Page 40 of From Paris to Seoul

I heard a small sound on the other end of the line, as if he was scrambling for the right words.

“Seo-yeon… listen, I can explain—”

“There’s nothing to explain,” I cut him off. “Are you suffering from amnesia or something? I saw it with my own eyes. You cheated on me with that girl. And I will never accept that.”

With that, I hung up, feeling satisfied at having the last word.

The first part was done.

The second part—telling my family—would be much tougher.

10

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Baekhyun

“With Hanseong Bank, anything is possible!” I said cheerfully into the camera, holding up the bank’s debit card.

It had been a week since I returned from Paris. Now, back to business as usual, I was in the middle of filming a bank commercial.

“No, no, it’sany-thing, not just a flat ‘anything.’ Put more emphasis on ‘any,’ got it?” The PD checked the monitor and gave me instructions to redo the take.

I nodded, though I rolled my eyes internally. As if stressing ‘any’ would magically convince people to sign up—especially with the bank’s abysmal customer satisfaction ratings.

“Ready?” The PD checked his camera again. “Action!”

“With Hanseong Bank,any-thing is possible!” I repeated the line exactly as instructed, feeling like a well-trained parrot.

The PD glanced at the monitor and gave a thumbs-up. “Perfect! Alright, let’s take a break!”

As the crew scattered from the studio, I stepped outside with my manager, Byung-ho, trailing closely behind.

“That’s good, that’s good,” Byung-ho muttered as he scrolled through the schedule on his phone, already gearing up for the next gig. “Alright, what’s next? A magazine shoot, another ad, and… oh! This one might be a game-changer!”

But I wasn’t really listening. My attention had already drifted elsewhere.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and without thinking, I grabbed it with an immediate sense of urgency.

Could it be…? A message from…?

But my excitement evaporated as quickly as I had yanked my phone out.

It’s just another love declaration from Sun-hee.

“Oppa… how are you? Did you know that when we first met at that BBQ gathering with friends, I already knew you were the guy from the coffee commercial? I had the biggest crush on you for the longest time…”

Her message was followed by a sticker of a giant rabbit shyly tapping its index fingers together.

As usual, I left it on read. I had no interest in continuing the drama with my ex.

Ever since our breakup, Sun-hee texted me a few times a week—sometimes saying she missed me (which I doubted), sometimes asking if we could talk (nope), and sometimes sending messages like this. Confessions that felt… fake.

“Hello? Are you listening or not?” Byung-ho waved a hand in front of my face.

I shoved my phone back into my pocket. “Yeah, yeah, sorry…” I muttered, forcing my attention back to him. “You were saying?”

“I just got an email about an audition opportunity—for the Yoon sisters’ next drama. It’s a second lead and a villain role, but still… if you land it, you’ll be acting alongside Hyun-Bin and other A-listers! This could be huge for you!” He pumped his fist in the air, like we’d just won the lottery.

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