Just Like Any Other Family
Right. Now I remembered.
Last time, Han Jihyun had asked if it would be all right to invite Yoo Serin for Chuseok. Then Iseul had shown up out of nowhere, and the conversation had fizzled out unfinished. Which meant they'd gone ahead and invited her without waiting for my permission.
"You said so yourself, Oppa."
"I said what?"
"That if we didn't go down to Busan this Chuseok, you'd let me do whatever I wanted."
"And why are you bringing that up now?"
"Because this is what I want. Spending this Chuseok with Jihyun unnie and Serin."
"......"
After sobering up that day she'd gone right back to formal speech, and now she was calling her unnie again. Had the two of them been drinking behind my back?
"But isn't that a little weird?"
"What is?"
"Yoo Serin calls you unnie, and you're calling Han Jihyun unnie too."
"It is a little weird… but anyone can see she's an unnie. And compared to you, Oppa, I'm not the weird one."
"......"
Yeah. I was the weirdest one of all. Calling my aunt "Han Jihyun" and my younger cousin "Miss Yoo Serin."
I had nothing left to say about titles, so I dropped it.
Anyway, this was so awkward I could die. Why did she have to give me such an affectionate back hug?! She should have toned it down a little!!
"......"
"......"
After that back hug we'd eaten breakfast together, but I hadn't met Serin's eyes even once. Until now, when we finally faced each other. We kept glancing sideways, gauging the mood.
"Ahem…!"
"......"
How was I supposed to fix this atmosphere?
"This is driving me crazy…"
"Is it not coming out right?"
"Ah, well… it's a bit hard."
"Oppa should have a son~ Since you're so bad at making songpyeon, heehee."
After breakfast we were all sitting in the living room shaping songpyeon. I had no idea why we were doing this, but apparently Jihyun and Serin had wanted to and asked Iseul to arrange it.
A son, though…
No thanks. I wanted a daughter.
"I'm having a daughter."
"Then you'll have to marry a woman who makes pretty songpyeon, won't you?"
"Yeah. I'll marry a woman who makes them as pretty as this one."
"......"
Was she embarrassed? The moment I picked up the songpyeon sitting in front of her, Iseul clamped her chattering mouth shut. Then she spoke in a voice so small it nearly disappeared.
"That one… Serin made that…"
"Huh…?"
"......"
I looked over in surprise, and the instant our eyes met, Serin dropped her head. Iseul snatched the songpyeon from my hand and set it back down.
"Serin made it so pretty… I put it here so I could try to copy it…"
"......"
Hold on. Hold on!! Why did I keep getting weirdly tangled up with my little cousin?!
"This one's pretty too! I'll marry a woman who makes them like this!"
"…Thank you…"
Iseul already seemed hurt, listlessly fiddling with the dough, and Jihyun, taking pity on my flustered state, threw me a lifeline.
"I think we've made enough. Iseul, Serin — could you help me carry these?"
"Yes…"
"Yes…"
"......"
Today's luck was looking rough. On days like this, the best move was to keep your mouth shut and stay quiet.
But what were the three of them doing in the kitchen? We'd already had breakfast — were they prepping lunch already?
Han Jihyun in a two-tone purple and light-gray hanbok. Yoo Serin in soft pink. And Iseul in sky blue — they were steaming the songpyeon and hard at work cooking.
"Oppa, come try this~"
Apparently her mood had recovered; Iseul beamed as she held out a piece of shrimp tempura and called me over.
Crunch!!
Oh, that was proper. The crispy shatter of the batter and the plump, tender shrimp meat were perfect.
"Planning to drink makgeolli or something? Why the fried food and jeon?"
"Well… we wanted to hold a jesa."
"A jesa?? What jesa?"
"For your grandmother, Oppa…"
"......"
I'd never held a proper memorial rite. On the anniversary I'd visit the columbarium, or pour a glass of soju at home while thinking of her — that was all.
It felt strange. Something I didn't even take care of myself, and Iseul, Jihyun, and Serin were doing it for me. Something about it… felt strange.
"Um… CEO…"
"Yes, Miss Yoo Serin."
"When we do the jesa… can we set out two extra bowls of rice and pairs of chopsticks…?"
"Why?"
"For my aunt… and Dad… no, my uncle…"
"......"
I stared at Serin without answering. A silent refusal. Then she stroked her own belly — the belly I'd pulled her against during that back hug.
"I just have a feeling…"
"You're exactly like her..!"
"What??"
The way she threatened me was pure Han Jihyun. Like mother, like daughter!
"Haa… Fine. Go ahead and set them out."
"Yes! Thank you!"
"Ah, and make it five of each total — two more."
"What??"
"For my maternal grandfather and grandmother."
"Ah… Yes!!"
Might as well do it all at once. I had no memories of them, but Jihyun's parents — Serin's grandparents — were my maternal grandfather and grandmother.
But was doing it this way even right?
"......"
"You have to bow one more time."
"Again??"
"Yes. This time it has to be a long one, she says."
"Ah…"
Following Iseul's guidance as she held up her phone and walked us through the order, we bowed and moved the spoons, performing the ancestral rite.
"It's an honor to meet you for the first time. My name is Han Iseul."
Iseul too.
"I'm so sorry it's been so long since I last greeted you. And about my brother-in-law and my sister… I'm sorry…"
"I'm Serin, Grandmother. Back then I was so little I couldn't even greet you properly. I'm sorry…"
Jihyun and Serin as well. They bowed gracefully and greeted Grandmother together with me.
And so we spent Chuseok all together — eating breakfast, making songpyeon, performing the rite, watching TV. Just like any ordinary family.
Is this what they mean by spending money like water?
I only had two billion won left in cash.
After buying the K-Sler rights and signing the twenty-billion-won contract with Metflix, I'd had forty-seven billion left. Of that, fifteen billion went into Periosa, fifteen billion went to Lee Do-yun as his signing fee, and ten billion went into acquiring Baek Seoyun's Back Story. Leaving a mere two billion.
Time to start reclaiming the money I'd temporarily parked with Lee Do-yun. With a hefty pile of interest attached.
But things weren't going the way I'd planned.
"CEO. Are you certain this guy has a dirty past?"
"You haven't found anything?"
"Haa…. Nothing. He's completely clean. Good school record, no criminal history — nothing but volunteer work and donations and other good deeds stacked up."
"......"
This couldn't be how it went.
He was a piece of garbage who'd abandoned the woman he'd gotten pregnant and the child in her belly. And I'd handed a man like that fifteen billion won, plus a nine-to-one split?
That was absurd. I couldn't let it stand.
Was this the only method left, then?
"CEO!"
"…President, I'll call you back."
"Yes, CEO. I'll keep digging in the meantime."
I hung up and stared at Yoo Serin as she came trotting over.
"Did you need something?"
"Ah… well… I was just happy to see you… Sorry…"
"......"
Honestly, when I'd signed the contract with Lee Do-yun, I hadn't given much thought to Serin's feelings. In the worst case, I'd planned to put Han Jihyun and Yoo Serin front and center and bury Lee Do-yun with them. I'd even figured the scandal would become noise marketing — that Serin would draw even more attention and debut bigger because of it.
The story of K-Sler worked the same way, after all. A hybrid born between a demon father and a slayer mother. An existence that becomes the light that illuminates the world. I'd meant to craft her into a figure with the perfect narrative idol fans loved, just as Head of Department Yoon Heejeong had described.
But now I was hesitating. Because of one day that had meant nothing at all.
"CEO…?"
"......"
If she learned Lee Do-yun was her father, she would be hurt. If the world learned she was the child her father had abandoned, she would be hurt even worse. An eighteen-year-old kid — a kid about to step out in front of everyone — would be badly wounded. For some people, maybe for a long time, she would be called Lee Do-yun's daughter instead of Yoo Serin. Not in a good way. In a bad one.
The bad person Han Jihyun had talked about.
Maybe that wasn't Lee Do-yun. Maybe it was really me. Because she would resent the man who used her more than the father who abandoned her.
"Have you eaten?"
"It isn't lunchtime yet… Have you eaten, CEO?"
"It isn't lunchtime for me either."
"Ah…"
"If you don't have anything else to say, you can go."
"What?? Ah… Yes…. I'll be going…"
I left her behind as she bowed and passed, and stepped out of the lobby. Then I made a call.
"President. Find something no matter what. If there's anything I can do to help, just say the word."
"There is something you could help with, actually. Would it be all right if I asked a favor?"
"Anything."
I intended to help as much as I possibly could. Because I didn't want them to get hurt. Not Serin. Not Jihyun.
Ah… I'm exhausted…
I couldn't remember the last time I'd drunk this much.
"Huuuh… hrm… uugh……"
"......"
I glanced at Lee Do-yun, sprawled beside me completely wasted, then peeled myself off the seatback. I pressed my lips tight, settled my churning stomach for a moment, and leaned forward between the driver's seat and the passenger seat.
"Augh, damn…!!"
I felt like I was about to throw up any second, but I held it down and worked the navigation.
Beep— beep— beep—
Click! Click! Click!
I photographed every address logged in the navigation. Then I pulled the black box memory card and swapped in the one I'd prepared ahead of time.
"CEO…"
"......"
What? Was he awake? Was I about to get caught??
At the sound of Lee Do-yun's voice, every drop of alcohol that had been climbing to the top of my skull vanished.
I carefully turned my head and looked back.
"One more glass… just one more and then…"
"......"
Just drunken rambling. He was still sprawled across the back seat with his eyes shut.
"Haa…"
I let out a quiet breath and slipped out of the car. Then I staggered my way out of the luxury villa's underground parking garage.
"Sir??"
"Ah… I'm fine, just go on ahead…"
"Ah… Yes…"
I passed the designated driver who'd been handling Lee Do-yun's personal car, made it out to the roadside, and waved. Then I climbed into the back seat of the car that stopped and gave an address.
"Driver… Cheongdam-dong… Cheongdam-dong…"
"You're pretty far gone."
"Yeah… it turned out that way… Huuuu…. Please just get going…"
"Excuse me. This isn't a taxi."
"Huh…?"
Only then did I force open my nearly shut eyes. The men in the driver's seat and passenger seat were looking at me. And between the front and back seats, something like glass was visible.
Don't tell me this was…
"Let's just take him in for now."
"Yeah, better."
"W-wait a second..! I didn't do anything wrong! I didn't steal anything… Ugh!!!"
"Don't throw up!!"
"Go, go!"
"Yes!!"
"No, I..! I didn't do anyth— Bleeegh!!!"
And so I threw up spectacularly inside a police car and got hauled off to the station.
It wasn't that I'd been arrested for stealing Lee Do-yun's black box memory card. The kind officers had simply brought me in so I wouldn't get hit by a car, and then called me a taxi.
Anyway…
Mission clear…
"Bleeegh!!!"
"Hey—hey?! Where do you think you're throwing up right now?!!"
"I'm soorryy… I'll cover the car wash… I… Urgh!!!!"
Even if the taxi fare ended up costing as much as the drinks.