A Child Who Resembles Me [EN]: Chapter 63

63. I Think There Was Someone I Loved

Jeong-oh was led into the room. It was a meeting room with only a table and chairs.

“Please, have a seat.”

“Yes.”

She silently sat in the chair that Chae Eun-yeop offered and looked at him.

Jeong-oh came to this law firm because of a consultation case she saw on a blog.

The story of a single mother raising a child alone, not even knowing if the father was alive, who met the child’s father again after six years.

The story of how the child’s father turned out to be a man from a fairly well-known family and was about to marry another woman.

Jeong-oh had requested a consultation, drawn in by the information that this law firm had consulted the protagonist of that story and that the dispute had been resolved quite well.

‘Was that my story? How did he know?’

As soon as the thought occurred to her, Jeong-oh felt a chill.

Was Yena’s attempted kidnapping a long time ago also this man’s doing?

The attempted kidnapper seemed to know whose daughter Yena was.

However, there was something she found strange.

‘If it were me, I would have silenced Chae Eun-bi first.’

Knowing all the facts, why did he leave Chae Eun-bi alone to talk about me being a single mother in the office?

‘Is he doing things without his sister’s knowledge?’

Is he like a bodyguard who takes care of everything for his sister’s successful marriage?

The thought made her shudder even more. Jeong-oh hid her trembling hands under the table.

Chae Eun-yeop, facing her, asked with a business smile.

“I heard you’re a single mom. What problem brings you here?”

‘This man is smart and cunning.’

I mustn’t get caught up in his schemes.

‘He might have installed recording devices somewhere.’

I must never show weakness.

Then, what’s the way to proceed with the consultation without exposing my weaknesses?

“Yes… I’m a working single mother.”

Jeong-oh opened her mouth awkwardly.

“It’s because of a colleague at work.”

“A colleague?”

“Yes. As I mentioned, I’m a single mother who works at a company. I’ve worked hard, and I’m still working hard. I’m recognized for my abilities at the company. But one of my colleagues is harassing me too much.”

Perhaps because he judged that it wasn’t the topic he wanted, Chae Eun-yeop’s eyebrows arched in the opposite direction.

“In what way are they harassing you?”

“By revealing that I’m a single mother at the company before I could, or by mentioning my family history. I’m also the daughter of a single mother.”

“……”

“Being a single mother, being the daughter of a single mother, shouldn’t be a flaw, right? Don’t you think so? But this friend, let’s call her Ms. C for convenience, Ms. C makes such facts into flaws and maliciously slanders me. Is it possible to sue for defamation in this case?”

“If you have evidence of exactly what kind of slander it was, you can sue as much as you want.”

“I don’t have evidence, but I have witnesses. My team members can be witnesses. Is it possible to sue in this case? What procedures do I need to follow?”

“It’s often difficult to prove a crime with just witnesses. It would be easier if there was even one clear piece of evidence. Do you have any evidence at all?”

“Hoo. I don’t have any evidence to speak of.”

Jeong-oh sighed deeply and made a look of resignation.

“That’s too bad. I wanted to write a complaint right away.”

“Please gather evidence and visit again. If it’s difficult to visit, you can send it by other means. I’ll check and contact you.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Jeong-oh greeted him with a sincere expression. She wasn’t good at lying, so her heart was pounding the whole time.

“Does the child’s father know? That Lee Jeong-oh has come to see a lawyer like this.”

Even in this situation, Chae Eun-yeop didn’t forget his duty. It seemed he was trying to find out how much Ji-heon knew about Lee Jeong-oh’s secret.

“That was an unrelated consultation, lawyer.”

“It’s a good thing to provide overall assistance.”

When Jeong-oh pointed it out, Eun-yeop quickly changed the subject.

“Anyway, I understand. The number I’m writing down now is my personal phone number. It seems like it would be faster to contact me directly from now on.”

Chae Eun-yeop wrote down his phone number and email address on a memo and handed it over.

‘He should be giving me a business card. But he can’t give me a business card. Because you’re not Ha Jin-cheol [the lawyer whose blog she read].’

“Thank you, lawyer. I almost worried about it alone for a long time, but I’m glad I came.”

Jeong-oh smiled as she accepted the memo.

In fact, she was so nervous that she was about to cry.

‘Did my acting work on Chae Eun-yeop? I’m not very confident, but anyway, I didn’t make any mistakes, so that’s good.’

After saying goodbye to Chae Eun-yeop and safely leaving the office, Jeong-oh took a taxi and immediately took a deep breath.

“Hoo. Ha!”

Sweat beaded on the screen of the cell phone she was holding tightly as if it were a survival instinct. She could feel how nervous she had been until the moment she left the building.

She had to find Ji-heon’s name and press it, but her hands were still shaking so much that her fingertips slipped several times.

In the meantime, all of Ji-heon’s call and text message records appeared on the screen.

‘What is all this…’

Ji-heon sent more text messages than she thought. More than once a day, he was sending her text messages regularly.

The rough breathing caused by Chae Eun-yeop gradually subsided.

– I came to the company, but Lee Jeong-oh is on vacation. Rest well today and see you tomorrow.

– Have a delicious lunch.

– I want to buy Yena a bicycle, what color does Yena like?

June 23, 12:00 PM.

June 24, 12:00 PM.

June 25, 12:00 PM……

12 o’clock. Jeong-oh.

In the middle of the day, as if engraving her existence in his daily life, and as if commemorating her name, he was sending text messages every noon.

It was touching to see this man, who had lost his memory, acting no differently than he had 7 years ago. In fact, she was very grateful.

Jeong-oh found the call button and pressed it.

After a while, she heard the voice she loved, the voice that hadn’t changed for a long time.

[Hello.]

“I miss you!”

Her sincerity burst out like an explosion.

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Ji-heon left the jewelry shop after confirming the clue from 7 years ago that he had lost.

A proposal ring. A ring he was going to give to someone as a gift.

It could never have been given to his mother. If so, his mother would have talked about it dozens or hundreds of times.

Who did I have a relationship with? And why doesn’t she appear?

Ji-heon had never heard the story about the ring from anyone. Even more so about a woman.

Even his close friend Seung-gyu didn’t tell Ji-heon about women.

Have I been hiding my relationship from everyone? Is that why no one knows?

In the meantime, Jeong-oh’s face, who had been cheering for his memory recovery so much, came to mind.

“Still. You have to meet them. That person may be waiting all along.”

She remembered her trembling voice when she said strongly that if there was someone you had forgotten, you had to meet them.

How did she feel when she said that to me?

What does it mean to Lee Jeong-oh that I regain my memory?

I’m so afraid that I’ll lose what’s precious to me now, but what about you?

Lee Jeong-oh. It seems like there was someone I loved a long time ago.

If my memory comes back, do I really have to go find that person?

Actually, I don’t want to.

You, who have been hurt once.

You, who were dumped by your ex-boyfriend and gave birth to a child alone and raised her alone.

I’m afraid that my choice will cause you another wound.

The person I want to protect now is Lee Jeong-oh. It’s you.

He touched the ring case, recalling her face, her voice, everything about her. Then, as if by fate, his cell phone vibrated. The name ‘Lee Jeong-oh’ that appeared on the cell phone screen read like a savior.

He answered the phone right away.

“Hello.”

[I miss you!]

His heart ached at her words. He spoke in a deliberately gentle voice so as not to reveal his overwhelming feelings.

“Are you at home? I’ll go.”

[No. I’m in a taxi now. I’ll go there.]

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Ji-heon quickly came home and waited for Jeong-oh in front of the house.

After pacing around for a few minutes, a taxi arrived. Ji-heon ran and hugged Jeong-oh, who jumped out of the taxi.

Jeong-oh also hugged Ji-heon’s neck. His solid chest felt more comfortable than ever.

Her emotions had been so volatile that her chest was pounding until she arrived, but touching him calmed her down like a lie. Soon, another tremor began, though.

She came to see him because she missed him, but anyway, she had to quickly return home, to her place as a mother.

“I can’t stay long. I just wanted to see the director doing a hobby cooking, flipping pancakes.”

Jeong-oh made an excuse with a smile. Ji-heon’s eyes narrowed. He was a little disappointed.

“…So you wanted to see the flipping, not me?”

“Anyway, wanting to see is similar, right?”

At her glib reply, Ji-heon let out a low sigh.

Ji-heon also knew her situation well.

Lee Jeong-oh will never forget her duty as a mother at any moment.

He also likes and respects that aspect of her. But he couldn’t help but have the instinct of a man who wanted to be with her for a long time.

“Let’s go in.”

Ji-heon led Jeong-oh into the house.

The place where Ji-heon currently lives is on a high floor of a mixed-use apartment building. The rapidly rising elevator was dizzying, and Jeong-oh unknowingly grabbed the elevator handrail tightly.

She had boldly said she wanted to see him first, but perhaps she was nervous when things actually happened.

“I really came to see you cook.”

Jeong-oh told him once again, but there was no answer until the elevator doors opened. Instead, an arm was placed on her shoulder. It was read as an intention to prevent her from running away.

The two of them got out of the elevator together and stood in front of a neat door.

“Here. And.”

9, 1, 3,.0. Ji-heon showed Jeong-oh and pressed the number keys on the front door.

“I’ll change it soon, but I know it for now.”

Click, the door opened. Jeong-oh followed Ji-heon’s guidance and went inside.

“I’m not good with numbers, so I think I’ll forget it soon.”

“It’s my mother’s birthday. March 19th.”

“Then your mother knows the password too.”

“That’s right, but I’m going to change it.”

“Do you change your password often?”

As she continued to talk without even thinking about taking off her shoes, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind.

Huh. Jeong-oh unknowingly held her breath. It seemed like she heard his chuckle from behind, no, from around her butt.

A large, flexible hand quickly scanned her leg and grabbed her ankle.

“Oh, oh, oh?”

Thud, thud.

While Jeong-oh was flustered and awkward, her shoes fell down with a thud. He had taken off her shoes.

Before she knew it, she had left the entrance and entered the house.

Ji-heon, who had been bending one knee at the entrance to take off Jeong-oh’s shoes, stood up. There was no special expression in his eyes, but strangely, she became nervous.

‘No, I really, really had a pure heart to see him cook.’

As his fingertips touched her face, her breath flowed hotly. His hand, which had been stroking her chin and naturally moved to the back of her neck, was ticklish and, on the other hand, made her anxious.

As if he knew that feeling, his lips approached. There was no calculation to show off a formal dish and look for a good opportunity. Just like 7 years ago, he moved too honestly according to his instincts.

The problem is that she doesn’t hate that about him. But Jeong-oh remembered her duty.

This is Korea. Not a hotel in Melbourne, Australia. Today’s meeting was impromptu, and she was a mother who had to go home quickly.

“I’m hungry.”

Struggling to block the kiss that was about to get longer, she said in a short gap.

As expected, he easily swallowed her voice.

She ended up pinching his chest.

He was startled and took his lips off. There was a resentful look in his eyes, but Jeong-oh didn’t back down either.

“I’m hungry. I’m hungry.”

As she stubbornly insisted, he also cooled down his hot sigh and belatedly rubbed his pinched chest.

“That’s right. I almost forgot.”

“……”

“Our deputy manager came because she wanted to see pancakes, not me.”

It was funny that he was even jealous of the pancakes.

It felt like she could hear the blood boiling, but Jeong-oh lightly ignored it, took another step inside, and changed the subject.

“I’ll look around the house myself. Is that okay?”

“As you wish.”

As he, who had been sending sharp glances at her, finally gave up and turned around, Jeong-oh secretly sighed.

Deep in her heart, she wanted to stay longer, but let’s not do that today.

Jeong-oh watched Ji-heon head to the kitchen and moved her feet.

Ji-heon’s house was much wider and higher than the old officetel [a studio apartment]. The night view of the Han River spread out beyond the wide glass window of the living room was dazzling.

Nevertheless, perhaps because there weren’t many furniture and household goods, it felt less cozy than the house 7 years ago. Looking into the kitchen, there didn’t seem to be many cooking utensils either. It seemed like hobby cooking was a bluff.

Walking down the hallway opposite Ji-heon, the unfinished worries unfolded again as she was alone.

How should I ask him about Chae Eun-yeop? How should I warn him? Wouldn’t it be better to awaken his memory now?

But awakening is my memory. His heart, which I have never looked into, may be different from mine.

‘Can I inject my memory into this person? Can I say that we were really in love?’

That made Jeong-oh hesitate.

Jeong-oh, lost in thought, glanced roughly at the rooms with the doors open, as if she were looking around. Bedroom, study, training room, and a room with nothing in it, and then she grabbed the doorknob of the last room, the room with the door closed.

It was something she did without really thinking, but after the door opened, her eyes became hot.

……Haa.

An unprepared sigh flowed from between Jeong-oh’s lips.

“This is……”