The Way I Loved You

Hands Off My Husband

"Right, Hyunwoo, about the Fair Trade Commission- they keep calling us in for trivial matters. Could you take care of that?"

"You should ask the Legal Team of Queens Mart."

"They're just too dense. But you're quick thinking and smart. And the higher-ups at the Fair Trade Commission love you."

"We have our own jurisdictions-"

"Why can't you just say that you'll do it?"

Haein bristled at the tone her mother and younger brother were using at Hyunwoo. What was with them talking down to him? Her brother was younger than him for goodness sake! He didn't even bother showing him the most basic level of respect.

She'd always hated the way her family treated him. If there was one person treated worse than her in this family, it was her husband. They always talked down to him, barking orders as if he was a house elf forced to serve them hand and foot. It was getting ridiculous. Just because he was good at his job, it didn't mean they could pile work on him without batting an eyelid.

You will go to Boston to get an MBA.

You will have children.

Your daughter will have her name chosen by me and she'll take our family name instead of yours.

It was just a show of power at this point. They wanted to corner him and test his limits as much as possible just to show who was in charge. He always looked like he was trying to compress himself into a smaller ball so that they wouldn't notice him during family meetings, and his eyes were dark and hollow. She couldn't stand it, but she couldn't lose her temper in front of her family either.

Alone in the garden, she was free to beat Soocheol as hard as she wished.

"Ow! What was that for? Are you crazy? Why are you hitting me?"

"Is Hyunwoo your friend or someone younger than you? Quick-thinking? How dare you?" She seethed, feeling a sense of satisfaction when he cowered before her. If he didn't respect Hyunwoo, she would personally make sure that he learned to.

"Disrespect my husband again, and I'll kill you."

He didn't dare complain to their mother about this. If he did, he knew that Haein would find her own way to bring him down. She was an unstoppable force once she put her mind to it and he'd learnt this the hard way.

What Soocheol couldn't understand for the life of him was why she was so protective of Hyunwoo when she was the one constantly humiliating him at work. Did she have bipolar disorder or something? That woman was insane.

...

Haein was surprised to see her mother hovering around her office. She was never one to pay a visit out of goodwill. Her calculating eyes were darting around the room, clearly searching for something.

"Why are you here?"

"Why isn't Hyunwoo picking up? Is he in his office?" The idea that she thought he might be here with her almost made her laugh.

"I asked you why you're here."

"So what if Soocheol overpaid a few billion won? Hyunwoo could've taken care of it quietly. Your grandfather was livid with Soocheol."

Of course. Of course this was all about her precious son.

It had always irked her how her mother was so blatantly biased to her brother even though he had done nothing to deserve it. She was always doing everything for him, from grovelling at her grandfather's feet to perpetuating his delusion that it was always everyone's fault but his.

In her mother's eyes, it was Soocheol against the world, including her own daughter. She did everything in her power to set things up for him to be successful, yet Haein had always outshone him which made her detest Haein more.

Haein was sick of it. She was sick of her mother treating her like the enemy while her brother was being showered with love constantly. Her mother simply did it to spite her and she hated the fact that even her own mother wasn't on her side in this harsh world. Now, she was even starting to drag her husband into her bullshit.

"He must have found out somehow. Hyunwoo wouldn't do that."

Of course he wouldn't, he was too busy dealing with the mess her brother made to make life difficult for him.

"What do you take me for? I know you were behind it." Her mother snapped.

At this point, she wasn't even surprised anymore. She could see through her mother like a pane of glass. She would never miss the chance to accuse her of being a horrible person who sought success by stepping on others.

"I have no time for that. I'm... a bit distracted by a serious matter."

"Soocheol had... a panic attack today."

And I'm dying in three months.

She'd expected this kind of response, but the disappointment was still bitter in her mouth. Why did her mother not care at all? Once again, her mother had completely glossed over her words and remained focused on her brother.

"But Mom, I just told you that I had a serious matter too. Aren't you curious?"

"You always know what to do whether it's big or small." Her mother rolled her eyes.

Even if I'm fantastic at dealing with crises, it doesn't mean that I don't need your support.

Why did she even try anymore? It wasn't as if her mother was suddenly going to change after treating her like this for over ten years. Her mother seemed to have it ingrained in her head that she was the killer of her eldest son.

"You should go. This is my workplace."

"Hey, don't mind me. I'm here to see Hyunwoo anyway."

"Stop provoking us." Her voice was hard as steel. "Or I'll torment your son until the day I die no matter how busy or distracted I am. I'll torment him forever."

She couldn't sit by and let her mother push them around anymore. They had done nothing to deserve this, especially poor Hyunwoo who already had it hard enough. She may not care for her own brother, but she was going to stand by her husband who treated her better than any of her family ever had.

"Bring it on."