Chapter 119
Chapter 119
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: Emotions Reflected in Paintings
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The next day arrived.
Perhaps because so much had happened the day before, my mind was completely scattered. And even after a full day had passed, I was still out of sorts.
"I'm sorry. I didn't have anyone else to call."
I nodded at Representative Yoon's words and replied.
"No, you came all the way to Korea just to see me. Helping out like this is the least I can do. I'll send you the address first—could you head there? It's the studio Daeun and I use."
"Alright, send it over and we'll go there."
Click.
Representative Yoon had called early that morning.
She had originally planned to meet just me and fly right back to the States, but with everything suddenly piling up, she had no choice but to stay in Korea a few more days.
There was the matter with Officer Kim, too.
That had caused a few issues.
The first one was clothes and basic necessities.
'Good thing it's a hotel, so the basics are covered.'
Staying at the best hotel in the country was a relief, at least, but she had no clothes to wear or underwear—nothing essential.
Actually, thinking about it, it was a bit ridiculous.
She had flown all that way with zero luggage just to meet me. Over fifteen hours on a plane, no less.
"Hmm, for now, let's get some clothes and underwear, oh, and she said she needs a battery charger too."
I jotted down what Representative Yoon needed.
Officer Kim had originally planned to buy them himself, but as a public servant, he couldn't easily step away.
And Representative Yoon hated the idea of him taking time off work anyway.
'Bloodlines run deep, huh.'
Even after being apart for so long, their temperaments...
Mrs. Yoon had left her family for work, and Representative Yoon treated work as sacred.
I thought the two women were remarkably alike.
"Well, that's not the point right now."
I finished listing everything needed and quickly got ready to head out.
If Representative Yoon took a taxi to the studio from where she was, she'd probably arrive before us.
If we went with Daeun, we'd need to leave thirty minutes earlier than usual.
"Daddy! Daeun's all done!"
"Oh! You finished quick."
"Pretty auntie's coming to Daeun's studio! Daeun's gonna go first and wait!"
Hmm, not sure if we'd actually arrive first.
"Alright, shall we head out?"
"Yeah! Let's go!"
And so, I followed my excited daughter out the door and headed to the studio.
We barely made it to the studio first.
Thanks to that, Daeun could greet Representative Yoon without being late.
Click.
"This is Daeun's studio!"
Representative Yoon entered as Daeun gave her tour.
I'd rushed out the day before to meet her, so it was a bit messy since I hadn't tidied up properly.
"It's bigger than I expected."
Representative Yoon didn't seem to mind.
Step.
She walked further in and gazed at the paintings hanging on the studio walls.
There were the four recent pieces Daeun had painted on the theme of happiness, along with others she'd done here and there, all nicely displayed.
Representative Yoon quietly admired them, her eyes misty with emotion.
'That expression.'
It was the same one she always made when viewing my paintings. I hadn't expected to see it here.
After staring at them for a long while, she spoke without taking her eyes off the canvases.
"They really do resemble each other."
"Yes."
Surprised by the somewhat cryptic remark, I asked for clarification, but she followed up with something equally puzzling.
"The paintings, I mean. To be honest, I was a little curious. What emotions would be captured in Miss Daeun's works, I wondered."
Then Representative Yoon bent down slightly, as if to meet Daeun's eyes—Daeun was standing right behind her—and called out to her.
"Miss Daeun."
"Yes!"
And then, out of nowhere—truly, utterly out of the blue—Representative Yoon pulled Daeun into a tight hug.
Daeun, the one being hugged, was startled, and I was shocked too, standing right there.
Why on earth had Representative Yoon suddenly embraced Daeun like that? Just then, her words explained it.
She held the hug for a long moment before gently pulling back.
She looked straight into Daeun's eyes and said.
"You're such a strong little girl, Miss Daeun. Unlike me."
"Yes."
"I've decided. From now on, I'll collect your paintings too."
I jumped in surprise at that.
'Sh-She's going to buy Daeun's paintings too?'
A promise from a big collector like her wasn't something to take lightly.
And it was Representative Yoon, no less.
If she said it, she would do it.
But on the other hand, I wondered why.
Was it just because of yesterday? If so, then Daeun...
"I can feel the same emotions in Miss Daeun's paintings as in Painter Kanghyeok Lee's. But they're a different kind, and that's what makes them so wonderful."
Emotions.
Was that why she wanted to collect them? Because of the emotions?
'Ah, so that's why she said they resemble each other.'
Of course. She'd bought so many of my paintings for the emotions captured in them.
And with that, Representative Yoon's critique continued.
Hearing it, I finally understood all her actions.
"Your paintings, Painter Kanghyeok Lee, contain a variety of emotions. Happiness and disappointment, joy and sorrow—complex feelings all mixed together. But Miss Daeun's are simple."
Simple...
"I've been feeling emotions I never experienced as a child through your paintings, Miss Daeun. Love for mom, love for dad, and the love that a cherished child should have."
Ah... So the real reason Representative Yoon decided to buy Daeun's paintings was...
"There are countless emotions I never got to have, captured in your paintings, Miss Daeun. But there's one I could relate to."
She gently stroked Daeun's head.
Then, in the softest voice, she said.
"Thank you, Miss Daeun. Thanks to you, I remembered the feeling of longing I'd forgotten."
Longing for her mother.
In Daeun's paintings, Representative Yoon had found echoes of her own younger self, yearning for mom long ago.
Whether young Daeun grasped the depth of those words, I wasn't sure.
Daeun clenched her little fists tight and declared with a determined face.
"Daeun! Will paint super hard!"
It was hard for a child her age to fully understand, but what did it matter?
Nothing else was important to Daeun.
Right now, Representative Yoon liked them.
That was all that mattered.
"So Daeun will make pretty auntie smile!"
Representative Yoon nodded at that.
"Thank you, Painter Lee Daeun."
Eek!
Even after that heartfelt talk with Representative Yoon, she spent quite a while gazing at the paintings.
She'd told me she spent over an hour every morning staring at my paintings as part of her routine.
Now it would just be Daeun's instead—nothing much changed.
Once the routine was done, we finally headed out to buy her essentials...
'We ended up at a department store.'
Heh heh, normally you'd think of a market or outlet for clothes, but for Representative Yoon, was a department store her version of an outlet?
Whoosh—
We passed through the smoothly opening automatic doors into a sea of people, even though it was a weekday afternoon.
'Wow, I felt it last time too, but why are there so many people at this hour?'
Not just older folks—plenty of young people too.
I'd been shocked by the crowds last time when we came for Painter Son's exhibition, and it still amazed me every visit.
Daeun looked around and said.
"More people than last time!"
Representative Yoon nodded and replied.
"Yes, it's run by someone with real discernment, so that must be why it's so popular."
Discernment—Representative Yoon was probably referring to President Jeong.
We'd naturally brought her up earlier while talking about the studio, and when we mentioned she'd offered to host Daeun's first solo exhibition, Representative Yoon declared from the start that she'd buy all her clothes at that department store.
I told her she didn't need to go out of her way for us, but as she'd just said, she valued the operator's eye for quality.
That determined what brands they carried.
"Shall we go in?"
Representative Yoon led the way, and Daeun and I just nodded.
She was picking the clothes and paying anyway.
"Yes!"
We followed her deeper into the department store.
It was her first time in a Korean one, so she seemed a bit awkward at first, but she quickly adapted and started selecting what she needed.
Naturally, the first stop for clothes was the luxury section.
"I like the clothes here, so two or three should do."
She started heading straight into the luxury hall.
But a guard in a black suit blocked our path.
"Sorry, but you'll have to get in line."
I turned at the word "line" and saw everyone queued up neatly on one side to enter the luxury area.
I gave Representative Yoon an awkward look and said.
"What do we do? Looks like we have to line up to get in."
Representative Yoon tilted her head.
"A line...?"
Of course. Had she ever lined up to buy clothes even once?
She probably hadn't waited for anything in her life.
Would she even understand this situation?
She glanced over the queue and said.
"Oh, you're lining up to get inside?"
"Yes, exactly. If it got too crowded inside, other shoppers couldn't browse properly."
Representative Yoon seemed to get it with that explanation.
Nod.
"If that's the case, no helping it. I'll line up."
"Ah, thank you."
"No need to thank you, Painter Kanghyeok Lee. If there's a line, we line up. Simple as that."
Hahaha, if she saw it that way.
I walked with Representative Yoon toward the end of the line.
Right then.
Thud.
"Ow!"
Thump.
Someone suddenly darted out and slammed into Daeun, whose hand I was holding.
Daeun fell flat on her butt.
Good thing I was holding her hand, or she could've been seriously hurt.
"D-Daeun!"
It happened so abruptly. I rushed to her, checking for injuries.
"I-I'm fine. No hurts."
"Yeah, I'm okay. Daeun's super tough!"
To prove it, Daeun dusted off her bottom and stood up.
That's when I heard the voice of the person who'd hit her.
"Ugh, what the heck? Why's a kid here?"
The irritated, snippy tone made me glance up and say.
"What... did you just say?"
Daeun was right there.
Even in my annoyance, I had to swallow my anger.
I didn't want her seeing me lose my temper.
But the other person took my restraint the wrong way.
"Hey, how do you even manage your kid?"
Manage my kid?
She gave Daeun a filthy once-over from head to toe and snapped.
"Ugh, now her clothes are dirty. These are expensive— what are you gonna do about it?"
Talk about turning the tables. She bumps into us first and has the nerve to get mad.
I was already fuming, but her next words snapped the thin thread of patience I'd been clinging to...
"Hey, you! When you bump into an adult, you apologize first! What kind of upbringing is that?!"