Chapter 117
Chapter 117
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: Time Flows Again
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Once the two had calmed down, we were able to enter the house under Mrs. Yoon Suk-hee's guidance.
Passing through the unkempt garden and stepping inside...
'Huh, the house...'
She had said it had been a few years since returning to Korea, but there was no trace of furniture or fixtures inside—not even a hint of human warmth.
The only things there were a bed and a vanity.
'Is her living space just that cramped?'
The kitchen showed no signs of use at all—no common utensils or cups, just empty plastic water bottles.
I tilted my head at the stark atmosphere, so different from how it looked from outside.
'Why on earth does she live like this?'
This was clearly no normal way of life.
And she looked like she'd just woken up moments ago.
That meant her sleep patterns were a mess too.
Rustle.
"The place is a bit shabby, isn't it?"
There was a sofa in the living room, but no one could sit on it.
It was covered in thick dust from years of disuse.
In the end, we all chose the floor.
Having to sit on the cold marble with our butts planted directly on it.
Rustle.
I took off the jacket I was wearing and spread it out so little Daeun could sit comfortably.
Naturally, the officer did the same, handing his cardigan to Director Yoon.
Once we were all seated in a circle, Mrs. Yoon Suk-hee spoke up as if she'd been waiting.
"But Evri, how on earth did you find this place? Did he send you... Oh! No, that's not it!"
She shook her head suddenly and blinked rapidly.
"Evri! When did you learn Korean?"
She seemed genuinely shocked that I was speaking Korean and asked with wide eyes. Director Yoon replied calmly.
"I learned it little by little in school while thinking about you, Mom."
"Korean..."
What followed from Director Yoon pierced everyone's hearts.
"Yeah. I wanted to understand you, Mom. And beyond that, Dad too."
They were the parents who had parted ways.
But it was the child, Director Yoon, who was trying to understand them.
I couldn't even begin to imagine the feelings she must have had while learning Korean.
"Understand... Why would you try to understand someone like me...?"
Even as Mrs. Yoon belittled herself, Director Yoon remained composed.
"Don't call yourself that. Dad was the one who did wrong."
"He did wrong?"
"Yes. Dad's the one who abandoned you, Mom."
At those words, Mrs. Yoon's eyes shook violently.
Then, unbelievable words slipped from her lips.
"He... he abandoned me? Is that what you've believed all this time?"
"Yes."
"No, didn't he explain why we parted...?"
What was this about?
Did that mean there was another story, different from what Director Yoon knew?
Director Yoon was the most flustered by this.
"Ah... Is that so? I've thought that all this time..."
She shook her head sadly. Then, biting her lower lip hard, she continued.
It was a story that would shock many.
"If someone says he abandoned you, then it's not him."
The truth was always harsh, and that lie had protected someone.
Probably Director Yoon's father.
"It was... me."
She had wanted to protect Director Yoon's mother.
Rustle.
Having heard everything, Director Yoon said nothing. She just quietly stared down at the marble floor.
No one else present spoke first either.
We simply waited silently, hoping she would be okay.
How long did we wait for Director Yoon to speak?
Rustle.
"Hoo."
Director Yoon finally let out a small sigh and opened her mouth.
"So, I've misunderstood all this time?"
Nod.
Mrs. Yoon nodded slightly.
"It wasn't that he abandoned you—it was that I left. And he let me go, even though I was like this."
The story from Mrs. Yoon's lips was quite shocking.
No, in a way, from her perspective, it might have been the best choice.
"Back then, I was so exhausted. I had to give up everything I was doing. Of course, I loved you, Evri, and him. They were the most precious things in my life, irreplaceable by anything in this world."
But in the end, Mrs. Yoon chose her work.
Director Yoon didn't ask why she had abandoned her.
Instead, she asked something else.
"Then why did Dad tell me he abandoned you?"
It was a calm question without emotion, but strangely, it carried sadness.
Mrs. Yoon seemed to sense that feeling too.
"Do you know why I married your dad?"
Gazing into space as if recalling the past, Mrs. Yoon continued.
"All the people who liked me before came for my money. I'm not sure if you know, but even if not as much as your dad, I lived pretty well."
As I thought, she had some wealth.
"I loved my work that much—how could the money not pile up? Naturally, the people around me stayed only for the money. In the worst light, no one understood my heart. In the best light, I was starved for love. That's when I met your dad."
Mrs. Yoon smiled faintly.
Perhaps remembering her first meeting with Director Yoon's father.
"I was tired of people, and your dad came up to me asking where the bathroom was. Pfft! It was hilarious—the bathroom was right there next to us, big as life, and he asked anyway, like he was seeing right through me. That moment was so funny."
Mrs. Yoon's smile was innocently childlike.
"But later, I found out why he asked that. I was standing there with an incredibly sad look on my face, he said. He thought he had to save me, so he approached and spoke up. Isn't it just too funny?"
From their first meeting, Director Yoon's father had been protecting Mrs. Yoon.
And that hadn't changed even now, years later.
At that moment.
'Huh?'
Officer Kim Sucheol, who had been quietly listening to Mrs. Yoon's story, acted strangely.
His clenched fist was trembling.
"I know it's nosy of me to butt in, and I'm truly sorry, but may I say just one thing?"
He asked politely, looking at Director Yoon.
Their eyes met, filled with emotions only they understood.
Then Director Yoon nodded, granting permission for that one word.
"Director Yoon's father..."
"You mean Director Yoon—ah, Evri's father?"
"Ah, yes. So I understand that Evri's father protected Mrs. Yoon Suk-hee. But the price Evri had to pay for that is too great, I think."
"Pr-price?"
"Yes. Because of that, Evri has hated her father her whole life, and... "
"And... "
Gulp.
The officer swallowed dryly and continued.
"She can't even feel basic emotions like joy."
"Sh-she can't feel emotions?"
Whoosh!
Mrs. Yoon turned and stared straight at Director Yoon.
"You don't mean... you can't feel emotions, do you?"
Nod.
"Not completely, but..."
"It's just dulled to that extent."
Rustle.
Director Yoon looked at her with an incredulous expression.
"You knew...?"
Shake, shake.
"No, I didn't. If I had known, I never would have left you."
"What do you... "
What came next shocked everyone.
"Because I was the same."
It seemed Director Yoon's inability to feel emotions wasn't from trauma.
'It-it's genetic!'
It had come from her mother, Mrs. Yoon.
The meeting with Mrs. Yoon was a series of shocks.
The truth about their separation was shocking enough, but who would have thought Director Yoon's condition was hereditary?
"Even though I was struggling, I stayed by your side until you were five—just in case you had inherited the same illness I had."
"So you couldn't feel emotions like I do, Mom?"
Nod.
"Yes, I went through hell because of it once. It's much better now."
With a grave expression, Mrs. Yoon asked.
"Did you ever tell him? If he knew, he would have told me right away—no matter what. Since he didn't..."
Rustle.
All eyes turned to her.
Under those gazes, Director Yoon shook her head lightly.
"No, I didn't tell Dad. I didn't want to talk about myself."
"Ah..."
A sigh escaped.
If she had told him, their relationship might have improved, even a little.
In this heartbreaking situation, Mrs. Yoon blamed herself.
"It's all my fault. I should have watched over you more..."
But Mrs. Yoon knew.
That time already lost couldn't be helped.
After the meeting with Mrs. Yoon, everything came to light.
We learned the secret of the father she had hated all this time, and the cause of Director Yoon's emotional void.
If we hadn't decided to meet her mother through Daeun's story, we might have stayed trapped in that frozen time forever.
Rustle.
Suddenly, Mrs. Yoon stood up.
Her eyes, now brimming with vitality unlike before, scanned the room restlessly.
As if searching for something.
Director Yoon cautiously asked.
"What are you looking for?"
"My phone."
"Why your phone?"
"To call him."
"Huh?"
Rustle.
Mrs. Yoon fixed her steely gaze—not on Director Yoon, but on Evri.
"And I'll demand answers: What the hell have you been doing while our daughter suffered like this? Is this why you let me go?"
"Wait, that's my..."
"Are you going to say you didn't tell him because you hated him? Are you trying to defend your dad by saying he didn't know?"
"Th-that's..."
Everyone's expressions changed at Mrs. Yoon's continued words.
Hearing it, a thought suddenly struck me.
'Maybe this was how it was always meant to be.'
"This mom is sorry. So this mom will fix everything. Your pain, the misunderstanding about your dad because of me, everything I couldn't give you all these years."
Mrs. Yoon had abandoned her decades ago.
I wondered if saying that now would change anything, but the person involved, Director Yoon, felt differently.
Crease.
She furrowed her brow. Then bit her lip hard, her cheeks trembling slightly.
For the first time, I could sense emotion on Director Yoon's face, where changes had always been undetectable.
That was...
The 'longing' for a mother who had been so irresponsible all these years.
"Why... why did you leave me behind! You should have held on tight... stayed by my side until the end! I hate you, Mom... I hate you..."
Then she burst into sobs.
As if endlessly pouring out emotions long suppressed.
And.
"I'm sorry... Mom's so sorry. My daughter, the most precious in this world. I won't ever leave again. Evri, I love you."
Squeeze.
And so, Director Yoon's halted time began to flow once more.