Chapter 2.5

{…Your Mom?}  

“Yeah, Mom.”  

After gazing into the air with a pensive expression, he reopened his photo album and scrolled through it for a long while. Soon, he placed an image of a flower with layers of deep pink petals in front of Su-eon.  

“A rose? Mom resembled a rose?”  

Seon-tae nodded. Su-eon stared silently at the screen. Roses were her second least favorite flower, right after cherry blossoms. The reason was simple: they had too many thorns, were difficult to manage, and were fragile to boot.  

In the summer, roses attracted an unusual number of pests. Their leaves would dry out and become damaged if exposed to too much sunlight, and they would die from poor ventilation if exposed to too much rain.  

Chairwoman Wang had a particular fondness for roses, so every year, Seon-tae propagated various types of roses. However, they were prone to diseases and pests, requiring frequent pruning. Every time Su-eon helped her father during those times, she would inevitably prick her hands on the thorns.  

{Why did you suddenly bring up first loves? Did something happen?}  

“No, it’s just… something funny happened.”  

{Something funny? Was it enjoyable?}  

Hmm, was it enjoyable? 

Su-eon couldn’t answer. Watching her hesitate, her father got up from his seat.  

{Keep eating. I’ll be done soon.}  

“Okay, take your time.”  

Nodding, Su-eon quietly watched her father’s back as he habitually turned the radio volume up a little more. Even with the volume at its maximum, the sound never fully reached his ears.  

The world her father lived in was as deep as a slumbering ocean and as silent as the infinite stillness of the universe.  

Sometimes, Su-eon envied that serene and soundless stillness. The world where nothing needed to be heard, and the peace her father found within it.  

“Dad, why don’t we move out of this house and live somewhere else?”  

Her whisper was carried away silently by the breeze of the fan.  

“Let’s build a hanok in the countryside, and next to it, we can set up a flower farm. Just the two of us, living together. How about that?”

Unable to hear Su-eon’s voice, her father hummed his own little tune while moving his hands. On the radio, a completely different song, <The Life Mara Gave Her Daughter,> was playing.  

<Without hateful, hateful, hateful feelings, only giving love, giving love generously…>

Su-eon sang along to the foreign song, as much as she could remember it. Outside the darkened window, an acacia tree stretched over the wall, swaying in the wind.  

If only she had rejected Assemblywoman Yeo’s proposal more firmly back then, she might now be working at K.U. Electronics instead of the World Hotel. Perhaps Ki Seung-jo would have been her boss then. It was hard to say which would have been better, but at least she wouldn’t be feeling like this.  

She thought of Jung Cho-ah, drunk and unable to forget her first love; Assemblywoman Yeo, who had covered a blanket over the sleeping Jung Cho-ah; and Ki Seung-jo, who had smiled kindly, mistaking her for Jung Cho-ah.  

Memories of choosing the prettiest stationery with a friend and leafing through an old poetry book to write a letter to someone like Ki Seung-jo came back to her in a messy tangle. These fragments, so deeply buried that even their emotional hues were no longer recognizable, shattered chaotically in her chest.  

Su-eon didn’t welcome any of it. Her childhood inevitably reminded her of the things she lacked. It was a time when she was shrunken by countless deficiencies and endured by patching up the resulting wounds like a ragged quilt.  

She felt angry at Jung Cho-ah for carelessly dredging it all up. She disliked Ki Seung-jo for reminding her of that time. But as Jung Cho-ah had said, it was all in the past now. She would never see them again.  

Even if Jung Cho-ah ended up marrying Ki Seung-jo, it had nothing to do with her. If Jung Cho-ah became the daughter-in-law of the K.U. Group, Su-eon wouldn’t need to stay at the World Hotel anymore, which might actually be a good thing. Yes, thinking of it that way made it easier to accept.  

Listening to the sound of leaves swaying in the wind, Su-eon stared at her father’s hunched back for a long time. The pitch-black darkness of Seoul’s night sky, devoid of a single star, hung in the air like the entire world was asleep. 

***

“Uncle, seriously, why are you worrying about the bell? Did you forget what Dad said about losing sight and hearing as we age? Don’t worry, there’s no way we’ll bring in a politician’s daughter as Seung-jo’s wife.”

Yes, I’ll take care of it.

After a few more exchanges in his thick dialect, Chairman Ki handed over the phone. The secretary, who had been standing by, took it with both hands and continued the call. As soon as the secretary left, the desk resounded with a loud bang.

It was because Chairman Ki had slammed his thick, fleshy palm down hard on the desk. The solid wooden desk, carved from a single tree, trembled under the heavy impact. Unlike his daughter Ki Seon-young and her husband, who flinched at the intimidating display, Madam Kim, seated across from him, didn’t show the slightest change in expression.  

“Are you out of your mind?”  

Chairman Ki’s fierce gaze turned toward his wife, Madam Kim.  

“Of all people, why a politician? Are you really planning to ruin this family?”  

Madam Kim stubbornly kept her lips sealed, refusing to answer. It wasn’t because she was afraid of her husband. This was a fight with no resolution from the start. She had been grappling with such futile arguments for over a decade. She chose to respond with a burning silence, leaving him to fume on his own.  

“That’s right, Mom. I don’t like Jung Cho-ah either. A motel owner’s daughter as our family’s daughter-in-law? She’s not even on our level. How am I supposed to call someone like that ‘sister-in-law’?”

Ki Seon-young, who had been nervously gauging her father’s mood, chimed in. Her husband, seated beside her, signaled her to stop, but she ignored him. Who could dare silence the daughter of K.U. Group’s chairman?  

“Compared to her, Seo Yeon-hu from Han Kyung Hotel would be much better. Their corporate ranking is even higher than ours, and she’s the same age as me.”  

In truth, Ki Seon-young simply didn’t want to address a young woman from a small-time family with only a couple of hotels as her sister-in-law.

Madam Kim glared at her daughter with fiery eyes, her disdain evident. Han Kyung? Marrying Seung-jo to the daughter of the Han Kyung Group would be like giving golden boots to someone who already had golden wings.  

With the succession rights already solidified, there was little they could do. Ensuring a perfect marriage was out of the question. That’s why she had chosen Assemblywoman Yeo, a politician despised by the in-laws. A symbol of corrupt power, unrelated to justice or public welfare.

It was to show the Ki family—those who had swooped in and grabbed all the shares after her son’s death—that Seung-jo was willingly stepping into the mud.

Even though only one step had been taken so far, the relentless in-laws had been pressuring Chairman Ki with nonstop phone calls since early evening.  

“For once, Seon-young, you’ve said something right. Seo Yeon-hu is excellent. She has outstanding business acumen and a bold personality.”

Using the excuse of living in the same neighborhood, the eldest sister-in-law (wife of chairman’s brother), who had come early and been watching the spectacle as if it were a firework show, seized the opportunity to interject.  

“Should I act as a bridge? It’d be better if women handle these matters rather than having you talk to Chairman Seo directly.”

Fearing that Chairman Ki might grant permission, Madam Kim quickly intervened.  

“Did you instruct him to do that? Do you want to pick the daughter-in-law yourself? If you’ve handed over your son, you should give up the mother’s seat too. Do you want to play the role of mother-in-law so badly?” 

“Oh my. You’re so twisted. I didn’t bring up Han Kyung; your daughter did. Seon-young, am I wrong?”  

Ki Seon-young, oblivious to the tension, nodded her head.  

“That’s right, I like Seo Yeon-hu. She’s better than someone like Jung Cho-ah….”  

Madam Kim’s eyes widened.  

“Be quiet! This is about your brother’s marriage! Who are you to interfere in matters for the adults?”  

“You’re the one who said he wasn’t my brother….”  

Upset at being scolded, Ki Seon-young muttered under her breath. Madam Kim glared at her daughter, feeling a fiery rage inside. Even stealing requires coordination!  

“Enough, stop it.”  

Chairman Ki, who had been watching them with sharp eyes, waved his hand dismissively. It was just as the chief secretary came in to inform him that Seung-jo had arrived.  

“Stop bickering and all of you leave. I already have too much work and a pounding headache.”  

He asked the chief secretary,  

“That kid must be hungry after wandering around outside. What’s available?”  

“They’ve prepared cold soybean noodles.”  

“Alright, bring it over. Tell them not to add too much ice. It’ll get too watery.”  

Watching her husband fuss over such trivial matters, Madam Kim’s hands trembled with anger. Seeing him pour affection on someone else’s child—a love he had never shown even when their son was alive—stirred a fury even greater than her grief. She was the only one who truly felt the sorrow of a mother who had lost her child. 

“Really, cold soybean noodles? Then I’ll eat some before I leave. You still have some of that white liquor from last time, don’t you?”  

As Ki Seon-young stood up cheerfully, Chairman Ki cut her off.  

“You, go home.”  

“Why, Dad?”  

“If you’re married, you should be independent. Why do you keep hanging around here? Did someone smear honey on the place?”  

“I’m just worried Mom might feel lonely. Imagine if I weren’t here—who would understand her feelings?”  

Ki Seon-young looked at Madam Kim, expecting her support. Madam Kim sighed deeply, as if her daughter’s behavior was suffocating.  

“Tell them to pack some cold soybean noodles for Seon-young. Pack all of mine too, and give them to her. Make sure she doesn’t come back.”  

“Dad, come on!”  

“Son-in-law Yang, you listen carefully. Keep her in check properly.”

When Chairman Ki pointed at his daughter while addressing his son-in-law, the timid-looking man quickly bowed his head.  

“Y-yes, Father-in-law.”  

“One foundation is enough for you two. If you get greedy beyond that, you won’t even get the scraps. Got it?”  

“Dad, isn’t that too much? Telling us to settle for just one foundation—are we beggars?”

Ki Seon-young flared up, protesting indignantly. Her husband, trying to calm her down, gently pulled her out of the room. From inside, the sound of someone clicking their tongue in disapproval could be heard.  

Just as Ki Seon-young was about to confront her husband, who had dragged her out, the sound of someone calmly shuffling in slippers echoed through the hallway.  

Both Ki Seon-young and her husband turned their heads simultaneously.  

Ki Seung-jo appeared, his hair neatly combed back, looking immaculate even at the late hour. His jacket was buttoned all the way up, reflecting his obsessive-compulsive and perfectionist tendencies.