Chapter 2: Not Welcome, Just Here
1149 Words
Welcome home.
The words echoed in Ariella’s ears like the final note of a haunting melody. She had imagined her father’s voice a thousand times growing up—warm, maybe even apologetic. But the man standing before her was ice in human form.
Han Min-jae.
CEO. Billionaire. Her biological father.
He didn’t rush to embrace her. Didn’t ask how she’d been all these years. He just looked at her with the calculating eyes of a man used to power and negotiation.
Not love.
“You look like her,” he finally said, gaze unreadable.
Ariella straightened her back. “My mom.”
“Yes.” His lips barely moved. “Clara was... complicated.”
“She was dying,” Ariella snapped. “And you weren’t there.”
A flicker of something crossed his face. Regret? Guilt? No it disappeared too quickly.
“Come inside,” he said instead.
The woman beside him tall, elegant, intimidating clicked her heels on the marble floor as she turned. “Don’t dawdle. We don’t like outsiders blocking the entryway.”
Ariella didn’t respond, but the word stuck in her chest. Outsider.
So that’s what she was.
---
Inside, the mansion smelled like jasmine and old money. Gold-framed paintings lined the hallway. Fresh orchids sat in tall vases. Every surface gleamed as if the house had been scrubbed top to bottom just for her arrival.
Yet the air felt cold.
“This is Soojin,” Min-jae said as they walked. “My wife.”
Ariella froze.
“You’re married?”
“Yes,” Soojin replied coolly. “For nineteen years.”
Nineteen years. That was almost her entire life.
Which meant...
“You were already with her when you were with my mom.”
Silence.
Ariella let out a short laugh. “Wow. What a guy.”
“I didn’t know Clara was pregnant,” Min-jae said. “She left before I could find out.”
“She left because of you,” Ariella muttered.
Min-jae said nothing.
They entered a sprawling sitting room with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a private garden. Two teens were already seated—one scrolling his phone, the other painting her nails.
“Kids,” Soojin said. “Meet your... sister.”
The boy looked up, bored. The girl stared openly.
“No way,” she said. “She’s... her?”
Min-jae cleared his throat. “This is Jihoon and Hyejin. Your half-siblings.”
Ariella gave a stiff nod. Jihoon barely acknowledged her. Hyejin tilted her head like a cat inspecting a stray dog.
“I thought she’d be prettier,” Hyejin muttered.
“Hyejin,” Soojin warned.
“Well, sorry,” Ariella snapped. “I didn’t have a mansion and personal stylists growing up.”
Hyejin smirked. “Clearly.”
“Enough,” Min-jae said. “Ariella will be staying in the east wing. Mr. Lee will help her settle in.”
The room buzzed with unspoken tension. This wasn’t a homecoming.
It was a hostile takeover.
---
Ariella’s room was bigger than her entire house back in Maple Hollow. Cream-colored walls, a walk-in closet, a bathroom with gold faucets, and a view that stretched all the way to the Seoul skyline.
But it didn’t feel like hers.
She stood at the window, arms folded, when someone knocked on the door.
Mr. Lee entered with a quiet smile. “Your school enrollment is being processed. You’ll be attending Hansung Academy starting next week.”
“School?”
“Top-tier private education. The same one Jihoon and Hyejin attend.”
“Let me guess,” she said, “everyone there is rich, famous, or royally spoiled.”
He didn’t deny it. “You’ll adjust.”
“No. I won’t.”
“There will be security assigned to you. Discreet. For your safety.”
“My safety?” she asked, turning. “From what? My siblings’ death stares?”
Mr. Lee’s smile faded. “Not everything is as it seems, Miss Ariella.”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
But he only bowed. “Rest well. Dinner is at seven.”
---
Dinner was served by silent staff in black suits. The dining table was so long it could seat twenty. Yet only five chairs were filled.
Soojin looked at her wine like it was more interesting than the conversation. Hyejin posted selfies between bites. Jihoon tapped his fork rhythmically against the plate.
Min-jae, at the head of the table, finally spoke. “Tomorrow, there’s a press event. The media has caught wind of your arrival.”
“Great,” Ariella muttered. “Can’t wait to be your scandal.”
“We’ll release a statement. Something about family reconciliation.”
“You mean lies.”
“If you must frame it that way.”
Jihoon looked up, eyes narrowed. “Why now? Why bring her in at all?”
“Because she’s part of this family,” Min-jae said.
Soojin scoffed softly. “Barely.”
“She’s my daughter.”
“Your mistake,” Hyejin corrected.
Ariella slammed her fork down. “You think I asked for this? I didn’t even know about any of you until last week. I lost my mother. I lost my home. I didn’t ask to be dragged into your world.”
Silence fell like a curtain.
Then Jihoon said quietly, “Then maybe you should leave.”
---
Later that night, Ariella stood outside on the balcony, breathing in the cool Seoul air. The stars were dim above the city lights, but they were there silent, watching.
She didn’t belong here. Not in this house. Not in this life.
But she couldn’t go back either.
She was trapped between two worlds one that never wanted her, and one that didn’t even know she existed.
She heard footsteps behind her.
“You really know how to stir things up,” a voice said.
She turned.
A boy leaned against the railing sharp jawline, dark hair, eyes like winter.
He wasn’t one of her siblings.
He wore a school blazer slightly unbuttoned, hands in his pockets like he owned every room he walked into.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“Jae Min,” he said. “Family friend. Business heir. And, according to Hyejin, your worst nightmare.”
Ariella rolled her eyes. “That sounds promising.”
He smirked. “You’re not what I expected.”
“Let me guess. You thought I’d be some gold-digging country girl with wide eyes and no backbone?”
“I thought you’d cry by dinner. You didn’t. Impressive.”
She crossed her arms. “Why are you here?”
“Curiosity. Boredom. Maybe I wanted to see the girl who’s about to turn the Han family upside down.”
Ariella didn’t respond.
He leaned closer, voice low.
“Careful, Ariella. This house has secrets. And now that you’re here, you
might become one of them.”
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