Chapter 13
13. My Name Is Lee Jung-o. 2021.06.12.
The next day. Jeong Ji-heon was busy from morning. He went on a business trip to Incheon to have lunch with a client, and in the afternoon, he had a meeting at headquarters. It was around quitting time when Ji-heon returned to the office, and his secretary greeted him.
“Director, you’re back.”
“Any calls?”
“In the morning, the Managing Director of Jae-eun Construction called, and the CEO of Rahan Ceramics said they would call separately. Attorney Chae Eun-yeop also stopped by briefly this morning.”
Chae Eun-yeop. Ji-heon's high school classmate and Eun-bi's Oppa. A talented lawyer working at a famous law firm. Eun-yeop's law firm was in charge of external consulting for the Sae-ryun Group, so Eun-yeop had been coming to Ji-heon's company for quite some time. It seemed he had visited for consulting purposes again and stopped by to see Ji-heon.
“Okay.”
“Oh, right. Assistant Manager Lee Jung-o from Production Team 1 came to see you yesterday.”
The secretary told Ji-heon what she hadn't been able to say yesterday as he was about to enter his office. Ji-heon turned around, still holding the doorknob.
“When?”
“She came when you were in the lounge, Director. I did tell her you were in the lounge, though.”
Didn't she say she came to see the books yesterday? He was sure it was an excuse, but after confirming it, he chuckled. She was looking for me that hard? Why? Was she upset about being scolded by Park Seung-gyu?
“Call her again.”
He felt strangely pleased.
* Tasks were gradually being assigned one by one. Jeong-o, who had been revising online ad copy drafts all morning, received confirmation from the client in the afternoon and began working on variations. Sitting next to Gi-hoon and checking dozens of banners one by one made her feel dizzy. It was probably because she hadn't been getting enough sleep lately.
“Oh? Assistant Manager, I think there's a typo here.”
Gi-hoon pointed to the confirmation draft as Jeong-o stared at the monitor with blurry eyes. Jeong-o stretched her neck and examined the letters. - Prime Outlet's First Season OFF Sale! Up to 75% Murder! Enjoy the benefits at Prime prices!
“Gasp.”
She had mistakenly written '75% Murder' instead of '75% Off'! The exciting sale event almost became a horrific murder scene. Jeong-o quickly covered the confirmation draft with her hand, hoping no one would see. And she had received confirmation like this. It was a relief she hadn't been caught. The client must have missed it because the confirmation draft was nearly 30 pages long. Gi-hoon chuckled and teased her.
“If you only commit 75% of a murder, isn't that attempted murder?”
“It's a secret, Gi-hoon. Please keep it a secret.”
Jeong-o lowered her voice and pleaded.
“We'll see.”
“Don't be like that, please. Gi-hoon, what do you want to eat? I'll buy you dinner?”
“I don't think just one dinner will do.”
Gi-hoon, amused by Jeong-o's serious expression, teased her even more. In the meantime, Jeong-o's desk phone rang. Jeong-o went back to her seat and answered the phone.
“Hello. This is Lee Jung-o.”
[Assistant Manager Lee. This is Yoon Ae-ra, Director Jeong Ji-heon's secretary. Director Jeong is asking for you.]
Jeong-o froze, still holding the receiver.
“What for?”
Why? Why again?
[I think it's because you came to see him yesterday.]
“……Okay. I understand.”
After a slow reply, Jeong-o hung up the phone, and Gi-hoon asked her.
“Assistant Manager. What's wrong?”
“Huh? Oh…… it's nothing. I'll be back in a bit.”
“Yes? Where are you going?”
Without even answering Gi-hoon's question, Jeong-o started walking. She thought she knew why he had called her. She had shed tears in front of him yesterday, so he must feel uncomfortable. Jeong-o regretted letting her tears fall so easily. Knock, knock.
“Director. This is Lee Jung-o.”
“Yes.”
Lee Jung-o entered. Ji-heon stood up from his seat. As always, with a pale face, she bowed. It was the first time he had called an assistant manager to his office twice.
“You asked for me, so I came.”
Eyes that drew a line, an expression that was appropriately wary. She was trying hard to look calm. That's why it was even more obvious that she was scared. She was so nervous, yet more daring than anyone else. That adorable gap continued to pique his interest.
‘This isn't normal.’
This feeling wasn't normal. Ji-heon was beginning to realize it too. His feelings for this woman had already gone beyond the scope of an employee. However, he still needed to figure things out. What kind of person was this woman? Was it just innate boldness, or was there some ulterior motive? He wanted to have her, but he didn't want to give her his heart. That was Jeong Ji-heon's way of not trusting anyone.
“Please, have a seat.”
Jeong-o sat on the chair that Ji-heon offered. Ji-heon also sat across from her. A space with only the two of them. In a place with only the two of them, Jeong-o, who remembered what kind of person he was, felt inexplicably nervous. Her gaze, with lowered eyelids, fell on his broad chest. She surreptitiously watched his chest rise and fall slowly with his regular breathing. Even that physiological phenomenon felt obscene because of her memories. Memories. Jeong-o lowered her gaze further to shake off the stray thoughts. There was a box of cookies on the table.
“Take as many as you want. It's the cookies from yesterday.”
“Yes?”
“The cookies you asked me why I was throwing away, those ones.”
“……Those cookies? ……You picked them up from the trash?”
“You don't like that?”
“Ah, no.”
Jeong-o blankly picked up a cookie package and placed it on her lap. This man wouldn't have called me here to taste cookies he picked up from the trash, would he? As expected, Ji-heon brought up the main topic shortly after.
“I heard from my secretary. You were looking for me yesterday.”
“Ah…… yes.”
“You should tell me why you were looking for me so desperately.”
“I was looking for you because of the cookies too.”
Jeong-o gave the answer she had prepared in a loud voice.
“In the future, if you're going to throw away food, please give it to me. That's what I wanted to say.”
Yes. You must be suspicious. But believe me! You have to believe me!
“I'm serious about eating.”
“You were looking for me to say that?”
“Yes.”
“And you cried because you couldn't say that.”
“That's…… there were other reasons.”
“What other reasons?”
“Just, personal reasons.”
Jeong-o was nervous that Ji-heon, who had narrowed his eyes and was staring intently at her with his lips pressed into a straight line, would see through her. But Ji-heon asked an unexpected question.
“Did Park Seung-gyu, by any chance, threaten you?”
“Yes?”
“Park Seung-gyu. The head of the HR team.”
“Ah, no. Not at all. Park Seung-gyu seems like a good person.”
Jeong-o was startled and waved her hands. But Ji-heon still looked at her with a distrustful expression.
‘Ah, I can't get weak.’
For some reason, her heart ached, and her nose started to feel hot again. The man who hadn't told her which family he was from. The man who hadn't shown her any of his friends and hadn't even said he loved her. And the man who had forgotten all of that. The man who had come to distrust her……. This man also doesn't know that she had his child. He doesn't remember. Is such a man a bad person, or a pitiful person?
‘Ah, but…….’
Jeong-o's eyes widened as she looked at him with pity. Clearly, there was something that didn't add up. Seven years ago, after the accident, he had lost his memory.
‘I definitely talked to you on the phone after the accident, though?’
How could he have made a phone call if he had lost his memory?
‘Did he not remember me and think I was some kind of stalker, so he said those harsh things?’
Yes. That could be the case. But even a stalker should remember their name. The man she had met in the hallway the day before yesterday had an expression that didn't even recognize the name Lee Jung-o.
‘Is he pretending not to know me while knowing me?’
Is he putting on a huge act right now? She wasn't sure. Jeong Ji-heon from seven years ago and the current Jeong Ji-heon were completely different people. Or, he might have always been like that, and he might have been acting in front of her all along. If it was an approach to satisfy his desires from the beginning, he could have easily pretended to be a romantic. If he hadn't had the accident, he might have dragged her to the hospital himself and tried to get her to abort the child. But.
‘Maybe this person isn't the one who did it.’
The chain of thoughts led to suspicion. Seven years ago, in mid-November, Jeong-o had received a call from him. She still clearly remembered all the harsh things he had said at that time.
[I thought my mother meeting you in my place was the end of it. Wasn't that the end?]
[Wasn't my opinion fully conveyed through that?]
[Could you please stop contacting me? It's burdensome.]
[You wouldn't want to be a stumbling block in someone else's life, would you?]
[You better be prepared when you contact me again.]
[I'll assume you understood and hang up. Take care.]
But, was that really his voice? In a state of heightened emotion, she had been certain it was his contact just from the voice. If it wasn't this man's, if that call was fabricated... then we were separated by someone's scheme.
"Excuse me, Director."
Jeong-o mustered her courage and called out to him.
"Yes."
"Have you ever heard my name, even once?"
She said her name clearly.
"My name. Lee Jung-oh."
It felt like her heart was pounding all over her body. Ji-heon paused, seemingly thinking formally for a moment, before replying.
"Did you film an advertisement so famous that it would leave your name behind?"
He doesn't know. Oh, you heartless man. Jeong-o could now be certain. The call from seven years ago was fabricated! She felt like she was about to burst into tears again. What should she do now? If he really forgot me, would it be right to tell him about my identity and Yena's existence? We've lived without knowing each other for seven years? This person is about to get married and start a real family? But the time for contemplation was not long. It would be better for him to know now than after he gets married. For you, for Yena. And for me.
"I have something to tell you, Director."
Jeong-o bravely started. \ Yena sighed as she got off the kindergarten bus. She was supposed to be picked up by the academy, but no one showed up. It probably wasn't intentional. The bus driver was going really fast. Resigned, Yena decided to go alone. It wasn't difficult to go alone since it was a path she walked every day. She had taken about ten steps when...
"Oh? You were here? The teacher was looking for you."
A woman came up and spoke to her. It wasn't the teacher who always picked her up.
"But who are you?"
"I'm a new teacher. You're Yena, right?"
A teacher who knew her name. She was glad, but also puzzled. Her shoulders naturally hunched. The woman grabbed Yena's hand and pulled her along. It was a rather rough force.
"Let's go. We have to go quickly. It's too late."
The woman grabbed Yena's hand and strode forward. It was too much for a seven-year-old to keep up with the woman's pace. Yena had to run. But the direction the woman was going wasn't towards the baduk academy building.
"Um, where are we going now?"
"We're going to the academy, where else would we go?"
"That's not the way to the academy."
"The academy moved. Didn't you know?"
A child can't stand up to an adult's force. Yena felt like this wasn't right, but she followed the adult who was holding her hand. Then, she started to feel scared. When she looked back, the sign for the baduk academy was no longer visible. She missed her mom.
"I want to call my mom."
Yena, stubbornly stopping in her tracks, glared and demanded. The woman turned around. But the woman was even more startled and shook off the hand she was holding.
"Oh my, who are you?"
The woman, making a face as if she had touched a terrible reptile, left before Yena could say anything. On a road she had never been on before, Yena was alone.
"Mommy..."
Her pitiful voice scattered along the street.
\ Do-bin, who had arrived early at the baduk academy and was eagerly waiting for only Yena, became increasingly anxious.
'Is Yena not coming today?'
Do-bin couldn't stand it and went to ask the teacher.
"Teacher, is Yena not coming today?"
"No. She'll be here soon. It's about time she came. I'll go get her."
As the teacher got up from her seat, Do-bin grabbed the teacher's pants.
"Teacher, can I go too?"
"Okay. Let's go together."
Do-bin happily followed the teacher. In front of the baduk academy building. Do-bin waited for Yena with a fluttering heart, smoothing his clothes several times. But, even after another 10 minutes passed, Yena didn't come.
"Teacher, why isn't Yena coming?"
"That's strange. I should call the kindergarten."
The teacher found Yena's kindergarten phone number and dialed it.
"Hello. Hello. This is the baduk academy that Yena from Deer Class attends. Yena hasn't arrived yet."
[Oh? Yena got off the bus. About 15 minutes ago.]
The teacher's lips dried up after hanging up the phone.
"Teacher, what did they say?"
"...They said Yena got off the bus? Could she have gone up to the academy alone?"
The teacher called the baduk academy director.
[Yena hasn't come yet?]
The baduk academy director's response drained the color from the teacher's face. Do-bin was the same.
"Teacher, is Yena gone?"
The teacher couldn't speak. No way. He can't live in a world without her. He had to find Yena as soon as possible. Do-bin put his small hands to his mouth and shouted loudly.
"Yena! Lee Yena!"
All he could do was call out her name.
"Lee Yenaaaaa!"
His frantic voice drew the attention of everyone passing by.
"Lee Yenaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
An old man passing by saw Do-bin and laughed heartily.
"That little guy. He's got a good voice."
"You shouldn't laugh! Yena is gone right now!"
