SIDE STORY (PART 6)

The more she raised Eunho, the more she missed her mom, who had passed away. Her mother must have felt the same. Wanting to give even a little more, show a beautiful world, and do everything for her child.

And as these thoughts deepened, she found it harder to understand her father. He was truly a flawed person.

– Mom will wait for Eunho next time, right?

“Of course, Mom is always waiting for you to meet Eunho.”

Eunho chuckled. His clear voice flowing into her ears helped alleviate her fatigue.

• Mommy, I miss you so much, but I also like Grandma and Grandpa, so I’ll sleep there for a day.

Whether he matured early or it was due to his naturally bright personality, Eunho rarely threw tantrums.

“Then, Mommy will come to pick up Eunho with Daddy tomorrow. You have to listen well, okay?”

• Yes. I love you, Mommy! Kiss, kiss.”

“Mommy loves Eunho too.”

Yeonseo kissed her phone repeatedly. Even after the call ended, her smile didn’t easily fade.

She couldn’t wait to finish her work and go see Eunho, to be comforted by Taeheon’s arms, which would give her a pat on the back for her hard work today.

She stretched her knees and pushed herself up from her seat on the stairs. She straightened her slacks and water-colored blouse and headed back to the event hall.

*

Welcoming the continuously arriving guests made it challenging to collect her thoughts. Just before issuing the invitations, she wondered if everyone would really come, but more guests arrived than she had imagined.

Surprisingly, politicians and upper-class figures who were not sent invitations by them showed up, which caught everyone off guard. They came holding invitations issued by Sewon Motors.

It didn’t take long for Yeonseo to understand the situation. It must have been invitations sent by Taeheon. His sudden offer of help was both disconcerting and incredibly grateful.

Why did I think Taeheon could only help me by oppressing and hurting someone? 

Yeonseo felt bitter as she realized the prejudice she’d held against him.

I should have told everything from the beginning. I should have leaned on him sooner. From now on, it has to be like that.

Her shoulders slumped as she realized she hadn’t fully trusted Taeheon. But there was no time to wallow in regret.

The food was running out, so she hastily placed an extra order and added a few more table settings. As she continued to attend to the guests, time passed in the blink of an eye.

As the event was nearing its end, the center director called Yeonseo. With an uneasy feeling, Yeonseo looked around and headed toward the corner of the party hall where the director was waiting behind the curtain.

As expected, the center director started scolding Yeonseo as soon as he saw her.

“Team Leader Han, can’t you even count the number of guests properly?”

“…”

“What’s all this commotion? Why don’t we know about the cooperation from Sewon Motors?”

“I apologize.”

In fact, there was no problem since she responded promptly. Instead, they were in a situation where they had to use the received donations more actively than expected.

Nevertheless, the center director raised his voice and scolded Yeonseo, regardless of whether other team leaders were gathered around.

“Shouldn’t you sell at least one more thing instead of standing there dumbfounded just because people are gathering?”

His face contorted, and the center director seemed somewhat intoxicated. It was unclear whether he hadn’t seen Yeonseo running around due to drinking or if he simply continued to berate her.

“Just because you became a team leader doesn’t mean you should be all puffed up. Huh?”

“Center Director, please stop this. The guests can hear you.”

Team Leader Yoon tried to intervene.

“Oh, stop it. Why should I stop? Frankly, what has a team leader like her done here? She just came in late and stirred things up.”

“…”

“As soon as our center is about to thrive, someone like you comes in and tries to intercept it. Do you think I’ll go easy on you? Shouldn’t you crawl on your own since you started by targeting a team leader position, you, who comes from a mere caregiver background?”

Unaware of the silence around him, the center director spat and lashed out at Yeonseo.

“Why aren’t you answering me!”

Shouting and berating, the center director yelled even more, but Yeonseo, who had been silently listening, chuckled lightly.

“Center Director, it seems like you’ve had quite a bit to drink. How about taking a break in the lounge for a moment?”

“What? Now you’re telling me what to do?”

“I’m concerned you might make more mistakes.”

“Mistakes?”

The center director’s eyes grew even more harsh, as if to say how dare she say such a thing, but Yeonseo didn’t lower her head.

“Yes, you’ve made quite a few mistakes now.”

Yeonseo looked at him calmly. Her flawless skin and large eyes reflected the center director’s mistakes transparently. In response, the center director with a bruised ego let out a mocking laugh.

“Since when does a subordinate give a reprimand to their superior?”

“Then, is it okay for a superior to berate a subordinate?”

The voice was sudden. Everyone in the room turned to look at Taeheon as he appeared from beyond the curtain.

Yeonseo was equally dumbfounded as she watched her husband walk toward them, wide-eyed.

Taeheon? Why is he here?

The center director, who spotted Taeheon, hurriedly went over and greeted him smoothly, catching everyone’s attention.

“Oh, Executive Director. I didn’t hear that you were coming… Thank you for coming. Please come in.”

“We should see.”

“Everyone, this is Executive Director Woo Taeheon from Sewon Motors, who greatly assisted us in this event.”

The director, suppressing his shocked face, introduced Taeheon to the team leaders.

A great help?

It seemed like Yeonseo was unaware of something. 

Could it be that the employee who came before from Sewon Motors was actually Taeheon? 

It seemed to make sense when she remembered everyone saying he was ridiculously handsome.

She didn’t think about it too much that day due to the business, but if it was Taeheon himself, she could understand why there was such a big fuss.

She didn’t think of him at first as they said, only an employee from Sewon Motors; if they had mentioned an executive, she would have recognized Taeheon immediately. Once again, she found herself unknowingly protected in his shadow.

‘You didn’t say you were coming.’

She asked him with her eyes, and he returned a gaze that only Yeonseo knew.

He probably didn’t mention it to avoid burdening her. Still, he could have told her something. She really hates showing herself like this.

Taeheon’s sudden visit wasn’t entirely welcome. Despite the joy of being able to meet him, Yeonseo’s situation was not favorable.

She was in the middle of a scolding from the center director, and it was embarrassing for her to be seen by Taeheon like this. But there was no way she could physically push him away since Taeheon was a sponsor of this event.

While everyone was enthusiastically exchanging greetings with Taeheon, Yeonseo just stared at him blankly. Then, the center director exploded again like someone who had been hit by sparks.

“Team Leader Han, aren’t you going to greet him? Executive Director, I apologize. Team Leader Han is new and doesn’t know much. Haha.”

After bowing slightly, the center director turned his eyes towards Yeonseo, indicating that she should quickly come and greet Taeheon.

Yeonseo slowly swept her hair back. The center director had gone too far. The event was coming to a close, so there was no reason for her to put up with him anymore.

As if reading her thoughts, Taeheon stepped forward. He took off his jacket and draped it lightly over Yeonseo’s shoulders.

“If you stay in the air-conditioning for too long, you might catch a cold, especially when you’re dressed lightly.”

She couldn’t wear anything other than the uniform. Yeonseo did not want to avoid Taeheon, who came over with a friendly greeting.

“Are you okay?”

“…Yes.”

“Then, Team Leader, can you leave now?”

Taeheon asked, and the center director’s eyes widened, not understanding the situation.

“What?”

“She’s only a parachute, so who cares if she leaves early?”

“Executive Director, what is this about…”

“Or are you going to make more mistakes?”

“I don’t know what…… you mean.”

“I’m curious how rude you can be, but it’s hard to wait and see.”

Taeheon cocked his head and glared at the center director, who swallowed hard at the piercing look in his eyes.

“Is this because of what I said a moment ago? I scolded Team Leader Han a bit because she did something wrong.”

“It wasn’t a little scolding.”

“Um, Executive Director?”

The center director repeated hoarsely, as if strangled, and Team Leader Yoon, noticing the strange atmosphere, gestured to Yeonseo.

“Team Leader Han, uh, okay, you can go now. Your part is done, and we’ll take care of the cleanup.”

Although the event was coming to an end, it wasn’t finished, and leaving like this would only add fuel to the fire.

At that moment, the center director, as if realizing something pointed at Yeonseo and Taeheon with widened eyes.

“Heh, no way. The guy who parachuted a team leader into ……!”

Whether he was surprised by his own words or not, the center manager froze with a dumbfounded expression, his mouth wide open. After a few seconds, he stammered with a shocked tone.

Apparently surprised by his own words, the center director froze with a stupid expression on his face. A few moments later, he seemed to understand something and stammered.

“Wh-what kind of relationship are you two in…?”

“What would you like me to do about it?”

Taeheon, who had been calmly observing the center director’s behavior, asked gently. Yeonseo took a small breath.

In truth, she didn’t mind Taeheon’s help. She wanted to lean on him. His shadow was always warm and cozy. Since she had done it alone until now, she didn’t want to refuse his favor anymore.

Moreover, above all, she didn’t want to hide Taeheon. There was nothing here important enough to deny him. Yeonseo closed her eyes and, after a moment, slowly took Taeheon’s hand.

Then, she spoke slowly to everyone.

“Woo Taeheon, the Executive Director, is my husband.”

Yeonseo’s bombshell statement enveloped the surroundings in silence. Deputy Kim Dahye and Oh Mihyun, who had belatedly turned this way, covered their mouths with both hands.

“W-Wait, Team Leader Han, the Executive Director is your husband?”

Team Leader Yoon blinked and asked.

“Yes, that’s right. It was hard to find the right moment, and I thought it might be surprising, so I didn’t mention it.”