AOA 13

After the officiant, the exchange of rings, and the reading of the marriage declaration, the banquet followed. After changing clothes, I went around greeting important elders from both families.

I simply smiled and let it pass when my biological father and stepmother laughed and acted like loving parents. The same went for Jeong Guhyeon, who looked like he’d just chewed shit.

“This is Chairman Guhyeong of Guhyeong Steel. He’s your great-uncle.”

My biological father was eager to introduce the family relatives to Baek Mugyeong. He was an only child with no siblings, but my grandfather had three sisters, all of whom were omegas who married into wealthy families and gave birth to many alpha sons.

Those women, whom I should call grandaunts, were the real support behind my biological father. As they grew old and gradually retreated from power, he had grown anxious and sought me out, to sell me off for a high price. That was how he’d gotten lucky and managed to latch on to Daesong Group.

Before my regression, I hadn’t fully understood these power dynamics, but with my second life, I could clearly see my biological father’s greed, which gave me some room to breathe.

As I was trying to gauge relationships and enjoy my second wedding in my own way, I hit my limit.

On the way to change into my third outfit, I suddenly felt dizzy. It felt like the sky and earth were flipping. I knew I’d be in real trouble if I collapsed here, so I tightly grabbed Baek Mugyeong’s arm, who was walking beside me, and leaned on him.

“Mr. Jeong Minchae?”

“Just a moment.”

I staggered briefly but managed to stay on my feet. Thankfully, we were on the outskirts of the hall, so no one noticed. But I truly wasn’t feeling well. This hadn’t happened before the return, and I couldn’t understand why it was happening now.

Nausea followed the dizziness. I was gasping for breath, trying to steady myself, when Baek Mugyeong suddenly wrapped his arm around my back.

There wasn’t even time to be confused. He practically dragged me into the waiting room, his arm firmly holding me in place. By the time I regained my senses, I was already sitting in a chair.

Baek Mugyeong, still holding me to keep me from collapsing, told the assistant to bring water. I stared blankly at my gloved hands resting on my knees, slowly recalling what had just happened.

From the moment we passed through the door to when I sat down in the chair, there was a few seconds of blackout. Even if I had collapsed, the banquet wouldn’t have completely fallen apart, but it was definitely better to have avoided such a scene like this.

“Are you conscious now?”

“Uh… yes. I’m okay.”

“…Drink some water first.”

I took the cup brought by the assistant and drank it, just as Baek Mugyeong suggested. While I was drinking, he removed the hand he’d had on my shoulder and stepped back a few paces.

“Thank you.”

I thanked him first after finishing the water. If he hadn’t caught me, I would’ve truly collapsed.

“What caused it so suddenly?”

“Um, maybe because I haven’t eaten anything today? I had just one banana this morning…”

During the last wedding, I’d eaten a sandwich for breakfast but got so nervous that I ended up with indigestion. It hadn’t been severe, but I still had to take several digestive pills during the ceremony.

This time, to be safe, I only took a few bites of banana. Even at the wedding hall, I’d only had water. Honestly, I’d been so busy and flustered, I hadn’t even realized I was hungry.

I thought I could last until the end of the banquet, but that was just bravado. Without food, I had no strength.

I asked the assistant for a soda. I wasn’t in the state of mind to eat anything solid, but if I at least got some sugar in my system, I might make it through the banquet.

This time, I received a cup filled with cola. The sweetness in my mouth definitely helped.

“Why didn’t you eat anything?”

“I thought I’d get indigestion. When I get nervous, my digestion shuts down.”

I wasn’t naturally this sensitive. I used to eat well and sleep well anywhere. But after my parents died and my younger sibling fell ill, I began losing sleep over all sorts of worries.

After meeting my biological father, my health took a serious downturn. Nothing tasted good, and I got indigestion whenever I was stressed. I couldn’t sleep deeply, and I lost quite a bit of weight.

Even during the time when I was half out of my mind due to the side effects of the drugs, it had been similar, though I hadn’t realized the stress at the time.

Now it had gotten even worse. I knew I needed to eat to survive, but my body wouldn’t accept it. My quality of sleep had plummeted, too.

Ever since I realized the moment I fell asleep felt like the moment I died, I couldn’t fall asleep easily. More accurately, I resisted sleep as long as I could.

When I finally did sleep, I had nightmares half the time. I’d dream of being chased, or of Jeong Guhyeon appearing and trying to kill me.

The day after the matchmaking meeting, Baek Mugyeong had turned the house upside down once. After my biological father harshly scolded him, Jeong Guhyeon started cursing and avoiding me. But that didn’t mean I never saw him. Whenever we ran into each other in the house, my heart would pound and I’d break into a cold sweat.

Still, I chose to think positively. This was all because I no longer had the drug’s side effects, I was in my right mind now. And after the wedding, I wouldn’t have to see my biological father, stepmother, or Jeong Guhyeon often, so things would get better.

“I recommend counseling.”

“Counseling?”

The sudden word made me ask reflexively. When I looked up at him, Baek Mugyeong met my eyes.

“There will be many stressful situations ahead.”

“Ah… yes, understood.”

As the grandson expected to inherit from the Chairman of Daesong Group and the Executive Director of DS Motors, Baek Mugyeong often attended official events. Occasionally, he’d have to bring his spouse. Family events were the same,,birthdays, ancestral rites, holidays, none of which he could skip.

Before the return, I’d constantly suffered indigestion at those events. I’d been in such a broken state that I couldn’t even think about what I should or shouldn’t eat.

Since he was the one who brought it up, I figured Baek Mugyeong wouldn’t think it strange if I started going to counseling. But I couldn’t help wondering why he was suddenly being so kind. Before the return, Baek Mugyeong hadn’t cared one bit about what I did. Maybe it was because we barely saw each other even while living under the same roof.

I was curious but quickly let the thought go. The ceremony was still underway, and the banquet wasn’t over yet. I still had to change clothes one more time and keep up the act of the happy groom.

I thanked Baek Mugyeong once more and returned to my waiting room. The assistants quickly swarmed around me.

I popped a candy into my mouth, changed clothes, got my hair fixed, and had my makeup touched up. Since I’d already started this performance, I had to see it through to the end.

The wedding ended without any major incidents. One of Baek Mugyeong’s drunken relatives almost caused a scene at the banquet, but they were quietly removed before it escalated. Only a few people even noticed.

Before the banquet ended, I left the hall with Baek Mugyeong. After changing into comfortable clothes, we headed straight for the airport.

As with the previous wedding, I had followed the wedding planner’s recommendations for everything this time too, even the honeymoon destination.

Before the regression, we’d gone to Cebu for our honeymoon. As soon as we arrived at the hotel, Baek Mugyeong had told me not to bother him and booked a separate room.

I’d been so nervous about whether we might have to have sex that I hadn’t slept at all on the plane. As soon as we arrived, I collapsed into bed and didn’t wake up for a whole day. After that, I finally relaxed and enjoyed my first trip abroad.

The weather in Cebu during the fourth week of November was perfect. I didn’t step outside the villa even once during the six-day, five-night trip. It was even better that I never ran into Baek Mugyeong.

Since I’d already experienced it once, there was no reason to change the honeymoon destination. As I boarded the evening flight to Cebu, my heart felt much lighter than before.

I fell asleep as soon as I got on the plane, woke up once for an in-flight meal, then pulled the blanket back over myself. I’d slept poorly the night before, so I slept deeply and soundly. I didn’t even have any nightmares.

I only woke when the announcement said we’d be landing soon. I forced my eyes open and sat up.

Baek Mugyeong was sitting beside me, reading a book. The book was The Analects. Before the return, I remembered him reading original English-language books, so I found it strange he was reading that now, but then again, many things had changed.

Still, it was my first time seeing someone actually reading The Analects, so I was slightly impressed. Honestly, as someone who doesn’t read much, I admired people who consistently made time to read.

“You’re awake?”

“Yes.”

Noticing I was looking at him, Baek Mugyeong turned his gaze toward me. I rubbed my face and folded up the blanket. A chill crept over the back of my neck. It didn’t feel like something that could be brushed off as post-nap grogginess.

Worried, I dug through my crossbody bag for cold medicine. I’d asked the wedding assistant to pack some for me, including fever reducers and painkillers, because I hadn’t been feeling well. This was my rare chance to rest, and there was no way I was going to end up bedridden.

“What are you taking?”

“Cold medicine.”

I answered after taking two pills with some water.

“You caught a cold?”

“I feel one coming on, so I’m being cautious. I’d hate to get sick in Cebu, it would be such a waste.”