Chapter 63: The Impostor

"Mina sunbaenim: Did you dye your hair this afternoon?"

Recalling the message from Myoui Mina sunbaenim, which carried the vibe of a spectator eagerly waiting for a good show, Yuna bit her lower lip slightly, raised her head in a daze, and looked at the lights in the corridor.

Could Myoui Mina have guessed her relationship with Xiaying simply through intuition?

Was that really the case?

Having been in the industry for so many years, her seniority was truly not earned for nothing.

Provoked by Myoui Mina's text message, Yuna no longer bothered to reply. Clutching the box of cookies she had baked just this noon—intended as practice for their next meeting—she rushed out the door.

Anyway... she had already agreed with Jang Gyujin that she would just be back a little later, leaving the youngest member to handle the manager.

In the single-unit-per-floor apartment corridor, the girl clutched the box of cookies to her chest, crouching down in grievance and fatigue from standing for too long.

I'll count to ten. If you still don't come home, we'll end things right here.

"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six..."

"Ding."

Like destiny, the elevator door not far away chimed, and the bad guy she had been yearning for walked out of the elevator as expected.

Their eyes met, and then hot tears burst from her eyes, blurring her vision.

"Sorry, I'm back late."

Unlike the anticipated surprise of "What are you doing here?", those words—"I'm back late"—mysteriously brought a sense of relief to Yuna's heart.

Allowing the blurry-looking man to pull a tissue from his pocket and wipe her eyes, the girl reached out and gently pushed his arm.

His core strength was impressive; he remained steadily in a squat, meticulously wiping away her tears.

In truth, Xiaying's first reaction was indeed one of extreme surprise, but before the words left his lips, he realized what Yuna truly needed.

To make her feel better, he chose the gentlest phrasing.

Because she had previously mentioned on KakaoTalk that she would find a day off to visit Xiaying's home, so...

He had already resolved to confess everything to her during their next meeting.

He simply hadn't expected it to be brought forward to tonight.

"How did you get up here? You didn't climb up the stairs, did you?"

"I asked the property management aunt to help swipe the card... Don't you have a girlfriend? Be careful not to have any physical contact with me."

Knowing the girl needed comfort right now, he selectively ignored her remark, helped her up, and used his other hand to unlock the apartment door.

"Have a seat in the living room for a moment; I'll go pour you a cup of tea."

Taking advantage of the trip to the refrigerator for tea leaves, Xiaying tucked the shopping bag that the girl hadn't noticed yet into the storage cabinet.

While pouring the hot water, he glanced back toward the living room. The box of cookies sent by Myoui Mina was resting on the coffee table. For a fleeting second, he felt a sense of impending doom.

Yet he and Myoui Mina didn't have anything going on; he had merely accepted a box of cookies from a neighbor... right?

Sitting obediently on the sofa, Yuna had obviously noticed the object wrapped in blue floral fabric on the coffee table.

Unable to resist, she reached out and opened it. The cookies that met her eyes struck her mind like a lightning bolt, leaving it buzzing.

"Where did these cookies come from?"

Her nearly-dry tears ungratefully welled up once more. For some reason, she felt as though an invisible hand was pulling the two of them apart.

Things... seemed to have grown even more complicated.

"Mina Myoui gave them to me. I ran into her in the parking lot tonight, helped her change her windshield wipers, and this is the thank-you gift."

A massive wave of information crashed over her again. Yuna's brain spun at high speed, and suddenly, she seemed to understand something.

No wonder she could guess that the person Yuna wanted to see was Xiaying.

No wonder she could forward Xiaying's Instagram to Yuna with the attitude of a spectator looking for trouble and provocation.

No wonder she was leaning on her balcony drinking alcohol yesterday...

As if suddenly certain of something, Yuna bolted toward the corridor leading to the kitchen, her gaze fixed straight ahead at the opposite apartment building.

Although she couldn't see very clearly, she was certain that at this distance, as long as there were no curtains blocking the view, she could at least make out how many people were in the other party's home.

"The 29th floor as well... I should have guessed it earlier."

She said bitterly, gradually making sense of things in her heart.

At the very least, she had relied on her sixth sense to figure out who was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

As for Shin Yuna, whether it was just playing a role for show or pretending to be genuine, Yuna no longer cared.

"Are you and Myoui Mina close?"

When Yuna turned back around, her gaze carried a firmness that caught Xiaying off guard.

"Answer me."

"Objectively speaking, not really. But I do feel that she understands me quite well."

"Then she wouldn't have any reason to know your Instagram account, would she?"

"Of course not."

Gradually calming down, the girl nodded, returned to the sofa, and picked up a cookie wrapped in the blue floral fabric. After taking a careful bite, she felt even more certain of her suspicions.

"A fake."

She pushed the box of homemade cookies in her arms toward Xiaying's lips, leaving no room for refusal.

The taste was actually eight or nine parts similar to the ones Myoui Mina had made.

He had been slightly puzzled earlier as to why Myoui Mina's cookies had such an exceptionally rich milky aroma. Hearing Yuna call them a "fake," a bad premonition arose in his heart.

Myoui Mina... was truly shrouded in mystery.

He had originally intended to lay everything out clearly to Yuna tonight, but at this moment, Xiaying began to doubt whether he truly understood the current situation at all.

Yuna looked down at the cookies she had made. The reason they were sweet and rich in milky aroma wasn't simply because she had added extra fresh cream; that was merely the surface.

Imitation, in the end, was nothing more than cleverness overreaching itself.

However... why did Myoui Mina dare to step out from behind the scenes and lay her cards on the table so quickly?

Her remark that morning about "destiny making its move and the general trend being unstoppable" now seemed somewhat comical.

Did she really have absolute certainty? Or had she miscalculated a variable due to one flawed move?

Though she could not yet see through the heavy fog surrounding Myoui Mina, Yuna understood one thing clearly: Myoui Mina was coming straight for her.

Lowering her gaze, she placed the box of cookies she had brought onto the coffee table, packed up Myoui Mina's box, and let out a soft sigh.

"I really don't know what I owed you in my past life to deserve this kind of torment..."

When she raised her gaze once more, rationality and possessiveness returned simultaneously. Yuna cast a silent glance at Xiaying's somewhat disheveled collar, her eyes holding not only firmness, but also a new trace of candor.

"When I first met you, I thought you were just an ordinary wealthy kid experiencing life at a convenience store."

"It's only at this moment that I realize how little I actually know about you."

"So starting today, I'm going to begin learning about you all over again."

"I'll also be completely honest with you: I really like you. Perhaps one day in the future, I might give up on you simply because I lose interest."

"But absolutely not... because of someone else. Some things—what's mine is mine, unless I choose to throw it away. Do you understand?"