Pretend (Ryeji)

Chapter 29: Not As Planned

"Have you finally changed your mind, child?"

"As if." Yeji scoffs, index finger tapping the side of a cup of water her stepfather had given her. He offered her a drink of wine, but she quickly denied it, wanted no level of intoxication to interrupt her train of thought.

The redhead has been in his presence for about fifteen minutes now, and she's surprised she's still here because he keeps dodging his side of the conversation, which is annoying. After all, he invited her over to talk, to address the matter he sparked problems over, so why isn't he??

By now, Yeji's irritated and bothered, finds the man's need to pull their deceased loved one into a situation that shouldn't involve her absurd, wishes he would stop interrogating her with questions and start answering some instead.

"Go on. I suppose I'm prepared to answer you're ridiculous questions."

Mr. Park looks smug, so full of himself. It irks Yeji, prompts her nose to twitch noticeably. He's aware of exactly what he's doing, and he doesn't plan on stopping, not until he has his way. That's how it's always been with Yeji. He reels her in every time she declares she's right, leads her to think otherwise, regardless of any judgment she arrives with. It's not that hard to weaken her determination, easy to replace it with uncertainty and anxiety.

Yeji chooses not to give in so easily, though. She expects him to be honest because why else would he appear so confident if he doesn't have a truth to back his statements. "How did you know it was Ryujin if the police claimed it was Sooyoung driving?"

"Easy question."

"Then answer it already."

"What are you in such a rush for?" Mr. Park snickers at her expression, can't wait to see it reversed once they're done here. Of course, he always thought about himself. "I did some digging of my own and hired a private investigator."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because they revoked that Sooyoung girl's charge. I couldn't fathom why they'd let a delinquent such as herself walk free. Once I received the reports regarding my own investigation, I learned the name of the one who was really driving the vehicle."

"And that's what you leaked to the public??"

"It certainly is. The internet loves a good drama." Normally, the man's posture was stiff and uptight, represented his egotistical demeanor. However, today he was slouched back, comfortable in his seat. He appears so relaxed, and that infuriates her more than his typical stance does.

It's true that Mr. Park handed his private findings to any and every social news outlet in Seoul willing to accept, and he made sure to keep his late wife's name out of it. Most of all, the man didn't care if the investigation of his own 'proved' Ryujin wasn't at fault because he knows how people will behave, knows some individuals will overlook who had the right of way and simply judge Ryujin for being the driver. Similar to himself, many neglect facts and simply gossip to their heart's content.

Unsurprisingly, he did try to get the police to overrule their decision and arrest Ryujin when he found out long ago, but the case was already closed, and they didn't interpret his evidence as accurate or valid enough to put the latter behind bars. Besides, the young Shin would only be charged for driving without a license, a ticket Ryujin's wealthy father could easily pay off if the situation ever turned out that way because, no matter what, the cameras disclosed the truth whether he liked it or not.

He, like Ryujin, dismisses the evidence, though. For their own separate reasons, it is the only way they're comparable. He blames her and she blames herself. Even if Yeji doesn't listen to him by the end of this confrontation, he has a strong belief that Ryujin will react to this new piece of information and feel uneasy.