living room. Entering, he found the dim light of the TV illuminating a sleepy Haneul on the couch. Sunghoon's features softened as he watched her small figure sleep peacefully under the warm blanket he had given her before he left.