Chapter 4

The Second Daughter Is Too Famous (1)

Thirty minutes after calling my eldest daughter, she contacted me again.

―Hello, Dad?

“Yeah, Jinhye.”

―I just talked to Seonhye, and we decided to come down together this Saturday. Are you busy that day?

“Saturday? Wait a moment…….”

Just as I was about to check my work schedule,

Hyung gave me an okay sign.

Even though I was supposed to work that day.

Was he trying to help me again this time?

“Is it really okay, hyung?”

“Trust me. I’ll take care of it.”

Once again, I received help from my hyung.

I nodded firmly and decided to accept his kindness.

“I can take Saturday off.”

―That’s great. Then I’ll come with Seonhye. We’ll probably arrive before lunch, so let’s have lunch together.

“Are you going back to Seoul right away that day?”

―No. I think we’ll stay at Dad’s house for one night before going back.

“Okay, I understand. Then I’ll see you on Saturday.”

―See you then, Dad.

Even after ending the call, my mind was still complicated.

‘They’re staying for one night…….’

My house was pretty small.

If I had known this would happen, should I have moved to a bigger house?

‘I’ll have to somehow make enough space for my daughters to sleep comfortably.’

A new task had suddenly been given to me.

But.

Maybe because I was going to spend time with my daughters again after such a long time, I was actually happy.

Friday, 7:30 p.m.

After finishing her performance in Cheonan, Lee Seonhye came down from the stage with her tired body.

All the staff gathered together and applauded her.

“Good work!”

“You worked really hard!”

Lee Seonhye also thanked each of them for their hard work.

My second daughter, Lee Seonhye, was active as a singer and actress under the stage name SL.

Since this was already her fifth nationwide concert tour, starting from Seoul, her expression was much more relaxed than it had been at the beginning.

Experience worked that way.

The more experience you gained, the more you continued to level up.

After officially debuting as a singer at the age of twenty-two, Lee Seonhye had spent the past four years working hard without giving up, constantly striving to reach the top.

As a result.

She had now earned the title of the best female solo singer in South Korea.

Singing?

She was excellent.

Acting?

She was excellent at that too.

Lee Seonhye was a versatile entertainer who showed her abilities in every field.

But right now, there was only one thing she cared about.

“Miyeong.”

“Yes, unni.”

Lee Seonhye called her road manager and asked for the current time.

“What time is it?”

“It’s 7:45. Unni, you haven’t eaten properly again, have you? Should I order a lunch box? Or should I make a reservation at a nearby restaurant?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure……”

What did she want to eat most right now?

Lee Seonhye seriously asked herself that question.

Then something suddenly crossed her mind.

“Miyeong. I’m sorry, but can we go straight to Cheongju instead of Seoul?”

“Cheongju……?”

“Yeah.”

A slightly playful look appeared in Lee Seonhye’s smile.

“I suddenly feel like eating the food Dad made.”

“Oh, no.”

Something troublesome happened just before the end of my shift.

I had put up a barricade saying that parking was prohibited.

But—

“They actually moved it.”

Moving the barricade itself was not the problem.

The problem was that they had moved it and then parked their car in the no-parking area.

It was a troublesome situation.

There was a red SUV with its front windshield covered with little blue bird mascot dolls.

“A repeat offender. He really is a repeat offender.”

Last time, he had parked here too, causing great inconvenience to other residents trying to pass through.

It was not even because there were not enough parking spaces.

He simply did not want to bother finding a proper space, so he kept leaving his car in a prohibited area.

It was enough to drive anyone crazy.

Still, I could not just leave it like this.

‘I can’t help it.’

I had no choice but to try to persuade him over the phone.

“010…… 2811…….”

I entered the phone number written on the front of the vehicle.

Then I pressed the call button.

After a few rings,

I heard the voice of a man who sounded to be in his early thirties.

―Hello.

His voice was full of irritation.

I had a bad feeling about today too.

“Hello. This is the security office. If possible, could you move your car somewhere else? The place where you parked is actually a no-parking area.”

I spoke as gently as possible.

With things like this, you could not speak too harshly.

Getting on someone’s nerves would not help me in any way.

I tried to speak in a way that asked for his understanding.

But—

―Where exactly is the no-parking area? This is inside the apartment complex, so it’s not even a road. It doesn’t matter where I park.

It does matter, you idiot.

This troublesome resident was stubbornly making up ridiculous arguments.

“Even so, it is blocking the way for the other residents……”

―I’m at a company dinner right now, so let’s talk later.

Click.

He hung up just like that.

I naturally let out a sigh.

Just then, my hyung came out of the security office.

When he saw the car parked in the passage, he sighed just like I had.

“It’s that troublemaker again, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“What does he say he’s doing this time?”

“He says he’s at a company dinner.”

“Last time, he said he was drinking with his friends and playing billiards.”

Of course, that was a lie too.

The owner of the illegally parked car lived in Building 211, Unit 1101.

He had clearly said he was at a company dinner, but the lights in his home were shining brightly.

“That young man lives alone, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

He was definitely at home.

“I’ll go upstairs for a moment.”

“What are you going to do when you get there?”

“I’ll ask him to move his car.”

If the car was left there like this, it would only cause inconvenience to the other residents.

Not only that, but there was also a high risk that children could get into an accident.

As a former firefighter, I could not simply stand by and watch a situation that threatened people’s safety.

Just as I was about to head toward Building 211,

“Little brother. Look over there.”

A vehicle entered the second apartment complex that my hyung and I were responsible for.

My hyung opened his eyes wide and clicked his tongue.

“That’s one unusual-looking car. Doesn’t it look like the kind of car celebrities would drive?”

“It does.”

“Last time, your daughter came in a Rolls-Royce. Don’t tell me this is your daughter again?”

No way.

I thought it was probably just a car that had taken a wrong turn.

But instead of making a U-turn, the vehicle continued straight.

Then it stopped right in front of my hyung and me.

The moment the car door opened……

A woman with dyed blonde hair and a mask suddenly jumped out.

The young woman looked at me and smiled with her eyes.

And then……

She suddenly threw her arms around me!

I instinctively took a step backward because I had not expected it at all.

“Wh-Who are you?”

The woman looked amused by my surprised reaction.

Then, the moment she took off her mask,

A face I knew very well appeared.

That mischievous smile.

It was impossible to forget.

“Could it be…… Seonhye?”

“That’s right, Dad. It’s been a long time!”

Without realizing it, I turned my head toward the back where my hyung was standing.

“Hyung. I think you could become a fortune teller.”

My hyung simply let out a hearty laugh without saying anything.

My second daughter had always been talented from a young age.

She would dance and sing in front of other people.

She also often participated in plays and similar activities.

My second daughter, Lee Seonhye, especially loved standing in front of people.

When Seonhye first told me that she wanted to become a celebrity, I honestly wanted to oppose her.

I knew, at least roughly, how difficult that world was.

But just like with my eldest daughter, I decided that if these children had something they wanted to do, I would not oppose them.

As their father, I would give them every bit of support I could.

That was why, whenever Seonhye went to auditions, I would drive her there myself.

After she barely passed an audition for a small entertainment agency,

she must have become busy after that, because I rarely got to see my second daughter.

The second daughter I saw again after two years, Lee Seonhye, had become unbelievably beautiful.

She had also become even more lovable than when I had last seen her.

But there was one thing.

“You look too thin, just like your older sister. Are you eating properly?”

“Too thin? There are so many female celebrities in the entertainment industry who are thinner than me. Compared to them, I’m actually on the chubby side.”

She called this chubby?

As expected, being a celebrity was not something just anyone could do.

While I was greeting my daughter, my hyung, who had been standing behind me, narrowed his eyes and carefully looked at Seonhye.

“Your second daughter looks very familiar.”

“You’ve seen my daughter before?”

“Let me think…… Miss, have you ever appeared in ‘A Flower Blooming in the Sun’? You look exactly like Minseo, the female lead in that drama.”

A drama.

I had hardly ever watched dramas, so I did not really know.

Since I always watched baseball and sports, I had little connection with that world.

Seonhye answered my hyung’s guess with a bright expression.

“Yes, that’s right. I played the lead role in it.”

“Ohhh……! Wow, it’s truly an honor! My wife and I really enjoyed that drama! I can’t believe I’m seeing Minseo here! Haha!”

At that moment, Seonhye gave me a look.

Who is this person?

That was what she was asking.

“He’s a senior I work with. He’s a kind person who helps me with many things.”

At those words, Seonhye’s expression completely changed.

A polite smile for dealing with guests.

“Thank you for recognizing me, sir! Please continue to take good care of my dad.”

At the word ‘sir,’ my hyung smiled again.

“Of course! I care about him even more than I care about my own younger brother, so you don’t have to worry!”

Seonhye quietly turned her head toward me and winked at me without my hyung noticing.

Dad, I did well, right?

That was exactly what her gesture seemed to say.

Seonhye had always been like this.

If Jinhye, the eldest daughter, was serious and responsible about everything, Seonhye was bright, carefree, and very affectionate.

Maybe because of that, older people especially liked her.

“But you appeared in a drama too? Weren’t you a singer?”

At least, that was what I remembered.

“I’m both a singer and an actress. That’s what I do. Didn’t my sister tell you? She said that if you turned on the TV, you would be able to see me right away.”

“She did say that a few days ago.”

But because I hardly ever turned on the TV, I rarely even touched the remote.

And since she was coming this weekend anyway……

“Wait. Didn’t you say you were coming this weekend?”

Today was Friday evening.

Seonhye smiled brightly.

“I came early because I wanted to eat Dad’s cooking. Isn’t it almost time for you to finish work?”

“It is, but there’s a little problem.”

“What problem?”

“Well, you see……”

I briefly explained that one of the apartment residents was causing trouble.

After hearing what I said, Seonhye carefully looked at the troublesome vehicle.

Then she said,

“I think I can solve this.”

“You? How?”

“There’s always a way. So if I solve this problem, you can finish work right away, right?”

Seonhye’s gaze shifted from me to my hyung.

My hyung nodded repeatedly.

“Of course! No, even if you can’t solve it, you can just take your dad home. I’ll figure something out somehow.”

“You don’t need to do that. I’ll solve it quickly. Dad, where did you say the owner of this car lives? Just show me the way.”

Exactly what kind of method was she planning to use?

At this point, even I had become curious.