Chapter 49
Chapter 49
To bring Prosecutor Choi in as a son-in-law, she needed to persuade Bom well.
She'd called several times, but Bom somehow seemed utterly uninterested. Nan-hee grew anxious.
‘She used to meet whoever I told her to, and just do whatever I said about marriage.’
Now, she'd express subtle rejections even while looking troubled, and sometimes outright sigh.
Going to the countryside completely changed the girl.
Who was she going through all this trouble for? And Bom didn't even understand. Nan-hee felt a pang of resentment towards Bom, who wasn't acting as she wished.
"Surely she's not meeting a married man there too, is she?"
Oh, how awful! Nan-hee's face turned ashen.
She should have gone down to the countryside once. Last year, she couldn't because she was wary of Jung-gi, and this year she was busy with filming.
Nan-hee, pacing and lost in various delusions, called her manager.
"Ugh, why isn't she answering now?"
She'd rather die than suffer. Nan-hee tried to look up directions on a map app, but it was more inconvenient to view than she expected. Deciding to use Yoon-cheong's computer, she entered his room.
"I need to go before the first broadcast next week."
A blue desktop appeared. Nan-hee looked for the internet browser icon. But there was one suspicious folder.
She knew her grown son had a right to privacy, but Nan-hee couldn't curb her curiosity. Opening the folder, Nan-hee found several photo files. She clicked on one of them first.
"Kyaaak!"
Nan-hee, who had screamed reflexively, found her breathing quickening.
"This can't be, why is our Cheong-i...?"
They were all unbelievable photos.
⋆★⋆
"Why isn't this working all of a sudden?"
Bom seriously examined the TV. The screen, which had been working fine until yesterday, was now split into 12 sections, moving erratically.
As she leaned in, trying to fix it, her stomach churned. Bom felt nauseous and kept dry heaving.
"Ugh."
"Teacher, you don't have to turn it on."
"That's right, we can hear the sound anyway!"
At the children's words, Bom finally gave up on the repair and returned to her seat.
Today was the Closing Ceremony. Since they had recently installed new broadcasting equipment with a budget from the Office of Education, they decided to conduct the ceremony via broadcast as a test.
In each classroom, students were watching the broadcast and starting the Closing Ceremony. However, in Bom's class, the TV screen suddenly wasn't working properly, so they could only hear the sound.
-Yes, above all, you must maintain a regular lifestyle during the break so as not to lose focus. Furthermore, I hope you will strengthen your mind and body through various leisure activities, ahem. That is all.
The principal's long, drawn-out speech finally ended.
-Now, Homeroom Teachers in the classrooms, please distribute the handouts to the students and conduct the safety accident Training.
Following the broadcast, Bom stood in front of the teacher's desk. She handed out handouts prepared by the Head of Academic Affairs, such as 'Summer Vacation Parental Notice' and 'Water Safety Accident Prevention.'
"Teacher, what are you going to do during the break?"
"Hey, what did you hear last time? She said she was going to the beach, didn't she?"
"Ooh...!"
Bom quieted the children who had started chattering excitedly and turned up the volume of the video. Last year, the atmosphere wasn't like this where kids would ask such things; she was definitely closer to them now.
"Listen carefully."
Listening only to the sound made it hard to concentrate, but it was important content nonetheless.
-Yes, this concludes the safety accident prevention education. The Closing Ceremony will now conclude. Please tidy up your classrooms.
The educational video on water safety accident prevention ended, and it was time to send the children off. Bom rustled around, pulling out something she had secretly prepared.
"Alright, kids."
"Yes, ma'am."
"During the break, go to lots of fun places with your friends and family. The school will also be open, so come and study while enjoying the cool air conditioning."
"Yes, ma'am!"
"And this is..."
"Ack! It's our Report Cards, isn't it?"
At the mention of Report Cards, Se-jin, who had been sitting quietly in the corner, looked downcast again. Bom looked at Se-jin with sympathy before continuing.
"Shall we have you come up one by one to get them?"
Bom called them up one by one and gave them their first-semester Report Cards along with a box of Candy-Shaped Vitamins. A small note was attached to the outside of each yellow vitamin box.
"Teacher, what is this? I'm so touched."
"We should be giving you something... sniff."
They were short, handwritten letters. Thanks to the active and lively Class 2, second grade, the semester had been enjoyable.
Seeing the happy expressions of the children as they opened their notes, Bom also felt a sense of pride.
The response was so enthusiastic that her hesitation about whether to prepare them or not felt pointless.
"You all worked hard this semester. Let's meet again in a month, healthy and well."
As soon as Bom finished speaking, the children came forward and surrounded the teacher's desk. They playfully asked trivial things like if she wasn't going to Seoul, or if she wouldn't be coming to school.
After finishing the big cleanup and sending the children off, Bom stopped by the faculty office to greet the other teachers, then exited the school gate.
All the way home on the bus, Bom was intoxicated by a sense of excitement for the break that she had never felt before.
"Bom-sik. Mom's on break."
Bom picked up Bom-sik, who had come bounding to the front door, barking, and sat on the sofa. It had only been a month since she brought Bom-sik home, but his appearance had changed a lot.
Bom-sik, who had once looked like a ball of fluff, was now quite dignified. One of his triangular folded ears now stood upright, and his legs had grown a little longer.
"Shall we go for a walk, Mom?"
At the word 'walk,' Bom-sik pawed the ground excitedly.
Bom chuckled, put on his harness, and headed outside.
She took him for a walk for about thirty minutes every day after work, but it was nowhere near enough time for such an energetic puppy.
Now that it was break, she was happy that she could take him for longer walks. Also, she wouldn't have to leave the house empty for half the day, so they could spend more time together.
"You really don't get tired, do you, Bom-sik? Are you like your dad?"
They circled the stream three times. Bom was already drenched in sweat, but Bom-sik wagged his tail furiously, as if he wanted to run more.
"Bom-sik, tomorrow a big brother will take you for a walk instead. You can run to your heart's content then. Okay?"
As if he understood, Bom-sik wagged his tail vigorously.
After coaxing Bom-sik and bringing him to the front gate, Bom suddenly felt like playing a trick. She provoked Bom-sik, who was standing at the stairs, asking to be picked up.
"I thought our Bom-sik was all grown up, but he can't even climb stairs~!"
Bom-sik barked.
Bom giggled and teased him a little more.
"What, you're saying you're all grown up? Nah. I don't think so?"
Bom-sik looked so cute when he was angry that Bom teased him one more time.
"I thought our Bom-sik was a girl because his little pecker was so small~ Are you really all grown up? Huh? Bom-sik?"
That's when it happened.
"Ms. Yoon Bom."
Looking down from the stairs was Choi Yi-jun. Bom almost dropped the leash.
"...What are you doing there?"
"Come up."
"..."
Why did they always run into each other at times like this? Bom carried Bom-sik, who was on high alert at Yi-jun's appearance, and climbed the stairs.
"It's been a while since it ended, and you didn't come, so I thought you were with Seon Jae-gyu."
"Jae-gyu went to a government support program briefing today."
"You know a lot of details."
His sarcastic tone was unchanged. But as it happened, Bom also had something she needed to tell Yi-jun privately. Since she couldn't invite him inside, Bom led Yi-jun to the wooden platform.
"I'll just put Bom-sik inside for a moment."
"What a name."
Seeing Yi-jun click his tongue, Bom-sik barked loudly and lunged. Bom soothed Bom-sik, quickly put him inside the house, and came back out.
"Um, did you have something to say...?"
Bom was nervous. Nan-hee had called her several times, urging her to meet Yi-jun. She had been putting it off with excuses, but...
[Anyway, it's in progress, so just know that. You absolutely cannot miss this opportunity.]
They might have already talked to his family. She knew she had to refuse clearly, but in truth, Bom was hesitating.
‘Maybe Choi Yi-jun is the best option, just like Mom says.’
But if she chose Yi-jun, what would her life be like afterward? When she pictured the future, it was colorless. Was living according to her parents' wishes really the right answer in the end?
I don't know. With a troubled expression, Bom sat down lightly next to Yi-jun on the wooden platform.
"Last time, at the Bazaar. Thank you for protecting me. I didn't even get to properly thank you then..."
"And then you just walked out with Seon Jae-gyu."
She remembered Yi-jun's gaze, piercing and cold. He had indeed been bothered by it.
"Because Jae-gyu was so badly hurt."
"Why do you care that that bastard got hurt?"
Right. Why did she care? It wasn't just caring; it hurt as if her heart was tearing. Even now, thinking of Jae-gyu from that time, it was the same.
"He didn't even think about himself and saved other people. Of course, I'd care when a righteous person gets hurt."
As she calmly stated her opinion, Bom also found clarity in her own heart.
‘So that's what moved my heart about Jae-gyu.’
Bom disliked cowardly people. She also disliked people who played it safe. It was a part of herself she wanted to discard. But everyone was cowardly to some extent, and prioritized their own bodies.
That was natural, but Jae-gyu was different. He was both dependable and admirable.
"That's not an easy thing to do."
Yi-jun, who had been listening, let out a disbelieving "Ha," and then a sigh. Then he began to say something utterly unbelievable.
"Does a righteous person kill his own father?"