The Grade of a Scoundrel

Tae-rin turned her head away, blinded by the headlights of a car climbing the slope. She pressed herself against the wall, waiting for the vehicle to pass, but for some reason, the approaching car came to a halt right in front of her.

As the glare faded, the driver’s side door of the midnight-blue sedan swung open. The man who stepped out was…

“Wow. Talk about a coincidence.”

It was Jae-hwi, the man who had been calling her four or five times a day. Tae-rin’s eyes widened as he approached with a thin smile.

“What are you doing here…?”

“I was on my way home.”

“Ah…”

Tae-rin looked back toward where Jae-hwi gestured and wore a hollow expression. She had forgotten that ‘Ban-gu-jae,’ the main estate of the GH Group Chairman, sat at the very end of this alley—even though she had visited the place several times in the past.

“Then, be on your way.”

“What’s wrong with your face?”

Jae-hwi’s brow furrowed into a serious, heavy expression. Startled, Tae-rin instinctively reached up to touch her face. She had suppressed her tears after leaving her grandmother, Nan-young, and she worried a trace of that grief had somehow remained visible.

“You look like you could collapse any second. Is someone stealing Won Tae-rin’s food and keeping her from sleeping?”

Fortunately, it seemed there were no tear stains. Tae-rin stared blankly at Jae-hwi as he continued to speak with an air of genuine distress. It was truly strange; he approached her as if the decade-long gap between them meant nothing at all.

His height, his frame, and his overall aura were so different he felt like a stranger, yet looking at him again, that wasn’t entirely true. The corners of his mouth that curled up even when he wasn’t smiling, the way his eyes crinkled when he did, and the lingering intensity of his gaze—they all pulled at her memories.

A strange Gu Jae-hwi: unfamiliar yet intimately known.

“Which bastard is it? Is it that Jung Se-hyun guy?”

“…”

“His complexion looked just fine. He was busy snickering and bragging about his ‘perfect fiancée.’ Made me want to stitch his mouth shut.”

“Don’t you… find me awkward at all?”

“When would I have time to feel awkward? Seeing a Won Tae-rin who’s grown even more beautiful than I remembered means I have to keep my wits about me. I finally ran into the person who won’t meet me or even take my calls, so I’m skipping the pleasantries and the intro. I’m going straight to the point.”

“And what is the ‘point’?”

Tae-rin crossed her arms and tilted her head as if willing to listen. A confident, subtle smile played on Jae-hwi’s face as he took another step closer.

“Meet a man who feeds you and lets you sleep. Don’t keep a dog like that by your side.”

“What if I like ‘dogs’?”

Jae-hwi laughed, though his brow remained knit as if he hadn’t expected that answer. He must have eaten well in Germany; even his scowl was handsome. The scent that deepened as he sighed and laughed was the kind that would ruin many people’s hearts.

“I guess you didn’t know. I’m actually a massive dog myself.”

“…”

Tae-rin’s eyebrow shot up. Simultaneously, the corners of Jae-hwi’s mouth lifted even higher. He seemed genuinely pleased.

“But not that guy. Even dogs have grades. A dog that doesn’t listen and causes nothing but trouble is a bottom-tier mutt. I’m a puppy who listens well. Actually, this won’t do. Come eat with this puppy.”

“Why would I eat with you…”

She was about to dismiss him and his nonsense—he really was acting like a puppy that had finally found its master—when it happened.

Gurgle.

The sound from her stomach was incredibly loud. Unable to finish her sentence, Tae-rin stiffened, pretending she hadn’t heard it, though she couldn’t stop her cheeks from flushing crimson.

“Just a meal. Just one meal. Don’t be like that. What’s the big deal about eating? You can do that much for me, can’t you? After all this time.”

“…”

“Ah, if we hurry, we can make last call. The place I scouted to take you to isn’t far. You like noodles. Flour noodles in anchovy broth, topped with seasoned soy sauce, finely chopped kimchi, and blanched chives.”

He checked his watch and gave a sunny grin. He looked proud, as if boasting that he knew her tastes perfectly.

Tae-rin pressed her lips together. She had eaten lunch at his house once, years ago. Due to Gu Jae-kyung’s whim, the servants had scrambled to make lunch, serving pasta and salad. A thick cream pasta—Jae-kyung’s favorite.

But back then, Tae-rin had stared past the appetizing pasta at the banquet noodles the staff had boiled for themselves. She had never been greedy for food, so why had she done that? Perhaps because it was a taste she remembered from her childhood.

“My stomach feels a bit heavy for cream pasta. Is there anything else?” “I’m sorry. We prepared this in a hurry, so there’s only pasta…” “It can’t be helped. Give me those noodles instead, then.”

She had finished that bowl of banquet noodles down to the last drop of broth. And by her side, Jae-hwi had watched her with shining eyes.

Annoying brat.

She had just vomited her entire dinner. Her empty, stinging stomach craved nothing more than warm, clean broth.

That’s it. No other reason. It’s just a meal.

“I’m not particularly hungry. This is a one-time thing.”

“Get in for now.”

He gestured with his head, ushering her toward the passenger door he had opened. After giving his handsome face a brief glare, Tae-rin got in. Jae-hwi hurried into the driver’s seat and smoothly turned the wheel.

“I have so much I want to say. But no matter what I say now, I’ll probably just get cursed at, right?”

“…”

“Let’s settle your hunger first and talk later. Look at the time—why are you still starving yourself? It’s breaking my heart.”

As they drove down the alleyway, Tae-rin couldn’t bring herself to say a word.

The crisp scent of peppermint.

The car was entirely filled with Jae-hwi’s scent. It wasn’t unpleasant; she had inhaled deeply without realizing it, only to be startled by her own reaction. She spent the rest of the ride focusing on keeping herself in check.

It had been quite a while since Jae-hwi had showered and laid down in bed. He stared at his silent phone before tossing it aside and resting a hand on his forehead. Closing his eyes, the day’s events replayed in sequence.

It seemed to be the instinct of pathetic men to gossip behind the back of a beautiful woman they couldn’t touch.

“Her temper was beyond intense. I caught her looking while I was glancing at her neck, and she glared like she wanted to kill me. If I’d actually looked at her chest, I wouldn’t even feel wronged. I was so baffled I stared back, but f*ck, it was like facing an MMA fighter. She didn’t look away once.”

“That’s why I liked it. Looking at me with those haughty eyes like she wants to eat me alive… f*ck, it made my hair stand on end.”

“Just your hair? Nothing else? You eunuch.”

“Who? Ah, Won Tae-rin? She’s f*cking gorgeous, yeah. The problem is she’s so damn uptight.”

“That makes it more tempting. A fox like that would be fun to break. If you could get her under you and make her moan… shit, I’m gonna come just thinking about it.”

“Damn, you’re a premature shooter, aren’t you?”

Earlier today, at the gathering for Jung Se-jin’s wedding, Jae-hwi had seen several groups snickering about Tae-rin. They were all men who glanced at Se-hyun while mentally undressing and kneeling Tae-rin, doing all sorts of filthy things to her in their heads.

Jae-hwi had remembered every single face of those men with their oily, rolling eyes as he passed by. He intended to make them pay for their loose tongues, one way or another.

“f*ck, when I stand in front of Won Tae-rin, even my hard-on dies. Doesn’t it feel like she’d critique you the moment you pulled it out? She’d probably yawn with a dissatisfied look and judge the size and shape.”

“Oh, someone lacks confidence.”

“f*ck you, you saw it?”

“Hey, instead of us arguing, let’s just ask Jung Se-hyun. No need for messy details. Just ask: Is she ‘tasty’ or not? Is she just a pretty apricot with no flavor? Tell him to give us a straight answer. He’d tell us that much.”

“Would the high-and-mighty Won Tae-rin even give it up? Isn’t that why Jung Se-hyun runs around with a second on the side?”

“He said that’s not true. He just laughed and said it’s not worth responding to.”

“Bullshit. Have you ever seen a rumor in this circle that didn’t have a basis? Usually, the reality is worse than the rumor, never better.”

“No way. They’ve been engaged for how long and he hasn’t tasted it yet? Let’s go ask. Jung Se-hyun is full of bravado; if you stroke his ego, he’ll spill everything.”

“Hey, don’t ask. It’s annoying enough watching him act all high and mighty just because Won Tae-rin is his fiancée.”

It was a spectacle—bastards who couldn’t even strike up a conversation with her to her face were babbling nonsense. Jae-hwi believed Jung Se-hyun was largely to blame for Tae-rin being the talk of these men. Because a flawed bastard like him was attached to her, even these nobodies thought they had a chance.

None of them knew their place.