A Child Who Resembles Me [EN]: Chapter 4

4. Seven Years Later

“It appears he has lost approximately the last three years of his memory.”

At the attending physician’s assessment, Madam Jang asked,

“If it’s three years, does that mean my son’s memory is stuck at twenty-three?”

“That’s right.”

“Is it possible that his memory might return someday?”

“It’s possible. But try not to stress him out, as it could be difficult for the patient. The patient’s stability is the priority.”

“…….”

“There may be other issues as well, so you’ll need to monitor him for a long time.”

Madam Jang’s pulse raced at the doctor’s advice.

*It’s unfortunate that her son lost three years of memories.*

*But if it’s just the recent three years. If it’s only that.*

*It might actually be better for her son!*

The only things that happened to her son in the last three years were his military enlistment and discharge, and a brief relationship with a girl named Lee Jung-oh.

*If that’s all, wouldn’t it be okay to lose those memories?*

His university life was only two semesters during those three years, so he wouldn’t be too far behind others.

Madam Jang’s mind raced.

*Erase all traces of her son’s past, especially those related to that girl Lee Jung-oh. And go back to the time when he didn’t know Lee Jung-oh and start over.*

*This is an opportunity for my son to be happier.*

“Yes. I will keep a close watch. Thank you, doctor.”

Madam Jang thanked the doctor and came out of the examination room.

Eun-bi was standing outside the examination room with an anxious look on her face.

“Mother.”

The daughter of Supreme Court Justice Chae Seo-bok.

This girl, who had been studying in the United States and recently returned to Korea, had diligently guarded Ji-heon’s hospital room.

It could be a sense of duty as a witness to the hit-and-run accident, but it also seemed like she quite liked her son.

A girl from a good family who was properly educated.

*This is the kind of match my son should have.*

“Yes, Eun-bi.”

“What did the doctor say?”

“He said he lost the last three years of his memory. And we don’t know if his memory will return or not.”

Madam Jang told Eun-bi the truth and sighed deeply.

“……Then, has he lost his memories of me too?”

Eun-bi also looked worried. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“Ji-heon *oppa* [older brother or male friend, term of endearment] used to adore me.”

“Oh, really?”

“He even said we should date when I come back to Korea, though it was just a joke, but he won’t remember that either.”

The moment she heard Eun-bi’s confession, Madam Jang unknowingly grabbed Eun-bi’s hand tightly.

“It’s okay! We can start over.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Of course. Absolutely.”

Seeing her shy smile as she cheered her up, she looked so lovely. Madam Jang sincerely began to imagine a happy future.

*How wonderful would it be if such a girl became her daughter-in-law someday.*

After parting with Eun-bi, Madam Jang returned to the hospital room.

Ji-heon, who had been asleep, woke up and was staring blankly out the window.

“You’re awake? How do you feel?”

Madam Jang spoke to Ji-heon, who answered dryly in a monotone. She wanted to breathe life into her son.

“You saw Eun-bi, right? Eun-bi worked so hard while you were lying unconscious. She visited you every day without fail.”

“Eun-yeop’s sister?”

“Yes. She’s been busy since she just came back from studying in the United States a few days ago, but she took good care of you.”

“…….”

“Oh, do you remember this? It seems you adored Eun-bi a lot. You said that before she went to study abroad. That you’d date her when she came back to Korea.”

“Really? That’s strange.”

“…….”

“Eun-yeop’s sister is not my type.”

Ji-heon said coldly, as if he had no feelings.

His expression was empty, as if there was a huge hole in his chest.

It seemed that her son had not only lost his memory in this accident but had also severed many emotional ties.

Watching this, Madam Jang smiled weakly, feeling sorry.

“Well, maybe it was just a polite remark.”

“…….”

“But she’s really kind and pretty. She’s also smart and does so well by me. You must have found her actions lovely and adored her.”

*No. He wouldn’t have made such nonsense even as a polite remark. He wouldn’t have adored her.*

Ji-heon wanted to refute, but at the same time, he didn’t feel like saying anything, so he remained silent.

*What happened during the three years I lost?*

*The military… Was military life that hard? How can I have no memory at all?*

He wanted to recall something, even something very small, but it was no use. Madam Jang asked with a worried expression as Ji-heon’s brow furrowed.

“What’s wrong? Does your head hurt again?”

“It’s okay.”

“…….”

“It feels like I’ve forgotten something very important.”

The more he tried to remember, the more his head felt like it was breaking.

But the tears didn’t seem to flow from his eyes but from his heart.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Jung-oh couldn’t go to the hospital.

She felt like she could overcome anything when she was with Ji-heon, but just the fact that she had lost contact with Ji-heon made her completely lose her spirit.

But her body was honest. She felt sleepy and had chest pains. Even when sitting still, she felt nauseous as if she had motion sickness.

She couldn’t keep putting it off. She couldn’t keep despairing.

She had to make a decision.

*Let’s try one last time.*

*Let’s contact him again one last time.*

Jung-oh bravely picked up her phone.

Beep beep beep. Her heart pounded throughout the ringing tone. But the call was never connected.

Her heart, which had collapsed so many times, collapsed again, and her mind became so ruined that she couldn’t even build a single brick.

When she was so dry that not even tears would flow, her phone vibrated for the first time in a long time.

Unexpectedly, Ji-heon’s name appeared.

Jung-oh hurriedly answered the phone.

“Hello.”

[Lee Jung-oh?]

It was definitely Ji-heon’s voice. How long has it been since she heard his voice?

“*Oppa*…….”

She had so much to say. So much. All the pent-up emotions exploded.

Tears welled up again in her tear ducts, which she thought were empty.

“Why didn’t you contact me…….”

She said it as if complaining. But she couldn’t get too angry.

*Yes. I also thought something was wrong. There’s no way *oppa* would just cut off contact.*

“*Oppa*. What happened? Is everything okay?”

But her resentment didn’t last long. Checking on his condition was the priority.

[I’m fine.]

Jung-oh felt relieved at the answer from the other side of the receiver.

*Yes. It’s okay as long as nothing happened. Now, we can solve other problems together.*

*That’s what she wanted to say.*

[I know that my mother met you on my behalf. Wasn’t that the end of it?]

A dry voice was heard again.

“……Huh?”

[Didn’t that convey all my opinions?]

Words so heartless that she couldn’t believe they were his.

[I’d appreciate it if you didn’t contact me anymore, as it’s burdensome.]

But it was definitely his voice.

Jung Ji-heon’s voice coming from Jung Ji-heon’s phone.

Jung-oh’s expression froze. A darkness even greater than when contact was lost loomed before her eyes.

[You wouldn’t want to be a stumbling block in someone else’s life, would you?]

She was breathless.

*Did I become a stumbling block in *oppa’s* life?*

Why? Because I had a child?

[It would be best if you prepare yourself when you contact me again.]

“……Prepare myself?”

Prepare myself? Prepare for what!

[I’ll assume you understood and hang up. Take care.]

The calm and sharp voice signaled the end.

Click.

Without an answer to her question, before she could even say hello, the phone was disconnected.

*No way.*

Her strength drained, and she dropped her phone from her hand.

But she shook her head.

*That can’t be. It must be a lie.*

Picking up her phone, Jung-oh wiped away her tears with her sleeve and quickly dialed Ji-heon’s number again.

[The power is off, please leave a message after the beep…….]

The message she had heard dozens of times rang painfully, as if hitting her eardrums.

That was the end of the two of them.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

*Oppa*, our child has turned one year old.

She has started calling me mom.

She sometimes calls you dad, I don’t know where she learned it.

Ji-heon, our child is now running around.

She is also going to daycare.

She is very curious and eats well.

She likes to touch mom’s face and sometimes sings.

Jung Ji-heon. Now, Yena will be in elementary school next year.

She is very pretty, has a good personality, and has many friends.

She doesn’t have a dad, but she is so bright.

Now I don’t wait for your call.

Come to think of it, you never told me you loved me.

Well, I don’t think it was all a lie.

You liked me well enough, but not enough to say you loved me.

It’s okay. Now.

The season she couldn’t let go of for a long time remained only as hard sediment like iron pellets.

And enough time for the surface of those iron pellets to rust again.

Seven years have passed.

Now she no longer cries because of a love that has left.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

“Mom, why is there a *뽑기* [Gacha machine, random 뽑기 machine] here?”

On the way back from the academy.

Yena, who had let go of her mom’s hand and ran a few steps ahead, stopped in front of the *뽑기* machine and asked.

“Mom, why is there a *뽑기* here?”

The child’s sparkling eyes, with her head held high, tickled Jung-oh’s heart.

Clear valley water, eyes shining like black pebbles swaying along the water’s path.

Even that clever mind, acting out a curious expression, was a lovely child who didn’t even look hateful.

“Mom, why is there a *뽑기* here?”

“Lee Yena. Are you really asking because you’re curious about why there’s a *뽑기* here, or are you asking because you want to do *뽑기*?”

Jung-oh narrowed her eyes and asked.

“Tell me honestly.”

“Because I want to.”

Yena, who had her true feelings discovered, confessed with her plump lips pursed slightly.

*She’s so cute that I can’t even scold her.*

Jung-oh laughed.

“Choose. I’ll only do one for you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t get what you want. I’ll only do it once.”

“This one.”

Yena pointed to the bottom left *뽑기* machine.

“It eats up three 500-won coins. Yena, how much is three 500-won coins?”

“1,500 won!”

I asked the question to teach her how to count, but the answer was faster than ever.

It seemed she had already calculated it in her mind.

Jung-oh glanced at Yena with narrowed eyes and handed her three 500-won coins in her cute little hands.

Yena skillfully put the coins into the *뽑기* machine.

Seeing how skillfully she handled the machine, it seemed like it was a technique she had used a lot with her grandmother.

A seven-year-old is very sly.

Jung-oh thought of the sly man from seven years ago.

He was so gently sly that she didn’t even realize she was being deceived.

She found herself thinking of the child’s father in a strange place.

*But I’m not the Lee Jung-oh from the old days either.*

Jung-oh was now someone who could laugh at her naive self from seven years ago.

Just because she thinks of him from time to time doesn’t mean she misses him.

It’s just like a farmer recalling a severe famine.

A terrible past.

She hopes she never encounters him again.

“Wow! Mom! I got what I wanted!”

Yena jumped up and down with the *뽑기* capsule in her hand, but Jung-oh felt empty.

A rubber ball. It was just a lump of rubber rounded up. She didn’t like that a rubber ball cost 1,500 won, so she asked Yena.

“Yena, you wanted this?”

“Yes!”

“Why?”

“It’s the color of a *baduk* [Go] piece.”

Yena, who had taken the contents out of the capsule with her own strength, answered.

This rubber ball, dressed in a soccer ball costume, was good because it was a similar color to a *baduk* piece.

*I can’t stop her, really.*

Jung-oh laughed.

Like the leaves of the roadside trees in this season, her daughter had grown up again before she knew it. She had become a child who knew her tastes and could express them.

Throughout the walk to the restaurant, Yena’s hand did not leave her pocket.

Jung-oh could clearly see her putting the rubber ball in her pocket and fidgeting with it.

Her pace was also faster than usual. It was clear that she was determined to go to her grandmother’s restaurant and take out the rubber ball from her pocket to play in earnest.

The two walked vigorously and reached ‘Guksun Baekban’.

‘Guksun Baekban’. Jung-oh’s mother, Lee Guk-sun’s restaurant.

It’s a small restaurant with only five tables, but it’s famous in the neighborhood. It’s so popular that nearby office workers line up to wait during lunchtime.

“Grandmother!”

“Our baby is here? Come and eat quickly.”

When Yena opened the restaurant door and shouted loudly, Guksun greeted her with a broad smile. Dinner for the two was already prepared on the table.

Before even sitting at the table, Yena took out the rubber ball from her pocket.

“Did you do *뽑기* again?”

Guksun asked, recognizing what Yena was holding in her hand. Yena didn’t answer as if she felt guilty.

Today’s dinner menu was bean sprout soup and spicy pork stir-fry.

Yena quickly became sullen at the table without pork cutlets or *tteokbokki* [spicy rice cakes, popular Korean street food].

Without knowing Yena’s feelings, Guksun picked up a side dish of anchovies and placed it on top of Yena’s rice bowl.

“What is our puppy doing? You have to pick up your spoon quickly.”

When Yena didn’t move, Guksun’s hand went to Yena’s spoon as a habit. Guksun scooped rice from Yena’s rice bowl and brought it to Yena’s mouth.

“Mom, let her eat on her own.”

Jung-oh, who was sitting in front of her, said as she scooped rice into her mouth like a servant.

“The child doesn’t eat, that’s why.”

Guksun retorted.

Her daughter and granddaughter are Guksun’s treasures.

Her daughter eating her fill of the rice she cooked, her granddaughter diligently putting food into her mouth, this was Guksun’s joy of the day.

As if reading her mind, Yena looked at her mom and said.

“Grandmother, I’m full just by watching mom eat.”

Pfft. Jung-oh laughed loudly while swallowing her rice.

A child is a mirror of an adult.

A child picks up the pieces of words that adults casually utter and makes her own pocket.

So Jung-oh also tries to use pretty words and good actions. To be a role model for her daughter Yena.

Even while eating, Guksun got up several times to serve customers. Jung-oh tried to take care of it, but Guksun cherished her daughter.

“Eat quickly and go in. Go home and prepare for work tomorrow.”

“What’s there to prepare for work?”

“It’s your first time going after changing jobs. You have to prepare your mind.”

As if preparing her mind was a large-scale move, Guksun’s voice was filled with strength.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

The next day.

“Do well. Don’t skip lunch.”

First day at the new company. Jung-oh left home with Guksun’s send-off.

She got a recommendation from a senior colleague who had moved to the new company first. It was a small company, but the conditions were good, so she didn’t hesitate for long.

However, the senior colleague suddenly told Jung-oh, who had arrived at the new company, to come to Gangnam.

Jung-oh waited for her senior colleague at the Bank Intersection. After a while, her senior colleague arrived.

“Deputy Lee.”

“Senior.”

Jung-oh, who greeted her senior colleague, asked what was going on.

“Why did you call me here?”

“The company has been sold. To Max Planning.”

Unpredictable life.

Jung-oh couldn’t close her open mouth and asked after a long time.

“When?”

“The official announcement was made last night, didn’t you see the article?”

There’s no way she could have seen it. Last night, she went to bed early according to her mother’s words.

“It seems like things progressed very quickly. But Deputy Lee’s position is still there. Only the company building and management have changed. It’s just a temporary confusion, it will be resolved soon.”

“…….”

“Since it’s Deputy Lee’s first time anywhere, I’ve arranged for you to join this company directly without having to write a labor contract twice. I’ll be coming here soon too, so don’t worry.”

Come to think of it, the place where her senior colleague asked to meet was in front of the building where Max Planning was located.

Max Planning was a better company and the location was good, but it was sudden.

“The HR team has contacted me. Go in quickly.”

“By myself?”

“Deputy Lee can do well.”

Her senior colleague patted Jung-oh on the shoulder as if encouraging her.

Extreme fear was added to the excitement and nervousness of the first day of the job change.

She felt like she was alone in the vast ocean.

But life is originally alone.

Thirty years. The experiences of a not-so-short life had become Jung-oh’s assets. Compared to the despair of a long time ago, this level of tension is nothing.

*Lee Jung-oh, you can do it!*

Jung-oh firmly put strength into her body and entered the building.

One woman and one man were standing in front of the company entrance.

“Lee Jung-oh?”

When Jung-oh answered ‘Yes!’, the man introduced Jung-oh to the woman.

“Team Leader, this is Lee Jung-oh, the new copywriter.”

The woman, who nodded her head greatly, held out her hand to Jung-oh.

“Deputy Lee Jung-oh, nice to meet you. I’m Sung Mi-ran, the team leader of Production Team 2. Let’s work well together.”

“Yes. I look forward to working with you.”

She felt a little relieved that the team leader’s impression was good.

Soon, Jung-oh parted ways with the HR team employee and moved with Mi-ran.

“I heard about it. You transferred to Sangah Planning but ended up coming here.”

“Yes.”

“It must be confusing. It’s been so hectic here lately that we don’t have time to take care of you. Can you adapt well?”

“Yes. Of course.”

Jung-oh answered vigorously.

Unlike the hectic introduction, the inside of the company was as quiet as a mouse.

Miran, who felt something strange, also asked the employee of the next team as soon as she ran into them while moving to her seat.

“Why is it so quiet?”

“Director Jung is over there.”

The employee of the next team pointed to the end of the hallway and answered.

Jung-oh also turned her head and looked at the end of the hallway. He was a man who was much taller and slender than the others. His back view seemed to suit the title of model rather than director.

“Really? Then there’s no need to go and say hello separately.”

Miran, who muttered to herself, leaned her head closer to Jung-oh and said urgently.

“Actually, Director Jung is scarier than the CEO. He’s only been here for a week…….”

“…….”

“He’s the son of the group chairman.”

The chairman’s son. He’s from another world.

Her stomach churned because of the tension.

*I have to do well. I have to do well.*

The moment Jung-oh put strength back into her body, Director Jung turned his body from the other side of the hallway.

Life is always unpredictable.

Jung-oh’s face, which had been facing the other side of the hallway, hardened.

……That body, that face.

Seven years of time. As if the gap in time was a lie, she could clearly recognize him even from afar.

The father of my child.

Jung Ji-heon. It was that person.

She never thought she would meet him like this.

She didn’t even know he was this kind of person.

Jung-oh was so embarrassed that her body wouldn’t move, but he was approaching without even hesitating, without even a tremor in his eyes.

Step, step, step.

The sound of his heels landing was heavy, as if chaining her body like shackles.

It felt like all the air holes were blocked, and even breathing was not easy.

Only her heart was struggling inside, to the point where it seemed like it would jump out.

He is coming.

Something she had waited for like a dream someday.

But now she wanted to shake her head and refuse.

While Jung-oh was shaking her head vigorously in her mind, he came very close.

Finally, the steps that had approached with the same pace and constant speed stopped. In front of her.

The accident stopped.

Ji-heon grabbed her tightly as she took a half step back without even knowing it.