Side Story 2.2

As Kwon Gi-jo, seated in the chair, turned his head to the right, there was nothing there. He turned to the left—still nothing.  

“Ah, this little rascal, how is she so fast?”  

A burst of giggles came from behind the chair as Ro-hee, who had been playing hide-and-seek, finally let out a laugh.  

“It’s not that I’m fast, Grandpa, it’s that you’re too slow!”  

“Oh, is that so?”  

Gi-jo chuckled awkwardly, scratching his head.  

It had been decades since he last laughed like this.  

Using facial muscles he hadn’t moved in years felt strange, as if he were about to cry.  

“Kids grow up so fast. It feels like just yesterday she was swaddled in a blanket.”  

Kwon Gi-jo muttered to himself.  

The last time he had seen Ro-hee was right after she was born, in the neonatal unit of a hospital in Jeju. Since then, he had only occasionally inquired about her well-being over the phone, like a bean sprouting in a drought.  

Gi-jo had his reasons for keeping his distance, and he assumed Eun-sol had hers too. They simply chose not to question each other’s motives and let things be.  

But today, Eun-sol’s sudden visit was unexpected. As much as it was a pleasant surprise, it also left him uneasy.  

He was afraid.  

Eun-sol must have had a reason for coming.  

‘Is she here to say goodbye for the last time, telling me never to see her again?’  

Eun-sol had reconciled with Jeong-hyeok, and the relationship between Gi-jo and Jeong-hyeok was worse than that of strangers.  

Naturally, Eun-sol would also find it uncomfortable to interact with him as she once did.  

Gi-jo picked up his teacup. The steam rising from the cup felt suffocating.  

Being abandoned by someone was far more terrifying than he had imagined.  

He barely managed to sip the tea. Through the steam, Ro-hee’s playful figure seemed distant, like a dream.  

“…You and your husband are so alike, barging in unannounced.”  

The ginger tea, sweetened with honey, tasted bitter to him.  

“Did Jeong-hyeok come here?”  

Eun-sol asked, her tone unreadable—whether she truly didn’t know or was pretending not to.  

“Yes, he did. He came to take the diamond from your ring.”  

He glanced at the diamond on Eun-sol’s finger, recalling the past.  

Four years ago.  

Everything had hit like a typhoon.  

Eun-sol had regained her memories, and all the secrets her son had tried to hide were exposed.  

He thought that once the secrets were revealed, it would bring clarity.  

But it didn’t.  

The war was over, but it felt like he was left standing alone on a battlefield littered with fallen comrades.  

‘Still, it was the right thing to do. I saved Eun-sol from that monster’s clutches.’  

That alone was enough. He believed that, even though everything was a mess now, eventually, things would return to their rightful place.  

Still, he worried about Eun-sol, who had disappeared after declaring her intention to divorce. He even sought out her legal representative, Attorney Chu Seo-jin, to demand answers.  

“Chairman, I truly don’t know where Eun-sol is. I haven’t met her since then. We’ve only spoken briefly over the phone a couple of times regarding the divorce proceedings.”

Even Attorney Chu Seo-jin knew nothing. However, her additional comment made Kwon Gi-jo’s heart sink.  

“I’m just as worried about Eun-sol. Especially since she’s not exactly alone right now.”  

“What… what did you just say? Who’s not alone?”  

This was an unexpected variable.  

After that, Gi-jo became even more desperate to find Eun-sol. His only thought was to protect her from his son.  

Considering his son’s nature, he doubted that Jeong-hyeok would let Eun-sol go, especially since she was carrying a child. Legally, they were still married, so Gi-jo feared Jeong-hyeok might try to forcefully bind her to him.  

However, Eun-sol’s whereabouts remained unknown. Gi-jo couldn’t even eat properly.  

“If she’s hiding this well, perhaps it’s fortunate that even the young master can’t find her.”

Said Chief Park, trying to console him.  

Gi-jo barely managed to hold on, thanks to Chief Park’s reassurance.  

“We’ve received information that she’s staying at a certain pension in Jeju Island!”  

Finally, they found her.  

Gi-jo’s own network was formidable, but someone else had discovered Eun-sol’s location even faster. Who could it have been?  

Tracing the lead back, he discovered, much to his surprise, that the source of the information was none other than Jeong-hyeok himself.  

“Why would that scoundrel do this? What kind of scheme is he plotting now?!”  

Gi-jo was filled with suspicion, wondering if this was another trap set by his son.  

“Perhaps he’s just worried about Eun-sol and the baby. He probably thinks you’re the best person to take care of them.” 

Chief Park replied.  

For a fleeting moment, Gi-jo saw a trace of genuine pity and frustration on Chief Park’s face, as if the entire situation was exasperating for everyone involved.  

From that point on, Gi-jo’s steadfast beliefs began to waver, and confusion crept in.  

When he finally found Eun-sol, it was clear that she needed care. Despite not experiencing morning sickness, she had lost a significant amount of weight and couldn’t sleep due to insomnia.  

Gi-jo persuaded her to return home, where he assigned a personal physician to look after her. Thankfully, her health gradually improved.  

Although he wanted her to stay with him, Eun-sol moved out as soon as she entered the stable phase of her pregnancy. She returned to Jeju Island to live independently.  

Not long after, Gi-jo heard news of Jeong-hyeok’s departure to Akai.  

He thought, “This is truly the end of everything now.” But then Chief Park brought him unexpected news.  

“The young master has developed selective mutism.”  

Chief Park handed him a paparazzi photo taken at the airport. In the picture, Jeong-hyeok looked utterly drained.  

“Is this really… Jeong-hyeok?”  

Gi-jo couldn’t believe it. He thought it might just be someone who resembled his son, with the media falsely claiming it was him.  

The Jeong-hyeok he knew wasn’t human. He was like a devil—cold, ruthless, and devoid of emotion.  

But now, he had developed selective mutism? And had fallen apart like this?  

Even after rubbing his eyes and looking again, the man in the photo was undoubtedly his son.  

Could it be that Jeong-hyeok truly loved Eun-sol? Loved her… sincerely?  

It felt as though he had been struck on the back of the head.  

Gi-jo had never believed his son when he said he loved Eun-sol. He had always thought their marriage was just another ploy to torment and manipulate both him and Eun-sol.  

‘No, even if that’s true, what difference does it make? It was doomed from the start.’

It was Jeong-hyeok who had disrupted the lives of Eun-sol and her family out of revenge.  

It was Jeong-hyeok who deceived Eun-sol when she had amnesia.  

‘This tangled web of love and hatred, spanning two generations, is finally over.’  

Gi-jo tried to steel himself.  

It was time for everything to return to its rightful place.  

But it didn’t take long for him to realize that this was merely the beginning of another misfortune.  

It happened the day after Eun-sol gave birth. Gi-jo traveled to a maternity hospital in Jeju Island to visit her.  

Eun-sol, who had undergone a cesarean section, was still unable to move around much.  

Gi-jo went alone to the neonatal room to request a visit.  

“Are you the baby’s grandfather? Visiting procedures have been tightened, so only immediate family members are allowed.” 

Said a nurse with a stern expression.  

“Yes… I’m the baby’s paternal grandfather.”

In his haste to see Ro-hee, Kwon Gi-jo quickly answered “yes.” However, something heavy suddenly welled up in his throat.  

It felt like he was lying, but it wasn’t a lie. Ro-hee was indeed his biological granddaughter.  

Yet, until now, he hadn’t truly thought of Ro-hee as his granddaughter. He had only considered her as Eun-sol’s daughter, refusing to acknowledge the son he had hated so much.  

But…  

Ironically, Ro-hee represented the love that had come through the very son he despised. Though he and Seol-hwa had never had a child together, he had gained a granddaughter who carried both their bloodlines.  

“Are you really the grandfather?”  

The nurse looked at him with a slightly suspicious expression as he stammered his response.  

“…Yes, I am her grandfather.”  

A wave of guilt washed over him. He was telling the truth, yet it felt like he was making a despicable lie.  

Soon, the nurse brought Ro-hee out. Through the glass, he saw her wrapped in a swaddle, her tiny eyes tightly shut.  

Ro-hee, unlike most newborns, had a head full of hair and a soft, rosy face. She puckered her small lips and yawned.  

Instead of smiling at the sight of her, he staggered.  

Who had stolen the father from this precious child, a baby who deserved nothing but love and protection?  

What crime had this innocent little one committed…?!  

It felt as though voices of blame and resentment were echoing from somewhere. The voices of Seol-hwa, his love, and Hye-rin, his wife, seemed to merge into one chorus of reproach.  

At that moment, he recalled something Jeong-hyeok had once said.  

“Father… I wasn’t guilty of anything either. My only crime was being born your son.”  

Ah, where had it all gone wrong? At what point had everything started to fall apart?  

Why did this pain never seem to end?  

From then on, Gi-jo lived as if dozens of needles were lodged in his throa