DDOS 21

Chapter 21

A hollow laugh escaped her.

What had she misunderstood?

Thinking about it, this was exactly the kind of relationship Kang Yeo-eun and Ki Seung-do should have. No—this was the only kind of relationship they should have had. A relationship where, once they had fulfilled each other’s needs, they would cleanly walk away without looking back.

In Yeo-eun’s eyes, she was nothing more than a burden Ki Seung-do had somehow ended up with. A burden brought into his life by Lee Ji-on. He was simply planning to use that burden as an added bonus.

After the ridiculous business trip masquerading as a show was over and Ji-on’s family registry was sorted out, Yeo-eun would return to the world she had originally lived in. It was insignificant and shabby, but it was a world Yeo-eun had worked harder than anyone to protect.

Besides, the child would grow up in a very good environment. As for Yeo-eun… well, she would probably receive a lot of money once the business trip was over.

No matter how she looked at it, that was all there was to it.

And yet, for some reason, Yeo-eun suddenly felt like screaming at the top of her lungs right there.

It wasn’t because she was embarrassed. She couldn’t even explain why.

What was clear, however, was why she couldn’t do that.

There was Ji-on between the two of them. That alone was more than enough reason for Yeo-eun to quietly endure this entire situation.

When all of this was over, Ji-on would live in a world different from Yeo-eun’s. A world where she wouldn’t have to survive by desperately piecing broken things back together.

For that child’s sake, Yeo-eun didn’t want to ruin anything.

Someone might call her foolish. Yeo-eun was suppressing something she couldn’t even identify for the sake of a small child whose existence she hadn’t even known about until recently.

But to Yeo-eun, Ji-on seemed almost like her younger self.

Pitiful. Helpless.

If there was anything she could do for her, Yeo-eun wanted to do it.

If that meant remaining silent, then it was an incredibly easy thing to do.

Just endure a little longer. Nothing will happen.

Yeo-eun repeated the words to herself.

Enduring things was something she was good at.

She reached toward the floor to push herself up, but then she noticed the wastebasket in front of her.

After hesitating, Yeo-eun opened it.

She didn’t need to dig through the trash to find the photograph.

The wastebasket in a house that was cleaned every day until not even a speck of dust remained could hardly have been full of garbage.

The only thing inside was the torn photograph.

And in Yeo-eun’s eyes, that photograph didn’t belong in a wastebasket.

She gathered up the pieces and returned to her desk. Opening a drawer, she took out some transparent tape.

Had he burned all the other photographs?

Where had the Ki Seung-do who smiled like this gone?

Pointless thoughts wandered through her mind.

Yeo-eun carefully pieced together the photograph that had been torn vertically.

The child was once again nestled in his mother’s arms, smiling.

After a long while, Yeo-eun stood up with the photograph restored to a single piece.

She slipped it between the scriptbooks that had been on Seung-do’s desk and returned it to the place where she had originally found it.

She knew she was crossing a line.

Would he get angry and tell her to mind her own business?

But by the time Ki Seung-do saw this photograph again, Yeo-eun probably wouldn’t be here anymore.

So, for the first and last time, Yeo-eun decided to feel sorry for Seung-do.

It wasn’t because he was part of some outdated gossip.

It was because she had felt a strange sense of déjà vu when she saw the face of a man who seemed determined to leave all of his childhood behind as nothing but ashes.

As though she were looking into a mirror.

When Ji-on woke up that morning and heard that Seung-do wouldn’t be coming home for a while, she couldn’t hide her disappointment.

Yeo-eun was actually relieved to see Ji-on like that.

It was happening very slowly, but Ji-on was changing little by little.

Rather than seeing a child who was so intimidated that she couldn’t express her emotions, it was much nicer to see her say what she wanted and express her own opinions.

“I like it when you take me, too, Unnie.”

Ji-on whispered with a small laugh by the entrance before leaving.

Apparently, she liked the hairstyle Kangpyeong-daek had tied for her, because she kept walking back and forth in front of the mirror for quite some time.

Yeo-eun held Ji-on’s hand and went downstairs to the place where they waited for the kindergarten bus.

The kindergarten shuttle stopped right in front of the apartment. Yeo-eun exchanged brief greetings with the other guardians.

“Ji-on’s mom came out today.”

Another guardian, who looked around Yeo-eun’s age, spoke to her.

Yeo-eun glanced at Ji-on, who was a few steps away talking to her friend.

The child already seemed completely absorbed in chatting with another friend.

Yeo-eun gave an awkward smile.

“Her dad comes out every day, so I was curious. I thought I might only get to see you at the parent-observation class.”

Yeo-eun could only give another awkward smile.

She was beginning to realize that there were misunderstandings in this world that didn’t necessarily need to be corrected.

He is Ji-on’s older brother, and I am Ji-on’s older sister. Ji-on’s older brother and older sister aren’t related by blood.

Being completely honest like that wouldn’t help Ji-on navigate her small social world in the slightest.

That was why Yeo-eun deliberately didn’t correct the way people addressed them.

Before long, the yellow bus arrived.

After getting on, Ji-on pressed herself against the window and waved at Yeo-eun until the bus began to leave.

Yeo-eun waved back until Ji-on disappeared from sight.

“We’ll eat lunch before you leave, won’t we?”

Knock, knock, knock.

Kangpyeong-daek always knocked exactly three times before opening the study door.

Yeo-eun instinctively checked the time.

After sending the child off, she had spent the entire morning organizing and incorporating feedback on her work without even realizing how quickly the time had passed.

“I’m making cold noodles, so eat before you go.”

As though she had read Yeo-eun’s mind and knew she was considering skipping lunch, Kangpyeong-daek spoke before she could say anything.

At first, Yeo-eun had felt sorry every time they ate together, as though she were adding another task to Kangpyeong-daek’s workload.

But Kangpyeong-daek genuinely seemed happy whenever she saw Yeo-eun eating.

When Yeo-eun was busy working, she would even bring light food that was easy to eat right to her desk.

When Yeo-eun lived alone, meals had simply been something to get through quickly.

It wasn’t like that here.

Even when Ki Seung-do or Ji-on weren’t around, Yeo-eun often ate with Kangpyeong-daek.

Naturally, she stopped skipping meals as she used to.

She finished her work and sent off the file.

That marked the end of the season.

Thankfully, it didn’t overlap with the Hong Kong business trip coming up next week.

As soon as Yeo-eun sat down at the dining table, cold noodles were served.

“I thought we’d have something simple since it’s hot. You seemed to enjoy them last time.”

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy them.”

Yeo-eun knew that cooking noodles in such hot weather wasn’t easy.

She was sincerely grateful to Kangpyeong-daek.

The noodles, soaked in a chilled broth lightly seasoned with tsuyu, were delicious.

If Kangpyeong-daek hadn’t been there, taking care of Ji-on would have been much more difficult.

Without showing the slightest sign of annoyance, she had fed and looked after the unexpected extra member of the household who had suddenly appeared.

She had even said that she was happy to have a guest in the house again after such a long time because it made the home feel lively.

“Madam, you’ve known Executive Director for quite a long time, haven’t you?”

Although Yeo-eun had been eating lunch with Kangpyeong-daek almost every day lately, this was the first time she had asked anything about Ki Seung-do.

Normally, the two of them only talked about themselves or about Ji-on.

Kangpyeong-daek thought carefully while eating her noodles before answering.

“I suppose I’ve known him since he first came to Korea. That was already… more than ten years ago.”

“Did he live abroad before that?”

“He was born in Hong Kong. He came to Korea when he was about eighteen. It was winter. It was such a cold day that I still remember it. The look on his face when he came into the main house…”

Kangpyeong-daek paused as she continued recalling the past, searching for the right words.

“His face was very cold.”

She murmured the words almost like a sigh.

Then, as though trying to change the atmosphere, Kangpyeong-daek stood up, saying that she should bring out some more side dishes.

Left alone, Yeo-eun spent a moment imagining the eighteen-year-old boy who must have existed somewhere between the child in the photograph and the Ki Seung-do she knew now.

What had that supposedly cold face looked like?

It was difficult to imagine.