Chapter 26
Yeonho sat in the living room, tapping away at his laptop while picking at his lunch.
Thank god the old man and Gyeongjae had left earlier — this gave him the perfect time to go through everything he'd recorded.
He opened the first video file, and the screen played back every second clearly: the night Hana met her private secretary, and how she'd gotten attacked out of nowhere by Baek Seungjo's ex-girlfriend.
He clicked to play the next one. Even last night, when Hana had slipped something into Gyeongjae's drink at the restaurant, the whole thing had been caught perfectly from his hidden angle.
"Now I've got a whole collection of proof showing just how stupid and reckless you really are."
A wicked little grin formed on his lips as he saved both files securely.
Next, he pulled up the photos he'd stolen from Hana's devices — screenshots of her contact list, her chat history, every bit of information he'd managed to dig up.
He spotted Gyeongjae's name and profile right away, but he already had his number and ID memorized anyway, so he just scrolled past.
The four male leads were the ones he was really after — and right now, he had every single one of them right at his fingertips.
"All going straight to my phone. Perfect."
He set the laptop aside for a moment, grabbed his leather-bound journal from the table, and flipped through the pages searching for the next event that was about to happen.
"Wait… right. I remember exactly what's coming up next."
His eyes lit up, fingers tapping excitedly against the paper.
"Hana's going shopping at that high-end clothing brand downtown. She's picking out her whole wardrobe for her birthday celebration."
'Right. She's been obsessing over what to wear for weeks now.'
But something happened that day. Her personal designer and stylist was supposed to meet her there, but he'd call in sick last minute.
Frustrated, she'd cancel her appointment right there in the store, then text Kang Min-hyuk — one of the four male leads — to come meet her.
They'd spend the whole afternoon wandering from shop to shop, trying on clothes, laughing together.
Everyone around them would see it as nothing less than a romantic date.
Hana would end up clinging to Min-hyuk's arm the whole time, playing the sweet, innocent girl perfectly, and he'd fall even deeper for her.
"Why does this fit my plan so perfectly? Hahaha!"
Yeonho laughed, feeling delighted. This was practically made for him to mess with.
He knew everything about fashion, styling, and design — way more than Hana ever would. His new plan was simple: show up at that boutique, pose as the replacement stylist sent over from the agency.
If he played his cards right and made sure she loved every design he picked out, he'd easily convince her to let him tag along for the rest of the day.
He'd say he wanted to help her coordinate every look properly, acting like a total professional.
And just like that — he'd insert himself right into that moment. Right between Hana and Min-hyuk. Just like he'd crashed her time with Gyeongjae last night.
"Hahaha! This couldn't have worked out better for me. Hana, you poor little thing… you have absolutely no idea what's coming your way."
He went back to eating his lunch happily, grinning from ear to ear as he thought through every detail of his upcoming scheme.
That shopping trip was happening in three days — perfect timing. His own custom clothes and equipment would arrive by then too.
Tomorrow he'd set up his live streaming channel, introduce himself properly to the public, build up his image. The day after that, he'd ruin Hana's perfect little plot completely.
Everything was falling into place exactly how he wanted. Now the only thing left to do… was actually get hired at that clothing brand.
The realization hit him hard, like someone had just dropped a heavy book right on his head.
Yeonho dropped his chopsticks onto the table with a loud clack, leaned his head all the way back against the sofa frame, and stared up at the ceiling with pure misery written all over his face.
He let out a long, dramatic groan that sounded like a deflating balloon.
His laptop screen glinted in the corner of his eye, practically mocking him.
He was actually going to trade his comfortable couch and free time for a boring retail uniform and work hours.
"Ugh! I swore I'd never work, and here I am… doing exactly that."
He complained under his breath, but he knew there was no way around it.
He opened the brand's official website, read through every single detail about the company, their style, their staff requirements, memorized everything he needed to know.
Once he had it all down, he picked up his phone and dialed Han Jiseok's number.
"Mr. Han… I need your help."
[Is this part of your plan?]
Jiseok's deep voice came through the line, calm as always.
"Yeah. I want to get a job."
Yeonho leaned back against the cushions, stretching his legs out comfortably.
[Choi Yeonho… You have a black card in you. You have everything you could ever need. And you still want to work?]
"Trust me, Mr. Han — if I had a choice, I'd be lazing around in bed all day. I really don't want to work. Not when I have everything thanks to you."
He softened his tone, voice turning sweet and wheedling, exactly how he knew worked best on the older man.
"But I told you before, didn't I? I want to show my pathetic family, and everyone else who looked down on me, that I'm not useless anymore. I want to prove I can stand on my own two feet. You promised you'd help me with whatever I needed. You said you'd give me everything I ask for… so please, help me out this time too, okay?"
Silence stretched on the other end of the line. Yeonho shifted nervously, biting at the edge of his thumbnail. The longer the quiet went on, the more anxious he got.
'Is he going to say no? Don't tell me he's actually going to refuse me now…'
"Mr. Han?" He called out softly, just as he heard Jiseok take a slow breath.
[I'll help you. Just like I promised.]
Yeonho let out a silent breath of relief, but Jiseok continued, his tone turning a little heavier than before.
[I'm watching from afar, I'm not interfering, just like our agreement. But don't you think I've already given you enough freedom? Don't forget ,you went and slept with another man last night...]
'Shit.'
Yeonho froze.
'Was he actually mad about that?'
Jiseok had acted completely unbothered earlier when he'd visited. Had he just been holding back his anger because Gyeongjae was there?
If Jiseok refused to pull strings for him, getting into that exclusive, high-end brand would take forever and be way too much trouble.
He took a deep breath, forced his voice to stay soft and sweet, leaning his head back against the sofa again.
"Okay, okay… I get it, Mr. Han. You spoil me way too much, I know. And I really appreciate everything you do for me. I know my behavior tests your patience sometimes… but hey — I'm your mistress, remember? I told you I'm not going anywhere. I won't run away, I'll stay right just like you want me to. Isn't that enough?"
This kind of thing happened all the time now. Yeonho was starting to get a little worried that Jiseok was getting even more possessive over him — it could turn into a real problem later on.
But right now, Jiseok was still the only person who could help him, so he had no choice but to put up with it.
[You really want to work?]
"Yes, Mr. Han!" Yeonho answered immediately. The line went quiet again for a moment, then he heard Jiseok let out a slow sigh on the other end.
'Is he saying yes? Please say yes, Mr. Han.'
"Hehe, I knew you wouldn't say no, Mr. Han." Yeonho giggled, feeling happy at the unspoken answer.
[You better give your old man some attention if you have time, Yeonho.]
"I will! Don't worry, Mr. Han. I'll do my best to entertain you properly."
[Fine. What do you need?] Jiseok had agreed to help him again, just like always.
Honestly, despite being just a side character in the original story, Han Jiseok was turning out to be one of the best people he'd ever met.
"An application form. I want to apply for a job as a designer or stylist at that clothing brand."
Yeonho sat up straight right away, propping his laptop on his thighs, full of eagerness.
[What's the name? Do you want me to get you the job directly? So you don't even have to go through an interview?]
The whole day suddenly felt brighter when Yeonho heard that. This was even better. He could start working there right away.
Knowing Jiseok had enough power and connections to make it happen, he agreed instantly.
"Yes please! I'd love to start working there as soon as possible."
He scrolled through the brand's website on his laptop while he waited.
[It would be nice if you actually put effort into getting that job, dear.] Jiseok reminded him.
Putting in effort was fine and all, but Yeonho was way too lazy to go through all that hassle and work.
"Whatever, Mr. Han. Just do it for me."
Han Jiseok just said he would handle it. Everything was done, all the problems solved easily — all thanks to the old man.
The call ended, but Jiseok called back again fifteen minutes later. He confirmed that Yeonho could start working whenever he wanted.
Yeonho was more than satisfied with how fast everything went.
For the next two days, Yeonho just lazed around the house. He had nothing to do, so he slept until noon every day, then spent the rest of the time watching K-dramas and movies.
It was exactly the rest his body needed, recovering from how busy he'd been ever since arriving in Korea.
Ever since he'd stepped foot in the country, every day had been packed with activity.
And that one night had been even worse. Sleeping with Gyeongjae had taken a real toll on him.
Even though he could stand and walk around fine, his back still ached — stiff and sore all over, especially his lower back.
They hadn't used any lubrication at all. Gyeongjae had only put a little of his own precum, then just pushed right in without taking any time to prepare properly.
To be fair, Yeonho was the one who'd told him to go ahead without getting ready first, so he couldn't really complain. But the dull, lingering soreness from the friction and slight tearing was still there.
Those two days of rest had done his body good, easing most of the discomfort.
It was three o'clock in the afternoon when Yeonho started waiting for his custom orders and parcels to arrive.
He was sitting on the sofa in the living room, scrolling through his phone impatiently.
"Why is it taking so damn long? They were supposed to be here thirty minutes ago!"
The delivery had been delayed. It should have arrived much earlier, but it hadn't shown up yet.
The website was one of the biggest and most reliable online shopping platforms around, so the delivery service was supposed to be fast.
"If it doesn't show up in another ten minutes, I'm giving them zero stars."
He was really annoyed too. He was supposed to be setting everything up right now, getting ready to start his live streaming — but here he was, stuck waiting, and it had already been almost an hour.
He waited and waited, and every second that passed made him more restless. At one point, he even dozed off for ten minutes out of pure boredom and frustration.
"Did the delivery guy get lost or something? I'm this close to losing my mind."
'I swear, when that parcel finally gets here, I'm gonna rant about that delivery guy and leave the worst review possible.'
Just as he was about to grumble about it some more, the doorbell rang loudly.
Yeonho jumped up from the sofa right away and headed straight for the front door.
'Finally. Thank god.'
The second he pulled the door open, Yeonho lifted an eyebrow, completely taken aback — but not by the delivery, or the driver.
It was because of the familiar man standing on his doorstep.
"You… what are you doing here? It's only been two days, and you're already back. Did you come here to talk about Hana again, Gyeongjae?"