“Oh, I see. Your reasoning… that was your version of love and protection, right? But then, having a child with a presence that must be hidden for a lifetime? A child who would cry so loudly that everyone outside the annex would hear? It doesn’t make sense at all.”

Thud.

The folded newspaper landed roughly on the table.

“Darling, what exactly are you hoping for? Instead of beating around the bush, just tell me what you want.”

“What exactly are you hoping for? That’s what I wanted to ask.”

Grace also dropped her fork noisily, mimicking the man’s actions.

“What’s your plan?”

Her hand gestured slightly toward her now visibly emerging belly.

“What do you want, really? Do you want to live a normal life like everyone else?”

“I asked the question first. You started the argument because you wanted something.”

She thought he could defend himself like that. Grace hesitated for a moment to choose her words, her face contorted with restrained frustration.

“I don’t want to live like this.”

She looked like she was holding back her anger and made a small cry.

“I still terribly hate how I’ve become like this.”

When she mentioned having his child was terrible, the man’s gaze subtly turned colder.

“But it’s already done, and there’s no turning back. I know that, too.”

“Accepting your situation, it’s late, but it’s a good thought.”

Grace stared at the man with an equally cold gaze and sighed as if resigning herself.

“The child is innocent. Growing up under parents who don’t love each other, do you know how hard that is? Like me…”

The man’s gaze softened slightly as she added her words. His interest piqued.

‘I’ve got his attention now.’

Grace thought as she brought up her personal story to fully capture his interest.

“In reality, our parents didn’t get along very well. They were great as comrades, but as a couple… who knows?”

She didn’t expect to say such things. Grace felt a pang of guilt for a moment but hesitated, and the man urged her on by tapping the table with his fingertips.

“Go on.”

“What I mean is, it’s time to stop these exhausting fights and start thinking wisely about the future.”

“Are you going to stay quietly by my side now?”

“Is that what you want?”

The man nodded slowly. She intentionally let out a deep sigh and then, as if reluctantly, laid out her conditions.

“If you treat me like a human.”

At the obvious statement, the man snorted as if amused.

“Darling, I don’t give cake to dogs. I don’t dress them in silk, and I don’t let them use my bed.”

Grace wanted to retort that this wasn’t what she had in mind when she asked to be treated as a human, but she held back. After all, she hadn’t made a genuine request to be treated like a human.

“Alright. So, if I do as you wish, what will you do for me?”

“If you don’t want to live like this, I’ll let you live as you want. Just stay by my side.”

“I want to live a normal life.”

The man seemed to think that the deal had been struck and nodded as he unfolded his newspaper again.

“Fine, I’ll allow that.”

“How?”

“I have a plan.”

“What is it?”

“You’ll find out when the time comes.”

Grace gazed at him without filtering her disbelief. The man, still looking at the newspaper, narrowed his brow slightly.

“I take full responsibility for what I’ve done. Unlike you, who committed it recklessly and then ran away.”

Grace squinted her eyes and pursed her lips.

“Don’t eat my cake.”

Feigning anger, she reached over to the dessert plate in front of the man.

“Your cake? Who bought it for you?”

The man looked at Grace with puzzled eyes, then chuckled.

“Once again, you dare to stand up in front of this head without fear. It must be worth living these days?”

As he continued to tease her, his lips were curling even higher. When he occasionally chuckled, she pretended to pout and bit into the cake. He was laughing not because the article was funny but because his eyes were more focused on Grace beyond the newspaper.

She waited to empty her plate, and then as if it were a signal, a piece of cake was placed on the empty plate. Grace smirked slightly, thinking that he was already under her spell.

He was hooked already.

Just as she had survived by seducing him with her body, she was sure her revenge plan would work. She had a strong feeling about it.

* * *

“Ha…”

She took a deep breath of the fresh autumn air. Bathed in the warm sunshine, she let out a bright smile.

Thanks to her first walk in almost six months, pretending to be happy like this was enough. No, in fact, she didn’t need to pretend. She was genuinely happy, enough to momentarily forget about the weight in her stomach.

Grace glanced back at the man who followed her leisurely during their stroll through the annex grounds.

“It would have been nice if you had taken me out earlier.”

“It would have been nice if you had listened to me earlier.”

She puffed out her cheeks like a squirrel stuffing its cheeks with acorns, and the corners of the man’s lips curled up slightly. It might have appeared subtle on the surface, though beneath it, there was a much larger impact.

“It’s getting quite chilly now.”

He turned her around and adjusted the collar of her wool coat, making it tighter. The man’s coat was thick and warm, but it was too large for her. The fact that she couldn’t wear it to fit her properly was because she couldn’t button it up.

‘This man, he’s not stingy at all…’

Grace looked at him, who lifted the collar to her neck and got lost in thought. He had bought all the other clothes anew, all from famous boutiques. Spending a fortune on clothes to dress a captive woman.

If so, was this some kind of rich people’s doll play?

Still, she couldn’t understand why he had never bought her a coat. Was it to prevent her from escaping? If she wanted to escape, he should know better than anyone she would, even without any clothes.

Grace stared at the man in front of her, examining him from head to toe.

Sunday.

There was no need for it now, but out of habit from her days in the torture chamber, she guessed what day it was by observing the man’s attire.

During the weekdays, it was a military uniform, and on weekends, it was a stylish suit or a casual polo shirt. The man had never deviated from this formula. Perhaps it was because of the dropping temperature, but today, he was wearing gray wool trousers and a light gray sweater. The white shirt worn under the V-neck sweater had a few buttons undone.

Even with the pajama shirts that had all the buttons fastened, the man looked rather relaxed. It seemed something unusual was going on.

On Sunday mornings, he used to go to church with his family. Such a devil would step into God’s sacred place.

Either God didn’t exist, or if He did, He was on the side of the rich.

Perhaps for this man, the church was not a place to serve God but a social gathering. Then, he would return home before lunch and spend Sunday afternoons with his family, playing the role of a perfect family man.

When he let go of her collar, she turned around. As she tried to take a step along the path, he grabbed her again. The man standing behind her chuckled to himself and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“I guess you had a secret rendezvous on a pile of fallen leaves.”

What he extended over her shoulder was a maple leaf, once red but now turning yellow.

Did it fall from there? What kind of tree was it?

She held the leaf in her hand and looked up at the tall tree behind the stone wall. Suddenly, she felt a firm body pressing against her back.

The man embraced Grace and began to caress her stomach. Her stomach had grown quite noticeably. She always wore loose clothing, so it wasn’t usually noticeable, but if the clothes were pressed with his hands like this, it was quite obvious.

The man would touch her stomach whenever he got a chance. As her stomach grew, so did the discomfort, but Grace didn’t resist his touch.

Lately, she had been pretending to be resigned quite convincingly so the man has changed. It had been a long time since he played any cruel tricks. He hadn’t even demanded her body for several months. It was as if he genuinely cared about the child and her well-being.

Funny as it may sound, he had become quite gentle. Even when Grace succumbed to her cravings and snacked in bed every night, he didn’t say a word.

This man with his severe mysophobia.

But the surprising part was that it didn’t stop there.

Yesterday afternoon, a doctor came for a regular check-up. Since she was entering a stable period, the doctor advised her to enjoy the sunshine and take walks more often. Grace thought he would casually dismiss the advice, yet he actually took her for a walk.

Yes, let your guard down like this, little by little. In the space that has become loose, I will slip in.

I will take up a big place in your heart, and after I disappear, there will be only a huge hole left. From that lifelong, unhealed wound, you will bleed.

“What are you thinking about?”

The man suddenly whispered in her ear.

__