Chapter 133: Beginners’ Romance (1)
Even after finishing her shower, Lee Hae-soo stayed on the phone with Kim Si-woo right up until she went to bed, unable to contain her overflowing happiness.
“When should we get couple rings? And… we’ll have our first kiss too, right? Aaaah! I’m being so shameless.”
Fortunately, Lee Hae-soo was at least aware of how shameless she was being.
The exciting day passed, and starting the next day, Lee Hae-soo stopped working overtime.
She decided to only take on tasks she could finish within regular hours.
Because now she had dates to go on.
“Then everyone, great work today.”
Seeing Lee Hae-soo leave right on time, the fellow lawyers and staff at Blue Law Firm looked at her in confusion and began whispering.
“What’s going on? Hae-soo is actually leaving on time?”
“And doesn’t her face look brighter than usual?”
“No way…”
“Did she get a boyfriend?”
As the youngest lawyer and youngest ace at Blue Law Firm, almost everyone knew who Lee Hae-soo was.
And quite a few male staff members secretly had crushes on her.
“Hey… do you think it’d be okay to casually ask her tomorrow?”
“Five lunches.”
“Deal.”
The male lawyers interested in Lee Hae-soo started making deals with the female lawyers and staff.
Completely unaware of all this, Lee Hae-soo hummed happily as she headed toward Siwoo Film’s office.
“Hehe… it’s my first date with Oppa.”
After finishing her hair and makeup, and even spritzing on the perfume she’d prepared, Lee Hae-soo arrived in front of the Siwoo Film office.
“Phew…”
After taking a deep breath, she pushed the door open with determination.
“Hello.”
“Huh? Attorney-nim? Hello.”
Thanks to having gone on the MT together, many people recognized her.
The staff member at the front greeted her.
“But what brings you here?”
“Ah… I came for a date.”
“A date?”
At the mention of a date, the Siwoo Film staff member looked around before asking again.
“With… who?”
“Um… with Si-woo Oppa.”
“Si-woo Oppa…? Wait… you mean our Writer-nim, right?”
“Yes…”
At Lee Hae-soo’s answer, everyone—including the person in front—froze in place.
“Huh?”
And at that exact moment, Kim Si-woo opened the door of his office and stepped out.
Seeing Lee Hae-soo all dressed up, he walked over to her.
“Huh? Hae-soo? When did you get here?”
“Oppa!”
Lee Hae-soo threw her arms around Kim Si-woo.
“Ugh… couple tax.”
“Ugh… public affection ban.”
Everyone who saw the hug immediately started booing.
“Want me to expose all of you too?”
But at Kim Si-woo’s words, the staff members who were secretly dating instantly fell silent.
“Then I’m heading out first. Everyone, go home on time.”
After Kim Si-woo and Lee Hae-soo left, Lee Yoo-jin, who had been sitting quietly in one corner, stared blankly at her monitor.
‘What did I just hear…?’
Unable to believe what was happening, Lee Yoo-jin hurriedly sent texts to the people who, like her, had feelings for Kim Si-woo.
Meanwhile, outside, Kim Si-woo walked hand-in-hand with Lee Hae-soo as they talked.
“How was today? Was work too hard?”
“Nope. From now on, I’m only taking on what I can finish on time.”
“But you’re still doing more than most people, aren’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess so?”
“You worked hard.”
Kim Si-woo pulled Lee Hae-soo into a tight hug.
Being held in his arms, Lee Hae-soo felt a deep sense of comfort.
“I wish you’d hug me every day.”
“Then I’ll hug you every day.”
Kim Si-woo happily agreed to Lee Hae-soo’s request.
The two of them walked hand-in-hand toward a restaurant near the office for dinner.
That night.
The reactions to the news of Kim Si-woo’s relationship were varied.
Some people got angry.
Some shed tears.
Some denied it.
Some accepted it.
But one thing was certain: none of them felt good about it.
The people suffering the most from Kim Si-woo and Lee Hae-soo’s relationship weren’t the couple themselves—it was everyone around them.
“Hey, watch it.”
“Ah… sorry.”
Normally, it would have been an easy mistake to brush off, but not today.
A staff member who accidentally bumped into Shim Ji-young during an advertisement shoot quickly bowed his head after seeing her hardened expression.
“Huuuuaaaang. Grandma… Si-woo Oppa is dating another girl.”
“Oh, don’t cry. It’s not like they’re married. In the end, he’s destined to marry our granddaughter anyway.”
Hong Soo-yeon stayed locked in her room crying all day, and her grandmother tried to comfort her.
Besides her, Kim Ji-hyun couldn’t focus on scripts at all, and Jung Se-yeon started composing a song based on these emotions.
***
Time passed, and about a month had gone by since Kim Si-woo started dating.
Lee Hae-soo genuinely believed the word “happiness” existed just for her these days.
Every single day felt overwhelmingly joyful.
Even the endless work as a lawyer now only made her look forward to clocking out on time.
Meeting Kim Si-woo always lifted her mood, and every moment made her heart race.
“I feel like I could fly.”
To Lee Hae-soo, her first relationship felt like a massive whirlwind.
Once you fell in, there was no escaping its grip…
For someone who had rarely experienced happiness in her life, falling in love for the first time felt exactly like this.
At Blue Law Firm, more than a few people were devastated to hear about Lee Hae-soo’s new relationship.
Almost everyone—openly or secretly—had harbored feelings for her.
Seeing her dolled up recently to meet Kim Si-woo only deepened their regret.
“Damn… I should’ve just made a move.”
“Sigh…”
“Yeah, you’re too ugly anyway.”
“What about your face?”
The male staff’s disappointed complaints were at least bearable.
But the female staff began gossiping behind her back while pretending to be happy for her.
“Who’s the guy?”
“I heard he’s a super famous writer. And loaded too.”
“Wow… Hae-soo didn’t seem like the type, but turns out she’s a total fox?”
“Right? The quiet cat always climbs onto the stove first.”
Lee Hae-soo knew about all the whispers, but she could endure them.
She had been hearing gossip behind her back since she was a child.
Moreover, now she had Kim Si-woo by her side.
Having someone who would take her side made her feel like she would never break.
No—she was certain she wouldn’t.
At least until the day she received one particular phone call.
When her smartphone vibrated, Lee Hae-soo pressed the answer button.
“Hello?”
—Hey, my daughter. Did something happen?
“Huh? No?”
—Really? It’s just… more money came in this time than last… I was wondering if something was up.
The caller was Lee Hae-soo’s mother.
“No, nothing’s wrong. I’m just trying to take better care of my health now, so I’m only doing what I can finish on time.”
—What? Are you sick?
“No, I’m not sick…”
—Back in my day, I only rested when I actually broke a bone or something.
“Ah… yeah.”
—You have to think about your siblings too. They’ve got so many expenses coming up.
“I know.”
At her mother’s words, Lee Hae-soo answered helplessly.
—Alright, my daughter. Don’t forget that Mom loves you.
“Yes.”
After hanging up, Lee Hae-soo’s mood became complicated.
‘Is love supposed to make you feel this uncomfortable?’
Every time she heard her mother say “I love you,” it felt like the words were strangling her.
Her chest felt tight, and her head throbbed.
Suddenly, her mind was filled with negative thoughts.
‘If Oppa says he loves me… and it makes me feel this heavy, what do I do?’
That evening, she met Kim Si-woo looking noticeably more worn out than usual.
Kim Si-woo immediately noticed something was different and spoke first.
“Did something happen? You don’t look good.”
“No… I’m fine.”
While they were walking together, Kim Si-woo stopped and pulled her into a tight hug.
“You must be really tired…”
Normally, she would have loved it, but today it was the complete opposite.
All the pent-up hurt from the past surged up, and tears finally overflowed from within her.
“Huuuuaaaang.”
Lee Hae-soo’s crying was like a child’s.
It was the kind of sobbing that came from being unable to contain her emotions any longer, just letting everything pour out.
After crying hard for about thirty minutes, Lee Hae-soo finally stopped.
“Feeling a bit better now?”
“Yeah…”
Her eyes were swollen like macarons.
“Let’s go.”
“Where?”
“To eat something delicious. You always feel drained after crying.”
Even though Kim Si-woo had said he might be clumsy since it had been a while since he dated, Lee Hae-soo couldn’t help but marvel at how uncannily he seemed to read her heart.
“Want some sashimi? Or beef?”
“Tonkatsu.”
Seeing her choose tonkatsu instead of sashimi or beef, Kim Si-woo smiled and replied.
“Okay, then let’s go get some king tonkatsu.”
He drove to a famous king tonkatsu restaurant, ordered, and sat down.
“Do you like tonkatsu?”
“Yeah. When I was little… my dad used to buy it for me…”
“Ah… I see.”
Knowing that Lee Hae-soo had grown up without a father, Kim Si-woo felt a little awkward.
When the tonkatsu arrived, Kim Si-woo cut it up and handed the first piece to Lee Hae-soo.
“Here, eat this.”
“Thank you.”
With flushed cheeks, Lee Hae-soo picked up the tonkatsu with her fork.
“Oppa.”
“Yeah?”
“Ah~”
“Huh?”
Doing something that felt more like high school behavior, Kim Si-woo looked flustered, while Lee Hae-soo’s eyes burned with determination to make it happen no matter what.
“Come on. My arm’s getting tired.”
“Ah…”
In the end, Kim Si-woo had no choice but to accept the piece she offered.
At twenty-nine, eating tonkatsu fed by his girlfriend in a restaurant was honestly delicious.
“Tastes good.”
After finishing the tonkatsu, they went for a drive to lighten her mood.
“My heart feels so much lighter now.”
At her request, they ended up driving all the way to Yeongjongdo.
The sea breeze felt like it was blowing away the heaviness in Lee Hae-soo’s chest.
Before they knew it, it was already dawn, and Kim Si-woo prepared to head back.
He never once asked what had happened.
“Oppa… this morning, I got a call from my mom?”
“Yeah.”
“She asked if something was wrong. I thought she was just worried about me again, but then she said less money came in this month compared to last…”
Kim Si-woo listened quietly to Lee Hae-soo’s words.
“Actually, I already knew. I’m the only breadwinner in our family, and Mom cares more about my younger siblings than me… I know something’s wrong. When you told me to visit home last time, I didn’t go. It’s been a while since I lived separately… I just felt like if I went, I’d be the ugly duckling. I wasn’t even sure if my family would genuinely welcome me. I’ve done my best for them, so why did things turn out like this?”
After hearing her talk about how the words “I love you” felt like they were strangling her, about her siblings occasionally calling to ask for pocket money, and how it sometimes felt like they saw her only as a money-making machine, Kim Si-woo scratched his head and replied.
“So that’s what happened…”
Contrary to what she expected—thinking he would be hugely disappointed—Kim Si-woo’s reaction was calm and completely different from what she had imagined.
“You okay?”
“With what?”
“With me… and with my family situation.”
“Was it acting? Were you pretending to be someone you’re not just to trick me? Being timid and pretending to be cheerful… it’s the same as faking a smile in social situations even when you don’t feel like it. As for your family stuff, I can’t just butt in carelessly. But if you ask for help, I can help. Do you want me to?”
At Kim Si-woo’s question, Lee Hae-soo nodded.
“Okay, then. Let’s go greet your mom together soon.”
“Huh? Where?”
“Where else? To meet your mother.”
At the mention of meeting her mother, Lee Hae-soo’s eyes widened.
“Ah, and… you worked really hard.”
Listening to her story, all Kim Si-woo could think was how tough it must have been for her.
The pillar she was supposed to lean on—her family—had already rotted away, leaving only a hollow stump.
She had no shade to block the scorching sun, no place to rest her weary heart…
That’s why she became someone strong yet fragile.
With those thoughts, he hugged her tightly.
“You’ve been doing so well all by yourself…”
In the end, at Kim Si-woo’s gentle pats, Lee Hae-soo’s second round of tears burst out.
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TL Note:
This novel is now translated and finished at Chapter 176
If you’d like to continue right away, the remaining chapters are available on My Patreon Premium tier and Plus Tier, but if you want to read my other 5 translated novels, join the Premium Tier
Link: https://www.patreon.com/cw/Vritratls
For this novel specifically, check the collection under “Genius Writer”
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