Chapter 69
Chapter 69
You Can Stop Now
“Grandma… something’s wrong with me.”
Young Yu Yeon-seo gently grasped the finger of his grandmother, Park Geum-ju. Her expression was dark and weary. In a way, she seemed to regard her grandson as a thorn in her side.
“I keep seeing Mom... I keep seeing her.”
Yu Yeon-seo looked past Park Geum-ju’s shoulder into the empty air. Two feet dangling in the air appeared faintly before vanishing. It probably looked that way because the memory synchronization was incomplete; the young Yu Yeon-seo at the time must have seen it more clearly.
“Oh…”
Park Geum-ju, who had been staring at her grandson with a blank face, slapped away the hand reaching out to her for help. The gesture was surprisingly sharp, making his hand sting.
The grandmother who had always hugged him and greeted him with a smile—why? When he raised his head with a confused expression, the grandmother young Yu Yeon-seo had known was gone.
‘I’m scared...’
Unable to bear his grandmother’s cold gaze, young Yu Yeon-seo fled, wiping his flowing tears with his sleeve.
All the while, the visions of Lee Hui-seo, appearing intermittently through the window, seemed to warn him that he should never tell anyone else.
“Hic… sob…”
In his room, now in the main house instead of the annex, young Yu Yeon-seo hugged his knees and cried.
<Random memory synchronization complete. Synchronization rate: 31.19%>
When he closed his eyes and opened them again, he was no longer the 8-year-old Yu Yeon-seo, but the 28-year-old one.
“Ugh!”
Vomiting blood from the aftereffects of the memory synchronization, Yu Yeon-seo sat on the bathroom floor. He felt dizzy and his body was so heavy he didn’t even have the strength to stand up.
“...Haha!”
As he sat there blankly staring at the bathroom light, laughter suddenly burst out of him. He didn’t know why he was laughing. It just came out. He laughed like that until he had to grab the toilet and retch again.
He wiped his mouth roughly with his sleeve, smearing it with blood. His shirt and pants were also stained red.
[Your family should know. Or a friend...]
What had Jin Su-ho said after that? That they could help me, just like he did?
‘It’s all bullshit.’
Knowing wouldn’t have changed anything. The first person young Yu Yeon-seo had asked for help was his grandmother, but even after that, she had ignored him and treated him like a nuisance.
This was why the original Yeon-seo hadn’t told the rest of his family. Because telling them wouldn’t have made a difference.
“Ah, fuck.”
A curse escaped his lips. He thought he had seen something like a white skirt in the bathroom through the mirror again.
He hung his head, then mustered the courage to look up again, but there was nothing there. He had just mistaken a white towel for something else.
‘I’m really going to go crazy at this rate.’
So, did the original Yeon-seo really go crazy? Go mad, lose his sense of reason, and lash out suddenly?
Yu Yeon-seo kept laughing. He laughed so hard he gasped for air, yet there was still blood he hadn’t coughed up, so he bent over and vomited again and again. Anyone watching would have thought it was a scene from a horror or gore film.
“Ah…”
After roughly cleaning up the bathroom, he stumbled back to his room and looked at the painting propped clumsily on the bedside table.
It was the crude but warm picture the child, Raul, had drawn. Seeing the crookedly written words ‘Thank you’ gradually calmed his chaotic mind.
To be honest, the Yu Yeon-seo of that time and the Yu Yeon-seo of now were different. Immediately after the memory synchronization, his emotions had been intense, as if swept away by the past Yu Yeon-seo, but now he was calm.
‘It feels a little uncomfortable, though?’
Still, the reason for his unease was probably that as he absorbed more of the original’s memories, he was slowly becoming the real Yu Yeon-seo, not Kang Jin-hu from the year 2207.
“Happy New Year, Grandfather!”
“Yes. Seon-u, I’ve been enjoying your videos.”
“You have?!”
“I even subscribed. Didn’t you know?”
“You did?!”
“Just try not to make them look too much like you’re a new-money brat.”
In contrast to Yu Yeon-seo’s complicated feelings, his family and relatives were in high spirits. They asked about each other’s lives and exchanged well wishes for the coming year.
Yu Yeon-seo watched Park Seon-woo, who was sitting in a corner, stunned by the news that his grandfather was watching his channel and had even subscribed, then turned his head.
“Yeon-seo. I enjoyed the movie.”
“Yes, thank you.”
His younger aunt’s husband, Park Gyeong-seok, sat down next to him. Park Gyeong-seok had, what should one say, a pleasant demeanor. Like a big, stocky puppy.
Even when his elder aunt’s husband, who came from a family of lawyers, made subtle digs at Park Gyeong-seok for being a former rank-and-file employee at Juseong, he would just laugh it off. Seeing that he didn’t seem to have an inferiority complex, it was clear that people like him were the strongest-willed.
“You must be getting a lot of ad offers with back-to-back hits in drama and film, right?”
“A lot.”
His younger aunt, Yu Seon-yeong, sat down next to Park Gyeong-seok.
“Our company is launching a new beauty brand. Have you thought about being the spokesmodel?”
“If you pay me well.”
“Even though you have more money than I do?”
Park Gyeong-seok laughed heartily, thinking it was a joke. I was serious, though. Yu Yeon-seo didn’t say that out loud. Isn’t it better to have more money?
“Alright, I’ll make sure you’re well compensated. Should I contact your agency?”
“Yes, please do.”
Yu Yeon-seo nodded. Yu Seon-yeong, who had been listening to their conversation, leaned in.
“Our Yeon-seo, now that you’re earning money, you need to know how to spend it too, right?”
“Shopping?”
“Yes.”
Looking at Yu Seon-yeong’s expectant eyes, Yu Yeon-seo let out a small sigh.
“Let’s set a date.”
“Really?”
Yu Yeon-seo watched his younger aunt as she scurried over to his elder aunt to whisper in her ear. What did the original do to be so popular even with his relatives? He couldn’t understand it.
“Anyway, you know your grandmother recovered a cultural artifact and brought it to the Juseong Art Museum, right?”
“I saw it in the news.”
“Good.”
He didn’t know what strings she had pulled to get it back, but it was significant enough to be hailed in headlines as a major milestone for the country’s cultural scene. Park Geum-ju was scheduled to be invited to the Blue House to receive a medal, which naturally further improved Juseong’s image.
Her second grandson, who had been her biggest worry, had gotten his act together and was showing improvement in his field. Chairman Yu, who had only been experiencing good things lately, smiled with satisfaction.
“Don’t forget to attend the commemorative charity event.”
“If my schedule allows.”
Sometimes, his old insolent behavior would slip out. Displeased with his grandson’s indifferent reply, Chairman Yu cleared his throat.
“Eun-ho is going, and you’re saying you won’t?”
“...Then I guess I have to go.”
Yu Eun-ho was busier than most popular celebrities. If his brother was going, it must be no ordinary charity event. His grandmother, the director of the Juseong Art Museum, would be there the whole time, so Yu Yeon-seo planned to just show his face and slip out.
“Son, are you having any trouble lately?”
“No.”
“Really? You don’t look so well...”
“I just got a tan from filming the variety show.”
Yu Geon-min was as doting as ever.
He had heard that his father had bought the Blu-ray collector’s edition of Dreaming and had watched White Tiger more than ten times. According to Choi Yu-jin, who had watched it with him, he had gotten so immersed when Master Sergeant Kim Woo-jin died in White Tiger that he had covered his mouth and shed tears. He was an interesting father, indeed.
“If you’re ever in trouble, make sure you tell me. Got it?”
“If I need to. But Dad, you’re pretty famous among my fans.”
“I, I am?”
Moreover, there was an incident where he participated in a fan community fundraiser, and the donor list showed ‘Yu *-min’, leading fans to speculate if it was their “father-in-law.” It probably was him.
Who deposits tens of millions of won into a fundraiser where fans are chipping in little by little? Only a doting father. He probably made another separate donation in Yu Yeon-seo’s name after that.
“You’re acting shy even though you know you’ve been found out.”
Choi Yu-jin smiled faintly as she watched Yu Geon-min flee to Yu Eun-ho in embarrassment. Yu Yeon-seo also burst out laughing. It was a relief his father didn’t take after his grandfather and grandmother.
“Our Yeon-seo is so popular.”
“I’m a celebrity. How was the film festival?”
“The same as always. Did you have a good vacation?”
“Was that a vacation? I went there to work.”
“Work? I heard you were the one calling the shots, not the production team.”
“Is that so? Producer Lee has a loose tongue.”
As Yu Yeon-seo spoke with a serious air, Choi Yu-jin chuckled softly.
“I’m half-joking. Lately, all I hear are good things about you. I heard you were amazing this time, too?”
“It wasn’t me, Secretary Im did everything.”
“Having someone like that working under you is a testament to your ability. I’m looking forward to the broadcast. I want to see it too. What you’re like in your daily life… I never really knew, did I?”
He studied Choi Yu-jin’s face as she fell into a pensive mood. The synchronization rate was only 31.19%; he still didn’t know how the past Choi Yu-jin had treated Yu Yeon-seo.
But from what he had gathered of her personality, she would have tried her best to get closer to a Yu Yeon-seo who constantly pushed her away.
‘She’s better than Grandma in that respect.’
The original body only put up walls depending on the person. It was a bit of a shame.
“Oh, right. Mother.”
“Yes?”
“You can stop now.”
At Yu Yeon-seo’s sudden remark, Choi Yu-jin turned her head and narrowed her eyes.
“Stop what?”
“The articles.”
At his response, Choi Yu-jin laughed.
“So you thought it was me.”
“It wasn’t?”
“Well… do you really think I’d play the media so obviously?”
Yu Yeon-seo couldn’t answer. Would Choi Yu-jin, who had single-handedly propelled JSENM to the top of the industry in such a short time, resort to such crude media play? If she wanted to, she could sway public opinion without him ever knowing.
“Was it Father, then?”
The original doting father? Yu Yeon-seo crossed his arms and tilted his head.
“Your father doesn’t play games with articles. He prefers to do things for you directly, to make it obvious. I heard he’s planning on calling a catering buffet this time.”
“Haha…”
A catering buffet after the coffee truck. That was reassuring. The staff of his yet-to-be-decided next project would be treated to a catering buffet once a day.
“Grandfather, then?”
Choi Yu-jin shook her head.
“That only leaves one person.”
“...Grandma?”
Yu Yeon-seo’s brow furrowed automatically. He couldn’t understand it at all. The grandmother in his synchronized memory was not the affectionate type to engage in clumsy media play for her grandson’s sake.
“Why?”
Choi Yu-jin felt sorry for the confused Yu Yeon-seo. She knew very well how Park Geum-ju had treated him.
“Well… why don’t you ask your grandmother yourself? You’re going to the charity event, right?”
“Yes.”
“If you have time then, try to speak with her alone.”
“I don’t know…”
He was reluctant. Even now, in this gathering, he was intentionally avoiding his grandmother.
Choi Yu-jin smiled at her conflicted second son. The emotional rift between him and his grandmother seemed deep, and meddling clumsily could lead to misunderstandings. Ultimately, it was a problem the two of them had to solve.
“By the way, is something wrong with Eun-ho?”
“You noticed too, Mother?”
“I didn’t at first… but you were looking at him strangely, so I observed him for a bit.”
Choi Yu-jin and Yu Yeon-seo simultaneously turned their heads to stare at Yu Eun-ho, who was talking with their uncles.
“I don’t know for sure either.”
“Is that so? It’s probably because of the company. He has a lot on his plate these days, right? Things like problems with importing materials must be giving him a headache.”
“Could be.”
He didn’t know the details of the company’s affairs, so there was no way to be sure… but even the doting Yu Geon-min must have noticed the subtle change in Yu Eun-ho. The fact that he wasn’t saying anything must mean it really was about work, right?
Yu Yeon-seo frowned.
‘I don’t know about that... he started acting strange the moment he stepped into this house.’
He had a feeling he shouldn’t ignore this change in his brother.