CHAPTER 27

Her biological father was completely different from the vague memories she had of him. There was hardly anything they had in common.

He looked unimaginably strong and healthy, which was unimaginable considering the frail image Siyeon had of him.

“CEO Choi, are you coming to work now?”

“No, if I start work now, when will I get off?”

The employees on their way out from work spotted CEO Choi and jokingly teased him.

“Just go home.”

CEO Choi also laughed and heartily responded to their jokes. As Siyeon silently watched him, her eyes slowly welled up.

“……”

Except for Yoon-soo, all the other employees and part-timers had left, but Siyeon remained standing in the same spot.

CEO Choi absentmindedly looked around and then spotted Siyeon, widening his eyes slightly. His gaze remained fixed on Siyeon, prompting Eunhye to take the opportunity to start explaining quickly.

“Dad, she’s the part-timer I told you about yesterday! The one who mocked me for buying a car with the money I get from them folding boxes. She apologized to me earlier when I said I’ll give her money when she does so. She’s more interested in money than her pride. She’s really something, right?”

Eunhye chattered away as if she had found a reliable ally.

“…A part-timer…?”

CEO Choi finally shifted his gaze away from Siyeon and spoke.

“Yeah, we’re the same age. She asked Yoon-soo-oppa to give her a ride home yesterday. She’s so clingy to people she just met.”

“Eunhye, I told you to speak politely.”

Only then did her daughter’s words seem to register in his ears, and CEO Choi turned his head slightly and spoke with a stern tone.

“She’s speaking rudely, so why should I be polite? And I’m helping her understand her place!”

“Eunhye.”

Eunhye was silenced by his father’s words.

His gaze turned back to Siyeon. Despite Eunhye’s subjective, emotionally charged explanation, the way he looked at her was gentle. Siyeon, who had been maintaining eye contact with him, lowered her head and greeted him.

“Hello, sir.”

“Are you a student?”

“Yes, I’m a freshman now.”

“It’s quite commendable that you’re earning your own pocket money through part-time work.”

“Dad, she’s not earning pocket money; she’s covering her tuition and living expenses all on her own. She lives independently.”

Eunhye intervened in their conversation.

Even though Siyeon hadn’t told Eunhye, she seemed to know a lot about her. Yoon-soo must have explained things to Eunhye. When Siyeon glanced at Yoon-soo, he just shrugged.

“If you’re on your way home, I can drop you off at the nearest station.”

CEO Choi gently offered Siyeon a ride.

“Dad, I don’t want to!”

“Eunhye.”

Eunhye shook CEO Choi’s arm in a panic, and he called her name softly with a stern face.

With a frustrated expression, Eunhye walked away, opened the passenger side door of their car, and got in. She leaned forward with her arms crossed and glared at Siyeon through the window.

“Thank you for your offer, but it’s okay. I’m close by.”

“If it’s because you feel uncomfortable… Yoon-soo, would you mind dropping her off on your way?”

“Yes, sir. I’ll do that.”

When Siyeon politely declined, CEO Choi turned to Yoon-soo and made the request. It seemed like he thought Siyeon was uncomfortable because of his status as the CEO.

“Get in. I’ll drop you off at the subway station.”

“I have a phone call to make while I’m on my way.”

Siyeon declined the offer, citing the need to make a private phone call. She didn’t want to be with someone she didn’t feel comfortable around in such a confined space.

“I’ll see you next week. Goodbye.”

Siyeon bid farewell to CEO Choi and Yoon-soo and walked toward the roadside.

A little later, Yoon-soo’s car and CEO Choi’s car passed by her one after the other. Unlike yesterday, Siyeon didn’t turn her head to the side. She didn’t want to meet Eunhye’s mocking gaze.

As she walked, Siyeon thought about the heavy feeling in her heart, even though she had seen her healthy real father. It was similar to the emotions she had felt when she heard her birth mother’s cheerful voice.

A sense of helplessness or defeat. Siyeon wondered what it must have been like for the parents in Hannam-dong when they heard that she was their biological daughter, not Eunhye.

They had sent off their unruly daughter and received a daughter who was exhausted and overwhelmed by depression in return. In their already difficult lives, did they hope for a daughter who would be by their side but instead ended up with Siyeon?

Siyeon recalled the image of her Hannamdong mother who had been lying in a hospital bed, weakly staring at the door, longing for someone else even when her biological daughter was right beside her.

“…”

She stopped in her tracks and looked up at the slowly receding taillights of the car. It was a lightning bolt of realization that passed through her mind.

Siyeon had been unaware, perhaps deliberately so, of an important truth all along. She had never been a source of joy for them.

***

Siyeon sat in a corner of a small cafe in her neighborhood, sipping her coffee and waiting for Gwihyeon.

Since it was late in the evening, she was the only customer in the cafe. Despite deliberately getting off one subway station earlier and walking, she still had plenty of time until the agreed-upon meeting time with Gwihyeon.

Until now, she had been feeling sorry for her Hannamdong parents, who didn’t know that she was their biological daughter and would continue not to know for several more years. However, after witnessing her biological father’s presence with Eunhye today, Siyeon began to question whether the two of them would truly be happy when the truth was eventually revealed.

In the past, her Ichon-dong parents had emptied their hearts of Siyeon and accepted Eunhye as their own daughter. They didn’t have any bittersweet longing for Siyeon. Perhaps because they thought they could see her anytime, they didn’t bother for her.

But the Hannamdong parents, who had raised Eunhye as their daughter for a long time, couldn’t easily sever their emotional attachment to Siyeon. They longed for Eunhye, who they couldn’t find and didn’t come in their pathetic state.

“Welcome.”

The cheerful sound of wind chimes rang out as the cafe owner warmly greeted the customer. Gwihyeon was entering the cafe.

When Gwihyeon spotted Siyeon and their eyes met, he smiled, and then ordered a drink from the owner.

“Did you come early?”

“Just a little while ago.”

The small cafe had only a few tables, so the space was limited. Gwihyeon, standing in front of the drink pickup counter, and Siyeon, sitting in a corner, could easily have a conversation without raising their voices.

“You suggested meeting in the evening, which was unexpected. Are you busy during the day?”

“It’s because of my part-time job. I only have time in the evening. Are you going back to Suwon at night?”

“No, to a hotel.”

Gwihyeon picked up a teacup on a tray and placed it on the table where Siyeon was seated, then sat down across from her. After taking a sip of tea, he casually crossed his legs and rested his thumb on one thigh.

“Does your grandfather know too?”

“About what?”

“What you heard from my grandmother.”

“What did I hear from her?”

“Let’s be honest. You must have questions for me too.”

Gwihyeon hesitated for a moment, giving Siyeon an inquisitive look, before finally speaking.

“How did you find out? Your grandmother mentioned that it hasn’t been long since she visited a temple’s monk.”

She had expected him to be the first to ask this question. Siyeon laid out a prepared response that mixed a bit of truth and a bit of lie.

“I found out through a monk from the temple that grandmother used to visit for a long time. I haven’t known for very long, just like you.”

“I think it’s been at least three years, though. Isn’t that right?”

He was trying to piece together the fact that Siyeon had known about it already, recalling the small company called Yongjin that she had asked him for a favor.

“Right around that time.”

“To have kept such a massive secret all by yourself…”

“The monk wanted me to keep it a secret for everyone’s sake.”

Gwihyeon held the teacup handle and stared silently into it. He seemed to be pondering Siyeon’s words, trying to speculate various circumstances. However, he couldn’t know if what she said was true or not.

Keeping his gaze fixed on the teacup, he spoke thoughtfully.

“But you wanted to help Yeongjin, didn’t you? Maybe because they were your biological parents. Coincidentally, shortly after we signed a contract with Yeongjin, their biggest client went bankrupt. If we hadn’t signed the contract with them, Yongjin would have collapsed back then too. Your request was truly a stroke of luck.”

“That’s… really fortunate. But their people who have raised that child until now, even though they’re my real parents, so it’s good for them to live well, even for the sake of your real fiancée.”

“Have you actually met Choi Eunhye?”

“Yes, by chance.”

Just now, I met her while coming here. I don’t know if she’s your type, though.

“There’s no way you met her by chance.”

Gwihyeon believed that Siyeon had approached Eunhye intentionally and met her. He didn’t trust her.

“In your opinion, does she resemble your Ichon-dong parents?

“I don’t know her personality well, but she does resemble them in appearance. If you’re curious, why don’t you meet her yourself?”

“I haven’t decided how to start yet. We still have five years, so I’ll take my time to think about it.”

“Did you tell your grandfather?”

Siyeon asked, knowing that he probably hadn’t, but wanting to hear it from him.

“If he knew, do you think it would be this quiet?”

“Why haven’t you told him?”

“Even if I tell him now, it would just stir up trouble, and there’s nothing I can do until the truth comes out. It’s better for him not to know until the facts are revealed, both for him and our relatives.”

He finished speaking and took a sip of his tea. Gwihyeon was still planning to talk to his grandfather. Siyeon couldn’t believe that he was doing it solely out of concern for his grandfather.

“Why didn’t you tell my grandmother that I know?”

“Siyeon, it seems like you’re mistaken. I didn’t side with your grandmother. Strictly speaking, I’m the biggest victim in this absurd melodrama. I’ll play my part when the right time comes, and I’ll marry the real Baekya’s great-granddaughter.”

Gwihyeon’s perspective was quite simple. He intended to stay away from messy conflicts and simply marry Eunhye when there were no issues.