The Love That Remains

"Come and live at the main house." He ignores my sarcastic remark. "From now on, you will get all the rights that you should have as a daughter of mine. I am choosing you as the heir of the F corporation."

I can't help but laugh at his words. This man has never treated me as his daughter. I ask him to cut me out of the family register and he changes his tune. He is saying that he will recognize me as his daughter from now on. If I believe his words, then I am a dog.

"You want to dupe me?" I raise my brow. "I don't want F corporation. You can't entice me with the position of the heir."

Who wants his money? Taking this offer means getting a collar around my neck.

"What do you want then?" His expression turns grave. "You seem interested in that boy. It's not legal to buy him as a... "

He becomes silent. He looks away, slightly embarrassed. He didn't seem to be embarrassed when he offered to buy the gigolo in the headmaster's office. He must have lost his reasons due to anger at that time. Why he is still uttering nonsense now?

"Gigolo." I help him with the words. "Male prostitute."

He clears his throat awkwardly. He doesn't meet my eyes. "I tried to pay for him. His mother denied it by saying that it's not legal to sell an underaged boy. It's okay to book him unofficially. When he becomes an adult, he will come to the Fang family and become yours permanently. Until then, she asked me to engage you to him to take care of the media."

I stare at him. Is he normal? Sung Jun's mother doesn't seem normal either. Are both of them conspiring against me? What kind of mother agrees to sell her son? What kind of father buys a gigolo for his daughter? I just can't wrap my head around it.

I can't make sense of what they are actually thinking. Seeing ghosts make more sense. I prefer dealing with my grandfather most. At least, he acts like a normal selfish old man.

"I don't want that boy. I don't want to be engaged to him."

"It's already done." He doesn't glance at me. His shoulders are tensed. "If you want something else, tell me directly. Move to the main house."

I get it. These are just tactics to keep me in the family. Until I become legally adult, I have no choice.

It doesn't matter what I say. He's going to keep me tied to the Fang family.

"You want to know what I want?" I cross my arms. It's annoying to see that he's not meeting my eyes. "I will break all ties with you when I become an adult. You can't stop me then."

"Fang Aisa." Fang Qi glares at me. "You don't understand anything. Just do as I say."

I let out a laugh. If I don't laugh, I will end up screaming at him. I don't want to understand 'anything'.

"You rejected me that day as your daughter. Today, I reject you as my father."

I leave the room before he can say anything more. He is the one who severed it first. Does he think that I will accept the rights as his daughter just because he says so?

***

Sung Jun comes out of the room after the bath. Fang Aisa is gone. He runs his fingers through his wet hair. Bae Jaemin is lying on the couch and looking at the phone's screen with a perverted grin on his face. He laughs like an idiot as he reads the comments on the video.

Sung Jun throws the wet towel on his face. "Why didn't you stop her?"

"Who?" Bae Jaemin removes the towel from his face. "Oh, you mean her. I didn't know that I was supposed to stop her. By the way, did you do it with her?"

Sung Jun ignores his question and goes to the kitchen. He didn't have breakfast. He wonders if Fang Aisa had breakfast. He calls her phone. He hears the sound of ringing from his bedroom. He sighs and disconnects the call.

"Jun, look." Bae Jaemin runs to him and shows him the screen of his phone. "You and sister-in-law have become quite famous. They are making up interesting stories. Even your classmates from the academy have commented. I am surprised that there isn't a single response from In-Ha."

Sung Jun and Fang Aisa have become popular. He is the boy who is forced to become engaged with Fang Aisa. Some people are commenting that he is actually a male escort and they have brought his services. Similarly, Fang Aisa is called a spoilt girl. There are some disturbing comments, but Sung Jun ignores them.

"Why are you checking on In-Ha?" Sung Jun prepares the breakfast for himself. His mother is not at home. Since she has started working as a lawyer again, she's busy most of the time. He knows that his mother is happy after returning as a lawyer.

"She is the one who bothered me the most." Bae Jaemin shivers when he recalls how many times Park In-Ha has threatened him. She's the one who antagonized Sung Jun's fans against Bae Jaemin. It is natural to keep an eye on a troublesome person. It's strange that she hasn't reacted to the news yet.

Sung Jun finishes the food. He has no interest in talking about Park In-Ha. "I am leaving."

"Where are you going?" Bae Jaemin follows him to the door. "Can I come with you?"

"No."