Son Ji-woo woke up early with renewed energy. Last night, she had video called Im Gang and watched 2 episodes of the new Korean drama, Flower On The Sidewalk. It started out nicely for her. She enjoyed it very much and was looking forward to other episodes.
She showered and dressed, preparing to go to the Park estate, when Kim Seo-yeon called her.
"Ms. Son. Mr. Park and I are attending a photography exhibition tonight. Get me something chic for the event." Kim Seo-yeon said into the phone and hung up. Son Ji-woo did not bat an eyelid. Kim Seo-yeon was like that, she would skip the pleasantries over the phone and get to the point.
Son Ji-woo locked the door to her apartment, and took a cab to the address of the designer clothing store Kim Seo-yeon sent her.
When she entered the store, she was surprised to see Kim Seo-yeon and Park Tae-yong already inside.
"Ms. Kim, you..."
"Oh. It's alright. Mr Park says the event is very important, and I need to do the searching by myself." Kim Seo-yeon said to Son Ji-woo.
Son Ji-woo nodded, deciding to wait there since she was already there anyway. She took fleeting glances at Park Tae-yong who was seated on a plush leather armchair, reading a magazine and smoking.
Kim Seo-yeon looked at the dress she had taken from the rack. It looked about fine. She walked into the dressing room to try it on. After a while, she came out. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, and turned to look at Park Tae-yong.
Park Tae-yong raised his head and looked at her. He didn't say anything.
Kim Seo-yeon felt shifty. Why was he staring at her and not saying anything? Was the dress bad on her? She had the ideal nine-head figure, everything looked good on her.
She rotated her body.
"Aren't you going to say anything?" Kim Seo-yeon asked with a cold expression. She wanted to be done with this quickly, and talk to him about the Yeon Ji-a case.
"Change it." He gave a simple order.
Kim Seo-yeon rolled her eyes and looked through the racks again. She picked out another dress and put it on, but the reply was still the same, 'Change it'.
After the sixth dress, Kim Seo-yeon's mood was ruined.
"I'm wearing this, I'm not changing it." She said and crossed her arms, staring at Park Tae-yong who rarely took a glance at the dresses she'd tried on. He wasn't even looking, how could he know what looked good and what didn't? He was just messing around with her.
The attendant, seeing that the situation was not looking good, tried to interject.
"Do you know what the punishment is for disobeying me?" Park Tae-yong asked with his head lowered, as he flicked the ash at the butt of the cigarette into the ashtray.
Kim Seo-yeon frowned. She knew he was Park Tae-yong, but she didn't care. The moment her mood was ruined, it was ruined. She would do whatever she wanted, regardless of the consequences. Especially if the matter was this trivial.
"Ms. Kim, how about you wear something that Mr. Park picks out himself?" Son Ji-woo who had been silent the whole time, spoke up. The situation couldn't escalate.
Park Tae-yong raised his head and stared at Kim Seo-yeon, then at Son Ji-woo.
"You want me to handle clothes for a woman?" He asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
Kim Seo-yeon seeing that Park Tae-yong looked like he would take out his anger on Son Ji-woo, intercepted. "Yes. Why don't you come find something and quit wasting my time?!"
Park Tae-yong took a deep, deliberate breath, visibly fighting for control. He would strangle this woman sooner rather than later, he thought, if she continued talking like that.
There was silence in the room. Son Ji-woo fidgeted and the attendant looked worried.
"Ma'am we have some new arrivals, they're high quality. Would you like to take a look?" The store attendant quickly spoke up. She knew who Park Tae-yong was. It wouldn't be good for the store if the Ninth Prince got offended inside.
"Oh alright. But I'm not changing out of anything I try on." Kim Seo-yeon rolled her eyes again, and turned around to follow the attendant. Since she'd met Park Tae-yong, she'd gotten too used to rolling her eyes.
"Stop there." The man's voice sounded from behind her.
He stood up and walked towards her in a few big strides. Kim Seo-yeon turned around and looked up at him. She was tall and was usually proud of her height, but this man was much taller than her. Standing in front of him, she felt being looked down upon. She did not like the feeling at all.
Son Ji-woo behind could not see Kim Seo-yeon at all. Park Tae-yong's tall figure blocked her entire body. She cupped her mouth, hiding a smile. She was still in the daydream of the drama she watched last night, and Kim Seo-yeon and Park Tae-yong right now looked like the female lead and male lead. It was a pity they weren't together.
"Go get the Duchess's Nightmare." He said to the attendant in his dominant tone.
"Turn around." He said to Kim Seo-yeon.
Kim Seo-yeon gave a short laugh, her face cold. "What do you mean?"
"I said turn around. I want to see your back view." He said sounding impatient and irritated.
Kim Seo-yeon did not know whether it was because he was standing close to her or that he'd made the request himself, but she couldn't turn around. It felt like a scandalous position to her. What did he want to see behind?
She gave a low grunt and quickly twirled around.
Park Tae-yong nodded. "That's the dress you need to wear." He said.
The attendant brought over a black dress. The dress was so black, it looked like outer space, absorbing all light. It was a long sleeved dress with a low cut back and a low slit in front. With a design that easily showed incredible craftsmanship, it was breathtaking. Kim Seo-yeon was internally excited about what she would look like in that, but she didn't show it on her face.
"It's made with musou black material, which is the reason for its color. Your pale skin will create a nice contrast with it, ma'am." The attendant explained with a smile on her face, as she led Kim Seo-yeon to the dressing room with Son Ji-woo following behind.
When Son Ji-woo saw Kim Seo-yeon after wearing the dress, she was visibly stunned. The dress looked better after it was worn. And it seemed to have been made specifically for Kim Seo-yeon. It wrapped around her body tightly, accentuating her curves.
Kim Seo-yeon saw Son Ji-woo's expression and her lips twitched. Was it that good? It seemed that man was better than her at fashion. She couldn't accept it. She was the fashion icon, not him.
She stepped out of the dressing room. Park Tae-yong raised his head and looked at the woman who had come out. It was better than he'd imagined. He nodded, his calm expression hiding his emotions.
The attendant brought her a short grey fur coat to wear over her hands. That completed the look.
"Good." Park Tae-yong nodded and got up. He left immediately.
Kim Seo-yeon's face wrinkled at his quick departure, but she didn't curse him. He had better eyes than her. She could only scold herself to be more observant in the future. But beauty was in the eyes of the beholder.
She slid out of the dress and ordered the attendant to package it.
Park Tae-yong had a supreme VIP card, so she didn't have to pay for the dress. Not that she was planning to.
Son Ji-woo, on the side, was in contemplation.
…
The hall was brightly lit with light from the chandelier. Everyone present tonight, was dressed impeccably. There was a low chatter and the sound of glasses clinking.
"Ko Do-eun, I heard Park Tae-yong returned to Capital City. He's left the Royal Family for some time now." A woman in a nude colored dress said in a gossiping tone.
The woman she was speaking to was very pretty. She looked like a fairy, her beauty was ethereal. She was dressed in a light blue short dress, with dreamy butterfly patterns on it. There was a gentle smile on her face.
"So-hee, keep your mouth shut. What does that have to do with Do-eun? Ever since that Park Tae-yong rejected Do-eun, he ceased to be important. Pfft. Who would be interested in such a man?" Another woman in a purple dress said with slight annoyance in her tone.
"Hwang Bo-young." Ko Do-eun called the woman in the purple dress, her cold voice contrasting with her gentle looks. "Could it be that you have eyes for Park Tae-yong?" She asked with a murderous smirk.
"What?! What! No! No!" Hwang Bo-young faltered. Her hand holding onto the wine glass shook visibly.
"Good. Park Tae-yong would never be interested in trash like you." Ko Do-eun said and leaned in to whisper into Hwang Bo-young's ear. "Dust are you, and dust shall you return, if you dare to look at him again."
The wine glass in Hwang Bo-young's hand fell to the floor and shattered. Her eyes watered, but no one was looking.
"I... I need to use the bathroom." She said shakily and sprinted away.
"Crazy girl! Thinking she can take him away from Do-eun." Lee So-hee said with mockery as she laughed.
Suddenly, there was commotion at the entrance.
"Ninth Prince?"
"He left the Royal Family and is back?"
"I heard he returned to Capital City, I didn't expect him to come."
"Who is the woman beside him?"
Ko Do-eun who heard the 'Ninth Prince', rushed to the door. She wanted to be the first to get to him. But she paused as soon as she heard remarks about a woman. Woman?
Her eyes followed the path where everyone's eyes were fixed on. She saw Park Tae-yong dressed in an immaculate black suit with diamond cufflinks and black leather shoes. He looked handsome as always. But the figure next to him? Ko Do-eun's eyes narrowed dangerously.
The woman who was walking beside Park Tae-yong was dressed in the Duchess's Nightmare. The Duchess's Nightmare? That dress was very difficult to pull off and could only fit a small group of people. It was made by an international designer, and even she, Ko Do-eun didn't look that good on it. But the woman walking beside Park Tae-yong had the curves, height and size to fit the dress perfectly. She looked like a black panther, ostentatious, confident and predatory, bringing out the full beauty of the dress. Ko Do-eun's eyes ached. Compared to the gentle fairy look she had gone for tonight, the woman completely overshadowed her. The woman was like a panther next to a deer.
Everyone was equally as blown away by Kim Seo-yeon's appearance. Usually, they'd be drawn to the dominant aura that Park Tae-yong exuded, but the woman next to him, wearing the Duchess's Nightmare, exuded an aura that was as cold as ice. It was like looking at a Siberian tiger and a black panther at the same time. They couldn't stop looking at her.
Kim Seo-yeon took in the gazes stuck on her with a calm expression. She was used to being stared at whenever she threw on a dress. Because of her height, a lot of dresses fit her so well, that when she was not on a suit, she could command all the attention without effort.
Ko Do-eun could not stand what she was seeing. Even though Park Tae-yong and the woman weren't holding hands or acting especially loving, it was infuriating to watch. Park Tae-yong did not like women at all. He could even be said to be slightly misogynistic and he was mysophobic on top of that. He would never stand so close to a woman. Neither would he make his first appearance to nobility in a long time with an unknown woman. There was definitely something about that woman and Ko Do-eun's head ached when she thought about it.