Mr. Lee

21. Ex

Mr. Lee put his hand through his hair, messing up his curls, thinking hard.

He gritted his teeth and looked at you with a dreadful face.

'I can only think of distracting her,' he said, his nose crinkled and his brows furrowed.

'Fuck, I despise that woman,' he almost spat. 'I'm sorry my dear, but you'll have to do this on your own. Mr. Nam never goes back on his promises, even if it's just on a shake. Simply make him promise and you've got him,' Mr. Lee urged.

You hadn't expected this.

Mr. Lee had done extensive research, especially to make sure that Mr. Nam would be single and alone tonight. All factors had indicated that this would be the case, but now...

Now you had to do your sales pitch alone...

'You got this,' Mr. Lee assured you, taking your hand into his and squeezing it lightly.

You took a deep breath and nodded.

Together the two of you walked to Mr. Nam, Miss Kim, and the unfamiliar man.

'Good evening assemblyman Nam,' Mr. Lee spoke cheerfully, a complete contrast to how he had just spoken with you.

'Ah! Mr. Lee! How nice to see you again. I was so happy to hear you were coming,' Mr. Nam said with a booming voice that matched his sizable physique. He bowed to Mr. Lee who did the same.

'And this must be Miss Han,' Mr. Nam said turning to you, smiling his yellow crooked teeth bare.

'Indeed assemblyman Nam,' you spoke politely bowing deeply.

'How lovely to finally meet the daughter of the, erm, of Mr. Han,' he decided, lowering his voice slightly and winking at you. 

'Let me introduce to you both my friend and colleague, Mr. Maeng,' Mr. Nam said gesturing to the other man who gave a curt nod. You could instantly see this was someone who was very uptight. 'And this, this is my lovely girlfriend, Miss Kim Areum,' Mr. Nam introduced the woman next to him by putting his hand on her back. She bowed politely.

What Miss Kim would ever want with Mr. Nam was a mystery to you. He had clearly not been chosen as assemblyman for his looks. She however looked like a cutout from a magazine. And she had to be at least half his age judging by the lack of lines on her face.

'It's an honor meeting you,' Miss Kim said sweetly.

'But of course, you two already know each other,' Mr. Nam said looking from Mr. Lee to Miss Kim.

Mr. Lee smiled politely and Miss Kim batted her eyelashes at him.

'It's a small world. Still don't get why you ever let this treasure slip out of your hands my friend,' Mr. Nam said laughing and slapping Mr. Lee on the shoulder.

'I mean, not that I'm complaining, since it gave me the opportunity to swoop in,' Mr. Nam said sticking out his chest proudly.

Your insides felt like they had turned into ice.

It was obvious to you now.

Miss Kim was Mr. Lee's ex.

It felt like your heart had an elastic band around it, pressing it together, and the air suddenly seemed so much heavier to breathe. 

'How have you been Wookie?' Miss Kim asked Mr. Lee in a sugary tone that made you want to vomit.

Mr. Lee's mouth twitched at the nickname but he composed himself.

'I've been very well thank you,' Mr. Lee said calmly. 'I hope you have been doing well yourself,' he added.

'Better since meeting Mr. Nam,' Miss Kim said sweetly, but she didn't for a second break eye contact with Mr. Lee.

'Mr. Nam, you wouldn't mind if I borrow Miss Kim from you for a moment? After all, we have a lot of catching up to do,' Mr. Lee asked Mr. Nam.

Miss Kim's face instantly lit up. You felt like pulling her hair out of her hair. It was clear to you who had broken up with whom.

'Of course, of course, just make sure to return her to me in one piece,' Mr. Nam joked laughing. He was clearly unaware of Miss Kim's excessive drooling over Mr. Lee.

Mr. Lee bowed to Mr. Nam and took off with Miss Kim.

Your heart ached. You wanted to scream, cry, throw a tantrum like a child. You wanted to push her away from him as she walked far too closely beside him.

But you had to keep it together.

You blinked a few times to ground yourself.

'Where did Mr. Maeng go?' you asked suddenly noticing his absence.

'Hm? Oh that man, he's always slipping away when no one notices. He's like an eel that one. Never could get a grip on him. Very private, very silent. Doesn't make for a good conversational partner anyway,' Mr. Nam waved casually.

'Anyway,' Mr. Nam continued on a far more quiet tone so no one around you could hear it, 'What I would like to know is more about Miss Han. Tell me, what is the heiress of the Buja clan up to these days?' he whispered excitedly.

It was game time.