CHAPTER 101

“19:35: Arrived and disembarked at the intersection of Christopher Street and 7th Avenue. 19:37: Rendezvous with Noah Brown.”

“R.” (Received)

Taejun sent back just a single letter. A short time later, a coded text arrived from Dawson.

“COMINT?” (Communications Intelligence.)

After pondering briefly, Taejun replied.

“CO.” (Clandestine Operation)

Then came a question from Dotson.

“OTL?” (Outside The Law?)

After an internal struggle, Taejun made his decision.

“WTL.” (Within The Law)

This is where Anton Dawson’s experience in combat with Green Beret Alpha came into play.

That night, Minhee gently knocked on the study door and peeked in, looking at Taejun almost like a guilty person. Taejun hid his expression and looked at her casually, then slowly crossed his arms, leaning back in the desk chair.

Minhee approached cautiously, like entering a lion’s den, and leaned against the desk next to him. Taejun pulled her wrist, drawing her onto his lap. 

Minhee let out a contented sigh, snuggling into his embrace and placing light kisses on his lips. As she fiddled with the collar of his shirt, Minhee began recounting the details of her dinner with Noah Brown.

“Noah wanted to apologize to me, you know.”

“Ah, is that so?”

“Yeah, he said that’s why he asked me to see him. He said he was too young to know how to help me back then……. He said he felt like I was being bullied because of him, so he got mad at his friends and told them not to do it, but it backfired.”

“Hmm.”

Honestly, Minhee had brought up the topic worrying that Taejun might get jealous again, but when he showed little interest in her story, she felt strangely disappointed. 

‘Why isn’t Taejun getting jealous?’

“Oh right! He said he really liked me.”

“…”

“He says I’m the first and only girl he’s ever met who avoids him like the plague and refuses to pay attention to him.”

Noah admits that he’s actually been thinking about getting back together with Minhee, and cautiously asks about her relationship with Taejun. When Minhee blushed and nodded her head when asked if they were dating, Noah smiled sheepishly, saying he had guessed as much.

He said that Taejun had looked at him like he wanted to put a bullet in his head as he dragged her out, which made him even grumpy because he realized that it was too late. But Minhee wasn’t about to tell Taejun that. 

Taejun snorted and laughed.

“That’s too bad. Rejected twice.”

Minhee stiffened and blinked her eyes.

“How did you know that?”

“What?”

“That I rejected him twice?”

Taejun lightly avoided her gaze, which was staring directly at him.

“…It’s obvious. The look in his eyes towards you was impure.”

He added, planting a kiss on Minhee’s lips as she looked up at him in confusion.

“What man wouldn’t love a woman like you? Look at me, my heart’s about to burst because of you. So please, save me, Minhee.”

Those had been days filled with blissful, peaceful contentment. That’s why he had let his guard down.

He had completely forgotten that a few small deviations from the routine could lead to an accident.

*

During the first week of June, the last day specified in the employment contract, despite Taejun’s pleading persuasion, Minhee eventually left Taejun’s penthouse and returned to the small East Village apartment she shared with a friend. Taejun couldn’t understand it, but she insisted it was the right thing for everyone.

‘I’ve been staying here as Rose’s teacher, but now I can’t do that anymore. Living together as your girlfriend is very different from living together as a tutor.’

‘Think about the hurt Rose might get if we break up while living together. I don’t think it’s right to bring people into your home casually, whether it’s me or if you meet someone else unless there are plans to continue living together as a family. At least until Rose’s adolescence.’

‘I’m not suggesting that you and I get married or anything, don’t get me wrong!’

‘I think we need to start our relationship from scratch. Our situation… the order got messed up. I want us to date properly, like everyone else, starting from the beginning, and see where it goes.’

Everyone was worried that Rose would be shocked, but she calmly accepted Minhee’s departure.

‘Rose, do you remember when Miss Minhee first came to this house, how long did I say I would stay here?’

‘Yes. Rose remembers, until June!’

‘That’s right. It’s already June, so Miss Minhee has to go home. But until summer vacation, I’ll see you Rose at school every day. Do you know that Grandma and Grandpa are coming to pick you up next week, right? You will have a fun summer vacation in Korea, Rose, and when you come back in September, we’ll see each other every day again. So, this isn’t goodbye. Do you understand, Rose?’

‘Yes. But where is Miss Minhee’s house? Rose wants to go.’

‘How about visiting Miss Minhee’s house today? Rose is welcome anytime!’

‘Yes!’

On that day, Minhee left with two large trunks packed full of belongings for East Village. Rose rode in a car driven by Anton, following Minhee.

Rose had colorful face paint on her face and Disney Princess sticker tattoos all over her arms and hands as she held Anton’s hand tightly, returning to the penthouse almost at eight o’clock.

As soon as she saw Taejun, Rose began excitedly recounting how awesome Miss Minhee’s friend “Auntie HoHo” was, and how delicious the Nutella pizza Auntie HoHo had made was. With dreamy eyes, she chattered on until she fell asleep.

Returning to the study after putting Rose to bed, Taejun glanced at what Minhee had left on his desk. Torn in half, there lay the employment contract and partnership agreement, with a blank check placed neatly on top.

In neat, round handwriting, two words were written in the amount section of the blank check.

“Your Love”

Taejun chuckled as he kissed the check. He clutched the small velvet box in his large hands.

*

Minhee received a frantic call from the weekend nanny just a day before the start of summer vacation. As all the household staff had become accustomed to communicating through Minhee for the past few months, it seemed natural for the weekend nanny to turn to her in times of urgency.

The weekend nanny, Mei-ling, had received a call that her husband, who works as a chef at a Chinese restaurant, had been rushed to the hospital with burns. With Rose having tennis lessons after school, Mei-ling apologized repeatedly, saying she might not be able to pick her up and take her to the practice, and she was worried. Minhee reassured her not to worry and put her at ease.

Minhee immediately called Anton and earnestly asked if he could take Me-iling to her husband’s hospital. 

Initially hesitant, Anton eventually agreed when Minhee mentioned that she was already on her way to the tennis academy on Randall’s Island with Rose in a taxi, he had no choice but to grant her request.

It’s been a few days since she left the penthouse, and Minhee misses Taejun’s company every day. Her heart fluttered with excitement as she realized that if she dropped Rose off at the penthouse after her tennis lesson, it would be just in time for Taejun to get home from work. Although they had planned a date for Friday, she felt genuinely happy about the unexpected reward.

*

Taejun was in New Jersey to invest in a new casino chain in Atlantic City when he was contacted by Anton during a meeting. After explaining himself, Anton reported that Minhee had taken Rose to tennis class and that he was taking Mei-ling to the hospital in Queens and would be heading straight to Randall’s Island to pick them up.

The meeting showed no sign of ending, and Taejun was left to ponder for a moment. Suddenly, the nape of his neck stood up for no reason. Taejun immediately stood up, apologized to the people at the meeting, and drove toward Manhattan like a madman.

The day his mother and brother were in the accident was just like today. His mother had taken the bus that day to hide from his father that she had to go to work. His brother and his sister-in-law had taken a taxi because a last-minute meeting had made their flight time too tight. A chilling fear gripped the back of Taejun’s neck.

Taejun plugged in his earphones and called Minhee.

“Minhee!!”

― Taejun? What’s wrong? Did you get a call from Anton?

Rose’s loud voice could be heard through the phone.

“Yeah… everything okay?”

― What do you mean, ‘everything’? Just a moment. I’m just sending Rose to the tennis court.

“I’m coming to pick you up.”

― You are? I thought Anton was coming.

“I’m going. Wait for me. It’ll be a little over an hour.”

― Okay. I missed you, so I’m glad. Drive safely.

“I’ll be right there. Minhee…?”

― Yes?

“I love you.”

― I love you too. See you soon!

*

“Miss Minnie, Rose is hungry!”

By the time tennis class was over, it was already past five o’clock. Minhee hadn’t brought a snack, so she grabbed a granola bar and a drink from the vending machine and handed it to Rose. They then sat down on the bench. Minhee casually asking Rose how her ‘Santon’ was doing.

“I played crossword puzzles with Santon yesterday.”

“Oh, I see. What did you have for dinner?”

 “Fish! Fish is for dinner every night, every night, every night!”

Rose’s eyebrows furrowed and her mouth pouted. Minhee murmured a silent thank you, glad that the chef was taking care of her request to accommodate Rose’s preferences. She kept glancing at her phone, waiting for Taejun’s call. Just then, her phone buzzed. It was Taejun.