Fate || PART 2 of 'Good Luck, Babe!' (Bbangsaz)

14. Ways To Get Rid of Guwon

H A N N I

"Minji, I don’t mind spending more time with you, but you’ve got an exam soon, and I’d rather do anything but distract you from your studies." I laughed softly, my hand resting on the door handle.

Minji frowned, scoffing as she slumped back in her seat, clearly unimpressed by my attempt to be the responsible one.

Shaking my head, I opened the passenger seat door, ready to leave. But just as quickly, I paused, second-guessing what I was about to do. I leaned back in and pecked Minji's cheek, my lips barely brushing against her soft skin.

"Thank you for everything," I whispered, watching as a blush crept across her cheeks.

Minji cleared her throat, quickly trying to compose herself as she sat up straighter. "Yeah—of course," she muttered.

Our time in Seoul had passed too quickly, and while I felt a shift in what we were becoming, maybe a clearer path to whatever this was, we still didn't have any labels.

I bid her one last goodbye, fighting back the temptation to stay when she teased and bribed me, begging me to stay at her place for tonight.

God knows I wanted to, especially after everything that happened last night. Actually, not just last night—this morning too. But there were things to do,  Minji had told me that she had one of the most important exams of her life just around the corner.

A six-hour nationwide exam, and the mere thought of sitting in a cold exam hall for that long gave me shivers.

And the kicker? Her exam was on Monday, barely a day away. She was far too laid-back for her own good, and it almost annoyed me how carefree she seemed.

Before I knew it, I was back in the hotel lobby, walking toward the elevator to head up to the penthouse.

I prayed that Guwon wasn’t home. The last thing I needed was to see him. Today was supposed to be a good day.

The elevator guard pressed the button for me, and I flashed him a quick smile out of politeness. As the doors opened and I was about to step inside, a hand gently tapped my shoulder.

"Hanni, it’s been a while," came a familiar voice, and I turned to see none other than Sejeong, Guwon’s mother, smiling warmly at me.

I returned the smile, "Yeah, it has. How have you been?"

We entered the elevator together, and despite how much I despised most of Guwon’s family, Sejeong was different. She was the sweetest, most genuine person out of all of them, the only one who didn’t seem to have an agenda or carry a sense of entitlement.

"Oh, I’ve been doing wonderfully, dear. How’s the baby? Is Guwon taking good care of you?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she waited for my answer.

I forced a smile, the lie slipping out as smoothly as ever. "Yes, he’s been great," I said, even though the truth couldn’t be farther from that.

The elevator dinged open, and it hit me that she was coming up to the penthouse, too. "I just wanted to say a quick hello to Guwon. I had some errands at the hotel. Is that alright?" she asked sweetly.

"Of course, come on in," I replied, unlocking the door to the penthouse.

We stepped inside, and I scanned the place, not spotting him anywhere. Maybe I was in luck.

"Make yourself comfortable," I told Sejeong, gesturing toward the living room as I made my way toward the bedroom to check if he was home.

I knocked on his door once. Silence. No reply. Assuming he wasn’t there, I twisted the handle and stepped in.