A child who looks like me

When Yeona arrived at the academy, she carefully re-tied her tangled hair. Though her hair was now neatly arranged, Yeona felt unsettled throughout the class.

As usual, Dobin, who was just playing with the Go stones, was met with Yeona’s sudden question.

“If you could have any amount of money you wanted, how much would you want?”

“A thousand won.”

Yeona thought the question would be difficult to answer, but Dobin responded instantly, as if his answer hadn’t gone through any filter.

“Why?”

“If I get more than a thousand won, my mom takes it away.”

His answer made sense, so Yeona nodded quietly.

Why do people keep giving me fifty-thousand won bills? It’s not like I can even keep that much money.

And why don’t I feel good when I get money? If I had money, I could ask Mom to buy the toys I like.

“Why do people keep giving me fifty-thousand won?”

“Fifty thousand? Who gave it to you?”

“A stranger.”

“Then you should tell your mom.”

“Even if I didn’t take it?”

“If it were me, I’d say something. Fifty thousand won is like five thousand one-thousand won bills. That’s a lot of money.”

“It’s not five thousand, it’s fifty.”

Dobin, who was trying to show off, immediately quieted down after Yeona’s correction.

“…Even so, fifty thousand won is a lot of money, so I’d tell.”

Yeona nodded as well.

“Yeah, I should tell.”

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

Eunbi couldn’t even go to work; she was bedridden.

‘That little kid is actually Jung Jiheon’s biological daughter.’

Please, let my brother be wrong. Let it be a lie.

But the more she recalled the past, the more despairing it felt.

From the beginning, Jung Jiheon and Lee Jungoh had always been strange.

Jiheon was obsessed with Jungoh, almost like a beast imprinted with her name in his DNA, and though Jungoh seemed to avoid him, she acted with a certain confidence, as if she had something to rely on. And then—

“Director Jung doesn’t look like my dad but like my ex-boyfriend.”

She had even made that remark in front of both her and Jiheon, hinting to the amnesiac Jiheon.

So that’s what it meant.

‘Lee Jungoh, are you using a child as leverage to get close to Jiheon?’

The realization that all of this was part of Jungoh’s scheme, her carefully crafted plan, sent shivers through Eunbi’s body.

And yet, she couldn’t expose the cunning fox, and it made her feel helpless and frustrated.

While she was crying under the covers, she heard the front door open.

“Still lying around like this?”

Last night, Eunbi had sobbed in this man’s arms. It had been a miserable day—losing her boyfriend, being treated as if she didn’t exist at work, and even getting slapped by her older brother, leaving her feeling utterly alone in the world.

He was the only one she could rely on. When she cried and poured her heart out to him, he comforted her by coming to her house.

In the morning, he made breakfast for her, went to work, and then returned to her apartment in the afternoon.

“Babe, I feel like I’m going to die from exhaustion.”

Eunbi, her eyes swollen from crying, reached her arms out to him, seeking comfort. He walked over and hugged her tightly.

“That child stole everything from me. I have no future anymore. They’ll kick me out of the company. There’s no one left by my side.”

“What are you talking about? I’m here.”

He hugged her close, consoling her with comforting words.

“Everything will work out. In the end, everything will go the way you want.”

Sniffle, sniffle.

“You know they say heaven helps those who help themselves. Times like these, you need to stay strong, okay?”

Sniffle, sniffle.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry.”

As he spoke kindly, she felt strangely stronger, like his words had an oddly calming effect.

Just as she finished wiping her tears, her phone buzzed. It was Eunyeop calling.

“It’s my brother. What should I do?”

“Answer it. Maybe he wants to apologize.”

Knowing about Eunyeop hitting her, he urged her to answer. Eunbi picked up the call, her heart racing.

“Hello.”

[“Why are you answering so late?”]

The tone of his voice made it clear he wasn’t calling to apologize, and her heart sank. She sighed quietly, and Eunyeop continued his questioning.

[“You didn’t go around causing trouble today, did you?”]

“What are you talking about? I couldn’t even go to work.”

[“Well, maybe it’s better you didn’t.”]

The harshness of his words drove her remaining tears away.

[“Listen carefully. You’re better off doing nothing at all. That’s what’s best for you, understand?”]

The one-sided advice abruptly ended as the call was cut off.

Eunbi stared blankly for a moment but quickly regained her senses.

It seemed her brother was preparing something. He sounded extremely certain.

Surely, her brother had a plan.

Thinking about it, Lady Jang was not the kind of person who would ever accept Lee Jungoh. But Lee Yena, on the other hand…

If Eunyeop pulled some strings to tie up custody and guardianship of Yena, preventing Jungoh from getting close…

Somehow, it felt like Eunyeop could pull it off.

“I… I think I can rely on my brother.”

That thought slowly lifted her spirits. She felt grateful that she had taken the call.

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

“Ah, ah, ah.”

Jiheon cleared his throat several times.

“Hello, Mother. Hello, Yeona.”

This was Director Jung’s office, where even the typically arrogant Jiheon was practicing polite greetings to the air.

After several rounds of practice, he stood in front of the mirror, looking himself over. His tense face appeared slightly stern. No matter how much he tried to relax, it wasn’t working.

Knock knock.

“Yes.”

Upon hearing the knock, Jiheon responded, and Seunggyu peeked his face through the crack of the opened door.

Even though Jiheon recognized Seunggyu’s face, he didn’t move away from the mirror.

“What are you doing?”

Seunggyu asked blankly, surprised by Jiheon’s unfamiliar action of staring at himself in the mirror.

With a faint smile that was barely there, Jiheon asked Seunggyu, “How does my expression look?”

“Why are you acting strange? Did someone say you look scary again?”

“No, it’s not that.”

“…”

“I’ll tell you after today.”

“What the….”

Seunggyu muttered softly, a bit disgruntled, as he sat down on the sofa. He actually had something he wanted to talk about too.

“Did you hear? Two days ago, there was a fight in your division.”

“What fight?”

“You didn’t hear?”

“…”

“There was a scuffle in the restroom between Deputy Manager Lee Jeong-oh and Manager Chae Eunbi. They say they heard the sound of Deputy Manager Lee slapping Manager Chae.”

Jiheon’s carefully composed smile faded, and his face hardened. Jeong-oh hadn’t mentioned anything about it.

Two days ago was the day Jiheon learned that Yena was his daughter. That night, he went to see Jeong-oh and spent a long time with her, but she hadn’t said anything about a fight.

Now that he thought about it, just before he asked Jeong-oh about Yena, she had mentioned that she’d had a rough day.

“Did Deputy Manager Lee tell you nothing about it?”

“Not at all. Do you know what happened?”

“Apparently, Manager Chae said something really harsh to Deputy Manager Lee, calling her a single mother as an insult. She also mentioned her mother and her child. The insults were pretty severe. Everyone is shocked, saying they never knew Manager Chae was like that.”

Jiheon clenched his fist tightly below his waist.

“If Deputy Manager Lee didn’t bring it up, don’t act like you know. She must be having a hard time as it is.”

“I’ve already heard about it, so it’s hard to pretend I don’t know.”

“…then don’t say it was me who told you.”

At Seunggyu’s timid request, Jiheon managed a faint smile.

He was thankful to have a friend working at the same company. Without Seunggyu, he would’ve been in the dark, clueless as usual.

“Thanks for telling me.”

“No big deal.”

“And you…”

“Yeah?”

“You really made a good choice marrying her. Do you know that?”

“I do, but I didn’t need to hear it from you.”

“Yeah. Sorry for overstepping.”

“What’s up with you, Director Jiheon? You’re acting strange today.”

At Jiheon’s different expressions and actions, Seunggyu frowned in confusion.

“What’s strange?”

“Is something going on today? You seem like you’re up to something.”

At his question, Jiheon finally gave a brief answer.

“I’m meeting Ms. Lee Jeong-oh’s mother today.”

Seunggyu’s jaw dropped.

“What? That’s so fast!”

“There are reasons for it. I’ll explain after today.”

“Wait….”

“…”

“Is there a baby?”

“…”

“Really? No way!”

Now Seunggyu’s eyes widened as he stared at Jiheon in disbelief.

Technically, there was a child, but how was he supposed to explain it?

“It’s not exactly what you’re thinking.”

“Then what is it?”

“Anyway, I’ll tell you after today.”

“Hey! Do you want to get hurt? You can’t just leave me hanging after saying that! I can’t wait until tomorrow!”

Seunggyu demanded, his face red with excitement, but Jiheon ignored him and left the office first.

After work.

Jeong-oh adjusted her outfit and fixed her makeup in the restroom before stepping out. In her team area, she ran into Eunju, who observed her quietly, as though taking in every detail, and then returned to her seat.

Similarly, Miran, who had been staring at her blankly, finally spoke up as Jeong-oh approached.

“Team Leader, I’ll be leaving early today.”

“Oh, oh, yes, sure, sure.”

Even though she’d been watching intently, Miran was startled when Jeong-oh addressed her. Since the incident in the restroom two days ago, Miran had been spacing out, staring at Jeong-oh, and then being startled whenever she spoke.

“Deputy Manager, I can give you a ride. I’m leaving now too.”

Kihoon wasn’t any less attentive. He seemed to feel sorry for her.

Yesterday morning, he handed her a calming pill, and today he offered her chocolate. When Jeong-oh had to deal with unpleasant tasks, he stepped in to help and encouraged her to stay strong.

It was nice of him, but I hope he doesn’t pity me too much.

If he knew everything, he’d probably feel betrayed instead.

Feeling a bit guilty, Jeong-oh politely declined Kihoon’s offer.

“No, it’s alright. I have somewhere I need to go.”

“Where? I can drop you off there too.”

“No, really, it’s fine. I’ll go alone.”

From her seat, Go Eunju let out a quiet, knowing chuckle. She seemed to understand everything.

Since the restroom incident two days ago, Eunju was the only one who hadn’t changed her attitude. She handed Jeong-oh the recording of Chae Eunbi’s vile words with her usual demeanor.

By now, Jeong-oh appreciated Eunju’s mix of cynicism and loyalty.

If only she didn’t have that mysterious smile, like she knew something no one else did.

“Anyway, thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll be leaving now.”

With a quick goodbye, Jeong-oh rushed outside.

Across the street from the company, Jiheon was waiting.

Spotting his car, she quickly ran over and hopped in.

“No one saw, right?”

“No one.”

Jiheon answered calmly, watching her exaggerated nodding.

A sweet, tangy scent filled the car. When she turned her head toward the source of the scent, she found the back seat filled with items.

There was a large bouquet of flowers and an even larger basket of fruits. The fruit basket was so big that it could practically fit Yena inside. Jeong-oh’s mouth dropped open.

“Why did you get something that big?”

“You said Yena and your mother like them.”

Feeling a bit guilty, Jeong-oh nodded, and Jiheon asked her.

“Did something happen with Chae Eunbi two days ago?”

“Oh….”

She felt another pang. She didn’t want to tell him, but realizing that hiding it might hurt him even more, Jeong-oh decided to tell him the truth.

“It seems she and her friends went to my mom’s restaurant.”

“…”

As the car began moving, her story continued. Jiheon’s expression remained largely unchanged, but he occasionally turned his head away, sighing deeply.

“Manager Chae didn’t come to work today either. Maybe she’s planning to quit.”

“She probably doesn’t have the face to show. Her true nature has been exposed.”

“Anyway, stay out of it.”

“You want me to stay out of it again?”

“Yes, for now. Let’s just focus on Yena and my mother today.”

Not wanting him to get riled up over Eunbi’s issue, Jeong-oh quickly changed the subject.

“Just in case, don’t get too hurt if my mom says harsh things.”

“…”

“My mom’s been through a lot because of me. But she’s not really that scary.”

This time, Jiheon held his breath. The tension, momentarily forgotten during their conversation about Chae Eunbi, resurfaced. Despite Jeong-oh’s reassurance and reminder to stay calm, his shoulders grew tense.

***

Kuksun was busy the entire time. She had even closed the restaurant early today to come home and prepare a meal, but she’d gotten a little too ambitious and was running short on time.

“Oh dear, what to do? I forgot to pick up the rice cakes. They’ll be here any moment now—how will I manage?”

“Grandma, who’s coming over?”

“Should I ask them to pick them up on their way? Or maybe we’ll just make do with what we have.”

“Grandma, who’s coming over?”

“You’ll see.”

Although she was half-distracted with all the fussing about, Kuksun flashed a warm smile at Yena. Still, Yena felt a bit put out that her grandmother hadn’t given her a straight answer.

She also needed to talk about the fifty thousand won, but she knew her grandma probably wouldn’t pay much attention.

Pouting, Yena wandered into the living room and began to think.

Who could this guest be?

She had a feeling it might be that man, but then again, maybe it wouldn’t be.

If she waited a little longer, she’d find out who the guest was.

She waited quietly for the guest, and before long, she heard the sound of the keypad at the front door. Mom had arrived before the guest. Yena stood up from her seat.

“Princess Yena!”

“Mom…”

But as she was about to run to her mother, she froze in place.

There was someone else behind her mom. Her mom had come home with a guest. And sure enough, it was that man.

Her guess was exactly right, yet oddly, seeing the two of them come into the house together made Yena feel uneasy, even more than she had imagined.

I’m Mom’s partner. I’m her partner.

She felt an unsettling premonition, as if her role as her mom’s partner might be taken away.

Jiheon was the first to greet Yena as she stood there quietly.

“Hi, Yena.”

Every time Jiheon saw Yena, his heart fluttered.

He’d briefly stopped by that morning to see her off to the daycare bus, and now, only a few hours later, she somehow seemed even more adorable.

Suppressing his nervous excitement, Jiheon politely greeted Kuksun, who had come out of the kitchen.

“Good evening, ma’am. I’m Jung Jiheon.”

And just as Kuksun was about to greet him in return…

“Mister, is Grandma your mom?”

Yena, who had been observing closely, looked up at him with wide eyes and asked, her voice assertive.

“Why do you call my grandma ‘Mom’?”