The One My Heart Craves

Song Min-ah POV

Rain pounded against the windows of Seoul's most exclusive apartment complex as I stepped out of my chauffeur-driven car, waving off the doorman's attempt to shield me with an umbrella. The water soaked through my designer clothes, but I barely noticed. After twenty hours of travel from Beverly Hills, all I wanted was to fall into my boyfriend's arms and sleep for days.

Five years. We'd been together five years, since I was seventeen and he was twenty. I'd left for America three years ago with my father and brother to expand Lumière Cosmetics' international presence, finishing my business degree while working remotely for the family company. Now at twenty-two, I was back in Seoul, officially to start as an intern and learn the ropes of our Korean operations, but unofficially to finally reunite with the man I loved.

Or so I thought.

"Welcome back, Miss Song," the concierge greeted me with a bow. "Shall I announce your arrival to Mr. Lee?"

I smiled, my dimples appearing despite my exhaustion. "No need. I want to surprise him."

My hazel eyes sparkled with anticipation as I rode the private elevator to the penthouse. I'd planned this homecoming meticulously, arranging with my father to transfer to the Seoul headquarters as an intern, all to reunite with the man I'd loved since high school.

The elevator opened directly into the penthouse foyer. I punched in the security code, his birthday, and stepped inside, designer luggage trailing behind me. The lights were dimmed, but music played softly from the bedroom.

"Jiho-ya?" I called out, slipping off my rain-soaked Louboutins. "I'm home!"

No answer.

I frowned, checking my watch. Only 9 PM; he shouldn't be asleep yet. Perhaps he was in the shower?

I padded down the hallway, leaving wet footprints on the marble floor. As I approached the bedroom, a sound made my blood freeze, a woman's laugh, followed by a deeper, masculine chuckle I knew intimately.

My hand trembled as I pushed open the door.

The scene before me etched itself permanently into my memory: tangled sheets, discarded champagne glasses, and my boyfriend of five years with another woman in our bed.

"Surprise," I said, my voice eerily calm despite the hurricane raging inside my chest.

Lee Jiho jerked upright, his face draining of color. "Min-ah? What, you're not supposed to be back until next week!"

The woman beside him, stunning, with perfect features and a cascade of black hair, didn't even bother to cover herself. Instead, she assessed me with cool appraisal, as if I were the intruder.

"So this is the famous Song Min-ah," the woman drawled, her tone dripping with condescension. "I was beginning to think you were a figment of Jiho's imagination."

I ignored her, focusing on the twenty-five-year-old man I'd given five years of my life to. "How long?" I asked, still unnaturally composed.

Jiho scrambled out of bed, hastily wrapping a sheet around his waist. "Baby, it's not what it looks like."

"How. Long." Each word was a shard of ice.

"Eight months," the woman supplied helpfully, stretching like a satisfied cat. "Though he only moved in three months ago. Right after your last visit, I believe."

The betrayal hit me like a physical blow. Three months ago, I'd flown to Seoul for a weekend, and Jiho had proposed with a massive diamond ring, the same ring that now glinted on my finger, suddenly feeling like it weighed a thousand pounds.

"You're lying," I whispered, though the truth was written all over Jiho's guilty face.

"Min-ah, please, let me explain," Jiho pleaded, reaching for me.

I stepped back, my designer dress still dripping rainwater onto the imported hardwood floors. floors I had helped select when we furnished this penthouse together.

"Explain what, exactly?" I asked, my voice rising with each word. "Explain how you proposed to me while she was waiting in the wings? Explain how you told me you loved me every single day while sleeping with her in our bed?"

The woman slid out from under the sheets, completely unashamed of her nakedness. I recognized her now, Choi Sera, a rising actress whose face was plastered across Seoul's billboards advertising luxury watches and cars.

"He told me you two were essentially over," Sera commented casually, collecting her scattered clothes. "That you were staying in America permanently. That the engagement was just to please your father."

My composed façade cracked. I whirled on Jiho, my hazel eyes blazing. "Is that true? Our engagement was just for show?"

"No! Of course not!" Jiho insisted, shooting a venomous glare at Sera. "She's lying."

"Am I?" Sera raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. "Show her your phone, then. Show her our messages."

A thick silence fell over the room. Jiho's expression confirmed everything.

I twisted the diamond ring off my finger with trembling hands. Five years of love and trust reduced to ashes in minutes. I hurled the ring at Jiho, striking him squarely in the chest.

"I accepted an internship here for you," I said, my voice breaking. "I convinced my father to let me transfer to Seoul permanently, for you. I even declined a fellowship at Harvard's business school because you said long-distance was killing you."

Jiho blanched. "You... you turned down Harvard? Min-ah, why would you....."

"Because I loved you!" The words exploded from me as tears finally spilled down my cheeks. "Because I thought we were building a life together!"

"We still can," Jiho said desperately, moving toward me. "This was a mistake..."

"A mistake?" I laughed hollowly. "A mistake is forgetting an anniversary. A mistake is burning dinner. Sleeping with another woman for eight months while planning a future with me? That's a choice."

I turned to leave, dignity somehow intact despite my rain-soaked appearance and shattered heart.

"Min-ah, wait!" Jiho lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. "Where will you go? This is your home, too!"

I wrenched my arm away, dimples flashing in a cold smile that didn't reach my eyes.

I walked to the foyer, grabbing only my handbag and leaving the expensive luggage behind. As I reached the door, I turned back one last time.

"By the way, my father knew I was coming home early. Expect his lawyers to contact you about the penthouse. The deed is in my name."