Seojun had been staring at his phone for almost five minutes.
He had typed a message.
Deleted it.
Typed another.
Deleted that too.
He had never been someone who struggled to communicate. In business, he knew exactly what to say and when to say it. With his employees, his father, investors, and clients, he could handle difficult conversations without hesitation.
But this was Kyrah.
And somehow, talking to her about Jinyoung felt more difficult than negotiating a multimillion-dollar investment.
He finally pressed call.
Kyrah answered on the fourth ring.
"Hello?"
Her voice immediately softened something inside him.
"Hi."
She smiled on the other end.
"Hi. What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
There was a pause.
Then she laughed softly.
"Seojun, you sound strange."
He looked down at his hand.
"I wanted to ask how Peppa is."
Kyrah laughed.
"You called to ask about Peppa?"
"Partly."
"Partly?"
He smiled.
"How is he?"
"He's fine. Very active today."
"Good."
"And I'm fine too."
"I know."
She could hear the smile in his voice.
"So why did you really call?"
Seojun hesitated.
"I wanted to come by."
"Come by?"
"I have some updates about HANEUL HOME."
Kyrah's voice brightened.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Then come."
He exhaled.
"All right."
"And Seojun?"
"Yes?"
"Don't forget your coffee."
He laughed.
"I won't."
When Seojun arrived, Kyrah opened the door with a smile.
"You came prepared."
He lifted the files in his hand.
"I said I had work."
"And coffee?"
He raised the cup in his other hand.
"Of course."
She stepped aside.
"Come in."
Seojun walked inside.
Everything about the apartment felt warmer now.
There were tiny baby clothes folded neatly in one corner.
A few boxes were stacked near the wall.
A small pair of shoes sat on a shelf.
Seojun looked at them for a moment.
Kyrah noticed.
"Again?"
He looked at her.
"What?"
"You're staring at the shoes."
"They're still small."
She laughed.
"You've said that before."
"They haven't grown."
"Because they're shoes."
He smiled.
"Fair enough."
They settled at the table.
Kyrah brought him coffee.
He thanked her.
For the next hour, they talked about HANEUL HOME.
The project had continued moving forward even during her maternity leave.
Flora had taken over several day-to-day responsibilities.
Xiumin was coordinating technical documentation.
Youning was handling some of the operational follow-up.
Seojun walked Kyrah through the latest reports.
"How's the testing?"
"Good."
"Any major issues?"
"One minor integration problem."
Kyrah frowned.
"What kind?"
"Nothing serious. The system is responding slower than expected when multiple devices are connected simultaneously."
"Did you find the cause?"
"Mostly."
She leaned over the documents.
"What about the local processing?"
"That's what we're checking."
Kyrah immediately became engaged.
"Then don't push everything through the cloud. If we're already seeing latency there, we should test whether local processing can handle more of the load."
Seojun smiled.
"That's exactly what I told the team."
She looked at him.
"You did?"
"Yes."
She smiled.
"Good."
He watched her for a moment.
This was the Kyrah he admired.
Even eight months pregnant, even on maternity leave, even with everything happening in her personal life, her mind still went straight to the work she loved.
"You miss it," he said.
She sighed.
"Maybe a little."
"You can go back whenever you're ready."
She looked at him.
"I know."
They continued talking.
But Seojun's attention kept drifting.
He had come here for a reason.
Eventually, he placed his cup down.
"Kyrah."
She looked up.
"Yes?"
"There is something else."
Her expression changed slightly.
"What?"
He hesitated.
He hated that he was nervous.
"I met Jinyoung yesterday."
Kyrah went still.
Seojun immediately continued.
"At Jun Chao Group."
She looked at him.
"He came to the company?"
"Yes."
"For what?"
"Investment."
Her expression softened into understanding.
"His company."
Seojun nodded.
"Woolim Group is having serious financial difficulties. He asked Jun Chao Group to consider investing."
Kyrah was silent.
Seojun watched her carefully.
"I wanted you to hear it from me."
She looked down at the table.
"Thank you."
"I haven't made a decision."
Kyrah looked back at him.
"You don't have to explain it to me."
"I know."
"You should do what you think is right."
Seojun frowned slightly.
"Kyrah—"
"No."
She smiled gently.
"This is your company."
She paused.
"If Woolim Group is a good investment, then invest."
Seojun studied her face.
"And if it's not?"
"Then don't."
She shrugged.
"I don't want what happened between Jinyoung and me to affect a business decision."
He was silent.
Kyrah continued.
"He made mistakes with me. He hurt me. That's personal."
Her hand rested over her stomach.
"But I don't want to use your company to punish him."
Seojun's expression softened.
"You don't feel anything?"
"I feel a lot."
She gave a small smile.
"But I don't feel hatred anymore."
She looked toward the window.
"I don't want him back. I don't want a relationship with him. I don't want him in my personal life."
Then she looked at Seojun.
"But that doesn't mean I want his company to fail."
Seojun admired her.
That was Kyrah.
She wasn't pretending to be noble.
She wasn't trying to impress him.
She simply wasn't carrying the kind of bitterness that could turn every situation into revenge.
"You really mean that."
"Of course."
He smiled.
"I admire that about you."
Kyrah laughed.
"What?"
"You don't hold malice."
She shook her head.
"I've held enough anger for one lifetime."
Seojun's smile faded slightly.
"I know."
She looked at him.
"But I'm not going to let what he did turn me into someone I don't recognize."
That stayed with him.
Seojun looked down.
He knew exactly why he loved her.
Not because she was perfect.
Not because her life was easy.
Not because she needed him.
Because she was Kyrah.
And somehow, even after everything she had endured, she still had room in her heart to choose peace.
Later that evening, Kyrah suggested they take a walk.
The neighborhood was beautiful at night.
Hong Kong's lights stretched between buildings, reflecting against windows and polished streets.
Kyrah walked slowly.
Seojun adjusted his pace to hers without mentioning it.
She noticed.
She always noticed the little things he did.
"You've been unusually thoughtful today."
He glanced at her.
"Have I?"
"Yes."
"Maybe I'm tired."
She smiled.
"You don't look tired."
He laughed softly.
They walked a little farther.
Kyrah talked about Peppa.
About the things she still needed to buy.
About Linda's ridiculous obsession with sending her baby videos.
Seojun listened.
But there was something different about him.
She could feel it.
He was distracted.
Finally, after another few steps, he stopped.
"Kyrah."
She turned.
"What?"
He looked at her.
For a moment, he said nothing.
The city continued around them.
Cars passed.
People walked by.
Lights flickered across the buildings.
But Seojun seemed to see only her.
"I need to tell you something."
Kyrah smiled nervously.
"What?"
He took a breath.
"I love you."
Everything stopped.
At least for Kyrah.
Her smile disappeared.
Her eyes widened.
Seojun continued before she could say anything.
"I know you're carrying another man's child."
Her eyes immediately filled with tears.
"I know what your past looks like. I know what happened to you. I know there's a child coming into your life."
He looked directly into her eyes.
"And I didn't fall in love with some version of you that exists without all of that."
Kyrah's lips trembled.
A tear escaped.
Seojun took one step closer.
But he didn't touch her.
"I fell in love with you."
Another tear rolled down her cheek.
"I fell in love with the woman who survived everything she went through."
His voice trembled slightly now.
"The woman who still wakes up and tries again. The woman who works too hard. The woman who pretends she's fine when she's tired."
Kyrah let out a shaky laugh through her tears.
"The woman who argues with me whenever I tell her to rest."
She wiped her cheek.
Seojun smiled.
"I love that woman."
His expression softened.
"And I love everything that comes with you."
Kyrah covered her mouth.
"Even Peppa."
Her eyes closed.
The tears came harder now.
Seojun didn't reach for her.
He gave her space.
"You don't have to say anything tonight."
She looked at him.
"I just need you to know that I chose this."
He paused.
"I knew what I was choosing."
Kyrah shook her head slightly.
"You don't have to feel guilty because you're pregnant."
Another tear fell.
"You don't have to wonder if you're too complicated."
His voice softened.
"You don't have to think I'm doing this because I feel sorry for you."
Kyrah shook her head.
"I don't."
"I know."
He smiled.
"I know you don't."
He took another breath.
"I want to be there."
His eyes never left hers.
"For you."
A pause.
"For Peppa."
His voice became softer.
"For whatever comes next."
Kyrah stared at him through her tears.
She didn't know what to say.
For years, she had believed love meant being chosen first.
Being someone's priority.
Being wanted without conditions.
She had believed love meant finding someone who would never make her question whether she was enough.
Then Jinyoung had taught her the opposite.
He had made her feel like her pregnancy was a burden.
Like Peppa was an inconvenience.
Like the life growing inside her had destroyed his future.
She had spent months rebuilding herself from the pieces he left behind.
And now Seojun was standing in front of her.
Not asking her to forget her past.
Not asking her to erase Peppa.
Not asking her to become someone easier to love.
He was simply telling her that he had seen everything.
And he had still chosen her.
Kyrah's hand moved to her stomach.
Sometimes love wasn't about finding someone without complications.
Sometimes it was finding someone who saw all the complications...
and still chose you.
She looked at Seojun.
"You really mean it?"
His answer came without hesitation.
"Every word."
She cried harder.
Not because she was broken.
Not because she was afraid.
But because someone was offering her a love she didn't have to earn.
She didn't have to prove she was worthy.
She didn't have to become smaller.
She didn't have to hide the parts of her life that were difficult.
Seojun had seen them.
And he stayed.
He stood there without asking for an answer.
Without demanding a promise.
Without reaching for her before she was ready.
And somehow, that made the confession even more powerful.
Kyrah finally took a small step toward him.
Seojun watched her carefully.
She didn't speak.
Neither did he.
But she didn't walk away.
The night continued around them.
Two people standing beneath the city lights.
One had finally confessed.
The other was standing at the edge of a new beginning. Kyrah didn't run from the question she had on her mind.
Could she really love again?
She simply looked at the man standing before her.
And wondered what would happen if, this time, she let herself say yes.
To be continued...