Chapter 74
74. Mom is My World 2022.01.12.
Seeing the tears welling up in Yena's eyes, Ji-heon spoke once more.
"Uncle is actually your dad."
"……."
"Yena's dad. Yena's real dad."
With each repeated word, his heart clenched painfully. Yena. Dad. Dad, Dad. Words he wanted to say a hundred, a thousand times. And words he wanted to hear. Words that should have been spoken and a name that should have been called a long time ago. Time seemed to stop, and no one moved. Jeong-o and Guk-soon also held their breath, watching the scene unfold. After a moment, the tears in Yena's eyes swelled even larger. Yena strained her face, as if trying not to let the tears fall. Her entire face turned red.
"……Liar."
Yena shook her head, as if unable to believe it. Jeong-o, who had been watching, stepped forward. Approaching her, Jeong-o gently patted Yena's shoulder and spoke softly.
"Yena, it's true. He's your real dad. Yena's real dad."
"Liar."
Yena's voice stubbornly rose.
"Then why did you pretend not to know all this time?"
Jeong-o answered Yena's sharp question.
"Your dad couldn't remember. Just like how our Yena sometimes can't remember things."
"Liar."
"……."
"How can you not remember? I remember my mom, my grandma, even my grandma's friends."
Yena huffed and argued. She couldn't accept it. If he was her dad, how could he have never shown up? Why did he pretend not to know her? She had occasionally dreamed of her dad. In her dreams, her dad was in heaven. He said he couldn't come to Yena because he was in heaven. He said he would visit her in her dreams from time to time, so she should play happily during the day and meet him at night. Before she knew it, the dream had convinced seven-year-old Yena's mind. Yena thought her dad was in heaven. It felt natural. She couldn't understand how someone could be doing well somewhere and not want to see their daughter. She didn't know the word "qualification," but she knew what it meant. That kind of dad didn't deserve to be her dad.
"Why are you saying things like that?"
She couldn't accept the conversation itself.
"Why are you saying things like that!"
It felt like Mom, Grandma, and Uncle, the three of them, the three adults, were trying to trick her. Like they were making fun of her for being a kid. She had a good memory too. She even remembered the Go match she had with Uncle. He seemed a little annoyed with her back then. Yena could even recall the indifferent expression Ji-heon had when he first met her. The child remembered. She just couldn't express it with the word "sadness," but she had stored the scenes of that day, in chronological order, deep within her heart.
"Uncle, get out!"
The tears she had been holding back finally fell.
"Get out! Don't come to our house!"
Waaaaah. As her sobs burst out, Jeong-o hugged Yena and comforted her.
"Yena. Oh, why are you crying, our Yena."
As Jeong-o patted her back, Yena's sobs grew louder, as if relying on her embrace. Ji-heon was also startled and froze. When Ji-heon didn't move, Yena shouted at Guk-soon.
"Grandma, tell Uncle to leave! Waaaaah."
How could he be her dad when Yena's birthday hadn't even come yet? What kind of dad was that? What kind of dad didn't show up until his daughter was almost seven years old?
"Quickly! Tell him to leave quickly!"
Something had been strange since morning. No, it had been strange since yesterday. No, it had been strange since the day Uncle gave her the koala doll. Since the day she met him with her mom, Uncle's attitude had been strange. She knew it too. That Uncle hadn't come to see her. That he had come to take her mom away. But he shouldn't do that. Uncle was an adult, and she was a child. Children needed their moms. Her world only had her mom in it. She was everything in her mom's world. Waaaaah. Unable to accept the reality that had crashed down on her, her sobs only grew louder. After sending Ji-heon away first, Jeong-o comforted Yena. Yena's crying didn't stop easily. Only after sitting her on her lap all day, watching TV together, and reading her several fairy tales did Yena stop crying and lie down to sleep. Even then, she didn't mention Ji-heon once, so Jeong-o cautiously asked, feeling sorry for her.
"Yena."
"Yeah?"
"Do you not need a dad, Yena?"
The answer came unexpectedly quickly.
"Yeah. Yena doesn't need a dad."
Perhaps because she had already cried so much, no more tears came out. So Yena was able to convey her clear feelings more clearly than ever.
"I want to live with Mom and Grandma like this. Forever."
She answered coldly and waited, but her mom didn't react. Because there was no reaction, she became anxious. Had she spoken too badly, and did her mom hate her now? For some reason, it seemed like her mom's eyes were shining in the dark room, and she worried that her mom might be crying.
"Mom, I love you."
Yena said, hugging Jeong-o tightly. Mom is my world.
"Mom loves you too."
Thankfully, she heard her mom's warm voice from within her embrace. Only then could Yena feel relieved.
"Yena loves you more."
"How much?"
"As much as the whole world. I love you as much as the whole world."
Yena hugged Jeong-o even tighter and confessed her feelings.
"So don't leave me, Mom."
\ Youngmi had requested a paternity test for Ji-heon and Yena at the Genetic Research Center. The director of the center said he would call with the results late tonight, so Youngmi eagerly awaited the call. She had a feeling that the child was Ji-heon's blood. The pretty child she had met in the elevator. The expression in her eyes as she blinked her big eyes and looked at her was etched in her mind and wouldn't go away.
'If that child is our Ji-heon's child…….'
Then what should she do? What should she say to Ji-heon? She was so worried that her head was filled with complicated thoughts. After 9 PM, the phone rang. Youngmi immediately answered the phone.
"Yes. Director."
[Madam. The samples you sent have been tested.]
Her heart pounded.
"……What are the results?"
[The genetic types of the two samples do not match at all.]
"Then…… are you saying they're not related?"
[Yes. There is absolutely no possibility.]
Her legs gave way, and Youngmi collapsed to the ground. The anxiety and nervousness quickly washed away, and at the same time, anger surged. So, my son is being played by that foxy girl?
"Director, please fax me the test results."
Youngmi requested in a voice trembling with anger. \ Ji-heon couldn't leave right away and stayed in front of Jeong-o's house for a long time. Around 9 PM, Jeong-o came outside. Ji-heon also saw Jeong-o and immediately got out of the car and ran over.
"Is Yena asleep?"
"Yeah."
Jeong-o sighed as she answered. Nothing in the world was easy. She never imagined her daughter would reject her dad so strongly. Ji-heon realized what Guk-soon's request meant. Yena was definitely not an easy opponent. Knowing that her stubbornness and willfulness were his genes, he couldn't complain.
"It seems like your mom knew. That Yena wouldn't accept me right away."
"Heh. I guess so. No wonder."
But at that confession, Jeong-o suddenly burst out laughing.
"Then, Oppa, I'm okay with it too."
"Okay with it?"
Then…… what about me? From Ji-heon's perspective, Jeong-o's opinion was a bolt from the blue. Jeong-o continued to answer clearly.
"It's not like I accepted you because I thought you were so great. I accepted you because we have Yena, and Yena needs a dad, but if Yena is going to act like that, then I have nothing to say."
She had accepted Ji-heon without thinking because she wanted to give her daughter a dad, but after experiencing her daughter's tantrum, she thought they could take it a little slower. She felt bad that Ji-heon looked hurt, but still, this person was an adult.
"Let's understand Yena. She needs time to accept it. Yena and I have been partners for a long time."
"……."
"Even if it's her dad, she wouldn't like it if she felt like she was losing her partner."
At Jeong-o's persuasion, Ji-heon quietly nodded. He felt like he could understand Yena's feelings. Ji-heon also didn't like it when Jeong-o was close to other male colleagues at work. He knew it was work, and he acknowledged it, but he couldn't give up his desire for her to only be by his side. Yena must have inherited her possessiveness from her dad. It wasn't someone else, and his daughter liked her mom, so he had to understand. As he changed his mind, he felt like he was becoming a good person. Being a parent was a really difficult thing. Realizing that nothing goes your way and having patience. The rookie dad, who was seven years late, was learning about life that way. Having accepted everything, Ji-heon took a step closer to Jeong-o, quietly hugged her, and apologized.
"I'm sorry."
"Huh? What for?"
"Just. For everything."
After leaving Jeong-o's house and waiting for her, Ji-heon once again reflected on the past. Guk-soon's story and Yena's tears had given him much to think about. He was filled with regret towards Jeong-o, but he had never properly apologized. She really hadn't accepted him just because she liked him so much. She must have made a lot of concessions for the sake of her child.
Ji-heon said warmly as he released her from the hug. Jeong-o shook her head. It was something she hadn't even thought about.
Her voice came out calmly, but strangely, so strangely, tears fell without warning. Jeong-o was flustered and quickly wiped away the tears with the back of her hand, saying,
She wanted to smile rather than cry because she was so grateful for his apology, but she was embarrassed by the tears that flowed without her intending them to. Just then, she saw thick streams of water falling to the floor with a patter. It was a shower. Ji-heon quickly took off his clothes and covered her head, leading her to his car. Jeong-o couldn't understand his actions of leading her into the car further away when the villa building was right in front of them, but she staggered and followed him. Ji-heon, who pushed Jeong-o in first and then got into the car belatedly, shook the water from his hair and said,
He was flustered by the unexpected rain and just dragged her into the car. Jeong-o burst out laughing, "Ahahaha, I thought you had some kind of kinky plan." Ji-heon complained not to laugh, but Jeong-o's laughter did not subside easily. It was a night when the laughter was more refreshing than the sound of the rain. Maybe happiness starts from a small deficiency. In a life where you have everything from the beginning, you wouldn't know what to be grateful for, but deficiency tells you that it's okay not to be perfect. From the memories of filling that deficiency with our own strength, from the memories of trying so hard to be happy in that deficiency. We were really happy and made so many unforgettable memories. So I don't have any resentment towards you. Looking back, they were all good memories. We were always happy. * The next morning, 6:30 AM. Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong. Someone was urgently ringing the doorbell from the morning. Ji-heon, who had barely fallen asleep at dawn thinking about Yena and Jeong-o, barely got up and opened the front door with heavy steps. It was Ms. Jang Young-mi.
Ji-heon sighed resentfully, but Youngmi opened the front door wide without any sign of apology and came inside.
Ji-heon was dissatisfied with Youngmi's attitude, but he thought he should question her about Jeong-o since his mother had come all the way here. That phone call seven years ago, impersonating him. And the past where everything about Lee Jung-oh was erased. He was convinced that his mother was behind all of it. But before Ji-heon could speak, Youngmi asked first.
The tablet on the table. On that large screen, a picture that anyone could see was a child's bicycle was displayed prominently. Youngmi could sense that Ji-heon was planning to give it as a gift to a child named Lee Yena.
It was something that would make any mother's heart burst.
My foolish son. My pathetic son. He was deceived like that seven years ago, and he's being fooled again.
Tears welled up even as she was furious thinking about her son.
