Bound by a Ruthless Contract - Chapter 105

Ga-eun headed towards the bathroom. Her purpose was to wipe the cream from the children’s cheeks. The Jinri Association gathering had been unbearable, but the orphanage volunteer work was pure joy. The children would cluster around her, meet her eyes, hold her hands, and stretch out their arms, begging to be held.

“There’s cream on the teacher’s face!”

“Woaaah! A snowman! Teacher Ga-eun has become a snowman!”

“Teacher, hold me next time!”

“I want to hold the teacher’s hand too!”

Living among perpetually artificial people, forcing out insincere smiles and executing meticulously planned schedules was more exhausting than she had anticipated. Looking at these children who revealed their emotions without hesitation or shame, her heart felt cleansed. How long had it been since she’d encountered someone genuinely kind to her, without any hidden motives or expectations?

Smiling, Ga-eun wiped her face and dried her hands on a hand towel. She began planning. She would send the children a complete book collection when she went to Seoul. Summer clothes, and when winter came, warm padding. Perhaps she could even invite them to Seoul, show them paintings in a grand art museum. The mere imagination warmed her heart.

‘They won’t object. It’ll be effective for enhancing the group’s image.’

The fact that such a thought crossed her mind even now suggested she had become quite accustomed to her position as a chaebol wife.

“I suppose I’ve completely become one of those wealthy family people, aunt,” she muttered self-deprecatingly.

Ga-eun slowly emerged from the bathroom. The visitor’s restroom was located outside the orphanage. After exiting, she needed to turn a short L-shaped corner before entering a long corridor completely covered in acrylic. It was structured to connect directly to the orphanage.

As she slowly rounded the corner, suddenly—

Thud.

She collided with something, and a sharp pain shot through the wrist she used to break her fall. Lifting her head, she found Park Ju-yeon looking down at her.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize someone was here. Are you okay?”

The acrylic structure made it clear who was entering or leaving the bathroom. She couldn’t have not known.

“What happened? Can you get up?”

“…Yes.”

Ga-eun pressed against the wall to rise, unconsciously furrowing her brow. Her wrist throbbed painfully.

As Ga-eun slowly inhaled, anxiety flickered in Park Ju-yeon’s eyes.

‘Did I go too far?’

Whether subtly or explicitly ostracized, Ga-eun had remained silent, and so had Kwon Si-heon. According to her brother Park Ju-seong, Si-heon never tolerated anything that might tarnish his authority and reputation.

Which meant…

Either Ga-eun wouldn’t report her actions to Si-heon, or if she did, he would overlook them.

Her momentary satisfaction quickly dissolved.

Recently, Si-heon had been appearing at several gatherings, always keeping Ga-eun closely by his side. He still wouldn’t show his face at meetings where his wife wasn’t present.

Something bubbling deep within her rose to her head. When she saw Si-heon nearly embracing Ga-eun, his lips almost touching her ear…

Her eyes had nearly rolled back.

Emotion clouded her reason.

She’d deliberately collided with Ga-eun, intending to create a pretext to send her to Seoul. But seeing her in actual pain made her anxious.

There was a stark difference between verbal ostracism and causing physical harm.

‘Have I gone too far this time? What if something serious happens? If I keep insisting it was an accident, what can she do?’

Biting her lip, Park Ju-yeon finally spoke.

“Are you… okay?”

Ga-eun gripped her tingling wrist, moving it this way and that, and nodded.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

But she clearly wasn’t.

Seeing Ga-eun’s wrist beginning to swell, Park Ju-yeon suddenly felt a wave of fear.

“It was just an accident. I was rushing to the bathroom… Why were you lingering at the entrance? If you’d moved quickly, I wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”

Ah. Her voice had risen with anxiety. Park Ju-yeon glanced nervously at Ga-eun.

“Should I call an ambulance?”

“No. I’m fine. But I won’t be able to play golf.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

Ga-eun inwardly sighed at Park Ju-yeon’s response, as if she’d been waiting for this moment.

‘So that was it.’

In a way, this worked out perfectly. She couldn’t play golf anyway, and sitting comfortably wasn’t an option. With a wrist injury as an excuse, even Yang Ji-seon, who valued pretexts, wouldn’t be able to stop her.

“Then, I’ll rely on you.”