A child who looks like me

Jihun answered as if it were obvious.
“Isn’t it Lee Jung-oh?”

“What?”

Wow. Jihun is such a fool.

He doesn’t seem like it; he often appears smart when working, but when it’s just the two of them, he seems surprisingly simple-minded.

“Why would I be a gift? I’m a person.”

His eyes, meeting a challenging task, slowly became vacant.

No, Lee Jung-oh is the most precious and gift-like person in my life…

Jihun couldn’t even guess what she was trying to give him as a gift. He also had the desire to decide the gift on his own terms.

“But you said it was an amazing gift.”

Aside from Lee Jung-oh, what could possibly be so great?

If it’s not you, there’s nothing I need right now.

“It is an amazing gift.”

“What is it?”

Jihun asked grumpily, not really curious about a gift that wasn’t Lee Jung-oh.

Jung-oh leaned in deeply, rummaging through her bag. Her hand stopped inside the bag. She had found the gift.

Seeing her expression, bright and cheerful as if she were the one receiving a gift, made him curious about something he hadn’t cared about before.

What could it be?

“Ta-da.”

Jung-oh beamed as she held out a photo right in front of him. Jihun took the photo from her.

So this is it.

A photo taken seven years ago at the restaurant “The Crown” in Australia.

“We deleted all our photos a long time ago. Thanks to the restaurant owner, I managed to recover one.”

“Ah. Because of this photo…”

A sigh escaped him, but he couldn’t get mad. The two figures captured in the photo looked so friendly, almost like siblings, and they even seemed to resemble each other slightly.

Even after they got off the elevator, he continued to fidget with the photo for a long time before Jung-oh asked,
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like it?”

“No.”

“…?”

“I’m just happy to see how happy I look in the photo.”

I smiled like this. I was someone who could smile like this.

In what I thought was a blank past, where there was nothing to remember, there was this brilliant smile living on.

“Back then, you were traveling in Australia, but you canceled all your subsequent plans and rented an apartment to stay in Melbourne until you returned home.”

Jihun nodded quietly. He had once looked through records of his trip to Australia seven years ago. Melbourne seemed to be his last destination, but the records showed only a three-day stay at a hotel there, which had puzzled him.

For the next three weeks, there was no record of where he stayed, which had intrigued him.

He guessed he didn’t remember it, but he could guess the reason.

You probably didn’t want to part with me. You must have canceled your plans because you wanted to spend more time together.

Maybe I also fell for you at first sight back then.

As Jihun was lost in thought, Jung-oh handed him another gift.

“And, looking at this will make you even happier.”

It was a real gift that she had longed to give him for a long time.

“I brought Yeona’s history.”

It was a USB memory stick containing photos of Yeona.

Jung-oh and Jihun sat on the living room sofa, flipping through Yeona’s photos on the large TV screen. Jung-oh had organized the photos well, allowing Jihun to see Yeona’s growth over time.

Although Jung-oh had seen these photos dozens of times, for Jihun, it was his first time, and it took a long time for him to go through each picture. Jung-oh wondered if they would be able to see all the photos today.

Even the awkward photo of a newborn baby that looked like a red sweet potato was captivating for Jihun.

There were not only photos but also many videos. Yeona crying, Yeona laughing, Yeona babbling, Yeona flipping over… All the adorable moments of Yeona held Jihun’s attention, not letting go.

When Yeona smiled, Jihun smiled too, and when she cried, he felt like he would cry as well. No, it felt like tears would flow at every moment. Before he knew it, tears were welling up in his eyes, making his vision blurry. He pulled a tissue close to him.

“Yeona received so much love. Her mom spoiled her a lot in your place.”

As Jung-oh flipped through a photo of Yeona with a lady from a restaurant in Gunsan, she said,
“The restaurant ladies all doted on her like their own granddaughter. Whenever she cried, they would all take turns holding and playing with her. That’s why our Yeona learned to talk quickly and is so charming.”

Mrs. Lee had told Jihun not to hate himself or to blame himself, but it was undeniably regretful to have missed all those beautiful moments. If only she could, she would love to hug Yeona tightly right there in the photo.

But imagining a cuter and more beautiful child outside the photo…

She couldn’t help but feel tears streaming down her face.

In the midst of it all, the photo suddenly stopped.

“Oh? Didn’t you bring all the photos?”

Jung-oh leaned forward to closely check the folders on the USB. Then, she let out a deep sigh. There had been a mistake.

“I left my seat in the middle of transferring the files. I think the computer froze. I’ll bring it again. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. If you had brought everything, I wouldn’t have slept for days. Let’s look at the ones we’ve already seen.”

At Jihun’s suggestion, Jung-oh replayed the photo files. However, this time, instead of the initial photo, a new one appeared. A few photos were stored outside the folder. They were ultrasound photos of Yeona during her time in the womb.

“Oh, this is a photo of our Yeona when she was still in my belly.”

Jung-oh went to the hospital after 15 weeks of pregnancy. She had felt scared being alone, so she had only started preparing after telling her mother.

To Jung-oh, it felt like yesterday when she first met Yeona six years ago, a moment that was still vivid.

Through the 3D ultrasound, she saw Yeona’s image. The baby was bravely building a little world within her mother’s body, moving its tiny limbs. It felt so precious and lovely.

“I’m here, Mom. You’re not alone,” it seemed to whisper. It was the first time Jung-oh had felt the comfort of life. Remembering that moment made her heart swell.

With the fetal image still in his mind, Jihun moved closer to Jung-oh.

“It must have been really hard.”

“…”

“Thank you.”

It wasn’t gratitude toward the adorable Yeona but rather toward Jung-oh.

Jihun, sitting closely and crossing his legs, pulled her waist in closer. His calm and gentle voice seemed to caress her hair as he spoke softly.

Though his voice was gentle, his lips were not so restrained. During a few deep kisses that he couldn’t share in front of Yeona, the less restrained one suddenly touched her lower belly.

As their lips parted, he repeated the same words.
“Thank you, really.”

“Isn’t it strange for someone who’s grateful to have such clumsy hands?”

Jeong-o chuckled as she pointed it out. In the midst of it all, her upper body was sinking down in the direction Jeong-hyun was approaching.

“That’s because you really don’t know how to be bad.”

“……”

“This is a reward.”

Eventually, her head touched the floor. Ji-hun gazed longingly at her slender waist, as if checking the spot where the child had been. Just as his large hand, which wrapped around her flat stomach, was about to move higher.

Suddenly, his phone vibrated loudly. Jeong-o jumped up and dashed to where she had left her bag. Ji-hun didn’t have time to stop her.

“Mom, mom.”

Being in a situation where she had entrusted her young daughter to her mother, Jeong-o couldn’t relax for a moment. In truth, she was always on standby to rush to her daughter Yena at any moment.

“Hello.”

[I’m at work, right?]

He could hear the tired tone of Guk-soon’s voice from the other end.

“Yeah, yeah. Did you meet up with your friends? Where are you sleeping tonight?”

[Yeah, I met up with my friends, and I’m heading home now. Almost there.]

“Seoul? Why?”

[The kid is throwing a fit about not sleeping in Gunsan. She says she can’t leave her mom alone to sleep. I can’t believe it. She doesn’t think about how much trouble Grandma is having. Where did she get this filial piety from?]

Guk-soon lamented as if it was unbelievable. Jeong-o blankly hung up the phone.

“Yena said she’s not sleeping in Gunsan and is coming home. She’s almost here.”

“……I have to go.”

Ji-hun also stood up. The destiny of a parent is to rush to their child when called. Even amid that, he recalled Yena’s cute face, whining that she wanted to go home, and his heart felt warm.

“Let’s hurry.”

Thinking about it made him want to see her even more.

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

Eun-yeob couldn’t hold it in any longer.

Neither Mrs. Jang Yeong-mi nor the driver, Choi, answered the phone. She couldn’t help but suspect that they had blocked her.

The years she had invested in Jeong Ji-hun, the amount she had poured into him—how could all that effort be turned to nothing? Anger towards Jeong-o and Chae Eun-bi surged in her. Eun-yeob couldn’t stay still and went directly to Mrs. Jang Yeong-mi’s residence.

She had a good relationship with the security guard at the entrance, so she had no problem getting inside, but once in the building, they wouldn’t open the door, forcing her to stand there for a long time.

After about ten minutes, it was Mrs. Jang Yeong-mi herself who finally opened the door.

“Hello, mother. How have you been?”

“No need to come in. I’ll go out.”

Yeong-mi responded coldly to Eun-yeob, who greeted her politely, unlike before.

Once outside, Yeong-mi crossed her arms and asked,

“What brings you here?”

“I tried calling about the real estate issue, but since I couldn’t reach you, I came to check in.”

Hearing such a polite answer made her heart waver. However, a word from her son made it impossible to let her guard down. Yeong-mi ended up expressing her feelings of resentment toward Eun-yeob.

“Let me ask you one thing. Did you really tamper with the paternity test results?”

“What are you talking about, mother?”

Eun-yeob had a genuinely clueless expression. If Eun-yeob was indeed unaware, then mentioning the “paternity test” could spark anger in this situation.

“Please be specific, mother. I need to know what you’re talking about to respond appropriately.”

Yeong-mi became flustered by Eun-yeob’s probing.

“A paternity test? Does that mean Ji-hun isn’t the biological son of Chairman Jeong?”

“What nonsense!”

“Then, has a hidden child of yours suddenly appeared? Or maybe Ji-hun’s hidden child?”

“……Enough. Just go. If our Ji-hun finds out, you’ll be in even bigger trouble.”

Yeong-mi waved her hand as if to dismiss the conversation with Eun-yeob.

Eun-yeob’s eyes were filled with tension.

Ji-hun knows everything, huh?

Indeed, both Jeong-o and Ji-hun were in the know.

In that case……

“Mother, I know what you’ve done.”

Eun-yeob had no choice but to employ other tactics.

“Seven years ago, you even involved a voice actor to cut off the relationship between Jeong-o and Ji-hun.”

“……”

“I didn’t want to know about this, but that voice actor is a friend of mine, so I happened to find out.”

Eun-yeob clearly noticed Yeong-mi’s eyes widen in surprise. She had regained her advantageous position.

Eun-yeob nodded as if she understood Yeong-mi’s feelings.

“I understand. Someone like Jeong-o would only be a disgrace to the family.”

“……”

“And now, that very Jeong-o has attached herself to Ji-hun, causing him to break up with Eun-bi. Ji-hun and Eun-bi looked so good together. Eun-bi treated you so well, too.”

In situations like this, a preemptive strike is always advantageous. They needed to finish things quietly before Jeong-o could bring back the paternity test results.

“Oh, Jeong-o was an unwed mother, right? Is the paternity test somehow related to her? Is she claiming to be raising Ji-hun’s biological child? If that’s the case, she’ll somehow manage to manipulate the paternity test results and bring them back to you. She’ll keep doing it until you believe her.”

Yeong-mi’s tightly clenched fist trembled.

“Mother and Ji-hun could end up raising a cuckoo’s chick for the rest of their lives.”

Eun-yeob’s bold assertion left Yeong-mi confused about what was true and what was false.