Chapter 101
101. I Waited for This Day
2022.04.16.
Jeong-o took a step ahead of Guk-soon and Yena. She had to protect Guk-soon and Yena.
As they got closer to Ms. Jang Young-mi, Yena recognized Youngmi's face first and shouted.
"Oh? I know this lady! We met in the elevator, didn't we!"
In fact, Yena had met Youngmi a week ago. When Yena went to the Genetic Research Center to check the DNA test results, Youngmi was also there. But Youngmi left quickly then, so Yena didn't get a good look at her face.
"Grandma. This lady pulled my hair like this in the academy elevator."
Yena said to Guk-soon. It was tattling, but it was just from a child's perspective, with no real malice. Guk-soon, quickly understanding the situation from Yena's explanation, kept her mouth shut. The thought that this person would be her daughter's mother-in-law made her more reserved.
"Right? You gave me 50,000 won."
When she didn't get a confirmation from Youngmi even after questioning her twice, Yena quickly told Jeong-o.
"Mom, but I didn't take the money. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, I know."
Jeong-o answered calmly and greeted Youngmi.
"Hello."
"How could I be?"
I figured as much.
A start that wasn't much different from before. An answer that hinted at what would happen next. Jeong-o also quickly thought things through. The possible conversations that could take place were neatly organized in her mind.
In the meantime, Guk-soon, who had stepped forward, also greeted Youngmi first.
"Hello. It's nice to meet you."
"Mom."
Jeong-o stood in front of her again. It felt like an electric current was running through her chest.
Mothers always greet first and bow first for their daughters. That's just how our mom is. A mom who just tells you to give in and move on.
She felt that it was her duty to protect these weak and kind people.
I mustn't lose heart.
"Yena, go upstairs with Grandma first."
Guk-soon hesitated at Jeong-o's words.
"Mom, it's okay. Go in first."
Jeong-o gave her mom a confident smile.
\
Late in the evening, Ji-heon visited Jaekwang's office. Jaekwang had called him several times, so he couldn't refuse. Ji-heon told Jaekwang everything that had happened that day. Jaekwang nodded, understanding that Ji-heon's choice was the best.
"Since you admitted that the audio file was yours, they won't be able to do anything about it."
"Chae Eun-bi gathered quite a few people, so the news spread quickly."
"Your reputation must have taken a hit."
"I don't care."
"But it will be a problem when you get married. Yena or Yena's mom will become the talk of the town. Especially Yena, who will be in elementary school next year..."
Jaekwang sighed, seeing even the things that Ji-heon hadn't thought of. Only then did Ji-heon start to think from a new perspective.
Preschool and elementary school are different. Things that weren't a problem when she was in preschool could become a problem in older age groups. Just like at the Go academy.
"You need to be quiet now. Don't cause any trouble."
"Yes."
Thanks to Jaekwang's advice, Ji-heon realized that he needed to be more careful. When you have a child, you also gain a weakness you never had before. A very lovely weakness, though.
"What about the DNA test? Did Chae Eun-yeop manipulate it?"
Jaekwang asked while he was lost in thought.
"I'm sure of it. The genetic information from the DNA test results my mother received and the results I received were the same. It was a calculation to make us trust the wrong information."
"That guy's quite the schemer."
"Yes. But thanks to them using the same genetic information, we were able to deduce one thing. Someone who was instructed by Chae Eun-yeop must have visited the research center to take a test on the day I went for the DNA test."
"Even so, it won't be easy to find out. Even if the research center admits that the test was wrong, they will never tell you whose blood was switched. They'll cite personal information. Even if you find out through a background check, information without legal validity is useless."
"It's not just negligence, it's obstruction of business due to corruption. If the research center is uncooperative in identifying those involved, I plan to take legal action."
Ji-heon asked Jaekwang, who was nodding quietly.
"How is your father?"
"What do you mean?"
"He's close to Chae Eun-yeop's father, isn't he?"
"I don't know."
Jaekwang stroked his chin as if lost in thought.
"He seems to be ambitious in politics. I'll have to distance myself then."
Eun-yeop and Eun-bi's father, Supreme Court Justice Chae Seo-bok, had recently been revealing his ambitions to Jaekwang more frequently. This was not the direction Jaekwang wanted.
"There were some good things in that family because of you. I thought you and Chae Eun-bi would get married."
There were misunderstandings between them. Misunderstandings caused by a lack of communication. He wants to correct the twisted things one by one, even now.
As the silence grew longer, Ji-heon, who had been looking at his phone, smiled and got up from his seat.
"I've told you everything I needed to, so I'll be going now."
"Why are you leaving already?"
"I'm supposed to meet Yena at nine."
How nice…….
Jaekwang almost said these words out loud.
If it's Yena, I understand. Jaekwang waved his hand, telling him to go meet her quickly, but Ji-heon's movements, who was looking at his phone again, suddenly froze.
"I just got a text from Yena..."
"......"
"It seems like your mother is there? In front of Jeong-o's house."
\
After Yena and Guk-soon left, Youngmi spoke first.
"Didn't you even tell the child who I am? 'This lady' to her grandmother. How rude."
"Hearing you say that, I'm glad I didn't tell her who you are."
"......"
"What kind of grandmother doesn't reveal who she is and pulls her granddaughter's hair?"
The voice was relatively gentle, but the content was not.
At Jeong-o's counterattack, Youngmi's eyes narrowed sharply. Since the elevator incident would not benefit her, Youngmi also changed the subject smoothly.
"You raised the child in secret? Without any fear?"
"If Jeong Ji-heon hadn't lost his memory, we would have raised her together."
As she had vowed not to be intimidated, Jeong-o retorted clearly.
Youngmi seemed surprised by her spirit. Youngmi's eyebrows rose high and then curved in the opposite direction.
"Why didn't you say anything back then? Why did you hide it?"
"I was young back then. I didn't know anything."
That day. The day you were yelling at me at Jeong Ji-heon's house.
Jeong-o also acknowledges her foolish self back then. She was too young back then. You can't become an adult just by putting on adult clothes. It was only after she got pregnant that Jeong-o realized she was very young. Until then, she didn't even know she was young.
"I also regret that day. But even if I had lashed out at you more that day, would my fate have changed?"
But she was certain that even if she had been more vicious or smarter, the result would hardly have changed.
Youngmi also seemed to acknowledge this, as she did not refute Jeong-o's claim. Instead, she resented the present.
"Then why did you show up now? You could have just lived like that. Why did you show up now and steal my son's future!"
To Youngmi, Ji-heon is her only son. A tower she had put so much effort into. A son who is kinder than his father. The strength that allows me to live. My everything.
"How do I know if you were his girlfriend or a stalker? And how can that child judge? How can you prove the past with just a DNA test? To me, you were just my son's stalker!"
"No. You knew everything. Ji-heon's phone would have had text messages and call history between us."
Youngmi flinched at Jeong-o's unexpected attack.
Ji-heon is mistaken about one thing. The idea that he has to protect Jeong-o.
The idea that he has to stop his mother from coming to her.
In fact, Jeong-o didn't want that. She had been waiting for the day she could have a one-on-one conversation with Ms. Jang Young-mi.
To convey these words.
"Ms. Jang. I am confident and honorable. I didn't implant any memories in your son."
Waiting for the person who lost his memory. Not saying anything, as foolish as it may seem. It was frustrating to watch silently, but after it all passed, it became a past she could confidently speak about.
Because she could be confident and honorable, Jeong-o's words flowed out without hesitation.
"I could have told him that I was Oppa's girlfriend, and I could have put my memories into your son to make him realize it sooner. But I didn't. Because I didn't want to become the same kind of person as you."
If I were to force memories into him, it wouldn't be Jeong Ji-heon's memories, but Lee Jung-o's memories.
"I waited for Ji-heon to remember on his own. You probably don't know how agonizing and anxious that was. The child was growing up..."
She spoke confidently, but her voice choked up as she thought of the child.
“Jeong Ji-heon recalled what you forcibly blocked, Madam. And he finally realized what he had lost.”
“……”
“You have to admit it now, Madam.”
Jeong-o said with a faint smile.
The strength of the time I believed in and waited for. I have that.
I’m not a weak person anymore.
“I am just as happy before and after meeting Jeong Ji-heon again, but Jeong Ji-heon was unhappy until he met me. Do you know that? A person who was unhappy and became happy becomes desperate. He will try not to be unhappy again, your son will.”
With each word from Jeong-o, Youngmi's clenched fist trembled. It felt like that fist would fly at me at any moment. But Jeong-o didn't stop talking.
“The relationship between Ji-heon and me, and between Yena and Ji-heon, is more special than you think, Madam. If it were a shallow belief, he would have turned away when you presented the fake DNA test results.”
“……”
“It is your choice whether you will acknowledge and bless your son’s new family, or continue to stay there. I don’t force anything. You’re not exactly necessary in my life.”
Saying such harsh words to the mother of the person I love, words I never even said to my own mother, Guk-soon, is actually a struggle.
Perhaps, if she finds out about this, she may become distant from Ji-heon's father, Jaekwang, who showed her kindness. But I won't regret the words I've already spoken.
“I will do exactly as you do, Madam.”
The days I've lived are not something to be proud of, but the experiences that are not something to be proud of become the strength to live on.
If I don't obsess over being loved, there's so much I can do. I won't make the same mistake again.
“If you treat me well, I will treat you well, and if you ignore me.”
“……”
“I’ll do the same to you.”
