A child who looks like me

Children’s Day, Christmas, and Birthdays.

For children, these days are the most special of the year among 365 days. Among them, a birthday is certainly the most important.

However, to think that this uncle ruined my birthday.

Yena felt an indescribable sense of betrayal as she opened her eyes wide.

“Mom. Change your job.”

Ji-hun felt as if he were suffocating.

I didn’t know! I really didn’t know!

But recalling that day, he had no words to say.

It wasn’t Jung-oh’s fault that she had to work overtime that day; it was the scheme of Deputy Manager Jo. Moreover, Jung-oh had pleaded with Ji-hun multiple times that day.

But when Ji-hun asked her why she wanted to go home early, she didn’t answer. Since she had hidden the existence of their child, she naturally couldn’t respond.

Ji-hun was consumed by unnecessary jealousy and held her back.

Why can’t humans turn back time? If only he could go back to that day and tell her to go home immediately to celebrate their daughter’s birthday.

Ji-hun looked at Jung-oh with an anxious heart. Jung-oh was smiling comfortably as if everything was fine.

Yena was frowning, while her mother was smiling gently, making the situation even more complicated. The two women seemed to be weighing him on a chopping board, deciding how to cook him—this way or that.

Ji-hun couldn’t say anything directly and sent a desperate look to Jung-oh, signaling for her to help him. Reading his eyes, Jung-oh persuaded Yena.

“Yena, Mom can’t quit her job right now. I need to earn money too.”

“Then change jobs before my next birthday.”

However, Yena’s stubbornness was unparalleled.

“Is that so?”

Jung-oh said with a smile to Ji-hun.

It seemed she had no intention of persuading Yena any further. Ji-hun felt her smile was cruel.

My heart is racing.

How did it come to this? I never expected to encounter the resistance of that daughter.

“Yena, wait here. Uncle will go get the car.”

“Mom, let’s just walk.”

Ignoring Ji-hun’s words, Yena tightly grasped her mother’s hand and spoke. Unable to stop Yena, Ji-hun left the car in the parking lot and followed Yena.

“Yena, I made a mistake.”

“Liar. You’ll do it again.”

“No, I won’t. I promise I won’t.”

“Then will you make sure our mom doesn’t have to work overtime?”

“…At least I won’t make her do it. If something happens to Yena, I’ll tell her to go right away.”

“……”

“……Yena, do you want to play Go with me?”

Yena tightly shut her mouth and turned her head away from Ji-hun.

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Children are more difficult than Ijeong-oh. I’ve never had such a long conversation with an angry child, nor have I ever tried to calm one down.

This time, Jung-oh stepped in.

“Yena, Uncle even bought you a present.”

But Yena glared at her mother, ready to return the koala doll hidden in her bag.

Yena’s expression was so serious that Jung-oh swallowed hard.

This level of stubbornness must come from Ji-hun’s genes, right?

Jung-oh quickly changed her approach to calm Yena.

“Uncle didn’t know. If he had known, he would have sent your mom home early. Can’t our Yena understand that? Okay?”

“But Yena only has one seventh birthday.”

Tears welled up in Yena’s eyes.

“Why does Mom only side with Uncle? Mom’s daughter isn’t Uncle; it’s Yena. Why is it only Yena who gets scolded?”

Waaaah!

Overwhelmed with sorrow, Yena started crying again.

Both Jung-oh and Ji-hun were at a loss. Ji-hun stood frozen, unsure of what to do, while Jung-oh reached out to hug Yena.

Even though he’s said to be a genius at Go, at times like this, he’s just a seven-year-old child.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

As his father-in-law and mother-in-law came to visit, Seung-kyu left work early and returned home.

As he opened the front door, Dobin ran out first and hugged Seung-kyu.

“Daddy!”

Yesterday, Dobin was so angry that he seemed to cut ties with his father, yet today his face was completely brightened.

“Did Dobin do well in Go?”

“Yeah!”

“What did you learn today?”

“Go!”

Right. One can’t expect much from a seven-year-old. As long as he’s healthy, that’s all that matters.

A moment later, Jin-seo came out of the kitchen. The house was quieter than expected, so Seung-kyu asked.

“Where are your parents?”

“They went to buy toys with Doyoon.”

Seung-kyu could imagine how much Doyoon had whined to get a toy from his grandparents, and he let out a long sigh. Jin-seo’s expression was still bright.

Jin-seo followed Seung-kyu, who was heading to change clothes. Her face was filled with curiosity.

Seung-kyu figured he understood why Jin-seo looked so happy and opened the conversation.

“You must have seen Ji-hun and Ijeong-oh.”

“Yeah. I saw them. But they’re weird together.”

“Weird? How so?”

“They fit too well together. It’s strange.”

The wife had already sent two people to the wedding venue. Seung-kyu chuckled at Jin-seo’s radiant smile.

“What does it matter if they look good together? Ye-na doesn’t like him.”

“Huh? I think Ye-na likes Ji-heon, though?”

“After he left, Ye-na said she wouldn’t ever see Ji-heon again.”

Seung-kyu shared the latest update. Jin-seo’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Why? What happened?”

“Ji-heon made Assistant Lee Jeong-o work late one day.”

“That’s not unusual.”

“That day was Ye-na’s birthday.”

“Ahhh!”

Jin-seo gasped and clapped her hands. She vividly remembered that day.

“That makes sense. Ye-na cried a lot that day because her mom didn’t come.”

Hearing this made Jin-seo feel sorry for Ji-heon.

“Seriously, why did Ji-heon do that? He should be more careful. You never know how things will turn out or what connections you might make. He should treat people well.”

“Anyway, I’m glad we talked. They can sort it out themselves, and it feels good. It’s surprisingly amusing to see Ji-heon so flustered.”

“See? I told you it was a good idea.”

The couple, who had reconciled in just one day, smiled at each other.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Ye-na’s eyes were red until she entered Guksun Baekban. Guksun rushed over upon seeing her.

“What’s wrong with our puppy? Did your mom scold you?”

“Grandma.”

Recognizing her, Ye-na ran into her grandmother’s arms with a sorrowful face.

After a few pats from Guksun, Ye-na finally calmed down and began to eat.

After closing the shop and washing the dishes, Jeong-o confided in Guksun about what happened that day.

“When Ye-na visited the Dobin family, there was a man she played Go with.”

“Right. That handsome young man.”

“Yes. That young man is our company’s director.”

“Really?”

Guksun’s face lit up momentarily, impressed with how well she had perceived him.

“But why? Why was Ye-na crying?”

“That director made me work late. Ye-na got upset because I made her work late on her birthday.”

“Oh. So that director is that director?”

Only then did Guksun’s expression darken. She snorted and coldly said, “I thought he was polite and handsome. But now I don’t like him. He’s the one making my daughter suffer.”

Jeong-o glanced at Guksun, feeling a sense of foreboding.

Jeong Ji-heon, what now? Before meeting my mother, you’ve already become the villain.

This is why people need to treat others kindly.

“It was for work, so it couldn’t be helped. Anyway, Mom, our Ye-na is a Go prodigy!”

She quickly changed the subject to defend Ji-heon.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

The next day.

Ji-heon called for Jeong-o as soon as he arrived at work.

“Has Ye-na calmed down?”

“Yep.”

Thinking he was looking for documents related to an overseas business trip, Jeong-o brought several things to Ji-heon’s office. Upon hearing his first words, she couldn’t help but laugh.

“Don’t laugh.”

Ji-heon said seriously.

Last night, Ji-heon couldn’t sleep.

The woman who had been stirring his thoughts every night was Lee Jeong-o, but yesterday it was Lee Ye-na.

Ye-na had burst into tears in the street yesterday, and ultimately told him to go away. Ji-heon had no choice but to turn back; he couldn’t keep making the child cry.

He had inadvertently become a man disliked by the daughter of the woman he liked.

He had envisioned an ideal scene where he would become friends with Ye-na, making Jeong-o unable to move an inch, but instead, he found himself wishing he could go back to before he told Ye-na about his feelings.

Jeong-o spoke nonchalantly, as if she were discussing someone else’s story.

“I guess we can’t meet.”

“Don’t say it like that.”

Ji-heon felt uneasy that Jeong-o might just walk away, so he pulled her further inside and made her sit on the sofa.

“I’ll only sit for five minutes before leaving.”

She smiled, as if granting him five minutes of her time. Ji-heon subconsciously checked the time.

Nothing had ever gone his way until now. Even if things didn’t go as he wished, he had lived believing he could just give up. Life had been that easy, but he never expected to yearn so much for what wasn’t going his way.

Jeong-o felt like the perfect fit for him. No, she stimulated him beyond just being a perfect match. His body reacted to her gaze, voice, gestures, and movements, but she had someone more important than him.

He found it absurd to feel jealous of a little girl who looked just like Jeong-o.

“Does Ye-na still tell you to change jobs?”

Jeong-o nodded silently. Ji-heon let out a deep sigh and slumped back against the sofa.

Jeong-o seemed to find delight in discovering Ji-heon’s cute side.

“Our Ye-na is pretty, isn’t she?”

“She is. I’ve never seen such a pretty child. But….”

“She has quite the stubbornness, doesn’t she? I didn’t pass down the stubbornness to her.”

Jeong-o picked up on his unspoken feelings and added to his statement. Ji-heon narrowed his eyes and gave her a stern look.

“If you’re thinking of talking about that guy, you’d better not.”

That guy. There was only one person Ji-heon called that.

Jeong-o’s ex-boyfriend. Ye-na’s biological father.

Jeong-o hid her empty feelings and continued speaking.

If you regain your memories, then maybe it’ll be another new beginning for you.

You’ll have to face a strong fate.

But still, please.

“No matter where you are, or how, even in a barren land where flowers shouldn’t bloom, pretty flowers can still bloom.”

“…….”

“Even if that guy and I were insignificant to each other, something beautiful can still come out of it.”

Remember this. Our Ye-na is so beautiful.

“Don’t you think you’re being a bit too poetic?”

But contrary to her wishes, he only grumbled.

“And stop calling him ‘that guy.’ Call him ‘that jerk.’ He’s not even worth calling a person.”

He didn’t even want to treat someone whose identity he didn’t know like a human being.

We still have a long way to go, Jeong Ji-heon.

When Jeong-o felt disheartened, Ji-heon began to think differently.

If she had a lot she wanted to talk about, if she couldn’t stand not sharing with someone, then it might not be a bad idea for her to pour everything out to him.

“If you want to talk about that jerk, then don’t hold back, just say some bad things.”

He hoped she would vent it all out and completely forget about that jerk.

With a generous heart, Ji-heon made the request.

She burst out laughing.

But he couldn’t understand why she was laughing.

“That jerk.”

Finally, she accepted his advice and began to use the term “that jerk” instead of “that guy.” It felt like her bubbling anger was easing a bit.

“Now that I think about it, it was kind of perverse of me.”

“Crazy jerk. I knew you’d say that.”

“But don’t say things like that. He’s our Ye-na’s dad.”

“If he’s someone who hasn’t shown up until now, then that’s all I need to say.”

He chuckled.

Why does she keep laughing?

Ji-heon felt a little dizzy from her mix of praise and provocation.

“If that jerk shows up, make sure to contact me right away.”

“Why?”

“Why? I need to take care of him.”

“How will you take care of him?”

“I’ll make sure he never shows up again.”

“…….”

“You can smash anything you see, right?”

“Why are you asking me that?”

“I’ll consider it permission.”

“But that guy is strong.”

“I’m stronger.”

Right. Go ahead and fight with him. It should be quite a sight.

He would never suspect that Jeong-o was thinking this.

“Still, I’m grateful. It can’t be helped. He created Ye-na, after all.”

“Other than creating Ye-na, what has that guy done as a father?”

“That’s everything. It’s the most important thing.”

Her calm words filled his heart with a heavy emptiness.

He had filled his heart with one person, yet he felt a void somewhere.

The sorrow of thinking that you are everything to me, but I am just a part of you, that I might end up loving this woman from afar for the rest of my life.

Why am I so helpless against such a harsh woman?

He stepped closer to her and suddenly captured her lovely but annoying lips.

It was a little painful, and a sharp sigh escaped through the gap between them. It felt sweet in his mouth, like swallowing a few spoonfuls of sugar, while his head buzzed.

The desire born from jealousy had a long aftermath, and soon five minutes had passed. No, it had been ten minutes.

“Now I understand a bit.”

He pulled his lips away and looked at her.

“You’re doing this on purpose, right? You knew I would react like this.”

“No. That’s not it.”

She said, her entire face flushed red, her lips glistening.

“That’s not true. I clearly said that if you talk about that guy, I would make you suffer.”

She was confident about that part.