Chapter 11
The living room was dim and quiet, night having fully fallen outside.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
"Argh… So noisy…"
Yeonho groaned thickly in his sleep, twisting and turning restlessly against the soft cushions of the sofa.
The phone's alarm blared on and on, shrill and unrelenting, for nearly fifteen minutes straight.
Yeonho buried his face and pressed his ears tight against the pillow, growing more and more annoyed and irritable by the second.
"So tired… but I need to wake up…"
He sat up slowly, limbs heavy and uncoordinated, eyes still half-lidded and hazy with sleep. He dragged a hand over his face, rubbing away the grogginess bit by bit.
'What time is it…? Ugh, I still wanna sleep so badly…'
His arm felt like lead as he reached out for his phone sitting on the coffee table in front of him.
He squinted at the screen — it was already 7:15 PM.
"I slept in. Guess setting the alarm once was completely useless."
It hadn't been enough to wake him at all. He should've set a dozen alarms back-to-back, knowing how exhausted he was.
He sat still for a few moments longer, blinking slowly and glancing around the room, his vision still blurry and unfocused as he tried to ground himself.
Then it clicked.
"Right… I'm in Gyeongjae's hotel."
Even though his whole body felt heavy and drained, he forced himself to stand up. Stretching his arms high above his head and yawning deeply a few times.
He took slow, steady breaths, letting himself relax until the worst of the fatigue faded from his bones.
"Now what…?"
He asked quietly to himself, brows furrowed slightly.
He knew where he was, but for a second he couldn't quite remember what came next.
Even being right in the territory of one of the male leads didn't immediately spark his next move.
Maybe the lack of sleep and exhaustion were still clouding his mind. But there was no time to rest. He needed to act, to keep pushing his plan forward.
Once his thoughts finally cleared, he leaned forward and pulled his designer bag closer from the table, still sitting comfortably on the fluffy sofa.
He took out the small leather-bound journal that held every single piece of information and detail about the novel, every event, every character, every twist he'd memorised and planned around.
"Now let's see… I remember there are four events that happen before my birthday comes around."
He flipped through the pages carefully, scanning the notes he'd written, until he stopped on the right page.
"Here it is. Tonight… it's all about Hana."
Of course. It always came back to her sooner or later — she was the female lead, the centre of everything in this story.
He'd been hoping to run into one of the male leads first, not her. He rolled his eyes, annoyed, but kept reading through the details anyway.
At exactly 8:30 PM tonight, Choi Hana was scheduled to meet her secretary at an exclusive private restaurant, to discuss both business matters and personal affairs.
On the surface, it looked like a normal meeting but it would quickly turn messy.
An ex-girlfriend of one of the male leads would show up and attack her, consumed by jealousy and rage, because the man had broken up with her specifically for Hana's sake.
"I guess I'm not the only one who hates her guts. Haha."
He laughed softly, leaning back against the sofa again to get more comfortable, a sharp, amused smirk tugging at his lips.
'Since she's meeting her secretary, I have to be extra careful.'
From what he knew, Hana's secretary was incredibly sharp, observant and perceptive. One of her most loyal supporters, and someone practically closer to her than anyone else.
If anyone would notice something off or suspicious, it would be him. He needed precautions, a solid backup plan, every detail thought through.
He didn't want to waste any more time. He glanced at his phone again — it was already 7:25 PM.
"Time to get ready."
Yeonho stood up quickly, moving straight to one of his large luggage bags full of clothes and belongings.
He took a fifteen-minute shower to wake himself up fully, then got dressed in his full disguise.
Yeonho kept it simple and elegant. A crisp white long-sleeve shirt, well-tailored black trousers, clean and sharp.
He looked refined, classy, but completely ordinary, nothing that would make anyone remember him or look twice.
He packed his phone and his journal safely into his bag, then slipped in a small silver USB drive.
It wasn't just any ordinary USB. It was something he'd prepared ahead of time, and he was absolutely certain it would come in handy later tonight.
Once he had everything he needed, he checked the time again — exactly 8:00 PM.
Yeonho took one last look at his reflection in the large mirror leaning against the living room wall.
Dark hair, different features, no trace of the blonde, striking Choi Yeonho everyone knew. He was completely unrecognisable.
Satisfied, he slipped on a pair of sleek black dress shoes and stepped out of his suite.
As he walked down the long, quiet hallway toward the elevators, he repeated the name and location of the private restaurant in his head, over and over.
It wasn't far so he still had plenty of time.
Strange emotions swirled in his chest as he went.
He couldn't quite tell what he felt, excitement, irritation, anticipation…
Tonight would be the very first time he came face-to-face with Choi Hana, the sister who had everything while he was left with nothing.
'This is my first real mission. I can handle this easily."
He clutched the strap of his bag tight, determination hardening in his eyes. The elevator doors slid open, and he stepped inside.
This was it — his first proper move in this story. He had to be careful, calculate every step, and make sure nothing went the way the novel had written it.
This was his life now, and he was the one writing the story this time.
He walked through the grand main lobby, heads turning here and there as people glanced his way.
But it wasn't like it had been back in Russia — there was no open awe, no stares of disbelief or admiration.
Right now, hidden behind his disguise, he looked like just another wealthy guest. He wasn't the doll-like, pale, breathtakingly beautiful Choi Yeonho anymore.
He ignored every pair of eyes on him, stepped out onto the street, and hailed a taxi. He showed the driver the restaurant's exact address, and sat back.
Thankfully, traffic was light, arriving in only five minutes. Yeonho handed the driver extra cash as thanks, and stepped out onto the pavement, standing right outside the restaurant.